Clementine

A Novel of the Clockwork Century

By: Cherie Priest

Narrated by: Dina Pearlman, Victor Bevine

Maria Isabella Boyd's success as a Confederate spy has made her too famous for further espionage work, and now her employment options are slim. Exiled, widowed, and on the brink of poverty, she reluctantly goes to work for the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in Chicago.

Adding insult to injury, her first big assignment is commissioned by the Union Army. In short, a federally sponsored transport dirigible is being violently pursued across the Rockies, and Uncle Sam isn't pleased. The Clementine is carrying a top secret load of military essentials - essentials that must be delivered to Louisville, Kentucky, without delay.

Intelligence suggests that the unrelenting pursuer is a runaway slave who's been wanted by authorities on both sides of the Mason-Dixon for 15 years. In that time, Captain Croggon Beauregard Hainey has felonied his way back and forth across the continent, leaving a trail of broken banks, stolen war machines, and illegally distributed weaponry from sea to shining sea. And now it's Maria's job to go get him. He's dangerous quarry, and she's a dangerous woman, but when forces conspire against them both, they take a chance and form an alliance. She joins his crew, and he uses her connections. She follows his orders. He takes her advice. And somebody, somewhere, is going to rue the day he crossed either one of them.

©2010 Cherie Priest (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Piracy meets politics head-on in this steampunk thriller.... Explosive battle scenes, riveting action, and a sharp-eyed examination of the mistrust between Croggon's all-black crew and very white, very Southern Maria play out in a desperate race against the clock." ( Publishers Weekly)

Great audio production

I liked Clementine better than Boneshaker. It stands alone in the same world, so you don’t have to read Boneshaker first. Clementine features a couple of really interesting protagonists and it’s nice to see a black man on the cover of a fantasy novel, isn’t it? The audio version of Clementine is terrific. The two narrators, Dina Pearlman and Victor Bevine, work together seamlessly.

Original and Fun!

What made the experience of listening to Clementine the most enjoyable?

I found the plot interesting and original. Narration was very good and I am looking forward to more stories from Cherie Priest.

What other book might you compare Clementine to and why?

Steampunk isn't a new genre, but it's truly blossoming these days. Similar new (at least to me) authors are bringing originality and energy that I really appreciate.

Have you listened to any of Dina Pearlman and Victor Bevine ???s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Narration was good -- I really appreciate having female and male voices on this one. I'll be on the lookout for both Pearlman and Bevine in future.

Any additional comments?

Worth your time and your credit!

I almost quit in chapter 2

This is a novella/short story in the alternate history created for Boneshaker & Dreadnought.

It was nice to see the return of some characters from Boneshaker, although the story is self-contained enough that you don't have to have read the others to understand it (it helps flesh out some allusions though). The reading of this was why I almost gave up on this story. In Chapter 2 when the main female character meets her boss... it was almost too much to bear. The narrator's Scottish accent for the boss of the agency was very very difficult to listen to - it was a caricature of a Scottish accent, and was VERY painful. I stuck through it, and fortunately it's the only chapter this character appears in.

Either just do a faint accent, or don't even try. The exaggerated terrible accent which appeared in the story was painful. I have never met a scot who sounds like that, and an extended vacation there didn't expose me to anything like it.

fast and the furious in a dirigible!

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would indeed recommend this book to anyone.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The get away was very good.

What does Dina Pearlman and Victor Bevine bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

They bring the lady like and the manly man persona right into the story that makes you feel it.

Did Clementine inspire you to do anything?

No.

Any additional comments?

It's a quick read with an interesting plot that unfolds in a timely fashion.

Another Great Clockwork Century Story

Any additional comments?

I was looking all over for a copy of this limited edition story in the Clockwork Century universe when I finally found it in Audible form. Connected to Boneshaker by Croggon Beauregard Hainey and his dirigible Clementine - both which make appearances in the first novel. Clementine also introduces us to Maria Isabella Boyd who is a quick-witted, independent southern woman who works for a detective agency.

Clementine is a fantastically written novella with the thrill of a western and all the propriety of the steampunk era.

Clementine is the second book in the series to be dual-narrated. I thought both narrators fit their part and made each of the characters come alive.

Fun!

No Pulitzer prizes here. This is a quick story with an interesting cast and some unique action sequences. For a good time, call Clementine.

Amer. Civil War was Fought in a Steam Punk World

There were lots of things I enjoyed in Clemetine. It does remind me of my beloved Firefly. (As another reviewer mentioned.)

However, the elephant in the room that was incredibly distracting was this: we have a well known Confederate spy teaming up with black men who had been slaves. And yet she's without prejudice and doesn't see slavery as a central reason for the Civil War. (Yes this is a steampunk alternate history, but still.)

If you can step aside from that weirdness, the tale itself is about people on the margins being wary of those in authority and their motives, then choosing to work together to do the right thing, even if not the fully legal thing.

Original and Fun!

What made the experience of listening to Clementine the most enjoyable?

I found the plot interesting and original. Narration was very good and I am looking forward to more stories from Cherie Priest.

What other book might you compare Clementine to and why?

Steampunk isn't a new genre, but it's truly blossoming these days. Similar new (at least to me) authors are bringing originality and energy that I really appreciate.

Have you listened to any of Dina Pearlman and Victor Bevine ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Narration was good -- I really appreciate having female and male voices on this one. I'll be on the lookout for both Pearlman and Bevine in future.

Any additional comments?

Worth your time and your credit!

I love Cherie Priest

Honestly, everything I've ever read of hers I just devoured. I like her zombies, and alternate history, and action, and characters, and dirigibles. I haven't read her other series yet but I plan to.

Nice stand alone story

I have been enjoying Mrs. Priest Clockwork Century and this is a story that features one of the more enjoyable characters. The narration was very well done, even though it shifts between a male & female narrator. Well worth the cost.