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lsparrow's review against another edition
3.0
steam punk alternate history - wild west mystery and lesbian romance.
I think that probably covers it all. Easy read - enjoyed it enough to try the second in the series but not enough to feel that it would make my recommendation list.
I think that probably covers it all. Easy read - enjoyed it enough to try the second in the series but not enough to feel that it would make my recommendation list.
maile_vine's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Physical abuse
hectaizani's review against another edition
4.0
Super engaging story about Karen Memery, whose name is like memory only spelt with an e. Set in a parallel late 19th century Seattle, Karen is a prostitute with a heart of gold. It's the story a a Jack the Ripperesque killer, with elements of the Old West, and steampunk trappings. I really liked Karen and hope we'll get more of her story eventually. There is a second book [b:Stone Mad|34405622|Stone Mad (Karen Memory, #2)|Elizabeth Bear|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1506700334s/34405622.jpg|55508621] but at 192 pages it's more of a novella.
gatun's review against another edition
5.0
Karen Memory can be classified as sci-fi fantasy, steampunk, western, mystery, or historical fiction. It is all of those. It is especially the tale of an extremely capable young woman who can be tender, nurturing and kick ass as the situation demands. Karen is one of the most memorable (figure the pun) heroines you will ever meet. She does not need a man to save her. The really great part of the story is the men do not need to be saved either. Both male and female characters are well developed and balanced. If a character is weak it is the personality of the character, not the gender that makes them so.
Karen Memory is a prostitute at Hôtel Mon Cherie, one of the better bordellos in what is to become Seattle. She works for Madame Damnable. Karen describes Madame as, “She’s got to be fifty-nine, and she’s still got a balcony you could do Shakespeare from.” The descriptions of people are wonderful. They are three dimensional with actions fitting with their characters. The range of characters is broad also. Besides Karen’s coworkers there are villains, inventors, and a broad range of nationalities as well as ethnicities.
Karen tells narrates her own story. Her voice is clear. Her backstory slips in where she feels it is relevant to what is happening. It does help explain her motivations and how she comes to working as a prostitute. The steampunk aspect of the story is very subtle. It is woven into the story and not distracting at all. Karen’s sexuality is seamlessly written into the story. Her attraction to women is not explained or commented on. It just is as it should be only a part of who she is.
The narration by Jennifer Grace is perfect. Karen’s voice is strong as she recounts the events that take place in the story. She admits her mistakes, admits her fears, and allows her anger to show. She felt very real to me, like someone I would want to call friend. The other voices are equally well done by Ms. Grace. The women’s voices are identifiable by pitch, accent or tone as are the men’s voices. It really is a great job narrating.
I enjoyed Karen Memory and was sad to see the book end. I know it will be one that I will revisit again and again.
Story (Plot) 5
Performance 5
Production Quality 5
Attention Holding 5
I originally received Karen Memory from Audiobook Jukebox in exchange for a fair review but enjoyed it so much I purchased Kindle and Audible versions.
Karen Memory is a prostitute at Hôtel Mon Cherie, one of the better bordellos in what is to become Seattle. She works for Madame Damnable. Karen describes Madame as, “She’s got to be fifty-nine, and she’s still got a balcony you could do Shakespeare from.” The descriptions of people are wonderful. They are three dimensional with actions fitting with their characters. The range of characters is broad also. Besides Karen’s coworkers there are villains, inventors, and a broad range of nationalities as well as ethnicities.
Karen tells narrates her own story. Her voice is clear. Her backstory slips in where she feels it is relevant to what is happening. It does help explain her motivations and how she comes to working as a prostitute. The steampunk aspect of the story is very subtle. It is woven into the story and not distracting at all. Karen’s sexuality is seamlessly written into the story. Her attraction to women is not explained or commented on. It just is as it should be only a part of who she is.
The narration by Jennifer Grace is perfect. Karen’s voice is strong as she recounts the events that take place in the story. She admits her mistakes, admits her fears, and allows her anger to show. She felt very real to me, like someone I would want to call friend. The other voices are equally well done by Ms. Grace. The women’s voices are identifiable by pitch, accent or tone as are the men’s voices. It really is a great job narrating.
I enjoyed Karen Memory and was sad to see the book end. I know it will be one that I will revisit again and again.
