Review: Rebel Mechanics by Shanna Swendson

Review: Rebel Mechanics by Shanna Swendson
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository 
Series: #1 in the Rebel Mechanics series
Release date: July 14th, 2015
Publisher: Farrar, Strouss, and Giroux (Macmillan)
Length: 320 pages
Source: ARC from the publisher
Rating: Squeeeeee

A sixteen-year-old governess becomes a spy in this alternative U.S. history where the British control with magic and the colonists rebel by inventing.

It’s 1888, and sixteen-year-old Verity Newton lands a job in New York as a governess to a wealthy leading family—but she quickly learns that the family has big secrets. Magisters have always ruled the colonies, but now an underground society of mechanics and engineers are developing non-magical sources of power via steam engines that they hope will help them gain freedom from British rule. The family Verity works for is magister—but it seems like the children's young guardian uncle is sympathetic to the rebel cause. As Verity falls for a charming rebel inventor and agrees to become a spy, she also becomes more and more enmeshed in the magister family’s life. She soon realizes she’s uniquely positioned to advance the cause—but to do so, she’ll have to reveal her own dangerous secret.

I adored reading that! My god, was that some delightful fun. Adorable boy, fun rebel shenanigans, a feisty yet practical heroine, plays on a bunch of tropes, and alternate history to boot.. If you love stories about governesses, nobility, magic, New York City, steampunk gadgets, or--must be said again--completely adorable boys, read Rebel Mechanics, because reading it was pure pleasure. It's short and zippy and not too deep, but sometimes that's perfect. I'm so full of SQUEE. (And I toooootally ship the ship, yessiree.)

Review: The Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason

Review: The Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason
Goodreads
Release date: September 17th, 2013
Publisher: Chronicle
Series: Yes, #1 in the Stoker & Holmes series
Source: Purchased
Length: 356 pages
Rating: Steampunkian, girl-powery, mysterious fun.



Evaline Stoker and Mina Holmes never meant to get into the family business. But when you’re the sister of Bram and the niece of Sherlock, vampire hunting and mystery solving are in your blood. And when two society girls go missing, there’s no one more qualified to investigate.

Now fierce Evaline and logical Mina must resolve their rivalry, navigate the advances of not just one but three mysterious gentlemen, and solve murder with only one clue: a strange Egyptian scarab. The stakes are high. If Stoker and Holmes don’t unravel why the belles of London society are in such danger, they’ll become the next victims.


I've been meaning to read The Clockwork Scarab for ages. When its sequel, The Spiritglass Charade, showed up in the mail, it was the kick in the pants to finally get me do it, and boy, am I glad I did. This book is fun. It's steampunk, feminist, funny, breezy fun, and while it definitely could dig deeper in some parts, the quick pace and twisty mystery make for a super entertaining read.

Review: Kinslayer by Jay Kristoff

Review: Kinslayer by Jay Kristoff
Goodreads 
Release date: September 17th, 2013
Publisher: Thomas Dunne/ St. Martin's
Series: #2 in the Lotus War series
Source:  ARC from the publisher
Rating: Brilliantly plotted with an array of fascinating characters and dense, original world-building. Also OW OW MY FEELS

 

 A SHATTERED EMPIRE
The mad Shōgun Yoritomo has been assassinated by the Stormdancer Yukiko, and the threat of civil war looms over the Shima Imperium. The Lotus Guild conspires to renew the nation’s broken dynasty and crush the growing rebellion simultaneously – by endorsing a new Shōgun who desires nothing more than to see Yukiko dead.

A DARK LEGACY
Yukiko and the mighty thunder tiger Buruu have been cast in the role of heroes by the Kagé rebellion. But Yukiko herself is blinded by rage over her father’s death, and her ability to hear the thoughts of beasts is swelling beyond her power to control. Along with Buruu, Yukiko’s anchor is Kin, the rebel Guildsman who helped her escape from Yoritomo’s clutches. But Kin has his own secrets, and is haunted by visions of a future he’d rather die than see realized.

A GATHERING STORM
Kagé assassins lurk within the Shōgun’s palace, plotting to end the new dynasty before it begins. A waif from Kigen’s gutters begins a friendship that could undo the entire empire. A new enemy gathers its strength, readying to push the fracturing Shima imperium into a war it cannot hope to survive. And across raging oceans, amongst islands of black glass, Yukiko and Buruu will face foes no katana or talon can defeat.

