A Book Review of Terra Mechanica: A Steampunk Anthology
Terra Mechanica is
a lush, diverse journey through strange, yet familiar histories, full of intrigue,
airships, pirates, villains, clockwork machinery, and emotional nuances. Each story
opens a distinct world, and sails you through a fascinating expedition of
wonder and beguiling characters. While most of the roads you explore are straightforward,
with few twists, they are all pleasant, enjoyable and a delight to explore.
The anthology is devised of nine stories, all built around
the same theme: a world journey. The settings are varied, from an across Europe
trek, airship flights in Russia and the South Pacific, a chase from France to Morocco,
Indochina and Quebec, voyages to Western America, and to India and beyond. Each
story holds a different point of view, while keeping the feel and aesthetics essential
to steampunk.
As with all anthologies, I enjoyed some stories more than I
did others, although I can’t say there was one I truly didn't like. I preferred
the ones with more emotional and reflective style, finding Dr. Pax's Great Unsinkable Bird by J. R. Potter, Seven-year Itch by Rie Sheridan Rose and
Priority Passage by S. D. Simper as
highlights of the book, but I also enjoyed Dots,
Dashes, and Deceit by Jay Barnson as a delightful adventure romp. However,
the showpiece of the entire book, for me, was The Promise by Michael Cross. I loved the way that story shifted through
vignette glimpses of lives, weaving a captivating patchwork whole, but still
leaving pieces to the imagination of the reader. If there was one story that I
found slightly disappointing, it was Ripper
Bound by TC Phillips. While I found it well written and a good read, the
plot, to me, seemed a bit predictable in its direction. And to be fair, I may have
been a bit more critical with this one, as it falls very close to the horror
genre.
Overall, Terra
Mechanica: A Steampunk Anthology is a charming, and entertaining book, with
shades of stories running from dark to light. I highly recommend it.
Terra Mechanica: A Steampunk Anthology is available at Amazon
You can find other retail links through the publisher's website, Xchyler Publishing.
And here's the very cool book trailer:
2 comments:
Thanks for posting your review! Will it appear on Amazon or Goodreads also?
Already posted on Amazons US and Canada, and Goodreads, plus Barnes and Noble.
Post a Comment