Book: Pastworld by Ian Beck

Release date: October 27, 2009

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

From: Publisher

Summary: What if all of London were really an amusement park—a whole city returned to Victorian times to entertain visitors from the twenty-first century? That’s the wildly original premise of Ian Beck’s Pastworld, a high-stakes mystery set in a simulated past.

Eve is a lifelong resident of Pastworld who doesn’t know she’s living in a theme park until a mysterious threat forces her to leave home. Caleb is a visiting tourist who finds the lawlessness of the past thrilling—until he suddenly becomes a fugitive from an antiquated justice system. And in the midst of it all, in the thick London fog a dark and deadly figure prowls, claiming victim after victim. He’s the Fantom, a creature both of the past and of the present, in whose dark purpose Caleb and Eve will find their destinies combined.

Page-turning, complex, and haunting, Pastworld masterfully exposes the human experience of the past, of violence, of technology, and of entertainment.

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Kait Rose

Pastworld by Ian Beck

December 6, 2009 • 3 stars, review, standalone, steampunk • 6 Comments

Book: Pastworld by Ian Beck

Release date: October 27, 2009

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

From: Publisher

Summary: What if all of London were really an amusement park—a whole city returned to Victorian times to entertain visitors from the twenty-first century? That’s the wildly original premise of Ian Beck’s Pastworld, a high-stakes mystery set in a simulated past.

Eve is a lifelong resident of Pastworld who doesn’t know she’s living in a theme park until a mysterious threat forces her to leave home. Caleb is a visiting tourist who finds the lawlessness of the past thrilling—until he suddenly becomes a fugitive from an antiquated justice system. And in the midst of it all, in the thick London fog a dark and deadly figure prowls, claiming victim after victim. He’s the Fantom, a creature both of the past and of the present, in whose dark purpose Caleb and Eve will find their destinies combined.

Page-turning, complex, and haunting, Pastworld masterfully exposes the human experience of the past, of violence, of technology, and of entertainment.

*****

My feelings about Pastworld are kind of mixed up. I liked it but I didn’t like it. It’s a very confusing thing for me. Normally I either love or hate a book but this is one of the first books where I just can’t make up my mind.

The story of Pastworld was really intriguing. It was truly unlike anything I have ever read and after a while I was really into it. It took me a little bit of time to get into the story. The beginning just didn’t entertain me but I didn’t give up. You shouldn’t either, it gets better as the story progresses.

Pastworld was also a really good mystery. I never knew what was going to happen next and the whole story behind the Fantom wasn’t revealed until the very end. It was a good way to keep readers enthralled with the story. It was one of the first mystery books where I couldn’t guess what the connections were between all the characters.

Now, for my mixed feelings. I have to say that the book wasn’t very well written. It didn’t seem to flow very well at all and some of the sentences seemed to drag on forever and ever. It made it hard for me to focus on the story itself and I think that was part of the reason why it took me so long to get into it.

Also, the story was told from so many different points of view. It was so crazy. There were at least six different points of view and it made the book really confusing, especially when the chapters just jumped from character to character. I could understand a few different ones but six was just too many.

Overall, I think Pastworld didn’t really live up to it’s potential. It could have been a really amazing book but with all the problems it ended up just being average. I think this is just one you should check out before spending your money. I enjoyed it but it’s just not something I want to read again.

Writing: 5/10

Characters: 8/10

Ending: 8/10

Plot: 8/10

Originality: 10/10

Overall: 39/50=C+

Cover: 8/10=B-

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