Noir

The Illumination Paradox #2

by Jacqueline E. Garlick

Losing him would make her overcast world one shade darker…

Navigating her way through nightmarish lands devoid of sunlight, Eyelet Elsworth races to free her beloved Urlick Babbit, the first person to understand and accept her—differences and all. Framed for murder and sentenced to execution, Urlick is running out of time. And the Commonwealth’s tyrannical new ruler, Penelope Rapture, is strangely eager to speed up the clock.

Aided by a band of unusual yet loyal associates, Eyelet stumbles upon a startling rumor. And as she unravels a secret that could challenge Penelope’s claim to the throne, Penelope vows to divert Eyelet’s journey—straight to a dark and deadly end.

In Noir, the second thrilling addition to Jacqueline E. Garlick’s Illumination Paradox series, familiar friends struggle against new and old enemies, shocking secrets come to light, and the truth that could save this captivating steampunk world is revealed…if it doesn’t destroy everything first.

Revised This edition of Noir includes editorial revisions.

Genres: Steampunk, Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Dystopia, Fiction, Ebooks

382 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 26, 2015

About the author

Jacqueline likes gritty stories with beating hearts, dislikes wimpy heroines and whiny sidekicks, and loves a good tale about an irresistible underdog.
Don't you?

Lumière—a steampunk-fantasy, romance adventure—is the award-winning Book One in her young adult Illumination Paradox Series.

Jacqueline is a graduate of Ellen Hopkin’s Nevada Mentoring Program, and has also studied under James Scott Bell, Christopher Vogler and Don Maass, where she was the 2012 recipient of the Don Maass Break Out Novel Intensive Scholarship.

Jacqueline is available to chat with book clubs and welcomes pod casts, guest blogs, Skype interviews and speaking engagements, as well as comments and emails from her readers. Visit Jacqueline at www.jacquelinegarlick.com. Or follow her on social media on twitter @jackie_garlick, and like her on facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jacque... She'd really appreciate it!

Reviews

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️ Fangirl Faction · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world that Garlick creates is so very involved and compelling. There are so many details and mysterious things to muddle over in your brain as you read. This book is a great sequel! This book is a non-stop adventure that you can't pull away from.

What I liked
I really loved the dual point of views. Hearing things from the point of view of each characters is awesome. It really helps to get a better feel for the story when you can see what's going on in each characters mind. It leaves less speculation and makes for a great story.

I also loved the introduction of new characters in this. We get to meet new characters and they are described so very vividly that it makes you feel like you are there with them. The details are what really make these characters come to life. I also loved the character development, not only of the new characters but of the characters from the first book as well.

The world that Garlick has created is unique. It has so many different elements in it and it is quite involved. So much detail and great descriptions really make this world stand out as you are reading.

What I didn't like
I would have liked to have had more of the questions answered in this book that popped up in the first book. We have mention of a world in the clouds, but have not discovered if it exists and how. There really isn't a good explanation for her mother becoming a Valkyrie. What is the significance of the device and how did it make the world fall apart? How do these things fit together? These things aren't really answered and I think that a little more details or clues would have made the book that much stronger.

I am not too keen on cliffhangers, and this book has a cliffhanger ending. Now please excuse me while I bang my head on the wall for a few moments. Argh.

Would I Recommend It
I would absolutely recommend this book to others. For those that are imaginative and love good twists and exciting adventures, this is just the book for you! Go get this series now. You will thank me later. Now bring on the next book, pretty please?

[Fay Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

As deliciously dark as it's title implies, Noir was a rip-roaring, galumphing adventure story with Freak Shows, Asylums and tentacles - oh my! And the steam elephant is back in force, taking a much bigger role is this book which is great for all the readers who adored him in the opening scenes of book one.

At the close of book one Urlick was carted away by Brigsmen as he stands accused of murdering professor Smrt. It's now up to Eyelet to launch a rescue mission, complete with handy gadgets and Crazy Legs (a no armed ally). Enlisting the help of CL'S former Freak Show companions and making an invention that allows their horse to fly, things seem to be going swimmingly until Eyelet is captured too by the new ruler of the Commonwealth and thrown into the Asylum - and let me tell you, this Asylum makes Arkham seem like a detox centre on a tropical island.

With people getting captured left, right and centre, and new pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that makes up the story getting tossed their way every couple of chapters, our bands to-do list reads like the journal list in a role-play game - ever expanding, growing, and conflicting. At any point in time someone needs rescuing, they have to find the lost vial of antidote, they have to get to a lab and create antidote, they need to clear up the skies, put the correct ruler on the throne and find Limpidious; and if they find time and someone willing to do it Eyelet and Urlick would quite like to get married (well Urlick would, Eyelet is happy living in sin).