The ghosts of a blood-stained past.

There will be spoilers for book one, Stormdancer, in the following review. Read Stormdancer, okay? It's good for your health.

The cover: Jay Kristoff gets THE BEST COVERS. Look at that glory. It's so dynamic and badass. Check out the blood scraped across Yukiko's face! And the sea dragon! And Buruu's magnificent self!

The story:  All right... how to write a coherent review of Kinslayer...

*blinks* *stares at blank page* *cursor blinks back*

NNNNNGH.

 So we left the world of Stormdancer with things in a state of upheaval. Yukiko has assassinated the evil Shogun, and she and her magnificent thunder-tiger, Buruu, have united with the Kage rebellion. Hiro, her ex-lover, is a vicious evil traitor, so Yukiko kills him too, and then her father dies in her arms. The nation of Shima is still poisoned by lotus, and the Guild is still immensely creepy, except for Kin, who has officially escaped them.

The reason it's so difficult to talk about Kinslayer in a sane and orderly way is because so much happens in it. We're introduced to so many vivid characters, and flung headfirst into this harsh and brutal world where even the skies are ugly. The plot and world-building are so complex that it almost feels like real events (thank God it's not, because Shima is one of the only fantasy nations I've visited that I NEVER want to visit) (except to bond with a thunder-tiger. I'd totally want to do that). In Stormdancer, we visited a fantastical, blood-red, steampunk version of Japan that was strangely beautiful despite the fact that it's poisoned and dying. The mountains in the north are green and clear, and there are those willing to fight fiercely and bravely to save their country.

 But in Kinslayer, every trace of beauty seems to disappear. This book is dark and bloody and gritty. Every character has suffered atrocities, and so every character is hardened in some way. Some, like Yukiko, seem actively tortured by their actions and memories. Girlfriend's a mess. Her Kenning (her ability to communicate with animals) is way off, causing her to bleed from her facial orifices and also causing her to drink heavily. Kin has thrown over the corrupt Guild that he's been a part of all his life. People suffer in this book. People die. ANIMALS DIE. And yet I couldn't put it down.

Kristoff is not afraid to hit where it hurts, and I love him for it, while also cursing him soundly on Twitter. You guys know I love when books, and particularly high fantasy wherein the stakes are life and death, are brave enough to be brutal. And this book, mostly in the second half, moves at a rollicking pace. Unlike in Stormdancer, we don't need to relearn the world (well, you do, a little. I reread Stormdancer right before diving into this and that made it FIFTY times easier). SD was a trifle slow in the beginning. Kinslayer is never slow. Kinslayer flies along like Buruu and his steel wings, tearing every one of your positive feelings to shreds as it goes.

Fun teasery fact: The title does not (explicitly) refer to the character of Kin. MAKE OF THAT WHAT YOU WILL.

We meet a lot of new characters in Kinslayer, which I like. I like that this epic scale rebellion is not limited to Yukiko's character or point of view--you need other, just as interesting viewpoint characters to tell the story. There's Hana, nicknamed No One, is possibly my favorite of the bunch. She is one-eyed and socially invisible with a job as a cleaner of chamber pots in the palace. She's underestimated by everyone around her, except herself. Hana is bad-ass. Speaking of BAD-ASS, we get more Michi in this one, aka the handmaiden of Lady Aisha. MICHI. MAN. I sent so many flaily DMs to Christina about Michi and Hana's awesomeness. Then there's Hana's brother, Yoshi--



Nope, not THAT Yoshi, though it honestly took me a little while to stop picturing a tiny green dinosaur. Book-Yoshi is fiercely protective of his little sister and very much in love with his boyfriend (Ho!Yay!). I adore all these characters in all their imperfect glory, but of course Jay Kristoff is an enemy of joy and he makes them all suffer mightily. Buruu, obviously, is still the best ever--arrogant, powerful, and fiercely loyal to Yukiko. He also made me laugh out loud and very hard many times.

