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Etiquette & Espionage (Finishing School, #1)

Gail Carriger

Start date: October 23, 2013

Finish date: October 31, 2013

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What Members Thought

Apr 27, 2013 Maria V. Snyder rated it it was amazing

Loved this book! It's a younger version of Gail's Parasol Protectorate series - a fun and entertaining read...er...listen. Once again I bought the audio book. Gail's books are great when read with a British accent. ...more

26 likes · Like · see review

Feb 17, 2017 Trisha rated it liked it

“No one said learning etiquette and espionage would be easy, my dear.”

This was a cute little story. About a girl who is shifted off to a finishing school (but not the kind we think of when we think of distinguished girls.) It starts right off, in the carriage on her way to the school and never lets up. There is adventure, werewolves, vampires and mechanical dogs. In true steampunk fashion.

But I did think the end was a bit of a let down after all the work up to get there. but I think that may hav ...more

8 likes · Like · see review

Aug 10, 2018 Rachel N. rated it really liked it

Shelves: play-book-tag, humor, read-in-2018, england, espionage, young-adult, steampunk

Sophronia Temminnick causes no end of problems to her mother so she is sent to Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality which it turns out teaches more than just etiquette, lessons include poisons and knife throwing. Sophronia befriends most of the debuts, other newcomers to the school, and the sooties who work in the boiler room. She also acquires a mechanical dog Bumblesnoot which I loved. The whole book is very tongue in cheek with lots of steam punk elements. It ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jan 26, 2015 Cora rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle, young-adult, vampires, werewolves, audible, school, steampunk, 1st-in-series, boarding-school, friendship

This was a fun book and a good start to a series. I liked the concept of a finishing school that is really a school for spies and assassins. The characters were likeable and easy to root for - the good guys were very good and the bad guys were very bad. The characters were a bit one-dimensional and the dilemma did not seem to be clear (we never know exactly what the item everyone is after does or why everyone wants it...maybe in the sequel). But if you are looking for a fun young adult series, y ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Feb 26, 2013 Shawna rated it really liked it

I think this one is closer to 3.5 stars. I love the setting and the concept of the finishing school. However some things could have been better explained. For example, it's mentioned multiple times that their luggage was lost on the way to the school. Yet it never really is explained how they got clothes once they got to the school. Some of the transitions weren't fully explained either, whereas a lot of time was put into explaining and setting up the school concept. I feel like this was mostly ...more

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Oct 18, 2013 Wendy Kalthoff rated it did not like it

I did not care for it. it felt like it was trying to be little women or alice in winderland. I am not a fan of vampire books and it was way too slow and tedious for me. I could not get back chapter 6.

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