Book Review: Prudence by Gail Carriger

 Prudence by Gail Carriger

On Saturday I had the chance to go to a signing by Gail Carriger at Murder by the Book in Houston.  Gail is one of my favorite authors, not only of steampunk but in general.  I've been hugely pleased with her most recent books in the Finishing School series.

The signing was delightful, with Gail being her amazing, charming, and stylish self.  It was the second signing of her I attended so I got all the Finishing School books signed as well as Prudence.

And then I got to actually read this book.  Prudence is the first book in a new series called "The Custard Protocol."  Prudence is the daughter of the Alexia Maccon, the protagonist of the Parasol Protectorate series so this is a "Next Generation" type series.

As such it spends a lot of time introducing the reader to the cast of characters and setting up the premise.  Prudence ("Rue") is given a state-of-the-art airship by her adoptive father Lord Akeldama and sent on a mission to India to secure rights to a special breed of tea.   She assembles a crew and heads off, fairly unprepared for the complicated political climate she's entering.

Gail said in the signing that this series is intended to be an ensemble cast, and she's done a good job giving us four interesting main characters.  Rue and Primrose are best friends from childhood, Rue being the impetuous, adventurous one, and Primrose being more proper and fashionable.  Quesnel Lefoux is the romantic interest for Rue, a cocky French engineer.  Percy is Primrose's twin brother, an easily distracted intellectual snob.  They're well suited for adventures and comedy of manners.  I wish they had slightly more diverse backgrounds, though, as they are all privileged, upper class young adults raised by supernatural parents.

The actual plot of this book is a little thin and feels squeezed into the second half of the book.  There's not all that much that actually takes place in India and very little of that takes place in Indian society.  Pretty much all of the interactions Rue and friends have are with British citizens or native supernatural species.  So it's a book that travels to India that has pretty much no Indian people in it.  The native supernaturals are Indian, but don't really get much in the way of personality or development.

This series is meant to be all about travel through the British empire, but I'm not that comfortable with how it engages with British Imperialism.  It comes down decidedly on the side of imperialism with the justification that England is better than other countries, essentially.  While there is an attempt to show how imperialism leads to problems with native populations the solution to that problem is to strengthen the Empire and forge new treaties between Britain and the natives, essentially to impose British law more forcefully on India.  Frankly all of this earns this book a massive side-eye from me, especially with the total lack of Indian characters.

This is the only photo I took Saturday, of my tentacle nails.
I gave Gail a sheet of them as well.
  If you need some, email me!

Furthermore this book feels very similar to the Parasol Protectorate.  I was looking forward to seeing this universe 20 years later and looking forward to new technology, advancements, etc, but really I can't think of any that were showcased.  The Finishing School books felt like they took place in a distinct social, technological, and aesthetic environment from the Parasol Protectorate, but this feels very same-y.

So ultimately I have to count myself disappointed.  I had really high hopes for this book and it didn't live up to them.  I feel like this is the weakest book Gail has released, and she seems to be really struggling with this new series.   On the bright side I enjoyed the characters and the budding romance, so I won't be abandoning the series or anything.

Book Review: Ticker

Ticker by Lisa Mantchev

I got this book a couple of months ago but it took me this long to get around to reading it.  I often get burnt out on steampunk books and it makes me hesitate to read a new, unknown book because I'm afraid it will be just like every other steampunk book.

That's the biggest flaw with the genre, IMO, actually, that so often steampunk novels all feel the same to the point where I, who read a lot of them, get really confused about what happened in which book.

Thankfully, once I actually started reading Ticker, I didn't have that problem.  While her protagonist may be a bit similar to other spunky, rebellious, trouble-making steampunk heroines, and the romantic lead isn't that distinctive, the world the story is set in feels original and different.

Creating a steampunk world is a balancing act between recreating Victorian England and creating a new sci-fi world.  I find most books end up going too far in one direction or another.  This book doesn't spend much time at all on world-building, and yet the setting feels cohesive.  It's not Victorian England, but there are similarities.   It feels like a world that is similar to Victorian England except in all the places where that would be annoying or get in the way of the story.  It feels like the author is having genuine fun creating the world without worrying about rules, which makes the book itself fun.

The world is filled with steampunk inventions and contraptions.  Steam and clockwork powered vehicles, horses, and gadgets abound everywhere.  Many of them really feel original as well, such as a device that taps out Morse code text messages to the characters.

Which brings us to the main plot.  Penny Farthing (yes, really) is the heroine.  She was born with a heart defect which took the lives of two of her sisters.  When she nearly died her heart was replaced with a clockwork alternative, sparking protest in society against human augmentation.  Unfortunately the doctor who installed her heart has gone on a killing spree experimenting on his victims to improve his ability to cure Penny.

Most of the book's action is of the breathless running and fighting kind that is very common in the modern steampunk novel.  It remains light and fun for the most part, although some of the content is quite dark, since it deals with forced medical experimentation.

There's also a romance, naturally, between Penny and the head of the investigatory agency.  This is actually what I felt was the weakest aspect of the novel.  We are told about how incredibly attracted these two characters are from the very first moment they meet, but it feels like telling instead of showing, and I never really FELT their attraction.  Marcus (the romantic lead) never fully came into focus for me as a character and felt fairly one-dimensional.

Overall, though, this is a fun and imaginative steampunk world to visit.  The real strength is in the little steampunk details and aesthetics.  I'd love to see illustrations or other visual renditions of this book!

Book Review: Starclimber by Kenneth Oppel

This is the third book in a YA series which I actually can't believe I haven't reviewed previously on this blog.  The books in order are Airborn, Skybreaker, and Starclimber.

All three books follow the adventures of Matt Cruse, who when we meet him in Airborn is a cabin boy on a luxury passenger airship, and Kate Devries, a wealthy young woman with a passion for science.  The two are thrown together on various adventures, large portions of which take place on ships of one kind or another.  There are sky pirates, mad scientists, and lots of strange creatures.  Kate's obsession is the discovery of animals or lifeforms previously unknown to science and much of the plot focuses on these scientific discoveries.