Story (Plot) 5
Performance 5
Production Quality 5
Attention Holding 5
I originally received Karen Memory from Audiobook Jukebox in exchange for a fair review but enjoyed it so much I purchased Kindle and Audible versions.
alice_inthe_bookland's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
jesslynh's review against another edition
5.0
Do yourself a favor and get this one. Authors--THIS is how steampunk is done!
stlorca's review against another edition
5.0
"You ain't gonna like what I have to tell you, but I'm gonna tell you anyway. See, my name is Karen Memery, like memory only spelt with an e, and I'm one of the girls what works in the Hôtel Mon Cherie on Amity Street. Hôtel has a little hat over the o like that. It's French, so Beatrice tells me."
So begins Elizabeth Bear's Karen Memory, a steampunk novel set in the Pacific Northwest during the Alaskan Gold Rush. Miss Memery is a, er, "seamstress" in the booming port town of Rapid City, Washington (an obvious analogue to Seattle, the author notes that it's actually a mash-up of Seattle, San Francisco, and Vancouver).
Karen treats her profession as a job like any other, and one she wants to leave eventually to raise horses. Then a serial killer of prostitutes starts plying his brutal trade in Rapid City. Hot on the killer's heels come U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves ("Lordy," says Karen, "he were a stone handsome man") and his deputy, the Comanche warrior Tomoatooah. Meanwhile, Karen stumbles across a half-dead Indian girl, Priya, who has escaped from a pimp's clutches and is seeking her sister, who has been similarly enslaved. Oh, and there's airships and all manner of Fiendish Devices that require a license for Mad Science; the author wisely keeps it to a dull roar to focus on the story. (No, really--you need to be a licensed Mad Scientist.) And the pimp is running for mayor. And he's got a mind-control machine and a lethal electric glove. (That isn't a spoiler, by the way; it's on the book's cover.)
It's a fast-paced, highly entertaining book, written in a style that is easily accessible. The characters are well-drawn and sometimes do things you don't expect. I want a sequel ("and I want it NOOOOW, Daddy!" he said in his best Veruca Salt).
So begins Elizabeth Bear's Karen Memory, a steampunk novel set in the Pacific Northwest during the Alaskan Gold Rush. Miss Memery is a, er, "seamstress" in the booming port town of Rapid City, Washington (an obvious analogue to Seattle, the author notes that it's actually a mash-up of Seattle, San Francisco, and Vancouver).
Karen treats her profession as a job like any other, and one she wants to leave eventually to raise horses. Then a serial killer of prostitutes starts plying his brutal trade in Rapid City. Hot on the killer's heels come U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves ("Lordy," says Karen, "he were a stone handsome man") and his deputy, the Comanche warrior Tomoatooah. Meanwhile, Karen stumbles across a half-dead Indian girl, Priya, who has escaped from a pimp's clutches and is seeking her sister, who has been similarly enslaved. Oh, and there's airships and all manner of Fiendish Devices that require a license for Mad Science; the author wisely keeps it to a dull roar to focus on the story. (No, really--you need to be a licensed Mad Scientist.) And the pimp is running for mayor. And he's got a mind-control machine and a lethal electric glove. (That isn't a spoiler, by the way; it's on the book's cover.)
It's a fast-paced, highly entertaining book, written in a style that is easily accessible. The characters are well-drawn and sometimes do things you don't expect. I want a sequel ("and I want it NOOOOW, Daddy!" he said in his best Veruca Salt).
roytoo's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Engaging steam punk story set in the Pacific Northwest
A very well written story about Karen, a seamstress (sex worker) in a fictional Pacific Northwest city who deliberately choose that career to when towards future goals.
Lots of very engaging characters in Karen's life as she works to help protect her friends, found family and city from people intent on harming them.
A very well written story about Karen, a seamstress (sex worker) in a fictional Pacific Northwest city who deliberately choose that career to when towards future goals.
Lots of very engaging characters in Karen's life as she works to help protect her friends, found family and city from people intent on harming them.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture and Violence
Minor: Vomit and Trafficking
amym84's review against another edition
4.0
Originally posted at Vampire Book Club
“You ain’t gonna like what I have to tell you, but I’m gonna tell you anyway.”
So begins Karen Memery’s (“like ‘memory’ only spelt with an e”) story about how she, and the rest of the “seamstresses” working for Madam Damnable at the Hôtel Mon Cherie, teamed up with famed lawman Marshal Bass Reeves to find the person responsible for a series of murders of other prostitutes (I mean “seamstresses”) in the area. Not only is there a murderer on the loose, but there’s trouble coming from one Peter Bantle (the proprietor of another brothel in town) and his electric-sparking glove. When Madam Damnable offers protection to two girls escaping from the harsh conditions of Bantle’s crib, Bantle swears retribution, and with his newfangled mind-control device, he just may be able to make good on his threat.
