spoiler alert ** I haven't read watchmaker,and for me,that didn't detract from my enjoyment or understanding of this book.
It's a very good stand alone story.
It races from London,to Japan (or as much as one can back in the 1800s) and throws all sorts at you,clairvoyant,electrical storms,devious politicians,ghosts,murder.... 
I loved the character of Six,and would have liked to have seen more of her in the first half where she seemed almost forgotten.
The strands all tied together so very well,and I genuinely had an "ahhhh" moment near the end.
Cracking story,with some very amusing lines.

This was a delightfully whimsical and weird book with some fabulous characters and I really enjoyed it. It tells the story of Mori and Thaniel and their journey to Japan in late 1888, where they must attempt to stop a Russian invasion and discover why there are so many ghosts in Tokyo.

The Positives: I love all of the characters here and they are so well drawn and fleshed out that they feel completely authentic. I particularly loved Six and thought the way she was represented was fantastic, as were her interactions with Mori and Thaniel. The setting is so atmospheric and has a real, otherworldly quality, with the mist and the ghosts and the random electricity. I thought Natasha Pulley did a great job of juggling a lot of different plot elements for the most part and that the overall plot was very compelling. I also thought that her writing was fantastic, with really lyrical prose combined with punchy and believable dialogue.

The Negatives: There are a lot of plot strands here and there were times when I wasn't 100% sure what was going on or why something was relevant. This led to a little bit of narrative lag for me.

Overall, this was a really enjoyable read and will appeal to anyone who likes their books with a speculative twist.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Hubris is thinking you are ready to write a review of a book that absolutely gutted you mere days after reading it. You are not ready. Honestly, you will probably never be ready. So, hubris it is.

The Lost Future of Pepperharrow takes us out of England and all the way to Japan, where the Prime Minister is conducting some highly suspicious research that requires Mori for some reason. Furthermore, Thaniel finds himself investigating a number of hauntings reported by staff at the British Legation.

Natasha Pulley has pretty much cornered the market on quietly magical books. She did it in The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Bedlam Stacks, and she’s done it again here. It’s a combination of the utter gorgeousness of her writing, and the magic and mystery evoked by it. It’s the sort of writing that makes you want to go back and read the whole thing over again, just to catch a little more of that magic. Actually, it makes you want to go back and read every single thing written by the author.

Second to the magic as my favourite thing (but very very close second) are the characters. If you loved them in Watchmaker, you will love them immeasurably more in this book, while also having your heart shattered into a million pieces by them. I know because that’s exactly what happened to me reading this. Not to mention the characters you want to see together are actually separated for a good chunk of the book. It’s basically a recipe for having your heart ripped out your chest.

And then the end happens and all you’re left with is the desperate need to go back and live in that world all over again.

Like its predecessor 'The Watchmaker of Filigree Street', this book is, more than anything else, a visually stunning novel. We're transported from the greyness of Victorian London to the beauty of Japan.

The story is clever, using 'ghosts' as visual images, or time stamps i guess. Pulley weaves a tale that at times is in equal parts amusing and heartbreaking, that has the feeling of a clever time travel book, without all the confusing time hops.

Overall an extremely enjoyable book, it just had something missing that stopped me from loving it. A worthy followup from an interesting new author.

Thaniel is unwell so a posting to Japan is perfect timing in order to get away from the London smog. In Japan he is introduced to Mori's world - his friends, his bannermen, his wife and his wonderful home. There are strange goings on in Japan - the electricity is sparking and ghosts keep appearing. Japan is in turmoil with a Russian fleet off Nagasaki and an unpopular prime minister. Thaniel and Mori's private world is none the less tumultuous.
I have to confess at this point that I wasn't a big fan of the Watchmaker of Filigree Street. In fact, had I realised that this was the sequel I probably wouldn't have bothered reading it - and what a mistake that would have been. I really loved this book.
This is a complex and intricate book. The chapters are clearly labelled with the place and date and the reader is wise to keep an eye on this. The story does twist in time and place. It is hard to write a complex book with so much detail and I think this author really pulled it off. There are so many threads but I felt they all came together at the end. It might be a good idea to make a note of character's name as you go on as they are referred to by different parts of their name in different places - at time it was Mori, then Keita and sometimes Keit. Although this is okay for the main characters it does happen for some of the lesser ones as well which did lead to minor confusion in places.
I loved the characters in this book. Six has got to be my favourite. Thaniel is a man who is devoted to his family and his work. He is intelligent above his station which in Victorian England (and Japan) is not necessarily a good thing. Pepperharrow is just wonderful but in places very sad. Mori is complex and intricate and I'll leave the reader to draw their own conclusions.
I loved this book. It swallowed me up into its world of Japan, ghosts and Victorian hierarchy. The vocabulary is rich and the descriptions paint a most beautiful picture. I wonder if there will be a third book? Certainly one to watch for.
I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

I was thrilled to be offered this as an ARC from the publishers. It has been a long time since I read The Watchmaker of Filigree Street (the prequel to this novel), but the story soon came rushing back to me. The deepening of the relationship between the central characters was very much appreciated, particularly with the addition of Six, the young girl adopted by our favourite couple, who is most likely autistic and having to deal with her differences in a world which truly does not understand her.

I would recommend reading The Watchmaker of Filigree Street if possible before reading Pepperharrow if possible, simply because you will have a deeper understanding of the background and character motivations to enhance your enjoyment of the narrative.

There is magic in this book, and a sense of urgency to find out what happens next making it impossible to put down. I sincerely hope Ms. Pulley writes more novels based in her intricate worlds (The Bedlam Stacks is another, which does tie in loosely to both this and The Watchmaker). Can we have more of this please???

I’d been looking forwards to reading this book since I learn’t it was coming and I certainly wasn’t disappointed.

The Lost Future of Pepperharrow is the follow up novel to the wonderful Watchmaker of Filigree Street. If you havn’t read that book yet (and you should because its great) you will need to before diving in to this one.

Although you could probably follow the story without doing so, you would have missed everything that led Thaniel, Mori and Six to where they are at the start of Pepperharrow and that would be a real shame as you wouldn’t start by caring about them.

Natasha Pulley’s writing is fabulous, her sentences, character building and world building are just so enjoyable to read.

I loved Thaniel and Mori’s relationship with their adopted daughter Six, who it was heavily implied but never said (because frankly it didn’t need to be) is autistic. The way Thaniel held himself back from hugging her because she didn’t like it and the trust she showed in her adopted parents was incredibly touching.

I was thrilled that Katsu was back as well, I think I’ve said it before but I’m a sucker for ‘sentient’ animals in books and a clockwork octopus is no different.

This time we we follow Thaniel, Mori and Six to Mori’s home in Japan.

Mori and Thaniel’s relationship is beautifully realised. Neither of them are (or can be) openly demonstrative with each other. Theirs is a relationship played close, no overt gestures or loud decelerations but no less for it. Several times their conversations bought a lump to my throat.

This is a magical book full of strange happenings and mysteries. At its heart though is a very human story and it was a delight to spend more time in the company of Thaniel and Mori.

Mori, Thaniel and adopted daughter Six, travel to Tokyo Japan where the staff at the British Legation are seeing ghosts, and Thaniel's task is to find out what's going on.
Strange electric storms manifest and Mori disappears - Mori has a gift and there are some who will stop at nothing to use it.
This is a magical historical fiction with a thread of fantasy running through it. It's a follow up to The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and I feel like I've waited forever for this but it was definitely worth the wait.