Railsea

Author: China Miéville;
Genre: Adventure Fantasy (Steampunk);
Format: Kindle ebook;
Publisher: Random House LLC (2012).

I finished this book last night, and I can definitely say that it’s the strangest book I’ve read in a while. The imagination from which Miéville pulled must be gigantic. Yes, I enjoyed it very much, and would recommend it for fantasy (especially steampunk) fans.

The book is set in an alternate (or is it?) world where trains, instead of ships, ply the railsea in search of resources: food, fuel, and salvage. The railsea is a vast ocean of tracks, and trains of every variety use it for their own purposes. And did I mention that the railsea sits on a violent, frightening land of giant mutant animals and insects who tunnel through the dirt and explode out to devour each other and anything that steps foot on it? Yeah.

The language Miéville used was fascinating, from the slang to the academia. It does take a little time to get used to, but by the end of the book, you’ll be spouting, “Well grubbed, old mole” along with the rest of us. The use of “&” for every instance of “and” is also a little off-putting, but that’s natural for me as an editor. I did enjoy the tiny chapters with explanations and asides, like a character on television turning to the camera to speak directly to the audience.

The hero of the story is Sham, an unassuming orphan (of course) with big dreams of being a salvager. He’s volunteered by his guardians for a moler train, which, yes, hunts giant moles for food and fuel. However, that is just the beginning of his adventures, and this story IS about adventure.

The characters that Sham meets during this tale are unique, and most are fun. The monsters are monstrous, the equipment is funky, and the humans act like humans, with all their foibles. This is true even though the story is based (very loosely) on Herman Melville’s classic, “Moby Dick.”

I did find the climax a bit anticlimatic, but the ending is fine. Leaving something to our imaginations is a good thing, in my (very humble) opinion.

The book includes violence—of the monster-eating and bombs-exploding variety, no bad language (at least, for us), and no sex.

Highly recommended for speampunk lovers, fantasy readers, and adventurers.

In categories Book Review, Fantasy Tagged with steampunk

Review: Foundling by D.M. Cornish

By Jan

on October 22, 2013

Foundling: The Foundling’s Tale Part One by D.M. Cornish

Publisher: Speak
ISBN: 978-0142409138
Pages: 448 (Paperback)

I enjoyed this book because Cornish creates a fascinating alternate universe and includes an interesting supporting cast. The main character, on the other hand, does very little in the book except watch things happen, wish he was somewhere else, try to keep from crying, and walk a lot. He’s annoying, actually.

The setting is like our mid-18th-century, with horses and ships as the main transportation and clothing a variation of the tricorns and gowns of that period. Magic plays a large part in the story, as do monsters that roam the countryside. Some steampunk creeps in, too, with altered mechanics and enhanced humans.

The boy foundling with a girl’s name, Rossamünd, must leave the cozy orphanage where he grew up to travel to his new job. His misadventures and the people and creatures he meets along the way constitute this first story.

There is plenty of fighting, kidnapping, death, and scary monsters to go around. Defintely not a light-hearted tale. However, I thought the innocence (naïveté) of Rossamünd brightened it up.

The language was fun for me, as it includes many alternate words for everyday objects, magic, and monsters. However, be aware that you can use the glossary (see below) if you don’t enjoy that.

The book is very obviously part of a larger series, and the ending is not at all gratifying. It’s a good stopping point, but you will feel compelled to continue the story, as I am.

Additionally, you may be mistaken about the size of the actual book, because the “Explicarium” at the end is absolutely huge. It includes an extensive glossary, list of characters, maps and diagrams, and lots of wonderful information about the world of Half-Continent. The author’s really nice sketches of the characters scattered throughout the book add a lot to the ambience. More are included in the Explicarium. But it’s not the story itself.

Recommended for lovers of historical-steampunk-fantasy who commit to the series. [Thanks to Jay from the book club for lending me this book!]

FTC Disclosure: I have an affiliate relationship with Amazon.com. Some of the links in this post may go to their site. If you purchase something using that link, I may receive a small compensation. I am never paid to review books and am always brazenly honest (ask my husband). Thank you!

In categories Book Review, Fantasy Tagged with book_review, steampunk