Hot Blooded (Jessica McClain #2) by Amanda Carlson (review)

Paperback, 320 pages
Published April 23rd 2013 by Orbit
Source: Net Galley

Synopsis:
It hasn’t been the best week for Jessica McClain.

Her mate has been kidnapped by a Goddess hell-bent on revenge — but Jessica is playing for keeps.

Because she’s the only female werewolf in town…it comes with its own set of rules…and powers.

Aided by two vamps, two loyal Pack members, and one very reluctant human, Jessica must rescue her man while coming to terms with what being a wolf really means.

All in a day’s work for a girl.

Review:

The Jessica McClain series continued in Hot Blooded where Jessica, her twin brother, another werewolf, a cop and two vampires (whew) set off to rescue Jessica’s mate from a vengeful goddess who is determined to keep Jessica’s mate for herself. That was a mouthful.

The novel continues in the same vein as the first one in the series. It is chocked full of action, supernatural creatures, danger and goats. Yes, man eating goats that provide much needed humour in the novel. The vampires are interesting and though there are some corny bits in the writing (kind of cheesy, actually) the novel is fun.

Jessica discovers new things about herself and she gains some new powers or rather discovers abilities and skills that she didn’t know she had or could access. She makes a female friend in  the vampire (there are barely any females in the novels). The male to female ratio is extremely skewed but ah well, this series is a guilty pleasure.

The goddess is on the wrong side of crazy (and not in a good way either) and the ending complicates things even more. However, the mate is rescued (as if there was any doubt) and then commences a lot of snogging and some extremely cheesy dialogue until things go crazy once a gain and this is when we take a breath which we will release when the third book in the series is released. Hopefully soon. As I said before, fans of Ilona Andrews, Karen Chance and Seanan McGuire will appreciate this series.

The Shambling Guide to New York City (The Shambling Guides #1) by Mur Lafferty (review)

Paperback, 368 pages
Expected publication: May 28th 2013 by Orbit
Source: Net Galley

Syopsis:
Because of the disaster that was her last job, Zoe is searching for a fresh start as a travel book editor in the tourist-centric New York City. After stumbling across a seemingly perfect position though, Zoe is blocked at every turn because of the one thing she can’t take off her resume — human.

Not to be put off by anything — especially not her blood drinking boss or death goddess coworker — Zoe delves deep into the monster world. But her job turns deadly when the careful balance between human and monsters starts to crumble — with Zoe right in the middle.

Review:

I have made it a mission to check out all accessible UF novels as I am attracted to novels featuring kickass female protagonists. Who are flawed but have qualities that make me root for them and their happiness despite their flaws. Protagonists such as Rachel Morgan and Cassandra Palmer. Though Lafferty has quite an impressive backlist, I haven’t read anything by her so I went into The Shambling Guide intrigued but not expecting anything. I was very pleasantly surprised. The writing is smart, crisp and to the point.

Urban Fantasy is a genre in which lyrical prose really doesn’t work. It is fueled more by the plot unfurling than by character development. Lafferty delivers perfectly on that count. We meet Zoe as she searches around a seemingly decrepit bookstore. There she sees a job ad for an editor in chief. A position she has just lost due to her affair with her boss without realizing he was married. I am a bit skeptical about that. How does a man hide his wife? Especially when she’s the chief of the police in the area? Wouldn’t she drop by the office? Wouldn’t other people know? Do men really hide their wives like that?

Anyway, I’m getting distracted. As I said, flawed protagonist. And while I don’t condone adultery and cheating at all, I will take Zoe’s flimsy excuse that she didn’t know he was married. The novel is jam packed with action. Things are happening at full speed and there is just the right amount of tension and danger. There’s even a slightly yoda-ish lady and a crazy surprise at the end that I liked. There is a little romance and Lafferty does awesomely well in making the romance a side plot. I hate books that promise to be UF and end up as romance novels disguised as UF.

