Dawn Calamity by Amanda Cherry (Not A Pipe Publishing, May 2024)

Dawn Calamity tells the story of Maran, a young officer who would have done just about anything to avoid stepping aboard the decrepit airship, Dawn. And discovering the woman she has a secret crush on is onboard is only making things more awkward. When they find themselves behind enemy lines, Maran has to take charge, avoid the enemy at the gate, and find a way to bring the airship crew home.

“This is the ‘undercover princess on a doomed airship mission with her queer crush’ you didn’t know you needed. Now you know! Don’t miss out.”
–Karen Eisenbrey, author of Ego & Endurance.

“Dawn Calamity is full of intrigue and action.”
–Nan C Ballard, author of the Under Carico’s Moons trilogy.

My Review:

If you’re in the mood for a rollicking steam/dieselpunk adventure, I highly recommend Dawn Calamity. This is a thrilling and colorful story of leadership, teamwork, and survival.

When military officer and pilot Maran is assigned to a diplomatic mission aboard a decrepit, haphazardly updated airship, she’s pretty sure the whole project is doomed from the start. The stakes rise when she discovers her secret crush is also aboard. But Maran has more authority than her comrades realize, and her leadership skills rise to the situation when the Dawn crashes behind enemy lines, close to a sinister secret base.

The Dawn feels like a real ship, not just atmospheric set-dressing. Same with the secret base. I really enjoyed the subtly old-fashioned language of the book, and how Maran code-switched from formal royal or diplomatic speech to clipped military talk to casual colloquialisms and hilarious euphemisms. I also appreciated her collaborative leadership style: she listens carefully and gets people doing the work they’re best at, and wants everyone to survive and thrive, no matter what level of society they are on. And she still gets gooshy around her crush.

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