Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)

Leviathan (Leviathan #1)

3.91 of 5 stars 3.91  ·  rating details  ·  33,189 ratings  ·  4,080 reviews
In an alternate 1914 Europe, fifteen-year-old Austrian Prince Alek, on the run from the Clanker Powers who are attempting to take over the globe using mechanical machinery, forms an uneasy alliance with Deryn who, disguised as a boy to join the British Air Service, is learning to fly genetically-engineered beasts.

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mark monday
this is a zippy, high-spirited breeze of a novel, aimed at the lucrative TROPE(1) audience - and with clear appeal for even younger folks. as far as characterization and narrative go, there is not much here that will suprise or challenge the reader...but the novel does have charm, lots of it. don't expect to get your mind blown, but it is certainly a pleasant way to spend a few hours. and there are many enjoyable elements in the now-almost-played-out use of TROPE(2): big clanky walking-machines,...more
Valerie
The style came easily to me even if it is my first historical sci-fi book. I usually avoid sci-fi for the reason that they usually have long series. I read somewhere that there is a sequel to Leviathan but I forgot. I probably would've read the book anyway though because Deryn is a girl disguised as a boy and that in and of itself would hook me to almost any book.

Absolutely loved the whole Darwinist v. Clanker bit. The fact that Westerfeld really made it fit so easily without making everything...more
Jeffrey Keeten
"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change." Charles Darwin

The world of Leviathan set in 1914 is divided into Darwinists and Clankers. The Darwinists have evolved genetics to make animals more useful to humans. The Clankers have built their society on machinery technology. I love maps and Scott Westerfeld provided a great map to show how his imagined world has been divided up between the two ca...more
Tatiana
Feb 03, 2010 Tatiana rated it 2 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: existing Westerfeld fans, pre-teen boys
Like many of my friends, I've been looking forward to getting my hands on "Leviathan" for a while. It is so sad that after such a long wait I can't give this book more than 2 stars. And if I am being honest, I added second star for fabulous cover art and excellent illustrations (1 or 2 per chapter!). My low rating doesn't mean however that I would recommend NOT to read this book. I simply didn't care for it personally, for several reasons.

First, this book seems to be mistakenly classified as you...more
Erin
What a pleasant surprise this book was! I strongly dislike the Uglies series and had a sense that Leviathan would be a "boy book" (whatever that means), but it turns out it was highly enjoyable.

Plot
Basically, a heavily altered retelling of the initiation of World War I. It follows two protagonists: Alek, the orphaned son of the murdered Austrian archduke, and Deryn, a girl disguising herself as a boy in order to fly on a Darwinist airbeast. She will be flying against the Clankers, the sections o...more
Shannon (Giraffe Days)
Just look at this cover, isn't it GORGEOUS?! I absolutely love it. It's so rich, with such sumptuous detail, wonderful design and use of colour and all the elements of the story and its genres. It's simply RIPPING!! It feels nice too, with embossed bits, shiny bits, matte bits, texture in places so that if you run your fingers over it they get all excited and tingly! The one and only thing that bothers me is the cardstock used - the cover never lies flat but is constantly (even brand new and sit...more
Jo
"A missing piece can be very bad for the puzzle, whether in the natural world, or politics, or here in the belly of an airship."

Initial Final Page Thoughts.
That’s what I want to know, Alek. That’s what I want to know.

High Points.
Deryn. Alek. This world… wooow, why doesn’t it exist yet?! Huxleys. Darwinists. Clankers. Flying wales. Cow farts. Trinkets&Diddies. Messenger lizards. Science. Nature. Snowshoes. Tazza. Dr Barlow. Frostbitten bums. Odd kind of tingling. The prospect of sequels…

Lo...more
Gavin
Whew…where do I begin? First off, let me tell you this is my first steampunk experience, which will definitely not be my last. At work, I’ve had a few of my co-workers recommend this book to me, along with about fifteen other steampunk titles. I ignored them. Steampunk just wasn’t my bag. It seemed too…too…what’s the word?...ridiculous. Months passed. But every time I needed a new book to read and review for my job, I always found myself looking at LEVIATHAN. The cover art is pretty cool; but ju...more
Lyndz
After reading Cassandra Clare’s Infernal Devices, I got a taste for steampunk that I have not been able to satiate until now.



Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Leviathan is targeted for early YA, in the same vein as Percy Jackson and the early Harry Potters. My advice to you is if you are thinking about reading any of the Rick Riordan/Percy Jackson books; put that thought out of your mind right now, and pick up Leviathan instead. Trust me on this one, you will thank me for i...more
Isamlq
Me, as I read Leviathan…

Oh, that’s what was going on...
...
Poor kid, all alone… in his big house… with servants…
(I think I don’t like this kid.)
...
And he finally asks the right question.
...
...
“Jaw, meet floor...”

