Chronicles of
Steele: Raven by Pauline Creeden is
my first ever steampunk read, and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed both the
genre and Creeden’s storytelling. The book is divided into four episodes, each
is subdivided into scenes.
The novel is about
Raven Steele, a reaper. Reapers are not entirely mercenaries, or at least they
did not start out as such. Their main code is, for every life they take, they
must redeem it by saving another. This code stops them from falling in a
downward spiral of becoming unfeeling and heartless.
The novel opens with
Raven having made up her mind to go to Gregory and declare her love for him. On
the way, a broken automated horse pulling a carriage lands in the water and
Raven saves the young boy in the carriage. The boy turns out to be the young
Baron, the second in line to rule New Haven. Raven is taken to the Duke and
there his older son, Solomon, tells her that the young Baron, Darius, has a
demon and that he just suffered a failed exorcism. He asks her to take his
brother to the Wood Witch to cure him, or their father, the Duke, will kill him.
Raven sees an opportunity to redeem herself by rescuing Darius.
At the beginning of
the novel, we see Raven trying to think of other people as human. A short while
after that thought and in her first confrontation in the book, Raven is
arrested and the scene is described with “…gripped
the chain between the cuffs and pulled her forward like an ox.” The image
is highly ironic as she tries to think of others as people, whereas such people
treat her like an animal even though she gets out of her way and saves a life.
Throughout the book,
Raven tries to escape the Duke’s guard to get Darius to the Wood Witch. Getting
there isn’t easy, but the worse is yet to come as it turns out the Darius is
very special and the Wood Witch has much better and bigger plans.
The novel is
narrated in the third person. The language is simple with many beautiful
images:
“Sunlight sifted through and between the buildings stacked
next to one another like books on a shelf.”
Every scene in every
episode begins with a few lines of advice or notes in the reapers’ code. For instance
“Defeat is a state of mind. The loser is not the person
who fails, but one who gives up. If one never gives up, lost ground can be
easily recovered when the opportunity presents itself.” Also, “Actions must be guided by reason, not emotion. The moment
decisions become based on feelings, one will err”.
I particularly liked
Credeen’s use and choice of colours in these lines, which reflect both Raven’s
and the author’s views as to the Duke’s choice since his guard wears brown
coats. “Brown might be a good colour for a dirty
job, but a bloody one? As a reaper, Raven wore black – the appropriate colour
for the purpose.”
In the Chronicles
of Steele, there are many bits of sound and advice and food for thought. For
example, Raven is highly intelligent and calculating, often anticipating her
opponents’ moves. In one scene, she tells Darius, “You
don’t have to be faster than a bullet, you just need to be smarter than the man
holding the gun.”
Despite being such a
strong character, certain little things still get to Raven. She’s hard on the
outside but afraid of a tiny thing like spiders. This makes her character more
realistic and believable. “As a reaper, she trained
to conquer her fear. Yet the thought of eight hairy legs creeping across her
skin made her cringe.”
Moreover, we say
Raven develop, particularly in terms of emotions. She begins to care for Darius
and worries about him. Is he cold? Is he well fed? Later, she draws strength
from his faith and trust in her.
Chronicles of
Steele is rich in characters from
Raven, to Monroe, Captain Jack Grant, Darius, Colton and even Nikki the dog.
Credeen’s storytelling is enjoyable and when you think you’ve been let down,
Credeen shows you she’s just been teasing – I liked that bit.
What I particularly
loved about the novel is that it mixed so many genres into one beautiful read. It
is action, adventure, disguise, mystery, fantasy and supernatural with a tiny
tinge of romance.
“That woman’s passion was like a storm, and he could
either cower from the lightning, or be brace and stand in the rain.”
Note: I received a free copy in return for an honest review and as
part of the Chronicles of Steele: Raven blog
tour via Xpresso Book Tours.
Note: The books were originally published
separately, though my copy is of all four episodes.
Keep reading
for more info about the books and the author:
Purchase:
About Pauline Creeden:
In simple language, Pauline Creeden
creates worlds that are both familiar and strange, often pulling the veil
between dimensions. She becomes the main character in each of her stories, and
because she has ADD, she will get bored if she pretends to be one person for
too long. Pauline is a horse trainer from Virginia, but writing is her therapy.
Armored Hearts, her joint effort with
author Melissa Turner Lee, has been awarded the Crowned Heart for Excellence by
InDtale Magazine. It is also the 2013 Book Junkie’s Choice Winner in Historical
Fiction. Her debut novel, Sanctuary, won 1st Place Christian YA Title 2013
Dante Rosetti Award and 2014 Reader’s Choice Gold Award for Best YA Horror
Novel.
Author links:
