This is my first steampunk book... AND I AM NOT DISAPPOINTED! I never thought that I would like steampunk as much as I did. I mean, I love historical fiction and I love dystopian along with anything futuristic or fantasy in anyway... but the combination of all these elements just make it that much more awesome in my opinion! This book has everything that a girl like me (one who hates mushy romances and under-developed characters with no plot to the story whatesoever) could ask for!Scott Westerfeld did it again! He blew me away with his writing style! His descriptions of the world that he writes, even one based on our own, are simply amazing! The way he described a lot of the Clanker's machines and the Darwinist's creatures were so precise, so descriptive, you were able to picture them in your mind clearly! I didn't even need Keith Thompson's artwork in the book to picture it, although I really do appreciate them being in the book! They were so beautiful to look at! I was in awe of his art! In fact, I was in awe in this entire book! Everything about it was so gorgeous! To the cover, the artwork, the story! Everything! Absolutely wonderful!
I love the story Westerfeld came up with! And alternate history about World War I and what took place during that time with these advance machines and created creatures. It was educational because, even though most of it is fictional, the other parts are based on true events. In fact, at the end of the book, Westerfeld includes an afterthought that explains to you the differences between the fiction and reality of it all. I appreciated that because I am not quite familiar with the Ottoman Empire and much else of that time period. I found it to be very helpful.
The characters were fantastic! Aleksander, male lead, is the son of the murdered archduke! He and his small loyal crew are trying to save his life! At the beginning of the book, he is a very spoiled brat! He demanded everything for himself and wanted no lip about it. Got on my nerves really. But as the story progresses, he become less selfish and starts caring for those around him. He grew on me and I love him all the more for seeing how mature he was by the end of the book. Deryn, female lead, deguised herself as a boy to join the "army" and because of that, had to change much of her girly charm. Though she never was one for skirts and tea parties and the like... she was a tomboy! Anyway, I loved her from the beginning. She was such a badass! She didn't let anyone push her around, especially no boys, and she proved to everyone what a special crew member she could be. She wasn't pathetic like most girls are. Which reminds me! I know there's going to be a romance between these two because you can just tell but it's not mushy at all! Alek doesn't even know she's a girl but Deryn does have a sort of attraction towards him which complicates things. My point, the romance is not being rushed AT ALL! Which is a very nice change in the whole YA world. Thank God!
The side characters are just awesome! Volger, Alek's fencing intructor, is a bit tough but he does it out of love for the boy. Very intelligent as well. Klopp was the boy's intructor for controlling the Stormwalker and he was much kinder and jovial than Volger was but he's still very dependable and manages to balance out Volger's harshness. Bauer and Hoffman were exceptional when it came to handling the ship and supporting Alek. Newkirk, Deryn's shipmate, was a bit of a coward but he grows out of that and lends a helping in during the battle. Now, there's one character that was a bit bossy but she was amazingly smart. Her name is Dr. Barlow. She blew me away! She might have had an attitude but she demanded respect and you would just give it to her! She knew what she wanted and didn't take anything less for it. She befriends Deryn and then Alek in the book and I cannot wait to see more of her.
This book is just pur win. The action, the plot-twists, the creation of these beings/machines. Everything about it was just epic! This is going to be a fantastic trilogy! I know I am really excited to read Behemoth! I'm sure it's going to be just as amazing as the first book! Definitely pick this book up if you like steampunk, fantasy, and science-fiction! In fact, I'm sure everyone will find something they like about this book so pick it up! Do it! I know you won't regret it!
