Hi all:
Although I’ve slowed down on my reading, don’t think I have stopped, and today I bring something pretty original…

Bodacious Creed: a Steampunk Zombie Western (The Adventures of Bodacious Creed Book 1) by Jonathan Fesmire
U.S. Marshal James Creed has known loss, starting from the untimely death of his wife and daughter in a sudden fire. His work, chasing down and arresting outlaws across the Wild West, is all he has left to live for. Then one day, in 1876, the infamous killer Corwin Blake catches Creed by surprise and guns him down.
Creed awakes after a mysterious young woman resurrects him in a basement laboratory beneath a brothel. Half alive, Creed feels torn between his need for justice and his desire to fall back into the peace of death. Creed’s instincts drive him to protect the city of Santa Cruz, California, from the outlaws it harbors while searching for Blake.
He uncovers a secret criminal organization, likely protecting Blake, determined to use resurrection technology for its own ends. The former marshal, now faster, stronger, and a more deadly shot than ever before, must work with a brothel madam, a bounty hunter, and the remaining marshals to uncover the criminal syndicate before they can misuse the machines of rebirth and create more mindless zombies. Meanwhile, he must also stop Blake, before the outlaw kills the only people he cares about.
His own death can wait.
https://www.amazon.com/Bodacious-Creed-Steampunk-Western-Adventures-ebook/dp/B073Z4KRVY/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bodacious-Creed-Steampunk-Western-Adventures-ebook/dp/B073Z4KRVY/

About the author:
Jonathan Fesmire lives in sunny Southern California with his son. His writes “The Wild Steampunk Blog,” located on his website, http://jonfesmire.com/. It covers steampunk, writing, art, and related topics, and also has many interviews with people prominent in the steampunk community.
You can find a detailed interview with the author available on his Amazon page.
https://www.amazon.com/Jonathan-Fesmire/e/B002BM1ZXQ/
My review:
I was offered a free copy of this novel that I freely chose to review.
When I read the description of this novel, I must say I was intrigued. It’s a Western. But not just any Western. It’s a steampunk Western. I have not read a lot of steampunk (some blogs and short-stories) but I am intrigued by the concept, the art, the clothes… Oh, and there are zombies. OK, I could not resist. I generally like Westerns and historical fiction set in that period, but the unlikely combination of the three elements proved impossible to resist. And it did pay off.
I don’t want to go into a lot of detail about the plot, as it is full of surprises, and although some you might see coming, I assure you there’s plenty to keep the brain ticking and the pages turning. James Creed (“Bodacious” indeed) is a great character, although we only get a glimpse of the true man before he is killed and then… resuscitated. Anna, the madam of the bordello the House of Amber Doves, has something hidden in the basement, and she is an inventor, and also… Well, let’s say she hides more than her scientific knowledge and talents. We have Anna’s lover, Jonny, who was injured and now is also part of her experiments, although loyal, loving, and also a great inventor. There is a bounty hunter, Rob Cantrell, who, although morally grey at times, becomes a part of the team we root for. We have a variety of baddies, from psychopaths to business types ready to sacrifice anybody for an advantage and for the power to harvest all the knowledge, legal and not. Although not all the characters are psychologically complex, in most cases we learn what makes them tick, and discover that most of them hide interesting background stories and hidden motives for what they do.
The story, told in the third person but through a variety of character’s points of view (including Creed, Anna, Jonny, Cantrell, and some of the baddies), is set in a fascinating alternative version of historical Santa Cruz. Imagine that there is a compound (the ether) that can be used for the construction of automatons, cyborgs, healing units, and ultimately units that can bring the dead back to life. Imagine that human beings can be enhanced with something akin to bionic technology (yes, I know, but imagine that happened in the late XIX century). Imagine that a company has the monopoly of all these inventions (Tesla works for that corporation as well) and anybody who tries to invent or commercialize such things is breaking the law and can become an outlaw. And imagine that kind of technology in the hands of a crime syndicate in the old West. Yes, the combination of crime and technology, as we well know, can be very dangerous, and, unfortunately, not all the experiments bringing back the dead go well. Although that causes violence, mayhem, and deaths, we also have the good and useful automatons (or steelies, as they are called), the automated pets, Creed acquires a pet cyborg coyote later in the story, and we have undead cats and zombie rats… And the characters are not the only ones hiding secrets. Santa Cruz also has a few aces up its sleeves and it is an important protagonist of the story. Yes, not a moment’s boredom.
The alternating points of view help us get more perspectives into the story and understand better the motives behind some of the characters’ surprising actions. And although it is not always pleasant, it is interesting to see the action from the point of view of the bad characters as well (as some of their reasons are not always bad). Matters of morality, spirituality, personal versus community interest, and family ties are also part of this story that should satisfy Western lovers (yes, there are plenty of gun and fist fights, shootings, traps, wild rides), steam-punk enthusiasts, and although the zombie angle is a bit more subtle (well, at least for a lot of the book), I don’t think those who are into zombie novels will be disappointed either.
