Flights and Chimes and Mysterious Times by Emma Trevayne
I was very excited to start this one. The beginning held my fascination so much. Londinium was all sorts of wonder but to tell you the truth, it struck me as a world wherein pollution took over. Everyone had mechanical pieces for the body parts that toxins claimed. It took me a while (near the end of the story) to realize that it was the way it was meant to be. A mechanical London, a world vastly different from ours. One which needs machines and clockwork to fully function.
Jack, the son of a wealthy businessman, finds himself on the wrong side of a door. A place very much alike to his home except in the prominence of cyborgs(!) and the soot. Soon after, he finds out that he is to be the new son of the Lady, she who rules over Londinium. As typical as any other heir to a business, Jack is groomed to take over the business as he gets older but for now, he is a brat. And this is where my issues come in ─ I could never stand 'em. If I were a younger maybe I could ignore it and enjoy the story but as it is, I am not. Jack had a painfully slow development. He is curious and he resents his parents for not spending enough with him when evidently they care for him enough to give him the best the world has to offer. He also thinks of only himself, always wants his way and is blind to the state of society as long as everything is good for him. All the qualities of a child I'm sure but if you were not so privileged you would be sensitive enough to be aware that people around you are oppressed. It's not always rainbows and butterflies you know. I adored Beth so much, maybe because there is no trace of malice in her.
I was 70% into the story when the juicy part began. Jack's losses and triumphs molded him to a character we can root for. I loved everything after that though it felt like everything happened too fast. And I would really like know how his parents accepted his return.
3.5 stars
