I surprisingly really enjoyed this book! It was the perfect blend of historical fiction with fantasy that is pretty rare in today’s market. I cannot wait for the physical release!

The Brass Queen is a delightful, fun, madcap steampunk adventure, and I enjoyed it enormously! It's escapism in the purest sense of the word, which is exactly what I wanted to read right now. The plot threads overlap and tangle wildly, with fast-moving technicolor hijinks in every chapter. It also doesn't take itself too seriously, encouraging the reader to kick back and enjoy the ride. It's 400 pages long, but I absolutely whipped through it in a weekend.

I'd describe this book as Penny Dreadful meets Scooby-Doo on a dirigible (which is a set of words I frankly never thought I'd use consecutively).

If you're in the mood for a steampunk spree involving invisible assassins, Murder Polo, sky pirates, and a brief appearance by the kraken, you will absolutely eat this up.

I had fun reading this. The first two or so chapters were a touch slow but once I got into it the pages flew by. It was a bit silly but that’s okay! There was Action! Adventure! Romance! It probably wouldn’t surprise you oh gentle reader to know the heroine was suitably spirited and the mysterious stranger with the chiseled jaw -despite his regrettable wardrobe turns out to perhaps be dashing. There is at least one cad to be found within as well!
I’d recommend this one for a light read you don’t need to take too seriously.

The Brass Queen is a first time read by Elizabeth Chatsworth, a new to me author. I typically do not read much steampunk or sci-fi fantasy romances but have in the past and thought this one might be very interesting to read.

Miss Constance Haltwhistle, heroine who believes everything is about her. She believes only in herself and doesn’t care about others and their feelings. In the beginning of the story, I found it very hard to believe that she could be the beauty that would have men lining up when she has characteristics mentioned above. However, when J.F. Trusdale, an American spy enters the scene, the dynamics of the story changes for both characters. There is quite a bit of banter between the H/h that I love which makes for a good start to the romantic relationship between the two. Although the story has its ups and downs, it kept my interest and turned out to be a light-hearted and entertaining story. The characters are loveable in their own way that also makes this book a humorous and adventurous delight.

Thank you Netgalley and CamCat Publishing for this ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed are completely my own.

Set in an alternate Victorian England, The Brass Queen is the alias of Constance Haltwhistle, a curvaceous, bullheaded aristocrat who secretly fills her family estate's coffers by inventing and dealing in arms. Constance has a problem. Her uncle is out to have her father declared dead so he can destroy everything that was ever his...including Constance. As her father is living happily in an alternate dimension and refusing to return home, Constance's only means of defense is to meet and marry someone suitable bey the end of the week...
Enter Trusdale, a handsome American spy trying to find out what happened to his brother, whilst pretending to be said brother in order to gain entry to the Steamwerks, Queen Victoria's factory for maintaining and expanding her global empire. Throw in a megalomaniac royal with aspirations to gain the British throne by evil means, an entourage of faithful but quirky family servants, a group of invisible assassins, and enough steam powered inventions to fill a museum, and you have one lighthearted romp of a book.

My problem with this one was simple. In a romance (and this has such a strong romance subplot that it is arguably a romance), I need to believe in the attractiveness of both parties in order to buy in. And I found the heroine of this one very unattractive.

At one point, the hero says, "I don't know why men aren't lining up around the block to marry her," and I thought, "Oh, I do."

She's high-handed, hot-headed, self-centred, and has no people skills whatsoever, possibly because she believes everything is about her, and so doesn't bother to consider what other people might be thinking and feeling. Also, though this wouldn't put off the noblemen she hopes will marry her, since they share the quality, she's severely overprivileged. And finally, though at this point the hero and the noblemen don't know this (the reader does), she's an arms trader who has no hesitation selling weapons, legally or otherwise, to criminals, imperialists and despots. This is more because she doesn't think about how they will be used than because she thinks about it and doesn't care, but that doesn't exactly make up for it.

Queen Victoria is one of the aforementioned despots, by the way, having (in a development that seems highly unlikely for anyone who knows much British history) dismissed Parliament so that she can rule uninhibited. Several characters we're supposed to sympathize with, including the heroine, are in effect propping up her despotic and dystopian rule and helping her to conquer other nations.

Steampunk is prone to bad copy editing, for some reason. Since I got a pre-publication version via Netgalley I won't say much about this, except that I hope there's another round of copy editing before it's published. It's already better than a lot I've seen, but that's a sadly low bar. I'd expected a better starting point from someone with an English literature degree, frankly.

I'd also expected fewer obvious Americanisms in the POV of the British characters from someone born in the UK, but there we are. Perhaps they're deliberately translated for a US audience.

Leaving all of these problems aside - which is difficult - there were good aspects. There are genuinely funny moments (though cruelty and despotism played for laughs didn't get any from me). There are thrilling action scenes. The hero, if possibly a bit underdeveloped, is a decent guy.

Overall, though, I just couldn't stand the heroine.

