Blameless: Book Three of the Parasol Protectorate Series

Local Used Bookstore

After reading the Finishing School series in such a whirlwind, I felt a little bad about never having finished up the Parasol Protectorate when I easily could have. The first book had been entertaining, but the second book was a little bit of a pot boiler, and so I nearly fell off because of it. But after enjoying Finishing School so much, I decided I'd wasted enough time not reading the rest and dove right in. During my extended weekend brought on by that surprise dental visit, I had enough time to catch up on some reading - which is always something I'm trying to squirrel out more of. I still managed to take longer than I needed to read this, mainly because the volume before it didn't exactly leave me thrilled, even though it ended in an exciting cliff hanger. In fact, it feels like it has been so long since I've last picked up this series that I barely can remember any of the minor characters. If it hadn't been for my closest friends being in the throes of Carriger Mania, I might not have picked it up again at all. But I'm glad that I did. As for forgetting characters names, I found it was a bit like riding a bike - it all comes back to you pretty quickly.
Now, where we last left off Alexia found herself in a delicate predicament. Cast out by her husband, family, The Queen, and embarrassed by society, you'd be tempted to worry about her. However, Alexia has always managed to take care of herself, though she gets by with a little help from her friends. The always dependable Lord Akeldama has suddenly left London, leaving Alexia to be pursued by all the remaining Vampires of London who now want her dead. She has no choice but to leave town herself, making a break for Italy (along with a few of her dependable friends) to seek out the care (????) of the Knights Templar - a collection of highly trained warrior monks. While there, Alexia learns more about her predicament and herself.
I'm really glad I decided to finally read further than the 2nd book. The characters are developing further and it's so much more interesting as a whole. I only have two books left of the series and I'm a little worried about what I'll do after it's all done (It isn't like I don't have 3 bookcases literally overflowing with unread books, bless my heart) but the good news is that I have Gail's new book preordered!