matosapa's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
aziraphalekinnie's review
1.0
From the very beginning, it was painfully obvious who Abdu El Yezdi was. If that was supposed to be a "secret" as the title says, I'm either very good at connecting the dots [which I doubt because I had no idea what was going on most of the time, I could not summarise the plot of this book if I tried] or it was only meant to be a secret for the characters, but WHY? It was only frustrating watching them having no clue about something so obvious, and I don't mean the kind of frustration that keeps me reading.
Did I like this book? Absolutely not.
Am I going to continue this series? Hell yeah. [Don't ask me why.]
Did I like this book? Absolutely not.
Am I going to continue this series? Hell yeah. [Don't ask me why.]
dark_reader's review
4.0
I was surprised one day to discover this sequel and the later ones in this, one of my favorite adventure series, because I thought that the third book wrapped up the storyline of an altered-history Britain perfectly, if in a bleak fashion. Although I was probably not paying close attention the first time that I read it ([b:Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon|11225502|Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon (Burton & Swinburne, #3)|Mark Hodder|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320519474l/11225502._SY75_.jpg|16151349]), because some details in those final pages naturally lead to further outings.
I greatly enjoyed the madcap steampunk/time-travelled/mystical/gene-spliced/manipulated alt-history world of the first three books. Here we see the launch of an alt-alt-history, or a Spring-Heeled-Jack-Redux, if you will. Hodder takes his characters, who have already been drawn from actual history and altered for this particular changed landscape, and recasts them in a new re-imagining of a world gone mad with technical, social, and cultural developments that it was ill prepared for the first time around. I struggle to think of a proper comparison for this method. I first thought of American Horror Story (TV series), in which the same actors play different characters every season of the show. But it's not the actors, but the characters themselves who are rearranged here. Maybe like the film Dark City, in which people are shuffled into new identities every night? It's still not quite an apt comparison. DC comics' Flashpoint storyline might fit the bill.
The book suceeds best if you were able to develop some affection for the cast through the prior books, and remember the events of the prior books well. This entry not only re-introduces the characters, but also key events. You may recall an early scene in [b:The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack|7293120|The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack (Burton & Swinburne, #1)|Mark Hodder|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327931939l/7293120._SY75_.jpg|8590363] in which Richard Burton staggers his way through the back alleys of London and is beset upon by, well I'm not going to spoil it, but this event sets up a terrific mystery adventure. This scene is re-purposed here, creating great dramatic tension to launch this combo retelling and continuation. The book is not only retakes, indeed it is mostly brand new material, balancing new events and callbacks, with surprise character re-introductions in places. Swinburne fans might miss his presence for the first chunk of pages, but rest assured that he has plenty of terrific moments coming up. I thought it was a fantastic balance of new and old, and brilliantly follows the events of the first three books.
I thought the action was gangbusters for most of the book, but in the latter half the pacing fell off, around the time that it incorporates elements of [b:Dracula|17245|Dracula|Bram Stoker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1387151694l/17245._SY75_.jpg|3165724] (and a little bit of [b:Frankenstein|18490|Frankenstein|Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1381512375l/18490._SY75_.jpg|4836639] too). This is all that prevents this from getting a 5-star rating from me. The prior books has occasional pacing problems too, but this one's persisted through to the end once they set in. It still managed to throw some surprises at me, even though I have read it before (I retain my reading much better these days, thankfully), and I remain stoked for the remaining volumes in this series, which will be brand new to me and I am very excited!
I have to give out a shout out to the continuing awesomeness of the monochromatic covers by artist Jon Sullivan on the Pyr editions. They are terrific images in and of themselves, and in addition are incredibly faithful to the text, which I'm sure the author appreciates.
I greatly enjoyed the madcap steampunk/time-travelled/mystical/gene-spliced/manipulated alt-history world of the first three books. Here we see the launch of an alt-alt-history, or a Spring-Heeled-Jack-Redux, if you will. Hodder takes his characters, who have already been drawn from actual history and altered for this particular changed landscape, and recasts them in a new re-imagining of a world gone mad with technical, social, and cultural developments that it was ill prepared for the first time around. I struggle to think of a proper comparison for this method. I first thought of American Horror Story (TV series), in which the same actors play different characters every season of the show. But it's not the actors, but the characters themselves who are rearranged here. Maybe like the film Dark City, in which people are shuffled into new identities every night? It's still not quite an apt comparison. DC comics' Flashpoint storyline might fit the bill.
The book suceeds best if you were able to develop some affection for the cast through the prior books, and remember the events of the prior books well. This entry not only re-introduces the characters, but also key events. You may recall an early scene in [b:The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack|7293120|The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack (Burton & Swinburne, #1)|Mark Hodder|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327931939l/7293120._SY75_.jpg|8590363] in which Richard Burton staggers his way through the back alleys of London and is beset upon by, well I'm not going to spoil it, but this event sets up a terrific mystery adventure. This scene is re-purposed here, creating great dramatic tension to launch this combo retelling and continuation. The book is not only retakes, indeed it is mostly brand new material, balancing new events and callbacks, with surprise character re-introductions in places. Swinburne fans might miss his presence for the first chunk of pages, but rest assured that he has plenty of terrific moments coming up. I thought it was a fantastic balance of new and old, and brilliantly follows the events of the first three books.
I thought the action was gangbusters for most of the book, but in the latter half the pacing fell off, around the time that it incorporates elements of [b:Dracula|17245|Dracula|Bram Stoker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1387151694l/17245._SY75_.jpg|3165724] (and a little bit of [b:Frankenstein|18490|Frankenstein|Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1381512375l/18490._SY75_.jpg|4836639] too). This is all that prevents this from getting a 5-star rating from me. The prior books has occasional pacing problems too, but this one's persisted through to the end once they set in. It still managed to throw some surprises at me, even though I have read it before (I retain my reading much better these days, thankfully), and I remain stoked for the remaining volumes in this series, which will be brand new to me and I am very excited!
