Early Review – The Clockwork Dagger by Beth Cato (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Steampunk
Size: 368 pages
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: September 16, 2014
ISBN-13: 978-0062313843
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone?
Source: ARC through Amazon Vine
Rating: 5/5 stars

I really enjoyed this steampunk adventure by Cato. The story stands alone very well, but I was excited to find out there are more books planned for this series. The 2nd book in the series, The Clockwork Crown, is expected to release in Sept 2015.

Octavia Leander was orphaned at a young age, but her luck took a turn for the better when she was taken in by Miss Percival and trained as a medician. Years have passed and now Octavia is a medician of great power and being sent on her first assignment. She is being sent to a small town that is devastated by sickness, but getting there will be the exciting part.

On the airship ride to her destination she meets the very handsome steward Alonzo Garrett. She enjoys his occasional company until someone tries to kill her. Suddenly Octavia is dodging assassination attempts left and right, then she finds out Alonzo is not a steward at all but an elite Clockwork Dagger (a caste of warrior that usually protects the queen).

This was a very well written and action packed book. The story is fast paced right from the beginning and never lets up. There are a ton of steampunk elements in here (which I love). Lots of traveling by airship and people with mechanical limbs etc.

I really love how Octavia prays to a goddess of healing, The Lady, to do her medician work. This added a very interesting contrast to all the mechanical steampunk. Octavia uses magic and faith to heal in a world that is very much in love with all things mechanical and it really adds a fascinating dynamic to the story.

I enjoyed Octavia as a character, she is resourceful but not overly combative. She is incredibly compassionate but also practical. She was a complex and very intriguing character to read about.

Alozo Garrett was another very well done character. He has an interesting past and I look forward to getting to learn more about him in future books.

One of my favorite parts of the story was the gremlin Leaf, he is so cute and so funny. I can’t wait to read more and see how he fits into the greater picture.

There is some romance in here, but that definitely is not what drives the plot. The plot is action packed and driven by Octavia’s need to figure out the mystery behind the assassination attempts on her.

The story was incredibly engaging. The writing was very easy to read and flowed nicely. The dialogue between characters was witty, fun, and natural sounding.

Overall I loved this book. The characters are well done and I enjoyed the world and the contrast of Octavia’s magical healing versus the mechanical world around her. The story was fast-paced and engaging. I highly recommend this book to fans of steampunk reads or fans of books with a heavy magic/fantasy theme to them. I absolutely cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge