Power and control, society and structure, alchemy and engineering,
machine and gargoyle. This is a world populated by the strange and
steampunky, with emancipated (but maybe not really) humanoid robots, and
gargoyles slowly turning to stone against their will. It's also a world
in flux, where feudalism may be in the midst of being overthrown by
industry, and that may be, in turn, challenged by the workers.
There
are provocative ideas in this one, but I wanted just a bit more
exploration. Sedia touches lightly on a lot of interesting topics, and
explores some, but in most cases I was left eager for just a little bit
more depth in any of them. The world she creates is interesting,
steampunky, but also medieval. And the struggles are fascinating, but
need just a little more depth.
The main character is an
emancipated automaton named Mattie, who has been freed by her creator
and now works as an alchemist. (But is she really free? Her creator
still holds the key to wind up her heart, and she is set to malfunction
if she does not go and see him.) The complex dynamics of this
relationship are sketched out, but again, not to beat the same drum too
many times, I just wanted them explored a little bit more.
She
is approached by the gargoyles to try to come up with an alchemical
answer to their problem - they are turning to stone. They used to
control stone, may indeed have created the city, but now it calls to
them, and they do not wish to heed its call.
At the same time,
the engineers are trying to make a more efficient and rational society,
moving people off the land into the mines because it's more efficient
and gives them what they need, instead of paying any attention to
individual desire. The people, quite understandably, resist. Acts of
violence erupt. There is pushback.
Against this, Mattie tries to establish who she is in a world where no one wants to truly see her as human.
I
admire this book for all it is trying to pack in, and the complexity of
the issues it is trying to address. Maybe further books, if there are
any, will explore the issues I felt itching under the surface, waiting
to be scratched more thoroughly. But this is worth a read, even if I was
ultimately a little dissatisfied. It's because it got quite a bit right
that I wanted more.
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