The Bullet-Catcher's Daughter by Rod Duncan

It's been a while since I've gotten my hands on an amazing steampunk story so THE BULLET-CATCHER'S DAUGHTER was a real treat. Rod Duncan has created an ultra engaging tale of intelligencing, intrigue, and illusion in this novel and it's pure joy to read.

Elizabeth Barnabus is a great heroine living a double life from her houseboat. Everyone thinks she's a mild-mannered woman who lives with her twin brother but she's actually a quality intelligencer, despite her youth. She's resourceful and talented and uses all of her wits to accomplish her mission, a mission that eventually puts her in contact with her past, which was a fun way to show the reader how she acquired some of her talents. (I don't want to talk about it too much because I want to keep this spoiler-free but I will say that it's quite interesting and helps us see some of what shaped Elizabeth into the woman she is in THE BULLET-CATCHER'S DAUGHTER.

The worldbuilding is also well done. There's a lovely steampunk flavour to THE BULLET-CATCHER'S DAUGHTER but it's not the emphasis of the story. There are lots of neat gadgets but there's also sleight of hand, alchemy, and all other manner of intrigue in the novel. The revisionist history is really well done, too, which makes THE BULLET-CATCHER'S DAUGHTER a delight to read. I love how Duncan's rewritten the UK's history, and added a very menacing Patent Office to the mix. There's also a touch of romance but Duncan keeps the main focus of the novel on Elizabeth's increasingly complicated mission, not on her opportunities to lock lips.

I was completely hooked from the first page and I can't recommend THE BULLET-CATCHER'S DAUGHTER enough. It's a delightful book and I'm truly looking forward to seeing what Duncan delivers in the next part of the story.

Posted by Tynga at 03:00

 Angry Robot, Fall of the Gaslit Empire, Netgalley, Review, Rod Duncan, steampunk, Strange Chemistry, young adult  3 People left their mark

Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

Follow Tynga on: Facebook | Twitter