Garlick has a great writing style and a wonderful turn of phrase. I love her similes which are different without being off the wall or nonsensical. I’m not sure if this is going to be a trilogy or a series at this point. Although the story comes to a conclusion there are a lot of loose ends to tie up. Garlick seems to have a talent for moving the storyline along quite nicely though; I found there was a lot of ground covered without dwelling on it and a main focus being kept on the adventure.

A fast-paced action adventure.

[Karissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Illumination Paradox by Garlick. The first book in this series had some excellent world-building and great steampunk elements. This book was a bit more scattered and I didn’t like it quite as much as the first one.

Eyelet must rescue Urlick before it’s too late. However she will need to journey through the woods (which are full of the Infirm and criminals) as well as sneak back into the city of Brethern (where she is a wanted criminal) to do so. Luckily she has Crazy Legs (aka CL) to help her out and they are able to hook up with freak show train and sneak into the city undercover. Things don’t go as planned and suddenly Eyelet finds herself a prisoner of the dreaded insane asylum she’s worked her whole life to avoid.

This book switches POV a lot more than the first one. We hear from Eyelet, Urlick, Flossie and CL quite a bit. I honestly didn’t enjoy the parts from CL or Flossies’s POV much; I just had trouble engaging with those characters.

I thought this book was also a lot more scattered than the first one. The whole plot around the illumination device and how it can save or destroy the world was brushed aside as Eyelet rushed to rescue Urlick and then Urlick rushed to rescue Eyelet. Rather than broaden the awesome world shown to the reader in the first book, this book seemed to ignore the world in place of all this rushing around and rescuing folks. There are still a lot of intriguing steampunk devices throughout the story so that was good to see.

A large portion of the story takes place in Madhouse Brink, the very asylum Eyelet was desperately trying to avoid. Madhouse Brink was a disturbing, strangely illogical (I know it’s a madhouse), and inexplicable addition to the story. A lot of weird things that are in this place seem to be there for novelty and not any other reason in particular; they are also never well explained. It was just...an odd addition to the story.

Eyelet and Urlick are both flawed characters, but I admired their devotion to each other and their dedication to their friends. The plot does take some interesting turns and I am curious to see how things play out in the third and final book.

This book leaned more toward the new adult or adult age group rather than young adult. The scenes in Madhouse Brink get very violent, gory, and disturbing. There is also a lot of fairly explicit and romance- style talk about sex (although the act itself is never gone through in detail). I was just a bit surprised at how much “adult” content there was given that the first book was pretty YA friendly.

Overall this was an okay book in this series. It had more adult content (sex, torture, gore) than the first book. I also though the plot was scattered and didn’t enjoy the addition of Flossie’s and CL’s points of view. However I do still find this world intriguing and am curious as to how the story will play out. I will most likely pick up the last book in the series. I would tentatively recommend this series to those who are looking for more YA steampunk.

[Sharon Mariampillai · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Actual Rating: 3.5

This was an interesting read. The story was great. I did like the fast pace, and the action. However, I did feel like the alternating points of view did take away from the characters. I did not feel the same connection to the characters as I did in book 1. I feel that made the book less relatable. The ending was good. I will continue the series to see what will happen in book 3. Overall, a great read.

[Fafa's Book Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review will also be posted on both of my blogs:
http://fafasbookcorner.blogspot.ca/
https://fafasbookcorner.wordpress.com/

I recieved this arc via Netgalley and Skyscape and Two Loins in exchange for an honest review.

Going into this book I was worried that it would suffer second book syndrome. But I was happily wrong as this book was amazing!

Noir picks up with Flossie's point of view where the readers find out that she is alive and has become one of the turned. Readers also get to see from her eyes Urlick's arrest scene. During the chapter Flossie finds out that she has some leverage over the infirmed and uses them to do her bidding throughout the whole book. We are then taken to Eyelets point of view as she makes her way to Urlick's place. Upon reaching there the group devise a plan to save Urlick. As a mode of transportation Eyelet suggests they make wings for Urlick's horse. They all agree. C.L. then suggests getting his old circus friends to help them. His plan is to kill the ring master and convince his old friends into helping them save Urlick. Meanwhile Urlick is in jail and is miserable. A boy whose name is Sebastian agrees to be Urlick's eyes and ears until his execution and in return Urlick agrees to bail Sebastian out of jail.

It was nearly interesting to read all about the new characters and how they play a role in the overall plot. We get to read new point of views in this book and delve into some of the characters pasts. This book takes place within three days so it is much faster than the first book. We find out more about how the world came to be the way it is. It ends on a cliffhanger which means that there will be a third book.