Me, right now: ECSTATIC

Why? Because second chance books are wonderful, aren't they? Especially if they turn out much better than initially assessed. I’m so happy that I gave this another go, but what took me so long in the first place? Shifting into steampunk called for a lot of focus,...more
Lars Guthrie
Aleksander, a prince barred from his throne, is up past his bedtime in 1914, playing with tin soldiers. Given who he is, it follows that in this imaginary battle, the French and British forces stand ‘no chance against the might of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.’

What prevents the boy from becoming king is his mother, Sophie. Franz Ferdinand married her for love rather than dynastic succession, and children of the union are denied the crown. For now.

Suddenly, the surreptitious playing and the action...more
***Dave Hill
This steampunkish take on the beginning of World War I (with the Central Powers reliant on legged war machines and zeppelins, while the Allies -- the Brits, at least -- specialize in genetic manipulation to make war animals) was a fantastic ripping yarn. It was made even better by the lead characters -- one the son of the assassinated Franz Ferdinand, fleeing from the Austrian and German forces who want him dead; the other an adolescent British girl masquerading as a boy so she can serve in the...more
Ann
Interesting twist on steampunk with enjoyable characters!

As author Westerfeld states in his afterward, steampunk is the blending of the future and the past, and Westerfeld has managed to do that with a fresh twist in this delightful first book in a series: Leviathan.

The setting is Europe just prior to World War I. But in addition to the already opposing forces, Westerfeld adds yet another: the Clankers vs. the Darwinists. The Clankers use machinery in their countries - and their wars. Planes, li...more
Gorfo
This was a surprisingly good book. I am not a fan of science fiction but I found myself sucked into the explosive parallel past Scott Westerfeld creates in Leviathan. I felt drawn in to this world of gigantic "beasties" formed by the life threads of many animals working as one. I found the concept beautiful unlike the Monkey-Luddites. I could picture them floating about the sky's limits and I could picture the walkers tromping around too. I don't know what side I would be on in this war but I ho...more
Lyle Kimo Valdez
I liked the premise when I saw it, I found it intriguing. The book is a non-stop action story, with an incredibly imaginative steampunkish world-building, two very sympathetic protagonists and amazing illustrations and I loved every minute of it.

The two kids, Alek and Deryn are what make Leviathan stand out for me. They each are immersed in their own culture and have their views about Clankers vs Darwinists and it is through their eyes that questionings about each side are raised and they both c...more
Dioskoroi
Oke, pertama2 gua pengen muji Trailer Book Leviathan yang menurut gua sangat keren dan menggugah selera pembaca, berikut sebagian petikan dari trailer-nya:

The year is 1914, archduke Franz Ferdinand has just been assasinated,
and Europe is on the break of war.
But put your history books away, this is not the war you remember.

The clankers, who put their faith in machinery.
Or the darwinist, who evolve living creature into tools and weapons: fighting kraken, living airship, and all manner of dangerous
...more
Bettie
Opening: The Austrian horses glinted in the moonlight, their riders standing tall in the saddle, swords raised.

Okat as a palate cleanser but wont be searching out others

Post up nawf at the weekend
Dolly
I originally picked this series out for my mother-in-law to read. She read the whole series rather quickly and said that she really liked it. We don't read the same kinds of books typically, but occasionally we'll agree on something. After I saw that Kathryn was also reading it right now, I thought I'd put off returning the books to the library and give this one a shot. It's my first foray into Steampunk literature and I wasn't sure what to think.

It took me longer to read than I expected, but o...more
Tessa
This was my first real experience with steam punk. With all the descriptions of machinery and all the beasts I see the visuals transferring well to movie form, but they were kind of hard for me to visualize.

Alek's character was static and more often than not he was just used as a device to further the plot by him getting everyone into a scrape. Deryn is fun and I like Dr. Nora. Both Deryn and Alek seemed to be younger than what their ages would suggest. They felt more like 13-14 than 15-16.

I ha...more
Rawles
This book is a delight.

It is a well-executed steampunk WWI AU with enjoyable characters and excellent pacing!

More than that it is the tale of Alek, the most adorably dopey Austrian prince OF ALL TIME, who wanders around being full of ~heart~ but a bit inept due to dopiness and Deryn, a girl masquerading as a boy in order to serve in the British air navy, who is essentially The Most Interesting Man in the World.

