Arabella and the Battle of Venus
The Adventures of Arabella Ashby, Book 2
David D. Levine
Tor
Fiction, YA? Adventure/Sci-Fi
**** (Good)
DESCRIPTION: After a tumultuous introduction and much hardship, the lady Arabella Ashby had hoped to marry her beloved Captain Singh as soon as possible - but, while the rebellion on Mars may have ended (with their help, naturally), the rest of the solar system is still at war, especially after the tyrant Napoleon escaped from his lunar prison and holed up in the jungles of Venus. When Captain Singh is ordered to the green planet by the company, he has no choice but to acquiesce... and when his ship is captured by the French, Arabella has no choice but to set out to rescue him, accompanied by the privateer Captain Fox and a burdensome escort, the Lady Corey, whom her brother insists she bring for propriety's sake.
REVIEW: Like the first book, this retro-flavored adventure reads like Edgar Rice Burroughs (or maybe more like Jules Verne) crossed with the Age of Sail, set in a fantastic alternate history where sailing ships ply the solar system and European colonialism has spread to the planets. Also like the first, sometimes the suspension of belief can feel like a slight strain, even given the inherently fantastic physics at work, but it makes for a ripping yarn. Arabella remains a headstrong young woman, but not without her flaws and blind spots. She chafes at being saddled with the widowed Lady Corey, but finds she has much to learn from the older and far more proper Englishwoman, even if Arabella still refuses to let society dictate her vocation and happiness. Indeed, she finds herself sidelined more than once, as her skill set fails to meet the demands of a current challenge; learning to trust others and be patient takes some serious effort when she's so used to taking everything in her own two hands (though I admit once in a while I tired of her helplessness.) Meanwhile, she finds her loyalty to Singh tested by the dashing rogue Fox, a reminder that, for all she's been through and all she's learned, in some ways she's still been sheltered, particularly in matters of the heart. Singh further tests her by proving oddly aloof when she finally locates him, albeit under inauspicious circumstances. The journey and rescue are full of challenges and wonders and dangers, from an encounter with vast "wind whales" in the spaceways to the smothering jungles of Venus (not to mention the froglike Venusians, who in some ways felt underutilized, for all that hints were dropped of a far more complex culture than met the eye), building once more to a breakneck battle at the climax. If a few parts felt a bit predictable, and if some other elements struck me as slightly flat or overstretched for effect, well, it still made for an enjoyable enough read for a four star rating. Still, I hope things pick up slightly for the final third installment; I could do with a little less of the in-transit dithering next time out, if I'm being entirely honest here.
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