Reviews

Chasing Christmas Past by Melanie Karsak

eg_m's review

4.0

Picked up this short as a freebie. I don't read much steampunk but I loved the idea of a female steamship captain and Lord Byron as the love interest. The story is fast and fun and while the affair between Lily and Byron is intense, the sexy bits are off-page/fade to black. So an adult read but without 'adult content.'

A teaser for the larger series that I'm hooked enough to move to the next one. *Only available in e-book in the 'Dark Humanity' anthology.

hanseah's review

4.0

A great way to get in a Christmas mood.

Great imagery had me tucked into London ready for Christmas celebrations. This being the first I have read from this author, I will be reading more in the series soon.

cakesandtea's review

4.0

Absolutely lovely but just too short! :)

elyse_rn's review

5.0

*Review to come*

jlennidorner's review

4.0

A book by a fellow Pennsylvanian. I don't read much steampunk, so I'm not the best judge of the genre. However, I enjoyed this story. It was uplifting and fun to read.

sodiana's review

4.0

This was a great quick read. The imagery in it had my mind going and was a delight to 'see'. Not bogging down on too many small details, this Christmas story is the perfect read and will leave you satisfied. Giving you enough details, without overbearing or slowing the momentum of the story.

see_sadie_read's review

3.0

Enjoyable enough, though a little hard to connect to as I didn't know any of the characters. This is a 'prequel' but I do wonder if it's not meant to be read after the series so you know everyone. All the same, I liked the steampunk elements and the peak at what seems like a fun crew.

kikiandarrowsfishshelf's review

3.0

This had a jarring use of the word commando, yet it once you move past that, it was a nice little tale.

ltg584's review

5.0

I'm not usually one to read Christmas stories, but I made an exception for Melanie Karsak. This brief story made me both happy and sad at the same time. It was so great to go back and revisit my favorite characters, and to see them all from the beginning, but it also reminded me just how much I miss them. While I was hoping that it would serve to hold me over until Chasing the Fog, it only served to whet my appetite all the more!

simonlorden's review

3.0

This is a prequel short story that introduces the characters in the Airship Racing Chronicles series. Honestly, it felt more like a filler story that would have been more enjoyable once you actually know all these people, and I didn't find it very exciting in itself. The main character, Lily, seemed interesting, but I didn't get attached to any of the others.

My copy also included the first few chapters of the first book, that I also skimmed, and honestly, I'd rate those 3 stars as well. There were some parts that intrigued me and made me wonder what the rest of the book would be like, but the world and the characters didn't really grab me, and Lily's opium addiction is a pretty big turn off for me. So, all in all, I'm conflicted about this book. Maybe I'll pick it up one day, but eh.

(Okay, but also, this has a character called George Byron and based on the time period I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be THAT Byron, which is actually kinda fascinating.)

+ The covers for all three main books look amazing.