words in scarlet ink

There were things I did and didn’t like about Natasha Pulley’s The Watchmaker of Filigree Street. I liked how it was genre defying – Was it it AU historical fiction? Was it urban fantasy? I liked the steampunk-ish elements a lot, and overall I ended up liking where the story went in the second half of the book.

The first half of the book felt rather disorganized though. The plot was weak and the characters’ motivations were unclear. The plot as written follows Nathaniel (Thaniel) Steepleton, who works in the Home Office (in 1890s London), and who finds a watch that leads him away from an explosion that would have killed him. He teams up with Mori, a watchmaker from Japan (his backstory was the most interesting, I felt), and a woman named Grace, and they sort of solve a mystery. As I said, the plot left a lot to be desired in some ways.

Thaniel also engages in a marriage of convenience with Grace, but ends up romantically involved with Mori, which Grace does not mind – Thaniel allows Grace to continue the scientific work she wouldn’t be allowed to continue otherwise. Women weren’t encouraged to pursue careers in Victorian London, even if it was AU Victorian London.

Overall, this book was enjoyable enough, but it could have been better. The first half of the book was a bit disorganized in terms of plot. The dialogue could be a bit off-putting. There were at least a couple of unanswered questions/dropped thread. I did like the story of the relationships between Thaniel, Mori, and Grace. Mori’s backstory was fascinating and took place in Japan, and Mori’s story also deals with time travel, which adds interest. And the cover art was beautiful.

There’s a second one book in this series (I think there are only two). I’m not in any rush to read it, but if it falls into my lap, I probably will.