Desperate to escape an arranged marriage and the life her high-ranking government official father planned for her, Cat Hunter does the unthinkable. She runs away from her homeland Tellus, disguises herself as a boy, and stows away on an air ship. She’s ready for life in a new land where the general population isn’t poverty stricken and at the mercy of the cruel officials. What she isn’t quite ready for is meeting Fox, a crew member aboard the Stormdancer—which turns out to be a smugglers’ ship. So begins an epic adventure that spans both land and sea.
Bubby: I highly advise you to pop over to lucysaxon.com and learn a little more about this amazing teen author. She seems pretty dang cool. And the book is pretty dang cool too.
Sissy: Lucy Saxon actually wrote the book when she was 16, can you believe it? She’s very clever and imaginative and I’m blown away at the world that she has created in Tellus. The heroine, Cat, flees a horrible home situation and finds a wonderful alternate family aboard the ship Stormdancer. This book is filled with wonderful characters and exciting adventures. I didn’t like the surprise ending, if I’m being honest, but the writing is great.
Bubby: I am not overly fond of the ending either but it makes sense. Every scene is described with vivid intense detail – you really feel like you are right there in the different lands of Tellus, fighting for truth and justice! Wonderful writing throughout. It looks like there will be 6 books in this series but they will be written as stand-alone books that just share a timeline and a setting. I can’t wait to read more from this new young author.
Sissy: Saxon does the steampunk thing well. There are futuristic gizmos and gadgets aplenty alongside a more Victorian-type society. This juxtaposition is intriguing to me and made the adventure that much more complex. I give this debut a solid 3.75 bubbles.
Bubby: Lots of fun. My teens will really enjoy this and so did I. 3.5 bubbles.
Bubble Bath Books 