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Umbra
“In days gone by there were places you could sell a shadow. Their owners never felt the lack, but believe me when I say you never want to hear a shadow scream.” The city of Umbra is powered by something far less wholesome than the steam and gas that run through its grimy pipes. When Edmund Tyler is forced to flee his drunken father and sleep outside the slag works he cannot imagine that this will lead to a chance encounter with a disembodied shadow, Charlotte. Together they must thwart the machinations of a mad scientist, reunite the shadow with her body and ultimately save the gloom-shrouded city.
- GenresSteampunkScience Fiction
Audible Audio
First published March 1, 2017
24 people want to read
About the author
Toby Bennett
42 books8 followersToby Bennett was born in 1976 in Cape Town, South Africa. He holds a degree in philosophy from the University of Cape Town. Like many writers he has had a varied career that has included graphic and web design, database administration and technical writing. His true passion lies in creative writing. Visit: www.thedragontower.co.za for more.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 8, 2017
This is one of my #SPFBO reads and I have to say I really enjoyed this. That's not to say it's perfect, in fact there are quite a lot of typos and formatting issues in the ebook version which would really benefit from a copy editor and proof reader, BUT, the story is super fun and solid and I really enjoyed the world.
This follows a young boy called Edmond as he is drawn into a world of shadows and chaos that he never anticipated. We're following the story through Edmond's words as he tells his grandchild about his experiences in Umbra, but it's mostly in third person following Edmond, just occasional snippets of the grandfather.
Edmond's story starts when he is working in the Slag factory (Slag is kind of condensed shadows which have been ripped away from their human counterpart and made into a sort of dark ominous fuel). Edmond's life is fairly bleak, he's young but poor, and lives with his alcoholic father as his mother left long ago becuase of the oppressive nature of Umbra and the Slag that powers it.
Edmond is walking home when he meets a shadow called Charlotte who has escaped from the factory. He's curious about why he can see her at first, but when she's pursued and he's caught in the middle it becomes a fight for his life and a rather risky adventure.
What I liked about this is that it had vibes of Peter Pan and the shadow, but it also felt quite pseudo-victorian and Steampunk in style with airships and toxic old fuel in factories with young workers. It's definitely playing with a time period that I personally find fascinating, and I really liked that the world felt very real and easy to imagine even though the plot is the central part and not the world.
Overall, I really liked this and I could overlook the mistakes that still need fixing. It works well as a standalone story, but I would also happily read more from this world and author if there was a good copy editor also involved. I definitely think it's still a story I would recommend all the same is it's a lot of fun and I enjoyed it :) Just about a 4*s from me, but it would easily be more with the final corrections made.
This follows a young boy called Edmond as he is drawn into a world of shadows and chaos that he never anticipated. We're following the story through Edmond's words as he tells his grandchild about his experiences in Umbra, but it's mostly in third person following Edmond, just occasional snippets of the grandfather.
Edmond's story starts when he is working in the Slag factory (Slag is kind of condensed shadows which have been ripped away from their human counterpart and made into a sort of dark ominous fuel). Edmond's life is fairly bleak, he's young but poor, and lives with his alcoholic father as his mother left long ago becuase of the oppressive nature of Umbra and the Slag that powers it.
Edmond is walking home when he meets a shadow called Charlotte who has escaped from the factory. He's curious about why he can see her at first, but when she's pursued and he's caught in the middle it becomes a fight for his life and a rather risky adventure.
What I liked about this is that it had vibes of Peter Pan and the shadow, but it also felt quite pseudo-victorian and Steampunk in style with airships and toxic old fuel in factories with young workers. It's definitely playing with a time period that I personally find fascinating, and I really liked that the world felt very real and easy to imagine even though the plot is the central part and not the world.
Overall, I really liked this and I could overlook the mistakes that still need fixing. It works well as a standalone story, but I would also happily read more from this world and author if there was a good copy editor also involved. I definitely think it's still a story I would recommend all the same is it's a lot of fun and I enjoyed it :) Just about a 4*s from me, but it would easily be more with the final corrections made.