The characters are strong, with Matt Cruse a determined and talented young man determined to make something of himself, and Kate DeVries a privileged and sometimes self-absorbed young woman who defies convention to live her passion.  I love practical, intellectual, unemotional female characters, and you don't really get enough of them, especially in YA fiction.  The supporting casts of adults tend towards the comic, and mostly keep things light and fun.

So is it steampunk?  Oh, yes, very.  It's set around the turn of the 20th century, there's lots and lots of advanced technology, particularly a very well-developed airship system, and there's a strong focus on scientific discovery and exploration of the unknown.  One thing I adore with these books is that they capture the optimism of the period, when the boundaries of science were completely untested and anything was possible.

Which brings me to the third novel, Starclimber, which I recently finished.  The topic of this one is

space travel!  Matt and Kate are invited to participate in the launch of a top-secret vessel to Outer Space.  At first, I admit I was a bit skeptical.  'This book is just going to skip all the years of slow incremental steps the actual Space Program went through and just launch a ship with a full crew into space on the first go,' I scoffed.  And while yes, that's sort of what happens, I was pleasantly surprised by the ingenuity and originality of the method by which they travel to space.  I won't say more, but I was quite pleased all around, really.  The book manages to be exciting and action-filled while giving lots of space to its characters and their relationships.

Honestly there's no reason NOT to read this series.  It would be great for children of any age, but equally recommended

Book Review: Mirrors and Magic: A Steampunk Fairy Tale

Mirrors and Magic: A Steampunk Fairy Tale

This is the third book in the Clockwork Republic series of (unconnected?) Steampunk retellings of classic fairy tales.  I haven't read either of the other books in the series, but I believe they are all stand alone stories set in the same world.

This book is a steampunk retelling of Snow White.  I always approach "steampunk retellings" with a bit of skepticism because sometimes it's a sign of laziness on the author's behalf.  It doesn't take much imagination to retell a classic story and put a steampunk outfit on the heroine and a brass raygun in the hand of the hero and call it a day.

Luckily, Katina French doesn't seem to suffer from a lack of imagination.  In fact, if I hadn't been told this was a version of Snow White before I started reading it would have taken me a really long time to figure it out.  The story is set in a traveling circus in an alternate steampunk America that seems to consist of small independent republics.  This story takes place in the republic of New Africa, although the nature of the circus means not many of the characters are from there.

The heroine is Neve Bianchi, orphan daughter of the circus' star magician.  The story of the book involves Neve's coming of age within the circus as she seeks to take her father's place.  The role of Evil Queen is played by the current star performer, the aerialist Bella Venezia who jealously guards her position.

I quite enjoyed the beginning of this book as the world of the circus and its characters are introduced to the reader.  But eventually I felt the book started to drag as I waited for something of significance to really happen.  There's so much time spent on seeing the circus from the point of view of all the different characters and catching up on all the events of the last 20 years that it feels like forever before the plot actually starts.

I do wonder if my impressions of the novel are negatively influenced by the fact that I didn't actually read the book myself but listened to the audio version.  When the author offered the audiobook to me I jumped at it because I enjoy listening to audiobooks while I sew.  And while the reader did a serviceable job, I found the pace of the narration to be really slow, which only increased my desire for the plot to get a move on already.   According to Amazon the book is only 180 pages long, which I would have read really quickly, but it felt a LOT longer than that to me.

I would recommend this book primarily to younger readers or adults looking for something to read to their kids.  I felt it was a bit light on plot to really satisfy an adult audience.  It's also fairly light on steampunk elements, although I'm really intrigued by the world Ms. French has created.  The primary focus is on the magical, alchemical elements of the world rather than the technological ones, but I do feel like there's a very interesting steampunk world JUST around the corner from this story.  To be perfectly honest I think I would prefer a non-fairytale story that allowed the reader to see more of the world.  At times this story felt like it was a bit forced into the mold of Snow White and I'm curious what it would have been if it hadn't followed a pre-ordained path.

At any rate, I think the right reader will have a good time with this book, and it shows a lot of promise for the author and the universe.

Friday Finds: The Bundle of Extraordinary Steampunk

Today I have a great offer for your from one of my favorite new indie authors.  Get a bunch of steampunk novels for one "set-your-own" price!  I know I'm looking forward to checking out all the books in this bundle.

The Bundle of Extraordinary Steampunk

GET IT HERE

Story Bundle is like Price Line for Books where you choose your own price! It's a great way for readers to discover new authors in a genre they already love. This steampunk story bundle was curated by Susan Kaye Quinn (author of Third Daughter, a steampunk fantasy romance), and she explains what steampunk is all about below.  Hop over to see how you set-your-own-price on these story bundles and scoop it up for yourself (bundle lasts a limited time only)!

The Bundle of Extraordinary Steampunk

Curated by Susan Kaye Quinn

The most common question I get about steampunk books is, “What is steampunk?”

The easy answer is that steampunk stories are set in the 19^th century Victorian era when steam-driven technology was primary, corsets were tight, and tea was a formal affair. But that’s like saying science fiction is about spaceships… when the genre is much broader, deeper, and more amazing than that. (And yes, steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction.)

With a thriving real-life steampunk culture that is very do-it-yourself in inventing characters, costumes, and gadgets, the real answer is that steampunk can be virtually anything you want it to be. It’s this tremendous devotion to creativity that actually drew me in to writing steampunk in the first place (along with the gorgeous costumes!). In this steampunk bundle, we have an east-Indian fantasy romance, a Asian-flavored pirate love story, a Shakespearean retelling, two stories set in a common world with a floating island, a young adult adventure about a lightning invention, and a story that uses Arcane Science in the modern world. These stories are perfect examples of the truly rich diversity of steampunk stories… while each also portrays a world where steam technology shifts the ground under their character’s feet.

