A review by mygeekblasphemy
The Clockwork Dagger by Beth Cato
3.0
This was enjoyable enough, quick to read, some fun world-building. There's some interesting blending of science and religion that I enjoyed, and I'm a big sucker for a murder (or attempted murder, anyway) mystery on any kind of transport, whether it be a train or an airship. Though, obviously, airships are a little cooler.
Octavia's an okay heroine. She has good moments and she's often funny, but I don't know that I always found her character consistent. Obviously, people are layered; they aren't just one thing or the other, but I bought Octavia as a sheltered convent girl. I didn't really buy her so much as someone who'd been on the front lines of war. I wanted to, but I didn't. I also could have dealt with a lot less "Lady" this "Lady" that. I have no problem at all with a religious protagonist, and actually I'm quite interested in learning more about the Lady, questions that clearly won't be solved until the sequel. But it does often seem like Octavia can't even stand up without asking for the Lady's permission or thanking her for her providing strength, and that got a little tiresome, for word repetition if nothing else.
Also, there's a moment--I wish I had marked the page--where Octavia still doesn't seem to believe how special she is, despite the staggering amount of evidence against such a belief? Yeah, I kind of want to attack her with her own herbs right then.
As a general rule, I found a lot of the characters a bit archetypal. I didn't dislike any of them, which is great, but I also didn't feel like much was going on beneath the surface. Especially when it comes to Alonzo, who is pleasant enough but not hugely intriguing, either. (I did like that he had a prosthetic leg, though. The scene with them in the swamp worked fairly well for me.) It took me a while to get into the story, mostly because I didn't buy everyone's voices right away. On the other hand, once I did get into the story, it went by pretty fast and I liked some of the plot developments, twists, and reveals. There's just enough left undiscovered that I'm curious about the sequel. Maybe this book wasn't entirely my thing, but I can see how a lot of people would find it really fun.
Octavia's an okay heroine. She has good moments and she's often funny, but I don't know that I always found her character consistent. Obviously, people are layered; they aren't just one thing or the other, but I bought Octavia as a sheltered convent girl. I didn't really buy her so much as someone who'd been on the front lines of war. I wanted to, but I didn't. I also could have dealt with a lot less "Lady" this "Lady" that. I have no problem at all with a religious protagonist, and actually I'm quite interested in learning more about the Lady, questions that clearly won't be solved until the sequel. But it does often seem like Octavia can't even stand up without asking for the Lady's permission or thanking her for her providing strength, and that got a little tiresome, for word repetition if nothing else.
Also, there's a moment--I wish I had marked the page--where Octavia still doesn't seem to believe how special she is, despite the staggering amount of evidence against such a belief? Yeah, I kind of want to attack her with her own herbs right then.
As a general rule, I found a lot of the characters a bit archetypal. I didn't dislike any of them, which is great, but I also didn't feel like much was going on beneath the surface. Especially when it comes to Alonzo, who is pleasant enough but not hugely intriguing, either. (I did like that he had a prosthetic leg, though. The scene with them in the swamp worked fairly well for me.) It took me a while to get into the story, mostly because I didn't buy everyone's voices right away. On the other hand, once I did get into the story, it went by pretty fast and I liked some of the plot developments, twists, and reveals. There's just enough left undiscovered that I'm curious about the sequel. Maybe this book wasn't entirely my thing, but I can see how a lot of people would find it really fun.