Well, I have just been a reading fool. I got the list for my YA Lit class a little early and started pounding it out. I will review some of the titles soon, but first I want to share my review of Dreadnought, the newest addition to the Clockwork Century Canon.
Me, the lady who never wins anything (except attention when I least desire it), won an ARC of the novel on Goodreads! Yay!
So, without further ado, here is my spoiler-free review:
To begin, this novel can be read as a stand alone, if you have not yet had the pleasure of reading Boneshaker or Clementine, have no fear. This story belongs to the main character, and although her story is tied to some of the characters in Boneshaker, this tale belongs to Mrs. Mercy Lynch alone.
Mercy is fabulous. She is strong, logical, and more than a little kick-ass. She has received the notice that her husband has died and her father is ailing. The problem of traveling from Virginia to Tacoma, Washington is greatly hampered by the Civil War. Mercy must take several modes of transport in order to cross the continent in order to reach her father's deathbed. Missing from this part of the story are the air pirates, but that is okay as we had just been served up a heaping helping of pirate goodness in Clementine.
I love a good action adventure novel, especially in the Fall (must be something about the crisp air and the crunch of leaves). There is no end to the action in Dreadnought. It is page after page of excitement. Several nights this week, I was unable to sleep due to the peril I left the characters in by closing the covers. Sometimes the action was so heart pounding, I actually had to look up for a while.
As usual with Priest's writing, there is magic in the secondary characters as well, none fall prone to stereotypes, and all of them have little surprises up their sleeves that make the plot that much more interesting. Throughout the novel there is a large cast of characters (some historically famous! Many of them are memorable.
This was a lot of fun to read, and now I must wait until forever for the next one to come out. I would not mind a short side story about Mr. Fang, as he fascinates me, and I am convinced he is being mum because he has an amazing story to tell. I also hope that Mercy sticks around, as I thing she just might be my new hero.
One last note, the cover is amazing. If the sight of a pissed off red head in full skirts and a set of six shooters does not make you want to read the story, I don't know what will. Go Mercy! My copy had the first cover in the two featured above.
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