London, 1889.

Victoria is Queen. Charles Darwin’s son is Prime Minister. And steam is the power that runs the world.

At 17, Claire Trevelyan, daughter of Viscount St. Ives, was expected to do nothing more than pour an elegant cup of tea, sew a fine seam, and catch a rich husband. Unfortunately, Claire’s talents lie not in the ballroom, but in the chemistry lab, where things have a regrettable habit of blowing up.

When her father gambles the estate on the combustion engine and loses, Claire finds herself down and out on the mean streets of London. But being a young woman of resources and intellect, she turns fortune on its head. It’s not long before a new leader rises in the underworld, known only as the Lady of Devices . . .

When she meets Andrew Malvern, a member of the Royal Society of Engineers, she realizes her talents may encompass more than the invention of explosive devices. They may help her realize her dreams and his . . . if they can both stay alive long enough to see that sometimes the closest friendships can trigger the greatest betrayals . . .

Lady of Devices is the first book in Shelley Adina’s Magnificent Devices series. It opens with the main character, Claire Trevelyan, causing a rather messy accident in one of her classes. Despite the warnings of her instructors, she combines two reactive ingredients because she wishes to know what exactly will happen. And when she is tasked with cleaning up her mess, Claire seems to act as if this wasn’t her fault. If only her teacher had told her what would occur!

This small series of events was only the start of numerous eye rolling moments I had while reading this book.

Now do not get me wrong my dear reader, I enjoy the Steampunk genre as much as the next person. There is so much that can be played with in regards to technology and science. The way history has been shaped by the technology leaves countless ideas for authors to use. Unfortunately, Lady of Devices barely touches on any of them and when it does it is done with a heavy handed and awkward manner.

While Lady Claire is a smart young woman, she can also be irritatingly obtuse at times. When she takes up with the East End gang, she originally berates them for picking pockets. Yet she then turns around and teaches these same children how to cheat and swindle. She becomes a kind of governess for them with the intention of helping them become proper English citizens. But not some time later she (albeit accidentally) kills another gang leader and takes over his base of operations. For someone who supposedly prides herself on being a proper young woman, Lady Claire seems to follow the rules only when it suits her.

While I personally didn’t particular enjoy reading Lady of Devices, neither do I want to discourage my readers from trying it. Over on Goodreads, just as many readers gave it glowing reviews as others gave it less than stellar ones. Like in so many other instances, the reader shall simply have to decide for themselves.