Escapement

This is my review for Escapement by Jay Lake. This is a steampunk-like novel, set in an alternative version of earth, where the world is divided in half on the equator by a wall that is hundreds of feet tall, which no one in the novel has traversed. The northern half of Earth is codominated by the English and Chinese empires.

The book has 3 main characters, telling the story from each of their viewpoints. Each chapter contains a segment from Paolina, Al-Wazir, and Childress. Paolina is a teenaged misandrist from a colony along the wall with an extraordinary intellect (along with a little bit more). Al-Wazir is a Scottish-Arabian officer asked to command the defense of a camp along the Wall devoted to drilling through the Wall. Childress is a librarian from Boston who gets swept away by a Chinese submarine in a plot for her life.

The first thing to note about this book is that there is a book which precedes it, Mainspring, which I did not read. I am not sure if you would benefit from reading it or not, but I did not get the impression that I was missing a lot of story. You can certainly understand the plot of this book, but there may be some parts of the 'mythology' it is trying to set up that you will miss.

The world in which this story takes place is certainly very well thought out and imaginative. There are mythical creatures and places and all of them are interesting, provoking the reader's curiousity. The Wall especially makes you hungry for more information, which is presumably a good thing with more books to come in the series.

The problem is, as enthusiastic as I am about a great setting, it also needs a solid plot to move it along, or compelling characters. I really did not feel as if the book delivered on either of these accounts. The characterization was shallow at best. Other than her intellect and 'ability,' Paolina is little more than, as I mentioned before, a misandrist (man-hater). She seems to be singularly defined by the fact the she hates men and will not be controlled by them. The problem with this is it is not subtle at all. I rather felt browbeat with her hatred by the end of the book. Al-Wazir offers no depth whatsoever, and Childress is a little bit interesting, bringing in some theme such as bravery. Unfortunately, that makes her the exception rather than the rule.

The plot is unfortunately, similarly stagnant. Paolina and Al-Wazir are constantly in motion, and moving around Europe and the Wall, but the reasons are all sort of reactions, and there's no central problem or conflict pushing them along. Childress' story is incredibly remote, and seems utterly pointless until the very end. While this may sound harsh, and maybe it would not be that bad if the book had something else to offer, but I certainly had some trouble pushing ahead at points. I even have some trouble verbalizing the plot without giving spoilers, because really, there was not much until the very end.

The book was not awful. The setting is good, but the characters and plot are not overly interesting or dynamic. If the setting intrigues you enough, it may be worth it to pick up this book, especially since there are more books coming which may offer more. If you need strong plot or character to get into a book, this is definitely one to pass up. Even if you like a strong setting, there are books where you will get a more complete package.

Final verdict is a pass for most people! Go find something better. I don't think you will have that much trouble.