This review is an example of why I should review things right away because, frankly, I forget a lot about this rather forgettable book already...
AnywaThis review is an example of why I should review things right away because, frankly, I forget a lot about this rather forgettable book already...
Anyway -
It's set in an AU universe where the Luddite rebellion was successful, and now Britain is split into two parts, one that embraces technology and one that doesn't, but there's also the Patent Office who seems to be worldwide, and their job is to limit "disruptive" technology, so, like, if technology is going to put people out of work, they limit the impact of that technology - without ever really addressing the rise and fall of technology and how tech which puts some people out of jobs also creates new jobs.
But, anyway.
Elizabeth poses as her non-existent twin-brother to work as an Intelligence Officer, after she is forced to flee from the part of the world where people can be slaves. (I don't remember the names, but the one part where London is is more progressive with tech but less with individual freedoms, and it's colorful and bohemian, and the other part is all repressed and grey clothed, but has more personal freedoms like not being a slave... )
She's hired to find a missing aristocrat, who also fled from the Empire place, and is forced to risk her personal safety by going to London to find him.
She gets mixed up in some political turmoil which never seems fully explored - the whole "Fall of the Gas-Lit Empire" doesn't even begin to get touched on in this book - and she becomes a person of interest to the Patent Office, who can, like, black bag and torture people.
But one of the Patent Officers inexplicably likes her and helps her, so it's ok...
Ugh.
Elizabeth, for all the derring-do of the book, doesn't seem to have much agency a lot of the time, and has to rely on other people to save her and help her get out of situations she seems to get herself into.
Also, I wouldn't, personally, call this book particularly steampunk. There's some tech and gadgets, but it's more background dressing than anything else. It's actually more focused on alchemy, and the creation of the elixir of life, and there's a lot of weirdly random hokum mixed in with the technological stuff.
Overall, as I said, a forgettable story that I will not be continuing with.
***
Oh, one last thing - there is a circus, at one point, but based on the title of the book I expected there to be a lot more circus type stuff than there was....more
I'm a fan of Bear's New Amsterdam, but was less impressed with Blood and Iron, and based on the blurb of this book I was a bit iffy about picking it uI'm a fan of Bear's New Amsterdam, but was less impressed with Blood and Iron, and based on the blurb of this book I was a bit iffy about picking it up, but then it was picked for a group read this month, so I decided to give it a whirl.
First thing's first, I will say that the patois which turned me off the blurb a bit wasn't really much of an issue for me reading. Yes, it's colloquial and not entirely proper, but I'm not a total grammar snob, which is probably clear form my own reviews, and aside from a few words here and there which made me twitch, I was mostly able to just go with it. I am glad I read it in paper form, though, because I think it would've bothered me more in an electronic format. (Don't ask me to explain the mysteries of my brain... )
Anyway -
I liked what we saw of the world, though it also leaves you feeling there's a lot more that we're not seeing. I also liked the characters. This story definitely had one of the more diverse cast of characters that I've seen, and they were all developed enough that it didn't feel like tokenism. (The one possible exception being (view spoiler)[Tomoatooah. It bothered me that they kept referring to him as "the Comanche", especially after they covered that Comanche is not their own term for themselves and means "the enemy". (hide spoiler)])
The first half of the story is small and personal - a town squabble between rival businesses, you could say, though the antagonist is a great bit giant git. I enjoyed the story, or found it interesting enough, but kept waiting for something more to happen.
So it was a bit ironic when that something more happened and I found myself incredulous and sort of wishing to go back to the way things were.
The second half of the story just felt like a different thing altogether. Things - which admittedly are hinted at in the beginning of the story, but which always feel "out there" - suddenly come to the fore, but in such a sort of weird way that it just didn't sit well with me. (I'm speaking primarily of the (view spoiler)[octopus sub, but the whole plot with the cholera was weird. It suffered fro villain monologuing. I mean, if the girls had gone back to town without knowing they were infected, that would be one thing. But if their told they're being infected with this super cholera, what would stop them from just going off to die somewhere secluded?(view spoiler)[)
Oh, also the bit with the sewing machine (view spoiler)[turned mecha-armour (hide spoiler)] was just weird, and I had a really hard time visualizing how that would work.
Anyway -
I did like the first half of the story, and I liked the overall ending well enough, though I felt (view spoiler)[Bantle(view spoiler)[ got off a bit too easy.
I might be on board with another in the series, assuming it gets continued - but I think I'll let others vet it first before I go rushing into anything. 2.5-ish.
***
There's one question I really need answered.
The character's name is Karen Memery. The blurb even has the bit where it's "like memory, but with an e."
In fairness to this book, I was reading this as my gym read, and I do worry that I'm not quite able to give a book my full attention when I'm huffi2.5
In fairness to this book, I was reading this as my gym read, and I do worry that I'm not quite able to give a book my full attention when I'm huffing and puffing and sweating like a mo-fo which on the elliptical.
On the other hand, if I'm enjoying a work-out read it tends to get elevated to a main read - such as the case with Cinder which I recently started while working out and then quickly elevated and ended up really enjoying.
So, really, I'm trying to make excuses for the book, but maybe it's just the book, in the end...
It's not a bad book, per se. It's just, well... it's kind of boring, really. It also seems to lack focus. It's about the English invading the culture, and it's about opium, and it's about civil strife, and it's about building stuff, but only sometimes, and things that get hidden one second are being shared the next, because reasons.
