Scan barcode
alex_watkins's review against another edition
3.0
A solid follow up to Leviathan, Behemoth picks up where the last book left off, which after a year or so can be hard to remember. The introduction of the Ottoman technology was really interesting, and when you read the afterward you can realize how much of the story is based on actual history. It was mostly things I didn't know at all about how the Ottoman empire entered the war on the side of the Germans. Through the work of our young protagonists the actual fate of the Ottoman empire is changed radically in the book's universe, it will be interesting to see what ripple effects this will have in the rest of the series. We got less of the Darwinist creations in this book, as it focused mostly on the ottoman animal like machines. The "beasties" are my favorite part of the faux-technology, because they are the most original, the tech stuff has been done before, but Westerfeld has been really creative in thinking up his animal hybrids that have become weapons, I'd like to see more.
coleycole's review against another edition
4.0
I like this series so much better than Westerfeld's Pretties/Uglies books! He does a really wonderful job of building worlds in both series, but the main character and narrative voice in the Pretties series is annoying (mostly deliberately and understandably annoying, but still annoying). The main characters in Behemoth/Leviathan are really charming and compelling -- I'm looking forward to the third installment...
redshoeson's review against another edition
3.0
I'm very glad that I read Behemoth, despite misgivings with its predecessor, Leviathan. Behemoth felt like a much more well-realized novel than Leviathan, from the plot right on down to character development. I'm enjoying the characters much more and I really liked the new characters introduced in this installation of the series. Onward to Goliath!
keberwick's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed the first book of this trilogy, so when I saw that my school's library had the second book I was super excited to check it out. Which I did. I really did enjoy it, but it wasn't as thrilling as [b:Leviathan|6050678|Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)|Scott Westerfeld|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1275694232s/6050678.jpg|6226342] was which was disappointing. The series hasn't stopped being interesting, and I won't stop reading the trilogy (mostly because Deryn's secret isn't out yet) but the second book was less involved with the *actual* World War I events and more about diplomacy and the Ottoman Empire.
theseventhl's review against another edition
5.0
Behemoth might be even better than Leviathan; it is exciting and clever and thrilling and has loads more Clanker and Darwinist creations to marvel over as Mr Westerfield describes them in great detail. As the first book laid out the intricate world inside the ship Leviathan, the second book lays out the intense political atmosphere that exists outside the ship as it takes place mostly in Istanbul, a country rife with struggle and the focus of such superpowers as England and Germany. I was worried about Westerfield's treatment of a foreign culture, but he treats Istanbul with the respect it deserves and does not make the characters that inhabit it merely cookie cutter types to fit into country stereotypes. There's a young woman introduced in this book who is a stellar mechanist and very much woman's lib and she becomes an interesting and surprising character without falling into any of the pitfalls of stereotypically strong women from foreign countries. Overall, Behemoth is a clear step-up in the quality of the series - but only the third book due sometime next year will tell whether the series as a whole is a success.
embereye's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this. It's by no means a masterwork of Westerfeld's, but I like the characters (even if Alek is pompous and Deryn is often rather silly). I like them because of their flaws as characters. And the imaginative world-building around this skewed history is quite fun.
4saradouglas's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as Leviathan, but there's really something about these books and their world that's just fascinating. I'm looking forward to the next!
ana_bernardes's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
hgoodenn's review against another edition
4.0
Action packed and fun. Alek acts really dumb in this one though