Rating: 
Summary: the perfect sci-fi
Review: First I would have to say that this book is for people who are older that 13. This is by far the best book I have ever read. I have just recently read this book and it was impossible to put down. This book really sparked my imagionation the second I started reading it.
It starts off with the giant traction city of London racing accross the Hunting Ground in persuit of a smaller city that would soon be fed to the Gut of London. Tom (who is the main character) is forced to work in the Gut, stops a terribly ugly assasin from murdering his idol, Mr. Valentine. He supposedly gets pushed off of London along with the assasin by Valentine. They end up going on all sorts of adventures. Tom soon discovers the secret about Mr. Valentine...
This is defanitly a must read. I will be reading the second book soon.
Rating:
Summary: "Town - eat - Town"
Review: *Note: for a short, concise review of the book without extra deliberation and insight, simply read the last paragraph.*
Mortal Engines follows the format of a post-apocalyptic future, but from that typical beginning it spreads into varied and fantastic directions. It begins within the city of London, which is chasing down a small salt-mining town. Its purpose? To eat it. Almost all of the great cities of the world have been put on wheels, calling themselves "Traction cities." They roam around, mainly in the Hunting Grounds (what was formerly Europe) digesting those smaller than them - hunting for parts, fuel and food.
London has just returned to the Hunting Grounds, and there we meet our hero - young Thomas Natsworthy. He flees from his duties as a Third Class Apprentice in the London Museum to watch London chase down the small town of Salthook, but instead manages to get in a fight with an older boy. He is thus briefly dropped down to duty in the bowels of the city - fittingly called "the Gut."
With what might seem a stroke of enormous luck, he there manages to save a man he greatly admires from assassination, but his hopes of glory are promptly squeashed when that same "hero" flings him from the wheeled city, onto the open ground of the "Out-Country" below. Teaming up with the scarred would-be assassin, Hester Shaw, he begins to follow after the city - and a tale of heroism, betrayel and love begins.
Mortal Engines is partly about coming of age, yet it does not show any of the main characters as anything close to a stereotypical "child". This is aided by the fact that the ages of the characters are never precisely revealed. Like a great Traction city itself, the book rolls along at a vivacious pace - while not leaving out the complexities of the workings of that city. The characters are realistic and well-created, the plot nothing short of brilliant.
Mortal Engines is darker than some books of a similar genre, not veiling or glossing over death and sorrow, yet it is neither overly sentimental nor brutal. It brings up matters of right and wrong many times, how one mans' terrorist is anothers' hero. I would recommend it strongly to anyone in need of a good adventure story, who are not overly distasteful of its touchs of romance and drama. Mortal Engines is for young adults mainly, but other groups can certainly find meaning in its many levels and messages - or simply enjoy the finely crafted story.
An exciting read, with chracters who make you care, fantastic settings and machines, and a dark yet satisfying conclusion - leaving you wishing for more. And wishing for more is a good thing, as it is merely the first of the Hungry City Chronicles.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT BOOK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: First of all ignore the fact that this book is generally found in the Children's section of most bookstores. Ignore any reservations you may have and enjoy it for what it is - a fantastical sci-fi adventure that once you start reading you can't put down. I read it in one sitting.
I won't go over the plot as it's been well documented by other reviewers. It's an interesting premise that freely borrows from literary fantasists like Jules Verne, Jack Vance, Phillip Pullman, and a bit of Rogue Trooper from 2000AD, but brings something new to the genre. Movies like Metropolis, Terminator, City of Lost Children and perhaps a bit of Waterworld and Mad Max are all referenced as well as bit of American rock.
The characters are believable and they have flaws. He's not brave, she's not beautiful and they probably won't live happily ever after - but you care about them. They deal with real issues like love, death, betrayal, retribution and courage. As has been said before bad things happen to nice people but that's life.
It's a shame that US reader can't enjoy the wonderful example of retro Boy's Own adventure art of the UK edition..but that's a minor grouse.
If I have a criticism it's that it's over too quickly. I've had a glimpse into this world and I want to know what happens to Tom and Hester - so I'm off to buy the sequel.
Rating:
Summary: You'll read it in one go.
Review: I have been reading sci-fi for many years now (I am 35) and have recently started in on "children's" books. This is the finest of said catagory i can imagine. In my opinion it is far better than some other children's books that are rather popular at the moment. Amazon says that the book is for ages 9-12... I would say it is a book for any age group. If anything, some younger readers might find it's content a bit strong.
The book starts off at a run and never lets up. It keeps you rivited but not at the expense of discriptive detail. Philip Reeve simply dosen't require endless flowery discriptions to get his point across. Neither does Reeve pull any punches as far as the plot is concerned (if you don't like books where bad things happen to good people, your not going to enjoy this book).
