Type of Read:
Fantasy/ "Steampunk"
Plot Summary:
A forensic sorceress, Emma Bannon, is tasked with protecting a rather eccentric gentleman named Archibald Clare. Archibald is a mentath, which means he is a master of deductive reasoning and his mental health depends on him solving challenging puzzles (remind you of anyone?). He gets his fill of challenges when Emma recruits him to solve a mystery of why other mentaths are turning up dead. As they investigate they uncover an even bigger plot that threatens all of Victorian England.
Strengths:
Unfortunately there were very few strengths in this book. (This might be my first "bad" review)
One of the strengths was that the concept of the story was interesting. I mean, a forensic sorceress? Who wouldn't want to read about that? Saintcrow does do a good job building an alternate Victorian England. I have never been to London or any of the surrounding towns (cities?) so I probably did not notice when she made something up or played with what exists. But I am traveled enough to know that there are not any carriage pulling mechanical horses roaming London's streets (yet!)
Weaknesses:
Unfortunately there are a lot of weaknesses that come with this book. First of all, the jargon in this book was overwhelming. The setting takes place in Victorian England. Great! I love that era...I just don't know a lot about it. Saintcrow mixes slang from the era with her own fantasy language. Though this is admirable, it leaves the reader confused and frustrated. I had to just keep pushing through the chapters until I had enough context clues to understand what was being described. (Oh! So a Wyrm is an ancient mechanical dragon thing...sort of...not really??)
Another weakness is in the magic department. There was barely any need for Emma to team up with anyone. With barely any limits to her power, she pretty much took care of everything on her own. She does grow tired and she can get hurt, but her restorative powers are strong enough that she can be stabbed in the abdomen and be ready for the next outing by dinner. I personally like to have limits when it comes to magic so the writer/ main character is not totally reliant on their powers. Magic doesn't solve problems...it usually creates them.
Finally, Steampunk is REALLY hard to pull off. Sure you can throw goggles and steam powered machines into the story, but I have yet to read an author who has pulled it off yet (if anyone has suggestions I will gladly try them) Saintcrow does build the world well, but the descriptions either fall short or are too confusing to muddle through.
Opinion and Recommendation:
I wanted to like this book. I really, really did. I wanted to like it so much that I stuck with it through the end when I probably should have given up. The concept seemed amazing and it had been on my 'to-read' list for a long time. But I was sadly disappointed. The descriptions and jargon in the book made everything garbled and difficult to understand. Even when I got to the end there were questions that had not been fully explained (for example: what is the difference between a registered mentath and an unregistered mentath? And how does one become registered or unregistered?) Overall, this was a very disappointing read and I can't personally recommend it. But if you want to give it a shot, go for it! I mean Lilith Saintcrow did get the book published and she is still writing books in the series...so someone must enjoy it. So borrow it if you must, but don't buy it until you know for sure you enjoy it.
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