The Mechanical

Starred review from January 26, 2015
Tregillis (Something More Than Night) launches a series with this superb alternate history filled with clockwork men and ethical questions on the nature of free will. The Calvinist Dutch empire, with the help of the mechanical soldiers (“Clakkers”) that are imbued with intelligence and enslaved through magic, has been dominant since defeating the French in the 17th century. Two centuries later, their only opponents are small French and Papal outposts in the New World. Against this background, French spymaster Berenice Charlotte de Mornay-Périgord, Vicomtesse de Laval, attempts to manage her secret agents abroad. One of those agents is Father Luuk Visser, a Catholic priest undercover as a pastor in the Hague, who knows he’s soon going to be exposed. He uses one of the Clakkers, Jax, to smuggle an item across the Atlantic. As Berenice, Luuk, and Jax go on their separate journeys (only briefly intersecting), they uncover multiple dastardly plots, learn terrifying secrets, and have to cope with knowing that all three of them have destroyed innocent lives. Tregillis’s complex setting is elegantly delivered, and the rich characters and gripping story really make this tale soar. Agent: Kay McCauley, Pimlico Agency.

March 15, 2015
First of a new fantasy trilogy from the author of the splendid Something More Than Night (2013, etc.). Two hundred and fifty years ago, the Dutch created a mechanical army of "Clakkers"-thinking clockwork beings powered and enslaved by alchemical magic-and now rule the world. Only the French government in exile still resists, from their fortress at Marseilles-in-the-West (Montreal). The powerful Schoonraad family is about to relocate to New Amsterdam (New York) and send their servitor Clakker, Jax, to Pastor Luuk Visser to collect a letter of introduction. Visser, however, secretly a Papist and a French spy whose network has been broken, expects to be arrested momentarily. He gives Jax an antique telescope with instructions to deliver it to an address in New Amsterdam. But during the voyage, the telescope breaks, a peculiar glass bead falls out-and Jax discovers he is no longer a slave. To the north, meanwhile, Vicomtesse Bernice de Laval, the French Talleyrand (spy chief), suspects that one of the king's closest advisers is a traitor. While secretly studying a captured battle Clakker, which the terms of the current uneasy cease-fire specifically prohibit, the thing gets away, killing her husband and slaughtering dozens. The traitor escapes. Exiled, Bernice makes her way to New Amsterdam, where eventually she will collide with Jax-with profound consequences for both the French and the Dutch. Perhaps holding back for later entries, Tregillis gives few details of the Clakkers' construction or operation, and the story is curiously slow to get going. But his characters are as convincing as ever, the plotting is beautifully articulated, the tone relentlessly grim and sometimes horrifying. And while the action rarely flags, Tregillis manages to pack in a good deal of philosophical probing. Not quite yet peak Tregillis, but his fans-and other readers with an interest in dark, intelligent fantasy-will find much to admire here.

Starred review from January 1, 2015

In an early 20th century where history took a decidedly different turn, the world is divided in two: the realm of the Dutch and their mechanical servitors in the empire ruled by the Brassworks Throne and the battered and pathetic remnants of France living in exile in the New World. Jax is a Clakker, a mechanical man built to obey the will of the humans who used alchemy to set him in motion. When a quirk of chance frees him from the geas ("alchemical binding") that usually controls all Clakkers absolutely, he will do anything to retain his free will. Meanwhile, in New France, Berenice is the spymaster charged with finding a way to defeat the Dutch, but she overreaches when she tries to capture a Clakker. VERDICT Tregillis (Bitter Seeds) presents a fascinating look at the nature of free will and the existence of the soul, wrapped up in an absolutely thrilling adventure story. Jax is an amazing, sympathetic character, and the world of the clockmakers and their slaves is so absorbing that readers will be dying for the next entry in this new series.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2016

In this alternate history set in the early 20th century, the Dutch have created Clakkers, mechanical servants and warriors who take care of all the tasks humans are unwilling to do. When the mechanical Jax loses the gear that compels him to follow orders, he is eager to protect his newfound free will. However, there are a range of opinions about the legality and ethics surrounding these creatures, who are essentially slaves to the human race. Philosophical thinkers will appreciate the questions about humanity. What gives someone or something a soul? How is a machine different from a human or a clock? Fans of action will not be disappointed when Clakkers and humans with different views come to blows. There is also enough spying, devious motivation, and treachery to please those who enjoy political intrigue. Teens will identify with the struggle of the Clakkers, who have their free will seized by their owners, particularly with Jax, who is a very sympathetic character. With complex concepts and challenging vocabulary, this is a selection to give teens who have graduated from young adult steampunk titles like Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan (S. & S., 2009) and Philip Reeve's "Hungry City Chronicles" (HarperCollins). VERDICT With no shortage of philosophy, action, and political intrigue, this title will appeal to fans of speculative fiction looking to start a new series.-Carrie Shaurette, Dwight-Englewood School, Englewood, NJ

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2015
The first thing readers will say after finishing this splendid book is: Wow. The second thing will probably be: When can I read the next one? This first installment of the Alchemy Wars series ends on such a massive cliffhanger that you won't want to wait more than a minute before continuing on to find out what happens to Jax, the rogue clockwork man on the run from his Dutch masters, and to Berenice, the disgraced French superspy who's dedicated her life to finding a way to defeat the Dutch army of mechanical men and free France from its centuries-old exile. Here's the historical background: in the seventeenth century, Dutch clockmaker Christiaan Huygens created a mechanical man; the Netherlands then put together an army of clockwork men and took over the world; and now, in 1926, the Netherlands is the world's only superpower, and the only remaining bastion of freedom is a French fortress on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River (in what is today Montreal). This is a rousing SF/fantasy adventure, with a brilliantly imagined and beautifully rendered alternate world. Although he keeps the pace moving at a brisk clip, the author is able to work in some Big Ideas, asking us to think about what we mean when we speak about souls and free will. This isn't Tregillis' first venture into alternate historythe Milkweed Triptych is set during WWII and features an alternate time linebut, in terms of the quality of writing and cleverness of ideas, this new book constitutes a major leap forward.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)