Liked the politics and the plot, hated the writing style and the way August Clarke's books have the vibe of a less problematic, lesbian version of Jay Kristoff's.

Literally lost my mind. This is the lesbian SFF locked tomb fans needed. Would give 30 stars if I could

A hundred gleaming ichorite stars for this bananapants, insanely awesome book!
Clarke develops a mythos of multiple religions, labor relations, class warfare, extreme style, and true love and devotion. And lots and lots of sex. It's a complex love story wrapped in all the above. I will be handing this book out like candy azurines on ichorite platters.

More. More. MORE!

A really, amazing, amazing book. Review @ Strange Horizons: http://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/author/dylan-haston/

Loved this intriguing, complex and intriguing page turner
Liked it . Due to health issues cannot will write a proper review at a later time
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mineA more extensive review will follow

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for an e-Arc of this novel! Metal from Heaven is an action-packed fever dream revenge story. Other readers have compared this to Gideon the Ninth, and I can certainly see the connections. I enjoyed the overall aesthetics of this book, however the prose sometimes felt a little bit too over flowery and I caught myself sometimes needing to revisit passages. Similarly, I would have appreciated a little more balance in the overall pacing of the story. I really enjoyed the explorations of end stage capitalism, labor exploitation, and resistance, and think Clarke did a great job of highlighting these dynamics and tensions. Overall, this was a memorable experience and I know several readers that will love and run to pick this one up!

Actual Rating 2.5

This is a tough one for me to review. On one hand, there were aspects of this book that were 4 or 5 stars for me, but there were also aspects that were 1 or 2 stars, which led to this somewhat average rating overall.

I loved the idea of the characters. They were unique, and included a lot of hardcore, bad*ss females, which I will always get behind. Unfortunately, the way this was written, it was really difficult to find any sort of emotional connection to most of the characters. Since it was told from first person, it was easiest to connect with the protagonist, but even that was difficult for me. There was basically no connection with the secondary characters. There was also some very graphic sex included - while I don't prefer this, the scenes did fit with the tone of the read overall.

There were a lot of interesting aspects relating to worldbuilding, especially surrounding different cultural practices and religions as related to how they interpreted this world. There were so many fictional terms for these cultural/religious aspects that I honestly couldn't keep track of who was what and what they believed, etc. A glossary was much needed.

I loved the plot. Being motivated by realistic revenge, the inclusion of found family, the protagonist having limits but also reasonably excelling at other things, all of these aspects worked together to enhance the story. But a lot of times these things got lost behind the writing style. It was an odd mix of run-on sentences, a lot of words being used without anything being said, but then also a lot of sentence fragments, sometimes only one word long. I really disliked the style and felt like it kept a lot of emotion and personality of the characters buried.

This work would make a fantastic mini-series. If you're someone who cares about writing style, you may not enjoy this one as it's not very approachable. If you're looking for a fantasy that focuses on revenge, capitalism/industrialism, and is unique, then this is a must read. My thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

So a brief and off the cuff review just because I appreciate being able to read this book so soon- uh personally I don’t get the hype. It felt incredibly overwritten and a lot of the world’s lore just didn’t make sense even when the main character was explaining things to the reader. And like I think my biggest problem was just that I couldn’t quite connect to the mc the way I thought I would. Marney read as a very Classic Butch archetype and I knew they had an end goal in sight but idk they just felt very passive and like they just didn’t have individual character beyond reacting to events happening around them. Also at a point they just kind of struck me as like. Very stupid? And I don’t believe that was intentional, but their reaction to the last twist was like. Cmon man, seriously? It’s kind of disappointing because this book was hyped up the be The book for dykes but it sadly didn’t speak to me I guess. The writing is like objectively beautiful and the story is very unique so it has that going for it at least.

This is a complicated book to review because I loved many things but also really did NOT enjoy others. This was not an easy read. The writing style is unusual, blurry, and rambling at times, but it works well when the reader is supposed to be disoriented with our main character Marney. Ultimately I’m still debating if it was worth the struggle for me?

The beginning gripped me immediately. We follow Marney, a child laborer who escapes a protest gone violent and joins an all women gang of anti-capitalist bandits called the Choir. She vows to get revenge against the industry leader responsible. Marney is “lustertouched” from her exposure to the resource ichorite, which gives her the ability to harness (kinda gross) magic but at a cost.

Unfortunately, the story fell off a bit during the second quarter. It’s been a couple days since I finished the book now, and at this point I don’t think I could tell you much that happened in that quarter of the book. I do remember being very distracted by the prose then, but it was not an issue for me at all in the second half.

As other reviews have said, the events in the book’s description didn’t really pick up until the second half of the book. It almost feels like the start of a sequel—so much so that I wonder if this would’ve been better as a duology, which would’ve given us more time to experience the Choir and appreciate Marney’s relationships with those characters more.

