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This title in other editions

The Court of the Air

by Stephen Hunt

The Court of the Air Cover

ISBN13: 9780765360229
ISBN10: 0765360225
Condition: Standard
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Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

When streetwise Molly Templar witnesses a brutal murder at the brothel she has recently been apprenticed to, her first instinct is to run back to the poorhouse where she grew up. But there she finds her fellow orphans butchered, and it slowly dawns on her that she was the real target of the attack. For Molly is a special little girl, and she carries a secret that marks her out for destruction by enemies of the state.

Oliver Brooks has led a sheltered existence in the backwater home of his merchant uncle. But when he is framed for his only relative's murder he is forced to flee for his life, accompanied by an agent of the mysterious Court of the Air. Chased across the country, Oliver finds himself in the company of thieves, outlaws and spies, and gradually learns more about the secret that has blighted his life.

Soon Molly and Oliver will find themselves battling a grave threat to civilization, an ancient power thought to have been quelled millennia ago. Their enemies are ruthless and myriad, but the two orphans are also aided by indomitable friends in this endlessly inventive tale full of drama, intrigue, and adventure.

The Court of the Air is a rollicking adventure set in a fantastical Dickensian clockwork universe that will appeal to fans of Susanna Clarke and Philip Pullman.

 

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About the Author

Stephen Hunt is currently on the management, technical, and editorial boards for SFcrowsnest.com, the science fiction and fantasy web site which is currently Google PageRanked™ as the Internet's second most popular science fiction site. The Court of the Air is his second novel.  He resides in London.
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Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
Lucy Black, July 3, 2009 (view all comments by Lucy Black)
There are some brilliant, innovative, humorous, provocative works of fantasy/sci-fi out there; this is not one of them. Someone made the mistake of comparing Hunt to authors like Susanna Clarke and Phillip Pullman (something I consider a blatant insult to the latter two). Other than the fact that all three authors are English, neither Clarke nor Pullman’s writing has much in common with the insipid blather that can by found in The Court of the Air. Hunt’s novel is an excellent example of why I avoid most sci-fi and a lot of fantasy; genres where too many authors try to disguise their inability to write with a bunch of funny-sounding names.

Although (maybe) a couple of the minor characters in this novel are amusing, the main ensemble is colourless and one-dimensional. The author’s attempts at making-over England into a fantastical setting was pathetically unoriginal, and his plot wasn’t all that great either. Hunt sort of just “borrows” things at random from history/reality, conveniently ignoring the fact that his story supposedly takes place in a DIFFERENT UNIVERSE (which makes the use of rugby terms or allusions to the Round Table flagrantly inappropriate) as well as from other sources like Doctor Who, Verne, and Lovecraft.

Overall, although I did manage to finish it, The Court of the Air was extraordinarily disappointing. I think the most positive thing I could say about this book is that it has nice cover art.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780765360229
Author:
Hunt, Stephen
Publisher:
Tor Fantasy
Subject:
Fantasy - Epic
Subject:
Fantasy - General
Subject:
Science Fiction and Fantasy-Fantasy
Copyright:
2009
Edition Description:
Mass Market Paperbound
Publication Date:
20090331
Binding:
Paperback
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
608
Dimensions:
6.75 x 4.19 in
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