Arabella and the Battle of Venus

Adventures of Arabella Ashby #2

by David D. Levine

Arabella’s wedding plans to marry Captain Singh of the Honorable Mars Trading Company are interrupted when her fiancé is captured by the French and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp on swampy Venus. Now, Arabella must find passage to an enemy-controlled planet in the middle of a war, bribe or fight her way past vicious guards, and rescue her Captain.

To do this she must enlist the help of the dashing privateer, Daniel Fox of the Touchstone and build her own clockwork navigational automaton in order to get to Venus before the dread French general, Joseph Fouché, the Executioner of Lyon.

Once on Venus, Arabella, Singh, and Fox soon discover that Napoleon has designed a secret weapon, one that could subjugate the entire galaxy if they can’t discover a way to stop Fouché, and the entire French army, from completing their emperor’s mandate.

Genres: Steampunk, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult, Alternate History, Adventure, Historical Fiction

413 pages, Hardcover

First published July 18, 2017

About the author

David D. Levine is the author of novel Arabella of Mars (Tor 2016) and over fifty SF and fantasy stories. His story "Tk'Tk'Tk" won the Hugo Award, and he has been shortlisted for awards including the Hugo, Nebula, Campbell, and Sturgeon. Stories have appeared in Asimov's, Analog, F&SF, and five Year's Best anthologies as well as award-winning collection Space Magic from Wheatland Press.

David is a contributor to George R. R. Martin's bestselling shared-world series Wild Cards. He is also a member of publishing cooperative Book View Cafe and of nonprofit organization Oregon Science Fiction Conventions Inc. He has narrated podcasts for Escape Pod, PodCastle, and StarShipSofa, and his video "Dr. Talon's Letter to the Editor" was a finalist for the Parsec Award. In 2010 he spent two weeks at a simulated Mars base in the Utah desert.

David lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife Kate Yule. His web site is www.daviddlevine.com.

Reviews

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review, first posted on Fantasy Literature.

The adventures of the gallant-hearted young heroine Arabella Ashby continue in Arabella and the Battle of Venus, David D. Levine’s warmhearted melding of steampunk, retro science fiction à la Jules Verne, and the Napoleonic wars. In this sequel to Arabella of Mars, Arabella receives a battered letter from fiancé Captain Singh, regretfully informing her that he and his ship, the Diana, along with all his crew, have been captured by the French and are being held as prisoners of war on Venus. Though Captain Singh insists in his letter that Arabella remain on Mars, Arabella is not one to accept a bad situation without trying to do something to help … especially once her investigation reveals that Napoleon’s cruel and bloodthirsty minister of police, Fouché, is heading to Venus and will be the chief gaoler over Captain Singh and his men.

So Arabella gathers all the funds she can and leaves her Mars plantation to go to Venus. Accompanying her, at the insistence of her brother, is a chaperone, the widowed Lady Corey, who tries with limited success to instill more ladylike behavior in Arabella. They fly to Venus on the ship Touchstone, captained by the attractive Captain Fox, whose flattering attentions to Arabella might just give her second thoughts about her plans to marry Captain Singh.

Unfortunately, once the Touchstone gets close to Venus, Arabella’s heroic plans run into some major roadblocks. Now she has to deal with French captors, their Venusian servants and slaves, and a prison camp where life is brutally harsh and dangerous. At least she’s in the company of Captain Singh ― but his behavior, though distantly affectionate, is oddly elusive and secretive. When Napoleon Bonaparte himself shows up with his wife Marie Louise, everything Arabella and the other British prisoners are trying to accomplish is threatened.

Arabella and the Battle of Venus is, like Arabella of Mars, a cleverly conceived and executed novel. Levine spins a story incorporating elements from both early science fiction and actual history, weaving in real people from the Napoleonic era. It’s not only major players like Napoleon and Admiral Lord Nelson, but also less well known historical figures like British Vice Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, the American inventor Robert Fulton (who did spend some years in France, designing steamboat engines, submarines, and torpedoes), and the merciless police minister Joseph Fouché. Sailing ships ― with a few tweaks ― function as spaceships in this universe.

Arabella and the Battle of Venus is, at the same time, a grimmer story than Arabella of Mars. While the element of nautical adventures in space still plays a role in this tale, a large chunk of the story takes place in a muggy, gloomy French prison camp on the surface of Venus, where death and permanent injury are a constant threat, and prisoners of war are routinely treated inhumanely by their captors. It’s a claustrophobic time, lightened only by the element of intrigue. It’s a distinct breath of fresh air when the action finally returns to space.

The green-skinned Venusian aboriginal natives are derogatively called “froggies” by many characters, echoing the slur the British used for the French themselves. But the Venusians’ more important role is to put a face on the problem of slavery. The problem is not just the French enslaving the Venusians, but some tribes of natives enslaving others. The natives’ physiology and culture turn out to be more complex and advanced than Arabella initially realized, and she and others come to appreciate and even need the Venusians.

