2018 Reads: Detective Strongoak and the Case of the Dead Elf

An interesting spin on both the private eye novel and "post-Tolkien" fantasy kingdom tale (with a dash of steampunk), Detective Strongoak and the Case of the Dead Elf (by Terry Newman) is a solid standalone whodunit, outside of the normal noir trappings.

Published in 2014, the book follows dwarf detective Nicely Strongoak as he tracks down a vanished surfer elf (no highfalooting willowy forest dweller, he!), is tied to a fresh elf murder, orc gangsters, and finds himself entangled in kingdom politicking...and perhaps a nefarious conspiracy. I don't want to mention too much, as the joy of discovery is half the fun.

I enjoyed this well enough to be a little upset that Newman hasn't put out a sequel in the last three years. That's a good thing. While the book does have a few meanders, as a first novel (by a veteran writer of stage, screen, and...stage again, but for stand-ups this time!), it's a firm success. Few firsts are absolutely perfect.

Strongoak has heavy lifting throughout beyond the norm: building this post-medieval, post-monarchist fantasy world (but it has cars, after a fashion, and some measure of tech; again, think steampunk), while maintaining the atmosphere of your Hammetts or Chandlers scene by scene. If you're used to fantasy, such as Tolkien, Jordan, Martin, Brooks, this isn't the familiar evergreen Middle Ages pastiche; it's centuries beyond that, in both appearance and make-up. Like Brust's Taltos stories, breaking free of the standard mold opens up dynamic storytelling options.

And fans of Vlad Taltos will find an entertaining diversion here - both in the mystery and the politics (because if there's one thing Steven Brust brings to the table in his Taltos books, its socio-economic commentary normally absent from this type of story).

Over on Goodreads, I rated this 4/5, but that's rounding up a touch. So to be as pedantic as possible, my actual rating is 3.75/5.

Recommended, and it's only $.99 on Kindle!. And Terry, if you stumble across this, kindly write another installment!

-E

9. Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

BONESHAKER
By Cherie Priest

Steampunk is one of the current "it" sub-genres of Sci-Fi (or western or fantasy or - honestly, it's either the nexus for every genre or deserves to be elevated a little), much like vampire or zombie fiction have broken out of Horror. In each case, we've moved past the novelty phase and are threatened with over-saturation.

In BONESHAKER, why, we're treated to steampunk AND zombies...in an alternate history!

BONESHAKER is the first entry in Priest's Clockwork Century universe, currently five novels and growing. The background is simple: in an attempt to create a drilling machine to find gold, Seattle inventor Leviticus Blue assembled the massive "Incredible Bone-Shaking Drill Engine." On its maiden test, the machine rampages through blocks of underground Seattle, damaging a great deal of real estate and opening some sort of "blight gas" pocket or deposit. This heavy gas kills whoever inhales it in modest amounts and then reanimates the corpses. After it is apparent the gas isn't stopping and the "rotter" epidemic isn't going away, the vast majority of residents flee the city and throw up a wall around it.

Nearly two decades later, Blue's widow Briar Wilkes discovers that her son, Zeke, has disappeared into the city to find clues to his father's work in an attempt to - just maybe - clean up his reputation. What follows is the adventure the two (separately) have, the former trying to get into the city and find her son, the latter trying to survive. Along the way, we meet the living and dead residents of the city, airship (dirigible) pirates, blight-distilling drug dealers, mercenaries, ne'er-do-wells and hear rumor of a brilliant inventor at the heart of the moribund city who may hold the answers.

Let's get the criticism out of the way. It's slow at times, the world-building inventive, but not pervasive, and the characters not nearly as sympathetic as Priest might want. Where the story runs down in between spurts of action or engrossing exposition, a reader might find their eyes glazing slightly. Not that this is indicative of a bad book, but with the background and sketch of a story that we read on the back cover, you wouldn't think to encounter these speed bumps.

That said, most of the book was a pleasure to read. I did not entirely care about all of the denizens of greater Seattle, but I was invested enough to want to see to their well-being. (I realize that's a backhanded compliment, but take more positive than negative from it.) Briar is a strong lead, not always likable  but very capable. In this somewhat fantastic environment, she makes sense and doesn't stretch incredulity.

I haven't read much in the "steampunk" genre, so I can't truly comment on how this one novel reflects the genre, but it does shine a light on Cherie Priest. What criticisms I have about the book aren't fatal flaws; this in an early book by the author, not her fifteenth. There are already several more "Clockwork Century" novels, pseudo-sequels, in your local bookstores, and reviews for those have been - at times - more positive than with BONESHAKER. The action, world-building potential and dynamic (enough) characters ensure that I'll be picking up at the least one of those follow-ups.

3.5/5

-Erik