…which all makes for a rather brilliant series, actually. The series in question is The Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger, and, while I know very little about the steampunk genre, I have come across more than my fair share of comic fiction over the years, and Soulless, Changeless, and Blameless, the three books in the series so far, all had me chortling out loud more than once.

The books are set in an alternative Victorian Britain, for the most part, where ghosts, werewolves and vampires abound, having come out of the proverbial closet during the reign of Henry VIII and integrated themselves quite nicely into the upper echelons of Society, with a capital “S”, and it is the presence of vampires in society, who, in Carriger’s world, love to tinker with all things mechanical, that has advanced civilisation to a rather great degree.

The existence of the supernatural is put down to certain people having an ‘excess of soul’, which keeps the spirit alive once the body is, technically, dead. The exploration of what the soul actually is makes for quite an interesting subplot throughout all of the books so far, because, as it happens, Alexia Tarabotti, the central character, was born without a soul, and therefore has the ability to cancel out the supernatural abilities of all forms of supernatural creature with a single touch.

However, while these abilities make for an interesting plot point, it is actually Alexia’s character that is most engaging, as she is intelligent, forthright, witty, and she doesn’t let inconvenient circumstances, like people trying to kill her, put her off her food. Add to this her obsession with fine tea and a parasol made of reinforced steel and filled with ballast, which is liberally applied to several people’s heads during the course of the novels, and anyone who knows me well will see why I love her.

Nevertheless, funny as the books are, and wonderful as Alexia is, there is a lot more to them than that, and all three books also contain elements of the classic mystery/adventure novel, a manageable dollop of romance, and a great deal of wonderful writing to boot. The first book, Soulless, begins with Alexia being attacked by an ‘unexpected vampire’, as, as far as she knows, all the vampires in London know of her existence, making it pointless to attack her.
In the ensuing struggle, however, she accidently kills the vampire, thus making it necessary for the BUR, essentially the supernatural version of the civil service, to start an investigation, headed up by Lord Maccon, a werewolf, and his Beta and second in command, Professor Lyall, with Lord Maccon also providing the love interest, to boot. Pretty soon, however, it becomes apparent that, not only are new vampires appearing seemingly out of thin air, but lone vampires and werewolves are also disappearing, several attempts are made to kidnap Alexia, and a man whose face appears to mad of wax appears out of nowhere, all pointing to a Sinister Plot, all while Alexia struggles with her own feelings towards Lord Maccon (which often consist largely of irritation, it has to be said).

Having looked at the reviews on some book sites, I know that Lord Maccon is something of a Marmite character, but I actually really quite liked him, and the repartee between Alexia and him is often very funny. There are also a supporting cast of characters who are all equally beautifully drawn, and often very charming, from the much put-upon Professor Lyall himself, to the outrageously camp vampire, Lord Akeldama (who reminded me rather strongly of a young Noel Coward) and his cast of equally flamboyant ‘drones’, or mortal companions/servants.

I won’t, of course, let spill any spoilers, which basically rules out recounting the plots of books 2 and 3 in any way, but I will say that Soulless reaches a suitably exciting, complicated (in a good way) climax, and the other two books in the series are equally brilliant. One word of warning, though; if you do get book 2, get book 3 as well, as, if you are anything like me, the cliff-hanger at the end of Changeless will make you desperate to read straight on. The only complaint I have is that the next book isn’t due out until next summer, which means I will have to wait absolutely ages to find out what happens next.

In the meantime, does anyone else know of any funny steampunk novels that I could try and get my hands on in the interim?