November 4, 2017
I read the book after it received a fairly good review from Kitty G. I respect her opinions and enjoy her reviews but this time I don’t share her enthusiasm for the book.
The premise is interesting. The city of Umbra has tons of potential. It’s dreary, it has a victorian vibe and it hides many dark secrets. Steam and gas run through its grimy pipes, but it’s slag (condensed shadows that were ripped away from humans) that fuels the city.
Young factory worker - Edmund Tyler meets a disembodied shadow on the run from a mad scientist. He meets her in dark alley, where he sleeps hiding from his drunkard father. Unwillingly and due to unfortunate events (like killing a bad guy and being captured) he agrees to help Charlotte to reunite with her body. First, though, they need to flee, discover what happened to Charlotte and, of course, survive.
The idea of stealing shadows from people isn’t new but it’s not overdone in fantasy. Actually, it still feels pretty fresh. I haven’t read another book in which shadows are used to create kind of fuel. The city isn’t pictured in details but what we learn about it allows to create an image of the place. An image that’s not pleasant. Umbra is described as a chill wasteland with a million identical lives, all crammed into grey rooms under a grey sky . Children work in factories, families fall apart, bad guys are influential.
Even though the premise sounds interesting to me and I enjoy steampunk, Umbra didn’t work for me. There are few reasons.
I didn’t like characters. I didn’t root for them. I felt no connection with them. Their interactions were often cartoonish (Charlotte trying to hug Edmund or crying). Mad scientist actually spoke like a transplant from some generic cartoon.
The story felt linear (they run, they discover something important, they run again, they discover something, they run again etc) and simplistic. Even though the pacing was rather fast I felt mostly bored. There were, however, good moments that kept my attention.
The language is simple and unpolished – there’s more than few formatting, spelling and grammar errors. The prose lacks finesse but it never gets in the way of telling the story.
Overall, I think it’s an ok book that may have some potential. It needs editing, proofreading and adding some complexity to characters who feel one dimensional.
The premise is interesting. The city of Umbra has tons of potential. It’s dreary, it has a victorian vibe and it hides many dark secrets. Steam and gas run through its grimy pipes, but it’s slag (condensed shadows that were ripped away from humans) that fuels the city.
Young factory worker - Edmund Tyler meets a disembodied shadow on the run from a mad scientist. He meets her in dark alley, where he sleeps hiding from his drunkard father. Unwillingly and due to unfortunate events (like killing a bad guy and being captured) he agrees to help Charlotte to reunite with her body. First, though, they need to flee, discover what happened to Charlotte and, of course, survive.
The idea of stealing shadows from people isn’t new but it’s not overdone in fantasy. Actually, it still feels pretty fresh. I haven’t read another book in which shadows are used to create kind of fuel. The city isn’t pictured in details but what we learn about it allows to create an image of the place. An image that’s not pleasant. Umbra is described as a chill wasteland with a million identical lives, all crammed into grey rooms under a grey sky . Children work in factories, families fall apart, bad guys are influential.
Even though the premise sounds interesting to me and I enjoy steampunk, Umbra didn’t work for me. There are few reasons.
I didn’t like characters. I didn’t root for them. I felt no connection with them. Their interactions were often cartoonish (Charlotte trying to hug Edmund or crying). Mad scientist actually spoke like a transplant from some generic cartoon.
The story felt linear (they run, they discover something important, they run again, they discover something, they run again etc) and simplistic. Even though the pacing was rather fast I felt mostly bored. There were, however, good moments that kept my attention.
The language is simple and unpolished – there’s more than few formatting, spelling and grammar errors. The prose lacks finesse but it never gets in the way of telling the story.
Overall, I think it’s an ok book that may have some potential. It needs editing, proofreading and adding some complexity to characters who feel one dimensional.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews