City of the Saints

I just finished the City of the Saints audio book by my good friend D.J. Butler

War is coming and everyone wants to get their hands on the super weapons from the Kingdom of Deseret.

So many things appealed so strongly to me about this collection of four parts. The action, the humor and the steampunk element were just plain fun, I loved the admixture of known inventor genius's like Brunel, Hunley, Whitney, Maxim, and Browning as well as the fanciful Mad Man Orson Pratt contributing to this world's super science.

I'm also into history enough including the local variety here in Utah, that few if any of the characters needed introduction (local = Porter Rockwell, Brigham Young, Eliza R. Snow, Bill Hickman, John D. Lee) but for the sake of review I'll mention the big ones - Sam Clemens (Mark Twain) as a secret agent for the Union in the coming civil war as well as the not dead yet Edgar Allen Poe for the Confederacy - each has a colorful thug apprentice that you genuinely enjoy seeing also get their point of view. The English adventurer Richard Burton an envoy for Queen and country was also a favorite of mine.
The dialogue and action are crisp and hilarious, I truly laughed out loud at a number of scenes such as this between Richard Burton and Tamerlane O'Shaughessy (Clemens Irish thug)

"I'm not a weakling, " O'Shaughnessy protested, "I'm just a bit drunk."
"Keep your pistols aimed down the stairs, then." Burton urged him. "But you told me before you weren't drunk. Just Irish, you said."
"I'll let you in on a secret, Dick," the Irishman said. "it's the same fookin' thing."


I heartily recommend this if you enjoy smart, action, historical's that are so much fun.

D.J. Butler is also going to be hanging with me this weekend at the Tree City Comic con in Boise - come get some books!