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Gears of Empire #1
Shanghai Sparrow
Shanghai Sparrow is a Far Eastern steampunk tale of espionage, distant empires and thrilling exploits, with a dynamic heroine.
The British Empire is at war, both within and without.
Eveline Duchen was once a country child, living a life of privilege, touched by the magic that still clings to the woods and fields of Victorian England. Now she is a street urchin in a London where brutal poverty and glittering new inventions exist side by side, living as a thief and con-artist under the wing of the formidable Ma Pether.
Caught in an act of deception, Eveline is faced with Mr Holmforth, a gentleman in the service of Her Majesty’s Government, who offers her a stark choice. Transportation, or an education – and utter commitment to Her Majesty’s Service - at Madam Cairngrim’s school for female spies. The school’s regime is harsh. Eveline has already learned harder lessons. She plans to take advantage of everything they can teach her, then go her own way.
But in the fury of the Opium Wars, the British Empire is about to make a devil’s bargain. Eveline’s choices will change the future of her world, and reveal the truth about the death of her sister Charlotte.
Shanghai Sparrow is set in an alternative England and China. It contains Formidable Devices, Fay, Etheric Science, Espionage, Opium, Murder and Bartitsu and may not be suitable for those of a delicate disposition.
The British Empire is at war, both within and without.
Eveline Duchen was once a country child, living a life of privilege, touched by the magic that still clings to the woods and fields of Victorian England. Now she is a street urchin in a London where brutal poverty and glittering new inventions exist side by side, living as a thief and con-artist under the wing of the formidable Ma Pether.
Caught in an act of deception, Eveline is faced with Mr Holmforth, a gentleman in the service of Her Majesty’s Government, who offers her a stark choice. Transportation, or an education – and utter commitment to Her Majesty’s Service - at Madam Cairngrim’s school for female spies. The school’s regime is harsh. Eveline has already learned harder lessons. She plans to take advantage of everything they can teach her, then go her own way.
But in the fury of the Opium Wars, the British Empire is about to make a devil’s bargain. Eveline’s choices will change the future of her world, and reveal the truth about the death of her sister Charlotte.
Shanghai Sparrow is set in an alternative England and China. It contains Formidable Devices, Fay, Etheric Science, Espionage, Opium, Murder and Bartitsu and may not be suitable for those of a delicate disposition.
416 pages, Paperback
First published April 29, 2014
13 people are currently reading
289 people want to read
About the author
Gaie Sebold
29 books91 followersGaie Sebold
Gaie’s debut novel Babylon Steel http://tinyurl.com/bwzcsbu was published by Solaris in January 2012 to enthusiastic reviews…
“…a pacey fantasy romp;” The Guardian
“Ingenious, gripping and full of pleasures on every level. Exceptional.” Mike Carey
“…an absolutely wonderful author who should be warmly welcomed alongside those authors pushing fantasy into new directions,” Fantasy Faction
… and was also shortlisted for the Compton Crook Award.
The sequel, Dangerous Gifts, came out in 2013 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dangerous-Gi... .
Shanghai Sparrow https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shanghai-Spa... - the first in the "Gears of Empire" steampunk series was published in 2014 and Sparrow Falling https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sparrow-Fall... in 2016.
Gaie is an accomplished short story writer and poet; her stories have appeared in a number of anthologies.
Gaie was born in the US, and lives in London. She has worked as a cleaner, secretary, till-monkey, stage-tour-manager, editor, and charity administrator. She now writes full time and runs occasional writing workshops. She is an obsessive reader, enthusiastic gardener, and has been known to run around in woods hitting people with latex swords and to declaim poetry in public, though not usually at the same time. She also has the standard cat apparently issued to most fantasy writers.
Gaie’s debut novel Babylon Steel http://tinyurl.com/bwzcsbu was published by Solaris in January 2012 to enthusiastic reviews…
“…a pacey fantasy romp;” The Guardian
“Ingenious, gripping and full of pleasures on every level. Exceptional.” Mike Carey
“…an absolutely wonderful author who should be warmly welcomed alongside those authors pushing fantasy into new directions,” Fantasy Faction
… and was also shortlisted for the Compton Crook Award.
The sequel, Dangerous Gifts, came out in 2013 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dangerous-Gi... .
Shanghai Sparrow https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shanghai-Spa... - the first in the "Gears of Empire" steampunk series was published in 2014 and Sparrow Falling https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sparrow-Fall... in 2016.
Gaie is an accomplished short story writer and poet; her stories have appeared in a number of anthologies.
Gaie was born in the US, and lives in London. She has worked as a cleaner, secretary, till-monkey, stage-tour-manager, editor, and charity administrator. She now writes full time and runs occasional writing workshops. She is an obsessive reader, enthusiastic gardener, and has been known to run around in woods hitting people with latex swords and to declaim poetry in public, though not usually at the same time. She also has the standard cat apparently issued to most fantasy writers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
June 10, 2014
Exceeds expectations!
This book is just pure fun. Eveline Duchen has been orphaned and left to fend for herself on London’s gritty streets. She’s made a life for herself, of sorts – but that’s abruptly turned on its head when a grasping government agent plucks her out of her situation and places her in a school for female spies. Of course, he’s got an agenda. He believes that her uncle was a researcher into the use of Etheric sciences, and that Evvie might’ve inherited an ability that can be harnessed for the use of the British Empire. Little does he know that the real researcher was Evvie’s mother, and that Eveline has no mechanical or magical ability to speak of.
However, she’s got plenty of smarts – and with the help of her new friend Beth; she might even be able to figure out who – if anyone – she can trust.
The tale mixes magic and faerie lore with steampunk elements in a way that I found reminiscent of M.K. Hobson. This book is a must for her fans, as well as fans of Gail Carriger, Leanna Hieber and even Kage Baker’s ‘Nell Gwynne’ stories. It’s got fast-paced action, some good twists and turns, and although it’s got a super-attractive, enigmatic Chinese tutor, it avoids tired romance tropes. Like I said, it’s a fun, quick read – with a bit of the feminism and anti-colonialist sentiment that’s de rigueur for any entry into the steampunk genre.
My one quibble: from the title, I expected a Chinese setting. We don’t get to China until 87% of the way through the book, and it’s only a very brief visit (speedy airship travel is convenient). There aren’t even any well-developed regular Chinese characters in the book. Maybe this aspect will be further expanded on in some sequels (it’s a nice opening), but as it stands, in no way was the Chinese trip necessary to the plot, and the brief scene in Shanghai felt quickly sketched out.
However, the London setting felt vivid, the characters’ ‘voices’ were convincing, and even the villains were reasonably well-drawn, with believable motivations (always a good thing). I’d definitely like to seek out Sebold’s two previous books.
Copy provided by NetGalley & Solaris books; in return for an honest review.
This book is just pure fun. Eveline Duchen has been orphaned and left to fend for herself on London’s gritty streets. She’s made a life for herself, of sorts – but that’s abruptly turned on its head when a grasping government agent plucks her out of her situation and places her in a school for female spies. Of course, he’s got an agenda. He believes that her uncle was a researcher into the use of Etheric sciences, and that Evvie might’ve inherited an ability that can be harnessed for the use of the British Empire. Little does he know that the real researcher was Evvie’s mother, and that Eveline has no mechanical or magical ability to speak of.
However, she’s got plenty of smarts – and with the help of her new friend Beth; she might even be able to figure out who – if anyone – she can trust.
The tale mixes magic and faerie lore with steampunk elements in a way that I found reminiscent of M.K. Hobson. This book is a must for her fans, as well as fans of Gail Carriger, Leanna Hieber and even Kage Baker’s ‘Nell Gwynne’ stories. It’s got fast-paced action, some good twists and turns, and although it’s got a super-attractive, enigmatic Chinese tutor, it avoids tired romance tropes. Like I said, it’s a fun, quick read – with a bit of the feminism and anti-colonialist sentiment that’s de rigueur for any entry into the steampunk genre.