What I especially liked about this novel is that while the setting and characters are fantastic, they’re realistically fantastic. There are overweight vampires, zombies who bring brains for lunch, incubi who are creeps and change appearances according to their targets and hunger level (that was quite fascinating). All the supernatural creatures mentioned are fascinating and unique and have something to themselves other than the stereotype popular culture has foisted on them.. Zoe is a very likable protagonist and she completely won me over. I look forward to following her on more adventures as she writes/edits traveling guides to other cities. Strongly recommended.

Lady Lazarus (Lady Lazarus #1) by Michele Lang

Paperback, 320 pages
Published August 31st 2010 by Tor Books
Source: Author

Synopsis:
With the romance of Twilight, the suspense of The Dresden Files, and the delicious thrills of True Blood, the enthralling saga of Magdalena Lazarus unfolds. Descended from the legendary witch of Ein Dor, she alone holds the power to summon the angel Raziel and stop Hitler and his supernatural minions from unleashing total war in Europe. The Nazis have fighters more fearsome than soldiers, weapons more terrifying than missiles, and allies that even they are afraid of SS werewolves; the demon Asmodel who possesses a willing Adolf Hitler, and other supernatural creatures all are literally hell-bent on preventing Magda from possessing the Book of Raziel, a magical text with the power to turn the tide against Hitler’s vast war machine.

Magda, young and rebellious, grew up in the cosmopolitan city of Budapest, unaware of her family’s heritage. When her mother dies, Magda–ready or not–is the Lazarus, who must face the evil that holds Europe in an iron grip. Unready to assume the mantle of her ancient birthright, but knowing that she must fight, she sets out across Europe searching for the Book. Magda is desperate enough to endanger her soul by summoning the avenging angel Raziel. When she sees him in the glory of his celestial presence, her heart is utterly, completely lost…

Review:

Lady Lazarus has this otherworldly feel to it. It gave me the same feeling I get when I read books set in Russia or anywhere that is not here, actually. It’s set in a place steeped with history, blood, tears, laughter, joy and sorrow. It is Holocaust literature but it re-envisions that period with werewolves, witches, demons and angels. There is a strong thread of spirituality and religiosity, specifically Judaist traditions, running through it and I found it fascinating to delve into places and events that I have very little knowledge about.

What fascinated me most about this novel was Magda’s gradual decline, if you want to call it that. She is, rather unfairly in my opinion, sent on a suicide mission by her sister to retrieve a book that belongs to her family and that was written by the angel Raziel. Traveling during Hitler’s attempt to eradicate Jews was dangerous enough but throw in a crazy wizard who wants the books for himself, Nazi werewolves, demonnesses and general despair. I liked the world building and I liked that the darker aspects of Magda’s nature are explored. When she returns from the dead, she loses a bit of her spirit and she does it willingly because to fail is to consign her sister and best friend to certain death.

The romance is a bit awkward and too fast, I needed some gradual development in that area but I won’t quibble with it. But it is nothing like Twilight and for the synopsis to compare the two does this book an injustice. Yes, I said it. The portion that Magda spends out of her body and stuck in an envelope is in turns fascinating and frustrating because it halted the story a bit. However, the narrative flows in a way that answers important questions but I think a lot of it may be a bit abstruse for some readers.

I enjoyed it because Magdalena is a fantastic character. Her journey, physical and spiritual, is fun to follow. Couple that with rich history, fascinating settings, thrills and danger, and you’ve got a winner. While the romance is not explicit in the novel and a bit awkward, I did enjoy it more than many others I have read.  I will definitely be reading the next one in the trilogy.

Hot Blooded (Jessica McClain #2) by Amanda Carlson (review)

Paperback, 320 pages
Published April 23rd 2013 by Orbit
Source: Net Galley

Synopsis:
It hasn’t been the best week for Jessica McClain.

Her mate has been kidnapped by a Goddess hell-bent on revenge — but Jessica is playing for keeps.

