Lynn Townsend

In a reimagined 1890's London, where steam-driven airships rule the skies and monsters roam the streets, the Galileo Observatory's Club for Gentlemen welcomes all -- gwr, shape-changers, vampires, and lords. A high-stakes game leads more than a few men astray.<br><br>Poindexter Fitzhughes, renowned hero and scientist, learns just how much trouble a full-blooded gwr can be when he attempts to cure his lover, Lord Seth Maitland, of the disease. But when their backs are against the wall, the two must learn to trust in each other, and more importantly, in their true natures, to prevail.<br><br>Meanwhile, Duncan Farnsworth discovers being a vampire has not improved his social life, his chances of finding love, continuing the family line, or getting a bite to eat. Maneuvering his way around a sarcastic butler, his spinster sister, a run-in with an amorous werewolf, and a confrontation with a dead soldier and a French airship captain, Duncan finally finds exactly what he is thirsting for.

London Steam

“No, don’t.” Seth caught Dex’s hand on its way up to shield his face. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. It is not so horrific as you seem to believe.”


“It’s not your face,” Dex muttered. That was something normals never could understand, not ever. What it was like to look upon your own flesh and not recognize it. To see this foreign, strange, and ugly thing where smooth skin used to be, where a perfect eye—a little near-sighted, perhaps, but nonetheless, undamaged—rested. They never understood. It wasn’t normal, wasn’t right, and never, ever felt the same again. Dex could barely stand to look at himself. He felt the whispers behind his back, saw the scorn in every face. If his reputation gave them pause, his deformity kept them away.


“Don’t you know that everyone looks at their reflection and sees the Beast staring back?” Seth said, his voice mocking. “Will you not look at me, Dex, and see?”


Chapter 10