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The Aylesford Skull (Book Review)

Author James P. Blaylock will return to the steampunk genre he helped create when his upcoming novel, The Aylesford Skull is released in late January 2013. The release will be the author's first full novel set in the steampunk genre in over 20 years, and fans will be thrilled to see the return of the Ives family and the notorious villian Dr. Ignacio Narbondo. The Narbondo series has spanned several decades with the origins of the series originating back when the now famous author was fresh out of college. The series has since spawned eight different completed works, but The Aylesford Skull could be the best yet. James P. Blaylock is the master of discovering the magic that can be found within our own world and conveying in the most interesting ways possible, and its never been more evident than in his newest work.

The Aylesford Skull takes readers back to Summer 1883. Steam powered flying vessels and other sophisticated technologies have become quite ordinary in this bizarre world. With a reported hostage takeover and a grave robbing appearing out of nowhere in the town of Aylesford, it seems all too obvious that Dr. Ignacio Narbondo is up to no good once again. The seemingly obvious soon becomes a known fact when Narbondo shows up to kidnap Professor Langdon St. Ives four-year-old son Eddie. The family soon learn their arch nemesis has escaped to London and set off in pursuit to rescue the young child. The new novel marks the return of the classic rivalry between the St. Ives and the scoundrel doctor is soon becoming the modern version of Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty in classic literature, and the newest release provides a great new chapter in the rivalry that all fans will want to pick up and read on the first day it is released.

James P. Blaylock is able to create magical living and breathing worlds through his writing that makes is simple to understand and picture even the most lavish and unfathomable creations and cities throughout his many novels. This trend continues in The Aylesford Skull as the team races around the world in an attempt to catch the diabolical doctor and thwart hsi evil plans. Blaylock once again introduces many new characters that help drive the narrative forward in a fantastic way, as readers become more attached to each personality with the turn of the book's pages. Of course, the return of Dr. Ignacio Narbondo is brought to life with entertaining interactions and carefully chosen dialogue that proves some men would just like to watch the world burn.

The Aylesford Skull goes a long way in further cementing author James P. Blaylock as the king of steampunk. The 440 pages of content is tremendously exciting and flies by faster than we'd like. As avid gamers, we also can't help but wonder what a video game adaptation of the novel would be like if the fantasy world was recreated with some of the best artistic design around. Either way, we couldn't put down the book until we had finished reading The Aylesford Skull, and although the novel won't be completely comprehensible if you don't receive a quick history lesson of the series before reading, we still think The Aylesford Skull is destined to be one of the best releases for 2013 and one that all fans of the genre should pick up and read. Look for The Aylesford Skull to release from Titan Books in just a couple of months!

The Aylesford Skull is now available for preorder for $14.95 from Titan Books and is scheduled to release on January 25, 2013. For more information on The Aylesford Skull, check out the official Titan Books website.


Score: 8.5 out of 10

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