Chapter 1

[Magnus]

http://www.jim-butcher.com/books/cinder-spires/the-aeronauts-windlass-1/aeronauts-windlass-chapter-one

So what do people think?

[ITheHellAmFan]

I like it so far.  I'm really digging the way it unashamedly revels in the ludicrousness of Steam Punk and Airships without devolving into winking at the reader or loosing a sense of real excitement and tension (not that I expected anything less from Jim, but still it should be said).  The sense of anticipation as:

(click to show/hide)

the Predator began descending to attack via freefall really did remind me of the one time I was forced to ride a roller coaster, particularily the steady climb at the beginning, and that is a good thing.

Spoilers may not have been necessary there, but I figured better safe than sorry.

[Radhil]

I admit I was holding back a few snickers when I read 'Captain Grimm' in the blurb text.

Now that I'm reading it, my brain went, "OK, Demos jumped ship from Alera and has his own book now, I'm cool with that."

[Dina]

Oh God, I couldn't get throught the first line. Why those names, whyyyyy? 

Seriously, I will wait for the book. I don't feel like reading the samples right now, not with that beginning.

[Serack]

Seriously, I will wait for the book. I don't feel like reading the samples right now, not with that beginning.

All the characters in the story are full of awesome, the one with the name you object to included.

[Dina]

I am sure about that. Jim characters are awesome. That is irrelevant for my feeling about the name.

[knnn]

Seriously, I will wait for the book. I don't feel like reading the samples right now, not with that beginning.

Actually, I was going to say that I felt the same way (and ditto when trying to listen to Jim read the sample chapters a while back).  I'm not sure where this is coming from, since I would have expected to be really hyped for the new series.

I think it's a combination of feeling a little overwhelmed by all the new terminology all at once and the oblique "Victorian" speaking style.  I get that it places us in the action all at once and helps give that steampunk flavor, but I know that I'm going to have to go back and read the first chapters again once I get ~halfway into the book so I can understand what everything meant.  It just feels like a bit too much work to figure out everything right now.