We think of the Victorian era as being somewhat repressed, but it really was a time of tremendous change: class divisions, and the aristocracy it supported, were being challenged by the everyday men and women who were bringing about amazing technological advances. Science was on the rise! And the beautiful costuming and formal traditions of the past were coming into conflict with those first hints of the modern world. Steampunk stories in general resonate with readers not just because of their fun, escapist fantasy—a flight into the past when things were simpler, adventures were fought with sword and gun, and social strictures brought some order to the world—but because the upheaval wrought by technological change still resonates with our real lives today.

What is steampunk? It’s a story like any other story: a chance to escape the world for a few hours, to live in the wilderness of an author’s imagination, to adventure, to fall in love, to die for one’s friends. It’s classic storytelling in a visually rich, emotionally gripping era that still resonates with us today. Plus you get to rollick about in corsets and top hats, inventing gadgets and saving the world from the villains who turn that fantastic steam technology to their own dastardly purposes.

Strap on your goggles and prepare for the ride!

-- Susan Kaye Quinn

The Bundle of Extraordinary Steampunk

CLICK HERE TO GET IT

StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.

For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, Tweet us at @storybundle, Like us on Facebook, and Plus us on Google Plus. For press inquiries, please email press@storybundle.com.

-- Susan Kaye Quinn

The Bundle of Extraordinary Steampunk

CLICK HERE TO GET IT

StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.

For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, Tweet us at @storybundle, Like us on Facebook, and Plus us on Google Plus. For press inquiries, please email press@storybundle.com.

Book Review: Dragon Blood Series Books 2 and 3 by Lindsey Buroker

I reviewed the first book in this series on this blog, and now I'd like to update you on the second and third books.

The second book is DeathMaker.  It introduces both a new female protagonist, Lt. Casin Ahn, a dragon flier pilot who was captured in enemy territory.  While imprisoned, she meets Tolemek, also known as "The Deathmaker", an airship pirate and scientist famous for making deadly poisons used to slaughter entire cities.  The two are forced to cooperate to escape their captors.

This book was thoroughly enjoyable for me.  It really is much more steampunk than the first, since we get to see lots of pirates and airships and aerial battles.  I also really like these two new characters and their relatioship.

The book eventually gets around to checking in on the two protagonists of the first book, but really this is Tolemek and Ahn's book.

The third book, Blood Charged, combines all four protagonists on a mission into enemy territory to discover how the enemy has got their hands on dragon's blood, thought to be the origin of magical power in this world, when all the dragons have been dead for a thousand years.  The story is once more focused on Col. Zirkander and Sardelle, but Tolemek and Lt. Ahn play their roles as well.

The story starts really fleshing out the fantasy and magical aspects of the world, while combining them with new, mysterious technologies.  There's a lot of non-stop action in this novel, and although action isn't always my thing, Lindsey Buroker is skilled at writing action that makes me care and keeps me involved.

This series is really shaping up to be fantastic and the more I read of it, the more I want.  Luckily Ms. Buroker is a very fast writer and the next one should be out soon!


Both these books are only $2.99 for the Kindle versions, so totally worth checking out.

Book Review: Second Daughter by Susan Kaye Quinn

Second Daughter (The Dharian Affairs, Book Two)


Regular readers will remember my review for the first book in this series, Third Daughter. I really enjoyed it, and I know some of my readers did as well. Well yesterday saw the release of the second in the trilogy and to celebrate I helped with the launch and shared a giveaway. Make sure to visit that post and enter to win!

 Second Daughter takes up right where Third Daughter left off. Aniri, Third Daughter of the Queen of Dharia, is preparing to marry the Prince of Jungali after a whirlwind romance and swashbuckling adventure. Meanwhile she's also afraid the country of Samir is preparing to launch a war against both Dharia and Jungali.

 Her fears for her family and her country combine with her cold feet about her wedding to make her uncertain of everything. She doubts whether she is truly ready to marry and the strength of her feelings for the Prince. When word reaches her that her sister, the Second Daughter and wife to the heir of Samir, has been attacked, she acts against all advice and takes off in a skyship to save her sister. What ensues is an adventure of political intrigue and harrowing attempts to escape the capital city of Samir. 

I'll admit to feeling a bit annoyed at Aniri for much of this book due to her uncertainty and waffling over her feelings for her husband-to-be, though ultimately I think the book makes the case that her doubts were reasonable. This does feel like a middle book, and doesn't quite have the punch of the first one. While there's a lot of action and excitement, some of it feels a bit like padding. I found I missed the active presence of Ash, the Prince, since he was offscreen for most of the book. There is a lot of miscommunication and false assumptions made between the characters throughout the story, and that always frustrates me because I WANT EVERYONE TO BE HAPPY DAMMIT.

 Ultimately, though I did really enjoy this book and devoured it quickly. It's fun to see more of this world, including the more industrial (and therefore steampunk) country of Samir. It ends on a rather cruel cliffhanger, and I want the next book NOW PLEASE.

Note: The first book in the series is currently on sale for $0.99 to celebrate the launch of the sequel.

Giveaway: Second Daughter by Susan Kay Quinn

Today I'm helping launch a new steampunk book. I reviewed the first book in this series and really enjoyed it. I have also read this one and my review for it will be up tomorrow. In the meantime, enter to win a copy at the Rafflecopter link at the bottom of this post.

NEW RELEASE

Second Daughter (The Dharian Affairs #2) Assassins, skyships, and royal intrigue...   Kindle, Kobo, AllRomance Second Daughter is the second book in The Dharian Affairs trilogy (Third Daughter, Second Daughter, First Daughter). This steampunk-goes-to-Bollywood (Bollypunk!) romance takes place in an east-Indian-flavored alternate world filled with skyships, assassins, royal romance and intrigue.