The story flows well, the language fits in with the imagined historical period (I am not sure what historical fiction readers would think, but my guess is that they might find it interesting), and there is enough description of the places and the inventions to make us feel as if we were there, without unduly slowing the action. As a doctor, I could not help but wonder about some of the actual experiments (Frankenstein is mentioned more than once), but sometimes you just need to go with the flow. There are lots of characters, though, so I recommend paying close attention when reading it. I did enjoy the ending of the story (well, I imagine there will be more books) but no spoilers here.
The end note of the author explains the peculiarities of the Santa Cruz of the book (the author hails from there) and also shares how the book came to be. The story of the startup he organized to fund the book is fascinating in its own right, and he explains how as perks for participating in the project, some people got to have characters named after them, including Cantrell, the bounty hunter, and in some cases, even helped write the part. A fascinating story inside another one.
A great mix of genres, recommended to those who love to try something original and don’t fear to tread outside of the normal paths. For Western, steampunk, and zombie lovers. Highly recommended.
Thanks to the author for the novel, thanks to all of you for reading and remember to like, share, comment, click and REVIEW!
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Fascinating review, Olga. I have read a couple of steampunk novels, which I enjoyed. I don’t usually read zombie – actually, I never read zombie novles – so I’m not sure about this.
Thanks, Mary. You’re well ahead of me in the steampunk genre. The actual zombie part of the novel (I don’t want to explain too much, but let’s say that not all individuals who are brought to life in the story end up as zombies, at least not as we understand them) only comes towards the end of the novel and it is fairly limited in space (and not the most detailed I’ve read, but it’s not lily-white either). It is a pretty amazing read, and, unless you truly hate the idea of zombies, if you like the rest of the set-up I’d give it a go. It’s quite out there! Perhaps check a sample and see how you feel. Have a lovely week, Mary.
Certainly a mix of genres. Steampunk, Zombies, and a Western too. Everything thrown into the mix.
Judging by your review, it seems to have worked very well.
Best wishes, Pete.
Thanks, Pete. Yes, not a moment’s boredom, for sure, and pretty engaging characters as well. Have a great week.
The book sounds wild, and yet somehow… plausibly told. I also love twists and turns. Thanks for the great review, Olga, and your insights into the story.
Thanks very much. For some reason, your comment ended up in the spam folder. Yes, you are right. The book is wild but it makes perfect sense within its logic and the characters are all credible. A great reading experience.
Awesome review, Olga. Thanks for reading something so far afield from your other reads.
Jonathan is an internet pal of mine in a couple of steampunk writing groups. It’s great to see a friend getting a review!
Happy Reading!
~Icky. 🙂
Thanks, Icky. I love to try new things and the combination was very intriguing. Jonathan sounds like a great guy and he’s told me he’ll keep me posted on future books in the series. After this experience, I’ll have to make sure I read more steampunk in the future.
Thanks again and have a great week.
A very interesting review, Olga. I don’t think I have ever read a steampunk book.
Thanks, Robbie. Me neither, but now that I’ve read one, I will probably try some more in the future. Have a lovely week!
Hi Olga. Thanks for this review.
Steampunk Zombie Western? Okay… I’m just not a zombie fan. I see too many of them every day, wandering around texting… Now *there’s* your zombie apocalypse. 😀
I’m not creeped out, they just don’t interest me. That said, this still sounds like a fun book that I want to read. Plus I was guessing even before you said as much (from the description) that these aren’t the usual mindless zombies. All the best to Jonathan with this wild ride. Hugs all around.
Thanks, Teagan. No, I might say there is nothing usual in this book (then, again, as I confessed, I haven’t read much steampunk, apart from one of your serials, and they are pretty special in their own right). The true zombie part of the story is very late in the book and not very long, but I think you will enjoy this one (even with the zombies). I haven’t read many zombie books myself, although I’ve enjoyed the ones I have read, but I don’t think any of them were what I think of as standard zombie fare.
Have a fabulous Tuesday (and yes, I agree with your take on the zombie apocalypse!). Big hugs!
Aw, you’re too kind. Sometimes I don’t think my blog serials are serious enough to truly fit into any genre. I’m not a steampunk expert, but I like the mix of old-time machinery and audacity. (That’s my take on the genre. I’m not certain how they feel about magic… so I’m not sure if they’d accept my stories… I should research… Oh where’s the time?) 😀
Have a wonderful Wednesday. Hugs right back!
Thanks, Teagan. Well, I’m no expert, for sure. I wouldn’t have thought zombies usually feature in the genre but it works out. Your story more than worked for me, so I wouldn’t worry at all. I love the old machinery aspect and alternative history.
♥
Great review, lovely to hear your thoughts. I’ve been given a copy of this book by the author too. Hoping that I like it just as much.
Thanks, Stacey. It’s quite a ride. I hope you enjoy it. ♥