My one quibble: from the title, I expected a Chinese setting. We don’t get to China until 87% of the way through the book, and it’s only a very brief visit (speedy airship travel is convenient). There aren’t even any well-developed regular Chinese characters in the book. Maybe this aspect will be further expanded on in some sequels (it’s a nice opening), but as it stands, in no way was the Chinese trip necessary to the plot, and the brief scene in Shanghai felt quickly sketched out.
However, the London setting felt vivid, the characters’ ‘voices’ were convincing, and even the villains were reasonably well-drawn, with believable motivations (always a good thing). I’d definitely like to seek out Sebold’s two previous books.
Copy provided by NetGalley & Solaris books; in return for an honest review.
September 10, 2017
With this book, if you’ve read one steampunky book with a plucky young protagonist who goes to spy school, you’ve read them all, including this. It reminded me of Gail Carriger’s work, with less romance and humour. That’s not a bad thing, even though this sounds like damning with faint praise; it’s a fun book, and the crossover with faerie lore is fascinating — steampunk, plus fox spirits and fairy courts who spirit away humans.
It’s reasonably predictable, but it moves along at a pretty good pace, apart from one interlude which delves into the main character’s past and rather stalls the narrative. It’s enjoyable that it’s mostly not about romance, and that one of the main character’s preoccupations is actually — slight spoiler ahead — finding her mother, who she thought was dead. The ending felt a little easy, in that you had the characters all tangled up in spy school and people’s plans and then… suddenly, they just manage to walk free.
I’m not desperate to read the second book, but I had fun. Sometimes, that’s what you need.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
It’s reasonably predictable, but it moves along at a pretty good pace, apart from one interlude which delves into the main character’s past and rather stalls the narrative. It’s enjoyable that it’s mostly not about romance, and that one of the main character’s preoccupations is actually — slight spoiler ahead — finding her mother, who she thought was dead. The ending felt a little easy, in that you had the characters all tangled up in spy school and people’s plans and then… suddenly, they just manage to walk free.
I’m not desperate to read the second book, but I had fun. Sometimes, that’s what you need.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
August 10, 2016
For a historical fantasy that contain “Formidable Devices, Fay, Etheric Science, Espionage, Opium, Murder and Bartitsu” — exciting stuff, it was restrained. Blech. Fantasy is supposed to be fantastic, not restrained. I found the book lacking in many ways.
+ the characters
I liked Eveline from the start. She was clever and wisely distrustful. She didn’t let the bad guys break her composure. She didn’t need anyone to tell her how much danger she was in. She knew when she was being bullshited and knew how to bullshit back. In short, she had a functional brain, unlike the many YA main characters I have read recently (Cress, The Seers, Cold Fury, The Pirate's Wish, and Altered to name a few).
I had only one gripe with Eveline, and it’s really more of a grip with the plot than with the heroine. I didn’t expect her to succeed at every turn, but at the climax I wished she had the upper hand. I wished it was pure wit that saved the good guys, not by convenient luck and improvisation. I wanted Eveline to be the heroine in her full glory, but instead she got nudged out of the limelight.
I also liked Beth, Eveline’s friend. Usually, the geek sidekick is a guy, but it was Beth instead, and I found it very refreshing the geek sidekick was a girl for a change. Along with Madeleine, I loved how there were women scientists and how they played a big role towards the end. What I did not love were how the scientists were passive, particularly at the rising action. If Eveline was absent, Beth and Madeleine were up the creek without a paddle.
Speaking of helpless female characters, there were too many for my liking. For a book eulogizing women’s empowerment, it seemed to love the damsel in distress trope. Thankfully, the plot lines for Treadwell and Charlotte wrapped up quickly and kept the angst down.
I hated Holmforth’s viewpoint. He was a big sack of self-loathing and prejudices. Being in his head, even though it was only 3rd person, pushed my limit for the foul character. I had to skim his viewpoint to salvage my enjoyment with the book. Thankfully, his viewpoint ebbed towards the middle of the book and didn’t rise back till the rising action. Just like how the heroine was nudged out of the limelight, so too was Holmforth in his role as the main bad. As a result, his comeuppance did not feel as satisfactory as it should have been. It was more like an afterthought really.
As for Liu, I wanted to like him, but the guy was too mysterious. Mysterious Liu is mysterious. I recognized that was the intention, but it really impeded me from getting to know him. I couldn’t get any sense of him other than the fact that he wasn’t an enemy of Eveline’s. At least, not intentionally. Plus, it didn’t help that he was around Eveline’s age. I kept thinking of him as her love interest. You know you read too many YA when you automatically assign any boy whom the heroine immoderately interacts with as the heroine’s love interest. Finally, it bothered me that the one important Asian character in the entire book and he was mysterious and exoticized.
The only characters who were more mysterious than Liu were the Folks, which the book called the faeries. And they weren’t mysterious as they didn’t have any character development. Throwing out a couple ubiquitous details such as how the Folks have magic and how they’re immortal does not constitute character development. Despite what a big deal they were, the Folks were never more than hazy, shadowy background characters.
+ the plot
I hated the long ass flashback at the third of the book. Seriously, it was really long. It fucking took up 16% of the book. Yes, I counted. I liked Eveline but I did not need to learn in minute detail how she lost her bourgeois family and became a hardened street urchin. I wanted Eveline’s backstory but I did not want it in one constipated infodump of a giant sob story. No. Just no.
In regard to the setting, the sense of England was strong, but the sense of China was pitifully weak. Even though the setting alternated between England and China, it was set in England like 80-90% of the time. The few scenes that did take place in China honestly felt like they could have taken place anywhere else. The book would have been better off set entirely in England and in a Chinatown of England. “Far Eastern steampunk” my ass.
Well, at least there was steampunk because there was not much of anything else. The espionage was underwhelming. The etheric science was nebulous. The historical side was thin. It’s like expecting real fruit juice but receiving some carbonated shit made with 10% real juice. This reader was highly disappointed.
Conclusion
I rate Shanghai Sparrow 2-stars for it was okay. The book was a classic case of all that glitters was not gold. The only thing the book got right was the dynamic heroine. On the bright side, this book was still better than the Spiritwalker trilogy by Kate Elliott beginning with the fact that the book isn’t a dragged out trilogy.
+ the characters
I liked Eveline from the start. She was clever and wisely distrustful. She didn’t let the bad guys break her composure. She didn’t need anyone to tell her how much danger she was in. She knew when she was being bullshited and knew how to bullshit back. In short, she had a functional brain, unlike the many YA main characters I have read recently (Cress, The Seers, Cold Fury, The Pirate's Wish, and Altered to name a few).
I had only one gripe with Eveline, and it’s really more of a grip with the plot than with the heroine. I didn’t expect her to succeed at every turn, but at the climax I wished she had the upper hand. I wished it was pure wit that saved the good guys, not by convenient luck and improvisation. I wanted Eveline to be the heroine in her full glory, but instead she got nudged out of the limelight.
I also liked Beth, Eveline’s friend. Usually, the geek sidekick is a guy, but it was Beth instead, and I found it very refreshing the geek sidekick was a girl for a change. Along with Madeleine, I loved how there were women scientists and how they played a big role towards the end. What I did not love were how the scientists were passive, particularly at the rising action. If Eveline was absent, Beth and Madeleine were up the creek without a paddle.
Speaking of helpless female characters, there were too many for my liking. For a book eulogizing women’s empowerment, it seemed to love the damsel in distress trope. Thankfully, the plot lines for Treadwell and Charlotte wrapped up quickly and kept the angst down.
I hated Holmforth’s viewpoint. He was a big sack of self-loathing and prejudices. Being in his head, even though it was only 3rd person, pushed my limit for the foul character. I had to skim his viewpoint to salvage my enjoyment with the book. Thankfully, his viewpoint ebbed towards the middle of the book and didn’t rise back till the rising action. Just like how the heroine was nudged out of the limelight, so too was Holmforth in his role as the main bad. As a result, his comeuppance did not feel as satisfactory as it should have been. It was more like an afterthought really.
