Etiquette & Espionage

Finishing School, Book 1

By: Gail Carriger

Narrated by: Moira Quirk

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

This young adult steampunk series debut set in the same world as the New York Times best-selling Parasol Protectorate is filled with all the saucy adventure and droll humor Gail Carriger's legions of fans have come to adore.

Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners - and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but they also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage - in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.

©2013 Gail Carriger (P)2013 Hachette Audio

One of my favorite authors!

Great fun. Great narration. It’s really fun meeting the new characters and seeing the old characters in their youth. I love this author!

Wonderful prequel

After a sadness at having finish the parasol protectorate, being able to reconnect with the younger versions of some of my favorite characters has absolutely enchanted me! I love Saphronia's personality and problem solving prowess. A Wonderful and quick read.

Absurd in the best possible way

Etiquette and Espionage was a very quick, easy little book. Much like Carriger's other books, it's absurd in the best possible way (paranormal mystery/comedy/alternative history?). :-) The story is funny, very light, and kept me entertained for a few days at the gym. It doesn't demand much from the reader, but sometimes that's exactly what you need. I liked it, obviously, even though it won't become an all-time favorite.

Great narrator, for young listeners

The narrator is excellent, I feel this would be a good book for YOUNG readers.

The concept of the book had a lot of promise, a finishing school that teaches both etiquette and espionage mixed with Victorian and steam punk themes. Sounded exciting! But I could not get into it and it felt slow. I’m an adult reader, who occasionally reads youth / teen novels, like hunger games, twilight etc. and I have found those books very entertaining. But sadly not this one, perhaps, a middle school aged reader would enjoy this more than me.

Perfection

Gail Carriger brings everything you want in her books to a whole new age group. Love them so much

fun but all style and not enough substance

Like most (probably) I got this because I enjoy Carriger's Parasol Protectorate books. If you liked those books, you'll probably like this. It's an adorable kind of book. If you haven't read her adult books, I don't know what you'll think of this book. There is a lot about the England this book takes place in that isn't really explained (aka not explained at all), like any background whatsoever with regards to the supernatural.

I couldn't give the plot more stars for two reasons. Firstly, the book really doesn't have much of a plot. Things just sort of happen as it becomes necessary for characters to do things rather than just exist. It's definitely more about meeting beloved characters that we know well as adults and setting the scene for future books than it is about the 'mystery' or whatever you'd like to label the plot here. Now, if you don't think too hard about anything and just happily go with the flow, then this lack of plot won't bother you. Just have low expectations.

My second issue is with the intended audience. I imagine most readers will be (as mentioned) adults who liked her other books. But it's definitely intended for a young adult audience....or so it sort of seems. Now, Sephronia is young for most young adult heroines, and there isn't any romance whatsoever (which is just fine, the girl is 14!). That's all fine and well, but given what else is out there for teen readers, this book will probably come across as rather tame. Younger teens might like it, but vocabulary might be a concern for tweens.

YA Steampunk is my new favorite sub-genre!

Set in the same world as the Parasol Protectorate series, Gail Carriger brings us her first Young Adult Steampunk novel, the first in her Finishing School series. Fourteen year old Sophronia is not the sophisticated, polite young lady that her sisters are. Instead she's constantly getting into trouble and being a constant trial to her mother. So her mother decides to send her to finishing school, hoping that this may make a lady out of Sophronia. However, the finishing school isn't what her mother had planned, and Sophronia finds herself neck deep in finishing school AND espionage school.

While trying to get used to vampire teachers, a werewolf guard and the ins and outs of espionage, Sophronia and her friends also try to recover the "protype", which everyone seems to want to get their hands on as well.

LOVE! Seriously, LOVE! Etiquette & Espionage is all about steampunk and espionage school. It's the perfect blend of the pair, and it reminded me a little of Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls, but with supernaturals and steampunk.

I highly recommend the audiobook. Moira Quirk's narration of the story is perfect. I particularly loved her voice for Sophronia. She reminds me a lot of Clara (from Doctor Who - yes I have to add that reference), and all her trouble-making ways definitely come across in the audiobook.

If you're looking for a YA book that is a little different I highly recommend this book. It's spies and espionage, and STEAMPUNK and one of the best YA books I've listened to this year.

What a Fun Story

What did you like best about this story?

I really had no expectations when I downloaded this book. I did so on a whim because I saw it had gotten good ratings and it was not that expensive. What I got was a very fun story about an adventurous young woman covertly recruited to attend a boarding school for spies and assassins. A fun story for teen and adults alike.

Refined Young Ladies Guide to Espionage

What do you do with a daughter who seems to be in the center of all mischief in the house and has a ghastly curtsy? Why send her to Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

The listener shortly discovers that the school also teaches the young ladies a very useful skill sets all designed to turn out a perfectly groomed & elegantly dressed and mannered ladies who can steal the crown jewels and battle with the king's guards all while not messing her hair or clothing.

I admit it I bought this book because I absolutely loved Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate and I was not disappointed.

What an Enchanting New Series!

Having enjoyed the Parasol Protectorate I was eager to check out this new series by Gail Carriger. What a wonderful surprise to find an equally entertaining series! I look eagerly forward to the next book in this series and hope Audible will pick it up as well. Moira Quirk did a perfect rendition of Sophronia's tale. I loved Bumbersnoot and all of Sophronia's friends!