Boneshaker, is a steampunk
novel set in the alternate history version of Seattle, during the American civil war. This is unique
in the genre of steampunk, because steampunk books are usually set in
alternate Victorian era in England. The author of this novel is
Cherie Priest, and this book won Hugo award for the best novel in
2010.
Personally, I don't know much about
the steampunk subculture. My little experience with steampunk comes
from movies such as Van Helsing and The League of Extra
Ordinary Gentlemen (I have also seen people wearing funky things for Cosplay, walking down the streets). One day, when I was browsing in the bookshop, the
cover arts of this book grabbed my eyes, and I decided to give this
book a try. This book has zombies, airships, steam powered mechanical
devices, and evil villains. At the first glimpse, this book certainly
sounds as if it has all elements for making an awesome story, right?
Well, let me share some of my thoughts about this book.
Synopsis:
The story of Boneshaker is set
in alternate history version of Seattle. During the early stages of
the American Civil war, some Russian investors commissioned Leviticus
Blue, an engineering genius, to build Boneshaker, an incredible drill
engine. Boneshaker was supposed to give the Russians advantages in
the race for the Kondike gold race.
Unfortunately, Boneshaker went haywire
during the test, and accidentally released a poisonous gas from the
underground. This poisonous gas, known as the Blight, turned people
into mindless zombies who thirst for the human flesh. The survivors
fled the city in a mass exodus, repopulated at the outskirt of
Seattle, then built high walls around Seattle to contain the Blight
and the zombies inside.
16 years later, a teenage boy stole
away from home, venturing into the dangerous city, to solve the
mysteries surrounding Leviticus Blue and Boneshaker. After his mother
realized her son has gone into the city, she also went into the city
to find him. Dangerous gangs dominate the abandoned city, with flesh
eating zombies lurking at every dark corner. Can the mother and the
son escape from the city with their lives?
What I think about this book:
Upon the first glimpse, the story of
Boneshaker sounds exciting and refreshing. However, after I
read it, I discovered, while this book is fun, but it also has some
major weaknesses despite its originality. Let me talk about them
briefly.
First of all, on top of being original,
this book succeeds in terms of pacing. The pace of the story is good.
There aren't many boring moments in the book. Another strength of
this book is that the scenes are well described, and quite vivid.
These strengths make Boneshaker a fast moving book with well
described scenery.
However, in my opinion, there are
several major flaws in this book. The biggest weakness being the lack
of character development, the characterization is fairly weak. The
result is, I didn't really care about the characters, and I didn't
care about what happened to them. Maybe I was expecting a bit too
much, but as a reader, I was unable to connect with the characters in
the book. Usually, when I read a book, I want to venture with the
characters, know their inner most thoughts, and share their feelings
and emotions. However, in Boneshaker, I felt like I was just
observing the characters as they venture into a story, I didn't
know their thoughts, I didn't know who they were, and I wasn't there
with them. The characters didn't develop, they stayed the same people
after all the dangers and toils. My experience of reading Boneshaker
feels a bit like watching someone else playing a video game.
Having said this, it does not mean
Boneshaker is a terrible book. As I have said, this book has some
original ideas, and it is refreshing. I am not a fan of steampunk,
but I like the flavors, the scenes, and the descriptions about
alternate history version of Seattle. At the end of the day, I
speculate Boneshaker is a book for those who are interested in
exploring the steampunk subculture, and it is probably a must read
for fans of this genre. As for me, I discovered Boneshaker is only
the first book to a series of five books titled “The Clockwork
Century”, all written by Cherie Priest. My habit is that if I
start a series, then I have to finish it, so next, I will be reading
the second book to this series.
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