Book Review: 'Mortal Engines: Book 3 - Infernal Devices' by Philip Reeve

cover art by Ian McQue

'Infernal Devices', book 3 in the 'Mortal Engines' quartet by Philip Reeve, begins with an even bigger time jump than the last book. This time it's 16 years later, Tom and Hester have settled on the traction city of Anchorage, now a static city on the edge of what used to be North America, and live their daughter Wren. The family dynamic between the three is not exactly homely. Wren gets on very well with her father, but the relationship between mother and daughter is frosty, to say the least! So after yet another argument between mother and daughter, Wren storms off, and by chance, meets a charming submarine pirate who offers her the chance of escape and a taste of the adventure she yearns for, if only she would do him a small favour and steal the Tin Book, a forgotten and mysterious book made out of metal. Doing so does indeed open up a new world of adventure for Wren, but just not in the way she had imagined.

Despite the big time jump, 'Infernal Devices' seems to be more linked in to the previous book, than book 2 was to the first. The lore and the world building are once again expanded upon, which again, is one of my favourite aspects of this series. Whereas the series all began with mostly just London and the Anti-Traction League, each book has added and built upon the world, with new locations, factions as well as the machinations of how the overall world looks. We also have the reintroduction of familiar characters again, Freya, Caul, Gargle, Uncle, Pennyroyal, Stalker Fang and Shrike as well as new characters that add a good mix to the narrative.

Things pick up the pace when Wren and Fishcake get captured by Brighton, a raft-city pleasure resort with a certain Nimrod Pennyroyal as mayor and with a burgeoning slave trade, and are immediately indentured into service. But when Tom and Hester finally catch up with their runaway daughter, all chaos breaks loose. It's here where we see the cold and merciless Hester Shaw doing what she has to do to rescue her daughter. I can see her point of view at times, but unfortunately the callousness of her character as she literally blasts her way through Brighton, goes dark very quickly and makes her very unlikeable despite her being one of the main protagonists of the series, a trend that has gotten stronger as the series has progressed.

Overall though it's still a very enjoyable read. The new characters add a fresh breath to the familiar characters that have grown up and changed 'off screen', and it was great to visit the various locations. Now looking forward to seeing how the quartet gets all wrapped up in the final book.

Once again, I took the audiobook option, and Barnaby Edwards once again kills it with the narration. Superbly done, bringing the world of Mortal Engines to life! Well worth the option.

Available from Amazon, Waterstones, Audible Audiobooks and all good bookstores.