If you did not enjoy the first book I would still give this one a shot considering how much better this book is compared to the first one. If you don't want to try this then considering your experience with the first book then I completely understand. For those who haven't read the series I would definitely recommend this! To be honest this is one of the most unique series I have ever read! I can't wait for the third book :)

[Jessica (Goldenfurpro) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This and other reviews can be found on The Psychotic Nerd

I received an ecopy of this book in exchange for a honest review

Actual Rating; 3.5 Stars

MY THOUGHTS
This book takes off where after the cliffy in the last book. Urlick is imprisoned and Eyelet must travel to save him from potential death. And then a whole bunch of stuff happens...

Yeah, that's a terrible summary, you can read the synopsis and it basically gives away many of the crazy things and dangers these characters endure, which is a lot . If you're worried about middle book syndrome, don't be. Sure, the two main characters are separated, which is common in middle books, but A LOT happens. I couldn't have possibly have given this book a good synopsis without giving anything away. This book is very action-packed and just when you think that everyone's good, there's another danger. I will admit that because so much was going on, everything felt a bit jumbled and scattered. Throughout it all, though, we also learn a whole bunch of new information and there were plenty of surprises. Boy, were there surprises.

Like the last book, this book is from both Eyelet's and Urlick's perspective. This is pretty darn handy because they are separated a lot and we kind of need both sides of the story. Again, I didn't love them, but neither did I hate them. Their characters felt like normal YA characters, but they were both developed characters.

Now, the ending. It sucked. Jacqueline Garlick likes to torture us apparently because this book ends in another cliffhanger. And it's a horrible cliffhanger! The type of cliffhanger that messes with your emotions and causes you to stare at the page, as if another, new page will appear with the actual ending. Needless to say, I basically need the next book.

IN CONCLUSION
Overall, I thought that this was a great sequel. If you excuse the emotional trauma from the ending, I enjoyed it. I just need the next book now. Please?

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I received this book for free from (Publisher) via (NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**

*Genre* Young Adult, Steampunk
*Rating* 4.0

*My Thoughts*

Noir is the second installment in The Illumination Paradox series by author Jacqueline Garlick. The story picks up right where Lumière left off. Urlick has been captured and imprisoned by Professor Penelope Rapture waiting to be dipped to death after being found guilty of murdering Professor Smrt. Eyelet, CL, Iris, and Cordelia try to put together a plan to rescue him before its too late. This includes allying themselves with CL's former Freak Show posse (Martin, Reeke, Sadar & Wanda). This also includes finding a way to make a horse fly (Success!) and using various steampunk gadgetry to break Urlick out of his prison.

*Full Review Posted @ Gizmos Reviews 10/10/2015*

http://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/201...
Expected publication: September 22nd 2015 by Skyscape

[Mon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book for free through NetGalley
This was a good sequel but I didn't find it as captivating as the first. The world building wasn't as great and the plot was a little more scattered. Overall though I still enjoyed the journey but I can't give it more than 3 stars.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good. I enjoyed the love story and the steampunk elements.

[Lara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book for review through NetGalley and have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand it is well-written and has a fast pace. However, the characters are always desperate and in crisis and I felt the entire book should have been written with exclamation points at the end of every sentence. It was tiring. And then there's the cliffhanger.

The first book ended with the hero and heroine having admitted their feelings for each other, Eyelet having done something pretty nasty to Flossie, and Urlick taking a big risk that saves them but also ends with him being taken into custody. This book picks up immediately afterward and I felt it was driven, but not logical. For instance, Eyelet spends some undetermined, but long, time rushing to safety through the forest. When she finally arrives, she immediately is thrown into a major planning session, crisis management, and engineering a design for a new mechanical device. She doesn't rest, doesn't eat, just keeps going at top speed and performance for hours. I understand she's driven by fear, but to not even feel tired? Not realistic at all.

Flossie's character, while selfish in the first book, has become very one dimension and grasping. Some of her decisions are also nonsensical. Some of the chapters are from her perspective, and at times it appeared she said things out loud that should have been only thought.

We also get chapters from CL's perspective, which was a bit fun, but it wasn't about character development, or even much plot movement, but more to illustrate what was going on when none of the other main characters were present.

There are also chapters from Urlick's perspective in which he learns some important new information. However, he is relatively passive for much of the book with Eyelet remaining the driver for most of the action. Unfortunately, she isn't completely open with Urlick, and that plays into the cliffhanger at the end. And it is quite a cliffhanger, too.

This is definitely a book to read after the first, as it does not stand alone at all. When I first requested it I didn't realize the series continued on after this one, and hadn't kept up on the numbering, so was unpleasantly surprised by the cliffhanger. The book does introduce some new characters, one who is a greater part of the action than the others. There is also an aspect of sexual violence that I found really troubling and that was not addressed in a serious way in the book. This book is full of revelations. While there is a lot of yelling and running around and frantic action, it felt like the scenes where they put their new knowledge to use to change things went strangely easily. And death is far too often the "satisfactory" end result of dealing with enemies. 2.5 stars.