As for Liu, I wanted to like him, but the guy was too mysterious. Mysterious Liu is mysterious. I recognized that was the intention, but it really impeded me from getting to know him. I couldn’t get any sense of him other than the fact that he wasn’t an enemy of Eveline’s. At least, not intentionally. Plus, it didn’t help that he was around Eveline’s age. I kept thinking of him as her love interest. You know you read too many YA when you automatically assign any boy whom the heroine immoderately interacts with as the heroine’s love interest. Finally, it bothered me that the one important Asian character in the entire book and he was mysterious and exoticized.
The only characters who were more mysterious than Liu were the Folks, which the book called the faeries. And they weren’t mysterious as they didn’t have any character development. Throwing out a couple ubiquitous details such as how the Folks have magic and how they’re immortal does not constitute character development. Despite what a big deal they were, the Folks were never more than hazy, shadowy background characters.
+ the plot
I hated the long ass flashback at the third of the book. Seriously, it was really long. It fucking took up 16% of the book. Yes, I counted. I liked Eveline but I did not need to learn in minute detail how she lost her bourgeois family and became a hardened street urchin. I wanted Eveline’s backstory but I did not want it in one constipated infodump of a giant sob story. No. Just no.
In regard to the setting, the sense of England was strong, but the sense of China was pitifully weak. Even though the setting alternated between England and China, it was set in England like 80-90% of the time. The few scenes that did take place in China honestly felt like they could have taken place anywhere else. The book would have been better off set entirely in England and in a Chinatown of England. “Far Eastern steampunk” my ass.
Well, at least there was steampunk because there was not much of anything else. The espionage was underwhelming. The etheric science was nebulous. The historical side was thin. It’s like expecting real fruit juice but receiving some carbonated shit made with 10% real juice. This reader was highly disappointed.
Conclusion
I rate Shanghai Sparrow 2-stars for it was okay. The book was a classic case of all that glitters was not gold. The only thing the book got right was the dynamic heroine. On the bright side, this book was still better than the Spiritwalker trilogy by Kate Elliott beginning with the fact that the book isn’t a dragged out trilogy.
May 1, 2014
4,5
I recieved this ARC from Netgalley and this is my honest Review of it.
This book takes place in a Victorian era world where steamships soar the skies over London, and where a young woman called Evvie the sparrow works for Ma Pether (think like a female Fagin).
Stealing running,confidence games and keeping out from the eyes of the law are the essentials in her profession even if there are hints that once her Life once was very different.But Evvie prefers not to think too much about her past and instead focus on the present wich is hard enough.
One day while she is working a con she is interrupted by a man called Holmfort who tempts her with the possibility of advancement in life and a pension after she has completed an important task for him,a task for wich he believes she has an aptitude.
She agrees to this even if she and we the reader both know that he has ulterior motives.
So Evvie finds herself shipped off to the strict boarding school Britannia run by stern Ms Cairngrim aptly nicknamed Miss Grim by her students.
The Britannia School is used to train girls in the service of the empire but Evvie soon figures out that its mostly used to hide away the illegitimate daughters of the rich,noble and powerful. Its pupils are taught several subjects like deportment,languages,the art of disguise and Bartitsu.
In this new enviroment can Evvie figure out the dark agenda of Holmforth and her connection to Etheric sciences
The first thing you need to know about Evvie is that she is DEVIOUS and CUNNING. But being forced to grow up in the conditions she had its not bad qualities to have.
Another character describes her perfectly
"With *spoiler hidden* you are an respectable young lady.
Others see an innocent or a rogue..
"And what do you see?" Evvie raised her chin"
"An artist he said,and managed still clinging on to the window with one hand,a remarkably elegant bow.
But she has a good heart so I liked her. Shes a strong character but shes certainly not a Mary Sue or made of stone
When it comes to the setting I also liked (if liking is the right word) that the author didnt shy away from the seedier and not so pretty parts of the Victorian era. There is racial prejudice and chauvinism galore. Not to mention poverty and other dickensian awful going ons.
But in all the darkness there is hope too
As I was reading Shanghai Sparrow I kept waiting for romance to happen. There were several likely candidates for the role but then I realized just like this story does perfectly fine without inserting a romance so does Evvie. She has too many other things to think about to complicate it with getting a love interest.
There were actually several times when I though to myself. Give the poor girl a break. Hasnt she been through enough? And isnt that what makes a book great when you start to care about their characters and what will become of them
That said I really liked Liu :) He both admires and accepts her for what she is.
This is a book full of what I would like to call in lack of a better word- Girl power.
Evvie acquires a female friend at Britannia who proves to be quite resourceful and loyal,and other female character shows that they are far from the mindless idiots some men seems to think they are.
Holmforth as the primary antagonist was really someone you could dislike and hope Evvie would escape from, but at the same time you start understand where he was coming from and makes him something more than a cardboard antagonist.
His fate at the end of the book was really sad,and despite being the villain I think it was a bit harsh.Maybe it will make him learn some lessons though
If this book has any weakness its that I felt the reasons for the animosity against the Folk was a bit vague as they dont really appear in the book wich causes the threat they are supposedly posing be a bit hard to Believe as its based on what a supporting character states and some powerhungry/paranoid officials beliefs.
The chapters with the folk Empress could have been cut out for all the impact they had on the story.
The prologue I am not so sure I liked because of the implications when it comes to the future of Evvie. Its not an unhappy ending and I even understand how it came about and that it fits the theme of female empowerment running through the book.
But I cant really believe thats how her story will end.
Will there be no more adventures for Eveline Duchen?! I hope Gaie Sebold does write more. *hints*
I recieved this ARC from Netgalley and this is my honest Review of it.
This book takes place in a Victorian era world where steamships soar the skies over London, and where a young woman called Evvie the sparrow works for Ma Pether (think like a female Fagin).
Stealing running,confidence games and keeping out from the eyes of the law are the essentials in her profession even if there are hints that once her Life once was very different.But Evvie prefers not to think too much about her past and instead focus on the present wich is hard enough.
One day while she is working a con she is interrupted by a man called Holmfort who tempts her with the possibility of advancement in life and a pension after she has completed an important task for him,a task for wich he believes she has an aptitude.
She agrees to this even if she and we the reader both know that he has ulterior motives.
So Evvie finds herself shipped off to the strict boarding school Britannia run by stern Ms Cairngrim aptly nicknamed Miss Grim by her students.
The Britannia School is used to train girls in the service of the empire but Evvie soon figures out that its mostly used to hide away the illegitimate daughters of the rich,noble and powerful. Its pupils are taught several subjects like deportment,languages,the art of disguise and Bartitsu.
In this new enviroment can Evvie figure out the dark agenda of Holmforth and her connection to Etheric sciences
The first thing you need to know about Evvie is that she is DEVIOUS and CUNNING. But being forced to grow up in the conditions she had its not bad qualities to have.
Another character describes her perfectly
"With *spoiler hidden* you are an respectable young lady.
Others see an innocent or a rogue..
"And what do you see?" Evvie raised her chin"
"An artist he said,and managed still clinging on to the window with one hand,a remarkably elegant bow.
But she has a good heart so I liked her. Shes a strong character but shes certainly not a Mary Sue or made of stone
When it comes to the setting I also liked (if liking is the right word) that the author didnt shy away from the seedier and not so pretty parts of the Victorian era. There is racial prejudice and chauvinism galore. Not to mention poverty and other dickensian awful going ons.
But in all the darkness there is hope too
As I was reading Shanghai Sparrow I kept waiting for romance to happen. There were several likely candidates for the role but then I realized just like this story does perfectly fine without inserting a romance so does Evvie. She has too many other things to think about to complicate it with getting a love interest.
There were actually several times when I though to myself. Give the poor girl a break. Hasnt she been through enough? And isnt that what makes a book great when you start to care about their characters and what will become of them
That said I really liked Liu :) He both admires and accepts her for what she is.
