Boneshaker

by Cherie Priest

Reviewed by Ruby

Leviticus Blue built a machine that would help miners get the gold out of the ice in Alaska. After a malfunction, the Boneshaker drilled its way into the heart of Seattle leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. What came after was worse though. The Blight spilt out into the city killing anyone who breathed the toxic fumes. The problem was that those who died didn’t stay dead. They got back up and were hungry.

Sixteen years later the city has been walled up and life on the outskirts is rough, especially for Briar Wilkes, Blue’s widow. Blamed for her husband’s mistakes, Briar has raised her son, Zeke, on her own in a hostile town. Fed up with the rumors about his father, Zeke has decided to do something about it. So he finds a way under the wall and into the city bent on finding proof that Levi Blue wasn’t the man that everyone claims he was. What he finds is that there are actual people living in the closed city and not all of them are happy he is there poking around. After learning where he's gone, Briar is desperate to follow and soon finds herself in a world of airships, rotters and crazy inventions.

I loved this book. It was steampunk with zombies, how can anyone not love that? It was well written with well-developed characters and a plot that didn’t stop or sputter through the entire book. There was a simplicity in the plot that made it hard to read at some points though. I mean Zeke was just wandering around blindly and Briar was just as aimless. They both had an overall goal but no idea how to go about achieving them. Zeke especially just kind of bumbled from one mini adventure to another and accidentally ended up where he needed to be.

Other than that I loved this book and I am glad there are more in this series so I can hunt those down and read them.

Grade: B