Who Would’ve Guessed that I would LOVE Paranormal Steampunk? The Falconer by Elizabeth May Audiobook Review

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Well, well, well, well. Who would’ve thought that I would enjoy The Falconer so much? The fae, that’s who! *wink

I believe this is the very first steampunk paranormal book that BLEW ME AWAY! Yes, it’s that AMAZING! Sure, I enjoyed The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare but that series does not come CLOSE to the amazingness that is The Falconer!

The Falconer checked all the boxes for me. Awesome female character? Check! Anti-heroish mysterious character? Check! Spunky, comedic character? Check! Minimal romance? Check! Set in the Victorian England? Check! Awesome action scenes? Hell, yeah!

The Falconer follows Aileana (such a unique name, by the way) who is a fae killer (Falconer) and she is out for revenge. She is trained by the mysterious fairy Kiaran MacKay to effectively use her gifts.

Elizabeth May creates a very enthralling steampunk world in Victorian London which adds a mysterious, yet creepy touch to the overall feel of the story. I was amazed at how perfect the world building felt! And this is coming from me, who usually shy away from faerie fantasy books (A Court of Thrones and Roses).

Enter in a spectacular cast of characters, The Falconer feels fresh and despite the dark themes throughout the book, there is a touch of fun. I especially love Derrick, the tiny pixie who lives in Aileana’s closet and gets drunk on honey!

I also love the fact that the romance is subtle and I didn’t even mind that it was a slow burn romance! And I hate slow burn romance!

Did I mention the action? Well, there are a few action scenes and it just blew me away! I felt like Elizabeth May introduced scarier and scarier fae as the story progressed. I felt like I have never read about these types of fae before!

Really, the best feature of this book is Aileana who is a very strong character on her own. I love her dilemma between conforming to society and also trying to avenge her mother’s death. Her struggles felt real to me, and I really appreciate that.

I’m really surprised why The Falconer didn’t get as much buzz as other series because this book is AMAZING! I definitely recommend this to EVERYONE!

Susan Duerden as the narrator was SPECTACULAR! I think she added another layer to the story. The different accents that she used in the books brought me into the story even more!

I have listened to a few historical romances narrated by Susan Duerden and she does not disappoint.

UNFORTUNATELY, the next two books in the series aren’t available in audiobook format and I am very disappointed about that. So, unfortunately, you won’t be able to listen to the next 2 books of the series.

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