Fever Crumb

Fever Crumb is a prequel to Reeve's Hungry City series, of which I have read the first book. Although Fever Crumb is well written and quite clever, I did not enjoy it nearly as much as I did Mortal Engines. The problem for me was that Fever is exceedingly difficult to relate to, which, admittedly, is as intended. Still, her own calm kept me from getting drawn into the story and really feeling for her predicament. This was one of those books where I simply didn't care how everything ended up, even when Fever was in serious danger. However, I did appreciate Fever's struggle to remain rational and emotionless in the face of whatever came her way (Yay! Spock reference!).

The best parts (for me) were the nifty references thrown into the show more future world Reeve has created. Early on, there is a mention of religious nuts worshiping their lord, Hari Potter. Now there is a religion I could really get behind. Haha. The British city of Battersea is spelled B@ersea. Little goodies like this are so delightful. They also force you to pay attention so that no hilarious little jokes pass you by. show less

Beautifully constructed plot, complicated characters, a crazy "we've warred ourself back to the dark ages" future London, and some pretty great deadpan jokes about how our present might be interpreted by forthcoming generations ("Cheeses Crice!" "What the blog?" they blaspheme).

I haven't read the series to which this is a prequel, but I liked Fever Crumb a lot. I could almost tell when there was a reveal that would make a longtime fan reel. So I just might look into the Mortal Engine books now...

Oh, and does anyone else think the cover art totally looks like Natalie Portman?

I've never read the Hungry City Chronicles, but I still really enjoyed this book even though it's a prequel. Sometimes books at the beginning of a series are a little slow because there is so much background to establish before the action can start, but I thought this novel did a great job of establishing a fully-realized other world as the plot moved along at a steady pace. Fever is a fascinating character who doesn't yet know herself; even as she re-evaluates her perspective on the world and decides to shed her previous identity, her character is strong and I'm really hoping that she appears in Mortal Engines so I can follow her life story.

A very interesting take on our "post apocalypse" culture. I enjoyed the references that carried through, even though the people saying them didn't understand. I like Fever and her rational take on everything, I look forward to book 2.

Since this is only a YA steampunk novel, one kind of wants to give it fewer stars. But it is vividly realized, grim, imaginative, and quite funny. I guess the running away with the circus at the end is a bit of a stereotype, but even that is exciting.

It is hard to understand for whom the David Bowie in-jokes are intended. But they are fun for the initiated.

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Reread in 2020

Just as good as I remembered it. Ted Sweeney is a miniature Donald Trump. If Kit Solent or Fever Crumb or Bagman Creach had been more ruthless, things might have turned out very differently.

I don't usually like prequels, but I didn't even realize this was one. It's a beautifully crafted addition to Reeve's Hungry City Chronicles. His portrayal of a future dystopian earth is complex and well imagined. The characters are also multi-layered. I actually think this is the best of them all.

I won a copy of [b:Fever Crumb|6839020|Fever Crumb|Philip Reeve|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266781157s/6839020.jpg|6508348] here at GoodReads through the First Reads giveaway. I've not read anything by [a:Philip Reeve|27379|Philip Reeve|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1215570769p2/27379.jpg] before, but I've put [b:Here Lies Arthur|586409|Here Lies Arthur|Philip Reeve|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176047009s/586409.jpg|573249] on my list of books to look for.

This is an odd little book. First, not at all what I expected, given its Young Adult label. I would recommend it to OLDER young adults, I guess, because Reeve's dystopian London is quite complex and there is a fair amount of violence and death in the book.

Reeve plops show more the reader down in this dystopian London without a lot of explanation as to when the story takes place (far future) or how the world got to be the way it is. It's an intriguing setting and, in some ways, London itself is one of the characters in the story.

At the center of the story is the conflict between ordinary humans and the Scriveners (a "superior" type of human). The Scriveners had ruled London but had been defeated in riots, yet a few remained, as did their hunters (the Skinners Guild). Fever Crumb, the young engineer, is caught up in the middle of both this past conflict and the impending conflict with the Movement (nomad humans).

Fever is an unlikely heroine, and that is part of the appeal of the story. Although traditional "good guy/bad guy" lines are initially drawn, they quickly become blurred as the story unfolds and we realize that all the characters have mixed motives and are just trying to survive.

At its heart, this is a story of survival and the search for one's identity, not just for Fever, but for several of the other characters around her.

I gave the book 4 out of 5 stars. For me, as an adult reader, more backstory would have boosted the rating. show less