Because she’s the only female werewolf in town…it comes with its own set of rules…and powers.

Aided by two vamps, two loyal Pack members, and one very reluctant human, Jessica must rescue her man while coming to terms with what being a wolf really means.

All in a day’s work for a girl.

Review:

The Jessica McClain series continued in Hot Blooded where Jessica, her twin brother, another werewolf, a cop and two vampires (whew) set off to rescue Jessica’s mate from a vengeful goddess who is determined to keep Jessica’s mate for herself. That was a mouthful.

The novel continues in the same vein as the first one in the series. It is chocked full of action, supernatural creatures, danger and goats. Yes, man eating goats that provide much needed humour in the novel. The vampires are interesting and though there are some corny bits in the writing (kind of cheesy, actually) the novel is fun.

Jessica discovers new things about herself and she gains some new powers or rather discovers abilities and skills that she didn’t know she had or could access. She makes a female friend in  the vampire (there are barely any females in the novels). The male to female ratio is extremely skewed but ah well, this series is a guilty pleasure.

The goddess is on the wrong side of crazy (and not in a good way either) and the ending complicates things even more. However, the mate is rescued (as if there was any doubt) and then commences a lot of snogging and some extremely cheesy dialogue until things go crazy once a gain and this is when we take a breath which we will release when the third book in the series is released. Hopefully soon. As I said before, fans of Ilona Andrews, Karen Chance and Seanan McGuire will appreciate this series.

River Road (Sentinels of New Orleans #2) by Suzanne Johnson (review)

Hardcover, 332 pages
Published November 13th 2012 by Tor Books
Source: Publisher

Synopsis:
Hurricane Katrina is long gone, but the preternatural storm rages on in New Orleans. New species from the Beyond moved into Louisiana after the hurricane destroyed the borders between worlds, and it falls to wizard sentinel Drusilla Jaco and her partner, Alex Warin, to keep the preternaturals peaceful and the humans unaware. But a war is brewing between two clans of Cajun merpeople in Plaquemines Parish, and down in the swamp, DJ learns, there’s more stirring than angry mermen and the threat of a were-gator.

Wizards are dying, and something—or someone—from the Beyond is poisoning the waters of the mighty Mississippi, threatening the humans who live and work along the river. DJ and Alex must figure out what unearthly source is contaminating the water and who—or what—is killing the wizards. Is it a malcontented merman, the naughty nymph, or some other critter altogether? After all, DJ’s undead suitor, the pirate Jean Lafitte, knows his way around a body or two.

It’s anything but smooth sailing on the bayou as the Sentinels of New Orleans series continues.

Review:

I enjoyed River Road a bit better than I did its predecessor. I found the prose flowed better and the situations, as they occurred, were better planned out. The pace, too, was quick and as this genre functions primarily on the thrills it gives readers through the action scenes, this was a good thing.

I also like that Drusilla, unlike the many tough-talking badass UF protagonists out there, doesn’t know how to handle a gun. She’s a bit softer than a UF protagonist usually is and I liked how that makes her distinct. She’s not super strong but she is smart and so she has to find ways to make up for the lack of physical strength. I also like how Drusilla’s elven nature is coming to the fore and her heritage is going to be discussed possibly in the next book. I can’t wait to see how that pans out.

The descriptions of New Orleans feel authentic and the world-building is very well done. However, the characters, apart from the main two, could do with a bit more work. Three years have passed (in book time) since the events of the first book and I expected that to have a lot more bearing on the characters than it actually does. Drusilla is unchanged as are Alex and Jake. It seems weird that Alex wouldn’t have told Drusilla that she was “going out” with him and who goes out with one person for three years without the family ever meeting her? And the city isn’t that big, how has Drusilla managed not to run into Jake despite her partner living in the flat above Jake’s bar. Stuff like this detracted from my enjoyment of the book.