Captain Singh is a paragon ― Arabella thinks of him as “the most intelligent, the bravest, and the most honorable” man she’s ever known ― but their relationship feels a little distant. That may be a deliberate function of Levine’s nod to Regency era manners in the style of writing and the proper behavior of … well, at least some of the characters. Levine effectively captures many of the mannerisms of the Regency era, while giving the story its distinctive retro SF spin. But he’s able to combine that with a more modern, enlightened point of view towards colonialism, slavery and sexism. Arabella and the Battle of Venus is both enlightening and a gripping adventure!

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for review. Thank you!!

[Rachel (Kalanadi) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps I read this at the wrong time, but I found much of this story uninteresting or a tad more grim than I expected. I loved Arabella and Captain Singh in the first book, but hated the 'love triangle' element with Fox. Arabella was just not behaving the best, I didn't like Fox, and Singh was absent, distant, or unemotive for most of the book. Eh. It was still a fine story, just not enough the elements that made me love the first book.

[Connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Video Review:

https://youtu.be/5fIM4fzv-nw

[The Shayne-Train · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gorgeous follow-up to a beautiful tale!

Normally, I'm not one for things that taste YA. I want blood spatters and swears and graphic nookie and terrible things. But this series is written so teeth-clenchingly well that I forget about all that.

I love the heroine's voice, her courage and aptitude and loyalty. I love the world-building of this semi-alt-history/semi-steampunk universe. I even loved the budding questions of a love triangle, which is something I normally despise.

I cannot recommend these book strongly enough for fans of YA, sci-fi, steampunk, alt-history, maritime adventure, war fiction, and other things that are good and awesome.

[Janet Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

It can be very difficult to follow a groundbreaking novel in any genre with a second that steps forward, but Levine manages to do so. Following her adventures returning from Earth to Mars, Arabella Ashby is faced with news that her beloved Captain Singh has been captured by the French and is confined on Venus. Of course our intrepid heroine sets out to rescue him, but no longer able to masquerade as a boy, she is encumbered with the recently widowed Lady Corey, middle aged and beyond reproach. But nothing moves smoothly our heroine is soon up to her neck in finaglings and subterfuge. A certain amount of humor, but much more adventure set in an alternative imagining of the Napoleonic wars. A number of real characters have roles, including Napoleon himself, and Arabella and her friends swash buckle their way through tense situations. Obviously I read a free pre-pub copy of the hardcover book and honestly loved every word.

[Renée · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ok, first off, here's a really excellent, thoughtful, and well-rounded review of the book that I also totally agree with. https://www.tor.com/2017/07/31/book-r... I just hadn't even made it past my annoyance level to get to the meatier actual problems with the book.

I absolutely hated the "love triangle" created in this book. If I could excise that tripe from the story I would like it much better. It serves no purpose whatsoever. The person is an irresponsible, immature, and variably trustworthy captain. And for some reason she waffles between firmly believing that and teehee-ing over how attractive he is. I could get behind that if there was any sort of actual tension there, but there isn't. He's guilty of all the terrible man tropes littered in storytelling. He's going to go after what he wants no matter how available it is. He's not going to have any regard for her feelings about it at all. He's not going to take no for an answer. He's going to constantly asserting himself into a "married" woman's life by refusing to leave her alone, or take no for an answer, and then keeps hitting on her and then kissing her and her him and what? I mean ok I could even believe that stupidity (not that I support it, but just believe it) if she wasn't on the other hand talking about how much she loved and admired her dependable "husband"? You can't have it both ways.

I don't know, it's not even that much of the book and it's really terribly unimportant, it's just gross? I mean unless the three of them were to engage in polyamory it really had no point. And then it actually narratively has no point and is resolved very, deeply, weirdly.

I flat out hated it which brought my enjoyment of the story down to an ok at best.

Also, the sad part is, they would have been such great bros! Like WHY the hell did someone decide they needed to ruin their relationship by giving it a romantic spin. The characters could have done everything they did and better by being actual friends who cared about and supported each other.

Also, he has zero character growth in the whole novel. He never changes. He's always been as good or bad in the end as he was in the beginning. And he almost gets them all killed! ALL of them by being a selfish asshole. And he is essentially guilty of making Arabella lose her foot by sailing them into debris but that's just, you know, part of what happens. And he makes a point not to apologize for anything and that yeah he went off a little half cocked there, but he was right in the end because he won against the enemy. Uhhh sure.

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arabella and the Battle of Venus is the sequel to Arabella of Mars.  I enjoyed it as much, if not more, than the first.
 
An adventure story with a plucky heroine and a Steampunk flair, flavors of Verne and Burroughs.  Airships in space, battles between the English and French over Venus.

Arabella is a delight, brave, independent but still believable.  And don't fear, this is not another "YA Romance disguised as Science Fiction or Fantasy". Nor it is angsty.
 
It's technically got a romance going in it, as Arabella is engaged and rescuing her fiancé is the premise of this adventure. But the romance doesn't overtake the plot. And, due to the genre and time period it's positively reserved in that regard.


