I learned of Melanie Karsak’s Airship Racing Chronicles through a friend yesterday, and figured I’d check out the short story last night. The short is very short indeed, and it’s actually available for free on amazon, so well worth a try.
The short opened in a personal moment, a sad Christmas eve of getting drunk for the fair Lily, captain of the airship Stargazer. She’s alone while others are enjoying Christmas mistletoe and jolly times in a bar, and the story sets off on a Christmas day airship race where they’re late because they overslept after drinking so much.
I loved the airship race. Descriptions were beautiful. It was gripping and thrilling.
It’s cute, and didn’t try too hard for a twist — though I suppose there’s a romantic one involved, and I found it to be an enjoyable read. I think perhaps the story really started more when the waking up to airship race began, but I don’t fault the part of introducing the characters first, especially as this is meant to be a sampler for a larger series. The end was a bit rated-R for my tastes, and the characters went a little too debaucherous for me, but that may be a plus in some people’s books.
The story actually was very good on characterization, unlike most shorts that I read. A big plus there. I get the feeling there’s a little more depth for people who understand and have read the full series, but this stands alone fine.
Overall, it was well written, and definitely a good enough teaser to warrant checking out the series. 9/10
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