Additionally, there are two other things that still bother me about this novel. One is Drusilla’s many suitors. Alex is cute and I can accept that there is friction between Dru and Alex, then there is Jacob, who, okay, his presence has a lot of potential for tension and conflict and I understand his presence too but then there is Jean LaFitte. She’s nowhere like Anita Blake but three guys is pushing it.

Two, this girl is judgmental as hell. I dislike slut shaming. I don’t think a woman’s morals should be judged by her sexuality or the clothes she wears or the twist of her hips. If you feel insecure about another woman’s beauty, confidence and sexuality, the issues and the insecurities are yours. There is no problem with the other woman being as she is. Besides, the “slut” in question is a nymph so it’s her nature.

I hated that Drusilla described a nymph as a slut. And mentioned it once and again. I also disliked that Drusilla didn’t want to wear red because it was reminiscent of a brothel or she didn’t want someone’s mother’s thoughts to go that way. I also didn’t like her saying “Happy Hooker” to describe what she’s not with regards to her own sexuality. I think the author needs to have more sensitivity and a keener awareness about the messages that she may be unintentionally sending through Drusilla. I like the world and the settings. I like the mythology and I like the idea of a Beyond. However, I do not like rape culture.

I will read the next book though, with the hope that Drusilla will get more sensitive, more aware and less judgmental.

Full Blooded (Jessica McClain #1) by Amanda Carlson (review)

Paperback, 322 pages
Published September 11th 2012 by Orbit
Source: Net Galley

Synopsis:
Born the only female in an all male race, Jessica McClain isn’t just different—she’s feared.

After living under the radar for the last twenty-six years, Jessica is thrust unexpectedly into her first change, a full ten years late. She wakes up and finds she’s in the middle of a storm. Now that she’s become the only female full-blooded werewolf in town, the supernatural world is already clamoring to take a bite out of her and her new Pack must rise up and protect her.

But not everyone is on board. The werewolf Rights of Laws is missing text and the superstitious werewolves think that Jessica means an end to their race. It doesn’t help when Jessica begins to realize she’s more. She can change partway and hold her form, and speak directly to her wolf. But the biggest complication by far is that her alpha father can’t control her like he can the rest of his wolves.

When a mercenary who’s been hired by the vampires shows up to extract information about the newly turned werewolf only days after her change, they find themselves smack in the middle of a war and there’s no choice but to run together. When it’s up to Jessica to negotiate her release against her father’s direct orders, she chooses to take an offer for help instead. In exchange, Jessica must now swear an oath she may end up repaying with her life.

Review:

I really like how this book begins. We meet Jessica when she is in the middle of changing. In Carlson’s world, there are no such things are female werewolves so when Jessica does the impossible and becomes one, things get messy quick.

It has been a while since I read urban fantasy that I liked much. I’ve learned to go to my trusted authors and not try anyone new because of previously unsavoury experiences. However, Carlson has created a world teeming with interesting supernatural creatures, a likable heroine and fun side characters. There is a reverse harem of sorts and while the novel is sexy, it is moderately so and not the orgiastic deluge that comes with Laurell K. Hamilton’s novels.

The pacing is very fast. Things happen and keep on happening and then we take a breath and read the next book but that’s another review. The breakneck speed works for the genre so I didn’t mind it at all and I also liked how Jessica gains her powers gradually. It’s not all “I woke up one day and I was awesomely powerful.” I liked how Carlson created Jessica’s “wolf.” She seems to be a personality of her own, independent of Jessica’s feelings and thoughts. And okay, their internal monologues are funny, especially where one werecat is concerned. I think the “mate” thing came about a bit too soon because I would have liked Jessica to become more comfortable on her own, as a werewolf, before being saddled with the emotional drama that comes with having a mate who is not even your own species.

However, the series is off to a snazzy start. I like it and people who like Ilona Andrews, Karen Chance and other similar authors will appreciate this as well.

