Kiss of Steel by Bec McMaster

Kiss of Steel is the first book in the London Steampunk series.  I actually read My Lady Quicksilver first and liked it so much I immediately bought all the other books in the series.  I think I always like the first book I read in any series (interesting topic for empirical study) but the whole series is quite enjoyable.

Honoria's father, a renowned scientist, has died and Honoria must now support herself, her younger sister and her sick younger brother.  She is forced to move into Whitechapel, the only part of London so dangerous the normal forces of societal control have no presence there.  Of course, nature abhors a vacuum so in Whitechapel, Blade, a notorious outlaw fellow, rules.

I have a soft spot for the good-hearted thief, but I think it can be tricky to write given the deeds most powerful thief-lords need to commit to get into power and to stay there.  Blade is bad-ass and an attractive character but this inherent conflict made this my third favorite book in the series (out of four so far).  Also Honoria is not bad-ass which automatically downgrades the book for me.

Good writing, terrific world building! good sexual tension, unpredictable plot resolution, lots of character interaction.  Overall, very enjoyable.

Steampunk Romance 2012: 4 of 5 CV levels.