This is a book full of what I would like to call in lack of a better word- Girl power.
Evvie acquires a female friend at Britannia who proves to be quite resourceful and loyal,and other female character shows that they are far from the mindless idiots some men seems to think they are.
Holmforth as the primary antagonist was really someone you could dislike and hope Evvie would escape from, but at the same time you start understand where he was coming from and makes him something more than a cardboard antagonist.
His fate at the end of the book was really sad,and despite being the villain I think it was a bit harsh.Maybe it will make him learn some lessons though
If this book has any weakness its that I felt the reasons for the animosity against the Folk was a bit vague as they dont really appear in the book wich causes the threat they are supposedly posing be a bit hard to Believe as its based on what a supporting character states and some powerhungry/paranoid officials beliefs.
The chapters with the folk Empress could have been cut out for all the impact they had on the story.
The prologue I am not so sure I liked because of the implications when it comes to the future of Evvie. Its not an unhappy ending and I even understand how it came about and that it fits the theme of female empowerment running through the book.
But I cant really believe thats how her story will end.
Will there be no more adventures for Eveline Duchen?! I hope Gaie Sebold does write more. *hints*
July 7, 2021
Review to come. Maybe.
April 2, 2014
I received this Kindle ARC through NetGalley from the publisher, Solaris Books.
This YA steampunk novel was a pleasurable read, quick and quirky. The storyline interlinks two subplots. One is about Eveline, a fifteen-year-old orphan in Victorian England. Another is a paranormal tale involving fairies and etheric science (what is it?), fantastic audio machines and feminism, colonial attitudes and zeppelins, and the omnipotent, aloof Folk. Perhaps it’s too much for one novel, but the author is deft enough to weave all those threads together into a smooth and vivid tapestry.
Since losing her mother at the age of eight, Eveline has survived in the mean streets of London, stealing and tricking, and cajoling her way, always one step ahead of a policeman. Until she gotunlucky. A mysterious Mr Holmforth plucks her off the streets and forcibly installs her in a school for female spies. All the students here are bastard daughters of noblemen and have no other place to go, and although Eveline is not a bastard, she fits right in. Like the rest, she has no other place to go.
Of course Holmforth has a secret agenda, but Eveline doesn’t trust him anyway. She would squeeze as much education as she could out of her cryptic patron and deal with his weird demands later. With her experience as a con artist and him obviously wanting something from her, she should be able to swindle him. Or so she thinks.
The only snag in her plans: she can’t do it alone. She needs to learn to trust people, to make friends, the skills that her life in the slums had almost eradicated. Eveline’s inner journey from suspicion to trust, from a solitary trickster to a leader and a friend, runs deep underneath the surface of this light and galloping adventure story.
The action is swift, the tension mounts consistently, and the stakes are impossibly high, especially after Holmforth’s plans are revealed. He wants nothing less than to invade the Fairyland, for the good of the Empire, of course, and neither Eveline nor her friends could allow him to succeed.
Holmforth is a bit flat as a villain, but I don’t hold it against the writer. Most villains are flat and colorless, both in real life and in fiction. That’s why they’re not heroes. Colors are usually reserved for the good guys.
What I found especially refreshing about this novel: Eveline doesn’t have any romantic entanglement and doesn’t suffer from teenage angst. Those two are tired tropes of YA fantasy, but Eveline doesn’t have the luxury to indulge in either. Despite her occasional self-doubts, she must solve her problems quickly and efficiently. If she hesitates or fails, she would perish, and so would people she cares for. In her situation, she can’t afford any mush, and I liked her no-nonsense approach.
This novel has only one serious flaw. Most of the action takes place wherever Eveline is. It’s her story. But several snatches of narrative are devoted to either Holmforth or esoteric Fox, a creature of the Fairy Court. The transitions are too abrupt, and the POV snippets of Holmforth and Fox feel like riddles. They are not needed and their relevance to Eveline’s plotline only becomes apparent close to the end. They are just paragraphs of artificial secrets, not from Eveline, for she doesn’t know about them, but from the reader. I dislike it when a writer keeps secrets from the reader and dropped a star from the rating because of it.
Otherwise, an enjoyable book. Recommended.
This YA steampunk novel was a pleasurable read, quick and quirky. The storyline interlinks two subplots. One is about Eveline, a fifteen-year-old orphan in Victorian England. Another is a paranormal tale involving fairies and etheric science (what is it?), fantastic audio machines and feminism, colonial attitudes and zeppelins, and the omnipotent, aloof Folk. Perhaps it’s too much for one novel, but the author is deft enough to weave all those threads together into a smooth and vivid tapestry.
Since losing her mother at the age of eight, Eveline has survived in the mean streets of London, stealing and tricking, and cajoling her way, always one step ahead of a policeman. Until she got
Of course Holmforth has a secret agenda, but Eveline doesn’t trust him anyway. She would squeeze as much education as she could out of her cryptic patron and deal with his weird demands later. With her experience as a con artist and him obviously wanting something from her, she should be able to swindle him. Or so she thinks.
The only snag in her plans: she can’t do it alone. She needs to learn to trust people, to make friends, the skills that her life in the slums had almost eradicated. Eveline’s inner journey from suspicion to trust, from a solitary trickster to a leader and a friend, runs deep underneath the surface of this light and galloping adventure story.
The action is swift, the tension mounts consistently, and the stakes are impossibly high, especially after Holmforth’s plans are revealed. He wants nothing less than to invade the Fairyland, for the good of the Empire, of course, and neither Eveline nor her friends could allow him to succeed.
Holmforth is a bit flat as a villain, but I don’t hold it against the writer. Most villains are flat and colorless, both in real life and in fiction. That’s why they’re not heroes. Colors are usually reserved for the good guys.
What I found especially refreshing about this novel: Eveline doesn’t have any romantic entanglement and doesn’t suffer from teenage angst. Those two are tired tropes of YA fantasy, but Eveline doesn’t have the luxury to indulge in either. Despite her occasional self-doubts, she must solve her problems quickly and efficiently. If she hesitates or fails, she would perish, and so would people she cares for. In her situation, she can’t afford any mush, and I liked her no-nonsense approach.
This novel has only one serious flaw. Most of the action takes place wherever Eveline is. It’s her story. But several snatches of narrative are devoted to either Holmforth or esoteric Fox, a creature of the Fairy Court. The transitions are too abrupt, and the POV snippets of Holmforth and Fox feel like riddles. They are not needed and their relevance to Eveline’s plotline only becomes apparent close to the end. They are just paragraphs of artificial secrets, not from Eveline, for she doesn’t know about them, but from the reader. I dislike it when a writer keeps secrets from the reader and dropped a star from the rating because of it.
Otherwise, an enjoyable book. Recommended.
June 1, 2014
When we first meet Eveline “Evvie” Duchen, she is scraping together a living as a pickpocket and con artist on the streets of London. Things used to be very different for her: she lived in the country, in touch with the mysterious Other Folk and fascinated by the Etheric machines her mother built. As Gaie Sebold’s new novel Shanghai Sparrow continues, we slowly find out how exactly Evvie went from her earlier comfortable life to being a street urchin in London.
Then, her life changes again when Holmforth, an ambitious government agent of the British Empire, catches her trying to pull a con and makes her choose: get shipped off to the colonies, or join a secret boarding school for girls who might become useful to the Empire as spies…
Read the entire review on my site Far Beyond Reality!
Then, her life changes again when Holmforth, an ambitious government agent of the British Empire, catches her trying to pull a con and makes her choose: get shipped off to the colonies, or join a secret boarding school for girls who might become useful to the Empire as spies…
Read the entire review on my site Far Beyond Reality!
August 22, 2015
Eveline Duchen is a thief living on the streets of London. London is the heart of the British Empire which is bult on the backs of the poor. The government man, Mr. Holmforth, has taken an intersest in Eveline. She is to play a vital role in his plans to further the Empire's interests. But Eveline has never been one to meekly accept the roles others would thrust upon her.
