REVENGE OF THE MAD SCIENTIST (Airship Adventure Chronicles #1) by Lara Nance-a review

ABOUT THE BOOK:  Released August 2012

When Lady Arabella Trunkett’s father, the High Lord Minister of Urbannia is kidnapped, all clues point to the mysterious country of Gandiss and the world is thrown into political upheaval.

Arabella is convinced the more sinister nation of Carabarras is to blame., urged on by a mad scientist seeking revenge. So, she sets out on a perilous airship journey across a variety of exotic locales to save him, and halt the potential world war.

But airship pirates, secret assassins and slave traders aren’t her only trials. The fickle hand of fate has made the captain of the only airship available for charter, the man that left her at the altar. For eight years she’s wished him dead. Now he’s her only hope

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REVIEW: REVENGE OF THE MAD SCIENTIST is the first storyline in Lara Nance’s Airship Adventure Chronicles written in the Steampunk genre.  For those of you not familiar with Steampunk there is a detailed description on Wikipedia at:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk  But a simple explanation  would be a ‘sub-genre of science fiction that typically features steam-powered machinery, often set in alternative history of the 19^th century British Victoria or American Wild West.’

REVENGE OF THE MAD SCIENTIST incorporates most of the detailed description as outlined on Wikipedia including steam-powered air-ships, finitely detailed machinery and inventions as well as the clothing made popular by the genre:  women’s corsets, fancy gowns, men’s leather jackets and helmets as well as magnifying eye pieces and special weapons. 

Lara Nance takes the reader on an adventure across her imaginary world as our heroine Arabella Trunkett searches in vain for the people who kidnapped her father.  Along the way, Arabella and her ‘small family’ must fend off air-pirates, poison darts, human slave traders and assassins hoping to recover a mysterious ‘pin’ –one that Arabella now has in her possession and of course-stop the destruction of the world. Then to complicate matters, when the first air-ship encounters difficulies, Arabella must swallow her pride and accept the offer from the last man she ever wanted to see .

There is a building romance between Arabella and her one time beau Rett-but Araballa and Rett’s past is not easily forgotten especially by Arabella herself.  It has been eight long years since the last time Arabella last saw Rett and by the end of the first storyline, there is a possibility she may never see him alive again. 

Lara Nance writes an interesting storyline where the world building is filled with fantastic discoveries and descriptive narrations-you can see many similarities to the ‘real world’ and where Lara gets her inspiration. And there is also something eerily similar to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones sagas in the writing style and story telling.  The central characters are heart warming and real, and even Rett’s past mistake can be forgiven under the right circumstances.  If you like a storyline with adventures around the globe, set in a fantasy-land style world, Lara Nance’s Airship Adventure Chronicles is the perfect read.

LINKS TO ORDER: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / The Book Depository

Copy supplied by the author

Reviewed by Sandy