Riveted by Meljean Brook [Review]

Riveted (Iron Seas #3) by Meljean Brook
Format: paperback
Source: purchased
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: June 22, 2023

Iron Seas
0.4. The Blushing Bounder
0.5. Here There Be Monsters
1. The Iron Duke
1.5. Mina Wentworth and the Invisible City
2. Heart of Steel
2.5. Tethered
3. Riveted - Paperback | Kindle
3.4. Wrecked
3.5. Salvage
4. The Kraken King

Meljean Brook
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

A century after a devastating volcanic eruption forced Iceland's inhabitants to abandon its shores, the island has become enshrouded in legend. But the truth behind the legends is mechanical, not magical--and the mystery of the island a matter of life and death for a community of women who once spilled noble blood to secure their freedom.

Five years ago, Annika unwittingly endangered that secret, but her sister Källa took the blame and was exiled. Now Annika serves on an airship, searching for her sister and longing to return home. But that home is threatened when scientific expedition leader David Kentewess comes aboard, looking to expose Annika's secrets. Then disaster strikes, leaving David and Annika stranded on a glacier and pursued by a madman, with their very survival depending on keeping the heat rising between them--and generating lots of steam...

Thoughts on Riveted: Oh MAN. It's been a while since I dipped my toes into the Iron Seas world and HOO-BOY I had forgotten how sticky and complicated some of the situations these folks get into could be.

This time around we have an airship, a lady looking for her sister, a man trying to find his mother's people, and a handful of VEYR BAD MEN who have no conscience whatsoever.

Let's start with Annika and David. They're both a bit out of step with those around them. Which isn't a bad thing, mind you, but it's left a mark of both of them in different ways. David is wryly resigned to the looks and fear his prosthetics cause in people. He's sort of drawn into himself (if that makes sense) because of these reactions and only has a handful of friends he trusts.

Annika, on the other hand, is...well, she's quirky. She speaks her mind and makes friend, but she's aware she's not quite like those around her. Part of that is from her upbringing on the island, but she was even a little different from the people in her village. (As an aside, her sister's "teasing" about Annika's lack of bravery gave me a sour lemon face. Annika always took it as gentle teasing until she realized that maybe her sister actually thought that of her and that sort of broke my heart.) Leaving the island and heading out into the world might have been one of the harder things Annika had ever done, but it gave her the chance to spread her wings and figure out who she was.

It also put her in the path of some big adventures. Like being attacked by pirates and falling for a man who might put her people at risk and doing what she could do to right injustices. David's belief in her and her bravery when she felt like she'd never been brave at all helped her in a big way.

A whole lot of danger, an experiment with big repercussions, mechanical creatures, fractured friendships, a very bad man who does very bad things, and two people who have to fight for their happily ever after. YESSSSSSS.