Blameless (novel)

Blameless is a steampunk paranormal romance novel by Gail Carriger. First published on September 1, 2010 by Orbit Books, Blameless is the third book in the five-novel "The Parasol Protectorate" series, each featuring Alexia Tarabotti, a woman without a soul, as its lead character. The book, originally published as a "mass-market" paperback, was a New York Times Best Seller.

Blameless
Front cover of the 1st U.S. edition
AuthorGail Carriger
Cover artistLauren Panepinto[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SeriesThe Parasol Protectorate
GenreSteampunk, paranormal romance
PublisherOrbit
Publication date
September 1, 2010 (1st edition)
Media typePrint (paperback)
Pages384pp (1st edition)
ISBN0-316-07415-2
OCLC515444365
Preceded byChangeless 
Followed byHeartless 

Plot

Blending steampunk with urban fantasy, Blameless is set in an alternate history version of Victorian era Britain where vampires and werewolves are welcomed as members of society, often in the upper class. Alexia Tarabotti, the Lady Maccon, leaves her werewolf husband Lord Maccon and moves back in with her family, only to find herself at the center of a scandal when it is discovered that she is pregnant: werewolves are not considered capable of fathering children, and therefore she must be an adulterer. She is dismissed from the Shadow Council by Queen Victoria and her social support structures disintegrate. Meanwhile, the vampire community of London has turned against her. While her estranged husband increasingly turns to drinking to ease his pain, Alexia leaves England for Italy, the birthplace of her late father, to seek out the Templars for answers. Because she is "soulless", and so unaffected by the abilities of supernatural beings, her journey to the truth is more complicated than even she can imagine.[2]

Publication history
  • 2010, USA, Orbit Books ISBN 0-316-07415-2, Pub date 1 September 2010, Paperback
  • 2010, UK, Orbit Books ISBN 1-84149-973-0, Pub date 2 September 2010, Paperback
  • 2011, Germany, Blanvalet ISBN 978-3-442-37651-3, Pub date 19 September 2011, Paperback (in German as Entflammte Nacht ("Ignited Night") translated by Anita Nirschl)[3]

The author's official website also lists an Italian language edition by Baldini & Castoldi, plus a Spanish language edition to be released by Versátil. Each of these translated editions are listed with "unknown" upcoming publication dates.[4] In November 2010, the author announced that Proszynski will publish the novel in Poland but with no announced publication date.

The original US cover for the novel was designed by Lauren Panepinto, Creative Director for Orbit Books and Yen Press.[1] The model portraying heroine Alexia Tarabotti on the US and UK covers is actress Donna Ricci.[5] The original photograph of Ricci for this cover was taken by Tiny Dragon Productions.[6]

Reception

Blameless spent two weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list, peaking at #20 on the Paperback Mass Market Fiction list in the week ending September 5, 2010.[2][7] The novel slipped to #35, the bottom of the extended list, the following week.[8][9] The novel topped the Locus magazine mass-market paperback bestseller list in December 2010.[10]


Adaptations

In September 2010, Carriger's literary agent announced that worldwide rights to adapt the first three novels in the Alexia Tarabotti series as graphic novels have been sold to Yen Press.[11][12] Yen Press, like series publisher Orbit Books, is a division of Hachette Book Group.[12][13]

References
  1. Panepinto, Lauren (March 8, 2010). ""Blameless", or "How To Design A Cover in 1:55 seconds"". Orbit Books. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  2. "Best Sellers: Paperback Mass-Market Fiction, week ending September 5, 2010". The New York Times. September 10, 2010. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  3. "Gail Carriger" (in German). Verlagsgruppe Random House GmbH. Retrieved December 8, 2010.
  4. "Book Nitty Gritty". Gail Carriger official website. Archived from the original on September 21, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  5. Panepinto, Lauren (November 21, 2009). "New York Book Show 09 Winners!". Orbit Books. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  6. Panepinto, Lauren (February 1, 2011). "Cover Launch: HEARTLESS by Gail Carriger!". Orbit Books. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  7. "Weekly Bestsellers: Weekend ending 14 September 2010". Locus. September 14, 2010. Archived from the original on 2013-05-26. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  8. "Best Sellers: Paperback Mass-Market Fiction, week ending September 12, 2010". The New York Times. September 17, 2010. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  9. "Weekly Bestsellers: Weekend ending 21 September 2010". Locus. September 21, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  10. "December 2010 Bestsellers". Locus. December 9, 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
  11. "News". Nelson Literary Agency. Archived from the original on November 3, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2010. JUST SOLD: Graphic novel rights to the first three books in NYT bestselling author Gail Carriger's Alexia Tarabotti series: Soulless, Changeless, and Blameless, to Kurt Hassler at Yen Press by Kristin Nelson at Nelson Literary Agency.
  12. "Gail Carriger's Alexia Tarabotti to Become Graphic Novels". The Mad Hatter's Bookshelf & Book Review. September 9, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  13. Andriani, Lynn (August 23, 2010). "Orbit Makes a Third Rotation". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
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