Rosemary Edghill (1956–2026)

I didn't think I was going to be able to finish this novel. It started out at an extremely slow pace and the characters were just... weird. So, I set Dead Reckoning aside. For weeks. And then I decided to give it another try... and I fell in love and couldn't stop reading.

First off, I'm not a fan of the novel's description. Not only does it make Dead Reckoning sound much more happy and girly than it really it, it doesn't mention the third main character, White Fox, at all. I feel like the show more description is trying to promote some type of girl power vibe, which is somewhat present in the novel, but not to the extent implied.

That said, Jett and Gibbons are definitely strong, unique women. Once I got used to Gibbons' quirks and learns more about Jett, I kind of loved them. A lot. And, though we didn't get to know White Fox quite as well, he grew on me as well. In fact, I'm actually very curious to see what happens to them next. When the characters finally started to grow on me and I became more invested in the story, I though to myself, I actually don't mind this, but I don't think I'd read a sequel... but now I take that back.

For me, the best part of Dead Reckoning was the interactions and relationships between the three main characters. They are all ridiculously different that being together at the beginning is a mess, but, as they grew on me, they also grew on one another. At one point, White Fox notices that the two girls are bickering like sisters - and it was true! And then I realized, this odd little trio actually works together. Whoa.

Dead Reckoning combines many elements that really shouldn't work together: westerns, zombies, steampunk, and cults, but Lackey and Edgehill make it work. I'm not sure how they came up with such a crazy idea for a novel, but it's obvious they thought it through because I never found myself thinking "okay, that's just too far-fetched"... as I read about zombies, westerns, cults, and steampunkery.

I also found Dead Reckoning to be rather funny. And sometimes quite touching. And sometimes scary. And other times exciting. I was surprised by how much I felt as I read this novel, considering that I'd almost given up on it.

I'm so glad that I gave this novel a second chance, and I'm hoping that my review will convince you to give this crazy book a try. It won't be for everyone, but there are readers out there who are going to love the hell out of it! show less

There's a perfectly adequate plot in here somewhere, involving the Holy Grail, the ex-Dauphin of France, and the Marquis de Sade. I assume Norton is probably responsible for the plot; I also assume she had nothing else whatever to do with the writing of the book.

The writing style is of course not Norton; as in all the Norton collaborations it's far smoother than anything she has ever written herself. The problem, I think, is mainly one of attitude.

This rather light alternate-history Regency show more is loaded with footnotes. Some of these footnotes contain genuinely interesting information, or clarify points that might need clarifying, when one is mucking about with early 19th century history, of which many readers will have somewhat fuzzy retention of even the real facts. Others, unfortunately, seem to assume the reader is barely literate, or seem designed to make the reader feel slightly off base, or to be intended merely to show off the vast amount of research Ms. Edghill has done.

Item: on page 95, we have Meriel picking up her ridicule--which is, of course, footnoted; it's footnote number 21. In the footnote we learn that it's a purse, otherwise known at the time as reticule or budget. Is there a reason, other than forcing as many readers as possible to look at the footnote and see all the research Ms. Edghill has done, to use "ridicule" rather than "reticule" or "budget", either of which would be confidently recognized in context by a far larger percentage of her readers?

Item: on page 344, we have the motto, "Piété, Justice, Liberté"--and also footnote number 67, helpfully translating this for the reader as "Piety, Justice, Liberty". Is there a reason for this footnote, other than assuming that the reader is barely literate?

On page 263, we have footnote 51, providing the url for a selection of jambalaya recipes, "Since no book set in New Orleans is complete without a discussion of the food..."

I could go on, listing foolish, gratuitous, or annoying footnotes, the places where I think she chose an obscure word or phrase rather than an equally correct but less obscure one solely to allow her to footnote it, or footnotes that provide far more information than the reader needs, but I think I've provided enough to capture something of the flavor of them. I should probably also say something about the numerous occasions when the characters behave like idiots, because behaving sensibly would cut short portions of the plot that Ms. Edghill wishes to spend more time on, but, as I write this, it's far too hot. show less

an interesting take on the zombie craze.
take the wild west, a southern belle masquerading as a gunslinger, a suffragist female scientist, and a native american add a zombie mystery, and you've got dead reckoning.
some parts were predictable, some were weird, but all were enjoyable. I really liked the different take on zombies. sometimes the bleak future zombie novels get to be a bit much, so seeing a historic take was really interesting. it felt a little world war z to me- the mysteries in show more the past might be zombie attacks. good for dystopia fans, steampunk fans, history fans, and I think boys will enjoy this as well. there was no romance/love story, which I found to be a refreshing change. every story doesn't need a tragic romance. overall, I quite liked this one. show less

Fun book! Admittedly, a lot of the fun was seeing the characters of Bedlam's Bard and the Guardians (and a bit of SERRAted Edge) from a (very) different perspective - Tomas and VeeVee are somewhat bland, at least at the beginning. They do gain depth as the story develops, though, and I'd really like to see more of them. The different perspective also expands on that universe - Guardians from a semi-outside view, the interweaving of the three series to show, more strongly than I'd noticed show more before, that this _is_ one world with different groups dealing with different bits of it. There's some teen angst, and some angst that is distinctly adult (from a teen character or two). And the story ends nicely, despite wrapping up almost none of the loose threads - it's begging for a sequel (maybe with Tomas and VeeVee, maybe with Rosa, or someone else...) and I eagerly await that book. show less