Also by Calista Taylor:
Add to your library
Share on Facebook
Tweet
Share on Google+
Save this on Delicious
Published: Sep. 01, 2011
Words: 96,515 (approximate)
Language: English
ISBN: 9781466112681
Short description
In steampunk Victorian London, Lady Phoebe Hughes develops an herbal elixir, Viridis. Rumored to bring on an orgasm with a single kiss, London's elite flock to her club to experience the herbal's effects first hand. Happiness seems to finally be within reach when her love returns, but murder, conspiracy and revolution threaten to ruin it all, her love's life at stake.Extended description
In steampunk Victorian London, where airships dot the sky and tinkerings abound, Lady Phoebe Hughes develops an herbal elixir, Viridis, unlike any other. London’s elite flock to her club to experience the euphoria and heightened senses the drink brings, an orgasm brought on by a single kiss. But when Lord Hawthorne is murdered after leaving her club, Phoebe is shocked to find that not only was he working for the Special Services to infiltrate the Cause, a movement fighting for the city's poor, he was also in possession of her secret formulation for Viridis.Adding to her difficulties is the unexpected return of Mr. Seth Elliott, a brilliant tinkerer who stole her heart and imagination, only to abandon her when she needed him most. Unable to ignore all that is between them, Phoebe finds herself falling for Seth once again, only to have a powerful rival for her affections wrongly accuse Seth of attempted murder. As Phoebe struggles with a way to free her love, revolution, conspiracy.. (Read more)
Adult-content rating: This book contains content considered unsuitable for young readers 17 and under, and which may be offensive to some readers of all ages. For more information, see the Support FAQ.
Tags
fiction, erotica, mystery, historical, scotland, science fiction, steam punk, erotic romance, london, sci fi, highland, scottish, highlander, romance steampunkAvailable ebook reading formats
This book is free. How to download ebooks to e-reading devices and apps.| Format | Full Book |
|---|---|
| Online Reading (HTML, good for sampling in web browser) | View |
| Kindle (.mobi for Kindle devices and Kindle apps) | Download |
| Epub (Apple iPad/iBooks, Nook, Sony Reader, Kobo, and most e-reading apps including Stanza, Aldiko, Adobe Digital Editions, others) | Download |
| PDF (good for reading on PC, or for home printing) | Download |
| RTF (readable on most word processors) | Download |
| LRF (Use only for older model Sony Readers that don't support .epub) | Download |
| Palm Doc (PDB) (for Palm reading devices) | Download |
| Plain Text (download) (flexible, but lacks much formatting) | Download |
| Plain Text (view) (viewable as web page) | View |
Reviews
Log-in to write a Review Log-in to add a Video Review
Review by:
Jens Kuhn
on April 04, 2013 :
This is quite a nice story and actually would be worth paying for. The author clearly has talent and the steampunk theme is develope enough to be promising. I'll happily read the sequel.
(review of free book)
Review by:
hrhsophia
on Jan. 24, 2013 :
A very thrilling read, the end was wrapped up a little quick with a barely believable solution. I know there is sibling love but that is a bit much. I do like the characters but the emotional reactions seem to border on the extreme. Still overall a good read.
(review of free book)
Review by:
nanette brumfield
on Nov. 16, 2012 :
great book!!!!!
(review of free book)
Review by:
Mark Breuer
on July 29, 2012 :
I give 5 stars to any book that I love and would read again and Viridis falls in that category. While I would warn anyone who is easily offended about the very steamy love scenes, they flow well with the story. The combination of steampunk, romance, and mystery kept me turning the pages until the end. This is a must read!
(review of free book)
Review by:
iri
on July 25, 2012 :
The quality of this story is great and the author offers it free to readers, I can say I was surprised and really happy while reading this book.
The story takes place in a kind of alternate world so there are a lot of similarities and we can easily immersed ourselves in the plot and in the same time there are a lot of particularities that make this world even more fascinating.
I loved to see how the investigation was proceeded and I enjoyed not knowing the reasons and culprit immediately (even if I got Gabriel at once^^;;). The relation between the characters is well constructed and their personalities are showing quickly so we can choose our favourite quite easily. I loved Seth but part of me think Gavin would be better for Phoebe because he seems to understand her better ^^. I also really liked William who is honest and so understanding.
If the principal plot has its ending in this book, we can see the secondary plot remaining unsolved and it’s a good opening for the rest of the series. Now I also would have liked a bit more of explanation about the universe or at least to get the hints more quickly because a lot is left unsaid. We can’t really know which side is right the government or the Cause both are doing right and wrong things and without knowing more we can’t choose a side.
For all this positive aspects, this book isn’t for all public either. The violence is high and the sexual parts of the story are not for an under aged or sensitive person. There is mention of rape and homosexuality, well written yes but better for adult readers who know what they will be reading.