The only down side i can see to this book is that the author is English and thus some language may seem obscure to Americans. However, if you let that stop you from reading it, you are a fool. If you like sci-fi books... buy this one now.
Rating: 
Summary: mortal engines
Review: I have read plenty of books about post-apocalyptic futures, but none have been as good as this one. The plot is dark, but beautiful in its own way. If you're a kid reading this review, let me just say, this isn't one of those books that acts like you're some kind of toddler. If you've read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, you might know what I mean. In this book, you won't find sentences like, "And they drank a very disgusting grown up drink," or, "they didn't do boring grown up stuff," or even, "things people your age shouldn't trouble yourself with." Those are actually quotes that I have read in books. If you are tired of reading happy, sugar coated books where no main characters die, kill, drink, sleep or have sex with anyone, then this is the book for you. If you like it, I would seriously recommend reading the second one, Predator's Gold. I apologize if you like the types of books described above. And lastly, this book is not for people who like realistic fiction!
Rating:
Summary: very cool new concept
Review: I read a lot of YA fiction and a fair amount of sci-fi, so I appreciate truly new ideas. This is one: cities of the distant future give up on taking their sustenance from the land, and instead become mobile predators (or prey), chasing and devouring weaker cities while running from stronger ones. There are some fairly obvious parallels with (and allusions to) the wasteful, short-sighted, and self-destructive behaviors of our current era, but fortunately the author does not beat you over the head with them.The plot is fast-moving and satisfyingly focused, and the characters are (mostly) three-dimensional and engaging. I was disappointed that (as another reviewer said) the body count was fairly high, partly because I'm a softie and partly because I would have loved to see some of those characters return in future books. I don't quite see the comparison with Philip Pullman -- this book is not nearly as rich and complex as His Dark Materials. But it still has a lot to offer readers of dark, futuristic sci-fi -- plus an ending worthy of a Schwarzenegger movie.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing- A New Age in Sci-Fi
Review: I read the British copy of Mortal Engines when my aunt bought me a copy for Christmas, and read it in one night. It's that good. Reeve sucessfully introduces a brilliant world never seen in any type of novel before. This new type of sci-fi was an immediate attraction.
The book begins with a narrative on the great and powerful traction city (a city that has been put on wheels and is layered in tiers) London, chasing a smaller traction town. In a future day in age, the motto "it's a city eat city world" is a statement widely followed.
It is here in London, on the second tier that we meet the protagonist, Tom. Tom is a jubilant teenager, who was orphaned when his parents were killed in the "big tilt". An apprentice historian, Tom idolizes the famous "Valentine", London's hero and pretty coverboy. However, when he meets the assasine Hester Shaw, a character whose intriguing history and hate of traction cities is more than interesting, Tom's once dull life is hurled into a rapid cycle of betrayal, disbelief, and survival.
Pushed off of London, Tom is forced to trek across "the waste" with Hester, whose hard shell and clever wit helps them survive in numerous places. Forced on a journey together, with opposite purposes, Hester and Tom make their way, while things in London take an ugly turn. Their story is alternated with that of Katherine, Valentine's daughter, who still resides in London.
What i found msot intriguing about the ever twisting plotline was the mystery of what has happened to the world. Computer disks are regarded as "artifacts", and there are brief mentions of a possible world war. Statements come up in random places, like "I heard the Americans went quite insane in the end". And the ultimate power weapon, which blood has been spilt for, is a reconstructed nuclear weapon used by the "ancients". What is assumed to be Europe is a vast wasteland of mud and bare rock.
Over all, the amazing novelty of a world like this, where cities compete to keep on moving, immediately pulls the reader in. People who enjoy the book may be noted that the British version of Reeve's second installment in the series, Predator's Gold, can be ordered on Amazon UK.
Rating:
Summary: MORTAL ENGINES
Review: I was a bit skeptical of this book at first, but I was also curious. How would Philip Reeve pull off such a strange sounding book? Well, he did a great job, and that is why I've read it.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorites!!!
Review: I've read hundreds of books and a majority of them really good. Even though I don't have a favorite book I have three top favorite books and - This one's one of them. This book is great. Its in the far future but its not super hightech. What I really liked about this book is that it's set in the future but the technology in this time is all of its own. Its a comination of old levers and gears and robots-humans called Stalkers. Its great. The book takes place many years after the 60 minute war (how great is that!? A 60 MINUTE WAR). However there's one thing that makes these books better than any others. All the cities and towns and villages are on wheels. THey're called traction cities and the drive around barren Europe in search of prey - other cities to destroy and take their parts and sell the citizens as slaves for labor in other traction cities.
