A. W. Exley

Neferitit's Heart
4 Stars

After the death of her father, Cara Devon inherits his collection of priceless artifacts. Her plan is to locate and sell the hidden antiquities, but soon discovers that she is not the only one searching for them. A deranged killer is hunting amongst the daughters of the nobility for an ancient Egyptian relic rumored to hold the key to immortality and Cara realizes that she must find it before she becomes the next victim.

An entertaining mix of mystery, romance and treasure hunting.

Although there is plenty of action and suspense in the story, the strong romantic element came as somewhat of a surprise as I was expecting more action and adventure. As a fan of romance, this is an added bonus, but readers more interested in a steampunk mystery should be forewarned.

The story is set in an alternate Victorian London in which automatons and other mechanical devices are subtly interwoven into daily life. The steampunk elements are very subdued and take a back seat to the murder mystery and romance.

The characters fall into all of my favorite types. Cara is an incredible mix of strength and vulnerability emerging from her abusive childhood as a strong and resourceful woman with a kick-ass, take-no-prisoners attitude. She meets her match in Nathaniel Lyons who has his fair share of skeletons in the closet. Fans of dark and brooding heroes in the vein of Blade in Bec McMaster’s Kiss of Steel and Winter in Jenn Bennett’s Bitter Spirits will adore Nate. Nate and Cara’s romance builds slowly but intensely and Exley is excellent at constructing sexual tension and emotional engagement.

The serial killer mystery is well-written with just enough clues to figure out the culprit while still maintaining tension and suspense. The climax is exciting and the inclusion of Egyptian myth another check in the plus column.

All in all, A. W. Exley has acquired a new fan and I am looking forward to continuing with the series.… (altro)

Hatshepsut's Collar
4 Stars

Under the influence of an ancient and powerful Egyptian artifact, Queen Victoria is descending into madness and is obsessed with expanding the British Empire across the globe. When her lover, Viscount Nathaniel Lyons, is arrested for treason, Cara Devon must work together with his cohorts to expose those behind the conspiracy to overthrow the monarch.

Despite having read and enjoyed the first book in this series several years ago, I never managed to continue. However, I recently re-discovered the series on Audible and decided to refamiliarize myself with book #1 and continue on to book #2.

This follow up to Nefertiti's Heart (see my review here) is action-packed from the start. Exley's world Steampunk world-building is top-notch, and I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of actual historical figures and the twist explaining the death of Prince Albert.

Cara and Nate's romance hits a rough spot as he makes a stunning revelation and Cara must decide if she can accept the situation and move forward. In the meantime, the two are caught up in the queen's madness and the conspiracy plot is well-developed and intriguing.

In terms of the audiobook, Gemma Dawson's overall narration is first-rate. However, her female voices are a bit too high-pitched for me, and her male voices could be deeper.

Overall, I am glad to have found this series again and will continue sooner rather than later.



… (altro)