And I never really connected with the characters. Soling is inconsistent. She's also passive. Most of the story she sort of gets tossed from being chased by one group and then another, and rarely plays an active role in the events going on around her.
Inconsistent because at first she agrees to something to restore her family honor, but then she decides she wants to return to her family and doesn't really care about their honor. That sort of thing seemed rampant throughout the story.
Also, the romance was entirely predictable and very tepid. And I'm not an erotica reader or anything. I mean, most of the romances I read are YA, so I tend to stay on the tamer side of things - but even for all my timidity this romance lacked passion.
Just overall a very meh story. Meh characters, meh plot...
And I doubt I'll be continuing the series. Frankly, I don't even remember enough about it now, a scant 13 days after finishing it, to write up a decent review. ;)...more
I don't know why I keep falling for these anthologies, when I don't tend to have a good track record with them. Usually one or two of the short storieI don't know why I keep falling for these anthologies, when I don't tend to have a good track record with them. Usually one or two of the short stories are good, and the rest of just meh or outright boring.
In this case - I didn't even finish them. I just stalled out and couldn't muster the energy or desire to continue. Especially since the "steampunk" elements are barely existent... and completely non-existent in some of the stories. Which, I could be down for a good ghost story now and again, but that's not what I was looking for in a book which promotes itself on the steampunk tailcoats.
Anyway-
The first two stories were lackluster, though 'The Iron Shroud' better than Music, When Soft Voices Die' which was just boring.
'The Shaddowwes Box' was the best of the ones I read, and gave me hope that I could get through the set.
'The Curious Case of the Moondawn Daffodil Murders' was fun - introducing a more supernaturally inclined cousin to the Holmes brothers. Bit silly, but not bad.
'Why I Was Hanged' was ok, and the 'The Proving of Smollett Standforth' utterly failed to be suspenseful.
'The Jade Woman of the Luminous Star' is where I call it quits, and I never even got through the whole story.
I suppose I could've just skipped it and hopped stories until I found some likely looking ones... but I had got this to read for a suspenseful October book, and since it didn't really work on that account, and since I put it aside for awhile and it's now mid-November, I'm throwing in the towel.
Maybe I'll get it from the library again at some point in the future... but I highly doubt I'll bother....more
One thing that really jumped out at me in this re-read, which I'm not sure whether I caught/comment on my first read, is the amount of reRe-read
3.5
***
One thing that really jumped out at me in this re-read, which I'm not sure whether I caught/comment on my first read, is the amount of repetition in this story.
Some of it was the seemingly obligatory reminder of what happened in prior books - which is helpful when you're reading months or years apart, but annoying when reading back to back.
A lot of it, though, is in Xandra's inner thought process. I mean, in the past two books she must've thought, at least a dozen times, how inconveniently grey real life is, and how she wishes she could go back to the comfortable illusion of black/white thinking.
Or how she's a strong person, really, but still enjoys being able to be taken care of and rely on Vex.
Like, I get it... I do... but this are pretty short books, and I don't need to read about her having the same thoughts a hundred freaking times.
That aside - I still enjoyed the series, and Vex is quite yummy.
Merged review:
3.5
The concluding book of this trilogy may be my least favorite of the series - but I still liked it.
I can't really put my finger on what felt off about it. I mean, some of it was the same issues in past books - Lexi often seems to do the whole 'one step forward, two steps back' thing. Also, there's just too much repetition and circular thought processes. Like, I don't know how many times Xandra had to point out that her world used to be more black and white, but now she's seeing people more in shades of grey. It was repeated at least 3 or 4 times that I remember off-hand.
Also, I felt like maybe Xandra and/or the author was being too defensive for wanting to rely on Vex. Like she kept having to explain how she's totally kick-ass and independent, but it's nice to have someone to rely on and take care of you now and again. And, again, we've gone through this before and it was just repeated too often - like there was a point to make.
And I get that it could be a sort of insecurity Lexi has - but this is my issue with first-person narratives in general. Our thought processes are circular and repetitive, yes. But this is boring. Hell, it's boring to me to have the same thoughts over and over again - I don't want to read about it from other people, ya know?
Anyway -
Aside from that, everything was honky-dory. A decent blending of action and romance and character moments, and I liked the overall conclusion.
Actually, I'm pretty sad to see it go. I could certainly live with another book or two in this world, as long as we could keep with more forward momentum - and it would be kind of interesting to see how things play out after the conclusion - but I do appreciate that everything was tied up pretty nicely.
(Maybe a bit too nicely, in some ways. I mean, one of the battles, at least, was kind of anti-climactic after all the build up to it... but I can live with it because of what contributed to it.)
So, anyway -
I have considered that part of my feelings of slight underwhelment with the book is more because I kinda don't want it to be over, so I'm curious to see how it turns out if/when I do a back-to-back reread at some point in the future.
'Til then, it was a satisfying, if not spectacular, conclusion to the trilogy, and I can live with that.
ETA: I really like how ole Vicky was portrayed in this one - that weird blending of almost Puritanical rigidness and total badassery.
Merged review:
Re-read
3.5
***
One thing that really jumped out at me in this re-read, which I'm not sure whether I caught/comment on my first read, is the amount of repetition in this story.
Some of it was the seemingly obligatory reminder of what happened in prior books - which is helpful when you're reading months or years apart, but annoying when reading back to back.
