Infernal Devices

Steampunk, ahoy!

And hey, did you know that Jeter coined that term?

Remember when those fantastic adventure tales whose main goal was to
tell a fast-paced story with some interesting ideas used to clock in under
250 pages and could be enjoyed in one long afternoon? And didn't have
sequels? Probably not and I'm probably dating myself. It is nice to be
reminded that such things were once fairly common. Maybe authors these
days are afraid of being seen as somehow disposable or too lightweight.
And what's wrong with being lightweight?

Infernal Devices is a great example of swiftly-paced, lightweight

entertainment. It is a retro-chic thriller full of tricky clockwork mechanisms,
cobblestones and foggy nights, demented aristocrats and dodgy lower
class types, inhuman creatures from the sea and their barely human half-
breed spawn, creepy flights into darkness and sudden escapes, and two
brassy mercenaries who are strangely familiar with 20th century slang.
Best of all, there is also an automaton who comes equipped with all of the
wit, intelligence, and sexual drive that his original human model - our
strangely bland hero - appears to lack. Two peas in a pod, except one pea
is infinitely more tasty.