The story basically goes:

Alek: *DOOFS* *IS WELL-MEANING*
Deryn: *saves the entire Briti...more
L. *Disappearing? Yes, I am.*
I am a huge fan of world history, and this book just expands it. This book takes place in Europe during World War one, but it has a bit of a twist to it. The Axis powers are Clankers, or are use large machines to attack their enemies. The Allied(Central) Powers are Darwinists, or they use giant sci-fi like beast to fight. Alek is a prince in the house of Hapsberg that can't inherit anything really because his mother wasn't full Royal. Deryn is a strong willed girl who was able to sneak into the...more
Rachel
Oct 21, 2012 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition
Recommended to Rachel by: Allie
Shelves: y-a, dystopian-future


Initially, this took a bit of work to get into. For starters, I'm not overly familiar with the steam punk genre at all, and adding the Clankers and Beasties on top of it all was a bit overwhelming. I did like the switch between narratives, but after a bit I started to wonder when the story part would ever happen. And then it did and it picked up a lot of speed. Dr. Barlow reminded me of Mrs. Coulter from His Dark Materials: utterly mysterious, important and intelligent. I'm very interested in l...more
Qt
3 1/2 stars. I quite enjoyed the setting of this book, and all the details were well-described and vivid. And I loved that there were illustrations!
Amanda
This is the tropiest trope book that ever had ALL THE TROPES. Why hellloooo feisty young woman who is generally sharp but doesn't recognize her own romantic feelings and goes off to war despite disapproval from home and society at large and- you know, I'm just going to stop. The whole thing is a YA formula.

BUT I still enjoyed it. It was 14,564,654 better than the last Westerfeld I read (UGLIES), which was LITERALLY the worst book I read all year. God, it was ghastly. Just. *shudder.* It was ever...more
Sarah
An interesting alternative history/steampunk book, set in the beginning of World War I, featuring a child of Sofia and Fernidad - and his attempts to escape the same fate that his parents met.

Westerfield weaves an interesting premise of machine vs Darwinism gone amuck, and two kids growing up a bit too fast for the same reason.

The plot would have been improved had the characters been introduced earlier on - it was clear where it was heading, but it just took forever for them to get there. And...more
Jennifer
3.5 stars

This is a steampunk novel set right before (and during) World War I -but in a different world.

Darwinists (British) have discovered the threads of life that hold all living things together, and have discovered also how to weave them together to create new, more powerful beings to serve many different purposes. To bats that eat metal only to release them onto oncoming aircraft, to little lizards who can record messages and then scurry around the ship to deliver them, to the ship itself,...more
David Green
For any YA-fans looking for a new fun and imaginative adventure to fill the Harry-Potter-sized void in your lives, I give you Leviathan!

Beware the Clanker Revolution!

It's the year 1914, and Austrian prince Alek has just learned that his parents have been murdered. Instead of being allowed time to grieve, he is forced to flee his country with only a handful of men loyal to him. As his birthright represents a direct threat to the Clanker army's quest for power, the fifteen-year-old Alek has been t...more
Michelle
This book was so fun.

Seriously, it is the perfect blend of sci-fi and history with a whole lot of adventure to tie it all together.

Young Adult steam punk... I'm sorry, I just can't get over how perfect it is. Not only does it imagine an alternative past (or a possible future), it also negotiates with issues like fear of the other, the terrible weight of responsibility, growing up, and a little bit of romance in between... YES.

Sorry I'm fangirling all over this, but it is much more fun than I ex...more
Virag
I recently went on a trip to DC and was just NOT going to leave without buying at least one book at Barnes & Noble. Since this was the only book under $10 that I liked the sound of, it came home with me. Three chapters in, I already loved it.

I never really looked into Scott Westerfeld's books because his Uglies series just didn't catch my interest, but seeing his writig style and characters in this one, I might just pick up Uglies!
What can I say? The idea is amazing, it really is. The chara...more
Alise  (Readers in Wonderland)
Reviews also on our site:Readers In Wonderland
Over-usage of gifs and hyphens below, you've been warned.

LEVIATHAN is probably the hardest novel I've had to review so far. This is because it is so completely different from anything I have ever read, it is a completely originally story that is based in 1914 and tells an alternate history of WWI where the feuding powers are Clankers (mechanical) and Darwinists (fabricated animals). Sound familiar? Exactly. There's nothing like it.

Before you go run...more
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Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)
Leviathan (Leviathan #1)
Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)
Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)
Leviathan (Leviathan, #1)

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Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling American-born author of YA sci-fi literature. He was born in the Texas and now lives in Sydney and New York City. In 2001, Westerfeld married fellow author Justine Larbalestier.
His book Evolution's Darling was a New York Times Notable Book, and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award. So Yesterday won a Victorian Premier's Award and...more
More about Scott Westerfeld...
Uglies (Uglies, #1) Pretties (Uglies, #2) Specials (Uglies, #3) Extras (Uglies, #4) The Secret Hour (Midnighters, #1)

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