The Aeronaut's Windlass

Jim Butcher has done it again, built a world of fantastic characters with a unique magic system. His characters come alive on the pages of the book and there are mysteries and histories which tantalizingly make one eager for the next volume.

Really enjoyed this book. I liked all the POVs, but especially Grimm and Bridget. And of course my dear friend Rowl, the star of the show here. In general the cats are just so good and amusing. The plot felt a bit basic until nearer the end, but I liked the political set up and the worldbuilding a lot. Not my favorite Butcher by any means, but consistently enjoyable.

8/10

Steampunk is not one of my usual genres, which led to this book languishing on my shelf for far too long. A unique, beautiful world, memorable characters, and action-packed battles kept me enthralled.

I was...unsure about this book, to say the least. It felt like a bizarre mixture between Cats and Stardust. Ultimately, though, the threads came together and the plot became compelling. Butcher's treatment of women is still one-dimensional and problematic, but I appreciated the characters nonetheless.

I do feel like the book suffers from a bit of telling and then not showing—ie, phrases being used or inferred and never explained, but the universe is fairly simple and most things can be deduced from context.

A quick read, for its length. Excited for the next one.

I enjoyed this book so so so much!! Great fun.

Oh god why did I started reading this? This is just a filler book in a “serial writing” authors list. yes, its better then I could ever write, but its no excuse for such a generic and blend story.

I wanted to see how an author who I have liked two books from decades and almost liked another one was doing nowadays, how he evolved.

I have no interest in the steampunk genre but I suspect that had nothing to do with the reason I stopped reading.

The book started with a scene of an aristocrat family where the a rebellious daughter is threatening at gunpoint her mother and her guards in order to be able to go against her wishes and join the air force as a soldier.

As soon as she leaves her bedroom, the mother reveals to the reader that all of this was her plan all along, because if she wanted her to become a solder, THEN she wouldn't. This is such a lame cliche.

I quit the book when the author started describing in boring details some air fighting.

Read 32:07 / 21:39 2%

A great fun, rollicking, steampunk romp. It's also got lots of cats, which is always a bonus

Eyyy, this year just started out in a pretty impressive way. Took me long enough to pick this one up and also to do the actual reading, but I needed to enjoy this thing in the proper mood, as long as possible, because who knows when the next one comes. Jim Butcher pretty much just did it again. You can call him all kinds of trash if you are inclined to do so, but to me he is the one who can always make me have a great time. Just something about his characters and action and pure fun is basically the embodiment of everything that makes me happy. I'm not a complicated creature. This pleases me. In this steampunk adventure madness humanity is living in spires, because something managed to screw the surface of the planet enough that you should just avoid it. So... spires. When Spire Albion is being attacked by Spire Aurora somehow a bunch of teenagers and a bunch of disgraced aeronauts need to work together to uncover things and basically save their country (spire). Things much bigger than they have expected are happening. Fighting, monsters, superpowers, warrior cats, all the good stuff. I love the whole steampunk thing. I don't know shit about it, but it's just such a cool thing, with very pleasing aesthetics and something really exciting about it. I am honestly open to anything similar. Not sure how good it worked on that level, but I feel the specific type of technology and “magic” used in the story was well-integrated and didn't feel stupid, so I am pleased. I'm sure some steampunk purists (there are people like that in EVERYTHING) will say it's fake and poser and OMG, fuck off, but I liked it. At the beginning we had an aerial battle scene with technical language that confused me greatly, but then the action just happened and it was so vivid that I forgot about all my worries and went with the flow. It stayed that way. The length did not bother me one bit, because the action was so good. I was never bored, but it never felt convoluted to me. I feel it was good like that. Sometimes with long things like this I feel like an editor on crack should have gone nuts on the thing, but here I pretty much just want 5 more books of the same length with the same amount of material right now. What I also love is the promise of big, big things coming. With [b:The Bone Season 17199504 The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1) Samantha Shannon https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1421412990s/17199504.jpg 19248070] I could not imagine what the series was supposed to contain for like 6 more books, but with this I just feel like a completely new universe is just opening up slowly, with the promise of all kinds of insane things. (Butcher really did it with his Dresden Files series and I trust him more than most people I know in real life. Don't disappoint me, Mr. Butcher, I love you.) Other than the language, I worried about the teenage protagonists. I don't like teenagers. I even hated being one myself. The bane of my existence is the teen girl protagonist being a little Mary Sue of wold saving special-ness, schooling adults at every step. Here they were actually likeable. They had flaws, they were insecure and bratty and awkward and kind of... charmingly lifelike. THIS is what I love. Sure, there is a bit instalove with the kids, but they are not hateful little shits and at this point I just give my blessings, because the girl is not some “super average wonderful princess of world saving perfection” and the boy is not “myserious angst guy with a dick attitude”. I also appreciate adults being there, being competent and meshing with the kids to form a good group. I hate when adults need to be put out of the way, because the author is too lazy to create relationships between people of different ages. It's not good writing, I tell you. No, teen cool friendships and luuuuuvs aren't the only human relationships. Here the adults were brilliant as well. Captain Grimm still had his secrets, but he is not too much on a hopeless angst machine. The “king” of the spire is a weirdo, just like the magic old man they have around. I loved the hilarious crew (I always do, ragtag teams are my thing). Jim Butcher just does what I need him to do. I haven't read his Codex Alera yet and this one made me want to pick it up immediately. He managed to meet my expectations beautifully and I'm definitely going to recommend this to my friends. The next book can't come fast enough, so I really hope he is working his little hands to the bone, because there is so much work ahead of him. Good night after another great Jim Butcher book, Captain Obvious!

