Audiobook Review – The Silver Skull (The Elemental Web Chronicles, Book 2) by Anne Renwick, Narrated by Henrietta Meire (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Steampunk
Length: 11 hours and 17 minutes (498 pages)
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Release Date: July 20, 2017
ASIN: B073KFKL8Q
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Elemental Web Chronicles
Source: Audiobook from Audible.com
Rating: 5/5 stars

“Lady Olivia is not all she seems.

Trained for marriage to an assigned political target, her skills lie in programming household steambots to serve tea, dress her hair… and sound the alarm while she picks locks and listens at doors. Humiliated by a failed assignment, she decides to redeem herself by tailing a suspected double agent.

Lord Rathsburn must flirt with treason.

Struggles to cure a horrible disease have met with unexpected complications. The cells he engineered can make a man’s bones unbreakable, but the side effects are fatal. He believed the research terminated… until his sister was kidnapped by a German count. Her ransom? A cure.

Piloting a stolen dirigible, he uncovers an unlikely stowaway, Lady Olivia.

Arriving together at a crumbling castle, an impossible task is set before them: cure the count’s guardsmen. Amidst their fake marriage, a very real growing attraction, dying guardsmen and escalating hostilities, Lady Olivia and Lord Rathsburn are thrust deep into the world of international medical espionage from which there may be no return.”

This is the second book in the Elemental Web Chronicles. This series is a trilogy with a variety of short stories available as well. I love this book just as much as the first in the series. These are such great steampunk reads!

I listened to this on audiobook, just like I did with the first book in the series.. The audiobook is well done. I do feel like the men sound a bit robotic (same issue with the last book) but the narration and women’s voices are very well done.

This book follows Olivia (who is introduced in the first book). Olivia is not at all who she was originally portrayed to be. She aspires to be a spy for the Queen but in order to gain her independence she must wed and become a widow first. Olivia wants to jump start her career as a spy and, when the opportunity presents itself, she stows away on Lord Rathsburn’s dirigible. Not only do Olivia and Rathsburn end up in a number of dangerous situations, but they end up drawn to each other as well.

I love how well these stories balance steampunk elements with adventure, action and romance. I also love that the story again has a very scientific bent to it. Olivia specializes in programming and Lord Rathsburn in genetic engineering.

The writing flows nicely and the story is incredibly engaging and sucks me right in. This is one of those audiobooks that I will take a longer route home from work so I can listen to it longer… The romance is also intensely engaging, there is such great chemistry between the lead characters!

Overall I loved this book just as much as the first one. This series is made for me, it blends together so many things I love. I love that the adventure, action, science, steampunk elements, and romance are perfectly balanced. I would recommend to those who enjoy a great steampunk adventure with romance. I look forward to reading the third book in the series, “The Iron Fin”.