He also does one thing that was so, incredibly shocking I was actually SPEECHLESS. If you see this coming, you MUST be clairvoyant. Never in a MILLION YEARS DID I SEE THAT HAPPENING. I SCREAMED.

 You are not prepared for this book, guys. You will be punched in the gut and the face and the nose and the feels. And things leave off so well set-up for an epic-beyond-epic finale showdown that I'm kind of dying for the third one. Kin! Yukiko! MICHI! HANAAAAA! That was my entire thought process during the seconf half of Kinslayer. You are not ready. You are not prepared. But Inzanagi's balls, READ IT ANYWAY.

Literary PSA: Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Recently I decided to start a NEW THING: Literary Public Service Announcements. Essentially, I'm going to pimp a book that I read before I started blogging, but that I want to foist upon the world due to it's high levels of sheer awesomeness, for the good of the public and all that jazz. Instead of me just telling people over and over that they should read something "JUST BECAUSE!!!1!", I've decided to actually explain in a more eloquent fashion just why my favorite books are my favorites.

Last time on Literary Public Service Announcements: SHADOW AND BONE by Leigh Bardugo.

And now this week's PSA:

 

Prince Aleksander, would-be heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battletorn war machine and a loyal crew of men.

Deryn Sharp is a commoner, disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.

With World War I brewing, Alek and Deryn's paths cross in the most unexpected way…taking them on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure that will change both their lives forever.

Leviathan is one of those books that you love mostly because you know you would have loved it as a kid. That sounds more negative than I intended. I straight up LOVE this book. It's not completely perfect but it's oh so much fun. If I'd read this book as a ten-year-old (I was the definition of a "read-upper"), I would have been obsessed with it.

Confession: I'm a history nut. I was that obnoxious kid in history class who corrected the teacher when she got her dates wrong (I only did that ONCE, okay? It was eighth grade and I was a brat). So when I heard about a STEAMPUNK ALTERNATE HISTORY OF WWI, I was like Sign. Me. Up. I will read all day about long ago wars and heirs of Empires and girls-disguised-as boys. Those are all of my favorite things.

In Westerfeld's version, the Central Powers (Austria-Hungary, Germany) are Clankers, meaning they're all about technology and metal steampunk war machines like two-legged Stormwalkers. The Allies (Great Britain, France, Russia) are Darwinists. Their war machines are not fabricated from metal, but from life. They've managed, using Darwin's theories, to harness animal's "life strands" and cross-breed them into magnificently awesome things like the titular Leviathan: a huge flying machine made from a living whale. All of their war tools are living: bomber bats, hot air balloon jellyfish, messenger lizards.

Having trouble picturing it? FEAR NOT, because the book comes with beautiful illustrations! Like so:




Prince Alek is the fictional son of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, who you either know as the heir of the Austrian Empire whose assassination started WWI, or as the dude that band was named for. Either is fine. You don't need to have much history knowledge to follow along with Leviathan. Alek, a Clanker, is on the run in a Stormwalker from the Germans and the Austrians, both of whom are trying to kill him. The other protagonist is Deryn Sharp, a Scottish girl who has disguised herself as a boy to become a military Airman.

This story is full of adventure and action and originality. The Leviathan itself is completely fascinating. I could have read about the complex fabricated ecosystem that makes it work forever. Deryn and Alek as characters feel a little underdeveloped-- we learn almost nothing about their lives before the book starts, particularly Deryn's-- but they come alive as the book progresses. And besides, the world around them is so amazingly realized that it just doesn't matter. And I actually loved Deryn. She is hilarious, brash, and brave, even if she doesn't feel like a girl in any way. The two MCs don't meet until halfway through the book, but when they do, that's when the magic happens. Clankers think Darwinist creations are ungodly, while Darwinists think Clankers crude, cold, and inferior. They're opposite characters that play off each other perfectly. And British Dr. Barlow is one kickass lady scientist with an awesome animal sidekick.

Tazza the thylacine. I want one.

The sequels to Leviathan, Behemoth and Goliath, are even better. The world-building astounds me at every turn. If you love steampunk, I'd recommend this in an instant. And if you haven't got much steampunk experience, I'd recommend starting here.

