One Down

  I have two words for you: Air. Pirates. Oh, how I wish this was a real thing.  I'd quit both my jobs and join up with a buccaneer crew to participate in raiding and pillaging the skies.  Alas, these particular air pirates are only found in the Cinder Spires, the setting of Jim Butcher's latest fantasy endeavor.

  Last week I discussed my embarkation on a fantastic reading journey that I hope will last me most of 2016.  (You can read that post here.)  The first title I chose to read for my 2016 Reading Resolution project was The Aeronaut's Windlass by Jim Butcher.  Now, I've mentioned before that I have a deep love for Harry Dresden, the hero of Butcher's Dresden Files series.  I find him a compelling character for many reasons, the least of which is the fact that he always seems to be in some sort of trouble, ofttimes through no fault of his own.  He does, however, usually connive a way out of that trouble using his wits.  I like smart characters.  And my deep admiration of Dresden had me a little nervous going into Windlass.  What if I (gasp) didn't like it?  Would it ruin any subsequent Dresden titles for me?  Would it sour me on Jim Butcher forever?  As it turns out, I was worrying needlessly.

  The Aeronaut's Windlass is a rollicking romp through the streets of a city (for lack of any equally adequate term) built in the mists of the sky to the decks of air ships captained by disgraced scoundrels.  And these streets and decks are full of *really interesting* characters.  Including sentient Cats.  Yes, you read that correctly - Cats.  With a capital C.  It is undoubtedly a fantasy, as there are elements of magic and imagination, and fantastic examples of both WORLDbuilding and WORDbuilding.  Additionally, it is a suggestively steampunk fantasy.  I LOVE STEAMPUNK.  (And dieselpunk, and cyberpunk...)  I say suggestively steampunk, because it contains all of the skeletal thematic elements of a steampunk story (gadgets, steam engines, goggles, leather, copper and brass, a feudal-type societal system, etc.) without bashing the reader over the head with them.  Essentially, the elements are there in the background of the story, rather than being the story.  In this way, Butcher is able to spin the story in his own way, rather than following any type of genre formula.

  First, let's talk about the setting.  The surface of the earth is shrouded in mists, which protect the Spire inhabitants from a sun whose rays would otherwise cause madness.  The Cinder Spires, miles-high towers built to shelter earth's inhabitants, are divided up into Houses and Guilds based on social rank and trade, and each Spire is home to a specific people group.  The Spires have, for years, been trading and forging alliances with one another, each hiding behind the strength of its air fleet.  Windlass takes place in Spire Albion.  This is the world Butcher's characters inhabit. 

  The characters in this book are fantastic.  The cast is diverse, but not too large, and the characters compliment and play off each other nicely.  First there are cousins Gwen and and Benedict, both members of the Spire Ark's guard and of House Lancaster, one of the most powerful families in the Spire.  Gwen is headstrong and sometimes short-sighted, but is brave and determined and loyal. Benedict is Warrior-Born, which means that he carries in his blood strains of lion DNA.  This gives him heightened senses, plus added strength and agility.  Interestingly, this also makes him somewhat of a social outcast, as the Warrior-Born are seen as lesser.  Next, there is Grimm, captain of the airship Predator.  Wrongly disgraced and expelled from Fleet, he exists as a privateer.  He has a rigid sense of right and wrong, though those two may not exist exactly the way one might expect.  Then there are Bridgit, of the noble if somewhat diminished House of Tagwyn, and Rowl, prince of the Silent  Paws.  Bridgit is the quiet voice of reason in the group, and Rowl is, well, as Cat, and thinks and behaves exactly as one would expect a Cat to behave.  Finally, Ferus and Folly, the old, half-mad Etherialist and his wispy apprentice (think Luna Lovegood) call into question of truth and perception.

  I am loath to give away any points of the plot, as they are many and deeply intertwined.  Suffice to say there is nothing boring in this book.  There is action, there is dialogue, there is romance, there is deception, there are duels, there are air battles, etc.  Yet it never seems rushed or busy.  The pacing is such that it makes one want to keep reading, yet is never overwhelming.

  Overall, this was a wonderful, swashbuckling adventure I enjoyed every minute of.  I would highly recommend it to fans of adventure stories, as well as those who are avid sci-fi/fantasy and steampunk readers.

  So, on to the next title.

  I am teaching Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers in one of my classes this fall.  I've never read it.  Therefore, Outliers is next on my reading list by default.  It hails from the 300 section of the library, and will count as one of my five non-fiction titles.  I am briefly acquainted with the concept of the book - Gladwell studies what makes people successful.  And it's not what you think.  Stay tuned...