As told by Amazon:

Alek and Deryn are on the last leg of their round-the-world quest to end World War I, reclaim Alek’s throne as prince of Austria, and finally fall in love. The first two objectives are complicated by the fact that their ship, the Leviathan, continues to detour farther away from the heart of the war (and crown). And the love thing would be a lot easier if Alek knew Deryn was a girl. (She has to pose as a boy in order to serve in the British Air Service.) And if they weren’t technically enemies.

Amazon currently has the hardback listed for $11.75. Now that’s a deal.

For more information about the series, check out Scott Westerfeld’s official site.

For Behemoth, I will simply let the product description tell the tale:

The behemoth is the fiercest creature in the British navy. It can swallow enemy battleships with one bite. The Darwinists will need it, now that they are at war with the Clanker powers.
Deryn is a girl posing as a boy in the British Air Service, and Alek is the heir to an empire posing as a commoner. Finally together aboard the airship Leviathan, they hope to bring the war to a halt. But when disaster strikes the Leviathan’s peacekeeping mission, they find themselves alone and hunted in enemy territory.

Alek and Deryn will need great skill, new allies, and brave hearts to face what’s ahead.

This novel will again feature great illustrations by Keith Thompson, so gird yourself for that.

Behemoth arrives tomorrow.

Books:

• Leviathan
• A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1)
• A Prayer for Owen Meany
• The Eyes of the Dragon
• McTeague
• The Master and Margarita

Movies:

• Man on Wire
• Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts
• Avatar The Last Airbender – The Complete Book 1 Collection
• Avatar The Last Airbender – The Complete Book 2 Collection
• Avatar The Last Airbender – The Complete Book 3 Collection
• La Femme Nikita [Blu-ray]
• Ponyo
• Metropolitan – Criterion Collection

Right click and download the eighty-fifth episode here:

• MP4 291mb

Comments or questions? Email us at: pnbfans(at)gmail(dot)com

Just in the passed day, however, Twitter allowed me to connect with someone we’ve actually talked about on the show: Scott Westefeld. Through a series of but four tweets, we had an incredible thought provoking dialogue:

ScottWesterfeld:

Just read three reviews of Leviathan in a row, none of which mentions the illustrations. (Silly adults.)

garretble:

@ScottWesterfeld I did a review a bit ago and I definitely mentioned the great visuals! http://www.pressednbound.net/episode-82-hatisode/

ScottWesterfeld:

@garretble Dude, you totally GOT IT. Yes, I am a lucky man to have Keith alongside. Anyone who doesn’t get the pix fails at the book.

garretble:

@ScottWesterfeld Indeed, my friend. High five!

So there you have it. Scott is a cool guy, a good author, and you would be remiss to ignore how interesting Leviathan is.

Leviathan was further discussed on Episode 82.

Last time, we brought you a bio of Scott Westerfeld, author of super cool, steampunktastic Leviathan. Today, following in those punky steam boots, we’ll discuss another author who rolls in that genre: Cherie Priest. Just a few weeks ago, her latest novel, Boneshaker, was released, replete with zombies, airships, and a walled Civil War era Seattle full of craziness; and from all I can tell, it’s pretty damned cool.

Born in 1975 and currently living in Seattle, Priest’s first novel, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, introduces Eden Moore, a girl living in the south who is visited by spirits as a child that guide her in figuring out the history behind her crooked ancestry. After this, Priest went on to pen two more novels involving Eden Moore, which conveniently became known as the Eden Moore Trilogy: Wings to the Kingdom and Not Flesh Nor Feathers. These novels all center around the South and mysteries therein. To date, Priest’s writing falls mostly within the horror/holy-crap-there’s-voodoo-and-stuff-in-this-novel-genre, but is now extending into the fields of the aforementioned steampunk (although according to the all-mighty Wikipedia she likes to describe these novels as an “alternate history,” but we’ll get to that).

More currently, as as mentioned above, Priest has released Boneshaker, about a son who attempts to clear the names of his grandfather and father and his mother who attempts to save his life. You see, the only way for the son, Zeke, to complete his goal is to go into a walled off part of 1870s Seattle that is full of zombies (a.k.a “rotters”). The reason Seattle is walled off just happens to be part of why everyone kinda hates his late father and grandfather. Zeke believes that they can’t be all that bad, and ventures inside to find some proof of that theory. Knowing that it’s essentially a suicide mission, his mother, Briar, sets off to bring him home, and goes within the walls herself.

Boneshaker is the first of a series that Priest is calling The Clockwork Century. Basically here’s the scoop:

Here, it is 1880 (or thereabouts). The Civil War is still underway, drawn out by English interference, a different transportation infrastructure, and a powerful Republic of Texas that discovered oil at Spindletop some fifty years sooner than real life allowed. The competition of war has led to technological progress and horrors unimaginable, and many people have fled the combating states, hoping for an easier life out west. Some of them have found it. Some of have found something else.

These novels are described as an “alternate history,” and so far that history is filled with zombies and airships. I’m currently about halfway through Boneshaker, and I must say it’s a very enthralling tale. Civil War history is fairly interesting in its own right, but what if there were ZOMBIES, you know? As far as I’ve come in the novel, I can’t help but think there could be a really interesting screenplay to come out of this. I’d watch a Civil War zombie movie.

And to end this all out, I want to briefly mention the novel itself, in it’s physical form. The paperback is a really solid, really sharp cut book that feels good in the hand. Most people probably don’t think twice about that sort of thing, but I like it when paperbacks feel sturdy. I’m going through a pretty large series right now, the current novel being upwards of 1,000 pages, and it just flip flops all around like a dead fish in your hands. And while that series is super epic, I wish I didn’t have to strain my weak nerd arms just holding the book upright. That is all.

Look for more about Boneshaker on a future episode.

Books:

• Leviathan

Movies:

• Metropolitan – Criterion Collection

Also, as mentioned in the show, we will be doing a charity gaming marathon in December for the charity Child’s Play. More information, and the website where the event will be held, can be found at Hardmode.org.

Right click and download the eighty-second episode here:

• MP4 292mb

Comments or questions? Email us at: pnbfans(at)gmail(dot)com