What does one say when one reads such a profound and amazing book? GODSPEED is like nothing I have ever read before - part Frankenstein, part love story, part memoir - it is all these things and more.
When Abigail is dismissed from the only home she's ever known and winds up in the street, the kindness of a stranger thrusts her into a strange fantastical world of one whom can only be called a "mad scientist." Quinn Godspeed, with his brilliant mind and strange devices, saves Abigail from a weak heart. Without him and his "electric" shocks, she would die.
However, as Abigail comes to love him, she finds Quinn is not a man so easily loved. He pushes her away for ethical reasons, he's her physician after all, yet, it seems Abigail means more to him than he lets on. Unfortunately, there is another person who loves Quinn as well, and jealousy cannot be quelled. Not until the end of the book do we see the whole story unfold.
February Grace has done an incredible job of keeping us spellbound within the context of the mythical town of Fairever. Her prose is elaborate, but not purple; each and every sentence captivates and forms pictures in the mind. Pain, despair, hope, and in the end, joy, washes over you as the story draws you in. Part Victorian steampunk, the detail with which Grace writes about the machines is superb. The despair in which Abigail feels her unrequited love for Godspeed made me weep. And the physical pain with which Grace writes, not only from Abigail's point of view, but the other children as well, only shows how strong a character can be if modeled from personal experience.
If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. I look forward to reading so much more from February Grace.