House of Shadows by Rachel Neumeier (review)

Paperback, 342 pages
Published July 2012 by Orbit
Source: Teh Library

Synopsis:
Orphaned, two sisters are left to find their own fortunes.

Sweet and proper, Karah’s future seems secure at a glamorous Flower House. She could be pampered for the rest of her life… if she agrees to play their game.

Nemienne, neither sweet nor proper, has fewer choices. Left with no alternative, she accepts a mysterious mage’s offer of an apprenticeship. Agreeing means a home and survival, but can Nemienne trust the mage?

With the arrival of a foreign bard into the quiet city, dangerous secrets are unearthed, and both sisters find themselves at the center of a plot that threatens not only to upset their newly found lives, but also to destroy their kingdom.

Review:

I was bitterly disappointed by this book. Not because it was bad but because the synopsis led me astray, in fact, it cheated me. If you read the synopsis, you will think the main characters of the novel are Karah and Nemienne when nothing could be further from the truth. Karah is beautiful. And innocent. And that’s about it. She is portrayed as this guileless, naïve character who doesn’t know better than to be wary of strangers and of people who mean her harm. She is that annoying girl who is beautiful as well as super nice and whom you can’t hate without hating yourself. We do not get to know her as a character, actually, she doesn’t have much character to speak of. And then there is Nemienne who is much more promising but ultimately ends up as a side character without the importance that one would think she has considering her presence in the synopsis of the novel. She doesn’t do anything, heck she doesn’t even appear in the narrative – I would have to say she’s only present in a quarter of the book if all her appearances are brought together and quantified.

The true main characters are the bardic sorcerer and Leilis, the failed Keiso. It is not that they are not intriguing or make for better protagonists – they do – but I was expecting a book about these two women. And I didn’t get it. And it annoyed the crap out of me because I spent the entire narrative waiting for either Karah or Nemienne to step up and reclaim their voices or make their voices sound stronger and of more import than they were shaping up to be. If I were to critique this, I would have to say the book was overly ambitious for one of its length. I needed the conflicts to be better parsed out because they were all so complicated. I needed more in depth exploration of the magic and the mythos. The politics alone would have taken a lot more page time and deservedly so if the book had done justice to it.

And most of all, I want to find out who wrote the synopsis and talk to them because I felt cheated. Honestly. So if you are considering reading this book, disregard the synopsis and go into it knowing that it is not about Karah and Nemienne, it is about Leilis, Taudde and the Dragon King. Karah and Nemienne are incidental to the story which would have functioned as well without them.

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Haruki Murakami (a pretend review)

Paperback, 607 pages
Published 1997 by Knopf
Source: Purchased

Synopsis:
In a Tokyo suburb a young man named Toru Okada searches for his wife’s missing cat. Soon he finds himself looking for his wife as well in a netherworld that lies beneath the placid surface of Tokyo. As these searches intersect, Okada encounters a bizarre group of allies and antagonists: a psychic prostitute; a malevolent yet mediagenic politician; a cheerfully morbid sixteen-year-old-girl; and an aging war veteran who has been permanently changed by the hideous things he witnessed during Japan’s forgotten campaign in Manchuria.

Review:

I’m not sure if it’s even possible to write a review in the traditional sense of the word where this book is concerned. I’m sure someone more attuned to their intellectual self, someone who can separate their visceral reaction from an objective one and look at this novel purely as a work of reviewable literature will be able to break it apart into literary techniques and chapters. Personally though, I cannot tell you what I thought about this novel as much as I can tell you how I responded to it.

Murakami’s works, if you have read any, are infinitely readable. Even though what we are reading is a translation, the writer is very much involved in the actual translation as his command of English is very good so we can be secure that we are not “missing” or being led astray in anyway.  Obviously, we are not experiencing the narrative, the story, in the way it was intended to because translation does, unavoidably, lose a lot of the story but eh. Anyway, this novel is strange. It’s quirky. It opens doors into your psyche and makes you go places you do not want to go. The main character spends most of his time at the bottom of a well trying to break into the third dimension, or is it the fourth one, anyway, to break into something. A room where a woman resides. There are many colourful characters who appear and disappear, there are many short narratives that are told, impart something and then are stored away only to be brought out at strange and unexpected intervals.