A lot of it, though, is in Xandra's inner thought process. I mean, in the past two books she must've thought, at least a dozen times, how inconveniently grey real life is, and how she wishes she could go back to the comfortable illusion of black/white thinking.
Or how she's a strong person, really, but still enjoys being able to be taken care of and rely on Vex.
Like, I get it... I do... but this are pretty short books, and I don't need to read about her having the same thoughts a hundred freaking times.
That aside - I still enjoyed the series, and Vex is quite yummy....more
I put off rating this for a bit, mulling it over but, in the end, I just didn't like it. I wish I could rave about it like most of the other review1.5
I put off rating this for a bit, mulling it over but, in the end, I just didn't like it. I wish I could rave about it like most of the other reviews but, alas, it's just not to be.
It's not without any charm - which is what the little extra half star is for. I liked Anna Fang, for instance, and Pomeroy definitely grew on me, though it would've been nice if maybe (view spoiler)[it seemed like someone spent more than 5 seconds mourning Tom (hide spoiler)] - but, in a way, that's part of the problem - all the interesting characters are secondary and minor, only appearing here and there, and the main characters are all kind of annoying.
Tom and Katherine, especially, are annoyingly naive for most of the book, and both come across as closer to 10-12 than the 15+ they are meant to be. Hester, at least, seems closer to actually being a teenager, hardened though she is.
Also, I was just never able to fully buy into the whole concept of the traction cities roaming the wilds and eating each other. I guess it's a metaphor for warfare and all, as the cities would destroy smaller cities and take all its resources, but the whole thing just seemed kind of silly to me.
It was also unclear, to me, whether the cities were meant to be alive. I mean, I can dig biotech and all, and if the cities were something like, say, Moya from Farscape, I could get behind that and understand more them acting like animals.
But while it sort of talked like the cities were alive, when you see the workings of things it seems all tech and no biology, so it's not the cities, really, that are attacking and eating as much as the cities are like giant tanks.
Also, when they attack a city they take on the survivors and put them to work. But, surely, this is just going to use more resources and it already seemed pretty full of people. The book does mention that, once-upon-a-time, larger cities would spawn predator suburbs, but since resources are scarce now, that doesn't really happen.
Speaking of limited resources - there are an amazing number of places and people that Tom and Hester run into for the Wastelands, or whatever, to be so empty and barren...
And, with everyone and everything moving around all the time, how is it that everyone seems to know where everything else is? Like, everyone knows that London is on the move - but how can you even have a system of "predator cities" if everyone sort of seems to know about everyone else's movements?
So, yeah...
Oh - and because I know it's bound to happen: 1) Yes, I know it's a kid's book. No, I don't think that's an excuse. 2) Yes, I'm sure I'm "over-thinking" things because gods forfend world building actually make sense.
Anyway -
I could deal with the world stuff not making a whole lot of sense. I mean, it wouldn't be the first time in a book like this I just sort of shrugged it off and went with it for the sake of the story.
But I just wasn't interested in the story. I never connected with any of the characters, except for moments with Hester. And I mostly found the story boring. I mean, it took me, like, 5 days to read a less than 300 pg book. That's unheard of. But I found myself hardcore procrastinating. The thought of picking the book back up just made me sort of groan, and I'd checked goodreads or Facebook again for the umpteenth time instead of reading. To me, that's become a pretty good indication about where a book falls in my rating scale - so this book could get 2, at tops.
But, then, the other issue I had was just the earnestness of it.
See, I've read Larklight: A Rousing Tale of Dauntless Pluck in the Farthest Reaches of Space by the same author, and I've really enjoyed that series - at least the two I've read. But the tone of the two series couldn't be more different. Both are sort of adventure books, but Larklight is sort of tongue-in-cheek where Mortal Engines is intensely earnest.
Not that I was expecting Mortal Engines to be quite the same as Larklight, but I wasn't expecting this bit of , and I developed a serious case of .
It kinda made me think of Boneshaker, actually - some mildly interesting world stuff that doesn't make much sense when examined, but is cool on the surface, but populated with so much crap that, by the end, I just wanted the hurting to stop...
(written 8/11/13. Edited for typos 10/26/16)...more
Can I just say how much I love Vex? Tall, dark and sexy aside - I love the way that he can be supportive, but not mollycoddling. I love the whole 3.75
Can I just say how much I love Vex? Tall, dark and sexy aside - I love the way that he can be supportive, but not mollycoddling. I love the whole "I will support you whatever you decide but, woman, making a damned decision!" and "Would you like me to get you a cross you can nail yourself on, dear?" (Paraphrasing).
I'm a little less enamored with Xandra, though I do like her, overall.
That said, I still have some issues with the book. (Of course.):
* It's a little overly repetitive. Most of this is because of the whole first person format which is not, as any regular readers of my reviews will know, my favorite perspective. I grok XAndy's uncertainty about her identity and what it means, and her general insecurity even aside from that, but compounded by it, and her irritation and being felt put upon and all... I really, really get it.
But I don't need hear the circular mental narrative repeat itself every coupla pages.
And it's not just the personal stuff, it's the world stuff... like how aristos are scared of humans because even though they and halvies are much stronger than humans, the humans outnumber them by a lot, and, what with modern technology and mob-mentalities and all, they could inflict lots of damage.
While it's important to the world of the story, and an issue she deals with both personally and on a larger scale, I really don't need to be reminded of that little tidbit. I mean, it had to be repeated at least a dozen times.
