[Archive] LITERAL ADDICTION's Review of Gossamer Wing

Delphine Dryden majored in English at the University of Texas at Austin, and probably should have gone ahead and gone for that MFA and PhD to become an english professor like she planned. Instead, she took a detour through law school, practiced law for a woefully brief time, and wound up working in special education for the next fifteen or so years (first as a teacher, then as an educational diagnostician). Somewhere in there, she also obtained a Master’s in Educational Psychology/Special Education.

Delphine writes contemporary erotic romance for Carina Press, and mainstream steampunk romance for Berkley. She has also published with Ellora’s Cave and Cleis Press. Her writing has earned an Award of Excellence and Reviewers’ Choice Award from Romantic Times Book Reviews, an EPIC Award, and a Colorado Romance Writers’ Award of Excellence.

In 2010, Delphine gave up the day job to write full time. Now she balances that with parenting two kids and two dogs, and occasionally designing web sites or making trailer videos. She and her family are all Texas natives, and reside in unapologetic suburban bliss near Houston.

You can keep up with Delphine online at her Website, on Facebook, on Twitter, and on GoodReads.

Gossamer Wing

Book #1 in the STEAM AND SEDUCTION series

by Delphine Dryden

Buy from Amazon | B&N | iTunes

Publication date:  11/5/13

Synopsis:

A Spy. An Airship. And a Broken Heart.

After losing her husband to a rogue French agent, Charlotte Moncrieffe wants to make her mark in international espionage. And what could be better for recovering secret long-lost documents from the Palais Garnier than her stealth dirigible, Gossamer Wing? Her spymaster father has one condition: He won’t send her to Paris without an ironclad cover.

Dexter Hardison prefers inventing to politics, but his title as Makesmith Baron and his formidable skills make him an ideal husband-imposter for Charlotte. And the unorthodox undercover arrangement would help him in his own field of discovery.

But from Charlotte and Dexter’s marriage of convenience comes a distraction—a passion that complicates an increasingly dangerous mission. For Charlotte, however, the thought of losing Dexter also opens her heart to a thrilling new future of love and adventure.

Our Review, by LITERAL ADDICTION's Associate Reviewer - Marta C:
*eARC received from the Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This is the first book in Ms. Dryden's new Steampunk series entitled STEAM AND SEDUCTION. It's a book that captures the spirit of Steampunk whilst also giving the reader a sexy romance.

This captivating adventure tells the story of Charlotte Moncrieffe, a widow who seeks to continue her husband's work as a spy. Espionage is in her blood; her own father has secretly worked as a spymaster for the government for many years.

Charlotte is a trained pilot of a dirigible -the Gossamer Wing- and while she could easily sneak into France and recover vital lost documents, her father insists that she not go alone. Therefore, it's decided that a sham marriage to Baron Dexter Hardison will provide the perfect cover for them to travel through France on their Mission. Their marriage of convenience seems perfect, Dexter is an amazing inventor, and together they make a formidable team...

Their crossing brings them closer together, and the somewhat closed off Charlotte finds herself more than a little tempted by her new -albeit -temporary husband. As their journey and mission continue, they're led further into danger, and they ultimately cross paths with the person behind the death of Charlotte's late husband. Can they recover the secret documents before their cover is blown, or will the fire that's increasingly burning between them be their undoing?

This is my first book by this author, and only the second that I have read in the Steampunk genre. Although Steampunk novels seem to be set in an almost Victorian era and offer an alternative history, I found this one quite unique. In Gossamer Wing, the reader is treated to the possibilities of what could have happened if the American revolution hadn't been successful. A world that's quite unlike the one we inhabit; and surely that's the point!?

This is a fantasy that stretches the reader's imagination, and takes us on a ride. Yes, vehicles are steam powered and the field of invention has taken many twists and turns away from what we now view as 'normal', but this author has written a book full of intrigue and passion that sets the page alight!

I really enjoyed this book and will look out for the next in series -Scarlet Devices. Definitely recommended.

Gossamer Wing