Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

I purchased this book at Borderlands. The staff there is fairly helpful--I am doing my early Christmas shopping and wanted a sci-fi or fantasy book for my cousin. Her parents are rather religious and tend not to let her read a lot of stuff. I got her Pride and Prejudice and Zombies for last Christmas and that was not acceptable. Levaithan was the suggestion made by the Borderlands staff. It is steampunk and apparently slightly subversive, but doesn't have any magic or undead people.

The book was okay. A very fast read (three or four hours) with somewhat compelling characters. Maybe I just don't connect as well with teenage characters. I don't want to search out the next book right now, but I would be willing to read it if I came across it. I think a very interesting book could be written in this universe, with the steam/biopunk interactions. The genetic engineering is less polished than in universes such as The Windup Girl. Levaithan is good enough as a gift for my cousin, but I'll wait for her reaction before buying the next in the series.

Pages: 440

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

So this year I decided that I wanted to vote for the Hugos. Also, at $50 for a supporting membership, I am able to read all the Hugo nominees at a slightly reduced rate. I think I got about 6 books and 2-3 more books worth of material. Given that some of the books are still out in hardcover, it seems like a good deal.

The first one I read is Boneshaker. I was relieved that the steampunk aspect of the book was not overpowering. Yes, the characters wear goggle and gas masks (a major part of steampunk, going by what people wear to cons), but there was a reason and though the masks were often mentioned, the descriptions didn't belabor how neat people looked with masks. In the end, this book was pretty good. It wasn't amazing. I don't think Boneshaker will get my vote because it doesn't leave me desperately wanting more, which should be a characteristic of Hugo winners.

Pages: 416