Author: Gail Carriger
Series: The Custard Protocol #2
Source: Paperback received from publisher in exchange for honest review
Pages: 320
Rating: 4.5/5
Blurb: London is in chaos.
Rue and the crew of The Spotted Custard returned from India with revelations that shook the foundations of the scientific community. There is mass political upheaval, the vampires are tetchy, and something is seriously wrong with the local werewolf pack. To top it all off, Rue’s best friend Primrose keeps getting engaged to the most inappropriate military types.
Rue has got personal problems as well. Her vampire father is angry, her werewolf father is crazy, and her obstreperous mother is both. Worst of all, Rue’s beginning to suspect what they all really are… is frightened.
When the Custard is ordered to Egypt, transporting some highly unusual passengers, Rue’s problems go from personal to impossible. Can she get Percy to stop sulking? Will she find the true cause of Primrose’s lovesickness? And what is Quesnel hiding in the boiler room?
I had been eagerly anticipating Imprudence ever since I finished Prudence one year ago so I was incredibly excited to receive this from the publishers for review. And it did not let me down. Everything I had expected - the wonderful characters, engaging plot and great relationships were all present.
Surprisingly, my favourite thing about this series (aside from the humour which is spot on) is actually Prim and Rue's friendship. They are such a supportive pair and their conversations, when casual, are hilarious and when serious are just perfect and everything a friendship should be. I really feel like Prim is coming into herself in this series which is lovely to watch. She also has a romance building up - one which I heartily approve of and look forward to seeing developing.
I had, for some reason, got the impression this was a Young Adult series - but this book took a swift turn into Adult and I would definitely recommend this for more mature readers! I really enjoyed the romance between Rue and Quesnel - I have been rooting for them since the start of book 1 and it was great to watch the development of that in Imprudence. Quesnel could be so sweet at times and poor Rue was so oblivious. Plus it was a definite highlight to see Alexia giving her daughter The Talk!
There were a couple of plots, which could have been too much for such a relatively short novel but the threads didn't get tangled and were well paced. The first plot involved Rue's parents and I always love to see them, having adored the Parasol Protectorate series. This plot was the more heart wrenching of the two and I even almost cried which I hadn't expected! The second plot is more in the way of a plot twist and since I have no desire to spoil it - I'll just say it was definitely exciting (although I had seen part of the twist coming).
Overall this was an excellent addition to the series and my only complaint is that I now have so long to wait for the next book! If you haven't already read this series I definitely recommend it, especially if you loved the Parasol Protectorate series - and if you haven't read that series yet - please do! I love Gail Carriger's writing and I loved this book.