Baby, It's Cold Outside: Cold Magic

Cold Magic by Kate Elliott (NEW READ)

To start off, I wanted to address the fact that this book has been marketed as steampunk. After reading (and enjoying) it, I don't feel that's accurate. Maybe the marketing team jumped on "steampunk" since the genre is heating up, but other than a zeppelin that appears briefly there aren't any steampunk elements in the book- and that's just fine. In fact, I appreciated "Cold Magic" MORE for not being straight-up steampunk and instead introducing elements and cultures more original than goggles and gears.

Photo by smile4camera:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/captured-spirit_/125496510/

Catherine Hassi Barahal lives in a Europe where Britain never detached from the continent, where the Roman Empire is still going strong in 1837 and where a ghoul plague in Northern Africa has led to mass migration and the intermingling of the cultures of Mali and the Celts. Powerful mage families vie with up-and-coming industrialists to rule the continent. Cat's middle-class life with her aunt, uncle and cousin/ best friend Beatrice abruptly alters when a powerful young cold mage turns up at the door demanding the fulfillment of a contract owed to his family. Before she knows what's happening Cat finds herself married to Andevai (the mage) and on a strange trip across Britain.

If you're just starting this book it can seem a bit overwhelming. Since it's alternate-history, the reader is bombarded with alternate and (to us) archaic names for places and peoples that will send you scampering off to Wikipedia to find out where the Phoenicians lived and who they are today. There is also a bit of set up which meanders through a school day for Cat and Beatrice- a trip to the principal's office and a stolen sketchbook aren't up to the level of adventure seemingly promised by the blurb. Once the mage appears things speed up, but since Cat doesn't really know what's going on as a reader you feel like you are traveling with her at a breakneck pace, not sure of where you are going. The part of the book that really engrossed me was after a big spoilery plot reveal. Cat's travel's and interactions with Andevai change dramatically, and a new character that injects a great deal of humor into the story appears. It becomes a different kind of travel and intrigue book, one where I enjoyed the characters more than in the first half.

One element of "Cold Magic" I found particularly excellent was the relationship between Cat and her cousin Beatrice. One bookish, tall cousin + one short pretty girl- you think you know where this is going, but you'd be wrong. Cat and Bee are utterly devoted to each other, and their relationship is one of close sisters. When there is trouble each inevitably thinks of the other and plans how to save her. Although they spend most of the book apart, you know they are never far from each others thoughts. This is particularly impressive in the case of Bee, who is not a POV character.

I found the connection between the cousins much stronger and sweeter than the relationship between Cat and Andevai. Of course they are not supposed to like each other, and are gradually working past respect to something more but I had some real problems with how Andevai behaved for most of the book. Now that I think of it, it wasn't so much his behavior as Cat's reactions- even though she is mad at him most of the time she is constantly thinking of how good he looks, how hot his jawline is, stuff like that. Sure we are all human, but if someone had just tried to stab me in the throat I might not have a problem keeping myself from checking him out.

I haven't even gotten into the trolls, Roman politics and minute world-building going on in this book. My last experience with Kate Elliott was pretty dark. (Lots sexual abuse, torture, war, not necessarily a bad thing.  What killed me was a character thinking how hot the man who had sexually abused her friend was, even though she knew he was a bad guy. DNF ) I wasn't sure how I felt about reading her new series, but "Cold Magic" is definitely more my speed, and I can't wait for the next one! Even Andevai won me over with his very LAST line. Smoooooooth.

If you are looking for first-rate world-building and appealing characters, give "Cold Magic" a try!

Pegasus

Pegasus by Robin McKinley (NEW READ)

I've been a Robin McKinley fan since high school, but I feel like I haven't loved her newer work as much as "Hero and the Crown", "Deerskin" or even "Beauty". This book looked like a return to her old form, so I was looking forward to it. Plus the cover is gorgeous- it really looks like the girl and pegasus are in different worlds (earth and sky), but their placement makes them look like they are trying to reach each other.

Sat down and started reading and got a big old history lesson on the how the kingdom was founded. Great, not only was I in infodump city, but it made the pace of the first 100 pages slooooooooooow. I'd rather have started with the main characters (Sylvi, the princess and Ebon, the pegasus) meeting and learned more through their character development, but I felt like I was getting the worldbuilding in huge boring chunks.

Since the start was so slow, I had to hang in there until things got better. And... they did get better. The descriptions of pegasi culture were fascinating, and I wish we had spent more time there early, or maybe had a pegasus narrator for alternating chapters. McKinley actually comes up with a decent reason that beautiful flying magic horses might feel jealous of humans (they long to create, but only have a few fingers which are super delicate and weak). Human hands actually feature in the pegasi fairytales, which is a nice way to round out their culture (not perfect, wants things they don't have).

Unfortunately, I did not know that this book was half of what originally was one story. The end comes at what would be a climax in the story complete, which makes for a horrible cliffhanger and gives the book almost no story arc of its own. I haven't said "Fuck!" this much about a book in a long time. I felt strongly about it- too bad I felt anger and disappointment. I'd like to know what happens, but I feel so cheated I will have to make myself pick up the next one.

Ideally, I wish this book had been more heavily edited to remove the boring bits (court politics, suspicious wizards that are OBVIOUSLY evil but spend pages wasting our time) and then released as a complete story, instead of only half a book.

Behemoth

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld (NEW READ)

I am a huge sucker for this series to begin with, since it is A) good steampunk B) cross-dressing adventure  C) fabulously illustrated, but this book really upped my interest in where the plot is going. It felt like a lot of "Leviathan", the first book was spent in set-up, whereas in Behemoth we jump right into the action. And the action just keeps on going.

The Leviathan is headed for Istanbul (not Constantinople) so the "lady boffin" Dr. Barlow can present the Sultan with a mysterious present that might help halt the war. Of course things go wrong- the almost-electrocution of the giant flying whale, a hijacking of a huge mechanical war elephant. Meanwhile Alek and his crew are desperately trying to escape their English captivity. A botched attempt leads Alek right into the middle of a revolution...

(Picture from Keith Thompson's Gallery just to give you a taste of how great the art is. Don't you want to go buy a print now? I know I do!)

My favorite character in the book is Deryn Sharp, my new girl-dressing-as-a-boy role model. Incredibly capable, fairly fearless and sometimes baffled by how weird boys are, Deryn is always in the middle of something crazy. Behemoth delves more deeply into Deryn's feelings about both her father's death and her feelings for Alex (OMG does she LIKE like him?!) but mostly it just features Deryn kicking ass and taking names. It seems like her secret identity as the best (not)boy in the British Air Corps is a little closer to being exposed but so far is in safe hands. Also, an almost love triangle that doesn't turn out quite the way Deryn expects. Ha ha, "MR. Sharp"

The secret of the mysterious eggs from the first book is revealed and it is ADORABLE. Imagine one of these but it speaks better Turkish than you, is named after a British meat extract and keeps making sarcastic references to your secret identity. Pretty much the perfect pet.

The next book in the series looks like it will deal with the Orient Express. I love trains so I am EXCITE. Can't wait to read the further adventures of Deryn and Alek!