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landminecat's review
4.0
I'm really growing to like this bunch of characters, especially Lil and the aye-ayes.
Great fun. A few elements of the prose and worldbuilding drift a little towards sounding a bit contrived and amateurish at times but mostly it's just fun fast paced action with loveable characters
Great fun. A few elements of the prose and worldbuilding drift a little towards sounding a bit contrived and amateurish at times but mostly it's just fun fast paced action with loveable characters
davep's review
4.0
The 2nd instalment of the Free Wrench saga. Much like the first book, it keeps you engaged and you feel involved in the lives of the characters, although some of the situations can be a little far fetched. Still worth reading.
nickmiller's review
4.0
Good book! I liked this one a bit better than the first one. The characters felt more fleshed out and real. The story also clipped along at a better pace. I especially liked the interaction between Nita and the Warden and their weird, polite conflict. Nice job! I'll definitely pick up the third book once it comes out.
cavalary's review
3.0
Note: The review refers to the edition included in [b:Free-Wrench Collection: Volume 1|37537365|Free-Wrench Collection Volume 1|Joseph R. Lallo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1516042345l/37537365._SX50_.jpg|59138557].
Must say that, after what was in fact just a NaNoWriMo project laid an interesting foundation, I expected more from what should have been a proper sequel. Yes, the world remains interesting and a few more details are presented, but Skykeep is just as short as [b:Free-Wrench|22824629|Free-Wrench (Free-Wrench #1)|Joseph R. Lallo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1406500949l/22824629._SY75_.jpg|41324216] and more focused on action, leaving little room for worldbuilding, character development or making those points about some of the things that are wrong in our world. The call to fight against them still exists, however, being a part of the action. Still, there are some good things to be said about the development of Lil, perhaps to a small extent even Coop, and quite clearly about the inspectors. And the action is sufficiently gripping, the final chapter delivering on what was building up until then.
Taken like that, as just a story, and if you leave aside the few spots requiring better editing, including one where Coop apparently takes Gunner’s place as well even though he’s also in that scene at the same time, it’s good enough, reads quickly and keeps you interested to the end. It does seem more of a simple adventure, however, just a story taking place in a certain setting instead of the “proper” next book in a series. Then again, the Collection including the first three books in the series is probably the only one that should really count as a “proper” book…
Must say that, after what was in fact just a NaNoWriMo project laid an interesting foundation, I expected more from what should have been a proper sequel. Yes, the world remains interesting and a few more details are presented, but Skykeep is just as short as [b:Free-Wrench|22824629|Free-Wrench (Free-Wrench #1)|Joseph R. Lallo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1406500949l/22824629._SY75_.jpg|41324216] and more focused on action, leaving little room for worldbuilding, character development or making those points about some of the things that are wrong in our world. The call to fight against them still exists, however, being a part of the action. Still, there are some good things to be said about the development of Lil, perhaps to a small extent even Coop, and quite clearly about the inspectors. And the action is sufficiently gripping, the final chapter delivering on what was building up until then.
Taken like that, as just a story, and if you leave aside the few spots requiring better editing, including one where Coop apparently takes Gunner’s place as well even though he’s also in that scene at the same time, it’s good enough, reads quickly and keeps you interested to the end. It does seem more of a simple adventure, however, just a story taking place in a certain setting instead of the “proper” next book in a series. Then again, the Collection including the first three books in the series is probably the only one that should really count as a “proper” book…
jewelledfrog's review
5.0
I loved this book as much as the first. It was such a fun read that I'm genuinely sorry there isn't already another one out to devour! I truly hope that he's working on another installment already.
capellan's review
4.0
It took me rather a long time to get around to this second book in the Free-Wrench series; I suspect I'll get around to book 3 a fair bit quicker, as this is a fine, rollicking steampunk adventure yarn.
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