Leviathan - A Fantasy February Group Read

I was happy to see so many interested in reading this one. I think it's a nice kick-off to FF!!

Read at your own pace but be careful with spoilers. I'm reading a few pages tonight and should finish it by the end of the week.

I located my copy of the book, so I am in.

I've added this to the wiki page. Also, I'm interested. I've got some credit at the Apple Store, so will probably pick it up later this month.

Hmm if I can finish the one I'm reading today, I may join in here! My goodness, so many books to read this month...!!!

I will try to join in, but have a few others lined up to finish first.

I expect to join in, but won't be able to pick up the book for about a week.

I will be lurking on this thread as I have Leviathan in my TBR sights, but just not there yet. I will be reading Game of Thrones first.

Leviathan is not fantasy! That is what my niece told me. She said it is "Steampunk." That is a sub-genre in the sci-fi genre. I don't get to strict when it comes to literary genres and hadn't even heard of steampunk until a year ago so I was amazed to find out that I actually read quite a lot of steampunk. I do think that a literary genre that has its own literary magazine and is studied in academic circles is probably more than just a sub-genre but that's just my opinion. I was amazed to find a great wikipedia entry on steampunk that pretty much opened up that genre for me. Here is the link to that article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk

I just started reading this. It's pretty cool that it's illustrated.

Hi There

I'm compiling a list of birthdays of our group members. If you haven't done so already, would you mind stopping by this thread and posting yours.

Thanks.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/105833

>8 Tanglewood: Wait. It's illustrated? Well heck, then I better get the print version to read along with the audiobook I've got on my iPod. Thanks for that tip!

I'm in! It will be my next read. I got it from the library last week and my boyfriend read it it under 4 hours. He said it was good and asked me to get the second one :).

>10 Storeetllr: Yes, there are about 1 to 2 black and white illustrations per chapter.

Yes, it is illustrated and the pictures are very well done. And yes, this is classified as steampunk but I find it a mash-up of many different genres.
I'm already a 100 pages in and it's been highly enjoyable.

Barking spiders! I hope who ever is reading this, is having a good time! I am. It's more YA than I expected but it is a lot of fun. Great illustrations. He's a very inventive writer. All those wild creatures?

As soon as I finish Pariah, I will start Leviathan. I love that there will be a group read for it - it was on my list to read anyway for the Steampunk reading challenge I signed up for last month.

I should have it started by Saturday.

Halfway through it. I agree with Mark. More YA than I expected, but wildly imaginative, so I don't mind. The artwork is cool. My favorite beastie is the message lizard!

Well, couldn't put it down and now I am finished!! Obviously, I enjoyed it. The second half, when the two, Alek and Derwyn, finally meet was action-packed. I am only mad because, yet again, I have been sucked into a series and the second book is not out yet...barking spiders indeed! The afterword is a nice touch.

I have only read the first couple of chapters, but I can tell I am going to like this one a lot. I will probably read Behemoth as soon as I finish Leviathan since I own that one as well.

Kim- I'm glad you enjoyed it! The next book Behemoth is already out, so you can track it down. Are you reading anything else for FF?
Does anyone know if this is a projected trilogy, or a longer series?

#19: Mark, I believe it is only supposed to be a trilogy. The third book, Giant, will be out toward the end of 2011.

Actually, the third book is Goliath and it'll be out in October.

It's supposed to be a trilogy, but then, so was Uglies :)

#21: Thanks for the correction, Blue. Not sure where I got 'Giant' from!

I'm not really that 'big' on YA's but really, I thought Leviathan and Behemoth which I just finished a few days ago, were marvelous. And I think the only thing YA about them is the age of the main characters.

I thought the characterization and the depth of the writing was 'normal' rather than YA.

Can't wait to read Goliath but then I'll miss Daryn and Alex so... argh....

eta: touchstones, which are at least partly working yay

I think it shows being YA by being constant action without a lot of characterization or dialogue except as it pushes the action. I doubt I'll read the rest of the trilogy as I'm having trouble finishing the book. The writing is fine, but the unrelenting action isn't my cup of tea.

