Title: Chasing the Green Fairy
Author: Melanie Karsak
Genre: Adult Steampunk
Novel Description:
Chasing the Green Fairy
The Airship Racing Chronicles Book II
The Airship Racing Chronicles Book II
A sabotaged airship.
A recovering opium addict.
A messenger with life-shattering news.
With the 1824 British airship qualifying race only weeks
away, Lily Stargazer is at the top of her game. She’s racing like a pro, truly
in love, and living clean. But on one ill-omened day, everything changes.
Pulled head-long into the ancient secrets of the realm, Lily
soon finds herself embroiled in Celtic mysteries and fairy lore. And she’s not
quite sure how she got there, or even if she wants to be involved. But Lily
soon finds herself chasing the spirit of the realm while putting her own ghosts
to rest. And only accepting the truth–about her heart and her country–can save
her.
Author Bio:
Melanie Karsak grew up
in rural northwestern Pennsylvania where there wasn’t much to do but read books
and go for hikes. She wrote her first novel, a gripping piece about a 1920s
stage actress, when she was 12. Today, Melanie, a steampunk connoisseur, white
elephant collector, and caffeine junkie, lives in Florida with her husband and
two children. She is an Instructor of English at Eastern Florida State College.
Keep in touch with the
author online. She’s really nice!
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/melaniekarsak/
Chapter 1:
A chartreuse-colored
leaf fluttered down onto the wheel of the Stargazer. It was early morning. The
mist covering the surface of the Thames reflected the rosy sunrise. Yawning, I
reached out to brush it away only find it was not a leaf at all. Carefully, I
balanced the fragile creature on the tip of my finger.
“Mornin’, Lil. Hey,
what’s that?” Jessup called as he bounced onto the deck of the Stargazer.
Angus was cursing as he
cranked out the repair platform below the ship. We were preparing for our
morning practice run to Edinburgh.
“A luna moth,” I
replied.
“I thought maybe you’d
finally caught the green fairy,” Jessup joked as he climbed into the burner
basket.
I grinned. The moth’s
green wings, dotted with yellowish eyes, wagged slowly up and down. It was
beautiful, but it was dying. “My mother once told me that they are fey things,
that they live in the other realm until it’s their time to die. Then, they come
to humans.”
“Why?” Jessup asked as
he adjusted the valves. Orange flame sparked to life.
“She said that even
enchanted things want to be truly loved at least once.”
“Don’t we all?” he
replied with a laugh.
A harsh wind blew across
the Thames, clearing the morning mist. It snatched the delicate creature from
my hands. I tried to catch it, but the breeze pulled it from me even as it was
dying. I lost it to the wind.
I sighed heavily as I
picked up my tools then bounded over the side of the ship to the repair
platform. I pulled out a dolly and rolled under, joining Angus who had fallen
remarkably silent. The moment I saw the gear assembly on the Stargazer, I
understood why.
“What the hell?” I
whispered.
“Aye, lassie.”
“Jessup!” I shouted.
“Get the tower guards down here!”
“What’s wrong?” Jessup
called.
“The Stargazer has been
sabotaged!”
I stared at the mangled
gears. From the saw marks on the gear assembly to the metal shrapnel blown
around the galley, it was clear what had happened. I felt like someone had
punched me in the gut.
Seconds later I heard
Jessup’s boots hit the platform and the sound of him running toward the guard
station.
“They removed Sal’s
torque mechanism. Sawed the bloody thing right off,” Angus said angrily.
“But . . . who?” I
stammered.
“The Dilettanti?” Angus
offered as he strained to examine the rest of the assembly.
“No,” I said as I
touched the saw marks. The rough metal cut my finger. “That business is
finished. Byron saw to that.” I stuck my bloodied finger in my mouth. The salty
taste of blood mixed with the tang of gear grease.
“Then who?”
“Someone who didn’t want
us to race in the qualifying. Someone who wanted to learn what had us running
so fast.”
We were less than a
month out from the British qualifying. While there were other good race teams
in the realm, no one raced better than us. After all, we were the champions of
the 1823 World Grand Prix. My stunt in Paris had brought us heaps of acclaim,
but not all our British competitors were impressed. Envy had set in.
“Grant?” Angus
suggested.
Julius Grant, whose team
was sponsored by Westminster Gas Light, was our greatest competition at home.
He hated us. He was annoyed that we were sponsored by Byron, annoyed that I was
female, and annoyed that we were faster than him. Grant was the most likely
suspect. But he was not the only one. “Almost too obvious. What about Lord D?”
I wondered aloud.
“He’d love to, but he
doesn’t have the stones,” Angus replied. “Might be someone who doesn’t want us
in the Prix. If they take us out during qualifying, we aren’t a threat abroad.”
