Book Review: Romulus Buckle & the City of the Founders

December 4, 2014 andrea_luhman@mac.com

Romulus Buckle & the City of the Founders (Chronicles of the Pneumatic Zeppelin #1) by: Richard Ellis Preston Jr.

I gave this book four out of five stars. I love detail, and this book is full of details. Not the silly irrelevant kind that drive a reader mad, but the kind you are thankful for when you are taken deeper into the story and character narratives. Descriptions so clear they make your mind sing as you are easily transported to this place that, in this temporal realm, does not truly exist.

What I liked about the book:

  1. The Characters. The multiple characters and wicked new post apocalyptic world are worth the details and character descriptions at the front of the book. Fantasy and Science Fiction fans will not have a problem with the narratives. I’m just going to tell readers more accustomed to the softer narrative genre’s to take the learning curve in stride, it is all there for good cause.
  1. The action. There is no waiting for action, battles, thrill, or combat in this book. You get thrown into the story from the start and it presses forward in a fast, thrilling, and very entertaining way, with parts that even made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed the stress of flying a Zeppelin, the unusual in fighting flying dinosaurs, and the interesting in navigating hostile territory with a robot resembling an owl.
  1. The environment. I read fantasy and science fiction so I can to be taken somewhere new and different and this is achieved in this book. The cultures and landmarks are relatable, but it was wonderful being taken 300 years past a world apocalypse, which transformed the face of planet earth. I found the result highly creative and entertaining.

The only reason I did not give this book five stars was my strict criteria that a five star read be something I might read again someday. I don’t think I’ll need to; this is a highly memorable and fun book.