Title: Chasing the
Star Garden
Author: Melanie Karsak
Series: The Airship Racing Chronicles (1)
Genre: Steampunk
Publisher: Clockpunk Press
Release Date: Audio Book Sept 2014
Edition/Format Available In: Audio/eBook/Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
An opium-addicted beauty.
An opium-addicted beauty.
An infamous poet living in self-imposed exile.
An ancient treasure about to fall into the wrong hands.
Melanie Karsak's Chasing the Star Garden takes readers on a
thrilling adventure from the gritty opium dens of gaslamp London to the
gem-colored waters of the ancient world. Lily Stargazer, a loveable but
reckless airship racer with a famous lover and shattered past, reluctantly
plunges into a centuries-old mystery in a romantic adventure best described as
Dan Brown meets Mary Shelley.
It all begins on one of the worst days of Lily’s life. She
just lost the London leg of the 1823 Airship Grand Prix. To top it off, a
harlequin fleeing from constables shoved a kaleidoscope down her pants, told
her to fly to Venice, then threw himself from her airship tower. What’s a girl
to do? For Lily, the answer is easy: drink absinthe and smoke opium.
Lily’s lover, Lord Byron, encourages her to make the trip to
Venice. Lily soon finds herself at the heart of an ancient mystery which has
her running from her past and chasing true love and the stars along the way.
**Due to steamy scenes and depictions of drug use,
this novel is intended for mature readers.**
Book Links
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Author Information
Melanie Karsak is the author of the
Amazon best-selling steampunk series The
Airship Racing Chronicles, the award-winning horror/dark fantasy The
Harvesting Series, and The
Saga of Lady Macbeth.
She grew up in rural northwestern Pennsylvania and earned a Master's degree in
English from Gannon University. A steampunk connoisseur, Shakespeare nerd, and
zombie whisperer, the author currently lives in Florida with her husband and
two children. She is an Instructor of English at Eastern Florida State College.
Author Links
Blog Dispatches from Melanie
Excerpt
I was just about
to head back to the gondolas when I realized I was being followed. Behind me, a
man in a dark suit tried to look nonchalant as he perused a stall displaying
carnival masks. The random nature of my searching made his presence obvious,
but in true Lily fashion, I didn’t know I was in trouble until I was already in
the middle of it.
I slipped my hand
into my bag and grabbed my sidearm. I turned then and advanced on the man.
Startled, he turned and began walking in the other direction. He passed between
two tents; I followed him. When I made the turn, he grabbed me.
“What are you
doing in Venice, Lily?” he asked, knocking my gun from my hand then twisting my
arm behind my back as he tried to reach into my satchel.
With my free arm,
I elbowed him hard in the side. He let go. I turned and kneed him in the
crotch. When he fell to the ground, I grabbed my gun and fled.
Thankful I had
forsaken Byron’s dainty heels for my boots, I hiked up my skirts and took off
through the crowd. I turned back to see the man picking himself up off the
ground. I ran. I rushed through the crowds, dodging between the tents, then
under the arched walkways of the piazza to an alleyway behind the square. I ran
into the belly of Venice, my assailant pursuing me. I dodged between buildings
then paused, peering out of an alley to see the man talking to two other
gentlemen also dressed in dark suits. While I could not make out their words,
they were speaking English. All three men had sidearms drawn. Taking a deep
breath, I slid down the alleyway. At its end, I found myself stuck between a
four-foot wide trench and the alley leading back to the street and the men who
pursued me. I pulled my dress up to my knees and taking a running jump, I leapt
across the water.
“There she goes,”
I heard one of the men yell. He spotted me just as I landed on the other side.
I ran between the buildings, dodging children and workers on velocipedes. I
turned and looked back to see one of the men emerging from the buildings behind
me. I ran over a footbridge, down another street, then found myself cornered
between three palazzi. There was no way out. I looked around for a means of
escape. To my surprise, I noticed that above the door directly across from me
was a façade carving of a swan with an anemone flower in its beak.
“You’ve got to be
kidding me.”
“Go that way,” I
heard a man yell from the alley.
I ran to the door
and knocked hard. A confused looking maid answered. “Please, let me in,” I told
her.
She shook her
head.
“Please,” I said,
gesturing toward the swan, but the woman did not budge.
Just then a
startlingly beautiful woman with raven black hair and round, gold colored eyes
appeared behind the woman. “What’s the matter?” she asked.
The men’s rough
voices floated toward the alley. “Please, let me in,” I said, trying to push my
way inside.
The woman started
to push the door closed. “I don’t invite trouble.”
Desperate, I
grabbed her hand. “I have the kaleidoscope.”
Her big eyes grew
even larger. She peered closely at me then pulled me inside. She clapped the
door shut behind her.
“She’s not here,”
one of the men called from the alley outside just moments later.
The woman peered
out the window. The midmorning sun shone in on her causing flecks of blue to
sparkle in her black hair. After a moment, she leveled her golden eyes on me.
“Hello, Lily,”
she said in a rich voice that poured out of her like liquid velvet, “I didn’t
recognize you dressed like that. Please, come with me,” she said, offering her
hand. “I’m Celeste. Welcome to Palazzo del Cigno, the House of the
Swan.”
My Review
*I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Adventure behind every cloud!
"Chasing the Star Garden" is one of the most engaging stories I have experienced in a while. Lily is a high flying airship racer who enjoys living a life of drugs, sex and adrenaline. When her life takes a turn at the hands of a thief, chaos begins to rule every move she makes. Surrounded by a cast of unique characters including a rather famous poet, a handsome and creative Italian and a crew that are as dedicated as they are opinionated, Lily is about to begin an adventure that will change her future.
This is the first time I have listened to an audio book since I was a kid, and it will most certainly not be my last. I love the narrator, the recording is clean and the quality is good. I listened "Chasing the Star Garden" while cleaning and grocery shopping which made these mundane tasks enjoyable as time flew by. I cannot wait to find out what happens to this rowdy cast of characters in the next installment!
Happy Reading!
~Red
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