I would call this story a fantasy with touches of steampunk elements. It is dark in nature. London of this time is very regimented. Most people are poor with little chance to change their life. Women are expected to be good wives or housekeepers and very little else. The Folk (creatures from fairy tales) are looked upon as little better than animals. Other nationalities are also looked down upon, especially the Chinese. Basically, all of the worst elements of the past are there for your reading enjoyment.
This could make Eveline a truly heroic character as she fights her way past these obstacles to bring about a better future ( at least for herself and her loved ones). But she doesn't really rise to that level. She is a thief. She distrusts everyone. She has prejudices. She does just enough to get by. So, she is a flawed hero.
I kept expecting the story to progress in much different ways. The story moved fairly slowly before she was sent to the school. At the school, it picked up some but I still expected it to either go into more detail of her training or to get her to Shanghai. Instead we have the story happening in spurts. Nothing much would be happening and then lots would happen and back to slower pacing.
I would read another story in this series if one were to come out. Now that Eveline has taken control of her own life, the story would hopefully be more like what the back of the book suggested.
I would call this story a fantasy with touches of steampunk elements. It is dark in nature. London of this time is very regimented. Most people are poor with little chance to change their life. Women are expected to be good wives or housekeepers and very little else. The Folk (creatures from fairy tales) are looked upon as little better than animals. Other nationalities are also looked down upon, especially the Chinese. Basically, all of the worst elements of the past are there for your reading enjoyment.
This could make Eveline a truly heroic character as she fights her way past these obstacles to bring about a better future ( at least for herself and her loved ones). But she doesn't really rise to that level. She is a thief. She distrusts everyone. She has prejudices. She does just enough to get by. So, she is a flawed hero.
I kept expecting the story to progress in much different ways. The story moved fairly slowly before she was sent to the school. At the school, it picked up some but I still expected it to either go into more detail of her training or to get her to Shanghai. Instead we have the story happening in spurts. Nothing much would be happening and then lots would happen and back to slower pacing.
I would read another story in this series if one were to come out. Now that Eveline has taken control of her own life, the story would hopefully be more like what the back of the book suggested.
September 27, 2016
Enjoyed this, good Fantasy/Steampunk fun. It borders the edge of YA and adult reading, but can be easily enjoyed by both.
In a Victorian type Britain a young thief has to face her past and survive while not knowing who to trust. This is a world of airships and weird mechanical machines and the remains of "the Folk", fairy types that sort of co-exist with humans. Our young thief is a gutsy young thing trying hard to protect herself while being introduced to things and wonders she could previously have only imagined. She is being trained as a spy while her knowledge of sonic influences is being tested. And she may be asked to develop a weapon that could destroy everything.
Like the author's previous books, it has strong female leads, and a sense of pace and fun. I hope there are more in the series.
In a Victorian type Britain a young thief has to face her past and survive while not knowing who to trust. This is a world of airships and weird mechanical machines and the remains of "the Folk", fairy types that sort of co-exist with humans. Our young thief is a gutsy young thing trying hard to protect herself while being introduced to things and wonders she could previously have only imagined. She is being trained as a spy while her knowledge of sonic influences is being tested. And she may be asked to develop a weapon that could destroy everything.
Like the author's previous books, it has strong female leads, and a sense of pace and fun. I hope there are more in the series.
April 3, 2018
Pro:
- some very nice (i.e. evocative) writing
- full of resilient, resourceful female characters
- does a nice job of making reader unsure of various characters' motives and true nature until timely reveal, with one big exception (see "con")
- really liked the protagonist, who has a lot that makes one cheer her on but is saved from MarySue-ness by believable, smallish dose flaws
- really liked the concept of British/Chinese setting, with one big exception (see, again, "con")
- liked how for a long time a male character was seen in a very negative light, and is later shown to be redeemed by understanding that the problem lay in the main character's misperception of his words
Con:
- one of the antagonists telegraphed his antagonism from miles away, so what seemed to have been intended as a surprise really, really wasn't, left the big climactic scene a bit flat. Not only that, but that antagonist engages in a huge malicious act which made absolutely no sense for his purposes (would have been infinitely more logical to engage in a smaller malicious act), so I can only conclude that the hugeness of the act was somehow intended to make the reader gasp with astonishment. Which perhaps I would have done if I hadn't tapped that person as an antagonist from their first appearance.
- the cover and back blurb seem to emphasize the Chinese aspect, however, it takes FOREVER for the protagonist to make it to China, and then she is barely there before back in Britain again; I felt cheated. "Shanghai Sparrow?" Shanghai not so much.
- wished that a female character (whose identity can't be stated because: spoiler) had had more screen time later in story, and greater interaction with protagonist. But perhaps that may take place in later volumes of the series?
Overall: Story moves from 3 to 4 stars due to originality of material and kickass-ness of heroine. Will read next story from this author.
- some very nice (i.e. evocative) writing
- full of resilient, resourceful female characters
- does a nice job of making reader unsure of various characters' motives and true nature until timely reveal, with one big exception (see "con")
- really liked the protagonist, who has a lot that makes one cheer her on but is saved from MarySue-ness by believable, smallish dose flaws
- really liked the concept of British/Chinese setting, with one big exception (see, again, "con")
- liked how for a long time a male character was seen in a very negative light, and is later shown to be redeemed by understanding that the problem lay in the main character's misperception of his words
Con:
- one of the antagonists telegraphed his antagonism from miles away, so what seemed to have been intended as a surprise really, really wasn't, left the big climactic scene a bit flat. Not only that, but that antagonist engages in a huge malicious act which made absolutely no sense for his purposes (would have been infinitely more logical to engage in a smaller malicious act), so I can only conclude that the hugeness of the act was somehow intended to make the reader gasp with astonishment. Which perhaps I would have done if I hadn't tapped that person as an antagonist from their first appearance.
- the cover and back blurb seem to emphasize the Chinese aspect, however, it takes FOREVER for the protagonist to make it to China, and then she is barely there before back in Britain again; I felt cheated. "Shanghai Sparrow?" Shanghai not so much.
- wished that a female character (whose identity can't be stated because: spoiler) had had more screen time later in story, and greater interaction with protagonist. But perhaps that may take place in later volumes of the series?
Overall: Story moves from 3 to 4 stars due to originality of material and kickass-ness of heroine. Will read next story from this author.
November 28, 2019
Once I got into this entertaining steam punk adventure, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Evvie is a sympathetic protagonist, although I didn’t immediately reconnect with her as there didn’t seem to be a major bonding moment in the early stages of the novel. A strength of this series is the quality and depth of the supporting characters who are also depicted alongside Evvie Sparrow. One of my favourites is Ma Pether, the Fagin -like character who had scooped up Evvie off the streets and trained her to be a pickpocket and thief.
The other major character who I have more than a soft spot for is Liu, the half-Fae trickster who travels between the Fae courts and the human world in an attempt to impress his father. And save his own life… The two parallel narratives running alongside one another that power the narrative arc are equally engrossing, so I was never tempted to skim one in order to get back to the other. While it took some time for the book to hit its stride, once both storylines got going this was difficult to put down, and I thoroughly enjoyed the manner in which the resolution came about.
It is always a treat to think you know where a story is going, only to find it shoots off in another direction. I am hoping that Sebold is busy writing an addition to this entertaining series – surely Evvie’s talent for finding trouble has not yet been exhausted and I want more of Ma and Liu as well.
Recommended for fans of well-written steam punk.
8/10
The other major character who I have more than a soft spot for is Liu, the half-Fae trickster who travels between the Fae courts and the human world in an attempt to impress his father. And save his own life… The two parallel narratives running alongside one another that power the narrative arc are equally engrossing, so I was never tempted to skim one in order to get back to the other. While it took some time for the book to hit its stride, once both storylines got going this was difficult to put down, and I thoroughly enjoyed the manner in which the resolution came about.