If you enjoy this series I think you may also enjoy Airborn

[Em and Rosi (Bibliobibuli YA) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is hard to follow up a novel such as Arabella of Mars, a tour de force of Victorian steam punk space opera with a bit of romance and breaking of societal rules, but Arabella and the Battle of Venus not only matches the action and ingenuity of its predecessor but also manages to hold its own. After her previous adventures of preventing war on Mars and masquerading as a boy to get there, Arabella is now awaiting her marriage to Captain Singh. However, her plans are waylaid when word that her fiancé has been captured by the French and is a prisoner on Venus. Naturally, Arabella undertakes the task of rescuing him, though this time, unable to resurrect her disguise of a boy, she brings along the Lady Corey as a chaperone.

In this sequel, a lot of familiar faces return and are mixed in with the new. The crew of the Diana is present and is joined by the Touchstone, the privateer that Arabella hires, and its crew. Mixed in to this wonderfully drawn cast are a very real threat as Napoleon and his wars, and the conquests that inspired them, have been remade to fit Arabella’s world of a Victorian space age. Filled with subterfuge on several levels and carefully laid plans, our heroine navigates a story that doesn’t go smoothly in her attempt to free her beloved and his crew.

Still maintaining the humor and level of action of Mars, this addition is a tad darker, maybe because the enemy here is all the more real. Battle of Venus has the same abrupt, but happy, ending as you may have come to expect, with the reader hoping to turn the page and find another chapter, but I wasn’t left disappointed. I am left looking forward to more of Arabella’s adventures with her Captain Singh by her side.

[Otchen Makai · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series isn't my usual type of books, but they are very well written and have a great story line.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arabella returns with a new adventure. This time she is off to Venus to save her her fiancé, Captain Singh who has been captured by the French. Set in the early 1800's there is a mix of fantasy and historical fact in the story. Be advised that the heavy duty backstory and world building were done in Arabella of Mars so for the most enjoyment read that first. I found Arabella and the Battle of Venus to be a much darker book than Arabella of Mars. When I read the authors notes I though I saw why. That said like the first book it is filled with interesting characters, a strong tension filled plot and exciting action.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

[Bonnie McDaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last year, the first book in this series, Arabella of Mars, won the Andre Norton Award for Best Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy. This book continues that story, set in the same swashbuckling, throwback world, to the time of Jules Verne-esque SF when no one knew that Venus wasn't actually a swampy jungle planet.

Real science is obviously out the door here, but Levine's universe is well-thought-out and cleverly weaves in some historical figures circa 1815, namely Napoleon Bonaparte and Lord Nelson. (This time frame and people seems to provide some rich inspiration--Naomi Novik's Temeraire series mines much of the same territory, if confined to planet Earth.) Arabella Ashby's fiance, Captain Prakash Singh of the Honorable Mars Company airship Diana, has been captured on Venus by Napoleon's troops, and Arabella hires another airship to take her to Venus, with the intent of bribing sufficient people to secure Captain Singh's release.

Of course, this does not go well. At all. This storyline is a lot darker than the previous book, and our characters are really up against it. The pacing is very good, and the plot ticks away nicely until the last third of the book, when everything explodes. Levine writes some of the best action sequences I have read in a long time--the Diana's escape from Venus had me on the edge of my seat, and the final battle between the English and French fleets was just mesmerizing. There are prices to be paid in stories like these, and in this case, Arabella is the one that pays--she loses a foot in the battle. If this is handled right, it will (hopefully) mean interesting things for her characterization in the next book.

This time period is rife with other issues as well--sexism, colonialism, slavery, et cetera, that I did feel weren't really touched upon. In this particular storyline, there wasn't really room for it, but it is something that I think needs to be broached. Perhaps that will be tackled in the next book. In the meantime, this is an old-fashioned, rip-roaring adventure, and highly recommended.

[Nathan Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Jules Verne and Jane Austen had collaborated to create Horatio Hornblower, the result might have been the Adventures of Arabella Ashby. Levine continues his imaginative series woven with early-nineteenth-century astronomy, Newtonian science, the real-world Napoleonic wars, the social conventions and prejudices of Regency England, and romance novel conventions. In this, the second installment, we follow our spunky heroine on a voyage to Venus, where she encounters the French (and their outrageous accents). As in the previous book, Arabella keeps getting herself deeper and deeper and I found it fun and compelling watching her dig herself out. And this time, she doesn't exactly come out in one piece. To top it all off, we're treated to a couple of particularly nice explosions! While the resolution felt just a little rushed, I can forgive Levine based partly on his deep knowledge of real-world history and how he manipulates it, and partly because he was dealing with his wife's death from cancer at the time (Ja, some of us actually read the Acknowledgements.). I look forward to reading the next book, "Arabella the Traitor of Mars."