It almost makes me start to feel like the author thinks her audience is really stupid, or something.
* I would love for Alexandra to, um, I dunno... investigate shit. Seriously, if people didn't, like, walk up to her and give her a clue and a kick in the pants from time to time, I don't think anything would get done. And the whole (view spoiler)[walking into a trap thing really irritated me. It wouldn't have taken her much longer to give William a heads up notice... or something. (hide spoiler)]
She's also lucky that the bad guys in the book are prone to monologuing and shit.
If I recall correctly, this was an issue in the first book, too, and I'm not sure if it was just worse in this book, or if I noticed it more, but I hate whodunit type stories where the detective-type person sort of stumbles into the answer through sheer luck or happenstance as opposed to actual, erm, detecting.
***
That's all I can think of right now, and I know it's only two things but, considering what this book is and the way it's told, it's kinda two big things.
But, for all that, I still find the books enjoyable reads - to the point I'd say they're easily my favorite discovery of the year so far. They're quick, fun and compulsive. I want to keep reading when I'm reading, and I want to get back to it when I'm not reading. I like the characters, overall, and the world, and I like how, with a lot of good sci-fi and fantasy, it touches on real world type stuff through a mix of real issues (i.e. lesbian and transgender characters) and metaphor.
I mean, a lot of this book is about xenophobia and prejudice - both of Alexandra's personally, fighting the conflicting issues of her upbringing and trying to readjust her views based on new data, and of the larger society.
The way that fear of the unknown or strange can quickly turn to anger and lashing out, and the way that we're all guilty of it, in our own ways, and the best we can do is try to get over it and deal with it the best we can.
***
Oh, and did I mention Vex is way yummy? ;)
(Speaking of which, there was a moment where I was a bit scared where the story was going... romantically. Can't go into a lot of detail without giving stuff away, so, vaguely, I'll say I was afraid it could potentially go in a direction that I find tiresome and annoying*, and it didn't, and that was awesome.)
*(view spoiler)[Xandra discovers that Rye, the man she'd loved in academy, whom she thought was dead, was actually alive and in captivity... and I was SO scared it was gonna turn into an awful love triangle, her old love vs. her new one... but it totally didn't go down that path, and I kinda wanna kiss the author! (hide spoiler)]...more
This book first came to my attention when someone in a group I'm in linked to it, and the cover instantly drew my eye. Well, hell, with that red it'd This book first came to my attention when someone in a group I'm in linked to it, and the cover instantly drew my eye. Well, hell, with that red it'd be hard not to, right? Plus Steampunk is a weakness of mine. But when I read the blurb I was kind of ambivalent, and figured I might give it a pass.
But then it was picked as a member's choice book-of-the-month and I figured - hey, why not? I needed a workout read anyway, and this was as good as any of my other options.
I'm really glad I gave it that chance. Doubly glad since, 9-times-outta-10, I'm usually disappointed in books acquired under similar circumstances.
Anyway -
In some ways the book is kind of standard. Xandy is a halvie - half-vampire, half-human - and works for a sort of protective detail in the government for aristocrats, all of which are full vampire or werewolf. Queen Vicky is still on the throne, and has been for 175 years, and there's a blending of past and present, with motorcars on the same streets as horse-drawn carriages, and tech resembling cellphones and televisions, but with a steampunky kind of vibe to it.
It has the feel of fantasy steampunk, but it's technically set in present day.
Anyway, the book opens with Xandy's sister going missing and her hunt for the truth, and that leads her into a whole deeper level of things than she was aware of going on. The protag is an outcast, even amongst her own kind, there's a super-sexy alpha-wolf that she's into, and her family loves her, but doesn't get her.
So, in some ways, it has a sort of typical set-up and character types.
But, for all that, it's written well. I've come to realize lately, as I've paid more attention to such things, how important voice is in a story. I mean, it can literally make or break a book for me - and, in this instance, it went a long way to making it.
Also, there are enough twists and turns to keep things hopping, and, even though Xandy's a bit slow on the uptake sometimes, there were some which genuinely took me aback. At one point I was pretty sure the story was going one way, and it managed to throw me a bit of a curveball. Granted, maybe I just wasn't paying attention, wrapped up in things as I was, but it was nice to have a twist which I didn't see coming.
(And it doesn't hurt that her ever-so-sexy love-interest really is damned sexy. A lot of times I find myself boggled at the romance aspect of these stories, but Vex, who started off as pretty one-dimensional, quickly became more developed and an important part of the overall story. And while his alpha-thing was a bit eye-rolling at times, I also liked how it was handled from Alexandra's end, i.e. (view spoiler)[she recognized it for what it was, was sometimes a bit annoyed with it, but also appreciate it on some level. She never became helpless, was able to take care of herself even after the guy entered the picture which, so often in these stories, the guy sort of takes uber-charge and the previously spunky girl becomes dithering and useless.
But Xandy didn't - but she did recognize that sometimes she needed help and sometimes it was nice to be taken care of. She was always the strong one, taking care of everyone else, and she realized how it could be nice to have someone else take the role from time to time.
I gotta say - I've always considered myself more of a vamp girl, but between Macoon in Parasol Protectorate and Vex in this, I might be on the road towards conversion. *growl*
Anyway -
It was an enjoyable romp, not without a few bumps here and there, but I found myself connecting with the characters and rooting for them and thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it, which seems to be a rarity of late.