[Emma Ferl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I stopped reading around 80 % of the book. I couldn't endure it any longer. I must admit I got the first two books because I'm a sucker for Steampunk and those beautiful covers really got me. I only didn't collect the third book because I've learned not to be too optimistic about YA novels.

I really appreciated the dance both protagonists danced around each other in the first book. But as soon as I understood two thirds of the book would be them apart trying to save each other, I started skimming through it. It's not that the cast of supporting characters isn't endearing. It's more that they don't help the plot. They serve more to expand the story into a trilogy.

And spoilers start here, so beware...

I spotted at least three comments over the MCs not being fit enough to run arond that made me cringe. Those teenagers are doing almost nothing else but running for their life and they're still alive. Stop telling me they're not good runners or that Uldrich should stay in his lab. Adrenaline can only help you so much.

As nice as it is that Uldrich doesn't have a chiseled face gifted from the angels, Eyelet is far too pretty and rape-enducing to compensate for it. It didn't happen once but twice, that the temporary villains were set on raping her. Has everyone turned into a sex-maniac over the course of the first book? Where was the memo?

Also, the last book ended with our MC both killing people to survive and clearly not feeling too sorry about doing it. They were the bad guys after all. Now, morals are back and they hesitate to kill people once more. Like that intoxicated freakshow manager who only think about having fun after strangling a armless man to near death. Eyelet go as far as trying to tell the mother of Flossie her daughter could still be alive. Although she's Turned. Zombified mist or the likes. She's only half-turned, but well...

This brings me to something that's really lacking in this serie as of yet. A good explanation over how this Commonwealth works politically. It's the industrial revolution. Mechanized everything can serve to help in your everyday life. We have the rich living in the city, while the poors live in Gear, and the criminals get thrown on the outskirts of the world, to die from the toxic Vapors or Turn into something not quite human, but that seem to retain a mind and memories. The Commonwealth has a Ruler. His infant son died under the care of Eyelet's mother, which was the reason why she was executed in the first book. Now, it's only because she used to talk to crows and was a Valkyrie (a witch). Who care about that infant son? Maybe he was made up by a figment of my imagination. The Ruler died from cancer apparently and it seems that anybody at the head of the Academy can replace him. Professor Smrt (Smart or not? who knows) replaced him, only to die and immediately be replaced by Professor Penelope. How does that work exactly? How can you inherit political and military power as though you were playing a game of toss the ball?

Knowledge is power, so science is power, so professors have powers... Apparently, Penelope and Smrt were poisoning the water and skies, blocking out the sun to make everyone sick and purge their Commonwealth from the weak. There is no more details than this. Why would we need any more? It makes the villains pretty flat and interchangeable. I don't fear them. I fear the aphazard bullets and Eyelet's epilepsy more.

So flat villains, new characters introduced because of the gadgets they can bring into the story, or a potential love triangle or potential love interest for side characters or... You see where this is going. There is lots of stuff happening all over the place for the second book to stall long enough.

Am I too hard on this plot? Things start out simple enough. Urdlich is sentenced to death and imprisonned. Eyelet wants to save him. On the way there, she spot the mechanized elephant she'd liked as a child and has to check things out for herself. She gets captured, sent to the asylum where her new nemisis' twin sister will make her life a nightmare. Uldrich get saved at the cost of a little boy's life. It appears he is the rightful heir to the throne. My god, there's a throne and a royal family. That's what the Ruler and that feverish baby were. Okay, let's scrap this information for now and have it pop back later. Surely it will help have things falling together in the long run. Eyelet needs to be rescued. Elephant driver and jealous Uldrich to the rescue with Ernest Crazy Legs. Potential amnesia for those who try to run from the Asylum because of drugs, liquid doors and stuff. Eyelet briefly forget her love, like three times, than remember him from a kiss. YAY! There's YA in yay after all.

Meanwhile, we have the evil rejected daughter of two of our three main villains plotting against Eyelet and planning to have Uldrich cure her from her half ghoulish Turned state. Penelope has lost all her importance as a villain, so has her twin sister. Alright, main villain for the last part? *sighs*

The team takes a breather outside of the big evil city. Teenage hormones flare. Eyelet is coughing a lot. Radiation induced cancer on the horizon? Means they should go back to the Core of radiation and look for the key to everyone's future, which is now in our favorite half-ghoul possession.

Yikes!

The search reveals a beautiful underground half underwater mine where the ground sounds really comfortable. Hormones are given free reins in the name of love. Don't get me wrong here. The pairing's evolution is THE one of the main reasons why I kept reading thus far. And in their cheesy way, those two are really sweet. But it felt much more as though Eyelet was rushing through things beause of her looming death while Uldrich just rolled with it. I don't blame him. That boy didn't get any love for most of his life. I guess my main problem is how romanticized this one scene was compared to every time Eyelet was disgusted by the men intending to rape her or ogle her.