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arabella's fiance has gotten into trouble and Arabella is off to rescue him....even though he told her in a smuggled letter not to do exactly that. However, this time she isn't escaping without proper chaperonage. A family friend who is very much posh society with posh society values agrees to do the job. She thoroughly disapproves of Arabella's fiance who is of Indian (India Indian) background. You know, the color of his skin and all. I'd be scornfully considering that a relic of outdated beliefs if we hadn't just had abundant proof that they are unfortunately outdated only to some people. Arabella isn't about to put up with such nonsense. Fortunately that bone of contention between the teenager and the society matron gets forgotten once the adventures and trials and tribulations begin. Napoleon Bonaparte is threatening all the habitable worlds now with his ambition to rule and that fact becomes of enormous importance in this story. This is more of a 3.5 really. It is loads of fun and I'll keep reading to see what happens to intrepid Arabella and her family!

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arabella is patiently waiting with her brother on Mars for her fiancé, Captain Singh, to return from his travels in order from them to be married. Of course, the good Captain ends up captured by the French and held in a iron camp before he can do so! Arabella, as those of you who have read the first book know, is not one to sit idly by and wait for his relief. It's back to the airships and off to her captain's rescue wish us along for the ride!

Arabella's heroics stand up to her previous hands, but a bit more so as she deals with her chaperone on his journey and the roguish Captain Fox. There are the French of course, as well as the Venetians that we meet to. Arabella has a different perspective than her contemporaries and it is that perspective that allows them their victories as this team of crewmates, and family, works together.

Also there are battles. Battles are fun.

[Emily Randolph-Epstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even better than the first! Arabella and the Battle of Venus continues the adventures of Arabella Ashby, a Martian heiress with a strong independent streak and a talent for navigation and the creation of clockwork machinery, as she ventures to French-controlled Venus to rescue her fiance, Captain Singh, from the French.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series as it touched on my love of Jane Austin, Patrick O'Brien, and Jules Verne. The second book does more of the same and it is an absolute joy to read. I hope Arabella and her captain continue their adventuring for a long time to come.
Perhaps my one criticism would be the portrayal of colonialism. While Levine does a good job depicting its evils, the primary characters are still complicit. This didn't dampen my enjoyment of the book, but might not be everyone's cup of tea.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one has kissing in it and that more than makes up for the lack of mutiny. (To be fair, there was a mutiny in the first one, so we couldn't really have another.)

If you like the first one, you will continue liking this one. If the first one was not your thing, this is still not be your thing. But I love the first one and this is very much my thing, and I am happy and I love! Arabella! very much!

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm still liking the setting but Arabella's flirtations with the rascally Captain Fox bored me. It ended up boring the author too, as in the last chapter it was just declared over. But at least they are back in space, and Arabella has another incentive to stay there, so I will look for the third book.

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A much more fun followup then book 1. Definitely some slowness in the middle. But the details were interesting. And luckily I know little of actual naval maneuvers that I can appreciate the writing and drama without catching any inaccuracies which might exist. It's still a re-write of the Napoleonic Wars in space-ish, not something I care much about. As well as a Victorian era novel of manners and the like, which I also don't like much. But it worked and it was a good read, even with a week-long gap reading in the middle.

[Abigail Pankau · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, solid young-adult, alternative history, steam-punk adventure. It's a page-turner with phenomenal world-building and a female protagonist. I very much enjoyed it, and felt it's better than the first one.

[Daniel Shellenbarger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is a delightful Napoleonic War era fantasy which supposes a more fantastic version of our solar system, very much akin to the alternate universe in Michael J. Martinez's The Daedalus Incident or (to a lesser extent) Philip Reeve's Larklight. As in those books, the void between worlds is not a vacuum, merely a less dense aether, which makes it possible for sailing vessels to travel between worlds. Unlike those books, there is no magic in the Arabella series (or science so advanced that it is essentially magic), and Levine puts some impressive thought into his world-building and interplanetary naval warfare concepts.

Following the events of Arabella of Mars, the titular heroine has established herself back in the family holdings on Mars, which are gradually recovering from the Martian Uprising. However, she soon receives a shock when her fiancé, the indomitable Captain Singh, is captured by Napoleon's forces on Venus, where Napoleon escaped from his exile. Arabella decides that if he is to be rescued she must be about it herself and so she hires a privateer to convey her to Venus and see about freeing her beloved captain from his fetters. However, they no sooner arrive than they are intercepted by a vast French squadron and so Arabella finds herself joining her husband in captivity where she finds that all is not as it seems as the French, working alongside the American inventor Robert Fulton, are up to something insidious, something that could give France undisputed control of the airways.