So while it was something of a 3.5 overall, I'm bumping it to 4 and looking forward to the next in the series....more
I do enjoy this series, but I never quite love it.
Once again, my favorite parts were the character bits - filling in some of the back stories, and watI do enjoy this series, but I never quite love it.
Once again, my favorite parts were the character bits - filling in some of the back stories, and watching some of the characters grow. I do sort of wish Frey would grow up a bit more, though. It's like we're sort of meant to believe that he is, but we're never really shown it. At least not in any kind of consistent or meaningful way.
My favorite characters continue to be Jez and Crake, though it was really cool to learn more about Silo.
That said, I find myself having a hard time really getting into the action bits - and there are a lot of them. I think it's just a writing style preference, maybe. I like action sequences that make your pulse pound - maybe not explicit in all the details, but which really make you feel like you're in the moment.
In these books, Wooding seems to go more for describing the details in depth. What the views look like. What actions are being taken. And I found many of them a bit too drawn out to really keep my focus.
The second chase seen between Frey and the Iron Jackal was really good, though.
Conversely, the race thing made me think of the pod-race in the Phantom Menace. Never a good thing.
And the black-spot on the hand curse thing reminded me a bit too much of Pirate's of the Carribean movies (but at least that's better thought than Phantom Menace).
I do still think these books would make really good movies - but I wish the book format was a bit tighter....more
I think I may have enjoyed this book if I hadn't seen the movie, because much of the book revolves around the big secrets of the two protagonists -2.5
I think I may have enjoyed this book if I hadn't seen the movie, because much of the book revolves around the big secrets of the two protagonists - Borden and Angier - and since I already knew what was going on, I never felt any real suspension or even much curiosity.
And I almost felt I was reading the wrong book at first, since it starts in the present day with the descendants of the two. At least that bit added something to the story not found in the movie, though, again, it revolved around the same secrets so...
I will say I found the style interesting. Basically we have two notebooks - one of Borden's and one of Angier's - which tells their story in diary format. The two were different enough to believe they were written by different people, but I would've liked a bit more personality in both of them, to be honest. (That said, I will say I preferred Angier's part, as it just seemed better written.)
There are, of course, differences between the book and the movie. Some things I preferred the way the movie had them, particularly the cause of the feud. (view spoiler)[In the movie, Borden and Angier being friends and then the accident when Borden tied the not and killed Angier's love.
In the book it's more, like, just because. Angier is faking being a spiritist and Borden attacks him on professional principle. Angier at least has cause for his hatred since Borden accidentally killed Angier's unborn child, but Borden just doesn't like him for professional reasons, at first, and doesn't even know about the child. (hide spoiler)]
Also, I liked that the movie made more of the secondary characters. Since the book is written in first person, all of the secondary characters, even the wives and lovers, are more sort of just there and not really given much of a life of their own. And Michael Caine's character is hardly there at all. I mean, the basis for the character is there, but the movie fleshed him out in ways the book doesn't even begin to do.
But I kind of preferred the ending of the book. It was darker, more morbid, and more fitting, in some ways.
In the movie I sort of got the feeling that Angier was meant to sort of be 'the winner', if there can be said to be one, but in the book everyone loses in some way - in ways particular to their lives and lies - and I appreciated the bleakness of it. It works better, as a morality tale, than the movie ending did.
Overall, just thinking of what actually happens, I think it could've been a very good book. But the writing, and perhaps, as I said, simply the knowing, both killed it for me. I was more bored than anything, which is a shame because it shouldn't have been a boring book, all things considered....more
I'm not really sure what to say about this book. I liked it ok, but I also found it disappointing. It just seems like it could've been more than it waI'm not really sure what to say about this book. I liked it ok, but I also found it disappointing. It just seems like it could've been more than it was. Maybe it's because it sort of seems like it wants to be several things, and ends up just kind of skimming on the surface of all of them instead of picking one focus and delving into it. Mostly, though, it was the ending that did it, I think. Not only was it kind of a bummer, but it just felt so abrupt. All this slow build up, and then it just kind of stops.
But, anyway -
The story follows Mattie, an insanely advanced automaton that seems to be made out of clockwork and stuff. A blurb on the book says something aobut how this is a study in what it is to not be human - so I suppose it was purposeful that, in some ways, Mattie seems to most human. Or, at least, the most humane - less caught up with her own issues and more concerned with others.
But Mattie's level of advancement proved problematic for me, because I kept being pulled out of the story as my suspension of disbelief would come grinding to a halt repeatedly. I can usually let a fair amount of handwavium go, and even often accept "a wizard did it" as an answer for things - but, for this book, I just kept wondering how Mattie, who seems to be mostly clockwork with a static, porcelain face, was so advanced in thought and movement and, well, everything.
I could accept it more if magic was involved, and there is magic - alchemy - in this world, but there's also a big schism between the Mechanics and Alchemists, and I feel like you're meant to get the impression Mattie is all mechanic, though there is a hint that maybe it's more than that, but...
I had an easier time accepting the living gargoyles (though I still found myself wondering how something with flesh like stone can fly, but at least I could kind of write that off as magic, and they aren't stone-stone, but, anyway... )
Long story short, I can accept Data from Star Trek because it's the future and there's positronics involves, which sounds impressively sci-fi-y to me, but I had a hard time with Mattie being so, well, human just with clockwork and shit.
