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toc's review
4.0
A good old-fashioned ripping tale of adventure on the high seas … of space!
Yeah, with a few little tweaks to reality we have young Marsborn Arabella returning to her home planet on a dread mission. Unable to afford passage on a Mars bound sailing vessel, nor indeed with time to inform her family of her need, she uses her resourcefulness to …
Well, that would be telling. And this story is all about the telling. Good flow, good characters, nice Napoleon-Age technology. Fun for all ages!
Yeah, with a few little tweaks to reality we have young Marsborn Arabella returning to her home planet on a dread mission. Unable to afford passage on a Mars bound sailing vessel, nor indeed with time to inform her family of her need, she uses her resourcefulness to …
Well, that would be telling. And this story is all about the telling. Good flow, good characters, nice Napoleon-Age technology. Fun for all ages!
airangel's review against another edition
3.0
Around 3.5 stars. Space pirates, steampunk atmosphere but no surprises. Decent enough audio book!
celiapowell's review against another edition
3.0
Is there a word for the genre of if-things-we-thought-about-space-hundreds-of-years-ago-were-true SF? Apart from classic SF? Anyway, this is part of the ITWTASHOYAWT genre - space travel in the late 1800s, the atmosphere on Mars is breathable, beetle-like Martians live on the planet, transport between Earth and Mars is on ship-like spacecraft with sails and rigging, and automata that assist the ships in catching the interstellar winds. And Arabella, who grew up on Mars, needs to find a way back there to try and save her brother. This has a very deliberate rollicking classic adventure tone that goes well with its setting - it was jolly fun, very enjoyable.
cellardoor10's review
4.0
I kind of wish Arabella had leaned into her gender-bending a little more. Like perhaps wearing a fancy riding/hunting suit instead of dresses, etc. That's probably my only complaint - I wanted her to retain a little more of the trappings of her achievements.
sherwoodreads's review against another edition
I read this book in draft, and loved it before the professional editors got to it and gave it its extra polish.
Intrepid Arabella spent enough time running about with her Martian friends on Great Britain's Martian colony to feel the constraint of female social expectations when she is shipped off to England to be prepared for the marriage hunt. While staying with her obnoxious aunt and cousins, she overhears something from a one of those cousins to make her believe that her brother--heir to the estate on Mars--is in danger.
What is an intrepid heroine to do?
Why, disguise herself as a boy, join a naval ship and work her way to Mars to warn him!
Clockwork automatons, tall ships, and science fictional trips to Mars blend here in a delightful tale of adventure, heroism, and imagination. Levine does a convincing job here with his ships that sail between planets, creates colorful characters, and never lets the adventure flag, ramping up to a nail-biting conclusion when they get to Mars.
Here, Arabella's childhood experiences prove to be just what a young heroine needs, in this romantic adventure whose tone gives a nod to the old-fashioned tales of Jules Verne. It should also appeal to readers who enjoy Naomi Novik's Temeraire stories and Patrick O'Brian.
Intrepid Arabella spent enough time running about with her Martian friends on Great Britain's Martian colony to feel the constraint of female social expectations when she is shipped off to England to be prepared for the marriage hunt. While staying with her obnoxious aunt and cousins, she overhears something from a one of those cousins to make her believe that her brother--heir to the estate on Mars--is in danger.
What is an intrepid heroine to do?
Why, disguise herself as a boy, join a naval ship and work her way to Mars to warn him!
Clockwork automatons, tall ships, and science fictional trips to Mars blend here in a delightful tale of adventure, heroism, and imagination. Levine does a convincing job here with his ships that sail between planets, creates colorful characters, and never lets the adventure flag, ramping up to a nail-biting conclusion when they get to Mars.
Here, Arabella's childhood experiences prove to be just what a young heroine needs, in this romantic adventure whose tone gives a nod to the old-fashioned tales of Jules Verne. It should also appeal to readers who enjoy Naomi Novik's Temeraire stories and Patrick O'Brian.
rainsynch's review against another edition
1.0
This book was incredibly dry, dull, and stilted. None of the characters had personalities worth noting and the main romance had no believable draw or chemistry. The plot was extremely boring even in supposed action sequences and was rather all over the place. The dialogue always felt strained and fake.
While some of the setting ideas were kind of interesting this book managed to sap even that mild interest away. I do not recommend it at all.
While some of the setting ideas were kind of interesting this book managed to sap even that mild interest away. I do not recommend it at all.
mammajamma's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
jrosenstein's review
2.0
Arabella of Mars is certainly an entertaining adventure, but my main problem is that I just didn't buy the world. I guess Levine is going for an H.G. Wells feel but I just couldn't suspend disbelief. Apparently in this world Mars is completely habitable by humans, there is breathable atmosphere and blue sky between planets, and a wooden airship can travel between Earth and Mars in two months if they're at the right point in their orbits. But there's still reduced gravity between planets and interstellar travelers still experience weightlessness. ??? I know it's fiction but I just couldn't get over how completely this doesn't make any sense. If you can get over that, it's a fun adventure story with an engaging protagonist.
booksarebetter's review
4.0
I liked this book. Arabella is awesome, but I want to strangle the men in this book. Women are not weak fragile creatures to be protected, surely Arabella has MORE than proven that but no, at the end she still has to be "a proper lady". Grrrr. Just once, I want a book where the woman is accepted after revealing her true self, not ignored belitted, threatened and punished for daring to act as a man. Happy ending, I guess, with no cliffhanger. Four out of five stars.
timinbc's review
4.0
Just different enough to keep me going, and in the end a good bit of fun.
We quickly see that the world of this book isn't the one we're in. The peaceful settlement of Mars is a given, and the whole setting seemed familiar. Plot develops, and oh no, really? Not the girl pretending to be a boy and getting a job as a cabin boy who becomes Ever So Useful? Lookit, when are the captains of fiction going to catch on? EVERY cabin boy is a girl in disguise, and is going to be Really Important.
Arabella is totally Mary Sue, but somehow it doesn't matter; perhaps because she does have doubts.
Captain Singh is, of course, impossibly noble, but I liked him anyway.
Pages and pages of the usual sailing stuff, saved only by the descriptions of how it all works.
It's ludicrous, like using Cavorite, but it was so fantastic that it worked.
The plot is nothing spectacular after that, but it rolls along smoothly, comes to a decent crisis, and is resolved in a quite predictable but somewhat charming way.
This book could never stand serious scrutiny, but it was never meant to. It's an enjoyable change of pace.
We quickly see that the world of this book isn't the one we're in. The peaceful settlement of Mars is a given, and the whole setting seemed familiar. Plot develops, and oh no, really? Not the girl pretending to be a boy and getting a job as a cabin boy who becomes Ever So Useful? Lookit, when are the captains of fiction going to catch on? EVERY cabin boy is a girl in disguise, and is going to be Really Important.
Arabella is totally Mary Sue, but somehow it doesn't matter; perhaps because she does have doubts.
Captain Singh is, of course, impossibly noble, but I liked him anyway.
Pages and pages of the usual sailing stuff, saved only by the descriptions of how it all works.
It's ludicrous, like using Cavorite, but it was so fantastic that it worked.
The plot is nothing spectacular after that, but it rolls along smoothly, comes to a decent crisis, and is resolved in a quite predictable but somewhat charming way.
This book could never stand serious scrutiny, but it was never meant to. It's an enjoyable change of pace.