For the most part Arabella and the Battle of Venus is a fun follow-up to its predecessor. My only real caveat is Arabella's sometime interest in the privateer captain which seems like a needless attempt to build drama with a love triangle, though the author keeps things above board. I will say that I felt a bit of a problem with the story in that Fulton is working for the French in 1815 when he was already dead in our timeline, and assuming the many parallels of the story are correct in other regards, his last project was a (marginally successful) attempt to build a steam-powered warship for the U.S. Navy to protect New York Harbor during the War of 1812. If the author had simply touched upon the issue of American-British relations and explained how Fulton happened to still be alive, these issues would've been moot, but bizarrely, neither comes up (particularly since Levine explained why Lord Nelson was still around), which disappointed me because otherwise Levine's world-building has been so thorough. Those minor gripes aside, I quite enjoyed reading this book (as with its predecessor) and I do hope that in spite of the outbreak of peace among the European powers, Captain Singh and Arabella have more adventures in store.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

About 3.5. I still like Arabella, the fantastical, historical, interplanetary-sailing world/premise, and the exciting plot, just maybe not quite as much as in the first book. The Venusian natives are a new alien type and culture, though not [yet] explored in depth; the frog-like form of these French allies is an amusing pun on the real-history slang of the day (frogs = Frenchmen). There are some good bits integrating actual historical personages (Fouché, Napoléon, Nelson). It was interesting to see the rules of honorable conduct for a British officer on "parole" and in battle play out. I'm afraid the rest of this review is going to be mainly about my reservations, though.

1) It has a little bit of love triangle, which tends to annoy me, though it doesn't go too far in the obviously wrong direction (the sometimes-charming rogue, who also happens to be a compulsive gambler), especially since propriety is ever observed.

2) There are quite a few of the crew(s) lost at one point or another, which I suppose is realistic, but leaves me wondering, e.g., how many of those who didn't make it out in the escape survived (at least in the moment), and what the French did with them afterwards.

3) The issues of slavery and racial prejudice, among humans (both Arabella's fiancé and her friend/ex-crewmate Mills being dark-skinned) and by humans toward aliens, are treated a bit too shallowly. Arabella's lack of concern for the superficial opinions of society doesn't mean her potential children won't face difficulties, and as for the group of Venusian slaves who make the risky break to freedom with the protagonists, there's no discussion of where they're going to find a place to settle and be accepted. The revelation of Mills's back-story does use an interesting and rarely-presented historical truth, though.

4) Arabella is, especially at just 19, a little too much always the one with the unprecedented idea to save the day, a quite common problem with fiction.

5) I'm losing my tolerance for the unexplained capabilities of Captain Singh's automaton navigator, which is involved in the final portion of the book. Does "he" have auditory sensors and processors, to receive and comprehend human speech, or not? Does he require mechanically-input parameters, and produce only specific types of calculations, or not? I'm simply not content with mystical handwavium in what's supposedly a man-made prototype device.

Still, all that being said, it's a fun book. I feel kind of bad going on about the negatives. I'll try to remember some more specific positives to come back and add. I wouldn't recommend AGAINST it, and if DDL writes another Arabella tale, I'l read it.

Hardcover read from the library.
Will I read again/buy my own? Maybe.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed the first book in this series, Arabella of Mars, so I was very excited when the second book came out. Unfortunately, the old cliché idea that the second book is never as good as the first rings true. I found way to many strange occurances in the book for my liking. At one point Arabella is at a party with Napoleon and the Empress and finds that she needs to use the washroom. She stands up to go (with the Empress) and, noticing Lady Cory hanging on making a very poor choice, decides to intervene. Then...all of a sudden Arabella sits back down. It was horribly confusing since I thought she had to go to the bathroom... This was only one of many confusing scenes.

All in all, I was disappointed with the book. It didn't live up the excitement of the first. Hopefully the third installment will be better.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review also posted here: https://underthebookcover.blogspot.co...

Thank you to Desirae from Tor Books for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review! All opinions are my own.

I recently read Arabella of Mars, the first book in this series, and absolutely loved it! Arabella is a fantastic, strong, and witty character that definitely stayed with me after I'd finished the book. The sequel is just as fantastic, if not more so, and I was so happy to be back in this world with Arabella.

Plot:
Arabella Ashby's plans to marry Captain Singh of the Honorable Mars Trading Company are put on hold when he's called away on urgent Company business to Venus. Now, the Captain has been captured by the French and is a prisoner of war. Of course, this won't do, and Arabella sets off to find passage to the enemy-controlled planet of Venus to rescue her fiance. To do so, Arabella must enlist the help of privateer Daniel Fox of the Touchstone and build her own clockwork navigational automaton in order to reach Venus before Joseph Fouché, the Executioner of Lyon. But once they reach Venus, they discover that Napoleon has created a secret weapon that could dominate the entire galaxy unless they can discover a way to stop Fouché, and the entire French army, from completing their emperor's orders.

I was so excited at the chance to read more about Arabella and her adventures! She's such a great character that really defies the norm of her time and I love that about her. This book certainly felt a bit darker than the first but I really enjoyed that feeling while I was reading. I thought that including Napoleon as an enemy was clever as the author is taking our world history and bringing it into Arabella's world and that made it feel a bit more real for me as a reader. This world is a unique one, for sure, and the idea that wooden ships flying in space was one that took me a bit to accept, but was overall a fun story to follow! The aerial battles were actually really exciting to read about and were probably my favorite part of the book. Again, while it was a little hard to picture, they were very well written and it made for an exceptionally entertaining read. I also thoroughly enjoyed the inclusion of more alien life and how easily Arabella adapts to the Venusians. She's such an open and accepting character and I loved how she was an advocate for equality between the races, both human and alien. This plot moved at a relatively smooth pace, neither too fast or too slow, and it was easy to just sit down and dive back into Arabella's world. I honestly could not get enough of this character and will definitely follow her wherever she may go next. It was so much fun to follow her on her adventures to Venus and I am so excited to see where she goes in the future with her wonderful Captain Singh!

