Synopsis
Sally Delavega, the best demon-binder the world has ever seen, would do anything to banish the two hundred ghosts trapped in his head—even if it means swimming up from the bottom of his tankard. When the Navy that destroyed his life comes sailing back to offer enough coin to get the job done, Sally agrees. All he has to do is help the crew of the Steadfast track down the ancient abyssal that lies sleeping at the heart of their drowned world. Why the Navy wants the demon isn’t Sally’s problem. But as they sail on, Sally begins to dredge up disturbing truths about how the world flooded and their ancient eldritch quarry that might just want to be found…
Imaginative and poignant, funny and bizarre, Demon Engine brings us a bold, queer high-seas adventure that asks how deep we might venture for what we aren’t willing to lose.
Review
Had the opportunity to read this for the Indie Ink Awards, and happened to grab myself a copy on Audible. The narration, done by the author, was awesome!
I don’t usually read too many sailor/pirate books, but this intrigued me. The first sentence of the blurb mentions demon-binding and 200 ghosts trapped in someone’s head…what’s not to be interested in? Sally is haunted, not just by the ghosts, but by past decisions and mistakes. On the run from the navy, with only alcohol to drown out the tumult of voices, it’s not exactly like they are amounting to much. But with an offer from a navy captain—one promising enough coin for ghost eviction and a new life—it’s all a bit too enticing to refuse. They survive in a flooded world, landmasses being an almost entirely extinct thing of the past. These demons, or abyssals, come from far below and may even hold hints to the old world. And while the ‘why’ of the navy’s request might mean little to Sally, it might just end up carrying more weight than previously thought.
This novel carried a well-written and easy-to-follow prose, with deeply imaginative characters, and world-building to match. The idea behind the world reminded me of the movie Waterworld or the novel Blind Waves by Steven Gould, however this has a much more fantasy-based feel. There are characters with powers, though they may seem more like curses, and the piratey, high-seas nature of this makes it feel more like you’d run into some kind of galleon rather than something sci-fi. And that feeling reminded me of Emmie Hamilton’s When Stars Become Shadows.
The character work is the real star here. Sally is the tortured soul, the destitute fellow. The ghosts require constant silencing, so even though there’s such natural talent, he must avoid going insane at all costs. The growth shown in both caring for the girl who helped keep him alive, as well as Mary, the ship’s first mate, displays a layer of depth readers needed to root for him. Mary, whose power is the opposite of Sally’s, which, for some reason, makes these people usually hate each other, is slowly turned toward caring due to the helplessness she witnesses at the hands of the ghosts. She’s not heartless and won’t just stand by when she can help the suffering. I also really liked the captain, the large bearded guy that is exactly who you’d imagine the captain being, and yet he can also be a very soft person. One that doesn’t give up easily.
There are some great action sequences as well, with swords and destruction. I liked how the author weaved injury and powers into each other, a kind of reminder that this isn’t our world, but also that it doesn’t mean they can survive anything they want. Bedridden characters with the will to command demons from the depths to eternal service…
The ending was a little surprising in how muted it was. But I was glad that with its LGBTQ representation, not everything had to end in such suffering. For me, it ended up being kind of nice, even if it was a soft exit for the climax.
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