Reviews of the first book, Third Daughter:

"The author fuses carriages, steam trains, airships and clockwork with the rich eastern culture that underlies Bollywood storytelling..." - Cherie Reich

"The political intrigue, the steampunk gadgets, and the beautiful costumes kept me in wonderment." - Tony Benson

“Third Daughter is vividly breathtaking. Quinn delivers royal intrigue, exotic locations, and sweeping romance. Not to be missed!” - Pavarti Tyler, author of Shadow on the Wall

ON SALE - 99cents until 7/21 Third Daughter (The Dharian Affairs #1)

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iTunes, AllRomance (also available in print) The Third Daughter of the Queen wants her birthday to arrive so she'll be free to marry for love, but rumors of a new flying weapon may force her to accept a barbarian prince's proposal for a peace-brokering marriage. Desperate to marry the charming courtesan she loves, Aniri agrees to the prince's proposal as a subterfuge in order to spy on him, find the weapon, and hopefully avoid both war and an arranged marriage to a man she does not love.

NEW

Both books now have a map!

Download the map free here

Thank you so much for helping me get this book out in the world! Win paperback copy of Third Daughter  $10 Amazon Gift Card

check out the gorgeous formatting of the print book!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Update and Steampunk Vol. 1 by Tyson Vick

First of all, I know I've been neglecting this blog recently.  It's a combination of factors from the fact that I have a bunch of corset commissions and am busy with those to the launch of my new Jamberry Nails business.  Commissions are awesome but they mean that I have to devote my sewing time to those instead of coming up with tutorials or projects to share here.

I also realize I owe you guys posts about completing the Steampunk Darkwing Duck costume.  I've been putting those posts off mostly because I don't have decent photos of the costume yet.  My house and yard are both a wreck so I have no place to take photos here at the moment.  I'll try to get decent ones this weekend when I attend Apollocon. 

In the meantime, I was graciously allowed a look at the new photography book by Tyson Vick, Steampunk Vol. 1.  Mr. Vick has partnered with one of my favorite steampunk costumers, Alisa Kester of Dragonfly Designs for a series of steampunk shoots.   This Magcloud book features only the first of these photos, photos which have been featured in other publications, I believe.

The book is 24 pages of very lovely steampunk photography.  The costumes are very impressive and much more unique and original than you see in your average steampunk photo shoot.  At least those on the women are.  The male costumes are far less developed and elaborate.  Overall, this is a lovely photo book at a reasonable price.  But you don't really have to listen to me.  Check out these photos.





I'm looking forward to the further results of this collaboration, in the form of the Steampunk Guide to Hunting Monsters.

Book Review: Baba Ali and the Clockwork Djinn

Baba Ali and the Clockwork Djinn: A Steampunk Faerie Tale by Danielle Ackley-McPhail and Day Al-Mohamed

As you may be able to tell from the title, this book is a steampunk retelling of the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. I'm not terribly familiar with the original, except for what I know by cultural osmosis. And I'm not overly thrilled by the idea of steampunk versions of familiar stories. However, this book proved that a steampunk retelling could be done VERY right indeed.

I think the main danger with any retelling of a well known story is that you want to avoid being predictable and telling a story in the same way with merely new window dressing. This book admirably succeeds in this regard. I was absolutely enthralled and had no idea what was going to happen from moment to moment, although I did spot various points of connection to the original tale.

The story follows Ali bin-Massoud who has traveled to London to study artificery under the famed Charles Babbage. When his father dies mysterious, Ali is summoned home and he receives some mysterious legacies from his father that many people seem willing to kill for. The story follows Ali on his journey home, his conflict with his greedy brother, and his discovery of their families' guardianship of the legendary Cave of Wonders. In this cave he befriends a Djinn and sets out to free her through his skill at artificery.

This book does a really fantastic job of blending a traditional tale but making it distinctly steampunk. Some of the wonders discovered in the cave are clockwork automatons much more complex than that being made by modern craftsmen. Clockwork elephants lead caravans across the desert and conceal the cave from discovery. Plus there is the magic of the Djinn, which is woven effortlessly in with the technology.

It's always a delight to read a steampunk novel that is set in a culture other than that of Victorian England and we need more stories that handle the blending of influences this well. I highly recommend it.

Book Review: The Iron Jackal

The Iron Jackal by Chris Wooding

(I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)

This book is actually the third in the series called "The Tales of the Ketty Jay."  I haven't read the first two and although I knew there was some sort of prequel, I didn't realize this was the third book.  For the most part I was able to read this as a stand alone novel without any problems.  However, I do wonder if a lot of my confusion about the setting, at least at the beginning of the book was due to not having read the previous entries.

The Iron Jackal is part of a growing subgenre of steampunk stories: airship pirate stories.  The action follows the crew of the ship The Ketty Jay and their various adventures.   And action is certainly the right word.  The book mostly consists of one large action set-piece after another, with lots of shooting, running, flying, and some more shooting.  This book isn't at all afraid of violence and having its heroes kill people.

In fact, I have to say that the high body count and cavalier attitude to slaughter turned me off a bit at first.  The book opens with a fairly lengthy section about a train heist.  The heist is taking place in the fictional country of Samarla, which has a fairly complicated social structure that took me a while to understand.  The country seems to be modeled somewhat on India, with three different nationalities: the Samarlans, Daks, and Murthians.  To the best of my understanding the Samarlans (the villains of the piece) are dark skinned, while the two races they enslave are lighter skinned.  So there's quite a lot of time spent with our light-skinned European-analogue heroes killing lots of evil dark-skinned people.

It was enough to make me give the book quite the side-eye.  I'm not sure why you would set your story up that way, especially having the dark-skinned people be slavers of lighter skinned (not sure exactly what that means, but blond hair was mentioned) people who ultimately the heroes end up rescuing.  One of the advantages of setting steampunk stories in a fantasy universe would be avoiding the colonialist heritage of our own history.  So I'm not sure why you'd set things up to be, well, problematic in an entirely new way.

So, if you can get past that issue, (which continued to crop up and nag at me throughout the book) you may find this book quite enjoyable.  Particularly if you enjoy lots of action in your narratives.  The action is well-written and mostly well-paced although I felt some sequences, especially the opening heist took too long.  The overall plot is very strong, but suffers from the novel taking nearly 100 pages to actually get to the main plot, and other delays along the way.  The novel is quite long for an adventure novel, the trade paperback clocking in at 479 pages.

