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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
1. Some Fortunate Future Day: ***
2. The Last Ride of the Glory Girls: ****
3. Clockwork Fagin: ****
4. Seven Days Beset by Demons: *
5. Hand in Glove: ***
6. The Ghost of Cwmlech Manor: ***
7. Gethsemane: **
8. The Summer People: ***
9. Peace in Our Time: ****
10. Nowhere Fast: ***
11. Finishing School: *
12. Steam Girl: *****
13. Everything Amiable and Obliging: ***
14. The Oracle Engine: ***
2. The Last Ride of the Glory Girls: ****
3. Clockwork Fagin: ****
4. Seven Days Beset by Demons: *
5. Hand in Glove: ***
6. The Ghost of Cwmlech Manor: ***
7. Gethsemane: **
8. The Summer People: ***
9. Peace in Our Time: ****
10. Nowhere Fast: ***
11. Finishing School: *
12. Steam Girl: *****
13. Everything Amiable and Obliging: ***
14. The Oracle Engine: ***
Many gems in this collection of stories. My favorites were "The Last Ride of the Glory Girls" (all female band of outlaws and the toy they use for their raids) and "Steam Girl" (teenage romance with a heavy steampunk influence). The book even included two short comics, but due to reading it in a digital format on a small screen, I wasn't able to enjoy those as much as I'd like.
My introduction to steampunk!
I borrowed this from my library's digital catalog not knowing what to expect. I am pleased and excited about reading more in this genre. This collection was uneven, as far as my interest went, but I'm intrigued enough to wind the gears, put on goggles & pick up my next steampunk read.
I borrowed this from my library's digital catalog not knowing what to expect. I am pleased and excited about reading more in this genre. This collection was uneven, as far as my interest went, but I'm intrigued enough to wind the gears, put on goggles & pick up my next steampunk read.
Steam Girl and The Summer People were my favorites.
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Boring beyond belief. Drove me deep into a long reading slump. Not one story in this anthology is memorable. The steampunk settings is interesting but that's it.
I am getting lazier and lazier with my reviews because... I just don't FEEL like writing them. I am more in a "Read book now and get to the next one" kind of mood so I will only say a few things about this anthology. It's good. Not great but good. Some stories are very interesting and sucks you right in from the get-go. Others are slow and leave you hanging. Not a lot of them feel complete so it's a bit disappointing. Some of the authors really know how to weave a story together... others do not. In my opinion, this is a very hit-or-miss type of book. I believe you should give it a chance and read it at least once but the reality of it is... you most likely won't like all the stories that are in this book. Give it a shot and see how you like it.
adventurous
A lot of the stories in this book felt like they were just trying to fit some stereotype of steampunk fiction or cram in all the steampunk elements they could. These stories might have been fun, but weren't that great. However, there were some really good stories in there too. I'd recommend skimming the first few pages of each story to figure out if it's something you'd like or not before you slog through a 30-oage story you have no interest in.
Over all, I would say that this has something for everyone, but not everything will be enjoyed by everyone. Whatever is to your liking, you will gravitate more towards some tales than others, but I feel that anyone that enjoys this genre will come away with liking at least half of these stories.
Cassandra Clare "Some Fortunate Future Day"
Though short, this is an interesting short story about love and time travel. Kind of a Groundhog Day vibe.
Libba Bray "The Last Ride of the Glory Girls"
This was a ton of fun. I would love to have a series about this group, as I felt that the tale was too short. A female cast for an Edgar Rice Burroughs type tale.
Cory Doctorow "Clockwork Fagin"
Yeah – this is a nice Oliver Twist kid of vibe for me – very cool story.
Ysabeau Wilce "Hand in Glove"
I hated the dialog tags in this one. He Said, She said after EVERY sentence, even if it was a question. The story is not horrible, a bit of a Jack the Ripper feel.
Delia Sherman "The Ghost of Cwmlech Manor"
More ghost story than Steampunk – I did not care for this one – when it ended, it finished abruptly.
Elizabeth Knox "Gesthemane"
Not a very memorable tale at all – the next day, I have forgotten everything about it.
Kelly Link "The Summer People"
This is an interesting tale, though I do not like the ending, as it holds nothing final.
Garth Nix "Peace in Our Time"
Took a few turns unexpectantly, but fell flat by the end.
Christopher Rowe "Nowhere Fast"
This had a great potential, but again, then ending was abrupt and non-absolute.
Dylan Horrocks "Steam Girl"
This was a relief, after I began to think that the rest of the collection would be bad. A modern day tale, with a girl that writes Burroughs-esque fantasy.
Holly Black "Everything Amiable and Obliging"
This is not really a good story. Has a bit of a quirky romance, but nothing contained made me enjoy this short story.
Anderson "The Oracle Engine"
This reads like Di Vinci in the Roman Empire. A new twist to the formula, which was enjoyable, but, the ending was very flat. And the science was a bit heavy handed for a short story.
Cassandra Clare "Some Fortunate Future Day"
Though short, this is an interesting short story about love and time travel. Kind of a Groundhog Day vibe.
Libba Bray "The Last Ride of the Glory Girls"
This was a ton of fun. I would love to have a series about this group, as I felt that the tale was too short. A female cast for an Edgar Rice Burroughs type tale.
Cory Doctorow "Clockwork Fagin"
Yeah – this is a nice Oliver Twist kid of vibe for me – very cool story.
Ysabeau Wilce "Hand in Glove"
I hated the dialog tags in this one. He Said, She said after EVERY sentence, even if it was a question. The story is not horrible, a bit of a Jack the Ripper feel.
Delia Sherman "The Ghost of Cwmlech Manor"
More ghost story than Steampunk – I did not care for this one – when it ended, it finished abruptly.
Elizabeth Knox "Gesthemane"
Not a very memorable tale at all – the next day, I have forgotten everything about it.
Kelly Link "The Summer People"
This is an interesting tale, though I do not like the ending, as it holds nothing final.
Garth Nix "Peace in Our Time"
Took a few turns unexpectantly, but fell flat by the end.
Christopher Rowe "Nowhere Fast"
This had a great potential, but again, then ending was abrupt and non-absolute.
Dylan Horrocks "Steam Girl"
This was a relief, after I began to think that the rest of the collection would be bad. A modern day tale, with a girl that writes Burroughs-esque fantasy.
Holly Black "Everything Amiable and Obliging"
This is not really a good story. Has a bit of a quirky romance, but nothing contained made me enjoy this short story.
Anderson "The Oracle Engine"
This reads like Di Vinci in the Roman Empire. A new twist to the formula, which was enjoyable, but, the ending was very flat. And the science was a bit heavy handed for a short story.
Enjoyed almost all of these - got a bunch of authors to read more of. Overall quite a success.