Monstrous Design (Battalion of the Dead Book 2) by Kat Dunn

★★★

Continuation of the adventure begun in Dangerous Remedy

After the rescue of Olympe from the Bastille, the subsequent revelations about her extraordinary power to control electricity and wield it like magic, and the dangerous struggle between revolutionaries and the royalists to harness that power, the Bataillon des Morts (Battalion of the Dead) found themselves betrayed by one Camille trusted: her former fiancé, James. With Olympe abducted and taken to London, the Bataillon part ways: Camille and Al journey to London to rescue Olympe, while Ada and Guil stay behind to find out what the treacherous Duc de l’Aubespine – who wishes to use Olympe’s power to overthrow the Revolution – is planning next.

Following James to his aristocratic home in England and ensconcing themselves with his family, Camille and Al soon discover that his treachery and motivations are more complex than they had supposed and extend far beyond his betrayal of them. Back in Paris, Ada and Guil risk their lives to gain the Duc’s trust and uncover his dark secrets, while Olympe begins to come into her own as a force to be reckoned with …

With the narrative switching back and forth between London and Paris, the world of the Bataillon des Morts expands from that of the first novel, opening up to different places and introducing us to new characters. There are different dynamics between the Bataillon members, with headstrong Camille and cynical Al sparring with each other in London, while introspective Ada and guilt-ridden Guil force themselves into actions they would never have previously imagined in their pursuit of the Duc. The influence of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein on this second novel is profound, both in the London story involving James, his friend Edward, and their science professor, Mr Wickham, and in the parallel Paris story of the Duc and his sister Clémentine. Both plots revolve around Olympe, who is the most interesting, compelling and sympathetic character of them all, and she is granted a little more agency here than in the previous book.

A number of the issues of the first novel remain here with the second. Camille still makes bad decisions and remains unsympathetic for the most part; we still get little inkling as to why the others follow her or consider her leadership worthy. The characters continue to come across as distinctly modern in their speech and attitudes, though it feels there is an attempt this time around to make them more believable as young people of the 1790s. This second book is less tightly plotted than the first and the story tends to meander at times, but the action is ramped up towards the end. The denouement involving Olympe ends on another “shock” betrayal (though we quickly learn it is no such thing; perhaps it would have made more impact not to have explained it and leave the truth to be revealed in the next book?) and a cliffhanger to lead us into the next novel of the series.

Jo-Anne Blanco (as Arwen Evenstar) for Elite Group
Elite Group received a copy of the book to review
©Jo-Anne Blanco 2021