One last detail now, the tag line "How much do you trust me?" gets overrated quite fast. I understand the meaning of it, how deep and important those word are. But I was already fed up of them by the half of the first book. And it never seems to stop.

So the endline after this monstrous rant, -I'm sorry for it-, this serie held promises. But the villains are too flat, the main characters rushing without thinking enough, the explanation for the mysteries thrown in our face and the romance somewhat believable and unbelievable at the same time. I couldn't believe how quickly Eyelet started throwing herself in his arms out of fear. I wanted to find it sweet, but it made her look less solid. It might only be me, but I came out of this book with a lot of unanswered questions and disappointment

I did like the living cycle. I liked most of Uldrich's creations, although Eyelet's intelligence didn't shine enough to my taste. Whenever she hesitated to point out something working wrongly, I wondered if she disdained Uldrich or doubted herself because of the way her world worked. Man/woman equality was far from reach, but we still have a lot of women in powerfull positions on the side of the villains...

Also magic. I don't think the magic was necessary here. I like the crows at first. But I prefer when magic follow a bit more rules.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noir is the second book in the Illumination Paradox series that started with Lumiere. Since this is the middle of a series I won't give a rundown on what this one is about so as to not spoil it for anyone not having read Lumiere yet. The story picks up right where Lumiere left off with Urlick and Eyelet on their adventures.

I actually believe I enjoyed Noir just a tad bit more than Lumiere. I found Eyelet a bit irritating at the start of Lumiere but she was much better in this story. If I could give half stars this would probably rate a 4.5 but it's just not quite a 5 star yet for me.

This book added in a few more points of view in the story which really worked wonderfully. It was nice to expand a bit and also get to know a few of the other characters better. The adventures continued at a fast pace which is fun to read since there is always something new being thrown in or something to deal with. I do find it a bit odd though that the author tends to toss things in when needed without much logic to them being there. For instance they have a dilemma, discuss what to do, then oh look a big factory in the middle of nowhere. Of course it's fantasy though so I suppose anything can happen.

Some really funny moments in this one. Some new villains and new friends to help our heroes. A great fast paced adventure story that I'll be looking forward to seeing how it all turns out in the next book after another cliffhanger ending in this one.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.wordpress....

[Simona B · Rating 1 out of 5]

*I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This one was even worse than the previous one -and if you've read Lumière, you know how low is the bar I'm taking.

For one thing, the plot is ridiculous -or better, at first it's nonexistent and then, past the half, it finally deigns to give itself some shape. And, punctually, it does it badly. A the beginning the group has to save the boy, then to save the girl, then to save the maid (the perpetual guest, the mama bear, whatever), and that's the end. Isn't that quite repetitive or it is just an impression of mine?
And the revelation about Ulrick's birth? So trashy and pathetic I don't even want to talk about it.

The character developing is still lacking. And, for that matter, I'm still looking for characters. I didn't have a glimpse of any in this book. Oh, wait, now that I think about it maybe there was a little girl, always moaning and complaining about the trouble se got her and her team into... she had something to do with buttons, of this I'm sure.

The writing style is maybe the worst thing of all. It's really annoying, grey and yet unrealistic. The first person does nothing but rendering the characters even more unbearable, they're so whiny and weepy, spending all their time wondering "who will save me now" and praying god to undo their mess. I admire your faith, guys, but what about rolling up your sleeves by yourselves?

I'm very sad and disappointed beacuse I know this story had potential. It just makes me angry to see such a waste.

[Michelle Cornwell-Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

‪#‎SpoilerAlert‬ Okay if you have not read the first in The Illumination Paradox Series) then please do NOT read this post! But if you don't mind a few spoilers then read on guys:)

My Full Review of Author Jacqueline Garlick's second book in the series ‪#‎Noir‬
‪#‎Click‬ here to see review on ‪#‎Amazon‬ http://www.amazon.com/rev…/REP5PW966H...…
Review: I'm amazed on how the series keeps getting better and better! Picking up from where Lumiere leaves off. Eyeslet is determined to save Urlick from prison and his imminent death! She, CL and new found friends are thrust into a harrowing journey that literally has them running for their life as they run towards helping their friend! I do not wish to give away any spoilers, but I will say there were a few surprises thrown in, and faces we thought gone in the first book are back (causing problems! LOL). Plus NEW revelations and brand-new hope for the ragtag group of friends and quite possibly their world!
Well written, passionate, weirdly wonderful just as much as the first. I loved watching the deepening of Eyeslet and Urlick's relationship, (they could give Edward and Bella some competition!) Lol They are fascinating, strong, resourceful characters each and everyone of Eyeslet inner circle! I loved that they are viewed by their world (and quite possibly may be viewed that way in our own society) as the rejects of society, but it's discovered they are the true heroes!