Review: Masque of the Red Death

Review: Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin
Rating: A gorgeous, haunting novel full of gorgeous, haunting imagery of plague and death. A strong but confusing plot and magnificent world-building manage to overcome flat characters and lack of emotion.

 

A devastating plague has decimated the population, and those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles around them.

So what does Araby Worth have to live for?

Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery makeup . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all.

But in the depths of the club--in the depths of her own despair--Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club, and Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.

And Araby may find not just something to live for, but something to fight for--no matter what it costs her.

Masque of the Red Death is an atmospheric and gruesome tale set in a plague-ravaged steampunk world, overflowing with haunting images of false beauty and ruin. I loved all the trappings of this tale. For me, this book was the equivalent of a really gorgeous play with a breathtakingly beautiful set, magnificent costumes that evoke the mood, a pretty good script… and horribly cast actors.

You know the plays and movies I mean. Where you are just in awe of the spectacle and the creativity, but the actors aren't quite conveying all the right levels of emotion. They’re too stiff and not alive. So, so pretty, of course, and every now and then they manage to make your throat feel a little tight, but not often enough.

Araby, the main character, is a melancholy girl still grieving for her twin brother. She feels immensely guilty that he died instead of her, and because of that is determined, basically, to never feel true pleasure again. This suits the mood of this book and this hopeless world, but I must confess I find it very hard to connect to depressed characters. There is nothing to grab onto. In the beginning, I was all, “Well, fine, if you want to die, then why should I care if you do?” This is the wrong reaction to have to your protagonist. I mean, yes, as the story develops, she grows less disinterested and begins to care about the world and people around her. But I felt like I was reading Araby through a fog or a veil. I never felt close to her. I never felt her at all. She literally has made a vow that she will never do the things Finn, her dead twin, won’t get to. This includes kissing, sword-fighting, and smiling, apparently.

Don’t get me wrong. I loved the grimness of Masque of the Red Death. But Araby was a bit much. Every time she brought up the vow, I just kind of rolled my eyes. Enough with the emo-ness. Oftentimes her motives or feelings simply confused me, at least until the end. Once she finds things worth living for, her characters sharpens quite a bit.

There is a love triangle, but for me, it was deeply uneven. There is Elliott, older brother to Araby’s best “friend” April, who is dangerous and mysterious, and Will, who, despite his tattoos, did not seem dangerous or mysterious at all. If you can’t tell, I was far more taken with dark and complex Elliott. Will had cute little siblings, but mostly his character fell flat. But Elliott is the best character in the whole book. He’s conflicted and confusing and pretty darn swoonalicious, if you ask me. I found myself getting excited every time he was on the page. I wanted to know what the heck he was thinking and feeling and what he was going to do next. He was unpredictable, which I loved.

In both cases, the love and attraction came way too fast. I think there was a step missing in Araby’s relationships with both men, even if I far preferred Araby/Elliott. Will and Araby is pure insta-love. I didn’t get it at all. April confused me as a character as well, as I never really got her connection with Araby, but I came to enjoy her at the end.

The plot and the setting seriously help make up for my “meh” feelings on the characters. The city is in ruins, the prince is an absolutely appalling and selfish man unconcerned with the suffering around him, and religious uprisings, led by the fantatic Reverend Malcontent, are beginning to boil over. There are dark and lavish clubs filled with debauchery, tattered dresses made with elegant fabric, marshes full of crocodiles, a Gothic and gaudy palace, and the rich wear pristine china masks to keep out the contagion. The lower city is crowded with the dead and diseased. All the horses have died, so the wealthy travel by means of steam-powered carriage. Creep-tastic.

It makes me want to read the Poe story it’s based on. While I would have appreciated a bit more clarity and a slightly tighter pace, I enjoyed reading about the things that happened even as they confused me mightily. I love where it left off. I wish the rebellion plot line had been more fleshed out, at least so I could have understood it a bit better, but I have a feeling this will really come to fruition in the next book.

I’ll be reading the sequel, even if just to find out how in the blazes they’re going to fix basically the worst situation ever, and because the imagery and world-building are fantastic. The writing was stiff in places, and stuck halfway between fully Gothic Victorian and modern, but I feel like Griffin will improve. I really hope Araby improves along with her. But otherwise, Griffin's got all the ingredients she needs for a spectacular sequel.