Characters:
Arabella Ashby is such a strong and fun character to follow. She lives in a time where women are treated as delicate little flowers that can't do anything but sit around and do needlework and learn foreign languages. But that's not who she is, and she's not ashamed of that. She's strong and loud and forward and does things that cause people to stop and stare. She disguised herself as a boy to get to Mars and save her brother and now she's taking another adventure to Venus to save her fiance. She likes working with automaton like her father and feels more comfortable in pants than a dress, especially when on an airship. Arabella is the strong female character that I've been dying to read about and there's no doubt that there are other readers out there who will fall in love with her as I have.

I also really enjoy the side characters such as Daniel Fox and Captain Singh. Although we don't get to see much of Captain Singh until about the later half of the book, I still really enjoyed his presence and how he and Arabella interact with each other. Fox was also interesting and definitely lives up to his last name, being very dashing and trying to charm our lovely Arabella. While Arabella is the main character, the other characters such as Fox, Singh, and even the crew are very well-written and enjoyable to read about. David D. Levine does a fantastic job at bringing these different characters to life and giving them each distinct personalities that all combine to make a fun reading experience.

Writing:
I never would have thought that I would enjoy a book that was described as steampunk, but here I am, absolutely loving it. I did have a hard time imagining that a wooden ship could travel to other planets, but the author really did an incredible job at making me suspend disbelief and just enjoy the story. You get some really descriptive, beautiful words throughout this book and are able to picture the crazy airship battles and amazing locations that are visited. Everything, even the automaton, come to life between the pages of these books and I think that everyone will enjoy reading the adventures of Arabella Ashby.

The world is unique, mostly because these characters spend most of the time on either Mars, traveling between planets, or on Venus, the leading lady is one that many will likely relate to and love for her out of the norm behavior, and the writing will take you on an out of this world adventure that you won't soon forget. Arabella and the Battle of Venus is an exciting sequel to Arabella of Mars that is sure to delight fans of steampunk and space travel and capture the attention of fans of fantasy with a hint of historical fiction.

[Mary Kay Kare · Rating 3 out of 5]

It would have got a higher rating if I hadn’t wanted to slap Arabella for the first 21, of 26, chapters. That girl seriously needed to pull her head out. Being upset that your fiancé isn’t happy to see you. Because for him to see you you had to get captured by enemy forces & interned in a pretty awful POW camp!

[Tim Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable and a bit darker follow up to _Arabella of Mars_. I wouldn’t strictly speaking call it a sequel, as while it certainly involves a great many of the same characters, it is an entirely separate adventure with a different feel. It read fast and had the same wonderful mash up of different genres – Regency romance, age of sail style adventures, steampunk/clockpunk science fiction, and planetary romance – that the first book did.

Arabella Ashby receives word that her fiancé, Captain Singh, captain of the Honorable Mars Company ship _Diana_ (along with their entire crew) have been captured by the French and are being held prisoner on the planet Venus. Also home to Napoleon now, things just keep worse when Arabella finds out that the dreaded Fouché is heading there, the dreaded “Executioner of Lyon,” a man essentially it would seem responsible for war crimes, a man soon to be in charge of the prison where her fiancé is being held.

Fearing that Captain Singh is in grave danger, Arabella hatches a plan to go and rescue her fiancé, one that involves her beating Fouché thanks to the current relative positions of the planets (fortuitous for Mars, not so fortuitous for Earth), her navigational skills, and finding just the right person (and crew and ship) to both listen to her and make the daring rescue. She finds a privateer, Daniel Fox of the _Touchstone_, a man who is she at turns infuriated by and intrigued by.

Accompanied by another new character, Lady Corey, an older widowed woman that, due to the needs of propriety, Arabella’s brother insists company her to Venus as a chaperone and guardian (despite the fact that Arabella is as capable or more capable as most men), the _Touchstone_ sets sail for Venus…

….and not to spoil things, but the ship is captured by the French and everyone ends up in a French prison camp in the swamps of Venus, the crew set to work on a mysterious project (very important to the overall plotline, especially the “Battle of Venus” part of the title of the book) and Lady Corey, Fox, Arabella, and they find Captain Singh are given their parole to walk about (under restrictions) the town and prison camp, becoming involved in plots and schemes to find out what Napoleon is up to, save the crew and themselves, and if possible escape. Also along the way Arabella explores her feelings for Singh (who seems strangely distant, secretive, and distracted) and Fox (who she finds handsome and intriguing), all while keeping Lady Corey happy and fighting against the restrictions in this era on her gender to help Singh and the cause.

