Priest, Cherie: Dreadnought
Dreadnought (2010)
Written by: Cherie Priest
Genre: Steampunk/Alternate History
Pages: 400 (Trade Paperback)
I've been reading Cherie Priest's books for a long time. I consider her one of my must-read authors, so it doesn't matter what she publishes or where, I'm going to pick up the book. That being said, I haven't been as enamored of her Clockwork Century series as everyone else. She's written books I've preferred to the CC books (namely, the Eden Moore trilogy and also Dreadful Skin), but I read the CC releases because, hey, it's Cherie Priest, and even if I'm not in love, I'm still entertained. Which is why I continue buying her books.
I say this in order to make sure you understand where I'm coming from: people are singing the praises of Boneshaker and Clementine, and those praises seem over much compared to what I prefer on her backlist. So, when I tell you that Dreadnought, which is her latest CC release, is now one of my favorite things she's written, I'd like to think you'd pay attention. :)
The premise: ganked from BN.com: Nurse Mercy Lynch is elbows deep in bloody laundry at a war hospital in Richmond, Virginia, when Clara Barton comes bearing bad news: Mercy’s husband has died in a POW camp. On top of that, a telegram from the west coast declares that her estranged father is gravely injured, and he wishes to see her. Mercy sets out toward the Mississippi River. Once there, she’ll catch a train over the Rockies and--if the telegram can be believed--be greeted in Washington Territory by the sheriff, who will take her to see her father in Seattle.
Reaching the Mississippi is a harrowing adventure by dirigible and rail through war-torn border states. When Mercy finally arrives in St. Louis, the only Tacoma-bound train is pulled by a terrifying Union-operated steam engine called the Dreadnought. Reluctantly, Mercy buys a ticket and climbs aboard.
What ought to be a quiet trip turns deadly when the train is beset by bushwhackers, then vigorously attacked by a band of Rebel soldiers. The train is moving away from battle lines into the vast, unincorporated west, so Mercy can’t imagine why they’re so interested. Perhaps the mysterious cargo secreted in the second and last train cars has something to do with it?
Mercy is just a frustrated nurse who wants to see her father before he dies. But she’ll have to survive both Union intrigue and Confederate opposition if she wants to make it off the Dreadnought alive.
Review style: I want to talk about the reasons Mercy Lynch is such a fabulous character, and how she accomplishes it without falling into the "kick-ass heroine" role. I'll also be making connections between previous books in the series (namely, Boneshaker and Clementine), so if you don't want to be spoiled for anything at all, skip to "My Rating." And yes, I spoil something that's not a big secret if you have a good memory for Boneshaker, but I didn't, so the end of Dreadnought surprised me. At any rate, skip to "My Rating" if you're worried. :)
Everyone else, onward!
The first thing that really grabbed me about this book was Mercy herself. I mean, her situation just sucked me in. She's a nurse at the Robertson Hospital in Richmond, VA; and the first few chapters are a whirlwind of what her life's like there. The constant rush of helping others whose lives are literally in her hands had be quite compelled, especially as I watched her move to patient to patient--each unique, mind you. Add to that Mercy's particular brand of loyalty: she's a Confederate woman married to a Union man (who died in a Confederate prison camp, mind you), and I'm quite frankly hooked. I found it difficult to put the book down as she worked and grieved and tried to decided whether or not her absentee father deserved seeing her before he died. She realized she had nothing better to do (that might sound callous since she's a nurse, but what I mean is that she no longer had anything keeping her to Richmond, and she could perform medical services anywhere in the US), so she decides to give her father a shot.
I'll talk more about Mercy later, but there's other things I want to address. There's was a certain sense of realism that permeated this book, even if it's a falsely perceived realism. Maybe I was overly influenced by the acknowledgements, but it appears Priest has direct access to the medical profession by means of her family, and I think those details really shone through (even though I'm not in the medical profession and probably wouldn't catch mistakes like someone who IS in the profession would). But for me, the details worked wonderfully without boring me, that really helped define Mercy's character and make her believable.
Then there's the setting. Thank GOD we're back east. While I'm not as familiar with Richmond, VA, I am particularly familiar with Virginia itself (having lived four years there), and when they're flying into Tennessee and talking about having to crash in Cleveland and get to Chattanooga from there? I was practically bouncing in my seat, because Cleveland, TN, is maybe a forty-minute drive south for me. I don't know what it is about my KNOWING the settings, but when Priest puts me in a place, I know, the writing is just alive for me, and I think that's more of a me-thing than a Priest thing. After all, just how many books, let alone spec fic books, take place in East Tennessee? Not many, I tell you.
