This is apparently the 4th book in the "Clockwork Century" series, although you wouldn't know it from the book. It appears as though anything that is set in the world where Seattle is covered in poisonous gas means that it is in this series - which I'm fine with, but I just wouldn't call it a series.

I'm a fan of Priest... because I really liked her first book that I read, the Boneshaker. I've picked up all of her other books because I liked that book so much, including her semi-questionable vampire series. This is because Priest writes with clarity and authority that makes the reader not question all of the crazy things that happen in her novels, like zombies and vampires. You have to have an authoritative hand in the novel to not get too worried about the particulars.

This book, for me, was a bit discursive in plot and writing. Set in New Orleans, but involving the Boneshaker's Seattle cast, is a story about a woman with a mission to help stop the American Civil War and the occupation of Texas in the bayou. Josephine Early is a bi-racial madam who is working with rebels to get the first submarine into the hands of the union army - she just has to find a pilot who is willing to take on the journey. In a desperate attempt to find someone who is crazy enough, she contacts her former lover and Boneshaker character, Andan Cly who is looking to raise enough money to settle down in Seattle. Together the split story covers their adventure that just also happens to involve zombies.

I spent the morning reading/skimming the end, because it was all just predictable and wordy. I think that the writing was clear, but if I didn't want to finish the book I would have found it a tad too boring to get through at least the last 100 pages.

I did like Josephine's character and I liked seeing the old Boneshaker characters again. That was it for what I'm going to really remember in two years time if I ever get asked about it.