It is always a treat to think you know where a story is going, only to find it shoots off in another direction. I am hoping that Sebold is busy writing an addition to this entertaining series – surely Evvie’s talent for finding trouble has not yet been exhausted and I want more of Ma and Liu as well.
Recommended for fans of well-written steam punk.
8/10
January 26, 2019
I've loved everything I've read of Gaie Sebold's so far, so I'm not sure why it took me so long to get around to reading this (except the usual excuse: too many books; too little time). I loved it, though I didn't think I was going to at first. It took me a few chapters to get into it, but when I did I was hooked. Eveline Duchen is a sparrow, one of the flocks of unnoticeable London children doing what she has to do to survive. She's part of a thieving gang (all girls) run by Ma Pether, a benign Fagin-type character. When she attracts the attention of government man, Mr. Holmforth she's not sure why he insists on sending her to a school for spies, but it's an education of sorts, though not always a comfortable one. Holmforth, however, wants her for her special skills in Etheric Magic. Unfortunately she doesn't have any. Eveline is a great character. Once she gets the opportunity she soaks up knowledge like a sponge (particularly languages). Despite her rough upbringing she looks after those she considers to be hers and thinks her way through problems, aided by Chinese enigma, Liu, and school friend, Beth. Highly recommended.
October 30, 2018
A young street thief in Victorian London is swept up by a mysterious stranger and taken to a mysterious school for girls (with bars on the windows and dogs patrolling the grounds) where she is taught spycraft to become an agent for Her Majesty's Empire. I read something similar two years ago in A Spy in the House by Y. S. Lee and its 3 sequels. In Shanghai Sparrow, the girl is younger and a bit spunkier (and not ready for romance). And there's more steampunk/aetheric devices--and faeries ("The Folk"). Also, only one sequel.
If this sounds like your sort of book, you might also try the Finishing School books (4) by Gail Carriger beginning with Etiquette & Espionage. More steampunk and vampires and werewolves instead of faeries. Finishing School as in a place where young ladies learn how to finish off villains. These are a YA offshoot of Carriger's more adult Parasol Protectorate series.
If this sounds like your sort of book, you might also try the Finishing School books (4) by Gail Carriger beginning with Etiquette & Espionage. More steampunk and vampires and werewolves instead of faeries. Finishing School as in a place where young ladies learn how to finish off villains. These are a YA offshoot of Carriger's more adult Parasol Protectorate series.
February 5, 2018
A short sharp read that although fun and promising seems to serve primarily to set up the rest of the series as the plot doesn't really get going until right near the end and it feels like a lot of deeper character development has been left behind. Also a lot more could of been made of the role of the 'folk' who's role and motivations were never really discovered.
Having said that the steampunky side shows promise for further developments and I make check out sequels.
Having said that the steampunky side shows promise for further developments and I make check out sequels.
December 24, 2021
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3824697.html
Steampunk is not always my thing, but this is a good mashup of an alternate technological Victorian England, with also uneasy coexistence with the fey and the Otherworld, while also engaged in colonial oppression in China, all told from the point of view of an orphan girl who goes to spy school. Fun stuff.
Steampunk is not always my thing, but this is a good mashup of an alternate technological Victorian England, with also uneasy coexistence with the fey and the Otherworld, while also engaged in colonial oppression in China, all told from the point of view of an orphan girl who goes to spy school. Fun stuff.
August 10, 2019
DNF
It is such a confusing and ugly choice by the author to include such virulent racism on almost every page. If your book takes place in a fantasy world, there's no defense of "historical accuracy." It was so disturbing and distracting that I didn't get past page 50.
If you think I'm bring too sensitive, just imagine being a Chinese person and reading this book. It makes me feel sick.
It is such a confusing and ugly choice by the author to include such virulent racism on almost every page. If your book takes place in a fantasy world, there's no defense of "historical accuracy." It was so disturbing and distracting that I didn't get past page 50.
If you think I'm bring too sensitive, just imagine being a Chinese person and reading this book. It makes me feel sick.
May 21, 2017
An engaging and enjoyable steampunk adventure tale with a concern for justice at its heart. If some of the derring-do seemed a little unlikely, it was more than made up for by the likable characters and entertaining story.
November 17, 2019
A Victorian-era steampunk/fantasy romp. Despite some early stereotypical language that made me flinch, this whole story had the air of fun and menace that just kept me reading. Delicate, lovely language with characters I wanted to hug or kill.
dnf
July 30, 2020DNF pretty fast. Liked the author’s other series. But this one just isn’t clicking.
March 9, 2024
Felt excessively linear. Enjoyed the main cast of characters though. Especially Liu.
August 9, 2016
This review and others also at Tangled Bookmarks
*I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I’ll be honest – I really had no idea what I was about to read. Part of me thought this was going to be some sort of Young Adult Spy School series…part of me thought I was going to read some sort of Young Adult Kick Arse Heroine does Steampunk with a typical Love Triangle.
What I got was a rip-roarin’ rollickin’ adventure that had me flying through the pages. In fact, two chapters from the end, I actually put the book down, and started reading something else. Because I didn’t want it to end. I so did not want to come back to the book to find out what happened, because I couldn’t bear the thought of finishing it.
Now, that’s saying something. But alas, I had to finish it. And as my finger flicked that last page – figuratively speaking of course as I was reading on my iPad – I was searching desperately for some notice that Evie’s adventures continued on in more books.
Admittedly, it took me perhaps three chapters to really get into the swing of the story. Because of my preconceptions – damn you preconceptions – I was expecting it to go one way…and was surprised it didn’t. Once I did get in the swing of it, however, I didn’t stop.
Set in an alternate England and China (tho mainly England), Evie is a spunky young heroine who makes a living thieving on the streets. She works for Ma Pether, a kind of Fagan-like character who takes in young street girls and teaches them thievery and grifting etc to support themselves. Ma Pether is a bit nicer than Fagan tho. :D Evie is quite happy doing what she is doing until she is discovered by Thaddeus Holmforth, who works for the Government. He believes she knows Etheric Science and he wants her to operate an Etheric machine that will help drive the Fae from the world.
And so our adventure begins. He blackmails Evie into Madam Cairngrim’s school for female spies and it doesn’t take long for our Evie to figure out what he wants.
The author doesn’t clutter the book with hundreds of types of Fae – she’s content for us to really only meet one of them, one that actually was my favourite character in the book. And I think that was one of the things that I really loved about the book. It wasn’t a fairy fantasy world, with Fae wandering around willy-nilly, trailing glitter and unicorn rainbows. They are mainly hidden away, so I didn’t really get that feeling of being overwhelmed with myriad races of Fae – the book concentrates on Evie and the human world. And joy of joys, no sickly romance to take away from the adventure.
I really did love this book. In fact, this book is going on my list of Books I Will Buy as a Real Book, and believe me, after I discovered the joys and convenience of ebooks, there are only a few exceptional books that make it on to the list. And put it this way – I received this from Netgalley for free, but I’m bloody well going to actually shell out REAL money to buy this. That’s how damn good I think this is.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to search out Babylon Steel and Dangerous Gifts, the author’s other books; cos if they are anything like what I’ve just read, I think I’ve just found a new Favourite Author.
*I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I’ll be honest – I really had no idea what I was about to read. Part of me thought this was going to be some sort of Young Adult Spy School series…part of me thought I was going to read some sort of Young Adult Kick Arse Heroine does Steampunk with a typical Love Triangle.
What I got was a rip-roarin’ rollickin’ adventure that had me flying through the pages. In fact, two chapters from the end, I actually put the book down, and started reading something else. Because I didn’t want it to end. I so did not want to come back to the book to find out what happened, because I couldn’t bear the thought of finishing it.
Now, that’s saying something. But alas, I had to finish it. And as my finger flicked that last page – figuratively speaking of course as I was reading on my iPad – I was searching desperately for some notice that Evie’s adventures continued on in more books.
Admittedly, it took me perhaps three chapters to really get into the swing of the story. Because of my preconceptions – damn you preconceptions – I was expecting it to go one way…and was surprised it didn’t. Once I did get in the swing of it, however, I didn’t stop.
