Lumière (The Illumination Paradox #1)
by Jacqueline Garlick 
Rating: ★★★★1/2
Review Copy: ARC
Synopsis: One determined girl. One resourceful boy. One miracle machine that could destroy everything.

After an unexplained flash shatters her world, seventeen-year-old Eyelet Elsworth sets out to find the Illuminator, her father’s prized invention. With it, she hopes to cure herself of her debilitating seizures before Professor Smrt—her father’s arch nemesis—discovers her secret and locks her away in an asylum.

Pursued by Smrt, Eyelet locates the Illuminator only to see it whisked away. She follows the thief into the world of the unknown, compelled not only by her quest but by the allure of the stranger—Urlick Babbit—who harbors secrets of his own.

Together, they endure deadly Vapours and criminal-infested woods in pursuit of the same prize, only to discover the miracle machine they hoped would solve their problems may in fact be their biggest problem of all.

REVIEW

Eyelet, daughter of a great inventor, finds herself in a whole heap of trouble very quickly in Lumiere with only one objective in mind: Find the Illuminator. The machine built by her father that's said to be the only thing able to cure her of her debilitating seizures. Along her journey to find it she meets Urlick, a young man of a similar age who seems to need it just as badly. The two of them clash wonderfully upon first meeting as they both hold on to their own secrets. As readers, we know Eyelet's, but Urlick is a different matter all together and he and his household proved a very crurious puzzle I really enjoyed investigating.

It's a while since I've read a book with so many new ideas and creations and such incredibly memorable and original characters. It's not even like any other Steampunk I've read in terms of gadgets or machinery. At no point during the read did I ever think, "Ah, yes, that's a bit like that other book I read". I was really impressed by this as it's quite hard to find "new" when you read so much within the same few genres.

I truly, truly loved both main characters. How utterly brave of Garlick to give us a leading male and potential love interest that looks the way he does, lives the way he does. I was enthralled by the relationship between Urlick and Eyelet and their (thankfully) nice and slow progression toward romance. Can't wait for more of that over the next two books! Eyelet was a fun character, too; brave and bold to a frightening degree with a terrible tendency for sticking her nose where it doesn't belong. Loved her!

A wonderful start to the trilogy.