Dreadnought

I stayed up an hour past my bedtime to finish this, and it was totally worth it. :) I loved it! After reading "Boneshaker" I had taken on the task of reading all of Priest's other work that I could find, and this tops them all. The focus is tight, following Nurse Mercy Lynch as she's told that her husband died in a Civil War POW camp and that her father is dying and wants to see her in Seattle. She undertakes the epic journey from Virginia to Washington, through battles, airship crashes, raiders, suspicious travel companions (I'm still wondering what Ms. Clay's motiviations were), off track Mexican forces, train races, and soldiers addicted to the sap that we saw being refined in "Boneshaker". I'd just read "Clementine" (a novella) show more before this one and when I got to the halfway point of this book I was happy to see that there was a lot more story still left to go. The tension was kept cranked up during the action sequences, but there were enough breathers when her journey was going well to keep the pacing working well. The knowledge transfer was handled well, I never felt like I was getting a knowledge dump, but I found out details as Mercy did. I've read Lousia May Alcott's writings on serving in a Civil War hospital and Priest acknowledges the inspiration for that part of the story and applies it masterfully. Mercy's nursing skills are often called on, but her intelligence, physical fitness, and ability to fire a gun also play big parts. show less

Another wonderful addition to the Clockwork Century line.

Priest creates another kick-ass hero with Mercy Lynch (aka Vinita Swakhammer), a nurse working in a military hospital who gets word that her husband has died in the war. She has seen so much horror, gore, terror, death in the hospital that she accepts this news with numb resignation. Shortly thereafter, she receives word that her father is quite ill. Mercy is in Virginia and her father, Jeremiah Swakhammer (whom you will recall as a hero in Boneshaker) is in Seattle.

Thus begins a Civil War version of "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" which, in this case, could be "Dirigibles, Trains, and Paddlewheelers".

Part of her journey involves a memorable trip on a doomed dirigible, then a show more horse ride to a train station, and many connections later that lead her to the Dreadnought, a massive, powerful Union train. Here she will spend weeks crossing the plains on her way to Seattle.

She meets some great characters along the way, some whom I hope to see again in future installments. All modes of travel and weapons are laced with steampunk. And the yellow sap makes an unwelcome return.

The denouement had me holding my breath. That is how well Priest writes. I am on the train with Mercy, flecked in blood, trying to help and save those around me. I am horrified when I see what is attacking the Confederate train that tries to attack the Dreadnought.

None of her prose is wasted. None of it is excessive. She deftly weaves in racism, class-ism, and how women, especially one traveling alone, are treated. This becomes part of the story and part of what dictates the outcome for the characters. Fantastic action story. If you have not started this series yet, crawl out from under that rock and get to it! show less

This was fantastic! It's a follow-up to Priest's Boneshaker, which is also great, but I think I liked this book even better. It's set in the same AU world as Boneshaker, so the US Civil War has gone on for about 20 years and there are other differences, including what happened to the city of Seattle, which you'll know if you read Boneshaker but I won't spoil if you haven't.

Dreadnought starts out on the East Coast, in the thick of the war, at a Confederate hospital for wounded soldiers. We meet Mercy, a young nurse affiliated with the fledgling Red Cross, who is Virginia (Confederate) born-and-raised but is married to a Kentucky (Union) soldier. After life gets in the way (and an amazing cameo from Clara Barton and Dorence Atwater, and show more if you look them up and read about them and Andersonville you may very well start crying a bit like I did, plus then I learned that Sally Tompkins is a real person and you should look her up as well), Mercy sets out on a cross-country journey to Washington state to see her estranged, dying father.

As you can tell by Mercy's biography, the line between Union and Confederate is not strict in Priest's AU (if it ever was in true history), and Mercy's journey is fraught with political and military tension. Priest includes other wonderful details of her history, including information about the Republic of Texas and the fact that all but two of the Confederate states had banned slavery by the time of Mercy's journey.

I don't know what it says about me that I consider "ooh, interesting and politically relevant, well-conceived alternate history minutiae!" the big selling point, but if that doesn't get you interested, please be advised the book also includes: air battles; steampunk walkers; a river journey; a fantastic train ride and race and fights (which were so well-written I could actually follow the action); well-thought-out characters from around the continent; and a tightrope-walk of a climax that pulls it all together in a fantastic balancing act.

It is all very impressive.

I also enjoy, of course, that the main character is a nurse, and such a fine one. I am currently in nursing school and I was overjoyed to read a book with such an amazing nurse as the main character. I know she's fictional, but Mercy makes me proud that I will someday be a nurse as well. show less

I loved this book. So far, I've enjoyed all of the stories that are being told in the world of "The Clockwork Century". Dreadnought is the best so far.

