The Watchmaker of Filigree Street – Natasha Pulley

In 1883, Thaniel Steepleton finds a gold pocket watch on his pillow. Six months later, it saves his life by raising an alarm that causes him to leave the scene of a massive bomb explosion moments before it happens. After the bomb, Thaniel goes in search of the watchmaker, who turns out to be a Japanese man named Kieta Mori. Mori’s workshop is a place of wonder, but since the bomb was clockwork, he’s a suspect in the bombing.

Sounds straightforward, right? Well, there’s a subplot with an Oxford trained physicist (a woman), and Mori’s some kind of clairvoyant, and then things just get weird. I read this mostly to get to the end so I could see what happens. It’s not bad, but I can’t say it’s good either. I’m actually having trouble trying to talk about it. I don’t feel like there was any sort of real resolution, though I suppose you could argue there was. I think this book just wasn’t my cup of tea.