The Strange Case of Finley Jayne by Kady Cross

Title: The Strange Case of Finley Jayne
Author: Kady Cross
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises
Pages: 78 (Kindle edition)
Rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Strange Case of Finley Jayne was a fun, quick read that I enjoyed more than The Girl in the Steel Corset. Although this novelette is a prequel to TGitSC, Finley seemed more comfortable with her duel natures and as such I found her more fun as a heroine. Strange Case also benefits from less of a focus on romantic entanglements and by extension the Victorian ettiquette of the time.

In other words, the aspects of TGitSC that prevented me from giving it four stars, weren't an issue in this novelette.

On the heels of being fired for striking an overbearing governess, Finley is hired by Lady Morton as a companion to her daughter Phoebe. From the beginning, Kady Cross metes out clues that the job isn't as simple as it appears and the story moves quickly to a satisfying - if predictable - conclusion. The predictability is not a detriment to the story, at least not to me. Putting clues together while reading a mystery is often the best part.

I enjoyed seeing the Morton's world through Finley's eyes, especially because they not only embraced her uniqueness, it was the reason Lady Morton sought her out. Phoebe and Lady Morton are great characters and friends to Finley. I also enjoyed seeing more of Finley's mother and stepfather, Silas. There are a handful of mentions of Griffin, the Duke of Greythorne, which was fun wink at what we as readers know comes 'after' the events in this story.

After reading TGitSC, I was marginally disappointed and on the fence regarding Kady Cross's Steampunk Chronicles miniseries, but after reading The Strange Case of Finley Jayne my interest has been restored.


The Girl in the Steel Corset Review