[Caron · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from the publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Noir is the second instalment in the Illumination Paradox series. It picks up right where Lumière ended and that's great if the books are read back to back.

Noir- like Lumière is about Eyelet Elsworth and Urlick Babbit and their little gang basically trying to set things right in their crazy world. Unlike the first book, Noir adds more perspectives of other characters, which I enjoyed. I especially enjoyed C.L's POV's as they were the most action-packed and daring.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I did the first one. It wasn't as interesting to me and I found it a bit repetitive and predictable. It took me quite a well to finish as I kept putting it off due to distractions and my lack of interest.

Other than the actual story, I found that the writing style was the same as the first book, in other words, it was great and it didn't bore me. It was a bit unfortunate that by the ending there wasn't much to look forward to.

Actual rating: 2.5 stars

[Brittany · Rating 1 out of 5]

This review also appears on my blog, Misadventures in Wonderland

I am incredibly disappointed with this novel. I adored the first in the series, and assumed I would love this one as well. I was wrong. This novel ended up DNF for me. I could not get absorbed in it. The characters in this novel seemed completely different to me than the previous. I truly wanted to love it, but I did not. The parts I read felt like a chore, which is not how it should be. I may later come back to this and give it another chance, but as of now I am leaving it alone.

*I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[The Irregular Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book via Goodreads Giveaways.

The first book in the series, "Lumiere," had quite a few high points. The world these books are set in is intriguing, and the plot of Lumiere was interesting enough to keep.my interest.

I feel like that falls away in "Noir." The plot seems weak, and stuttering to me, with several large plot holes that made it hard to continue. In general, the characters were a bit better done than the previous book, a bit more rounded out. Unfortunately, the incongruities of the plot make for choppy reading.

If you really enjoyed the first installment (which, to be fair, I did not), this might be worth a try. Otherwise, it's hard to recommend.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! I can't wait for the next one to be out!!! There's so much potential for the next book I'm excited to see where the story goes!

[Henriette · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review may contain spoilers of the first novel, but they shouldn't be read out of sequence anyway.

At the end of the first book, Ulrick was taken prisoner and Eyelet sent him a message saying that she was going to save him. Throughout most of the book, Ulrick is therefore in prison awaiting Eyelet’s arrival, while Eyelet prepares his escape. Somewhere along the line after Eyelet is taken to Bedlam (or its counterpart in this story) there is a role reversal with Ulrick getting saved by the others and then going after Eyelet. This is more suspenseful as it might sound.

To explain the low rating, I'm going to briefly touch the topic of plot holes. There are roughly three kinds:

1. Errors in logic (in which I also include sequence errors), e.g. the hero climbed the tower to get inside the castle, during the ascent, he lost his footing and dropped his knife, once inside he gets attacked but manages to deflect the killing blow at the last second by using his knife. Where did the knife come from?

2. Lack of explanation, meaning that the problem could be explained away, the author just failed to do so. Such an explanation could be: Upon entering the tower, his trusty sidekick, who came in after our hero, turns around and shows his backpack, sardonically asking ”Lose something?”. The hero sheepishly retrieves his knife sticking out from the top and continues on his way.

3. People acting in strange ways to add suspense, e.g. the sidekick asks out of idle curiosity why they didn't take the door, to which the hero replies that if they had done so the book would have been only ten pages long.

Noir, unfortunately, features all three types, but mostly the second one. And that greatly reduces the enjoyment of this book. Here are a few just as an example:

- I'm not certain about these, but I think Cordelia had blue eyes and Ulrick’s birthmark and permanent bruise are suddenly described as raised scars.

- If Bedlam’s moving walls are a smoke and mirror illusion, what are the interior doors (the moving, gelatinous mass ones)?

- In dying Eyelet’s mom became a Valkyrie. So, why didn't she just land behind the driver, transform and hit him over the head with something? How about dropping something on his head, instead of repeatedly dive bombing at him?

- The whole Pegasus sequence is utterly ridiculous. For years scientists have speculated on how Pterodactyl got into the air. An important factor is not only size but weight (greatly reduced because of the hollow bones). And Eyelet manages to get a full-grown horse in armor, carrying two armored people and sporting two metal Pegasus wings to fly in half a day. No wonder they wanted to burn her for witchcraft.

- Why does she have to show Ulrick how to work his own invention (the reverse bellows)?

- How exactly do you sneak through a city riding a giant golden jewel-encrusted mechanical elephant?

- What purpose does torturing mental patients with instruments borrowed from the Spanish Inquisition serve and why is a patient who went through this ordeal multiple times still physically healthy? She doesn't have a scratch on her and is still fit enough to outrun the other patients.

I'm not going to comment either Limpidious, which basically seems to be the flying city from Bioshock 3 and will probably feature in the third book, or the ridiculous plot of the villains who use machines to poison the atmosphere to force a selected few to invade the east and create a utopia there for the elite.

