Clockwork Boys

DNF - PG 51

Why?

I hoped it was just a blip when guy 1 figured girl must be a lesbian because she wasn't interested in him.

I hoped it was just a blip when girl mentioned that she and guy 2 used to have a thing (or, maybe, be a thing) and she thought he wanted to get back together (or back in her bed).

I hoped it was a blip when girl was immediately turned on by guy 1 cleaning the four months of prison filth off himself.

I hoped it was a blip when guy 1 was pleased with the fact that he cleans up well enough to impress girl. And he makes a special note that now he doesn't think she's a big ol' lesbian because she's obviously turned on by him.

...

At this point, I realized that none of this was probably a blip - which is a shame because we have tattoos that will eat you if you don't follow through with your job. And that has to be one of the creepy-coolest things I've ever seen.

(Girl literally thinks ‘Raowr. Down Girl.' about guy 1. Literally. I - I - This is not what I sign up for in my fantasy books.)

(Also, between not-blip three and four we have a healthy dose of head hopping, because one crap-pile wasn't enough, we had to hop on over to guy 1 to get the second dose.)

Sometimes you discover a new writer, love their work, seek out another of their books, and re-learn that crucial life lesson from Princess Bride: “Get used to disappointment.”

This is not that kind of story. I’m delighted to report that Kingfisher does not disappoint.

This book charmed and impressed me. Kingfisher is hella smart, emotionally as well as intellectually, and treats her reader as equally so. She also has a strong moral compass while also recognizing the realities of a messy world. And she’s funny. Not slapstick, just lovely dry wry lines once in a while, unexpected tingles in the middle of an otherwise serious situation.

The characters are complex, the story is as well. There’s magic and fantasy and drama and stuff I don’t usually care for... but it’s all original, clever, and I really love the way she writes it in: completely unexplained, no contrived rationalizations, just simple elements of that world which the characters take in stride. That kind of narration feels more genuine than attempts to create some set of rules. There’s adult sexual tension that also feels genuine: complicated and inconvenient but powerful. Subtle and thoughtful explorations of lookism. Pain and regret and soulsearching and lots of heart.

And a cutoff ending that had me purchasing and starting the next book in the series.

My nose hurts at thinking about the immensely overwhelming smell of rosemary whenever Slate encounters magic or danger. And I, too, sometimes feel like reacting in demon speak and muttering in my sleep.

T. Kingfisher is quickly becoming a must-read author for me. Her characters are unique and have their own personalities quirks. The world building is amazing, leaving different ways to be explored and expanded upon in subsequent/future books. 

Looking forward to reading the Wonder Engine (though I wish it hadn't been split into two).

My first T. Kingfisher and it definitely won't be the last one. I loved the characters, the humour, the writing ❤

3.5 stars.

This was so, so good. Cozy, funny, but with a dire setting. I like that the main characters are in their 20s (except for the scholar who is 19). Also, I laughed so, so much. I wasn't expecting this to be as funny as it was, but I definitely teared up from laughter a few times.

I already have the next book borrowed and will be diving in soon.

Full Series Review –

This series made me want to read every other book T. Kingfisher has written, even with all the grit and heartbreak and me falling for the wrong character who was kind of the bad guy and broke my heart by dying in the end, but said “Darlin''” in such a heart-gripping way. The premise? Amazing. Cannabalistic tattoos, wars, demons, criminal underworlds. It has everything. The characters? There is something wonderful about having heroines and romances focus on older women who have lived through some shit.The ending? Heartbreaking, had me crying until I brought on a headache at 1 am. I was so mad at Brenner for being idiotic enough to let a demon in. I was so heartbroken by the way he looked at her and said “Darling” as his last words before he lost his soul for good. I was so uncertain if he'd ever really loved her, if he was capable of love, but in that moment I hoped he was and that he'd redeemed himself. “There were a great many things she had prepared to say - vague explanations, stripped of any facts that could be dangerous, mentions of the Dowager's name, promises of amnesty in the unlikely event any of them survived. She considered them all and rejected them one by one. ‘Would you like to go on a suicide mission?' she asked instead. He smiled. It was the first genuine smile she'd seen all day. ‘I would be honored,' he said.

The plot follows a couple of criminals plus a monk who hates women, plus a 3ft tall badger-person (who is honestly so cute) as they go on a suicide mission.

T Kingfisher just writes really comfy fantasy with a dash of romance (usually with proper adults with issues instead of your more typical teen fantasy romance) and this was definitely more of the same but a good one!

It felt really hard to rate this one on its own, because it honestly felt like half a book with the way it ended on a cliffhanger. But it was compelling enough that I read the sequel back to back. Combined the two of them are 5 stars!!

Creo que tres estrellas es bastante generoso para el IDS (índice de satisfacción) que me proporcionó el libro.
Dicen que fue el primer libro para adultos de Ursula Vernon. Yo me temo que no, que se queda más bien en Joven-Adulto (YA).
La palabra que se me viene a la cabeza es: simple. Plano, muy lineal. Tonto. Eso, para jóvenes-adultos. No le veo la complejidad mínima necesaria para entusiasmarme.
Juega entre la seriedad y el humor y no sabe muy bien con cuál de los dos quedarse. Y ciertas circunstancias de la novela se hacen tediosas la tensión sexual no resuelta llega a límites muy tontos
Al principio me pareció interesante. Empieza muy bien. Pero se va diluyendo en tonterías para volver a coger algo de fuerza al final y salvarlo de la catástrofe.
Otra cosa que me irritó una vez lo finalicé fue que, de todo lo que se suponía que tendría que resolverse de la trama, solo se resuelve una parte la llegada a la ciudad al final de la novela. Los Clockwork Boys hacen una parada militar en una parte del libro y no se les vuelve a ver. El síndrome del libro (mal) dividido en dos partes (no es un libro en dos partes. Es un libro partido por la mitad y vendido en dos partes). Mal, muy mal.

Full review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CO39hvvBjcT/

This book and its sequel [b:The Wonder Engine 38352077 The Wonder Engine (Clocktaur War #2) T. Kingfisher https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1517810851l/38352077.SY75.jpg 58381662] go together, so I'll review them together. After only one reading I'm unsure whether to give 3 or 4 stars, so I'll give 3 to one and 4 to the other. I reread books, so I may revise this later.I grew up on science fiction, and I like any weird stuff in a story to have an explanation. Some fantasy stories have magic with rules and limitations, and if the magic follows the rules I accept that as an explanation. This story is what I call wild fantasy: there are no rules, no limitations, and no explanation beyond “Well, magic”. So, not really my kind of fiction.But I read the whole two-volume story because I found it readable, it's fluently written and I liked the characters.There's a definite plot to it, the characters are on a very dangerous mission, and they go through various kinds of suffering. But their personal interactions seem to be the most important thing here. The fictional dangers and suffering in some stories make me uncomfortable, but here I managed to read on through all that without taking it too seriously. Is this good or bad? Some people seem to like feeling uncomfortable in that way, but I don't.The characters are diverse and engaging, and their interactions are amusing. Some reviewers have mentioned Terry Pratchett. Most of the time I wasn't particularly reminded of him, but there are some similarities to his work, and the gnoles do remind me of him.

Classic fantasy adventure with a group. The story isn't complete, however – kind of left hanging right in the middle of things. Basically one book was chopped in two... so if that sort of thing pisses you off, you'll be mighty annoyed.

I've fallen in love with the writing style of T. Kingfisher (aka Ursula Vernon).

I don't like action and fantasy type deals that turn into annoying insta-love, “OMG, so complicated” romance bullshit. Sorry not sorry. I'm over the “she is not special but all the cool men are so into her because she is speshül”.
Life is too short for things like this, thanks, bye.

OMG this was so good, even though it was only half of a full story. Creative, funny, sweet, sad, snarky and above all else, it features a ninja accountant heroine who is both vulnerable and kick-ass. Be still my heart! Can't wait to read #2 although I have some well-founded fears about the fate of one of the main characters.

Podcast review in Swedish: http://lashart.podbean.com/e/t-kingfisher-clockwork-boys/

I am only a few chapters in and giggling so hard I need to blow my nose. Funny and interesting and keeping me up.