Jan 30, 2020
→ “Even if I am a prisoner to clockwork”. The clockwork dynasty Daniel H. Wilson
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→ “Even if I am a prisoner to clockwork”. The clockwork dynasty Daniel H. Wilson
GUYS. READ THIS BOOK! I just finished this amazing book which in essence is about a female robotics engineer who becomes swept up in the world of sentient automatons. It's a really clever, delightful, and action packed read featuring.... - A strong, intelligent female protagonist! - Not even a whiff of a romantic side plot! - Main characters who are Chinese, Indian, Russian (lots of the characters are POC!) - Really cool technology! - Automaton as explanations for major historical events! (umm, yes??) - A Cherokee author with a PhD in ROBOTICS!! -Epic human-automaton battles! So really just everything you've been wanting in a diverse steam punk scifi novel, really.
Review: The Clockwork Dynasty
In brief: An expert on baroque automatons. An automaton who awoke in the Russian court. A war as old as humanity (or the avtomat). Destinies, identity, a new take on robots.
Thoughts: This was huh. Different that I’m used to, and I’d say different than I was expecting except that I don’t know what I was expecting from this book. Apart from some steampunky goodness, which I got. There are definitely elements of thriller in the plot, and some electric action scenes, but the real strength is Wilson’s world-building coupled with the story of a robot trying to find his purpose in the past rather than in the present or future. He works in Clarke’s Laws of Robotics in some interesting ways as well.
But at the same time, because this is science fiction of ideas rather than characters or setting, some of the latter suffer. Setting’s okay, though it’s painted in broad strokes for the most part, but the characters are largely broad strokes as well and that doesn’t always work. Pyotr, the automaton who’s one half of the narration, comes through okay and the male supporting characters have pretty distinct personalities, but the women…. We’re told who June (the other narrator) is more than we’re shown and she doesn’t justify her actions enough to be properly believable. The other women are dancing on the edge of cliché, which was a little disappointing. I couldn’t get much of a read on the villain.
All the same, this was an enjoyable, interesting read and I finished it impressed by Wilson’s take on robotics and by some of the things he wove into the world-building. There were places and parts of history I hadn’t expected to see, but they worked here. It’s not a book to take entirely seriously and not destined to be a classic by any means, but I had fun and it left me thinking, somewhat.
Warnings: Dragon Lady trope, one very violent action scene.
7/10
The Clockwork Dynasty and Claire Coffee ☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️
Daniel H. Wilson Unveils the Hidden History of THE CLOCKWORK DYNASTY
THE CLOCKWORK DYNASTY is a new novel about “purpose and the meaning of why we’re here” but “if you just want to read it on the surface level, then it’s robots fighting armored elephants in India during the colonial era!” Intrigued yet?
→ Book rec’ 2020: The Clockwork Dynasty by Daniel H. Wilson (2017)
→ Books I loved in 2020: The clockwork dynasty , by Daniel H. Wilson: Elena Petrovna moodboard
The Clockwork Dynasty Fancast: The avtomats (+ their words)
Peter Serafinowicz as Piotr Alekseievitch aka Peter
Maisie Williams as Elena Petrovna
Gong Li as Leizu
Cody Fern as Herr Talus Silverstörm
Gajraj Rao as Batuo (Supposed words)
Sarah Gadon as Hypatia