The magical realism displayed in this book holds it together and this book weds fact and fiction to create one of the strangest stories I have read. There is a lack of emotion, an ennui about the main character that gradually crumbles. His relationships with various women are interesting. His control over his own life is rather tenuous and you always expect him to shatter but he surprises you and remains in one piece, stronger, perhaps, than you thought he was going to be.

This book demands a long commitment, being 611 pages long but it doesn’t feel too long, if you know what I mean. It isn’t for everyone and it will take a brave reader to appreciate it. But if you want to read something that will make you think outside the box, I recommend this.

Impulse (Jumper #3) by Steven Gould (review)

Hardcover, 368 pages
Published January 15th 2013 by Tor Books
Source: Finished copy from publisher

Synopsis:
Cent has a secret. She lives in isolation, with her parents, hiding from the people who took her father captive and tortured him to gain control over his ability to teleport, and from the government agencies who want to use his talent. Cent has seen the world, but only from the safety of her parents’ arms. She’s teleported more than anyone on Earth, except for her mother and father, but she’s never been able to do it herself. Her life has never been in danger.

Until the day when she went snowboarding without permission and triggered an avalanche. When the snow and ice thundered down on her, she suddenly found herself in her own bedroom. That was the first time.

Review:

The novel is readable and it is my own fault for going into this without reading the first two but it does say that the story contained within can function quite well as a standalone. However, I think if I had read the series in its entirety, I would perhaps have been familiar with the author’s style. I think this novel may function better as a movie than as it did a novel. There is plentiful action, there is romance, there are cool but slightly annoying parents and there is an evil organization out there trying to hunt down the main characters. It has all the ingredients necessary for a summer blockbuster.

The thing is, and I shall need to get theoretical on you for a bit, according to many theorists (and something I agree with), teenagers are always given culture to consume. All books and movies about teenagers or from the viewpoints of teenagers are in fact created by adults. Adolescents are being represented (or created/constructed) in these books by adults who may or may not remember what it was actually like to be a teenager. That always strikes me as interesting.

The reason I bring that up right now is because Cent, Davy and Millie’s sixteen year old daughter, in many ways does not sound like an authentic teenager but rather a fictional construction of one. The dialogue, the internal monologues, her observations, her voice – these are all very different and while I know and concur that not all teenagers are similar or act identically, you have to admit that there are certain characteristics that remain constant with teenagers. For example, Cent wears a “suit” to school and several boys fall over themselves to ask her out or grope her. Realistic? Um, no. First of all, a suit is not cool (especially since the suit is not described and all I am imagining is an old-lady pant suit) but even if it were, a girl may be approached by one or two boys but being groped just because you give yourself a makeover one random day? Cent, I’m sorry to say, is a bit of a Mary Sue. And that detracted from the novel substantially for me.

There is a mean girl present and she has no back story, she is two dimensional and her reactions and actions against the main character are surprising because the level of hatred directed by this girl at Cent could only have occurred (in real life) if Cent had done something horrible to her. And Cent does nothing except perhaps exist.

The whole evil organization thing is thrown in as an afterthought. The ending is tied up way too neatly and while Cent is able to leave her best friends behind quite easily, she cannot live without the boy. Needless to say, this novel was not my thing. However, other people who are not bothered by the same things I am will like this novel a lot more than I did.