I'll be among the stragglers trying to catch up with all of you next week, when I get finally get my hands on it.

Morhy, I find it just like a Harry Dresden. Constant action and not much time spent on much else. BYMMV.

>26 majkia: I find it a little tiring. Must be showing my age! :D

Glad to know the second one is already out and not too long to wait for the third. :)

I also finished Leviathan. It was a fast read and a lot of fun. I don't want to say to much until everyone else gets caught up. I'm really looking forward to Behemoth.

Finished Leviathan today during the Readathon. I really need to get my hands on the next one, Behemoth.

From The Maze Runner:

"The creature was a horrific mix of animal and machine, and seemed to realize it was being observed, seemed to know what lay inside the walls of the Glade, seemed to want to get inside and feast on human flesh. Thomas felt an icy terror blossom in his chest, expand like a tumor, making it hard to breathe. Even with the memory wipe, he felt sure he'd never seen something so truly awful."

It's been fun! I will be starting The Windup Girl at the end of the week. Anyone interested in joining me?

I just finished books 1 and 2 of the Maximum Ride series. My fourteen-year-old and I are reading them at the same time. It's definitely YA, but I am enjoying it. I am just so happy she is liking the series. She has severe dyslexia, and hasn't been into reading very much. But she is listening to the audio and following it up with the graphic version. She loves it! I am reading the regular old kind of book. ; )

This book has had so much hype that when I started reading it I fully expected to like it. That wasn't the case. I thought it was very boring. I am about half done with it and it is picking up and I can see why younger YA's (I think it would really appeal to the Tweens Steampunk fans) like it. It is easy reading with lots of white space on the page, but it is the illustrations that are hooking me. They genuinely add to the book. They enhance the reading experience. The illustrator of this book did a great job in interpreting the author's vision. Kudo's to him as they are gradually converting me from a so-so partaker of this story into a more enthusiastic participant. What did the rest of you think of the illustrations?

B, I totally agree with your assessment. I was a bit more enthusiastic in my response to the book, but then I have a 14 and 10-year-old who are the perfect audience for this book and I was constantly thinking of them as I read Leviathan. LOVED the illustrations!

I loved the illustrations too! I even checked out the illustrator's website.

Benita- I mentioned the illustrations in my review too! They definitely enhanced the experience.

Just found this thread, but have Leviathan on my 999/2011 list of recommended reading for Teen Angst this year, so it's moving up on the reading program to follow this discussion. And--just for fun, caught one of the reality shows about wedding cakes last week, and one bakery was charged with making a steampunk-themed cake. It had a blimp, a clock with open works, steam, and a bride-and-groom (brought by the couple) that looked a good deal like something from Nightmare Before Christmas! Okay, this weekend when we're driving to Oroville for conference. . . .

I finished reading this book last night. It was OK, but not my favorite YA novel. It is safe to say that I will not be reading the sequels. As I said earlier the illustrations were outstanding and I do have to admire the author for his imagination and the illustrator for visualizing the author's ideas so well. It was fascinating to see how with just a little twist of viewpoint how Zeppelin could become a flying ameoba or a frigate a land walking machine. It seemed so easy to twist what we see everyday into something with joints, gears, and shafts. It was also as easily done with changing machines to living creatures and creating ecosystems in gargantuan flying animals. That being said the story fell flat. And I do have to say that the use of "barking" and "clart" was annoying rather than charming. Overall, for all the hype, this was just and average story. The best thing about the story might have been the author's definition of steampunk in the end notes.

Finished Leviathan yesterday--fast read, nothing intense, very much geared to its targeted age reading.

#38--While not charming, I found it almost a palpable relief to read "barking" and "clart" instead of their obvious current terms, which are all too common in modern YA books.

I was annoyed by the non-ending ending, however. I'll read the next-in-order, but I do wish Westerfeld had bothered to end his story, and then set up for the sequel.