In short, the book is amusing to read as the characters are likable and it is fast-paced, but you have to turn your brain off. If it weren't a Kindle Unlimited book, I probably wouldn't read the third.

[Eric Mesa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Garlick picks up exactly where the last novel left off, so I would recommend reading this immediately after the first book, since I was a little confused for the first little bit until I remember what was going on. She uses this book to push the readers further into this world in two ways. First of all, she expands the POV characters so that we can get a first-hand look into more than just Eyelet and Urlick's thoughts. Second, she dramatically expands on the world and the magic of the world that our characters live in. Primarily, and incredibly scary, is the exploration of the kingdom's madhouse which not only leans hard on all the tropes of the evil madhouse, but also adds on top of that a layer of malicious magic. There is a bright spot with the comedic relief character in the madhouse that had me alternately laughing and gasping, given the circumstances.

Overall, this is a strong second book in a trilogy, so nothing is resolved by the end of the book, although many of our characters are closer towards various goals they wish to accomplish. There is some tragedy along with some relief and, for a series where I was a little unsure of whether I truly wanted to continue (yeah, I said I would...but I didn't have to be bound by last year Eric;s commitments), I'm now very curious to see where Ms. Garlick is going and how she's going to conclude the series.

For the most prudish of readers, there is a sex scene. That said, if I recall correctly, it's more implied than anything else once the skirts are up, so to speak. In other words, I've read more explicit scenes in YA books.

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yikes

I’ll start out by saying I enjoyed the first book and was looking forward to the growing relationship between Eyelet and Ulrich and reading their adventures together. However, that’s not at all what was given. The writing was clunky and flowery with no focus, taking paragraphs to explain one little thing or action that could be remedied in one sentence. Honestly, it was unbearable to read at some points, I struggled to finish it. Believe me, I reallllly wanted to like this book.

First of all, why bother having a world with eternal twilight if it barely factors in to the story? The concept could’ve been used in a more atmospheric way but it’s hardly touched upon. And, my god, the plot holes of which I could fit the entirety of the Grand Canyon in. There were way too many stories converging, none of which made sense and a slew of new characters introduced for no apparent reason.

The character development is nonexistent, the villains are laughable and the whole story is completely contrived. Needless to say I will NOT be continuing with the series.

[Amanda [darjeeling_and_jade] · Rating 3 out of 5]

Check out other reviews at [a cup of tea and an armful of books]

This is a review for the second book in the Illumination Paradox, and as such has potential spoilers for the first.

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For the most part, Noir is a lovely continuation of everything I really enjoyed in Lumière. The steampunk world comes back in full force, with more danger and problems than ever. At the conclusion of Lumière, both Eyelet and Urlick are left in dire situations that left me wondering how they would ever get out of them. You expect the main characters of novels to always be “safe” from true harm, but there’s always that lingering worry that like George R.R. Martin, your author may decide that the death of a character propels the story forward. I went into Noir a little worried, but expecting to enjoy it just as much as enjoyed the first of the series. Ultimately, it ended up being slightly less enjoyable than the first, but is still a decent second novel of the series.

Ultimately, something that irked me every time it reared its head was the sexual violence that is contained in Noir. It was my biggest issue with the novel, because there were far too many times that rape was semi-explicitly implied or threatened. And I’ll be honest, there should have been zero times this happened. It’s not something I like seeing in the novels I read. It is a legitimate threat in the real world and the written one because it imitates life, but I feel that fantasy books sometimes use it too much as a plot device. Rape and sexual violence should not be used as a plot device. If it is something that is included–and I still don’t know if it’s ever necessary, truly–it needs to be handled extremely well. Other readers may have been fine with how it was handled in Noir, but I was left with an uncomfortable feeling whenever these events occurred. The first time it occurred, I was not happy, but to have it occur enough times that it drove down the rating of an otherwise well-written second novel in the Illumination Paradox frustrated me. A woman can be strong without having threat or events of sexual violence happen to her. I already know that Eyelet is strong. I didn’t need this to be included.

Noir introduces several new characters, a couple of whom have chapters that they lead us through. Jacqueline Garlick does have a skill in clearly indicating the differences in their voices, so it wasn’t difficult to understand their thoughts and motivations. However, I have the same problem that I had with Lumière; Noir could have benefited from a third person narration. I think the reason that there are two new characters’ voices leading us through the chapters is because the author needed to show events that were happening away from the spheres of Eyelet and Urlick. Yes, they are two very fascinating and vivid characters, but it would be boring to read chapters upon chapters of one being locked away in a jail and the other preparing to spring him. Although I did appreciate the new characters, they were not as well-developed as Eyelet and Urlick. I wanted to know more about them, but their characterization didn’t go in depth enough for me. As a result, I didn’t care as much for them emotionally and couldn’t connect as things were going wrong or right for them.