Steampunk III: Steampunk Revolution – Edited by Ann VanderMeer

Paperback, 432 pages
Published October 5th 2012 by Tachyon Publications
Source: E-galley provided by the publisher

Synopsis:
Playfully mashing up the romantic elegance of the Victorian era with whimsically modernized technology, this entertaining and edgy new anthology is the third installment in a bestselling steampunk series. Featuring a renegade collective of writers and artists—from beloved legends to rising talents—the steam-driven past is rebooted and powered by originality, wit, and adventure. Lev Grossman offers a different take on the Six Million Dollar Man who possesses appendages and workings from recycled metal parts, yet remains fully human, resilient, and determined. Catherynne M. Valente explores a new form of parenting within the merging of man and machine while Cherie Priest presents a new, unsettling mode of transportation. Bruce Sterling introduces steampunk’s younger cousin, salvage-punk, while speculating on how cities will be built in the future using preexisting materials and Jeff VanderMeer takes an antisteampunk perspective as a creator must turn his back on an utterly destructive creation. Going beyond the simple realms of corsets and goggles, this engaging collection takes readers on a wild ride through Victoriana and beyond.

Review

Steampuk III: Steampunk Revolution is an anthology brimming with glimpses of lives and worlds as diverse as reality. While all the stories have substance to them, I will review the ones that spoke to me in some way or other.

“Mother is a Machine” by Catherynne M. Valente

As is Valente’s style, this short story is vivid, provocative and disturbing. It takes a moment for the reader to situate herself in the narrative, find her ground, figure out who is what and what’s happening but once that is done, there is a definite thrill – this short story for all its briefness, speaks volumes about being human. About being inhuman. I finished reading and sat for a while just mulling over what I had read and now, days later I can still pull up the details in my mind as fresh as though I had read them yesterday.

“Possession” by Ben Peek

This was heartbreaking in a lot of different ways. The main character finds a woman, a “Returned,” as she is called due to her body being integrated with mechanical parts. This woman, Rachel, has lived for a long time and seen many things, too many things. The short story etches the last few moments of her life when she and Eliana, the main character, find each other, form a friendship of sorts and a connection. Beautiful and tragic.

“An Exhortation to Young Writers (Advice Tendered by Poor Mojo’s Giant Squid)” – David Erik  Nelson, Morgan Johnson and Fritz Swanson

This short story was more light hearted and featured a series of “texts” from a anthropomorphized giant squid who tenders advice to his readers in the midst of his own adventure. There is danger galore and threats of being turned into squid soup. The story is amusing and fast paced. I liked it.

“A Handful of Rice” – Vandana Singh

We move on to India where there is much discussion of prana, brotherhood and kings. At once foreign and familiar, this tale gives a glimpse of a world populated by colour, passion and peace. Contradictory and thought provoking.

“The Effluent Engine” – N. K. Jemisin

This story presents fascinating narratives about colour, race and colonization. Haiti with its freed slaves have constructed for themselves a country and they are determined to keep their freedom. This story gives us a brief glimpse of the desperate measures people will take where liberty is concerned. This was a bit spoiled for me however by the excessive attention to romance. I’m strange that way.

“To Follow the Waves” by Amal El-Mohtar

This one details the lengths one woman goes to find (and perhaps experience) another woman she saw for just a short second. Her love, if it can be called that, manifests itself in beautiful ways. She constructs dreams from precious stones and I found this new mythology definitely intriguing.

“Peace in Our Time” – Garth Nix

This was quite easily my favourite story of the bunch. I love Garth Nix’s writing and this short story with its lingering imagery and characters will stay with me for a very long time.

“White Fungus “ by Bruce Sterling

A story set in a post-apocalyptic world that details how a man tries to reclaim the land and along the way, love a woman who is not very keen on being loved. It was interesting though not my favourite.

There are also nonfiction articles on steampunk and I found those to be quite illuminating. On the whole, this anthology delivers and should keep an avid lover of all things steampunk entertained for a long time. I recommend reading one story at a time and not several in one go as these stories, though short, carry a lot of depth that need to be savored and absorbed slowly. I recommend this to those who like short stories and love steampunk. You won’t regret giving this one a try.