A stolen clockwork spider. A forbidden romance. A murderous spy on the streets of London who must be stopped before it’s too late.
Lady Amanda is tired of having both her intelligence and her work dismissed. After blackmailing her way into medical school, she catches the eye of her anatomy professor from the moment she walks into his lecture hall. Is he interested in her? Or only her invention–a … he interested in her? Or only her invention–a clockwork spider that can spin artificial nerves?
Lord Thornton, a prominent neurobiologist, has been betrayed. Secret government technology has been stolen from his laboratory, and a foreign spy is attempting to perfect it via a grisly procedure… using gypsies as test subjects. The last thing he needs is the distraction of a beautiful–and brilliant–new student, even if her spider could heal a deteriorating personal injury.
Until her device is stolen and used in the latest murder. Lord Thornton has no option but to bring her into his laboratory as well as the investigation where they must fight their growing, yet forbidden, attraction. Bodies accumulate and fragile bonds are tested as they race across London, trying to catch the spy before it’s too late.
THE GOLDEN SPIDER is a story set in the Elemental Steampunk World, including The Elemental Steampunk Chronicles, Elemental Steampunk Tales, and Elemental Steampunk Stories. Steampunk adventure wrapped around a romance and threaded with biotechnology. Join USA Today bestselling author, Anne Renwick, as she takes you back into an alternate past.
THE ELEMENTAL STEAMPUNK CHRONICLES: The Golden Spider, The Silver Skull, The Iron Fin, Venomous Secrets
ELEMENTAL STEAMPUNK TALES: A Trace of Copper, In Pursuit of Dragons, A Reflection of Shadows, A Snowflake at Midnight, A Ghost in Amber
ELEMENTAL STEAMPUNK STORIES: The Tin Rose, Kraken and Canals, Rust and Steam
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What a simply fabulous read!!! This is my first time reading Anne Renwick and it won’t be the last!!When I first saw this cover it was love at first site! It’s so beautifully done. In the last couple of years I’ve read a couple of steampunk romances and have enjoyed this genre very much. Anne’s storytelling is fabulous and her words flow flawlessly from page to page. I really liked her two main characters Sebastian and lady amanda. And her side characters like mr. black sebastian’s partner and spy master to the queen with his dark good looks and knowing eyes that don’t miss a thing and a vicious killer who is experimenting and killing gypsies theirs plenty of action and suspence with a twisted ending when the killer is unmasked. What a awesome mystery with some romance and steamy moments as well. I love historical steampunk and am looking forward to more books from this very talented writer. Between the mechanical spider and the krackens and all sorts of cool weapons and air ships and fashion im hooked! Until next time Luv’s
“A stolen clockwork spider. A forbidden romance. A murderous spy on the streets of London who must be stopped before it’s too late.”
This was well written and had great world building, Steampunk just ins’t my “thing”. I did very much like Lady Anne; she is smart and savvy; I mean she blackmailed her way into Med School! She also catches the attention of the Anatomy Professor Lord Thornton; also brilliant and in no mood for the beautiful Lady Anne; he has his own issues. Soon she has a similar issue to that of Lord Thornton which forces them to work together to solve this Mystery, will romance bloom as well?
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
“The honor of working for the Queen as a spy was overrated.” That definitely caught my attention; what an intriguing beginning to this novel. The vision and trials of a young woman trying to buck Victorian social conventions and two men accustomed to vigorous activity trying to overcome physical disability in their very different ways keep my attention. This may be a steampunk paranormal romance but it has the feel and action of one of JD Robb’s In Death books. This series is worth diving into.
I received a copy of this book from the author and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
It was a fun little romp of a book. Plenty of action, lots of chemistry, and fun characters.
I loved the entire steampunk universe. The romance would have been better if I was 18. Altogether it was enjoyable enough.
Nothing deep here, but I enjoyed the world building and characters. This was an entertaining, fun, quick read.
My first steampunk book and outside of some of the technical terms, I loved this book. Always a fan of historical settings with romance, but with spies, nifty gadgets, and smart heroines, this exceeded my expectations.
