Lucy Bluecrowne lives aboard her father's schooner, the Left-Handed Fate. As a British privateer, the Fate has been hired by Maxwell Ault, a teenager who has taken on the project his father was working on before his death. He's trying to assemble an ancient device which he believes is a weapon strong enough to end all wars. As Britain battles Napoleon's forces on one hand and the Americans on the other, this device could be all too timely. But finding the pieces and assembling them is no easy task, especially since they are pursued by a French vessel in search of the same device, as well as some mysterious men in black who pursue them for reasons known only to themselves. The search will take them to the independent city of Nagspeake, where strange happenings are a matter of course...

So, I love Nagspeake and could read about it all day. Kate Milford's world-building is top-notch. I didn't love the sailing-ship bits as much, despite the fact that I normally enjoy books set at sea as well. I found the plot a little too run-around after one macguffin or another; I enjoyed the different scenes and characters that they met, but I had a hard time believing in the importance of the device itself. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for this type of book. It probably also didn't help that I was confused about series order, and read this book before reading Bluecrowne. I'll come back to that book soon, as I'm still a big fan of Milford's work, even if this one wasn't a favorite for me. ( )

Lucy Bluecrowne and Maxwell Ault are on a mission: find and combine the three pieces of a strange and arcane engine that will have the power to end all wars. The book takes place after the more recently published book Bluecrowne, at the outset of the war of 1812, with America battling England while England is worried about France and Napoleon. Others are after the machine, including the French and some mysterious men in black. The privateer, Left-Handed Fate, is captured by the Americans and put under the command of young Oliver Dexter, who is only twelve and is promoted to acting Lieutenant. Oliver and Lucy are both forced into positions of leadership, making difficult decisions affecting the lives of their crews, leading them to the independent town of Nagspeake, where they are able to learn what the loom cards mean and find the second piece in a wonderfully illustrated, weird bizarre. Liao Bluecrowne's fascination with fireworks plays an important role. Milford weaves another interesting tale, with steampunk elements. ( )

I was all set to love this, because [b:Greenglass House|18222716|Greenglass House|Kate Milford|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379952488s/18222716.jpg|25656381] is one of my favorite books of the last few years (and because 18th century sailing ships but with steampunky magic!). Unfortunately I found the first half a slog. The characters are chasing around after a few plot coupons, other non-point-of-view enemy characters are chasing after them as well... basically everyone was shuttling back and forth around Baltimore Harbor firing at each others' ships and boarding each other, and the stakes were too mysterious for me to care.

I persevered because I trust Milford, and the book did pick up for me when they arrived in the strange city-state of Nagspeake (also the setting of Greenglass, 200 years later). Her gift for creating quirky, cozy settings with a hint of danger was able to shine there -- I can read about Nagspeake hot cocoa and jam all day.

The end was a bit Diana Wynne Jones offbeat to work perfectly for me ([b:The Homeward Bounders|47570|The Homeward Bounders|Diana Wynne Jones|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1444026372s/47570.jpg|2771] is probably the one I'm thinking of here, though it was a general feeling more than any specific title)... I adore them, but I'm not sure anyone can do DWJ endings but DWJ. And I'm not convinced Lucy and Max needed to fall in love rather than just being friends. Overall: reasonably satisfying, but I kind of wish I'd reread Greenglass House instead. ( )

Max is following in his father's footsteps, searching for the three parts of a machine that legend says will end all wars. He's engaged the help of a ship, the Left-Handed Fate, and her crew, including the captain's daughter, Lucy Bluecrowne. But there are others in search of the machine pieces - not to mention that they're in the middle of a war that puts a 12-year-old lieutenant of the U.S. Navy in their path (and on their ship) - and the race to solve the clues, find the pieces, and figure out how to put them together is on. Plenty of fun to be had here: the mysteries, the stories-within-stories, and the magical realism are great. It doesn't quite measure up to her Greenglass House books, though (this is a prequel, of sorts, to those), mostly because I found some of the explanations related to the machine itself to be a little hard to swallow/slightly confused. Still, a good, fun read. ( )

I lived in Fell's Point, where The Left-Handed Fate begins, and still consider it home. To find it captured in time between these pages, and well in the grip of plots and contorted mechanisms was a complete joy.

More soon, once I wrest the book back from a young friend.