At the halfway point, the reader meets a whole new cast of characters—all at the same time via dialogue from one of said new characters. Each of these characters had their own religion, background, political goals, and past romantic relationships with other characters. This was all very hard to keep track of because the characters have such similar seductive and brash personalities. It also didn’t help to be stuck in Marney’s head because Marney is attracted to pretty much everyone. Marney’s reverence for women is an essential part of the character (and was so refreshing to read!) BUT, when everyone is crazy and hot, they all kinda blur together.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention that there are also clearly parallels/nods to lesbian culture specifically, but I am sure I missed many of these because I’m not a member of the community. I’m leaving the review of this aspect to people who know what they’re talking about.

This is absolutely not a crowd-pleaser fantasy, but I do think it has the potential (and deserves) to garner a devoted following from the right readers. I’m seeing comparisons to Gideon the Ninth, and I think that’s right to an extent, but the tones are a bit different. I would also throw out a sprinkle of Arcane and A League of Their Own, but there’s something grittier here.

This is not a romance, but note there are sex scenes. Some relationships and scenes are quite toxic and even abusive, which was hard to read. StoryGraph has a great list of content warnings.

2,75⭐️

Jestem prostym człowiekiem. Dostaję kompilację "Disco Elysium" i "Gideon the Ninth", to sięgam w ciemno. Co mogę przyznać, zawarte w blurbie bloody lesbian revenge jest najlepszym podsumowaniem tej opowieści. Bardzo podobał mi się pomysł stojący za tą fabułą, czeka tu dużo refleksji na temat tego industrialnego świata, fascynujące jest nazewnictwo, dużo potencjału kryje się za tym tytułem. Nie będę ukrywać, wszystko wskazuje na to, że jest to idealna kontynuacja tego niszowego gatunku, który obejmuje safickość, sci-fi i humor.

Tym, co niestety nie zadziałało, był sposób pisania. August Clarke składa proste zdania, a jego styl momentami jest wręcz surowy. Ma to swój urok, nadaje pewnej atmosfery całej lekturze, ale nie będę ukrywać – w pewnym momencie mnie to zmęczyło. Straciłam wątek. Liczyłam na idealne wypełnienie dziury tęskniącej za Arcane, jednak pacing był tak specyficzny, że nie potrafiłam się dostosować; doceń bardzo, że wstęp do historii, który jest kluczowy dla pozostałej fabuły, trwa wystarczająco długo, by nie był tylko punktem wyjścia, a faktycznie znaczącym elementem. Jednak czasami osoba autorska skacze między rozdziałami w taki sposób, który przypomina bardziej rozplanowanie niż pisanie. Lubię specyficzne narracje, jednak miałam dwie próby do tego tytułu, i przy obu ten sam element mnie uwierał.

Cóż, już teraz ta książka ma swoich zwolenników. I całkowicie to rozumiem. Sama oczekiwałam czegoś trochę charyzmatyczniejszego. Ale na pewno tym spragnionym tejże specyficznej atmosfery przypadnie do gustu.

I came for the gritty Gideon the Ninth comp and unfortunately couldn’t get past the 20% mark. Maybe I will revisit someday but it just didn’t wow me like I wanted it to.

August Clarke’s Metal From Heaven is a searing blend of glitter and grime, a tale of bloody revenge wrapped in razor-sharp social commentary. Imagine a world where shimmering ballrooms hide industrial horrors, and one luster-touched girl turns the rules of class warfare into her own weapon. Marney Honeycutt is a protagonist who feels like a fistful of raw emotion—vengeful, vulnerable, and utterly unforgettable. The romance is deliciously tense, the politics are brutal, and the foundry-set magic system burns brighter than ichorite itself. If you’re into sapphic tension, chaotic heists, and rage-fueled justice against a backdrop of toxic opulence, this book will have you screaming, “Be gay, do crime!” from start to finish.

Clark has created a world that is familiar, but delightfully new and complex. I love how much social commentary the book includes without feelign like it's being forced down your throat. It is subtle, nuanced, but packs a huge punch. Fantasy with a message-- frankly something I'd like to see from all novels I read. I loved the pacing of the book especially. It did not feel rushed or too much lore-dumpy at the beginning. Not an easy or light read, but a highly enjoyable one that is important.

This is one of the best books I have ever read.

I already knew I adored Clarke's prose from their Scapegracers trilogy, but I fell in love with every single sentence of this novel.

Metal from Heaven pays homage to so many of my favourite works of fiction, from The Locked Tomb to Stone Butch Blues. It is one of the queerest novels I have ever read, drawing from queer history and featuring a stone butch protagonist.

It touches on such important societal issues, by committing to a radical anti-capitalist message. It also has one of the most fun plots and cast of characters I have ever met.

Metal from Heaven will break your heart and I highly recommend it to basically everybody.

