Steampunk Is Perfect for Planes

Reading on vacation is tough. It calls for the perfect page-turning read for the perfect mood -- at least for me, probably because I don't have all of my books to choose from and feel penned in by the books I've packed in my bag. I mean what if you only brought mystery but you're in the mood for romance? I sometimes find it really hard to concentrate while reading on vacation as well. And although I wasn't truly on vacation last week, vacation reading was definitely called for.

My last night in Charleston, I headed out to dinner at The Glass Onion -- conveniently located just down the street from my temp digs and super tasty -- and then stayed up way too late channel surfing in the hotel. I did start a book that I managed to get 100 pages into, but was unable to stick with it in the airport the next day. I tried again on the plane, but just couldn't do it.

This called for drastic measures. I mean, when else do you need to take your mind off of things as much as you do in an airport or on a plane? It's one of the worst places to be stuck counting the minutes, and therefore one of the best places for a super engaging read. But again, it must be the perfect read for the moment or it won't work.

So I started a new book. Yes, shame on me, mid-read I started a new one. And it was the right one. It fit. It was great! Add to that the fact that the second leg of my flight was quite possibly one of the best flying experiences I have ever had (no one in the seat next to me AND the plane was EARLY).

And the book was:

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest, a Steampunk read set in an alternate 1880s Seattle that's riddled with zombies thanks to Dr. Blue's Incredible Bone-Shaking Drill Engine. The goal was to great a drill that could bore through Alaska's ice and get to the purported vein of gold beneath. Leviticus Blue believed that he had created just the machine, but instead ended up destroying the city and releasing a yellow gas that infected anyone in its path. The Blight, as it was called, turned people into rotted walking corpses. And so a wall was built to keep the gas and the walking dead inside. Briar Wilkes and her son, Zeke, live outside the wall. Though they've tried to keep the connection to Blue as secret as possible, everyone knows that Briar is Blue's widow. And no one will let either Briar or Zeke forget it. Dead set on finally clearing his father's name, Zeke finds a way to cross the wall. Now Briar must enter the city that was once her home and try to find her son before it's too late.

An incredibly engaging story that kept me thoroughly entertained through the crowds and noise of Dulles and however any feet above the air we were flying to Denver.

Cherie Priest is the author of a growing collection of books, including the Southern gothic Eden Moore trilogy: Four and Twenty Blackbirds (2005), Wings to the Kingdom (2006), and Not Flesh Nor Feathers (2007).

Priest has two more books due out in the Clockwork Century world and also has some urban fantasy titles on her upcoming list. I think she's pretty much set to conquer each and every genre out there!