The Mark of the Dragonfly

Johnson, Jaleigh. The Mark of the Dragonfly. 2014. 400p. ISBN 9780385376150. Available as an eBook from Overdrive.

Life in Scraptown 16 is hard for Piper, especially since her father left to work in the factories of the Dragonfly Territories and subsequently died. Left alone, young Piper has been eking a living fixing mechanical objects for the other town residents. Every storm that strikes the area brings with it meteor showers. These showers result in odd pieces of technology coming from exotic lands, but they also bring green dust, a deadly substance if exposed to it long enough. It is during one of these storms that Piper finds herself outside instead of the town shelter, looking for her only friend, when she spots a caravan. Soon the caravan is destroyed by meteors.

When the storm abates, Piper explores the caravan and discovers a girl still alive in the wreckage. Her friend having been hurt, Piper returns to town to get help and soon both her friend and the strange girl are brought back. On the girl’s arm is an intricate tattoo, marking her as someone of significance in the Dragonfly Territories. Suddenly Piper’s future looks bright. If she can reunite this girl with her family, surely she will be handsomely compensated!

Piper manages to revive the girl, named Anna. Anna doesn’t remember who she is or where she is from, but she possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of the world around her, and she loves to create order out of chaos. Another passenger of the caravan survived, however, and now Master Dolan wants the girl back. Anna doesn’t remember Dolan, but she knows she doesn’t want to go with him. Piper and Anna manage to escape Dolan by boarding the 401, a heavily armored train from the Dragonfly Territories that deliver cargo throughout the continent.

Questioned by Gee, the head security officer aboard the 401, the girls are reluctantly allowed on board due to the tattoo, and the train takes off, eventually heading to the Territories’ capital. Dolan, however, has other plans for Anna and begins chasing the girl across the continent. With a powerful enemy behind them, can Piper, Anna, Gee, and the rest of the 401’s crew protect the train and make it safely to the capital?

A great standalone steampunk novel, The Mark of the Dragonfly is nonstop action and adventure. Fans of Leviathan and Worldshaker need to read this book. Other great steampunk books include Etiquette and Espionage and The Inventor's Secret.