A certain person with a certain pen and a certain book can craft entire worlds through a branch of science called scriptology. Elsa comes from one such world that was written into existence, where her mother — a renowned scriptologist — watches over and expands their reality.
But when Elsa’s home is attacked and her mother is kidnapped, Elsa is determined to cross into the real world and use her own scriptology gift to track her mother’s kidnappers. Instead, she finds herself in an alternate Victorian-era Italy, in a mansion that houses a secret society of young people with gifts for mechanics, alchemy, and scriptology.
With the help of new friends, Elsa unveils a political conspiracy and the schemes of an ambitious man intent on possessing the most dangerous weapon ever created. Elsa may be the only one who can stop it — as long as the assassins don’t kill her first.
Ink, Iron, and Glass has an amazing premise, which immediately drew to me to it. Unfortunately, I didn’t expect a steampunk adventure. I don’t have a head for understanding steampunk. It felt more like sci-fi technology cobbled together with modern-day inventions, and overall I found it a little tedious. Maybe it’s because of this that I also lacked an emotional connection to the characters, and when the insta-love came into play, I was ready to be done. All in all, this novel just wasn’t for me, but if you’re into steampunk and complex time travel, you may just enjoy the book.
Rated: Mild, for a handful of uses of mild language. A character gets drunk. Two characters kiss passionately in a bed, but stop before going further.