“That means it could be
anyone.”
“Hell, maybe one of
Byron’s lovers took a stab at you.”
“But I’m not even
romantically involved with him anymore.”
“The rest of the world
doesn’t know that.”
I rolled out from under
the ship. Leaning against the Stargazer, I wiped my hands. The cut stung as
grease mingled with the open wound. I wanted to either beat someone to death or
cry. I wasn’t sure which. Maybe both.
Angus joined me.
“Can we get it fixed in
time?” I asked him.
He wiped sweat from his
bald head as he thought. “It’ll be close. I’ll need Sal’s help.”
“You? Need Sal?”
“Aye, lassie.”
“He’s busy getting the
factory ready, but he’ll come.”
Jessup returned with
Edwin, the stationmaster, and Reggie, one of the guards.
“Where the hell were
your people last night?” Angus demanded of Edwin. We’d known Edwin for a long
time, and we trusted the guards in London. Something wasn’t right.
As Angus and Edwin
discussed, a terrible ache rocked my stomach. I set my hand on the side of the
Stargazer. Her honey-colored timbers shone in the sunlight. Just as sleek and
beautiful as she was the first time I laid eyes on her, she was my pride and
joy. My ship. My love. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
“What do you think,
Lil?” Jessup asked.
Clearly, I’d missed
something. “Pardon?”
“Edwin suggested we post
a private guard,” Jessup explained.
I nodded. “We’ll sort it
out.”
“Lily, I’m so sorry.
Someone must have sneaked past us. I can’t believe it,” Edwin said. His clear
blue eyes were brimming with tears.
I set my hand on his
shoulder. “Who was stationed on this end last night?”
“Morton.”
I sighed. I wasn’t one
to point fingers, but that explained it. “Was he still drunk when he went home
this morning?” I asked Reggie.
Reggie shifted
uncomfortably as Edwin turned to look at him. “He was,” Reggie answered after a
moment.
“That lazy, rummy bloke.
I’ll kill him! I’ll kill him!” Edwin shouted, and in an angry huff, stomped
back down the platform.
“Sorry, Lily. Angus.
Jessup. I won’t take my eyes off her,” Reggie said sadly then went to take a
post near the Stargazer.
“We’ll sleep on the ship
until we get a guard on board,” I told Angus and Jessup who nodded in agreement.
“A guard . . . but who
can we trust?” Jessup asked.
“The Stargazer is
family. We need family to keep her safe,” Angus replied then looked at me.
“You mean . . . Duncan?”
About three years earlier, I’d been, albeit briefly, in a relationship with
Angus’ older brother Duncan. While I’d fallen for Duncan the moment I’d laid
eyes on him, we were not suited for one another. Back then, I wasn’t ready to
give up Byron or anything else.
Angus shrugged. “I
suppose he’s over you by now.”
“That’s all well and
good,” Jessup spat, “but we need someone to look into this! Someone needs to be
held accountable! We should send for the Bow Street boys.”
Angus shook his head.
“Only if we want everyone in London to know.”
“Well, we need to do
something!” Jessup protested.
“Let’s keep it quiet.
I’ll talk to Phineas,” I replied.
Jessup nodded eagerly.
“Yeah. Good idea.”
Angus frowned. “Are you
sure about that?”
Phineas and I had a
convoluted opiate history, but as Angus knew well, I’d been keeping my habits
in check. “It’ll be fine. I’ll check in with Phin, go get Sal, and come back.
We can head out to the league meeting together.”
“If Grant looks even a
wee bit guilty, I’m going to squeeze his neck,” Angus cursed.
“If he looks guilty,
I’ll help you,” I replied. I set my hand on the Stargazer. It was so painful to
see something you loved damaged.
“It’ll be all right,
Lil,” Jessup said trying to comfort me. “We’ll get her fixed.”
I smiled weakly at
Jessup then turned to leave. I knew he was right, but it didn’t make me feel
any better.
Here is the info for the book trailer:
:
4/5 Stars
In this installment we get to learn alot more about Lily, her past and her secrets. This story is much more character driven than the first book in the series and we get to learn more about Lily and Byron's relationship.
Chasing the Green Fairy is full of emotion, with steampunk, fairy lore and adventure. If you enjoyed Chasing the Green Fairy you will want to pick this up and continue the series
In this installment we get to learn alot more about Lily, her past and her secrets. This story is much more character driven than the first book in the series and we get to learn more about Lily and Byron's relationship.
Chasing the Green Fairy is full of emotion, with steampunk, fairy lore and adventure. If you enjoyed Chasing the Green Fairy you will want to pick this up and continue the series
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