One of the strengths of the book is definitely its characters.  The Ketty Jay has quite a lot of crew members, and they all (or maybe most) have detailed and divergent backstories.  At first I felt like I didn't quite have a handle on the characters, since so much early on focused on action.  But by the end I was getting attached to them and several of them were nicely fleshed out and developed over the course of the story.

As for the world itself, I do miss the Victorian parts of steampunk in the world of the Ketty Jay.  This book is much closer to the TV show Firefly than anything Victorian.  There are airships and weird tech, but most of the tech is based on a supernatural force called daemonism rather than steam or real-world technology.  So it's a world that would sit better with the post-apocalyptic crowd than the neo-Victorian.  And that's fine if that's your thing, but I find myself missing the fancy side of things.

Basically I think that I'm not the ideal audience for this novel, being that action in books isn't one of my favorite things, and that I prefer my steampunk to have strong Victorian elements one way or another.  But it is well written and ultimately rewarding.

Book Review: Balanced on the Blade's Edge by Lindsey Buroker

Balanced on the Blade's Edge is a new steampunk romance novel by Lindsey Buroker, who happens to be my personal favorite indie author.  I adore her Emperor's Edge series (you can read the first book for FREE) so when I heard she was publishing a steampunk romance, I knew I had to check it out.

Like the Emperor's Edge series, this book is set in a fantasy world with steampunk elements.  The two main characters are both well developed and the narration splits between them.  Sardelle is a mage from a dead culture who was wiped off the map 300 years before the present time.  She was saved but trapped in stasis buried under tons of rock in her people's mountain home.  The approach of miners finally revives her, and she finds everything she has known is gone, replaced by the culture of those who killed her people.  What's more, she's now trapped in a prison camp among people who will kill her if they suspect her of witchcraft.

Colonel Ridge Zirklander has just been assigned to take over command of this prison mine, as punishment for finally mouthing off to the wrong diplomat.  He's a pilot and a national hero in the ongoing war to defend Iskandia from magic using conquerors.  He's appalled at the conditions he finds in the mountain, and puzzled by the mysterious woman who appeared from nowhere right before he arrived.  He knows she isn't what she claims, but is she a dangerous spy or harmless academic?

The majority of the book centers around the interactions of these two characters who are inclined to really like one another, despite the fact that they have good reasons not to trust one another and conflicting agendas.  As a romance, I found it very enjoyable although not as compelling as some of my very favorites in the genre.  And for those who are bothered by explicit content, there isn't much here at all.

The book is fairly light on steampunk elements, though the universe is certainly very steampunk friendly.  There honestly isn't as much description of either the technology or the world outside the prison as I would like, so I don't feel I can really say how steampunk they really are.  There is a lot of focus on the magic of this world and how it works and that is fascinating and pretty original.  There are airships and pilots and the military, so I guess that's enough.

Overall my takeaway from this book is that I really like the characters and think there's good potential for the world with some more development.  I hope this becomes a series.  It was a quick read, but a very enjoyable one.  For $2.99, the current price, it's hard to go wrong.  But I don't think it quite equals the author's work in Emperor's Edge or the Encrypted books.  And I was hoping for more steampunk in a book called explicitly a steampunk romance.

Book Review: The Horns of Ruin

The Horns of Ruin by Tim Akers

The Horns of Ruin is a steampunk second world fantasy that is worth checking out.  The novel is set in a massive city of Ash, the seat of the Fraterdom.

The Fraterdom was established a few hundred years ago by three human brothers who became gods: Alexander, Morgan, and Amon.  This is a world where technology, magic, and religion are really indistinguishable, but it definitely has a steampunk feel.

The protagonist is Eva Forge, last Paladin of the cult of the dead god Morgan.  She's the highest warrior of a cult dedicated to a warrior god.  Unfortunately the cult has fallen on hard times and is mostly irrelevant.  But an attack on their leader sends Eva searching for answers through multiple layers of conspiracy.

This is a very well written book.  Although it really throws you into this world with very little explanation, the narrative will eventually get around to explaining everything.  There's a lot of action throughout the novel, and it never bored me or confused me, which is a feat because reading action scenes is not typically my favorite thing.  The characters are well drawn without a lot of time spent explaining who they are.

I have to say one of my favorite things about this book is the character of Eva.  Mostly because she's that rare female character who could just as easily be male and nothing would need to be changed.  She's an incredible warrior, she's not all that bright (the characters around her are frequently smarter than her), she's bitter and angry and not at all friendly.  I really, really like when writers allow female characters to be flawed in ways that aren't gender stereotypes.  But for all her flaws, Eva is likable for her dogged pursuit of truth and her loyalty to her friends and her god.

The steampunk feel of this novel comes from the technology and the environment.  The city of Ash feels simultaneously like a city of crumbling relics and brand new shining technology.  The magic that Eva uses comes from her faith and training, but also from her sword and it's articulated sheath, which I just want to SEE realized.   There's not anything particularly Victorian about this world, but it feels steampunk anyway.  It's a grimy world of steel and crumbling brick, with a lot of swashbuckling action.

As a fantasy novel, this reminds me of some of the best modern fantasy I've read.  In particular I can't help being reminded of N.K. Jemison's work, especially since there is so much focus on gods and the nature of godhood.

In short I highly recommend this book to fans of intricately plotted fantasy with a unique take on magic, religion, and technology.

Book Review: Steampunk Style by Steampunk Oriental Laboratory

Steampunk Style: The Complete Illustrated Guide For Contrators, Gizmologists and Primocogglers Everywhere  by Steampunk Oriental Laboratory

I will admit that the highlight of my week so far was getting a review copy of this brand new Steampunk Art and DIY book in the mail.

This book is actually a reprint of a book first published in Japan.  It was originally written for a Japanese audience and all the contributors are Japanese artists.  As such, it's not the same things I've seen before from English speaking steampunks.

