Review: A Spark Unseen by Sharon Cameron

Title: A Spark Unseen (The Dark Unwinding #2)
Author: Sharon Cameron
Publisher: Scholastic
Acquired Via: Around the World ARC Tours
Release Date: September 24, 2013
The thrilling sequel to Sharon Cameron's blockbuster gothic steampunk romance, THE DARK UNWINDING, will captivate readers anew with mystery and intrigue aplenty.

When Katharine Tulman wakes in the middle of the night and accidentally foils a kidnapping attempt on her uncle, she realizes Stranwyne Keep is no longer safe for Uncle Tully and his genius inventions. She flees to Paris, where she hopes to remain undetected and also find the mysterious and handsome Lane, who is suspected to be dead.

But the search for Lane is not easy, and Katharine soon finds herself embroiled in a labyrinth of political intrigue. And with unexpected enemies and allies at every turn, Katharine will have to figure out whom she can trust--if anyone--to protect her uncle from danger once and for all.

Filled with deadly twists, whispering romance, and heart-stopping suspense, this sequel to THE DARK UNWINDING whisks readers off on another thrilling adventure.

My Review

A Spark Unseen is the sequel to to last year's The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron. Katharine Tulman has grown up a little (it's been a year or two since the events in the first book), and dear Uncle Tully is still what most people would consider to be insane. Unfortunately, an invention from the last novel proves that Uncle Tully is a genius, and two governments are after him. It becomes necessary for Katharine, Mary, and the wonderful lawyer Mr. Babcock to "kidnap" Uncle Tully, fake his death, and whisk him away from Paris. There is intrigue, murder, betrayal, bothersome neighbors, a hot French guy, and an imperial ball. Oh, and the hired help isn't as creepy by half.

Review: The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

Title: The Dark Unwinding
Author: Sharon Cameron
Publisher: Scholastic
Release Date: September 1, 2012
Acquired Via: Publisher
The Dark Unwinding is the debut young adult novel by Sharon Cameron. It is a Victorian mystery, centering on Katharine Tulman, an orphan who lives under the "kindness" of her Aunt Alice. She is sent to stay with her uncle, Frederick Tulman, to testify that he has gone mad so she can secure the dwindling family fortune for her cousin, Robert. However, once she arrives at Stranwyne Keep, Katharine learns that things are not at all what they seem and that maybe what is happening at the estate is more than madness.

The Writing of The Dark Unwinding was enjoyable, though a little confusing for me. I had a bit of trouble following the plot (mysteries that are too layered tend to lose me), and I spent a great deal of the book wanting to shake Katharine. There was a lot that we (the audience) are kept guessing at throughout the course of the novel. Is Uncle Tully mad or a genius? Is Katharine herself mad? Is there something deeper and darker going on at Stranwyne Keep? The mystery in the story was a bit complex for my taste, but if you enjoy mysteries, this will be a good book for you.

The characters in novel all have little secrets of their own. Mrs. Jefferies, Davy, Mary, and Lane each have something to hide from Katharine, but it is not their open disdain for who she is and what she came to Stranwyne Keep to do. They are all extremely loyal to and protective of Frederick Tulman, and they will go to any length to protect him. Their behavior is admirable to an extent, but they all become rather scary. If I was Katharine, I would have left after the first week, duties be damned. The estate was creepy, and there is no way I would sleep in a house with that many people who had it out for me. Even her only ally, the student Ben Aldridge, had secrets and became a bit frightening.