It is the late 19th century, and Karen is an orphan. She’s doing her best to survive on her own. She doesn’t plan on being a seamstress forever, mind you. So when that very survival as well as the survival of those she calls her friends is threatened, Karen will go to hell and back to save them. Just like her favorite dime novels, Karen is about to embark on an adventure that will take her to the depths of the ocean in an octopus-fashioned submersible and back. Hopefully, she’ll live to tell the tale.
Karen, as a narrator, has a great voice, and I loved the secondary characters as much as I loved Karen. I would have liked to have seen them fleshed out (no pun intended) a little bit more. Find out more of their histories and personalities, although it’s easy to tell from their actions that they all care about one another like family.
But this is Karen’s story and her story to tell. No one asks her to become involved in the investigation. Even when Karen acknowledges her feelings for Priya, one of the girls escaping from Bantle’s clutches, Karen’s involvement never becomes self-serving. Although, it would be hard to deny her feelings for Priya are a motivation at least, but Karen gets involved simply because it’s the right thing to do. To stand up to bullies who want to control things. To find the person responsible for taking the lives of women who are just doing what they have to in order to get by.
The pace of Karen Memory is pretty up and down. The action scenes were enough that I didn’t want to put the book down, but the more day-to-day scene could lull you into a sense of complacency. The steampunk aspect was always just there as a part of everyday life. No one questions, it simply is. Until Elizabeth Bear decides to–BAM! In your face, oh yes we just did that and it just happened! I remember reading the end of a certain scene and thinking ‘Oh yes, that was completely awesome, more of that please.’ Mind you it takes some time to get to this point, just to be prepared, but the rest of Karen’s adventure is well worth the read don’t get me wrong.
Let’s just say I will never again look at a Singer sewing machine the same way.
“You ain’t gonna like what I have to tell you, but I’m gonna tell you anyway.”
So begins Karen Memery’s (“like ‘memory’ only spelt with an e”) story about how she, and the rest of the “seamstresses” working for Madam Damnable at the Hôtel Mon Cherie, teamed up with famed lawman Marshal Bass Reeves to find the person responsible for a series of murders of other prostitutes (I mean “seamstresses”) in the area. Not only is there a murderer on the loose, but there’s trouble coming from one Peter Bantle (the proprietor of another brothel in town) and his electric-sparking glove. When Madam Damnable offers protection to two girls escaping from the harsh conditions of Bantle’s crib, Bantle swears retribution, and with his newfangled mind-control device, he just may be able to make good on his threat.
It is the late 19th century, and Karen is an orphan. She’s doing her best to survive on her own. She doesn’t plan on being a seamstress forever, mind you. So when that very survival as well as the survival of those she calls her friends is threatened, Karen will go to hell and back to save them. Just like her favorite dime novels, Karen is about to embark on an adventure that will take her to the depths of the ocean in an octopus-fashioned submersible and back. Hopefully, she’ll live to tell the tale.
Karen, as a narrator, has a great voice, and I loved the secondary characters as much as I loved Karen. I would have liked to have seen them fleshed out (no pun intended) a little bit more. Find out more of their histories and personalities, although it’s easy to tell from their actions that they all care about one another like family.
But this is Karen’s story and her story to tell. No one asks her to become involved in the investigation. Even when Karen acknowledges her feelings for Priya, one of the girls escaping from Bantle’s clutches, Karen’s involvement never becomes self-serving. Although, it would be hard to deny her feelings for Priya are a motivation at least, but Karen gets involved simply because it’s the right thing to do. To stand up to bullies who want to control things. To find the person responsible for taking the lives of women who are just doing what they have to in order to get by.
The pace of Karen Memory is pretty up and down. The action scenes were enough that I didn’t want to put the book down, but the more day-to-day scene could lull you into a sense of complacency. The steampunk aspect was always just there as a part of everyday life. No one questions, it simply is. Until Elizabeth Bear decides to–BAM! In your face, oh yes we just did that and it just happened! I remember reading the end of a certain scene and thinking ‘Oh yes, that was completely awesome, more of that please.’ Mind you it takes some time to get to this point, just to be prepared, but the rest of Karen’s adventure is well worth the read don’t get me wrong.
Let’s just say I will never again look at a Singer sewing machine the same way.
balfa76's review against another edition
4.0
Good reading
Good and fun story with some elemets of steampunk. More focused in western part of the fusion still makes it a good steampunk novel
Good and fun story with some elemets of steampunk. More focused in western part of the fusion still makes it a good steampunk novel