If the atmosphere of this book isn't what gets you to love it, it's the characters that will. The characters are so believabple, so in depth, so colorful, so deep - they're just amazing. And the author adds in so many secrets and hidden past about the characters - you'll love it. I highly recomend this book to anyone.
Rating: 
Summary: A New Brand of Fantasy for the 21st Century
Review: In the years beyond the 30th century, after life as we know it is destroyed in the Sixty Minutes War, the world is divided into three: the Static communities, who live in farms and buildings firmly stationed on the earth, the aviators, who travel the Bird Roads in the sky, and the Traction Cities, the giant cities on engineered wheels who live by the Municipal Darwinism - the big cities devour the little cities for their resources. And the biggest Traction City of them all is London, on the move for larger hunting grounds and more resources. Living in London are two very different young people - Tom, a Third Class Apprentice in the History Guild, and Katherine, an upper class noble daughter of the famed archeologist Thaddeus Valentine, whom both of them adore for his bravery and exciting exploits. Yet after London destroys the small town of Salthook whilst the three of them are touring the Gut (the engineering belly of London), one of the refugees attacks Mr Valentine in a furious rage, and is only just stopped by Tom's intervention. Chasing her up the levels of the Gut, Tom corners her before a chute that leads to the desolate Out-Country, and is horrified beyond comprehension when Mr Valentine pushes the both of them down it. Now stranded in the Out-Country with the young lady named Hester Shaw, with the hideously disfigured face, Tom is pushed into a series of adventures including aviators, pirates, slave-traders and Static towns, during which he begins to realise: things do not exist as he has understood them. And all the while, they are being hunted by a tragic and fatal being known as Shrike... Meanwhile, back in London, Katherine is doing some investigating of her own concerning the disappearence of Tom and the assassin. Once her father leaves on a mission which purpose he conceals even from her, she begins to find pieces of the puzzle concerning an Ancient piece of Old-Tech that is somehow wrapped up in Hester Shaw and her father's unspoken past. Together with a witness to Tom's fall, a lowly worker named Bevis Pod, Katherine learns the truth about her father, and the catastrophic plans the Mayor of London has in store for the device known as the MEDUSA. The real enjoyment of this book comes from Philip Reeve's wonderful creation of an interesting and detailed (but without becoming too encyclopedic) world, set in a post-apocalyptic world where collosal cities trundle desolate plains, filled with relics of the Old World - the world as we know it today. Usually descriptions of machinery or other technicalities bore and confuse me, but Reeve writes with such clarity, that the city of London and its layered Tiers is brought to complete and convincing life. Likewise, the cultures found outside the cities are unique and interesting, and once Tom and Hester start out on their journey, its very likely one will be unable to resist exploring with them. Storywise, the plot is simple, but with just enough twists to keep one interested. All the characters, even villians that at first glance appear one-dimensional have hidden motives to their actions, and the conflict between them and the cultures that they represent is believable, and morally complex. Only the ending disappointed me somewhat - Reeve seemed determined to kill off as many of his characters as possible, leaving me a little immune to the tragedy of death, and the conclusion ends more on a note of despair than hope for the future, given the sheer amount of death and destruction that the survivors leave in their wake. Of all the major protagonists, the females end up being more interesting than the males, though in fact Tom is given the most attention. This is unfortunate, as I found myself disliking Tom for much of the story - he is a character like Lloyd Alexander's Taran in the Chronicles of Prydain, in that he dreams of glory, thinks highly of the wrong people, and holds tight to beliefs that the reader can see are false from the very beginning of the book. Unlike Taran however, it takes a long time for Tom to find self-realisation, and as such the reader feels on-going frustration for his ignorance and on-going commitment to make the wrong choices. However, he *does* eventually grow (albeit in a rather patchy manner), and through him Reeve addresses the important questions of life. Reeve's other hero, Bevin Pod is endearingly shy and uncertain of himself, showing immense bravery when he is aware of the horrors he would face in the Deep Gut should he be caught, and dotingly loyal to Katherine. It is the girls that I found more likeable - Hester Shaw, an imbittered, independant young woman whose hideous face is an ongoing pain for one who loves and appreciates beauty, and lives only to bring death to the one who inflicted this upon her. Katherine at first glance appears as a "poor little rich girl", but is intelligent, resourceful, and has a clear idea in her mind of the differences between right and wrong. "Mortal Engines" is ultimately a well-crafted book, along the lines of Phillip Pullman's "Northern Lights" and Garth Nix's "Sabriel/Lirael/Abhorsen" trilogy. If you liked the atmosphere and flavour of those two books, I strongly suggest "Mortal Engines" a go, and keep your eyes open for the sequel.
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