I kept twittering with glee when we made it to Chattanooga, and then Memphis, and then St. Louis, MO, which happens to be where I was born. By time we got to settings unfamiliar to me, I was so grounded in the world that it didn't matter. I loved seeing these alternate cities torn apart by a Civil War that's lasted way too long. I loved seeing how it's affected slavery and how people of color have made lives for themselves. I loved seeing Texas as it's own Republic completely separate from the US (and please, if Texas WAS it's own Republic at the time, just pat me on the head and move on, okay? *sheepish grin* I don't think it was, but y'all really under-estimate how much I hated American history back in the day). At any rate, I've praised the setting/world-building enough, haven't I? The fact that it took THREE Clockwork Century books to get me hooked should say something though, but you don't what they say: third time's the charm.
I also liked seeing how Boneshaker and Clementine informed the events of Dreadnought. For the most part, I'd say you could read Dreadnought as a stand-alone, but I was quite surprised by the way Priest is pulling the story together. I thought the Clockwork Century series was just going to be a book of independent stories all set in the same steampunk/alternate history United States. Not so. Zombies make another appearance (especially thanks to a very throw-away event in Clementine), and it's now clear that the zombies and how people are turned into them might very well be the over-arcing plot of this series. Because zombies are a threat that could very well make the two warring nations stand together and fight, you know? I was so pleased with this, because I didn't expect it to happen. I thought zombies were the province of Boneshaker and that would be that, so to see how Priest incorporates them here is fabulous.
And then, again, there's Mercy. I loved her no-nonsense attitude. She does what she has to do, she is who she is, and she doesn't apologize for any of it. She's got insecurities but it never stops her from helping others, no matter what the color of their uniform. She doesn't seek out danger, but even when helping others, she's not doing stupid stuff either. I love this character! I am, however, slightly disappointed that Theodora Clay wasn't a Pinkerton or a spy or something, and that disappointment has me wondering why she was such a blowhard in regards to getting into peoples' business and getting into trouble, but I realized I'd just have to deal with that disappointment when she killed Purdue and said, For such an educated man, he was never very . . . civilized! (360). Oh, and all from the top of a rail car.
Then the revelation, which really wouldn't have been a revelation at ALL if it'd remembered Jeremiah's last name from Boneshaker that Jeremiah was Mercy's father was just ridiculously awesome. Because once we got his name and I remembered who he was, suddenly my perception of him layered Mercy's perception of him, and I wanted to hug her and say, "Oh honey, you don't know how awesome he is. I know he's an ass to you know, but wait…" That was quite surreal, to see the characters Boneshaker quietly commandeer the end of the book, but it was quite good, and I loved the last line.
Speaking of lines, I have some quotes I quite enjoyed:
Mercy did mind her roommate much, but she could scarcely stand the thought of explaining anything to her, not right then, while the world was still strangely hued and her throat was blocked with curdled screams. (21)
Kentucky was a mixed-up place, blue grass and gray skies, split down the middle. (23)
If you open your mouth once more, I'll slap it clear into next Tuesday. (91)
Is it bad that I'm so amused by this phrase? Maybe I'm deranged, but I love it. It's so Southern.
My Rating
Must Have: this is my favorite Cherie Priest book since Dreadful Skin, which I read in 2008. To be fair, I still haven't read Fathom, but I've read everything else, and of the Clockwork Century books, Dreadnought is far and my favorite (and that's saying something, because the other two were enjoyable, but not OMG for me). This is a great adventure, and I've finally fallen in love with Priest's steampunk alternate Civil War Era. Add to that the wonderful heroine of Mercy Lynch, who is just a great, solid character, and I'm sold. Mercy's arc is great, because the loose character arc is about her losing a husband but MAYBE gaining a father, the story itself shows Mercy for the independent woman she really is, a woman who can make her own way in the world, thank you very much, and she'll get along just fine. The story itself thrilled me too, with plenty of action, puzzling though fascinating steampunk devices, and a surprising deepening of an overall story arc. I'm tempted to say this book could be read as a stand-alone, but if you try that and find yourself lost, stop and read Boneshaker first.
Cover Commentary: Okay, maybe I'm weird, but here's the thing. That cover I showed beneath the cut (click here if you didn't click the cut) was the original cover and promoted on the ARC. I love it. More so now that I've read the book: the heroine is represented beautifully, and she really looks like she's taking a stance. You also have steampunk gadgetry behind her, and really, that's all I need. But apparently, the powers-that-be over at Tor decided the cover wasn't steampunk enough, so they changed it to the cover featured in this review. To which I say, "Meh." I'm glad it appears to be the same artist and they've kept the same design, but it's just not very eye-catching to me personally (maybe it would be to anyone who's interested in the giant robot/walker that's featured, like men). Also, in person the art looks kind of blurry to my eye. Not very sharp at all, which disappoints me further. The ARC represents the character for the whole of the entire book: a woman who is strong, determined, and willing to fight. The cover of the released copy represents a single scene from the book, featuring a steampunk device we see all of one time. And the heroine isn't represented well at all, and you barely see her gun. The colors aren't as appealing either, and so I give it a thumbs down.
Of course, I might feel differently if I'd never gotten to compare, but I have, and I think it was a mistake to change the cover. That said, I might be in the minority for that. Both look good, but I prefer the ARC a billion times more.
Next up: Torment by Lauren Kate