This is perhaps the hardest book to review that I have ever read. The description of this book sounded interesting to me. I have never read another steam punk novel before, thus, this was a unique experience for me. The first few chapters held enough mystery and intrigue to keep me captivated. However the story soon became a little dull and lifeless. However at about the 30% mark of the book, things once again picked up. Even through the parts that were not to my liking I was strangely hooked. And I kept picking the book up shortly after closing it, in order to find out what happened next. The characters were quite well done. While I am sure everyone will focus on the main characters (which were well written), the stars of this book for me were the servants. They were very well thought out and they each had very interesting outlooks that made the story much better in my opinion. While this book had its highs and lows for me, the ending was simply splendid. In fact the ending was so good, that it really helped enhance the overall impression that the book left with me. All in all, this was a very interesting and entertaining read. I would definitely consider reading a sequel to this book if the author chooses to make the Brass Queen into a series.

I wasn’t a big fan of this story. In the beginning I thought it was going to be a great adventure steeped in mystery but overall, it just felt quite silly. I did not love the main characters. I thought they had no real connection. I also did not enjoy the way the historical elements and the steampunk elements meshed. It didn’t feel very natural. The writing was nice. At times I felt like maybe the goal of the book was to be funny. I guess it was just not my kind of book.

In The Brass Queen, this very capable author transports her readers into a nineteenth-century magical world of festooned airships, exo-suits, multi-fueled flamethrowers, mechanical mallet-wielding beasts, brass blunderbusses, and invisibility serum.

The heroine—gregarious, hilarious, and larger-than-life—Constance Haltwhistle, is an arms dealer for an enterprise known as Steamwerks and the daughter of ‘a portal-tripping mad scientist’. Thrust into a fanatical hunt for a husband, in order to retain her family’s estate, she reluctantly hosts a coming-out ball. There she meets J.F. Trusdale, a cowboy from Kansas; the only thing plain about him is the land upon which he took his first breath.

Following the kidnapping of her avant-garde scientists, Constance realizes a diabolical plan is in play and selflessly tosses her own agenda aside with the gallant Trusdale at the ready to assist.

The novel clips along at an entertaining pace. New to this genre, I found it a surprisingly refreshing change from the detective mysteries I normally read, and I highly recommend it.

Such a fun book! Miss Constance Haltwhistle and J.S. Trusdale are indelible and intrepid characters, and their adventures kept me turning pages. The side characters were also amusing, and I love how Chatsworth brings in fantastical elements - alternate universes exist alongside and facilitated by steampunk technology. The humor was top notch.

I could have done with a smidge more of the heavily hinted-at romance to come, but the main characters' final scenes together were very sweet.

A great steam punk novel for fans of Kady Cross! The world building is stunning and the characters are lovable, witty and brave. I will definitely looking forward to reading more from this author.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Okay, so envision Mary Poppins but as a younger, flame-haired, brilliant arms dealer. And then imagine Mr. Dawes Sr. as a Stetson-wearing spy from Kansas. Subtract the kids, add an airship or two and some flame guns. Got it? That's this book, and it's <b>so much fun</b>.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this story, honestly. Steampunk (or gaslamp fantasy, I get them confused) isn't always my genre. It's a lot of fun, but it's so niche and after a few stories you sort of get the idea. But I really found Chatsworth's feminist reworking of the genre to be so fresh and interesting and <i>hilarious</i>. I literally laughed out loud in a few spots.

I'm going to be recommending this to readers who enjoy witty banter, dry humor, and much derring-do. It's also a good fit for folks who enjoy a dash of romance but don't want to be overwhelmed by the heaving bodices and such. Also, Chatsworth is a fellow librarian so LET'S SHOW HER ALL THE LOVE.

I’m fussy about what I read, and rarely give a five-star review, but I was lucky enough to be an early reader of this book, courtesy of NetGalley, and found it delightful. Not only is the world of Lady Constance fun to be in, but the witty repartee between her and the ‘tall, dark, and almost handsome’ American spy she has to deal with is hilarious. I literally laughed out loud in places. A perfect book for when you need cheering up or just to get away from this world to Victorian Yorkshire, where the book is set. If you enjoyed the movie Wonder Woman, you'll likely enjoy this too. A must for lovers of humorous fiction, adventure fiction, historical fiction (albeit alternative), and steampunk. There’s nothing distressing in it, just a good, fun read. And I think teenagers will love it too.
I hope there’s a sequel in the works.

A rollicking steampunk adventure/romance. Fans of The Invisible Library Series by Genevieve Cogman will enjoy. We will be buying a copy for our library.

I love a good steampunk story. This has great crazy characters, action, Funny dialogue, curiosity’s and not quite magic.

An incredible romp. I’m new to this author and love her energetic writing. I’ll definitely be reading more of her titles.

The Brass Queen is a fantastical, fun adventure into an alternate Victorian timeline. In 1897 Yorkshire, Miss Constance Haltwhistle is the last in a line of blue-blooded rogues. After her father absconds to another dimension, she's left to keep her ancient family estate running by any means possible. This includes inventing and selling illegal ray-guns and blunderbusses on the black market. As unscrupulous relatives move in to try and take Constance's family estate, an archaic law that requires a single woman to marry to hold onto property kicks in. Fiercely independent Constance is forced to host her own coming-out-ball to find a noble husband who will marry her within three days!

Enter US Spy, Trusdale, an almost-handsome cowboy and a rogue in his own right. The two are thrown together in a madcap search for missing scientists, an invisibility serum, and a villainous royal who's plotting the start the war to end all wars. Whip-smart banter, uproarious comedy, and all the best in Anglo-American misunderstandings ensue. It's fast-paced, funny, and filled to the brim with quirky characters and settings. I loved everything about this novel. I hope this is just the start of Constance and Trusdale's shenanigans!