An enjoyable book, the muck, rain, misery, and corruption of the French prison camp was quite different indeed from the setting of the first novel of the series with its attention to shipboard life and the rebellion on Mars. It was good to have some new characters, with Fox quite likable and Lady Corey possessing more depth than I thought at first she would have. It was neat to see another new sentient race in this setting, the vaguely frog-like bipedal Venusians, with explorations of them showing a bit of social exploration in the novel (the nature of slavery, racism, and colonialism especially, though not done in a way that felt preachy but rather integral to the plot). The fact that they were basically looked down upon as frogs and seen all as one group (most humans utterly ignorant that the Venusians were different nations and languages), that element could not only be a commentary on British colonialism but also British views on the French people (not sure if that latter bit was ironic, as very little in the way of French characters came off as particularly nuanced or sympathetic).

Few complaints. The natural historian in me would have liked more exploration of the fauna and for a of Venus. Venusian silk was mentioned and used quite a bit in the novel but we never got a sense of its source on the planet, though as the story was set in and around a French prison camp I imagine there is a lot of the planet the author can yet detail in future installments. I have seen other reviewers comment on the distant relationship at times between Singh and Arabella though I think that element made sense given Singh’s priorities, his experience in the prison camp, and the rules of etiquette and propriety in that era.

[Milliebot · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review and others posted over at my blog.

Arabella is back and just as headstrong as ever. But in her quest to save her fiancé, she’s finding it difficult to get her way. Before she can escape Mars on any kind of ship, her brother forces a chaperone on her. Lady Corey prevents Arabella from donning her old uniform (a lady of quality does not scamper around in men’s clothing, how scandalous!) and instead forces her into a dress, which we learn is a huge pain in the ass when traveling in zero gravity. She struggles with reconciling her past experience as a crew member with being a mere passenger and as a sort of compromise, finds herself trying to out-navigate the captain of the ship.

Daniel Fox is a typical dashing rogue, and he does his best to charm Arabella, but we know our girl is too smart to fall for him…..right? Lady Corey starts out as a nuisance to Arabella (and me as a reader) but proves to be more stalwart and daring than she initially seems. Captain Singh doesn’t make an appearance until the latter half of the book and comes off very stiff until you find out his motives. I was sad that Aadim didn’t play more of a role in this book, or clockwork in general, because I friggen love clockwork stuff. Given Arabella’s amateur talent for clockworkery (yep!) and her father’s skill, I really thought we’d get more of that in this book and I was disappointed that didn’t pan out.

I had a hard time picturing a lot of the nautical –er– aerial battles, but that’s because my brain has no interest in absorbing information related to ships and I can’t fathom where anything is or what the directions mean. Hi, yes, I know I could learn these things, but I don’t wanna! The action is still fun and I still love that there are wooden ships that fly through space!

We also get more alien life in this book. Arabella grew up with Martians and doesn’t find their physical and cultural differences appalling as some do (cough-ladycorey-cough), so she adjusted well to the Venusians. Her acceptance of other cultures is a skill that pays off later in the book and I like that she’s an advocate for equality among different races, both alien and human (given that her fiancé is from India.)

I can’t wait to see what planet Arabella explores next and what events in history she moves through. If you enjoyed the first book, I’m pretty certain you’ll enjoy the sequel. If you’re looking for the start of a series that’s quasi-historical fiction with a swash-buckling Regency babe who travels on wooden airships through outer space, then you should be picking up the Arabella books.

I received this book for free from Tor in exchange for an honest review.

[Karin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I rounded the first book up to 4 stars, and although I realize that Levine was going through a difficult period of his life, this isn't why this book fails, and those proofreading and editing should have picked up on most of what failed in this one.

It started off well, but as the book progressed the voice I enjoyed so much went down. The love triangle was inane and unbelievable. How many 19 year old girls are attracted to men aged 40? When I was 19 I had a boyfriend whose plan was to make his first million by 40 and then get married. I said nothing, but in my mind I thought 40 year old men were too old to be attractive, and not just because my mother was 41. I also have difficulties with adults of that age flirting with teens. There is so much wrong with that I don't know where to begin.

If that were the only problem, I'd have let it go. However, calling French people frogs is highly offensive, even if you say frog-eaters. And then having the people of Venus resemble frogs on top of it. The use of French was poorly done, and the story didn't hold out well. We have a wonderful character whose English isn't that great who somehow learns the Venusian language well enough in a very short amount of time to help coach Arabella.

One of the most fun things about the first book is its lack of science--it's rather fun to have people travelling in outer space in air on ships, and to think of an automaton that might think and hear. However, using scientific explanations for hydrogen destroyed this because it involved thinning atmospheres which meant the fun house of cards for space travel that this book had stood fell apart.

Then there was the pregnant male Venusian with no explanation. Biological males cannot get pregnant; I realize that male sea horses "give birth" to the young after the female deposits her eggs there. It's one thing to try and be creative with various things, but anyone who has studied animal biology knows this is impossible--it was trying too hard with no real understanding of animal biology. Had he made them hermaphrodites like earthworms, this would have worked better. There was an episode of Star Trek: Next Generation that did a more plausible story line with a single sex species, The Outcast, Season 5, episode 17 which I saw in a rerun and primarily remember because that character on the ship was named Soren, the name of my late niece.

