Dreadnought: Dramatized Adaptation

Set in the same universe as Boneshaker, but this time focusing on a Confederate nurse trying to make her way to Seattle to see her dying father; she encounters spies, robots, and yes, zombies. I really like the little bits of altered history in this one; we see the changes between worlds a lot more than in Boneshaker.

This is a second book in a series, and it shows. I didn't like it half as much as the first, but soldiered my way through to the end.

Trains, gunfights, and zombies. What more could you ask for? How about mad scientists and a main character you can actually root for? This book is all kinds of fun.

I won an ARC copy in a FirstReads giveaway and I'm glad I did.

While set in the same world as the previous books, there are new characters and pretty much a new story. Overall it was a fun adventure. While not deep, the characters were enjoyable and the story managed to keep me glued to the page.

I don't normally go for alternative histories or historical fiction (which the books share along with Steam Punk) but the author has managed to use these elements in such a way where I find it fascinating.

Now that we're a few books into the series I suspect we're starting to see an arc which might eventually tie everything together. I plan on keeping my eye out for new additions, it should be fun to see what all happens.

This novel can be read as a stand alone, if you have not yet had the pleasure of reading Boneshaker or Clementine, have no fear (but, really, go get them they are fabulous). This story belongs to the main character, and although her story is tied to some of the characters in Boneshaker, this tale belongs to Mrs. Mercy Lynch alone.
Mercy is fabulous. She is strong, logical, and more than a little kick-ass. She has received the notice that her husband has died and her father is ailing. The problem of traveling from Virginia to Tacoma, Washington is greatly hampered by the Civil War. Mercy must take several modes of transport in order to cross the continent in order to reach her father's deathbed. Missing from this part of the story are the air pirates, but that is okay as we had just been served up a heaping helping of pirate goodness in Clementine.
There is no end to the action in Dreadnought. It is page after page of excitement. Several nights this week, I was unable to sleep due to the peril I left the characters in by closing the covers. Sometimes the action was so heart pounding, I actually had to look up for a while.
As usual with Priest's writing, there is magic in the secondary characters as well, none fall prone to stereotypes, and all of them have little surprises up their sleeves that make the plot that much more interesting. Throughout the novel there is a large cast of characters (some historically famous! Many of them are memorable.