(review of free book)
Review by:
Cae
on April 18, 2012 :
Title: Viridis
Author: Calista Taylor
Rating: 5/5
Summary: Lady Phoebe Hughes, developer of the herbal Viridis and owner of a club becomes the center of attention when Lord Hawthorne is murdered after leaving her establishment. Her beloved, Mr. Seth Elliott – a brilliant tinkerer, returns from his post in the Outlands, and that causes a stir. Beneath a back drop of revolution, conspiracy and murder Phoebe must struggle to free her love and find her happiness again.
Review: Lady Phoebe Hughes has created an herbal elixir that is all the rage amongst London’s elite. Viridis brings an experience of euphoria, heightened senses and holds the potential to bring the consumer to orgasm with a singular kiss. However, not all is euphoric for Lady Phoebe. A lord is murdered after leaving her club, and as it turns out the lord had been working for the Special Services to infiltrate a movement known as the Cause. This however, was not the most shocking detail revealed upon Lord Hawthorne’s death, it was the fact that he was in possession of her secret formulation for Viridis.
The tinkerer that stole her heart, Mister Seth Elliot, also returns and adds to the issues she is already facing. Phoebe loses herself once more to Seth’s affections, which adds another layer of drama and intensity to Phoebe’s already hectic and chaotic life when a powerful rival for her affections accuse Seth of attempted murder.
The one thing that irked me about this particular novel, was that Phoebe had a martyr complex, always having to be the one to make things right, and even willing to suffer atrocities to ensure that things came out alright and in her favor. I do not condone the behaviors that she did, and personally I would have let the hunky Gavin MacKay handle it than submit myself to the hands of Lord Victor – and I like a little spice in my sex scenes. However, I understand that it aided in solidifying the character’s development throughout the book and further solidified her relationship with Seth (especially after it brought Gavin and Seth to a sexy Scotsman fist fight).
I look forward to reading the sequel to this book, as soon as I have the money to spare for it.
Recommendations: Steampunk, Victorian Era, Romance/Erotica readers.
(review of free book)
Review by:
PixieBoo
on March 06, 2012 :
I found the book to be very captivating and couldn't stop reading it. Great read but i found it hard to feel sorry for Phoebe for what happened with Victor; like one of the previous reviews I found her to be quite foolish at that moment given how she was supposed to be cunning and intelligent. I thought that she just gave him what he'd wanted all along and i didn't like it. Otherwise the storyline was entertaining and looking forward to your future books.
(review of free book)
Review by:
wolfstar121
on Nov. 14, 2011 :
loved it! i hope this becomes a series!
(review of free book)
Review by:
laurie hunter
on Oct. 18, 2011 :
i'm not a critic but i loved this book. great writing.can't wait for the next one. thanks
(review of free book)
Review by:
Doris Holmes
on Sep. 25, 2011 :
A strong case of like for this great read, can't wait for book 2.
(review of free book)
Review by:
Jemi Fraser
on Sep. 22, 2011 :
Great story! Phoebe is a fabulous character: strong, intelligent and unwilling to live under the usual Victorian constraints. She battles for the poor, her family and her heart as murder and conspiracies swirl around her. The steampunk tinkerings and the building political tensions provide a terrific background for Phoebe's story. You'll be rooting for her - and begging for the sequel in no time!
(review of free book)
Review by:
Mia Darien
on Sep. 22, 2011 :
I really wanted to like this book, and there were elements of it that I did. Ms Taylor is a good writer. The "world" was well set-up and engaging, the technological aspects of it were not over-done and helped enhance the background, and I thoroughly liked all of the secondary sympathetic characters.
My problem with the book and why, sadly, I cannot say I wholly liked it or give it a higher rating was because I did not like the main characters. Seth was okay, but I had trouble tolerating Phoebe. I found an air of "Saint Phoebe" and recurring martyrdom of her that was over-played and I didn't agree with/see justified, in my mind. I also found her rather unforgivably foolish for a woman reputed by other characters in the book to be so smart and savvy. As such, the selfless devotion of several of the other characters towards her to be... annoying.
I hate to say these things, especially as a fellow writer, because like I said, there were many aspects I did like to the book. But my distaste for Phoebe and the reactions of others towards her, as well as a rather slow beginning, made it hard for me to finish it but I liked the writing and the world enough to do so anyways.
As a reader, I would be interested to read more from Calista Taylor, but not with Phoebe as the main character again.
(review of free book)
Review by:
Haylee Hart
on Sep. 19, 2011 :
I really enjoyed my first steampunk romance. Never even heard of the genre before reading "Viridis." But, agh! Calista, you're killing me. I NEED the next book in the series.
(review of free book)
Review by:
Joe PTC
on Sep. 07, 2011 :
A great Steampunk read!
(review of free book)