Who Would Like This Book:
If you've ever wanted to see cities with giant engines chasing each other across a post-apocalyptic landscape, Mortal Engines is your ticket. Philip Reeve’s imagination fuels a world that’s both delightfully outlandish and deeply detailed, packed with airships, daring adventures, and quirky tech. It's fast-paced, visually vivid, and has real stakes - nobody’s truly safe in this swashbuckling steampunk saga. Fans of creative worldbuilding, epic quests, and YA adventures with a dark edge will have a blast. This isn't just for kids - adults who love inventive settings and rich, cinematic storytelling will find plenty to enjoy as well.
Who May Not Like This Book:
Some readers have struggled with the book’s plausibility - giant moving cities may require a healthy suspension of disbelief! The writing style leans younger, with simple prose and sometimes thin characterization, so it may not click with readers seeking deep introspection or more mature literary fare. The quick shifts between character viewpoints can also make it hard to get attached, and if you crave complex villains or gravitate toward slow-burn character arcs, you might find elements underwhelming. Also, the emotionally brisk treatment of some major character fates has left readers wanting more depth.
About:
In a post-apocalyptic world where traction cities roam the wastelands devouring each other for survival, "Mortal Engines" follows the journey of Tom, an apprentice, and Hester, a mysterious assassin, as they unravel a sinister plot in the mobile city of London. The story is filled with action, adventure, and complex characters navigating themes of environmentalism, colonialism, and survival. The writing style is fast-paced, engaging, and at times dark, appealing to both young adult and adult readers with its dystopian setting and intricate world-building.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include violence, death of characters, and some themes of psychological trauma.
From The Publisher:
It was a dark, blustery afternoon in spring, and the city of London was chasing a small mining town across the dried-out bed of the old North Sea ...
The great traction city London is on the move again. It has been lying low, skulking in the hills to avoid the bigger, faster, hungrier cities loose in the Great Hunting Ground. But now, as its great mountain of metal lumbers along in hot pursuit of its quarry, the sinister plans it has harbored for years can finally start to unfold behind its soaring walls...
Thaddeus Valentine, London's Head Historian and most famous archaeologist, and his daughter, Katherine, are down in The Gut when the young assassin with the black scarf strikes. Only the quick intervention of Tom, a lowly third-class apprentice, prevents Valentine from being stabbed in the heart. Madly racing after the fleeing girl, Tom suddenly glimpses her hideous face: scarred from forehead to jaw, nose a smashed stump, a single eye glaring back at him. "Look at what your Valentine did to me!" she screams. "Ask him! Ask him what he did to Hester Shaw!" And with that she jumps down the waste chute to her death. Minutes later Tom finds himself tumbling down the same chute and stranded in the Out-Country, a sea of mud scored by the huge caterpillar tracks of cities like the one now steaming off over the horizon.
In a stunning literary debut, Philip Reeve has created an unforgettable adventure story set in a dark and utterly original world fueled by Municipal Darwinism - and betrayal.
Ratings (42)
Incredible (5) | |
Loved It (16) | |
Liked It (5) | |
It Was OK (8) | |
Did Not Like (8) |
Reader Stats (80):
Read It (45) | |
Want To Read (31) | |
Not Interested (4) |
5 comment(s)
I stopped reading part way through because of weird moments of racism.
It was good. One of those times I wish there was a point five. It made me a little fustrated with how much the author couldn't seem to let any of the 'good' people get anywhere. Perhaps that level of 'life' standing in ones way was just to close to reality. Or maybe it's just election year making me crabby. The world was fascinating and the writing style was easy to read and enjoy. I look forward to checking out the others in the series.
Not at all what I expected this book to be. It was a bit like The Golden Compass meets City of Ember, but darker.
The writing style was excellent. I especially loved how apt the author’s similes were. The narration was good, though some of the pronunciation kept tripping me up. The narrator was wonderful with the many different character voices.
Overall I liked the story. It kept a quick pace, constantly piling on stakes and ramping up tension. The emotion was strong and believable as well, as were the character reactions to the various traumatic events. The world and history were richly imagined. I loved the steampunk vibe.
I went into this series hoping for a entertaining adventure in a unique and fun world. A book series to sink my teeth in and be fully emersed in, however I didn't deliver for me. Found it rather bland and not groundbreaking and the world was not interesting enough for making me want to try the next book. Such a shame really
I distinctly remember losing my sh*t reading this book at my grandpa’s house as a teenager. As it turns out, my tastes have changed significantly, and I no longer revere
Mortal Engines like I did previously.
Mortal Engines has the potential to be an impactful book. First, the characters are likable, particularly Anna Fang and Bevis Pod. It doesn’t take too much to start caring for the characters as the reader sees that the main cast of characters are people who are trying to do the right thing. Secondly, the way the author constructs the city of London introduces some substantial themes. London is literally a tiered city, physically representing the social classes of the city. Early on, Katherine Valentine becomes aware of the appalling conditions prisoners live in on the lowest tiers of the city. There are even echoes of environmentalism through reminders of the destruction of both the current moving cities and the Ancients.
However, by the end of the book, all the themes are reduced to the singular theme: war is hell. There’s obviously nothing wrong with this theme, but I’m unsure why the author took the time to introduce all these other themes when
everything unceremoniously gets destroyed. I suppose this ending could symbolize the end of all of London’s oppressive institutions, but I’m not convinced. Tom, Hester, nor the readers see a clear alternative to London’s institutions. Yes, the Anti-Tractionist cities don’t eat/fight other cities or harm the environment as much, but the lifestyles of the citizens in each type of city are presented as comparable. That is to say, the author doesn’t clearly show how the Anti-Tractionist lifestyle/institutions are better. Idk
.
More so than its theme,
Mortal Engines’ biggest fault is its prose. The prose is overly simplistic; the author resorts to telling instead of showing, especially when it comes to the characters’ emotions. Because of the prose style, I never felt fully immersed in the world building or connected to the characters.
Additionally, I just felt like there were way too many character deaths TT
Though it has some interesting material, I’m going to have to give
Mortal Engines two out of five stars. There are better steampunk books out there :)
What can you read after
Mortal Engines?
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