Read Recently -- September -- Fantasy
The Kingdom Beyond the Waves by Stephen Hunt
This sequel to The Court of the Air finds Jackalian anthropologist Amelia Harsh (who had a small role in the first book) searching for the lost civilization of Camlantis, thrown into the sky in a prehistoric floatquake while under attack by the Oil Hordes. More precisely, as the remains of Camlantis are believed to be too high in the air for even an airship to find, Professor Harsh is searching for the ruins of Camlantis' foundations, which she hopes will lead her eventually to the city itself. She hopes that, by finding it, she can bring about an age of peace and prosperity such as Camlantis itself knew, before the Oil Hordes came.
It turns out that in order to find the place, she has to accept aid from rich industrialist Abraham Quest, who she blames for the death of her father (Quest bankrupted her family; her dad committed suicide). Since the route takes her south, through the hostile jungles of Llongeli, she convinces her old friend, submariner/royalist Commodore Black, to take her there, up the river. This will be tougher than it sounds; when I referred to hostile jungles I meant it. The lake they're seeking is in the midst of an area where the jungle itself is alive, and every creature that enters it is seized and made part of its group-mind. And of course, there's a traitor in the crew.
Meanwhile, back in Jackals, the very rich Cornelius Fortune is lurking depressedly about his island estate, Dolorous Hall, with only two servants: a cook and a butler, and the butler is a lashlite (basically a gargoyle). This is to hide the fact that he is actually the figure known in neighbouring Quatershift as Furnace-Breath Nick, a terror to the Carlites infesting that land but a rescuer of nobles and people in need (sort of a Scarlet Pimpernel-esque figure). He has a steampunk-cyborg arm and the ability to change his appearance. Now he gets clues that lead him to investigate one Abraham Quest. Quest is up to something big.
Not only is this a cracking good adventure in a world full of weird shit (and I sincerely hope this will be the only time this month that you hear the phrases "cracking good adventure" and "weird shit" in the same article), but it also deals with many of the social issues that some people think steampunk isn't dealing with enough.
Highly recommended.
Spellcrash by Kelly McCullough
Sequel to a whole series, there's little I can say about this one that wouldn't be spoilerous for the rest of it. Add to this that this is probably the last book in the series, and well, what can I say?
Lessee: Raven has to deal with the damage to the Necessity computer system, the failure of which would shut down magic and communication for his entire world, confront offers to replace Necessity herself made to three great powers, two of whom already dislike him if not outright hate him, outwit a plethora of Furies, one of them really unexpected, and manage not to think about a duck. All in a day's work, right?
McCullough's pulled off a really good series here, and I recommend it highly. I only hope that there isn't another as this is an ideal ending.
This sequel to The Court of the Air finds Jackalian anthropologist Amelia Harsh (who had a small role in the first book) searching for the lost civilization of Camlantis, thrown into the sky in a prehistoric floatquake while under attack by the Oil Hordes. More precisely, as the remains of Camlantis are believed to be too high in the air for even an airship to find, Professor Harsh is searching for the ruins of Camlantis' foundations, which she hopes will lead her eventually to the city itself. She hopes that, by finding it, she can bring about an age of peace and prosperity such as Camlantis itself knew, before the Oil Hordes came.
It turns out that in order to find the place, she has to accept aid from rich industrialist Abraham Quest, who she blames for the death of her father (Quest bankrupted her family; her dad committed suicide). Since the route takes her south, through the hostile jungles of Llongeli, she convinces her old friend, submariner/royalist Commodore Black, to take her there, up the river. This will be tougher than it sounds; when I referred to hostile jungles I meant it. The lake they're seeking is in the midst of an area where the jungle itself is alive, and every creature that enters it is seized and made part of its group-mind. And of course, there's a traitor in the crew.
Meanwhile, back in Jackals, the very rich Cornelius Fortune is lurking depressedly about his island estate, Dolorous Hall, with only two servants: a cook and a butler, and the butler is a lashlite (basically a gargoyle). This is to hide the fact that he is actually the figure known in neighbouring Quatershift as Furnace-Breath Nick, a terror to the Carlites infesting that land but a rescuer of nobles and people in need (sort of a Scarlet Pimpernel-esque figure). He has a steampunk-cyborg arm and the ability to change his appearance. Now he gets clues that lead him to investigate one Abraham Quest. Quest is up to something big.
Not only is this a cracking good adventure in a world full of weird shit (and I sincerely hope this will be the only time this month that you hear the phrases "cracking good adventure" and "weird shit" in the same article), but it also deals with many of the social issues that some people think steampunk isn't dealing with enough.
Highly recommended.
Spellcrash by Kelly McCullough
Sequel to a whole series, there's little I can say about this one that wouldn't be spoilerous for the rest of it. Add to this that this is probably the last book in the series, and well, what can I say?
Lessee: Raven has to deal with the damage to the Necessity computer system, the failure of which would shut down magic and communication for his entire world, confront offers to replace Necessity herself made to three great powers, two of whom already dislike him if not outright hate him, outwit a plethora of Furies, one of them really unexpected, and manage not to think about a duck. All in a day's work, right?
McCullough's pulled off a really good series here, and I recommend it highly. I only hope that there isn't another as this is an ideal ending.