I won't continue with the list of disappointing things in this installment, nor with this series, but will read the very end of the third book just so I know how it ends.

[Ashutosh Sahu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite as good as the first book in this series. I found the plot a bit contrived at times, it felt much less freewheeling than the first as it became clear all the principal characters would be in the same place at the same time. Even in the early chapters, as soon as they mentioned Napoleon and one of the characters boasting of killing him (I think it was Captain Fox) I was sure that Mr. Bonaparte himself would encounter Arabella sooner or later... and he did.

Part of the issue, not necessarily the Author's fault, is that the idea of equating the conflict between the British and the French Navies to a sci-fi conflict feels pretty done to death by David Weber's Honorverse. Having actual historical characters and a setting in the historical time with space sail-ships feels a bit weird. We have a whole universe of possibility, but we're reduced to fighting historical battles with quasi-historical characters Nelson and Napoleon overseeing?

I think the publishing industry has gone off its rocker and then some. They're putting out mish-moshes of tired genres that don't really have any excitement in their twists. I get that Victorian Steampunk was very briefly popular, I get that alternate history fiction has its fans, but give us characters and tropes we actually care about! Instead Arabella is nearly a Mary Sue, Captain Singh definitely is, Lady Chaperone is straight out of Downton Abbey, Napoleon is uninteresting, and most of the other characters are redshirts.

I viewed the previous novel as more humorous... a ridiculous premise, but somewhat romantic and exploratory in its sensibilities. The realities of a slave-labor type prison were too discordant and again a little too full of tropes to make this novel feel lighthearted. The romance between Singh and Arabella does not work at all, I don't remember enough of it from the previous novel as the author probably assumed the reader would... but it could also hide weak character building by introducing the romance offscreen. The 'definite' choice the protagonist makes by saving Singh instead of Fox is unconvincing... there isn't really a lot of setup for it.

This gets 3 stars primarily because much of new sci-fi is unreadable garbage, and this stays well above that low bar.

[Tim Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you pick up this book you MUST abandon any urge to work out whether things are possible. This book is glued together with large gobs of narrativium, whereby things work because the plot needs then to work and would you stop with the questions already?

You really should have read Arabella of Mars first, and if you have you already know that the science is a but wibbly-wobbly, well OK it's ludicrous. But it's fun.

I happened to come to this book not long after reading O'Brian's Master and Commander, which is ridiculously detailed and scrupulously correct about making sure that the stuns'ls only go out when the wind's a tormontana abaft the beam, and the t'gallant crossbraces are connected to the mizzen frammises. Let's just say that things are a little looser here.

Gotta admire Levine's working out that a ship sailing in space might as well have masts in down and sideways as well as up. Gotta admire his sheer nerve in handwaving around how you slip a sailboat into a ten-thousand-knot interstellar wind from a standing start. But then we've already accepted that there's breathable air throughout the solar system, so what the heck. Meanwhile, though, Levine's careful to remind us that planetary orbital timings are important. But perhaps a tad eccentric in his placement of the guns on the ships.

And don't even get me started about the sheer amazing (how do I not use a rude word here?) that is Aadim. He's a "deus IN machina." Points awarded for early use of that concept!

So, once we're sailing between planets at 10,000 earth-nautical-miles per earth-hour, why would our heroine NOT meet Napoleon and Nelson within 24 hours, in space off Venus?

This book is quite silly, and moderately enjoyable ... either in spite of its silliness or perhaps because of it.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Arabella gets word that her fiancée has been captured by the French on Venus, she is not about to sit around and let him languish there. Especially when she hears that Napoleon's most dreaded right hand is headed that way. Arabella quickly works to find a ship that will take her to Venus in the midst of turbulent times. But this trip isn't going to be like her previous ones with Captain Singh. First off, she's now a lady so she has to go with a chaperone and she's not allowed to join the sailors in any of their work, let alone talk to men so below her station. But Arabella finds a way to pass the time in working on a contraption to help them figure out a faster route to Venus. The plan seems simple enough, get to Venus, rescue Captain Singh and his crew and return to Mars with all haste. But nothing can be that simple in a time of war.

This adventure with Arabella was a little slower of a read for me than the first one. The restrictions of the chaperone really cramp Arabella's style and get frustrating. And there isn't a ton of high action until they get to Venus. Even then, there's a bit of time before the big finale when things finally get moving. I am continually amazed by how well Levine adapted the history to fit his space travel. It works surprisingly well. And he keeps in mind the physics of his reimagined space and things very well too. I was heartbroken to hear that Levine's wife died during the process of writing this, and I can also see how that affected the overall mood and pacing of the book. (Not to say that it is all gloom and doom or anything but it isn't super upbeat either.) Looking forward to the next Arabella book.

Notes on content: No language issues that I remember. A couple of kisses but nothing more than that sexually. There are a couple battles with casualties mentioned and some wounds described.