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A review by mayetra
Phoenix Rising by Pip Ballantine, Tee Morris
5.0
The gaslight of Victorian England meets the steampunk genre combined with a bit of Warehouse 13, James Bond and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Not counting the Ketty Jay series, this is probably the best steampunk I've read to date.
The two leads are likable with real personalities. They aren't perfect which is a relief. There is sexual/romantic tension between them but this is NOT a romance. I loved the world building. The steampunk aspects were nicely inserted into the story without a lot of extraneous exposition. There was a touch of the paranormal/supernatural mostly in the form of artifacts rather than supernatural creatures.
The bad guys were, gasp, actually bad. They killed people - innocent people - during the course of the story. I found myself actually really wanting the good guys to defeat them. They were really evil.
There are plenty of plots, intrigues and clandestine organizations to keep things interesting. While the main plot is resolved in this book, there is an ongoing story arc.
Excellent story. I will be reading the sequel and checking Ms. Ballantine's fantasy novel which is supposed to be better than this one.
The two leads are likable with real personalities. They aren't perfect which is a relief. There is sexual/romantic tension between them but this is NOT a romance. I loved the world building. The steampunk aspects were nicely inserted into the story without a lot of extraneous exposition. There was a touch of the paranormal/supernatural mostly in the form of artifacts rather than supernatural creatures.
The bad guys were, gasp, actually bad. They killed people - innocent people - during the course of the story. I found myself actually really wanting the good guys to defeat them. They were really evil.
There are plenty of plots, intrigues and clandestine organizations to keep things interesting. While the main plot is resolved in this book, there is an ongoing story arc.
Excellent story. I will be reading the sequel and checking Ms. Ballantine's fantasy novel which is supposed to be better than this one.