Book Review: The Dark Deeps

(This review contains no significant spoilers.)

The Setup

The Dark Deeps: The Hunchback Assignments 2 is Arthur Slade's sequel to---you guessed it---The Hunchback Assignments. The novel follows the further adventures of the hunchbacked chameleon Modo on his further adventures protecting the Victorian British Empire from various steampunktastic threats.

Much of what I said in my review of the first volume applies to this story, as well.

What I Liked

• The setup is compelling.
• The plot is exciting and moves quickly.
• The protagonist is sympathetic.
• Some of the steampunkery is fun.
• There's just a hint of a love triangle.

What I Disliked

• Most of the technology in the book isn't too unbelievable, even if it's almost a century ahead of its time. This is steampunk, after all. There is one piece of "tech" that is more fantasy than science fiction, and its presence annoyed me.
• The narrator is just as whiny as she was last time around.
• Once again, the antagonists' actions don't seem sufficiently motivated.
• This book feels more like a a kid's book than some of the other YA fiction I've read recently.

The Bottom Line

Overall, I give The Dark Deeps 7.0 out of 10. It's entertaining, but far from great.