Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger

Narrated by Moira Quirk

How excited, and sad, I was to listen to Manners & Mutiny, the last in Gail Carriger’s Finishing School series. I began the book knowing that Carriger had a lot of loose ends to wrap up and confident she could handle such a task. Readers, I’m very proud to say the combination of Carriger and Quirk (that should totally be the name of an investigative agency BTW) in no way disappointed.

It’s been a hard few years for Sophronia Temminnick. She’s learned how to shoot and poison a man. She’s learned the appropriate way to curtsey to a visiting royal as well what weapon goes with what outfit. She can communicate – and kill – with her fan. School is almost complete but she has one last test before she is truly Finished: stop the dreaded Picklemen from their attempt to overturn British society as she knows it.

In the opening, I mentioned I suffered no disappointments with this book. This was very true. The book was action-packed from the opening paragraph and kept me glued to my headphones at work the entire time. Loose ends from the last four books were tied up neatly. The mystery of which man Sophronia chose as well as showing what she did after she Finished was addressed. The ending even provided a clue as to the connection between this series and the Parasol Protectorate books.

If I had one complaint, it was that the story’s ending wasn’t as satisfying as I’d hoped. I am a romance reader first and foremost. I read this series for its action and unique setting, not to mention the fabulous and perfect turn of phrase that Carriger uses to engage the reader. But with the build up from previous books – would she pick Lord Mersey? would she pick Soap? would she decide to fly solo the rest of her days? – I was expecting something a little more… explosive. Admittedly this book did have more romance than the previous books but I wanted more, a lament wailed around the world by many a reader, I’m sure. Not that I was in any way disappointed by the direction the author took, on the contrary. I was very pleased with Sophronia’s choice and the way Carriger was able to bring them together. I know this series was intended for young adults but my greedy heart wanted more, More, MORE!

Moira Quirk, a narrator that shot up to my auto-buy list with her performance of the first book in this series, delivered another fabulous performance here. I truly had nothing to fault. Quirk’s British tones can go posh and proper as well as lower class and cockney. The range of accents she conveyed – Scottish, British, child, old matron – are highly believable. Even better was the way she captured the nuances of Carriger’s humor and witty turn of phrase.

If her performance was so stellar, why not “A+” rating? My copy had some technical issues I’m not sure was the narrator’s fault or the company’s. And since I wasn’t sure I took off half a mark. There were a couple of times the narrator’s voice turned from normal, even tones into this robotic monotone. It eventually evened out but it was jarring to hear the change midsentence. As I said, this happened only a few times. Otherwise Quirk’s dulcet tones were wonderful. The hours flew by and I was able to fully immerse myself in the book. I cannot wait until the summer when the next Carriger book is published. The publisher has it listed as an audio release and I’m hopeful Quirk will bring her stunning talents to that production.

I would caution a new reader not to begin with this book. This book is best served after you’ve indulged in the previous titles. The first book is Etiquette and Espionage.

Diana

Narration: A

Book Content: A-

Steam Factor: You can play it out loud

Violence Rating: Fighting

Genre: Young Adult

Publisher: Hachette Audio