This book, first of all, is gorgeous.  The first half of the book is just steampunk porn.  It's nothing but pages and pages of fantastically photographed works of steampunk art.  As all the artists are Japanese, these weren't steampunk pieces I'd seen before, pretty much at all.  (Which surprises me.  I look at LOT of pictures of steampunk stuff online, but I didn't recognize anything.)

Most of the works featured would fall into the category of sculpture or objets d'art.  But there are some cosplay pieces, goggles, and (my personal favorite) the amazing watch creations of Haruo Suekichi.  All of it is pretty and impressive, and some of it is mind-blowing in its intricacy and beauty.  These are not the same old steampunk creations you've seen in every Buzzfeed article on the subject.

The second half of the book is where my real interest lies, however.  In this half, the artists featured in the first half share DIY techniques they use to make their pieces.  As you might expect, since these are very accomplished artists, the techniques are a bit advanced.  This is not a beginner's guide, but something for the serious maker.

The guides will show you everything from how to cut shaped brass bits with etching solution, to how to machine a watch from scratch (except for the movement), to how to make realistic looking armor from foam.  I'm impressed by the variety and depth of the information given.  It's not every artist who shows you exactly how they make things.

There are some problems with the tutorials.  They are fairly brief and not particularly detailed.  Every step is covered, but not much is explained.  Also, because the book was written for a Japanese market, some of the information may not apply in other locations.  Certainly the parts about where to buy supplies will not apply, as well as what some of the materials are called.  The translation seems to be very good, but it's not a localization, so it may be difficult to source some of the things mentioned.

Basically, this is a guide for advanced users.  Many of the tutorials assume familiarity with materials and access to and knowledge of a good number of tools. But not everything here is strictly advanced. There is a section on Steampunk Home Decor that includes some nice ideas for upgrading your environment.  There's a lovely tutorial on painting faux wood grain on plastic, for example.  And all the information you need to recover books to look like gorgeous leather bound and gold stamped editions.  But most of the projects are involved rather than quick and easy.

And that's ok.  There is room for an advanced steampunk book in the market.  What I have taken away from reading this book is a large amount of inspiration.  Whether or not I ever follow any of the tutorials in the book, seeing how people make some incredible objects is incredibly inspiring.  And I have a feeling I may pick this book up when I want to borrow some small technique from one of the projects, like some of the metal joining from the watch tutorial.  Plus, did I mention it's a really pretty book?  Put it on your coffee table and your steampunk friends won't be able to put it down.

Book Review / Preview: Steampunk for Simpletons

I mentioned before that some of my tutorials will be in the upcoming book Steampunk for Simpletons.  I also volunteered as a beta reader for the book and so I got to read the beta version and was given permission to review it here.  Obviously I have a vested (non-monetary) interest in promoting this book, since my work appears in it, but, well, I think you guys know I wouldn't lie about it in a review.

So, what exactly IS Steampunk for Simpletons?  The goal behind the book is to be a complete guide to steampunk, aimed at someone new to the subculture.  There is a big need for such a book, actually.  I constantly meet people who are interested in steampunk but don't know where to begin.  Many have questions that they are ashamed to ask or don't know how to find the answer.

And let's face it, steampunk is hard to pin down.  It's an aesthetic, a literary genre, a fandom, an alternative subculture...  Steampunk is everywhere, but it differs not only from region to region but individual to individual.  It can be really overwhelming for a newbie to really come to grips with what steampunk is and what is out there.

I'm very impressed with what Wendy L. Callahan and Travis I. Sivart have done with this book.  I haven't read all the books out there on steampunk, but I'm familiar with most of them and I don't think anyone else has come this close to creating the definitive guide to steampunk as a culture.  If you want to get involved in steampunk, but feel overwhelmed or unsure of yourself, this is the book for you.

They start by defining steampunk in a few different ways and presenting some of the history of the genre and basic information it's important to know about the Victorian period and Victorian science fiction.  Then they basically take the reader through a "how to be a steampunk" course covering clothing, persona, crafting, and attending events.

The second part of the book covers "Steampunk Arts" and introduces the reader to examples and types of steampunk music, art, movies, games, and books.  There's also discussion of communities, both online and offline, in the US and worldwide.

Throughout the book there are short pieces written by various notable steampunks on various topics.  And finally, there is a section of DIY tutorials with 12 steps or less.  That's the only part of the book I haven't seen, aside from my own two contributions.  But from the Table of Contents, there are 14 of these DIY entries and they sound good from the titles.

Above and beyond pure content, I love the attitude of this book.  The authors stress over and over again that there is no one "right" way to do steampunk and you should avoid (I believe their words were "run away quickly") from anyone who tries to tell you that you're doing it wrong.  They really capture the great things about the steampunk spirit and the community at its best.  I found myself reading with a grin on my face as I recognized things I've witnessed in the community and vigorously agreed with pretty much everything they said.   Readers of this blog should have a similar experience.

Honestly, I can't recommend this book enough.  ESPECIALLY for anyone who is just getting into steampunk.  This book will make you more knowledgeable about the history of steampunk and the community as it exists now than most steampunks out there.  It should give anyone the confidence to walk into a steampunk gathering without being afraid they will commit some horrible faux pas.  (Generally, there aren't a bunch of rules anyway, so long as you act like a decent human being, but it's something people worry about.)

For more experienced steampunks, I still recommend giving this a read.  I think there's probably something in here that most steampunks aren't aware of, or which may give them a different perspective on things.  I loved finding out that although there are regional differences steampunks are still steampunks everywhere and certain behaviors come through.  (We DO drink a lot.  And offer each other weird alcoholic beverages from flasks and mysterious bottles.  We WILL stop for photos pretty much instantaneously.)  I also found a lot of the information about steampunk in other countries fascinating and learned a lot.

In short, you should all go support the Kickstarter, which is still running until Feb 20th, and get yourselves a copy!  (Plus, they are really close to funding more art for the chapters, which would be awesome.)

