Boneshaker

Boneshaker (2009) Cherie Priest

I started this book the week Grandmom went into the hospital.

Unsurprisingly, it took me a bit to get back to it, as I remembered almost nothing of what I read–not because of the story, but because I was distracted.

Briar Wilkes had been married to a man claimed to have been not just a mad inventory, but a greedy mad inventor, who was reputed to have stolen millions when he destroyed Seattle and released “blight gas” which turns all those who breathe it into rotters (aka zombies [I hate zombies]).

Briar’s father was a lawman who stayed and released the prisoners who had been left behind to die when the blight gas reached them.

Briar’s son Zeke was born after the evacuation of Seattle and the building of the wall that kept the blight gas from reaching the rest of the population. He wants to rehabilitate the images of his grandfather and his father, even though he never knew either man. Briar agrees with him that his grandfather was–in fact–a hero. But as for Leviticus Blue–Briar is convinced that he was fully deserving of his reputation, even though that reputation has made her and Zeke’s lives miserable.

Steamships! The Civil War! A female heroine who risks death and danger to attempt to save her son!

And yeah. Zombies.

Cherie Priest fully admits that she made changes to the historical timeline to make events fit better with her story. Even yet, she gets more history right (even with her alternate history) than many past presidential candidates.

Briar was a wonderful heroine. She wasn’t very much a woman of her times, however, being the widow of a monster–and a single mother to boot–pretty much forces you to do what you have to do. But she was a very strong woman, doing what she had to. I always like that in a main character.

I can’t say I liked the zombies, but I wasn’t as freaked out by them as I thought I would be.

The other thing I particularly liked was the science. Sure, there are zombies, but they weren’t created by magic, and the mechanical flying ships (as with all things Steampunk) are theoretically functional. Oh. And the idea of flying steam ships as part of the Civil War? Wow.

So, I liked it. And I recommend it. Yeah, I have problems starting it, but those were external to me rather than internal to the story.
Rating: 7/10

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