Mechanicals is a story of war between great nations, of hidden plots and ploys and ordinary people’s lives becoming rather more extraordinary as they get caught up in the intrigue.
What sets this steampunk novel apart from many of its counterparts is the way it is told.
Throughout the book, we follow the lives of many characters: members of a secret society in service of things greater than meets the eye, a young officer in the British army who becomes a pilot of a mechanical war machine known as a mechanical, a young girl ripped from her dreary life into adventure and education, opening her eyes in ways she could never have expected, and a reporter finding himself in the employ of an arms manufacturer and dealer who is playing the game from every single side possible.
Chapters rotate between protagonists, their point of views and the events that unfold in their lives, only to be brought together in the conclusion of the book. Some of these main characters will meet, others will not, yet their faiths will have been irrevocably intertwined by the same cataclysmic events.
My only regret is the somewhat open ending, even if it does seem to be paving the way for a sequel. I hope that a sequel will actually get published, because I’d quite like to see where the author takes the characters next.
