Das Mädchen mit dem Stahlkorsett

Kind of meh. The pace seem kind of slow and it was hard to get into it.

When I started this, I kept thinking, “this is the steampunk version of Twilight.” A good, fun read, but nothing to get too excited about. But as I read on, I started thinking that less and less. Maybe because it was getting better, maybe because I just got into the story fully. Doesn't matter.

Midly predictable plot, but entertainingly told. The characters are engaging and frustrating (in a way that serves to underline how much you like them). The steam-tech is fun and well thought out. The whole super-power thing? Very well executed. Super Powers and Steampunk? That's some peanut butter you can get in my chocolate, anytime.

Fun, fun, read–with a good jump start to the sequel.

What a fun setting! Throughly enjoyed it!

There are not a lot of steampunk titles for YA, so I was super glad to hear of this new series. Finley Jayne has a monster inside of here and the strength to throw a man through a wall. In Victorian England, a rag-tag band of “extraordinary” teens join forces to fight The Machinist-a mad man bent on creating horrors of the cyberman-kind.
Overall, this was a really great adventure story! I think the writing was good, but I never got fully sucked into the story. There is not one, but two love triangles. What I really enjoyed was the technology mixed with the real aspects of the time. Some of the inventions were Jules Verne-worthy, and the details were fun. Jack Dandy, for example, is a real figure and not just a style of dress.
Picture Jekyll and Hyde mixed with Hellboy and you have the picture. So far, my favorite characters are Emily and Jack Dandy.
I think it belongs on the shelf of any steampunk enthusiast, and I cannot wait for the next book in which it appears we will be heading to New York.

I feel like I am missing something with this novel. Every time I tried to pick up this book and read it, I am reminded of the main problem with this book: it feels like this should be the 2nd book in the series. It is written in such a way that it feels like we should know these characters already. Exposition is told to us in such a manner as that we should know it already, and that is very annoying. I looked this book up, and, indeed, this is the first book in the series and it isn't a continuation of a previous series or anything. This is the first thing this author has ever published in the steampunk chronicles. All that comes before this is a short story that seems to have little to do with the overall plot of the series.

What this means is that we are thrust into the story with little idea of what is going on, and the exposition that is here does not help, simply adding to my confusion as opposed to alleviating it. I have tried to look everywhere for another book, but this is indeed the first and it taints my view of everything in this novel. Events happen to certain characters that I'm sure should be a big reveal, instead fall flat because I don't care about any of the characters. The characters themselves are nothing special, given how the book is written, and there are no memorable aspects to this book that I can think of that this book does well. If you want a book about a girl with a darker split personality, go with The Young Elites by Marie Lu. If you want a tale about a girl who joins a society of people against a man using machines to take over the world, go for The infernal Devices Series by Cassandra Clare. All of these series do these aspects better than this book, which is a shame.I had hopes that this book was going to be some Steampunk awesomeness, but all it did was be some weezy bit of steam. a Two out of five.