Again, romance was the weaker part of the novel, but it was more of the main focus for Noir. In Lumière, the characters were driven to find the machine that was supposedly the cure, discover things about the machine and the real cure, uncover the mystery of what happened the day that the flash lit up the sky. Noir was more about saving the one you loved. Of course, there’s still adventure and discovery, but it wasn’t as heavy as it was in the first. I knew this going into Noir. I signed up for it and it’s the blurb on the cover of the novel. The Eyelet/Urlick arc was what I wanted to read. It’s the sort of rescuing the damsel / rescuing the dude in distress steampunk adventure story that I was excited to read. Including new romances for the characters I couldn’t connect with emotionally was too much. If I didn’t care about them as a character, I really didn’t care about their relationships. Apparently steampunk equals adventure in my mind, not romance. I wasn’t too open to the idea of more than one relationship in the novel.

The pacing of the novel does keep you interested, but a few times I wished that it wasn’t so slow. The gradual buildup is nice, because I don’t like reading books where absolutely nothing happens in the middle. I do wish that a bit more had happened, however. I understand that Jacqueline Garlick wants to end her novels with a huge cliffhanger to drive her readers insane (and therefore they’ll rush to get the next book–a pretty good strategy, to be honest) but too much happened at the end of the novel. There were several reveals and happenings that happened so quickly that I didn’t quite have a chance to process them. It lends a rushed quality to the ending of the book. Although the first novel of the series also had this quality, there was less significant things happening and so I didn’t notice it as much. Some of the events should have been drawn out more toward the end of the middle section and then I would have had a chance to come to terms with them before the novel ended. By clustering so much at the end, some of the threads of the novel ended rather abruptly. The cliff hanger does prepare the third novel well, so I will check that out when it’s finished.

3 stars.

I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The ebook version was only recently published on August 18th and the paperback and audio versions are coming out September 22nd of this year.

[Laura Katelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got better, WHERE IS THE 3RD BOOK?

The first one was tough for mii to get into not gonna lie. Eyelet just annoyed mii. The reader for the audio is pretty good. But the variations between some characters were difficult to tell.

The book was good and written good. The plot is so good and I love how the book titles are in the story. Urlich and Eyelet have developed well and I love their relationship and how much it is growing. Though they still have to work on things. The other characters are so involved in the story and i love it so much. Which brings mii to Iris & Cordelia, WHY!?!?!?!??!?!

I cannot wait to read/listen to the 3rd book.
BUT WHERE THE HELL CAN I FIND IT!?!?!?!?

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was so fun to come back to this series. I really liked having the the POV of Ulrick and Eyelet. Ulrick was still left as quite a mystery in the last one, so it was great to finally get to explore this character and understand what was happening. I didn't remember much, just a few things, from book 1 but this one was still easy to get back in to.

And some of the reveals in this one were just surprising! I didn't try to anticipate where the story was going and just enjoyed it so I loved the ultimate reveal. Well done, another fun. It's not often I get to read steampunk so I love when I can find a good read with it!

[Julia Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

To say that I struggled this would be an understatement. I couldn't get into it and stopped reading it months ago. Then I picked it back up today and was disoriented from the large gap of time. Then just rolled my eyes a lot. While I love how different and out of the box it was, I was really bothered by how young they're supposed to be and how grabby they were. I'm not a prude by any means, it's just so jarring to the mind, I suppose. I don't know, I didn't like it and couldn't keep interest and just really, really wanted to finish this book. Now I can say I did.

[Darice Ripley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Prepare to waste your time

By all means if you like a heroine that unthinkingly dashes into danger only to be caught and has to be rescued herself please read this book. The characters are constantly rushing around with no correlation to any real world activities like eating, sleeping or having to go to the bathroom. Completely far fetched in how quickly they “fall in love”. I’m sorry I read the first one and hoped the second would be better but sadly it isn’t.

[Nat · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent, action packed second book in the series that adds some interesting characters into the plot. My complaint of the first book ( that there was too much action and not enough world and people development) still stands but there are some great set pieces peppered about which are more than enough to hold my interest. I will continue with the next book at some point!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life has been a wee bit complicated over the last few months, so I really don't remember when I started or finished this, so the dates really don't matter.

This is the second book in the series.

It kept my attention and kept me wondering how they were going to save each other and get the truth out there. It kinds reminds me of an X file show, but it a very different setting.

[Brandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good book

This would be a great book for any age that loves fantasy. This book has everything that you could want. From love to traitors and some very cool gadgets as well as a little magic.

[Evil Secret Ninja · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am enjoying this series and I am excited about the next book. It has some traditional YA tropes but I felt they were done in a different exciting way. The ending left me wanting the next installment.