Book Review: Third Daughter by Susan Kaye Quinn

Third Daughter (The Dharian Affairs, Book One) by Susan Kaye Quinn

(This was a review request.  I received an advance copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.)

So I'll be honest.  Every time I'm contacted by an author with a request to review their book, I'm both excited and a little scared.  Because I never know what I'm getting into.  There are some bad books out there, and I've seen them.

So understand how THRILLED I was to start reading this one and discover that it was really, really enjoyable.  Before I get into the details of the book, I just want to get it out there: I REALLY loved this book and read it in less than 24 hours.

Third Daughter is a steampunk fantasy romance set in an world that is definitely not our Earth.  It does, however, resemble India rather a lot.  The whole of the story is set in this alternate fantasy Not!India, which sets it apart from the majority of steampunk novels out there.  If I have any quibble with the book, it's that it took me a long time to really feel like I understood where I was and how the different fictional countries related to each other.  I wasn't sure how much this world was supposed to reflect the real world.  Eventually I just kinda gave up, relaxed, and went with it, but a little more explanatory detail or a map at the beginning would have been lovely.

The protagonist is Aniri, third daughter of the Queen of Dharia.  She is the somewhat typical rebellious young female heroine: climbing out of her room to meet her lover, more interested in fencing than court intrigue.  She's just waiting for her 18th birthday and her chance to escape her mother's palace.  Until she's pulled into peace negotiations with a neighboring barbarian kingdom that include her marriage to the heir to the throne.  Determined not to become political bride, she sets out to spy for her country and create peace.

This is an adventure/steampunk/romance that really gets the proportions of its mixture right.  Though the plot set-up may sound like typical romance novel fare, romance is actually the smallest component of the book.  Most of it is delightful spy/undercover agent shenanigans with a steampunk flair.  Because this isn't traditional India.  It's advanced-steam-and-clockwork-technology-Fantasy-India! I hope that sounds like fun because it is.  There's plenty of swordfighting in corsets and swinging from ropes on airships and nearly being assassinated.

The characters are excellently drawn as well.  Aniri is lovably flawed and insecure while being inclined to said swordfights and corsets.  Her love interests become more interesting the more time you spend with them, and the supporting characters stand out in their well-developed personalities.

Basically, this is a really well-written book, and if it's your kind of thing at all, you should go read it.  Right now the Kindle version is only $3.99, which is a STEAL.  I'm eagerly awaiting the promised sequels.

Steampunk for Simpletons

And here is my other exciting announcement of the week.  I will have two tutorials published in the upcoming book Steampunk for Simpletons!

The book is intended to be a guide for newbies to the genre and will include tutorials for making steampunk gear in 12 steps or less, so it should be perfect for new or casual makers.  The pieces I've contributed are an updated and improved version of my How To Make a Victorian Cravat tutorial (my all-time most popular topic) and a slightly improved version of my method of painting a steampunk gun with textured paint.  (I should name that process or something.  It's unwieldy to type.)

I'm quite excited to see my work in an actual book which will hopefully encourage new people to try their hand at steampunk crafting.  The other contributors are a who's who of the steampunk community, including some fabulous makers, so it should be awesome.

The book has a Kickstarter campaign that has just begun.  It's vital that they reach their very modest goal, so please check it out and make a pledge.  You know you want a copy of the book!

Book Review: Fiddlehead by Cherie Priest

I've mentioned it before, a while ago (an age ago in blog time), but Cherie Priest's Clockwork Century series is my favorite steampunk book series.  I think that anyone who is interested in steampunk and willing to read a novel should read the first in the series, Boneshaker.  And then read the rest, because you will want to.  So if you haven't, then go, do that.

Fiddlehead is the 6th book in the series, and possibly the last.  It certainly functions as an ending point and a reflection of the series as a whole.

The Clockwork Century is different from most book series in that each novel within it could stand on its own.  They each have different protagonists and POV characters.  They are set in the same universe, but often in very different settings within the US.  Stories and side characters cross from one book to another, but they are mostly self-contained.  <i>Fiddlehead</i>, in contrast, has a broader view of events than any of the others.  Fiddlehead, by the nature of its story and characters, has a view (if dim at times) of the whole of America.

Of course in this universe, it is an America that's been in a Civil War for 20 years.  A war that is slowly being overtaken by another problem: a plague of walking dead.  So <i>Fiddlehead</i> is a book about finding some kind of resolution amidst this chaos.  Prominent side characters include President Ulysses S. Grant and Abraham Lincoln in a steam-powered wheelchair.  The POV characters are the freed slave/inventor Gideon Bardsley and Belle Boyd, former confederate spy and now Pinkerton agent.

Although these books are filled with lovely steampunk world-building (the airship pirates, the steam-powered and diesel-powered war machines, the thinking engine code-named "Fiddlehead") it's their undeniable American-ness that I find so appealing.  Before Cherie Priest, it was often said that steampunk didn't belong in America, that real steampunk was British, etc.  There is seriously no way someone can make that argument today, and I WORSHIP Cherie Priest for making that happen.

Having the Civil War as a backdrop for steampunk zombie stories makes everything incredibly complex, in the way that the war was complex and continues to invoke ambiguous emotions in many Americans today.  And the author is also spectacular at creating side characters that are simply breathtaking in their complicated uniqueness.  Escaped slave airship pirate mercenaries, backwoods smugglers/underground railroad operators, incredible Confederate nurses, Texas Rangers... Her characters are so diverse and so original that they just feel uniquely American to me.

To bring this to some kind of conclusion, <i>Fiddlehead</i> is one of the strongest novels in the series, without a doubt.  The series has a couple of weak moments, but overall it's so worth the time to spend in one of the best thought out worlds I've ever encountered.  <i>Fiddlehead</i> serves as an appropriate end to the series, although I personally DESPERATELY hope we eventually get more in this universe.  Please?