Moving on -
I mentioned that there's a schism between the Mechanics and Alchemists, and there's political intrigue and vying for power and, ultimately, this plays a large role in the plot of the story. But Mattie keeps saying she's not interested in politics, and tries to stay on the periphery - pulled into events more because the people she interacts with are involved than any direct involvement herself. However, while this gives a sort of objective view on events, it also limits the story in many ways because so much seems to happen off-stage, as it were.
Mattie's main focus is helping the gargoyles and in getting her key from Loharri. And, also, through her we see an examination of the world she lives in.
Through the politics of the story we visit issues of xenophobia and racism, classism, and sexism and the objectification of women. In Loharri, her creator, we have issues of controlling yet negligent parent and jealous yet disdainful lover all in one. We see patterns of abuse - the twisted for of love and hate which gets manipulated by the one in power. Mattie is like a child, in a way, trying to break free and yet cleave to.
And yet, as I said, both the personal and global issues - of which there are many - seem to be dabbled in but never really delved into.
And then it sort of just ends, and nothing gets resolved.
True to life, in its way, but not making for a satisfying story.
As to the writing itself, it has a lyrical, dream-like quality - even moreso when we flit into the gargoyles collective experience (differentiated in the text by italics). But, like the scatter-shot focus, the writing both enhances and hinders the story. It enhances it in that I enjoyed reading it, and tasting the words in my minds, as it were... but it hinders it in that the dream-like quality serves to add another layer of abstraction and distance over the whole thing.
In other words, I could never feel fully engaged in the story or the characters.
It's certainly an interesting little book, and it's far from being bad... but I just felt like it maybe tried to be too many things, and so, in a way, managed to be nothing much at all.
First let me dispense with the disclaimer that I don't usually read erotica type books and when I first read the blurb for this book, while I realizedFirst let me dispense with the disclaimer that I don't usually read erotica type books and when I first read the blurb for this book, while I realized there was definitely a strong romance element I didn't realize it was listed as erotica. (Yes, I know reading the blurb now one might wonder how I could've missed it, but I swear it was different and more ambiguous before!)
So, anyway, that out of the way...
While it's not the type of book I usually read, mostly because I can't quite get past the flowery language often used in these kinds of books, not to mention I'm a giant prude, I have to say that I did feel the sex scenes, while a bit florid in places, were generally very tactfully handled and not overly belabored.
I think my biggest issues with the book are actually more plot related:
The first issue can mostly be attributed to the short length of the book, but everything just seemed a bit rushed and the characters weren't as fleshed out as I would've liked (no pun intended). As I said, though, I think this is more an issue with the length and not really with the writing. The writing was generally good and I believe the author would've definitely developed the world and characters more given more time.
The second issue, and, really, the most important one, for me, was that I felt the conceit of the story was a bit thin. The necessity of the machines were a bit of a stretch since (view spoiler)[sexual aids and devices already existed at the time, though none quite as elaborate, I imagine (hide spoiler)], and I felt it was kind of a weak plot-device manufactured to bring our protagonists together and, also, so it could have the steampunk label, since it is all the rage these days (and, quite frankly, it was my interest in steampunk which brought this novella to my attention in the first place).
Oh, and one other smaller point, (view spoiler)[I felt the spy/intrigue thing with the husband was kind of unnecessary and sort of tacked on (hide spoiler)].
I know with all that it seems like I would've like the book at all, but I still did. Since it was short it was a quick read, and it was a easy read in the sense that it flowed well and was just generally well put together. (I guess it's a bit of a bias in me that I expect romance-type novels to be painful to read, not just because of my embarrassment with certain parts but just because, well, they're just badly written, but that was definitely not the case with this one.)
Anyway -
I'm not sure whether I'll read any more books in the series since, as I said, erotica isn't quite my thing, but I wouldn't be opposed to reading books in a different genre from the author. (And, that said, I did like the characters enough in this one that if they continue on I might follow them.)...more
This is a pretty decent story, for a short story. Or, possibly, novella.
As the blurb says, this slight - 165 pages - book contains both "The Women of This is a pretty decent story, for a short story. Or, possibly, novella.
As the blurb says, this slight - 165 pages - book contains both "The Women of Nell Gwynne's", which I guess qualifies as a novella, and "The Bohemian Astrobleme", which is definitely a short story.
In the first story we meet Lady Beatrice, the eponymous Scarlet Spy, who is "ruined" and turns to prostitution to survive, and is soon picked up by the house of Nell Gwynn to turn her talents to larger purposes.
I generally don't like when rape is used as a plot device, as I feel it's overdone, by-and-large, but it does make some sense in the context of this story. Since Lady Beatrice came from a higher class family, which is one reason she is particularly suited to become a spy at the high class Nell Gwynne's, and it would have to either be "ruin" or financial disaster of some sort to lead her there. There is no angst in this book. She deals with it pragmatically and by disassociating - which is, in some ways, more disturbing, but it's never really dwelt on, which makes it more tropey than not.
Anyway -
Getting past that it's a fairly standard sort of spy story, complete with special gadgets made for the ladies to help in the endeavors - which is the only thing that makes it remotely steampunkish.
Like I said - decent for a set of short stories, but not a lot of depth, which I suspect is due to time constraints. Sort of enjoyable and pulpy, but nothing spectacular....more
I keep bouncing back and forth on whether to give this one or two stars - though I'm pretty much sticking with the 1.5 either way. My dilemma is th1.5
I keep bouncing back and forth on whether to give this one or two stars - though I'm pretty much sticking with the 1.5 either way. My dilemma is that while I didn't really like it, per se, I didn't actively dislike it, which is what I usually use 1-stars for, but I didn't like it, either.