I have to give out a shout out to the continuing awesomeness of the monochromatic covers by artist Jon Sullivan on the Pyr editions. They are terrific images in and of themselves, and in addition are incredibly faithful to the text, which I'm sure the author appreciates.
bent's review
4.0
A pretty good continuation of this series. I've found this series to be hit and miss - liked 2 and 4, so-so on 1 and 3. I finally understand that this series is interlinked - I had been expecting a series of adventures, so when we started this book and here's Burton again, but yet another version of Burton, I was a little frustrated, especially after the way the third one ended. At some point I realized that Hodder has an overarching plot that he's following, and the series began to make a lot more sense.
I enjoyed this book, but did find that I had troubles recalling characters or events that had occurred earlier in the story. I don't know if that's the fault of the book, my inattention, or because I had two or three other books on the go the whole time I was reading this. In any event, I did enjoy this book and will be continuing with the series. This is a series that you really have to read in order, or else it makes very little sense.
I enjoyed this book, but did find that I had troubles recalling characters or events that had occurred earlier in the story. I don't know if that's the fault of the book, my inattention, or because I had two or three other books on the go the whole time I was reading this. In any event, I did enjoy this book and will be continuing with the series. This is a series that you really have to read in order, or else it makes very little sense.
abookishtype's review
4.0
Read my full review of this book on my blog, Summer Reading Project, at The Secret of Abdu El Yezdi, by Mark Hodder.
eyelashley's review
4.0
I didn't realize this book was a fourth one in a series... Whoops! The good news is that it reads like a first book in a series, so I don't think I spoiled myself too badly for the previous novels. I will say that i am kind of annoyed at the lack of markings calling this a fourth book - the only place it was mentioned was in the about the author page, which I must confess I don't usually read.
Now for my review:
I absolutely loved this book! It was engaging, interesting, and the mystery was absolutely fascinating! The characters were fleshed out and made smart decisions - they didn't conveniently make mistakes to further the plot. The atmosphere of steampunk victorian London was well done. It didn't feel like it was a tired remake of the generic steampunk victorian London story. It was new and completely engrossing. I whole-heartedly enjoyed this book.
I am definitely planning on going back and reading the previous novels because this series is very good. I definitely recommend this book - though perhaps you should try to read them in order and avoid my stupid mistake!
Now for my review:
I absolutely loved this book! It was engaging, interesting, and the mystery was absolutely fascinating! The characters were fleshed out and made smart decisions - they didn't conveniently make mistakes to further the plot. The atmosphere of steampunk victorian London was well done. It didn't feel like it was a tired remake of the generic steampunk victorian London story. It was new and completely engrossing. I whole-heartedly enjoyed this book.
I am definitely planning on going back and reading the previous novels because this series is very good. I definitely recommend this book - though perhaps you should try to read them in order and avoid my stupid mistake!
vkemp's review
4.0
Captain Richard Francis Burton has a triumphant return from his expedition to The Mountains of the Moon and his discovery of the source of the Nile. He is knighted by King Alfred, who assumed the throne after the assassination of Queen Victoria in 1840. This assassination bifurcates history and multiple timelines now exist. Aleister Crowley believes he is the Superman that evolution will create one day but he wants it now, so he enlists the great brains of the day to help him. Mediums, vampires, alternate history, it's all a cracking good fantasy read.
sharon4d046's review
5.0
Excellent steampunk, alternative history. Great adventure and intelligent science fiction. A wonderful reboot of the Burton and Swinburne series. After the third book I did not see where it could go but this book confirms my admiration of Hodder, I was totally captivated by this novel.
reanne's review
3.0
An interesting look at an alternate version of this alternate history, although I'm not crazy about the fact that basically all of the characters we've been getting to know and care about in the series so far are gone, since these alternate versions aren't really them.
It's pretty obvious immediately who Abdu El Yezdi is, from the first time he's talked about. Likewise the villain. I couldn't tell while reading whether the author expected us, the readers, to be surprised or only the characters.
One thing that counted against this book in my opinion is that a large chunk of the second half was basically a retelling of Dracula. It was so similar, it went beyond homage into being redundant (if you're familiar with Dracula). There's even a Van Helsing character who's new to this story and (after reading the next one) doesn't appear for more than a brief mention in the next book. It made maybe a third of this book feel like a total retread of a book a lot of us are probably familiar with. So I didn't like that.
Also, I wish Burton would react more. Seeing him (and others) find out various secrets is not as satisfying as it should be.
It's pretty obvious immediately who Abdu El Yezdi is, from the first time he's talked about. Likewise the villain. I couldn't tell while reading whether the author expected us, the readers, to be surprised or only the characters.
One thing that counted against this book in my opinion is that a large chunk of the second half was basically a retelling of Dracula. It was so similar, it went beyond homage into being redundant (if you're familiar with Dracula). There's even a Van Helsing character who's new to this story and (after reading the next one) doesn't appear for more than a brief mention in the next book. It made maybe a third of this book feel like a total retread of a book a lot of us are probably familiar with. So I didn't like that.
Also, I wish Burton would react more. Seeing him (and others) find out various secrets is not as satisfying as it should be.
antij's review
3.0
I enjoyed this book more than the last one, but it read to me less like an alternate version of our world and more like an alternate version of the world of the previous book. I felt like this book is overly wrapped up in its own continuity and that weighs it down too much. The nosferatu also feels like it was moving this series too far into the supernatural, even if the author tries to explain it with science. Also the lack of women roles doesn't speak well for the story. That it takes place in the past is really no excuse.
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