Absolutely loved this book. Such a delightful mix of sci fi ,fantasy and cats, where the author knows his subjects amazingly well.

Have I mentioned, cats?

Major drawback: the next book in this series haven't been written yet. :(

As expected, it was a fun read filled with daring deeds, heroic heroines and heroes... and cats

Quite good. Fast paced with lots of action. I am reminded again of how skilled a writer Butcher is. He has created a new fantasy world with physics slightly different from our own and with a unique magic system. This world is inhabited by people both normal and somewhat odd and by an intelligent race of cats, all living in immense “spires”.
Butcher gives only glimpses of the new society he has created. The spire dwellers live far above the dangerous surface of the planet. They depend on a magic-like ethereal technology. There are hints of a robust trade as well as a history of conflict between the spires. Butcher likes to show rather than tell. I expect the society will be fleshed out in subsequent books.
The story features desperate fights in the corridors, rooms, and ports of Spire Albion as the protagonists defend their home from invaders. It also features some awesome airship battles. I feel that Butcher took inspiration from the works of C.S. Forester and Patrick O'Brien.
As you might expect, the story features a variety of characters–the good, the courageous, the cowardly, the bad, the quirky, and at least one that is downright evil. All are interesting (though some are perhaps a bit too genre standard). There is also a glimpse of a dark, malevolent intelligence, which I expect will be more fully developed in subsequent volumes.
Pretty good yarn. I look forward to more.

An intriguing beginning, am eagerly awaiting the next book.

I was a little on the fence for the first chapter or two. The flying airships were just a little to fantastical for me. But I gave it another hour. And in true Jim Butcher fashion, the book took off and captured my attention as well as my imagination. From that point I became captivated. By the end of the book, I knew I had new series to enjoy for years to come.

Seemed like a big set up - with not a very exciting ending. Anticlimactic at its best. The cat scenes were entertaining though.

