The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

Synopsis: In 1897 England, sixteen-year-old Finley Jayne has no one…except the “thing” inside her.

When a young lord tries to take advantage of Finley, she fights back. And wins. But no normal Victorian girl has a darker side that makes her capable of knocking out a full-grown man with one punch….

Only Griffin King sees the magical darkness inside her that says she’s special, says she’s one of them. The orphaned duke takes her in from the gaslit streets against the wishes of his band of misfits: Emily, who has her own special abilities and an unrequited love for Sam, who is part robot; and Jasper, an American cowboy with a shadowy secret.

Griffin’s investigating a criminal called The Machinist, the mastermind behind several recent crimes by automatons. Finley thinks she can help—and finally be a part of something, finally fit in.

But The Machinist wants to tear Griff’s little company of strays apart, and it isn’t long before trust is tested on all sides. At least Finley knows whose side she’s on—even if it seems no one believes her.

Review:

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross has a gorgeous cover, an awesome title, an interesting premise, and really brilliant, creepy gadgets. But none of that can keep it from reading like a draft. Certainly not a first draft, but not a final one, either. It’s almost as if an editor removed large parts of character development in order to cut to the action, of which there is plenty.

When we’re first introduced to Finley Jayne, she’s a kick-ass kind of girl (literally). When threatened, something inside of her rears up and gives her mad defensive skills. She is immediately likable, which is why this reader doesn’t understand Finley’s need to shove down that part of herself. Despite all the references to The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, there’s not enough obvious distinction between the “good” and “bad” sides of Finley. It seems the girl just wants to defend herself and perhaps have a little fun with bad-boy Jack.

Toward the end, we start to see Finley melding these two sides of herself into one personality, but again, the case for doing so isn’t strong enough. She seems pleased, but the author fails to make the case. I’m hoping the stakes will be raised in the next book, and despite all the problems, I did enjoy it. Steampunk junkies will love Cross’s imaginative creations, plus, there’s just something so creepy about cold, unfeeling metal that can think for itself. Perhaps it is a metaphor for our growing callousness? Whatever the case, The Girl in the Steel Corset has potential, but it’s just not there yet.

It’s in stores May 24.