DNF around 40%, this book seemed to have everything I should enjoy but it did not capture my attention enough to make me want to keep going. I have been reading this one for so long, it's time to let it go.

thank you to Kensington for the e-ARC

did I comprehend this entire book? probably not
was what I was able to comprehend still tremendous? absolutely

brutal but lush. some of the most creative prose, with an incredibly unreliable narration that fuels intrigue and is confusing in the most satisfying way. the characters are both ridiculous and believable- archetypes and achingly familiar all at once. sad, vicious, heartbreaking, and yet uplifting at the same time. highly recommend to people who can tolerate having to work for a read- it’s worth it if you do.

this is for you if you think queerness is political, love unions, and don’t mind being confused while reading

DNF @ 25%.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024, and it's always disappointing when one of those doesn't live up to my expectations. I found the prose very difficult to parse, and I found myself re-reading the same passages because I had zoned out. Nothing about the story was drawing me in or compelling me to keep going, and there was a gulf of distance between myself and the protagonist that I just couldn't get through.

While at times excessively heavy on the worldbuilding, it's written in a way that indicates the author's true passion for the story he's created. It is refreshing as well to see a lesbian fantasy novel that isn't shy to explore the messier aspects of sexuality and relationships without resorting to compulsory heterosexuality.

2.5

I’d previously read The Scapegracers and well I hadn’t loved the execution and I really liked the idea so when I saw Clarke was publishing a lesbian revenge story featuring a chronically, ill, main character and dystopian workers’ revolution, I was intrigued. I absolutely adore industrial fantasies and this cover is incredible so I went in with pretty high hopes. And I left with very mixed feelings.

This is not an easy book. It’s ambitious and visceral and thematically so rich. But the writing is a choice. We’re pretty much solely in the head of Marney Honeycutt, who is chronically ill from exposure to an element that her and her entire family spent their lives mining. So the writing becomes almost fever dream like and there’s these lush descriptions that make you feel like you’re also getting ill from exposure to this element. Clark doesn’t hold your hand at all, except they kind of do because there are these info dumps on the world that never fully came together for me. And then because we’re in Marney’s head there’s this distance to the rest of the story that had me struggling to wanna pick it up if I wasn’t actively reading it.

I feel like I haven’t really had many positive things to say and that’s not true. Well, this book didn’t fully come together for me. I do think it’s something that’s gonna stick with me for a while, and I applaud Clarke’s ambition. This truly feels like a book he needed to write and I hope that it gets the audience it deserves, though I fear that in an era of cozy fantasy and romantasy it’s going to fall under the radar. I think this is going to be divisive because of the writing and I think if you pick it up, you’ll know within a few pages if it’s a book for you or not.

3.5 stars

I hate to say it—I really hate to say it—but I think I might have found something that is too confusing for me. I love a confusing book, but Metal From Heaven did not quite have the payoff to outweigh the amount of effort I had to put in to follow the story.

Metal From Heaven is weird, complex, confusing, and ambitious. I admire it so much for what it brings to the fantasy genre and for its commitment to being insanely weird from start to finish. While there were a lot of things I really enjoyed about this story, every time I put the book down it was a struggle to find the motivation to pick it back up.

What is going to make or break this book for most readers is the writing style. I am incredibly torn about my feelings on the writing. On one hand, it is uniquely in character for Marney and incredibly ambitious. Metal From Heaven is told from the perspective of a narrator who is unhinged and completely unreliable. She is experiencing mental deterioration from her exposure to the magic in this world. She is also dealing with trauma and is fixated on her vengeance and her grief. All of these things warp her perspective of things. The story reflects this because it is a very bizarre, nonsensical, flighty narrative that captures Marney as a character.

However, the writing is also too often completely nonsensical. I would read paragraphs and unsure if what I had just read actually said anything. Some of the scene transitions or transitions between abstract thought and reality were honestly… bad. The abrupt transitions make it too disorienting for the reader at times even if the abruptness was intentional.

Being so in Marney’s head all of the time also kept me at a distance from the story and the other characters. I didn’t get enough of a sense of the other characters to really care about what was going on at times.

The world-building could be very info-dumpy at the most random times. There would be occasional tangents about the history of the world or the legacy of conflict between groups. It’s just not the kind of information that we needed in so much detail for this kind of story.

The pacing is also at odds with itself. Metal From Heaven has a surprisingly slow open, only reaching the events on the back of the book at the halfway point. In my opinion, that second arc needed to take up more of the book. As it is, it felt like the two halves of the book were fighting for control and, as a result, neither section ended up standing out as much as it could have. We could have spent more time meeting that second cast of characters, forming connections, and exploring the politics of the world. I don't feel like the first half of the story needed to be as detailed as it was.

This review feels unbalanced because some of the things I critique about this book go hand in hand with what I really enjoyed about it. I loved how wild, wacky, and ambitious this story was. I just don't feel like the ending gave me quite enough payoff to make it feel worth it. I love that the magic is completely unexplained and gross. The way that Marney fights to use her powers and how the ichorite uses her, in turn, was so interesting.

Metal From Heaven was a story that I admired but a reading experience that frustrated and underwhelmed me.