Book Review: Hatshepsut's Collar

Hatshepsut's Collar by A.W. Exley 
This was a solicited review.  The author (who has been known to hang out around this blog) requested me to review her latest book in exchange for a free copy.

This is the second book in a series, so I had a little bit of catch-up to do since I haven't read the first.  For the most part it wasn't particularly difficult to keep up, but I do wish I had seen the beginning of the relationship between the two main characters, as I felt it would have helped my understanding of them.

The book centers on the professional and romantic relationship between Cara Devon and Viscount Nathaniel Lyons.  Nate runs an airship company whose imports are sometimes of dubious legality and is also an agent of the Queen.  Unfortunately there is a mysterious falling out between himself and Queen Victoria and he is arrested and thrown into the Tower of London.  At which point Cara must take over his operations to rescue him.  Their adventures take them to Imperial Russia and back before the story is done, on the trail of a disturbing conspiracy to overthrow the throne of England.

The setting is fairly standard for a steampunk novel.  The Victorian England depicted is close to the historical one, and the author seems to be knowledgeable about the period.  Of course there are also airships all over the place, both in the hands of pirates and privateers and Her Majesty's Airship Corps.  There is also a distinct fantasy element in the world, mostly in the mysterious artifacts around which the plot revolves.  These are ancient artifacts (such as the titular Hatshepsut's Collar) with supernatural powers.  I won't go into more detail for fear of spoiling the plot.  I did find some of the supernatural aspects of the story some of the hardest to buy into.  For example, as a result, I gather, of the first novel's plot, the two protagonists are soul-bonded to each other and can communicate through a psychic link.  It's not that this idea is badly handled, but rather feels unnecessary to me.

In addition to being a steampunk adventure, the novel is a romance.  Again, it's a little difficult for me to completely decide how I feel about the central relationship because I feel like I'm missing pieces of the puzzle as a result of not reading the first book.  It's not a perfect romantic relationship, as Cara has problems trusting Nate, and they do not always communicate effectively.  There are explicit sex scenes, which honestly I felt were some of the weakest parts of the novel.  They felt a little clumsily incorporated into the story and there didn't seem to be a consensus from scene to scene of how much to describe and how much to obscure and it felt uneven.   (I say this as someone with a fair bit of experience writing explicit scenes myself, so I pay attention to more technical aspects than perhaps others do.) Overall, I ended up liking the characters and rooting for their relationship, but I wasn't drawn in to the romance in the way I really want to be when reading a romance.

But overall the novel is well-written and engaging.  I was pleased at the world-building and way in which historical and fantasy elements were combined.  The characters are well-drawn, including the more minor characters.  Some steampunk novels feature characters that feel like interchangeable cardboard cut-outs made to fulfill certain narrative roles, but these feel like real people, three-dimensional, flawed, and believable.

Book Review: The Iron Wyrm Affair

The Iron Wyrm Affair by Lilith Saintcrow

On the surface, this steampunk novel is difficult to distinguish from the throng of recent books seeking to capitalize on the popularity of steampunk as a subgenre.  A male/female investigation team seeks to stop a conspiracy that's looking to bring down the Crown and the British Empire using their special gifts.  I've lost count of the number of books I've read at this point with that same basic plot.

But actually, this novel does set itself apart by its inclusion of fantasy elements.  In fact, this steampunk world is defined less by its technology and more by its sorcery.  Magic and sorcery dominate most of the plot and the way sorcery works in this world is particularly well thought-out and original.

The characters are also strong.  Emma Bannon is a Prime Sorceress, one of the strongest in the land, a confidant of the Queen herself.  She's bold and fearless, loyal to her duty but dismissive of convention.  I quite like having a female lead who kicks a huge amount of ass but moans over the damage done to her outfits.  Archibald Clare is a mentath, a super-intelligent individual gifted at deductions and easily distracted by minutiae.  In short, he is Sherlock Holmes, with a bit less style and a bit more dorkiness.  (At first I was a bit cynical about his character.  He takes drugs!  He plays violin!  He makes deductions!  He's Totally Not Sherlock Holmes!  But he did individuate himself more as the book went on.)

So if the strengths of the book are its characters and it's unique combination of sorcery and steampunk, it has its weaknesses as well.  The book throws you into the world with absolutely no explanations of the world, the rules, or even really what is going on.  It throws quite a lot of invented language at you and demands you keep up.  This can be a tricky thing to really pull off well in a fantasy novel and I'm not entirely convinced this one is successful.  I spent a large part of the novel confused or feeling at sea, constantly trying to grasp at new bits of world-building.  So I think there's a real danger of a reader being very confused by this world and this story.  More than not explaining the world, there is quite a lot of character backstory that is never fully elaborated on, but merely hinted at throughout.  It really would have been something of a relief to have a big explanation at some point, but its not there.

And then there's my least favorite part of the book: the names.  The story is set in a Victorian London that is pretty indistinguishable from the historical London, except for all the sorcery.  But to make sure that the reader knows this is an alternate world, the author has VERY SLIGHTLY changed all the place and people names.  London is Londinium.  Mayfair is Mayefair, the East End is the Eastron End, Whitechapel is Whitchapel.  Queen Victoria is Victrix and Albert is Albrech.  In my opinion this renaming is at best twee and precious and at worst comes off like the author really needs a spellchecker.  It's distracting and pulls the reader right out of the story, which is probably the exact opposite effect from what it's supposed to accomplish.  Seriously, writers, let's not do this, ok?  We can leave names the same and still realize we're in an alternate setting.  I've seen me do it.

In a slightly less important gripe, I had a problem with the fact that the male half of the team is constantly referred to as Clare, because I swear every time I read that I pictured a female and then had to readjust my mental image.  Another writing tip: if you think it's cute to constantly refer to your male lead with a female name and your female lead with a male name, it's actually just confusing.

So what's the bottom line?  I can't say that this is one of my favorite books ever, or favorite steampunk books.  But it has a lot of good points and I suspect its flaws will improve as the series continues.  If some of the writing issues even out, this could turn into a really fun series.  I guess we'll see.