Butcher world building again. What I enjoy is his slow unveiling of the stage upon which his characters act. A world [not Earth it can be assumed ...perhaps?] on which humanity lives in gigantic towers miles high called Spires. Descriptive facts of this world are “dropped” into the text where appropriate. He used the same style in his Codex Alera series. I like this because it sets up in my mind a growing list of facts I want to know regarding this world which may or may not be referenced or developed as the plot develops.
And the plot... well its clear in the first chapter where Lady Lancaster states there are signs, things are changing and she unleashes her daughter [a force to be reckoned with] into the wider world, to be where she, as a Lancaster, needs to be. Page by page we are introduced to a group of comrades who are going to be set a quest, a standard trope, but which, other than the backdrop of a war with another Spire, we as reader will have to learn of as we turn the page.
The Aeronaught's Windlass is a page turner, well paced, well written, with characterisations even of the opposing forces that allows a degree of empathisation running just short of wanting them to emerge victorious. Again something I liked about the Codex series and which holds promise for this series. Jim Butcher writes a good story. I want Spires 2 now!
Oh and whilst other authors have transmogrified their cats into telepathic dragons Butcher marks his Map of this world with “Here be Cats”.

A more detailed review [with of course spoilers] I will put up on my review site.

So Jim Butcher takes a step out of Chicago and takes us into an alternate reality/future that is fresh and interesting. He also goes about creating a partial magic system though we really never understand how it works. But its none of these that cause me to rate the book so highly. That honor simply goes to the romance of flying an airship and its relationship with the captain. It works so well that its probably the airship that is the main draw of this series. A Firefly class anyone? This captain has been created so far away from the Dresden image that it almost seems deliberate. The only thing that Butcher maintains consistency is providing a brilliant ensemble support cast who are great characters on their own whether its a half human or a cat. This has a making of another great series. Let's wait for it.

Could be an interesting series. Very different that the Dresden Files, but very similar writing styles. Get ready for a very slow and interesting start. Give it several chapters before you write it off, but don't expect a masterpiece.

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader, where I'm usually more coherent than I am below.
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Frequently, it's really hard for me to talk about a new Jim Butcher book without it just being, Aaaaaah! Fanboy! Gush, gush, squee! Drool! Squee! and More Squee!, and I really wanted to do more with this book, so I wanted a little distance. Alas, almost three months later, I'm still not going to be able to do much more than that – I think it'll take another entry or two in this series for me to start to evaluate it well. But, I'd best get something up, so I'll try to rein in the fanboy.

Let's start off with the genre – it's marketed as Steampunk. What a dreadful idea. This is only sort of Steampunk. It's more of a Fantasy with elements inspired by Steampunk. I've seen some fans – and perhaps Butcher himself – say that it should be considered “Steam Opera.” That's not bad. (I saw one online advertisement calling it “Urban Fantasy,” I trust whoever wrote/approved that advertisement was chastised soundly).

I don't know how to describe the world or the plot without taking a few large paragraphs, and probably not doing a good job of it. Butcher's website says:

It's jam-packed with airships, crazy sorcerers, privateers, warrior monks, and intelligent cats. An ancient evil has reawakened, and the entire world is plunged into a sinister mist, filled with terrible creatures.

Wow, I can tell I am going to like this series as much as I loved the Dresden Files