I guess, for the most part, it was "ok", and I was going to give it a 2-stars for most of the book, but the ending left me feeling kinda "wtf?", which is why I was thinking of dropping it down. But it did have some things going for it... and also 'cause I feel like maybe I wasn't reading it in the right frame of mind... thus the consideration of keeping it at 2.
What I mean about being in the right frame of mind is that, for one of my status messages, I'd said that it would be better having been written as a comedy because of the absurdity of the situations the bumbling Dower kept getting himself in, and it crosses that threshold of believability after one thing after another after another after another keeps getting piled on top of the idiot.
The 'feeling bad' part comes in because, reading the afterword, is mentions the humor and the absurdity as being purposeful, as a sort of homage to the over-the-top Victorian adventure stories.
So I'm thinking that, maybe, if I'd read it in that light, maybe I would've found it more enjoyable and less annoying?
Though I can't say my expectations were skewed going in 'cause, honestly, I didn't really know what to expect, and I usually try and let the style of writing and the seeming mood of the book come across in the writing. So I'm not going to take blame, or anything, if I wasn't in the right frame of mind because I would say the writing, in the beginning, lead me to believe it was going for a more serious tone - so if it's meant to be more humorous in an absurd kind of way, then I would say the author failed to convey that intention via the tone.
So there.
Anyway -
That's a whole lot of semi-ranting without touching that much on the book, yet, aside from the fact that it seemed like it wanted to be serious, but ended up being absurd, which I found more stupid and irritating than amusing or endearing.
So a bit about the book and some of the good things:
This book first came onto my radar when I was involved in a sort of genre debate about steampunk, and I discovered that Jeter coined the term. Being a fan of the genre - or, at least, the idea of the genre - I wanted to read some of the proto- works and this seemed like an interesting place to start.
Of course, while I've often argued that steampunk is a form of sci-fi, generally, Jeter, himself, coined it in reference to "Victorian fantasies", and the science in this is very, well, fantastical. With few exceptions, there doesn't seem to be any attempt to stick within the confines of possible, or even plausible, science, what with the fishmen type things interbreeding with humans, and clockwork automaton working on principles of a metaphysical sort of resonance...
But, really, my biggest complaints were as I said before - Dower is one of those protagonists who is never pro-active, who constantly gets buffeted this way and that, and never really comes into his own at any point, and the sheer level of stuff that gets thrown at him from every angle is just beyond the pale.
I never really connected with any of the characters - though I did enjoy Creff and Abel - and the various twists and surprise reveals at the end were just... *smh*
I guess it makes a kind of sense, if it's meant to be an absurdist kind of tale, but, for me, it just came across as kind of asinine and I was thankful when it was done because I could say it was done...
Blech.
So - 1 or 2 stars? I still can't decide...
ETA: I forgot to mention all the type-setting issues. There were quite a few of them and they were pretty distracting at times.
What I mean is things like missing quotation marks, missing periods at ends of sentences, and random periods in the middle of sentences. Since things like punctuation can alter the meaning of sentences, or how you read them, I often had to go back and reread bits 'cause I was thrown by their random placement....more
This prequel novella was offered as a free download on amazon, so I decided to give it a go to see if it would whet my appetite for the series. It didThis prequel novella was offered as a free download on amazon, so I decided to give it a go to see if it would whet my appetite for the series. It didn't.
It was an ok steampunkish/mad-scientist kind of story, but the characters weren't interesting or unique enough to really catch my attention, and the story was pretty straight-forward and obvious, and it was definitely a "d'oh" moment when the heroine didn't cop onto the mystery right away.
I realize that this is just a novella so there's not a lot of time for world-building and back-story and whatnot. There's enough, I suppose, but I felt a lack of any real depth to the story - to all aspects of the story, really.
I wasn't really that keen on the series when I first saw it, and this novella has done nothing to change my mind....more
The first chapter starts with a bang (see, I can do puns, too), and we're thrust into the world of Books and Braun.
Yes - Books (the Archivist/libra2.5
The first chapter starts with a bang (see, I can do puns, too), and we're thrust into the world of Books and Braun.
Yes - Books (the Archivist/librarian/stuffy one) and Braun (the muscle/spunky/fighter). (There is also a character named Bruce Campbell, which may or may not be a nod to the man with the chin, and a couple named Barnabas and Angelique Collins - though they are of little consequence to the story.)
Anyway...
One thing I often expect from books set in Victorian England, and which I often don't feel like I get, is a certain expression of language and attitude. Often the writing is a bit too modern to really feel period, and I like my period-y books, even ones with a decidedly modern bend, to feel period. This one didn't quite manage. (And I don't think pepperpot was a word around at the time and, even if it was, you really need more adjectives for Braun.)
Speaking of Braun - I like a good anachronistically spunky woman in these adventure stories as much as the next gal, but Braun was just a little bit much. Too modern, I suppose.
But back to the first chapter, from Books's perspective. For a minute there there were hints of The Parasol Protectorate, and it seemed like it would follow the sort of tongue-in-cheek humor of that wonderful series, but that tone barely lasts the chapter.
Then the tone seems sort of Adventure style story - sort of like Larklight, though that's a younger series - but there's that whole over-the-top excitement and silliness about it that makes things like using Books and Braun as names perfectly acceptable.
