Publishing Information: 2008 (first publishing) 2008 (current edition)
Publisher: Roc Fantasy, Mass-Market Paperback, 374 pgs
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-46193-3
Series: Standalone
Reviewer: Andy
Copy: Out of Pocket
Synopsis: (from back cover): In Victorian London, the Whitechapel section has been cut off, enclosed by an impassable wall, and is now ruled by two mysterious mechanical gods. Mama Engine is the goddess of sentiment, a mother to her believers. Grandfather Clock represents logic and precision.
A few years have passed since the Uprising, when humans fought the gold cloaks, and even the vicious Boiler Men, the brutal police force responsible for keeping humans in check. Today, Whitechapel is a mechanized, steam-driven hell. But a few brave veterans of the Uprising have formed a new resistance, and they are gathering for another attack. For now they have a secret weapon that may finally free them…..or kill them.
You may be familiar with Whitechapel as the district of London where Jack the Ripper terrorized prostitutes in the late 19th century, or as the seedy neighborhood where the Elephant Man Joseph Merrick was exploited on display in a shop before rescued and moved to a hospital across the street. Today, Whitechapel has a prominent music scene and is the mecca for a great deal of activism and various left-wing political organization. In S.M. Peters, Whitechapel Gods, Whitechapel is re-imagined in the Victorian Age as being home to a steam driven totalitarian hell, seceded from British Rule. as two tyrant gods have risen to power. Peters has kept the spirit of Whitechapel alive in this creative reinvention of the Whitechapel setting, as subversive revolutionaries aspire to overthrow the oppressive gods that cast their dark shadow over their home.
The characters here are interesting enough to keep most readers' attentions. The german Bergen, newly arrived from Africa, is a product of his time spent in the jungles of Africa and has a Heart of Darkness type kind of appeal, while the former child prostitute turned deadly assassin-seductress Missy is the perfect Victorian coquette, putting on a veneer of prudishness as she tries to manipulate and seduce the apathetic yet still big-hearted failed-revolutionary Oliver. Peters has a firm handle on Victorian archetypes and late 19th-century banter while creating a hostile and violent world seething with unsavory rakes and harsh steam-driven lessons.
Regrettably though, much of the plot progression fails to thrill. So many chapters repetitively feature incognito spying with unclear character motivations resulting in some sort of back alley shootout. Often characters die and return to life followed by very thin explanations of how this has occurred. Other times character remain only half-alive as they haunt a metaphysical realm between life and death. This may sound intriguing up front but really all these minor threads became tangled in a mess that I did not even care to untie. The explanations offered about the dichotomy between the logic and order loving Grandfather Clock and the hot-blooded and emotional Mama Engine are certainly ostentatious but quite shallow and artificial as the book is all gloss and style without much substance.
Still, hardcore fans of the clockpunk or steampunk settings may appreciate this one more than I did. If not taken too seriously there is a kind of B-movie quality aesthetic coolness to this book. Personally though, I found myself bored and struggling to finish it.
Plot……….2/10
Characters………5/10
Style………..6.5/10
Overall……….3/10
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