Review: The Emperor's Mask

The Emperor's Mask by Ben S. Dobson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed the first book in this magepunk series very much, and this one a little less, though I did still enjoy it.

The main problem was that I figured out at the 42% mark what the detective didn't figure out until the 74% mark: the identity of the villain. I'm not usually good at figuring those things out, so to me it's a sign that the author made it too obvious and/or his detective too stupid, not that I'm particularly insightful.

The author also needs to be alert to the rule for plural possessives: if a townhouse belongs to a family named Stooke, it is "the Stookes' townhouse," not "the Stooke's townhouse". Otherwise, the copy editing was very good, with just one or two minor typos.

Something that I particularly enjoyed was the zest for life that Kadka, the half-orc character, shows. She has a great sense of wonder whenever she encounters magic, and glories in a challenge that means she will have to fight against the odds. Battling against the odds, and against time, is something the characters do a lot, and there are some daring escapes and tense fights. There wasn't anything to quite equal Kadka jumping onto the airship in the first book, but that's a tough act to follow.

Overall, solid, and I would happily read a sequel.

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