The story is carried by a strong, richly drawn main character, Nurse Mercy Lynch, whose only flaw is perhaps being a bit too unflappable. Then again, her strength does not come falsely and she uses it to help others when needed. Surrounding her is a potpourri of supporting characters that, with the exception of some infantrymen, are also well-drawn and easy to distinguish.

The plot proceeds at breakneck speed, barely pausing occasionally for a little reflection and the binding of wounds. It's filled with airships, trains, and other battle vehicles powered by steam and reflecting the best show more minds of the century applied to the technology of war. And applied to war they are with credible descriptions of high-powered battles.

A few things didn't work for me. There was a bit too much traversing of various characters from one end of the train to the other in the midst of a pitched battle. I was a bit disappointed that one of the characters that seemed to be getting a big build-up as an adversary too quickly turned into an ally and then simply disappeared into the background. Once again the simple geography of the story didn't completely always work for me, especially in the giant train battle. I simply could not visualize so many sets of tracks intersecting in the Western frontier of Utah so few years after the Trans-Continental Railroad made it's first connection. But all this is forgiven in the name of alternate history and fabulously fun adventure. show less

This is how to write a non-direct book sequel.

I read Boneshaker a year ago. It set the background for Priest's Clockwork Century world: A United States where the Civil War has gone on for decades, resulting in advanced steampunk technology. There's also the small matter of a massive drill digging a hole in Seattle that released volcanic gases that turns people into zombies.

Dreadnought begins on the east coast. Mercy Lynch is a nurse in a Confederate war hospital when she learns her husband died in a POW camp. To complicate things further, she gets a telegram informing her that her estranged father is near death in Seattle. With no reason to stay in Virginia, she sets off on a cross-country journey complicated by skirmishes and the show more looming presence of a massive Union train known as the Dreadnought. When the Dreadnought ends up being the safest passage west, Mercy buys the ticket, only to find there is much more going on. The Dreadnought isn't a safe ride--it's a moving target, with several rail cars of particular interest to rival parties. Mercy's going to need all of her know-how and a steady aim if she'll make it off alive.

Mercy is a fantastic heroine, all smart and spunky. I have a fondness for healer characters, and it was refreshing to see a nurse in a lead role. It really brought a new perspective to an alternative history book. This ends up as a gripping action book, with steampunk vehicles such as the Dreadnought becoming characters in their own right. There were a few plot elements that were left dangling, but overall this is a tight and very well-written book, and one I am definitely keeping on my shelf. show less

This is the second book in Cherie Priest’s Clockwork Century series, set in an alternative 1800 world of steampunk, airship pirates, zombies and wild inventions. Like the first book, Boneshaker, this book features a strong female protagonist that I immediately took to.

Mercy Lynch, a nurse in a Confederate hospital, gets word that her soldier husband has died at almost the same moment that she gets a message that her long vanished father is very ill and wants to see her- in Seattle. She surprises herself by making the decision to go and visit him, a trip that, given the war, isn’t easy. Her trip across the continent by airship, steamboat, and train – no regular train- is a wild adventure full of disagreeing Confederates, Union show more soldiers, Texians, missing Mexican troops, zombies, gold, and a mad scientist. Mercy is a tough woman, though, and deals with it all with courage and inventiveness, her nurse’s training standing her in good stead what with the bullets flying almost constantly.

One of the things I love about this book, and Boneshaker, is that the protagonist is not just strong, but that she is not a stunning beauty that men fall instantly in love with. In fact, there is no romance in the books. Nor are they genius inventors; they are average women doing what needs to be done. One can identify with them easier than with some fantasy women- or at least I can!

The universe that Priest has built for this series holds together well. Dreadnought is a can’t-put-it-down, fast read that is full of action and has just enough creepiness- not enough to slow the story down, but enough to ratchet the anxiety level way up. show less

There are no superlatives strong enough for how much I enjoyed this book. Ms. Priest takes the reader on an adrenaline-inducing thrill ride full of relatable characters, believable technology, chilling suspense and realistic zombies. As in the two prior books in this series, the main character is a strong woman on her own, believable and engaging.

There was one point where I would be screaming at any other book because the main character was doing something unbelievably stupid, but here the act flowed naturally from the plot development, and all I could do was hold my breath, read on, and hope that Mercy would be okay.

I'm truly hoping that Ms. Priest has plans for more of these books, and feeling a little bereft at having finished this one!