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Brian Kristopher's Reviews > Mainspring
Mainspring (Clockwork Earth #1)
by
by
Warning: Mild Spoilers
First, I liked this book. It's an entertaining read.
That said, I was disappointed with it. I wanted to like this book more than I actually did. That's not to say it's bad, because it's not. It's more a case of it's not anywhere near as good as it could be.
The main problem I had with it is that Hethor, the book's protagonist, never does much of anything. The book sort of happens to him.
In a way, instead of the Victorian Era flavor Lake was going for, he ends up invoking an earlier period. Hethor reminds me very much of Victor Frankenstein, rather than Abraham Van Helsing, Jonathan Harker, Quincy Morris, John Seward and Arthur Holmwood. The novel suffers for it, in large part because when I think of a Victorian Hero, I think a man of action, who works to drive events. As a result, Hethor comes across as a bit weak willed and more than a little wishy-washy.
Also, the central philosophical question of the novel has a pasted on feeling. Hethor has been given a mission from God, by the Angel Gabriel. He comes face to face with several people who are Atheists, of a sort, but no real depth is given to any of these characters, or their belief system. Instead, Hethor knows that they're wrong, and as a result, they become nothing more than cardboard obstacles in his way to the finish line. Since the reader sees the Angel Gabriel charge Hethor with his mission, we know he's in the right. Which is rather disappointingly simplistic.
Some of the problems could be that this work represents Lake's transition from short stories to novel length work, so it reads very much like a first novel, despite Lake's established name. There's also the fact that book length fiction requires a different approach than the short story, and the fact that Lake cut his teeth on short stories could very well be why some of the more interesting aspects of the book are so shallow. It could be that Lake hasn't really developed the habit of exploring every aspect of his plot with the depth it deserves.
Whether that's the case or not, Lake as crafted a novel that's good, and full of brain candy, but which isn't as filling as it could have been.
First, I liked this book. It's an entertaining read.
That said, I was disappointed with it. I wanted to like this book more than I actually did. That's not to say it's bad, because it's not. It's more a case of it's not anywhere near as good as it could be.
The main problem I had with it is that Hethor, the book's protagonist, never does much of anything. The book sort of happens to him.
In a way, instead of the Victorian Era flavor Lake was going for, he ends up invoking an earlier period. Hethor reminds me very much of Victor Frankenstein, rather than Abraham Van Helsing, Jonathan Harker, Quincy Morris, John Seward and Arthur Holmwood. The novel suffers for it, in large part because when I think of a Victorian Hero, I think a man of action, who works to drive events. As a result, Hethor comes across as a bit weak willed and more than a little wishy-washy.
Also, the central philosophical question of the novel has a pasted on feeling. Hethor has been given a mission from God, by the Angel Gabriel. He comes face to face with several people who are Atheists, of a sort, but no real depth is given to any of these characters, or their belief system. Instead, Hethor knows that they're wrong, and as a result, they become nothing more than cardboard obstacles in his way to the finish line. Since the reader sees the Angel Gabriel charge Hethor with his mission, we know he's in the right. Which is rather disappointingly simplistic.
Some of the problems could be that this work represents Lake's transition from short stories to novel length work, so it reads very much like a first novel, despite Lake's established name. There's also the fact that book length fiction requires a different approach than the short story, and the fact that Lake cut his teeth on short stories could very well be why some of the more interesting aspects of the book are so shallow. It could be that Lake hasn't really developed the habit of exploring every aspect of his plot with the depth it deserves.
Whether that's the case or not, Lake as crafted a novel that's good, and full of brain candy, but which isn't as filling as it could have been.
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Reading Progress
Finished Reading
September 17, 2008
– Shelved