Executive Summary: Fast paced action, interesting world building, memorable characters, cool magic system. In a word: fun!Audio book: This one was coming in with a high bar to meet. Mr. Butcher's popular Dresden Files gets amazing performances by [a:James Marsters 169487 James Marsters https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1252176950p2/169487.jpg]. Meanwhile his Codex Alera series is done by the excellent [a:Kate Reading 494654 Kate Reading https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1442464911p2/494654.jpg].So how does [a:Euan Morton 2961721 Euan Morton https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] stack up? I'm happy to report quite well. I've had this pre-ordered in hardcover for months, but I think I may stick with audio if he continues as the narrator. Great voices and inflections that adds that little extra something that make an audio a great option for this book.Full ReviewJim Butcher is my favorite author. I discovered him about 8 years ago, and quickly devoured his Dresden Files books. Then I moved right into his Codex Alera series. For three blissful years there was a Dresden Files book in April and a Codex Alera book in December.Upon completing Codex Alera, Mr. Butcher's pace seemed to slow. I found the books as good as ever, or possibly even better, just far less frequent. At first it may anger fans of the Dresden Files that Mr. Butcher is writing something else. I'm here to tell you it shouldn't.This book is excellent. I'd be surprised if any fans of Mr. Butcher don't also enjoy this. And hey, maybe writing two series at the same time will get us more excellent books to enjoy in a shorter period of time. It seems to have worked well for him in the past.When I first heard of this series, my initial reaction was, Steampunk? Really? I must admit that I never really saw the appeal. I haven't read a lot of the genre, but what little I had read until recently didn't seem to be for me. My second thought was Well, I'd read Jim Butcher Twilight fan fiction if that's what he wanted to write. The action starts almost right from the beginning. The pace is furious, with very few points of slowing. There was never a good stopping point in my listening and I always hated to put it down. To me that's what separates a 5 star rating from a solid 4.We are quickly introduced to several characters. First we meet Gwen Lancaster, a young noblewoman determined to join the Spire Ark's guard. I had a bit of a mixed reaction to her. There were times I found her frustrating, but it's good to have a variety of characters, and Gwen helps to round things out nicely. Next we meet Grim, the Captain of the airship Predator and various members of his crew. Grim is very much of the vein of Harry Dresden, though I see bit of Bernard from Codex Alera in him as well. He's easily likeable, but far from the best character in my opinion.Bridget Targwen and her cat Rawl come next. Both are fantastic, especially Rawl. All of the cats are excellent, but especially Rawl. Mr. Butcher's cats are a bit reminiscent to me of those in Robin Hobb's Tawny Man Trilogy. He seems to nail cats exactly. And apparently the internet is crazy for cats, so instant bestseller, right?Finally we meet Master Etherialist Ferris, and his apprentice Folly. Folly is absolutely my favorite! She reminds me a bit of Luna Lovegood. All of her scenes are highly entertaining. She's probably considered more of a secondary character to the first three, but I hope she continues to play a large role in the future books.And if that's not enough there are several other secondary and tertiary characters that are all quite good, such as Gwen's cousin Benedict, members of the Predator: Creedy, Kettle and Journeyman and the Spire Ark himself: Lord Albion. The antagonists are a bit cartoonish at times, especially Cavendish, but the two main Auroan soldiers felt more nuanced though.This story is very character-driven, but Mr. Butcher has created a pretty interesting world for them to inhabit. There is very little steam powered anything though. Instead the main resource of note are Ethereal crystals. They power everything from Airships to hand weapons referred to as gauntlets.Explanations for the world and magic systems are slowly metered out as the book goes on, but there were thankfully few info dumps. Or if there were, I was too busy enjoying myself to notice.The book is fairly well self contained. Things end in a pretty good spot, especially considering this is the first book in a series. There are plenty of questions left to be answered, but most of the main conflicts of this book are either resolved, or put on hold nicely.Overall if you enjoy Mr. Butcher other work, or enjoy character-driven faced paced action packed stories, pick this one up. You won't regret it.Now I will once again eagerly have to await the next book in two series by Mr. Butcher, much like when I first discovered him. How lucky for us all!

Well worth the long wait, since his announcement of this new series several years back. I'm really looking forward to the other books in this new series.

3.5 Stars.
Definitely better than the most recent Dresden books, that's for sure. Starts out as a fairly bog-standard steampunk, with at least one character that made me pause and go “oh, I see you saw someone's Steampunk Lolita outfit”. Still, the characters grow on you, and the plot is strong once you get past the “lol aristocratic assholes in school” bit.

You can definitely see Butcher's character preferences, though– Despite the POV sections for Gwen, Bridget and Folly (and to a lesser extent, Rowl), Captain Grimm is the Main Character in what appears to be a pirate-y war steampunk book, despite all of the above being way more interesting than him and his drama.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Unfortunately, I finished reading it, and it is the start of a series, and when one finishes the first book in a new series a mere ten days after it is published it stands to reason one must then wait (however impatiently) for the next book. So I shall wait, and keep my eyes peeled for news of the next book in the series.