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

Simply Delightful

Gail Carriger is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. If you enjoyed the Parasol Protectorate series, you will love Etiquette & Espionage. Being a YA book, it lacks the adult romance, but has a wonderful, plucky heroine and all the charm of the PP series. Adult listeners will not be bored. Very much looking forward to the next book in the series.

Sassy!

A fun, clean adventure that the whole family can enjoy. I loved it and will continue reading this series.

Wonderful Debut to a New YA Series

Would you consider the audio edition of Etiquette & Espionage to be better than the print version?

I believe because of the fabulous performance by Moira Quirk with her many different voices - this Audible version was wonderful.

What other book might you compare Etiquette & Espionage to and why?

This was my very first YA book so I really don't have anything to compare it to, however any book - audible or read - that I can laugh out loud gets my vote.

What does Moira Quirk bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Moira Quirk's voices were incomparable - she did an magnificent job and this totally added to the enjoyment of being read to versus sitting and reading it myself.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Oh, it definitely made me laugh - out loud - several times!

Any additional comments?

For being my very first YA genre book I found that this was really enjoyable. It was refreshing and joyful. If I had a young adult in my household, I would most assuredly recommend this for them.

So perfect!

I love to describe this series, as if Jasper Fforde & Meg Cabot wrote a steam-punk Harry Potter series that is different than everything else. It's lovely and fun and hard to put down.

Ultimate storyteller

Any additional comments?

I am a huge fan of Gail Carriger. She has truly created a world that answers the question, 'What would society be like if humans were mixed with other beings?' She doesn't assume a tired annihilate humans storyline. She imagines how society might grow and adapt with the supernatural to create an atmosphere where vampires and werewolves could become pedestrian. She sets her society in a steampunk Victorian United Kingdom, and she colors it with quintessential, dry, sarcastic observations. This is her second series in a steampunk Victorian UK, and it focuses on mischievous preteens at finishing school. It is as good as the rest of her books. The narrator is excellent.

Clever and Hilarious. Marvelous narration.

I got this book after a very intense, very adult novel needing something light and funny to balance it out. It was exactly what I hoped. The narrator was great and the characters very vibrant. I found myself smiling all the way through. So witty! Highly recommended.

Absolutely Delightful

Any additional comments?

I can’t rave enough about this book. I’d heard about it, and it blew my expectations out of the water. From the beginning (the trifle incident) to the very end, I was hooked. This is a wonderful introduction to steampunk for younger readers, and Sophronia and her schoolmates (and other friends who aren’t her classmates) make a great team that I think young adults of all ages can get attached to. Just the concept of fine young ladies learning to become spies along with learning manners and fashion is spectacular. Add in the boys’ school (for evil geniuses) and you’ve got a subculture for a world that is already interesting. This is a brilliant combination of history and near-irreverence. Even the humor fits in with the period, but it tickled me in some of the most wonderful ways. This whole work was masterfully done. It is a whole.

Keep you guessing.

What did you like best about this story?

It held my interest. I liked the mystery of the entire story. Very unexpected.

Which character – as performed by Moira Quirk – was your favorite?

Madam Geraldine

Any additional comments?

Loved it can't wait so see what happens next.

Could NOT walk away!

What made the experience of listening to Etiquette & Espionage the most enjoyable?

The narrator is excellent. Great job voicing all the characters. The story was well written and period appropriate. I needed something to keep me chained to a daunting piece of work and this was just the ticket. I had to attend a function where I couldn't listen to the last hour and it was excruciating to have to walk away. The characters weren't young adults with adult dialog and behaviors, they were young adults learning etiquette and espionage in a world where the lines between reality and fantasy were blurred with perfect execution. I'm going to buy the rest of the series and finish up some work that will fly by whilst listening to this fabulous narrator bring to life this author's wonderful stories.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sophronia was my favorite character. She's believable. She takes risks, but not ridiculous ones. They're appropriate for the setting and her character, even when she's executing acrobatic maneuvers. I don't want to spoil things for those who haven't read it.

Have you listened to any of Moira Quirk’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

ABSOLUTELY!

Love love love!

This book will take you on an adventure with characters that pull you in deep. Impatiently waiting on the next book after speeding through all the other books of this author.