I picked up Tall & Dark, book one of Miss Dark’s Apparitions series, as an Amazon freebie (not realizing it is a spin-off series). I then purchased Dark Clouds and Dark & Stormy.

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Tall & Dark:
Ghosts, grifters…and a missing heir in 1890s Europe.

It’s easier to conduct a séance when the dead aren’t trying to contact you. As Molly Dark knows all too well, the problem with being able to see ghosts is that they never tell you what you wish to know.

For instance, how a proper young lady like Miss Dark is supposed to support an impoverished family after her father has died a ruined man. Or how she is going to impersonate a missing princess long enough to steal a fortune out from under the collective noses of a whole family of royal monsters. Or exactly why the charming imposter claims to be none other than Grand Duke Vasily Nikolaevich, when he certainly isn’t a prince…or a vampire.

Alas, the dead normally have something far more unsettling to impart…

Review:

I very much enjoyed this. I could tell it was a spin-off. It just has that feel. In fact, I’m pretty sure I could even tell you which character overlaps. (I’ve not read the previous series yet.) But it still stood alone well enough to enjoy.

The characters are witty and distinct. There’s a dry humor to the narration and tone. The world is lightly sketched but interesting. There’s no romance, but there is potential for it in the future. All in all, I look forward to reading the rest of the Miss Dark’s Apparitions series and then going back to read those of Miss Sharp’s Monsters.

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Dark Clouds:
A cursed diamond…a cyborg detective…and a gang of would-be jewel thieves in Victorian London!

All her life, Molly Dark has been haunted by the restless dead—and now she’s finally able to do something about it. When the rich and monstrous take what they want, Miss Dark and her crew steal it back. At least, that’s the idea.

In reality?

In reality, the irritable inventor walks out, saying she doesn’t believe in ghosts and has important scientific research to conduct.

The charming ex-vampire prince is only waiting for the perfect opportunity to stab Molly in the back.

The millionaire American prosthete she’s decided to marry is also a celebrated amateur detective hunting for jewel thieves.

And the fabulous, cursed Noor-Jahan diamond isn’t just the key to righting a decades-old wrong—it’s the bait in a fiendish trap.

Review:
I admittedly didn’t enjoy this quite as much as the first one in the series. There was just a little too much ignoring of obviously red flags for the sake of a wealthy marriage and, well, too much going on about marriage for me. But I did still very much enjoy the rest of it.

I liked Nijam coming to appreciate her heritage, and her and Alphonse’s subtle banter was cute. Watching Vaily and Mary needle each other is a continuous joy, and the introduction of her family was fun. I look forward to continuing the series.

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Dark & Stormy:
A murdered ballerina…a family of vengeful vampires…and a glittering coronation in Imperial Russia.

Moscow in the springtime is an unhealthy place for a fugitive Grand Duke like Vasily Nikolaevich Romanov. But Molly Dark has been learning to trust the ex-vampire prince, who hasn’t betrayed her quite as often as she expected.

Besides, there are plenty of good reasons to visit Russia this year.

There’s the missing ballerina whose unquiet ghost demands justice.

There’s the new tsar’s spectacular coronation, which every royal monster in Europe is scheduled to attend.

And there’s the irresistible opportunity to get the secret police off Grand Duke Vasily’s trail once and for all.

It could even go well… if Vasily wasn’t bent on stealing back at least some of his lost fortune out from under the noses of his family, who in addition to being bloodthirsty vampires, are all completely bonkers.

Never mind about the resentful ex-fiancee he forgot to mention…

Review:

I am still very much enjoying this series. However, I felt this particular book dragged more than the others. Still, the characters are wonderfully witty in a dry sort of way. The world is interesting. I’m invested in the eventual outcome of their adventures. I’ll be continuing on.

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