Normally I am not really into the western time period when it comes to books, but for some reason I did decide to read this one. And it was a nice, fun read about women outlaws in a zeppelin and a woman who is living her life like it's expected in that time. Given away to the sherrif to marry, but Penelope is not a docile woman and misses something in her life. So when the crew of Mirage Currier accidentally kidnaps her, it turns out to be a good thing that shows her that women can choose their own path as well.
Thrown in is the storyline about Mirage sister that's being hanged for a crime she didn't commit according to the crew which ties in with the romance and wraps up nicely in the end. Don't expect a challenging read with a big plot and a lot of angst or deeply delved into characters and let the whole superfast, quite unbelievable love connection slide...then you will have an enjoyable couple hours of reading to look forward to.

** an ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review **

Some books are like cotton candy: fun and sweet, a quick and enjoyable experience with the slightest twinge of "aw maybe I shouldn't have" afterwards. "The Persephone Star" by Jamie Sullivan quickly falls into this category, introducing us to characters and story with not so much as a fine painter's brush so much as slabs of paint chunked on to an enormous canvas. Good and bad are black and white, no subtlety or gray areas in sight.

The story progresses at a constant clip without a moment to stop and take a breath. The romance, while present, is secondary to the constant action. Unfortunately, it would be nice to have a little more downtime with our heroes. The constant focus on action makes the rest of the character relationships a little forgettable.

The story will appeal to fans of any kind of fast-paced fiction regardless of genre - it's simply THAT kind of book: an eminently readable page turner with broad appeal, even if it ends quickly and doesn't stick with you later. Cotton candy.

Cute in fiction can go either way. I’ve used it in both negative and positive connotations. But generally it’s something to stay away from…unless, like this book, cute is done just right. So interestingly enough this is a mix of wild west, steampunk and romance (all genres I avoid) that somehow ended up being plenty entertaining. Persephone Star is a ship of outlaws, adorable all female bunch of outlaws with an adorable pint sized leader to (presumably cowboy) boot named Mirage Currier. According to the rumors these ladies present a formidable threat, so everyone is one high alert as the ship arrives. Their mission is to rescue Mirage’s sister, wrongly accused of murder and sentenced to be hung. The local sheriff, bastard that he is, is out to get the outlaws, wishing to see them all hung, or drawn and quartered or at the very least dead somehow. Penelope Moser, his quiet postmaster/librarian fiancée isn’t so sure. And then she gets mistakenly kidnapped and whisked away to the ship in the skies and nothing will ever be the same. Turns out there is entirely too much excitement to be had aboard Persephone Star. I mean, the ladies there are wearing trousers, how daring, how wild. So that’s the basics…you have all the shootouts and dust the western requires, plenty of action, plenty of adventure. There’s an awesome dirigible. Penelope and Mirage (call her Mell) are adorable together. It’s silly, but entirely too much fun. And such a quick read too. Recommended for the right mood. Thanks Netgalley.

Robin Hood is retold in a historical-cum-steampunk milieu in this entertaining novella.

Penelope Moser is the Post Mistress in Fortuna. She has a dream of starting a library but though she has some books, there are no readers. Penelope has been travelling from city to city with her father who is busy opening banks. Fortuna is in the Wild West and her eastern sensibilities are outraged at the lawlessness. The sheriff of Fortuna, Cullen Wiley, a man as lawless as they come, is her fiancé. Though not happy with her lot, Penelope is resigned to be the ‘little woman’. The town is in a upheaval because The Persephone Star, vehicle of the infamous outlaw, Mirage Currier, has been sighted. While the Star is just hanging around in the sky, everyone has the jitters. Before Penelope came to Fortuna and became the postmistress, there had been an ‘incident’ involving the outlaws of The Persephone Star and Wiley. Since no one tells Penelope what happened, she goes hunting for information and finds that at that time all the outlaws had been arrested and all but one were released. Young Corinna Currier was found guilty of shooting the mayor and sentenced to death. Except that the outlaws hired one lawyer after another and the hanging has been postponed until now. Penelope however finds some information that doesn’t quite fit into the claims by eyewitnesses, Wiley and his second, Lewis. Before she can explore any further, she is kidnapped by the outlaws.

The beginning of the book has excellent details and Penelope is instantly likeable. Sullivan writes about the expectations from women and the treatment meted out to them throughout the book without really focussing on it but weaving it into the story excellently. Not a lot has changed from the author’s imagined past to today. The merry band of female outlaws are all easy to warm up to and each had a defined personality. The end is a little hurried and tied up rather too neatly, but for a novella, it is quite okay. The pacing is spot-on and at no point did our interest drop. Though this is not a YA novel, it feels like one and the ship has a very Neverland feel to it.

This is a short entertainer which can be completed in one sitting to clear the mind between more angsty or heavier reads.