Set in an alternate England and China (tho mainly England), Evie is a spunky young heroine who makes a living thieving on the streets. She works for Ma Pether, a kind of Fagan-like character who takes in young street girls and teaches them thievery and grifting etc to support themselves. Ma Pether is a bit nicer than Fagan tho. :D Evie is quite happy doing what she is doing until she is discovered by Thaddeus Holmforth, who works for the Government. He believes she knows Etheric Science and he wants her to operate an Etheric machine that will help drive the Fae from the world.
And so our adventure begins. He blackmails Evie into Madam Cairngrim’s school for female spies and it doesn’t take long for our Evie to figure out what he wants.
The author doesn’t clutter the book with hundreds of types of Fae – she’s content for us to really only meet one of them, one that actually was my favourite character in the book. And I think that was one of the things that I really loved about the book. It wasn’t a fairy fantasy world, with Fae wandering around willy-nilly, trailing glitter and unicorn rainbows. They are mainly hidden away, so I didn’t really get that feeling of being overwhelmed with myriad races of Fae – the book concentrates on Evie and the human world. And joy of joys, no sickly romance to take away from the adventure.
I really did love this book. In fact, this book is going on my list of Books I Will Buy as a Real Book, and believe me, after I discovered the joys and convenience of ebooks, there are only a few exceptional books that make it on to the list. And put it this way – I received this from Netgalley for free, but I’m bloody well going to actually shell out REAL money to buy this. That’s how damn good I think this is.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to search out Babylon Steel and Dangerous Gifts, the author’s other books; cos if they are anything like what I’ve just read, I think I’ve just found a new Favourite Author.
July 24, 2014
More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/
Shanghai Sparrow quite surprised me: the cover and description made this seem more like a pulpy, exotic, steampunk AU London adventure. Instead, what we have is a grounded, fairly serious, stand alone story with interesting characters. Despite the title, this is set in a brutal, dirty, industrialized, Victorian London. The steampunk accoutrements and fae take a back seat to the story and character development of our strong willed and street smart young heroin. The plot arc is well written and comes to a satisfying ending.
Story: Evvie is a girl on the brink of womanhood who has lost everything. Her father and mother both dead and she survives by thievery and her own wits on the street, desperately hoping to make enough to put food in her belly and avoid prostitution. She's smart enough not to trust anyone but her survival skills will be tested when one of her late mother's experiments is being developed as a weapon against the Fae. Evvie may or may not be the key to completing its use; to that extent, she will be plucked off the streets and put into a special school for 'by blows' of the rich - a place to 'educate' girls to be useful to Her Majesty. She will need to trust if she is to survive but it may just be that she has the fate of an entire race in her hands.
As can be implied from the story synopsis, this is a thick book full of ideas and development. We follow a few POVs: mostly Evvie and the half fae nobleman's son, Holmsford, who will take her off the streets in order to further his own aims. Surprisingly for a YA urban fantasy, there is no romance at all (she is a young girl, barely into her teens, and definitely in no position of frame of mind for a romance - a fact the author respected). Both Evvie's and Holmsford's backstories are explored and the reasons for their actions and characters soon become very clear.
This is a very harsh look at society, very Dickens. That we still sympathize with and root for Evvie attests to the author's writing skills. Evvie could very easily have come off as an unlikeable, selfish, too-damaged individual. But instead, we see a realistically resourceful, grounded, focused, and driven person who uses her wits to survive. She doesn't make any over the top deus ex machina decisions, though, and makes mistakes that anyone would make but that have heavy costs in Victorian London society. I really felt Evvie was a real person and not another Mary Sue YA heroine.
Shanghai Sparrow was a breath of fresh air from the light and fluffy YA AU books I've read lately. No soppy romance to tie our character down and some very interesting worldbuilding and concepts are presented. The steampunk doesn't overwhelm the story but instead is still a vital part of the plot and world.
In all, highly recommended. I greatly enjoyed this book, especially since it is a stand alone and not a trilogy. Reviewed from an ARC.
March 11, 2014
http://koeur.wordpress.com/2014/03/11...
Publisher Description: Eveline Duchen is a thief and con-artist, surviving day by day on the streets of London, where the glittering spires of progress rise on the straining backs of the poor and disenfranchised. Where the Folk, the otherworldly children of fairy tales and legends, have all but withdrawn from the smoke of the furnaces and the clamour of iron. Caught in an act of deception by the implacable Mr Holmforth, Evvie is offered a stark choice: transportation to the colonies, or an education – and utter commitment to Her Majesty’s Service – at Miss Cairngrim’s harsh school for female spies.
Review: Not a big fan of the cover art on this one. Doesn’t really evoke the image and feeling of steampunk.
This was a pretty good story-line except for some hiccups throughout the novel. I agree with another reviewer in that the author spent an inordinate amount of time casting back in time to explain Eveline’s past before her life of crime. In this case it did nothing to develop Eveline’s character. More like a boo-hoo fest of her family’s bad luck and her rotten Uncle. I like novels with movement. Cast backs should be sporadic or limited in scope, but poignant and hard hitting.
I initially liked Eveline as the wiseass gutter snipe. Then as we move along the story-line her character development becomes confused. She has no morals with regards to stealing (its ok as she is surviving) then she cries over her lost family or a poor street urchin and hates with vigor those she mistrusts. She is supposedly a very talented and smart thief yet as her life moves from the streets to the girls school (for spies) her character devolves to unwarranted disbelief at the actions of others around her. Conflicted? Not so much. Bi-polar, maybe.
On her friend Liu (who is half “Folk”) not enough is revealed about the character that gets you any nearer to liking him. By intent I am sure. One reviewer stated “Mysterious Liu is mysterious”. That sums it up nicely. He is helping to prevent the annihilation of the human species by the Folk, but we are no closer to knowing what Folk are, what they do, what interests them and why they would give enough of a shjt to waste their time annihilating humans.
Dues Ex Machina rears its gears when out of nowhere, Eveline’s dead mom and dead sister are…..ALIVE! And here we had all those wasted years of self-recrimination iterated in the telling of Eveline’s exhausting backstory.
This novel has no real descriptive elements that enable visualization of the genre. Some dirigible traveling and some machines that they doohookie with, but nothing that evokes Steampunk. The only standout in this novel is Beth, a geeky steampunker sidekick to Eveline.
This alternative world of England and China are thinly built and I still don’t know what etherics is. The Folk are nebulous other than one that’s finds Eveline and her sister interesting. The spygurl school is never developed into a useful tool to the story, although half the novel is spent there. Buy or don’t kinda thing.
Publisher Description: Eveline Duchen is a thief and con-artist, surviving day by day on the streets of London, where the glittering spires of progress rise on the straining backs of the poor and disenfranchised. Where the Folk, the otherworldly children of fairy tales and legends, have all but withdrawn from the smoke of the furnaces and the clamour of iron. Caught in an act of deception by the implacable Mr Holmforth, Evvie is offered a stark choice: transportation to the colonies, or an education – and utter commitment to Her Majesty’s Service – at Miss Cairngrim’s harsh school for female spies.
Review: Not a big fan of the cover art on this one. Doesn’t really evoke the image and feeling of steampunk.
This was a pretty good story-line except for some hiccups throughout the novel. I agree with another reviewer in that the author spent an inordinate amount of time casting back in time to explain Eveline’s past before her life of crime. In this case it did nothing to develop Eveline’s character. More like a boo-hoo fest of her family’s bad luck and her rotten Uncle. I like novels with movement. Cast backs should be sporadic or limited in scope, but poignant and hard hitting.
I initially liked Eveline as the wiseass gutter snipe. Then as we move along the story-line her character development becomes confused. She has no morals with regards to stealing (its ok as she is surviving) then she cries over her lost family or a poor street urchin and hates with vigor those she mistrusts. She is supposedly a very talented and smart thief yet as her life moves from the streets to the girls school (for spies) her character devolves to unwarranted disbelief at the actions of others around her. Conflicted? Not so much. Bi-polar, maybe.