But that didn't last, either - except via the chapter titles.
In other words, it didn't seem to know what it wanted to be. I don't know if this was because of the two authors or what, but it didn't seem to want to settle.
Of course, I guess in a way that fits since the characters didn't always seem to know who they were or how they wanted to be, either. (And while I sympathize with Books and his daddy-issues, the Jekyll-Hydeness was a bit odd.)
Personally, I think if the tone had kept to the more light-hearted Grand Old Adventure story it could've worked better. But, really, just picking one and sticking with it would've been better.
As for the Steampunky elements - I thought these were mostly handled pretty well, and were parts of the story as opposed to the story being about the tech. (Which I, personally, prefer as I'm not much of a hard sci-fi reader.) That said, I would've liked a little more originality with the tech (as well as some constraints, since the Analytical Engine worked more like a modern day PC/butler and less like an advanced calculator).
But, really, it's not all bad. I did enjoy it well enough, and while the characters were sort of charicatures more often than not - and while this mystery sort of felt more like an introduction to the characters as opposed to a thing in its own right (as evidenced by the various hints to a larger plot afoot and various background goings on) - I did enjoy it enough to give it another shot.
I may pick the next book up at the library instead of buying it, but I do think I'll see how it fares. (One thing I will hope is some better editing. The first time I came across "treamours" for tremors I thought it would be a one-off typo, but then it kept happening. And "shear ridiculousness" instead of "sheer ridiculousness"? Really? I expect better copy-editing from a professionally published work.)...more
This is yet another book that I wasn't going to pick up, but then was talked into it by multiple recommendations and all the positive buzz about 2 1/2
This is yet another book that I wasn't going to pick up, but then was talked into it by multiple recommendations and all the positive buzz about it, only to end up being tepid about the whole thing.
This is something which should, theoretically, be right up my alley - a YA steampunk adventure book pitting machines vs. bio-engineered beasts.
Well, for one, I had some trouble swallowing the beasties. There's a lot of suspension of disbelief in this book, because not a lot is really explained, including the real workings of the beasties. You're given general ideas, but it's a bit thin on the details.
But, mostly, I just went with it.
I think the biggest problem is that the characters are only marginally likable, though I did like Deryn more than Alek (even if the girl posing as a boy thing is wearing a bit thin), but even where they are likable they're not really developed very well. They're just sort of there and they are who they are the whole time.
Also, the adventuring was a bit, well, underwhelming and the pacing kind of haphazard.
All-in-all it's not a bad book. It's certainly not the worst I've ever read or anything, but I wasn't excited to be reading it, and I'm not remotely compelled to continue with the series.
Speaking of continuing with the series, another big issue with the book is that it feels mostly like set-up. Once things finally started to get interesting the book ended in a giant cliffhanger-esque "you must read the next book to find out wtf the first book set you up for" thing. Not impressed....more
There are a lot of good ideas in this book, but, in a way, I think that's part of its problem. There are too many ideas, and it felt like the author jThere are a lot of good ideas in this book, but, in a way, I think that's part of its problem. There are too many ideas, and it felt like the author just had to include them all.
Set in an alt-reality Victorian England, where Victoria, and all the royalty, are Lizards from another planet (yes, boys and girls - meet the Reptilian Overlords), we enter this Steampunkish world which has, in a way, simply too much tech. Babbage Engines and Edison recorders and Tesla wires (radios) and submarines and rocket ships automatons with extremely advanced AI - the tech was so advanced that the little touches that reminded us we were "in the past", such as gas lights and landaus, seemed more anachronistic than not - and how strange for the period touches to seem to be the things that are out of place?
In other words, it didn't have a very strong period feel, which is one of the things I like about Steampunk type books. So there's that.
There was also the plethora - and I do mean plethora - of references to fictional and historical characters and books, many of which are mentioned in passing, and some of which are actual parts of the story. And while the Holmes fan in me enjoyed seeing that particular coterie of characters (and, no, that's not really a spoiler), they didn't add much to the story except passing pleasure in recognizing names and faces, so to speak. (It was almost like reading A Night in the Lonesome October by Zelazny, playing this game of "spot the reference". Unfortunately for me, I seemed to not get most of them.)
Anyway - the real failing of the story, in my opinion, is that while Orphan is likable enough, he's not nearly proactive enough. Sometimes I don't mind a character thrown into situations above his head, and watching as he flounders to get his feet on the ground, but this time I did. Orphan was little more than a piece of driftwood tossed on the sea, sent this way and that, and even told that he's a pawn more than a few times, only to later get all indignant about "being used". Well, dear boy, they did, essentially, tell you you were being used and you went along with it anyway. Can you really get mad about it now?
Not to mention that he gets knocked unconscious an awful lot. (At least five times that I remember.)
He's sent this way and that, saved here and there, gets told bits of pieces of the mystery as he goes along, not really discovering anything for himself as all the plot-points are giving to us via exposition... and that "big reveal" was not only not surprising, it was eye-roll worthy in its clicheness.
But, for all that, I didn't hate the story. The damndest thing, though, is that I can't really tell you why I didn't. I think it might be that particular joy I mentioned earlier, of recognizing certain names and faces, and seeing them in a different context, and playing the game, as it were. But the story itself didn't do much for me.
A not terrible book, but a far from great one. I will not be reading the sequel....more
colleen the convivial curmudgeon
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