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  • Her Own Devices

  • A Steampunk Adventure Novel
  • By: Shelley Adina
  • Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham
  • Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (48 ratings)

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Her Own Devices cover art

Her Own Devices

By: Shelley Adina
Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham
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Summary

Escaped lunatics, lost children, vengeful lords, and love. Really, the situation is becoming quite impossible. Seventeen-year-old Lady Claire Trevelyan, left alone after the Arabian bubble financial disaster claims home and family, now leads the cleverest gang in the London underworld. Between outwitting a rival gang, inventing a device that will net her and her scientist employer worldwide fame, and keeping her mother from marrying her off, she can almost forget that a powerful lord wants to get closer… and if he succeeds, can destroy it all with a single word…

©2011 Shelley Adina Bates (P)2013 Shelley Adina Bates

What listeners say about Her Own Devices

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great Steampunk Adventure

I did enjoy this. I have not given it a five star rating for two reasons. Although I enjoyed the narrator's performance, I did get pulled out of the story occasionally by an incorrect emphasis on certain words which didn't really make sense. I was drawn into the story and liked the development of the characters from the first story, they are easy to like (or dislike in the case of James) I'm not really keen on 'cliffhanger' endings although they are a good way of enticing the listener/reader to purchase the next in the series. My only other criticism is that in Britain, in Victorian times, the heroine's 'majority' when she would be free of her parents' influence, would have been when she reached the age of 21 rather than 18. Apart from these few niggles it's a 'rattling good yarn' and I look forward to the next one.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Another excellent story fabulously narrated!

I LOVE these books - they are fabulously narrated, with great character and spirit, and really bring the story to life! So much so that I had to listen to the whole thing once started, and now I'm moving straight on to the rest of the series asap! This book was even more full of adventure than the first, with mischievous children, escaping lunatics, mad scientists, snobby bloods... A fantastic array of characters, events and - of course! - devices!
I cannot recommend these books enough to all adventure lovers, whatever your age

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Short but Sweet

This, the second in the Magnificent Devices series has the same good and bad points as the first (Lady of Devices).

It's well-written with a charming, Austenesque wit but it is far too short and leaves most of the major plot points unresolved.

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Spoiled by. Poor narration with. Awkward pauses.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narration. It drove me mad in the first book, but I wanted to know where the story was going so bought book 2. I won't be buying any further books from the series as my annoyance at the long pauses, badly placed emphasis and weird breaks (for breath?) now outweighs my desire to know what happens to the characters.

What didn’t you like about Fiona Hardingham’s performance?

Everything. Seriously. Wrong pauses. Wrong emphasis... I found my self missing whole sections of the story as I attempted to work out what she had actually meant by what she said. For example, there's a difference between "hitting him DEAD. In the centre of his CHEST" and "hitting him dead in the centre of his chest"...

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Comfort Connoisseur
  • 14-05-14

should be 5 but...

Any additional comments?

it was great. I thought it was going to be the steampunk version of Mean Girls but it was delightful. My only complaint is the brevity of the book. The author could have easily drawn out the book and I find it baffling that none of the other street gangs didn't bother her. but still a good solid read/listen.

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Tricia Hozie
  • 20-02-15

Amazing writing and telling!

I have never felt so strongly about a book/series to make a comment. This is my first and I am an avid Audible reader/listener. Good fun, strong characters along with a vivid storyline make this series a winner! Own the whole series - you can't go wrong.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Mike
  • 10-07-14

Great Story, Halting Narration

Any additional comments?

The narrator has an odd speaking cadence and frequently pauses awkwardly, cutting sentences in half. It felt a bit like a bad William Shatner impression.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Rachael
  • 21-05-14

It only gets better!

The series continues to enfold you into 19th century Britain, where industry and invention have become the all-consuming goal. Our heroine has found herself battling between two factions; one is societal norms and one being her life’s work. The narrator continues to be amazing, and has never missed a character yet. The story line continues to improve. Audiable please record the last few books.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Gayle
  • 24-12-13

The Steampunk Fun Continues!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend. This is a fun series with interesting characters and story lines. The narration is also excellent and just MAKES the story!

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's hard to choose a favorite character because they all interact so well - I love them all!

Have you listened to any of Fiona Hardingham’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, I haven't ever listened to her before, but if I were considering a book and she was the narrator, that would definitely sell me on it!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes - the plot was engaging. I really did not want to stop.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
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  • Paisley
  • 13-11-14

Couldn't handle the narrator anymore

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It's a good series, but a little too YA level for me. My boyfriend and I (both 27) tried listening to the series together. He's still into it, but by this book I got very bored with the story.

How could the performance have been better?

I had to return this one. I got through about two hours and just couldn't handle the narrator any longer. Some of the accents she does (mostly for the children) were just like nails on a chalkboard and drove me absolutely up the wall! I can't even stand to recall them in my head as I write this, they were so painful to listen to.

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Kindle Customer
  • 08-03-22

Fast paced continuing story

I love the Lady and her charges. Very enjoyable steampunk adventure. Be prepared to get the next book as these stories continue from Book 1 to Book 4. New character perspective in book 5 I believe. I finally caught the narration on sale. Clean story with excellent narration.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Paul Single
  • 10-09-21

Pleasingly enjoyable

Enjoyable and I definitely wanted to see what would happen next. I binge-listened the whole series so far, hopefully book 3 will be even more. Narrator's performance is very well and makes the storyline pleasing to listen to.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Kindle Customer
  • 07-07-21

awesome story

One of the best story series I have heard. Definitely worth listening to series several times.

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
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  • Kindle Customer
  • 07-02-20

Good story episode

The story line and character development are really good, and the audio performance does not disappoint. What I'm not a fan of; however, is that this story is an EPISODE. The entire series is that way. The listener only gets a part of the entire story at a time. The only thing that is complete in each episode is that one major and one minor problem gets solved by the end, but the story itself isn't whole. It's an ongoing series - like the old story theater from radios - and thus you cannot know the end of the actual overarching story unless you buy the next audio or ebook in the series. Which adds up to a pretty penny for the author, but is annoying as a paying reader/listener. While I enjoy this series, it is unlikely that I will continue with it for that exact reason.