On her friend Liu (who is half “Folk”) not enough is revealed about the character that gets you any nearer to liking him. By intent I am sure. One reviewer stated “Mysterious Liu is mysterious”. That sums it up nicely. He is helping to prevent the annihilation of the human species by the Folk, but we are no closer to knowing what Folk are, what they do, what interests them and why they would give enough of a shjt to waste their time annihilating humans.
Dues Ex Machina rears its gears when out of nowhere, Eveline’s dead mom and dead sister are…..ALIVE! And here we had all those wasted years of self-recrimination iterated in the telling of Eveline’s exhausting backstory.
This novel has no real descriptive elements that enable visualization of the genre. Some dirigible traveling and some machines that they doohookie with, but nothing that evokes Steampunk. The only standout in this novel is Beth, a geeky steampunker sidekick to Eveline.
This alternative world of England and China are thinly built and I still don’t know what etherics is. The Folk are nebulous other than one that’s finds Eveline and her sister interesting. The spygurl school is never developed into a useful tool to the story, although half the novel is spent there. Buy or don’t kinda thing.
June 14, 2014
A decent, relatively subdued book that suffers terribly from misleading cover copy.
The cover promises me madcap adventure, pulpy action, a new and exciting setting (steampunk Shanghai!), espionage, etheric science...
The problem is that almost none of this appears in the book itself. The science aspect is very minimal - because our protagonist is a scrappy young trickster, not a scientist. Okay. So she'll make a great spy!
Well, probably, but in this book she goes through training only. There's no actual spying.
What about steampunk Shanghai? The book's action only moves to Shanghai for the climax, and the setting is...not well developed. Really, it could have taken place anywhere, except that the author said it was Shanghai. Sigh.
All that said, it was a good book. Just...more understated. I loved Evvie as a character - she was clever and practical. Her relationship with Beth was nice. The inclusion of the Folk was an interesting twist, but they really don't play a large role.
Holmforth's POV is hard to read, since he's such a worm. I could have been okay with that, in a couple of situations: if he had gone through some sort of redemption arc (cliche, but at least then I have a reason to invest in him) or if he had really been the villain. The problem is, there was something of a bait-and-switch in terms of antagonists at the climax. Really, the climax in general was underwhelming.
Also the book gets points for being a standalone, though I would have preferred a slightly different ending.
The cover promises me madcap adventure, pulpy action, a new and exciting setting (steampunk Shanghai!), espionage, etheric science...
The problem is that almost none of this appears in the book itself. The science aspect is very minimal - because our protagonist is a scrappy young trickster, not a scientist. Okay. So she'll make a great spy!
Well, probably, but in this book she goes through training only. There's no actual spying.
What about steampunk Shanghai? The book's action only moves to Shanghai for the climax, and the setting is...not well developed. Really, it could have taken place anywhere, except that the author said it was Shanghai. Sigh.
All that said, it was a good book. Just...more understated. I loved Evvie as a character - she was clever and practical. Her relationship with Beth was nice. The inclusion of the Folk was an interesting twist, but they really don't play a large role.
Holmforth's POV is hard to read, since he's such a worm. I could have been okay with that, in a couple of situations: if he had gone through some sort of redemption arc (cliche, but at least then I have a reason to invest in him) or if he had really been the villain. The problem is, there was something of a bait-and-switch in terms of antagonists at the climax. Really, the climax in general was underwhelming.
Also the book gets points for being a standalone, though I would have preferred a slightly different ending.
March 23, 2015
This is a delightful read! The plot is a touch on the melodramatic side. Eveline's life is happy until her father dies, and she and her mother and sister are forced to live with her uncle. Things go from bad to worse and she eventually finds herself living on the street and stealing for a living. Very Dickensian. This is all actually back story that comes later. The book opens with her as a successful thief who catches the eye of Mr. Holmsworth, who offers her a choice: deportation to the colonies, or being enrolled in a training school for spies to serve Her Majesty's Government. It soon becomes clear, however, that he has some other purpose in mind for her. The setting is nominally steam punk, though this serves primarily as window dressing for most scenes, though it does figure in the plot a bit. Eveline is a fine and self-reliant character. Honestly, the book seems a bit too short, the ending hurried. We do get a final scene or two, that hint at the possibility of further stories in this universe. Whether or not they materialize remains to be seen.
December 19, 2014
The idea of this book sounded so much better than the actual book ended up being. Sort of steampunk, sort of urban fantasy with spies. Eveline Duchen grew up playing with the Folk, who are Fae creatures. When her father dies and 10 year old Evvie and her Etheric-scientist mother are taken in by her Uncle James, things start to go downhill. Escaping an arranged marriage, Evvie ends up as a thief, then gets sent to a school for spies when a government agent thinks she has the same skills as her mother. Everything just happens to work out fine whenever Evvie tries some harebrained scheme and the plot takes almost 100 pages to get to the part where Evvie does real stuff. I loved Sebold's Babylon Steel books and found that character to be more developed and that series was much more complex and the tension and conflict were more visceral. This felt like it should have been marketed for teenagers. Wanted to love it, but just didn't.
June 30, 2024
This began the final couple of Gaie's books that i haven't read.
Admittedly, i picked this up with a fair few preconceptions and had them all dashed rather quickly. The first thing is that i've put Gaie's writing firmly in the fantasy-for-grown-ups genre, and this is anything but that.
So i was rather surprised to find myself reading some steampunk with a hint of fantasy aimed at teenage girls (at least that where i think it belongs). I was even more surprised to find myself quite enjoying it, being a 57 year old man. It's very similar to Magnificent Devices by Shelley Adina, so if you enjoy that kind of "silly" then i'm sure you'll enjoy this kind of "silly".
I'm certainly enjoying a bit of "silly" at the moment, so i'm diving straight into the second book in the series, Sparrow Falling for some more.
Admittedly, i picked this up with a fair few preconceptions and had them all dashed rather quickly. The first thing is that i've put Gaie's writing firmly in the fantasy-for-grown-ups genre, and this is anything but that.
So i was rather surprised to find myself reading some steampunk with a hint of fantasy aimed at teenage girls (at least that where i think it belongs). I was even more surprised to find myself quite enjoying it, being a 57 year old man. It's very similar to Magnificent Devices by Shelley Adina, so if you enjoy that kind of "silly" then i'm sure you'll enjoy this kind of "silly".
I'm certainly enjoying a bit of "silly" at the moment, so i'm diving straight into the second book in the series, Sparrow Falling for some more.
November 12, 2015
Excellent steampunk tale. A story of a young girl who has fallen on hard times in a Victorian London. But it wasn't always like that. She once had a famliy and she once spent time playing with the 'folk'.
Back to the present and she finds herself enrolled in a spy school for girls where she specialises in etheric sciences.
Automatons, steampunk bikes, cars and dragons, fairy folk and the Empire. Loved this book. A book that really is as good as the cover!
Back to the present and she finds herself enrolled in a spy school for girls where she specialises in etheric sciences.
Automatons, steampunk bikes, cars and dragons, fairy folk and the Empire. Loved this book. A book that really is as good as the cover!
June 22, 2014
This one zips along at a good pace (so much so that it felt short) and in Eveline Duchen we have a character that we can all root for while being aware of her weaknesses. The alt-history setting of Victorian era Empire convinces, the plot is tight and antagonist Holmfirth is sufficiently nasty without being a caricature. I did feel that having built up the mission in China, the denouement in Shanghai was over a bit soon.
May 26, 2015
I agree with most of the reviews. This is a book with great potential that isn't executed as well as it should have been. The main character, Evvie, is fantastic. Unpredictable, determined, clever, ethically consistent, but with sometimes dubious morals. She's quite wonderful. The plot, however, drags and the ending is dull. I was most engaged during the first forty pages. Then it seemed like the writer ran out of steam. Too bad.
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