Series Review: The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion - Highly Recommend

Following the buzz, in June, I dipped my toe into the delightful world of The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion and did not want to depart. In very short order, I listened to Volumes 1-8 on the Hoopla app. I cannot wait for the ninth installment to release (although I worry my library will not have access, or I will be far down on the hold list). I will seek it in audio form again. The narrator Genevieve Gaunt does an outstanding job! If you enjoy Victorian England, these books will surely hook you!

Emma M. Lion is a young woman alone in Victorian England. Although her parents' deaths should have left her with Lapis Lazuli House, an odd relative has been living there and ripping through her inheritance monies. Now that she is finally ensconsed in the house, she seeks to rectify these wrongs and find her place in society. Her journals are delightful. The cast of characters surrounding her make the reader wish to enter this world for real.

I was thrilled when Emma mentioned the very street I lived on when I spent six months on a work visa in London, Sydenham Hill. With each installment, I was sucked deeper and deeper into the story. Emma is fiesty and independent. Her friends are colorful and conflicted. You cannot help but be swept away into this alternate reality.

My only complaint is that the books attempt to push a feminist agenda. I know Victorian London. Emma would not have waltzed independently through life in those times. Yet, still... I absolutely loved these books! I'm willing to suspend disbelief, to overlook historical inaccuracies, because I love Emma and all her entourage of young male friends (suitors?). I love her stream-of-consciousness commentary. Each book ends with a listing of her growing library of books. This is enchanting! I highly recommend this series, and especially in audio form. I'm even hoping the books will continue well past book nine.