3 Stars
I received an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
In my mind, the word “clockwork” in the title of a novel evokes an expectation of a steampunk novel. The Clockwork Dynasty isn’t a steampunk novel. Once I got over that mild disappointment, I found I really enjoyed the story.
In chapters alternating between the past and the present, and two different narrators, we follow the origins and struggle of automated human-like beings.
From the Amazon synopsis:
Present day: When a young anthropologist specializing in ancient technology uncovers a terrible secret concealed in the workings of a three-hundred-year-old mechanical doll, she is thrown into a hidden world that lurks just under the surface of our own. With her career and her life at stake, June Stefanov will ally with a remarkable traveler who exposes her to a reality she never imagined, as they embark on an around-the-world adventure and discover breathtaking secrets of the past…
Russia, 1725: In the depths of the Kremlin, the tsar’s loyal mechanician brings to life two astonishingly humanlike mechanical beings. Peter and Elena are a brother and sister fallen out of time, possessed with uncanny power, and destined to serve great empires. Struggling to blend into pre-Victorian society, they are pulled into a legendary war that has raged for centuries.
I really liked the two main characters. They had interesting internal struggles and felt well constructed. Peter has a much more fleshed out backstory since the past chapters are literally his backstory, so his character feels much more developed than June does, but June doesn’t feel flat in comparison.
The way the story bounced back and forth between present day and the past, combined with the “mysterious, ancient origins” of the automated beings reminded me heavily of the Assassin’s Creed video games.
I had a hard time with the pacing of the story. The present day sections are fast paced and move along quickly, but just as soon as something happens, a chapter break appears and the story slows down. The sections set in the past are slower going. They’re very valuable backstory, but they do disrupt the feverish pace of the present day storyline in a way I found frustrating at times.
A solid three-star story. It was a fun read but didn’t leave me with that “Aaah, that was so good” feeling.
The Clockwork Dynasty was published August 1, 2017.
Alex Can Read 