Lady Amanda made a deal with her father that in one year, she’ll be betrothed if he’ll allow her to attend medical school. After her brother Ned was hurt and unable to walk without the aid of mechanical legs, Lady Amanda has spent 5 years working on a mechanical spider that would be able to fix damaged nerves in the spine using gold and other earth elements. However, she’s run into a snag and needs the assistance of Lord Thornton, a neurophysiologist, who also happens to be her professor. Unbeknownst to her, he is also a spy for the Queen, who is working on rash of gypsy murders and needs her assistance…and spider. When the spider goes missing, Lady Amanda will begin working in Lord Thornton’s laboratory, alongside him and his team, who are also working on a few of their own mechanical devices…one, a revolutionary mechanical eye. Unfortunately, things are a little tense when Lady Amanda finds herself attracted to Lord Thornton, someone who has vowed not to get married while he is still in the service of the Queen.
From here on out, it is a race to find the killer while also completing her spider to not only help her brother Ned, but Lord Thornton as well. The story twists and turns with Lady Amanda having to rely on family members and Lord Thornton, several of whom are in danger throughout the story.
Love the story and will definitely be reading the next book.
I really enjoyed this book but sadly I lacked the medical knowledge to fully enjoy it.
Romance and steampunk with mystery, action and espionage This was one of the first books I read in this genre. It is well paced and kept me engaged in the story. I loved the steampunk twists. The lead character is smart, strong, independent and likable. There are several steamy scenes. A fun read.
I was not the intended audience for this book. I was hoping for more steampunk, but got more romance.
I enjoyed this story of the convoluted trails of an intelligent and driven woman under pressure to conform.
The tale has it all, steam punk science, historical romance, Queen and Country spies and gypsies! What a rollercoaster ride!
I really enjoyed this steampunk thriller. It had everything – murder mystery, steamy romance, science. Liked the characters and look forward to reading more of their adventures. It’s an easy read, so don’t expect a deep involved story. Just fun!
STEAMPUNK MACHINATIONS!!!
Heads up! Anne blew me away with this incredible, refreshing approach, uniquely her own, playing out all the chaos and mayhem, thrusting this baby into a tizzy with astonishing results, melding it together piece by piece seamlessly. Anarchy, escapades and havoc run amuck, stalling shenanigans and throwing this little fella into a raging tempest, blowing it into a tailspin with a life altering, mind-blowing culmination. Sparks fly as drama, tension, lies, blackmail, treachery and mounting suspense spirals, blasting this baby to life beautifully. Add distress, turmoil and perplexing situations along with a boatload of secrets while dodging dastardly intentions, makes for one block busting adventure. The attraction and chemistry sizzles through the pages, alluring and mesmerizing, grounding in it’s strength and awe-inspiring in it’s depth. The characters are realistic and genuine with traits and qualities that balance and blend into outstanding personalities. The scenes are colorfully descriptive its easy to interpret each scenario as they play out perfectly. Remarkable job Anne, thanks for sharing this bad boy with us.
The first book in the Elemental Steampunk Chronicle series a well written story with a very good storyline that kept me turning pages. This is Lady Amanda Ravensdale she is trying to get a clockwork spider she is working on to produce artificial nerves so her brother can walk again. Sebastian Talbot the Fifth Earl of Thornton a lecturer and researcher is interested in the work she is doing. This story has suspense, drama, danger,twists, turns, a villain, and romance. I want to read the next book. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
What a gaslamp steampunk without mystery, murder, and mad scientists? Not a good one that what. Throw as dash of leather corsets and abundance of skin to put the “steam” in steampunk and this little madcap caper will have you smile.
Gypsies are being murdered and it’s up secret agent Lord Thornton to figure out who it is before more innocence die, but he will have to match wits with one very intelligent female who may hold the key to helping solve the case. He just has to talk her into handing it over without handing his heart along the way.
It’s a romantic who-dunnit that will have you letting out a sigh of relief by the end.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I have read this book about a year ago and I have liked the scientific feel to it. There is a bit of everything for everyone there – steamy scenes, inventions, intrigue, criminals and fashionable clothes. I actually dislike the overuse of steamy scenes and the way the relationship between main characters progresses, but overall it is a very engrossing book and I would recommend it
The world and characters that Renwick creates are diverse and engaging. Overall, it’s a book steampunk lovers would enjoy. The anatomical take on steampunk is different from most stories I’ve read and thus provided a nice diversion from the usual steampunk novel. Highly recommend reading it.
This is my step into the Steampunk Romance genre and it was an absolutely amazing choice if I do say so myself. This story was BRILLIANT and I can’t wait to read more from this author. She hit it on the mark all around on this one, it was fast-paced, there was mystery, intrigue and the chemistry between the main characters (who were absolutely solid characters) was INTENSE and SMOLDERING.