Considering I skimped on my review of Leviathan, I suppose this one should explain why I'm a little obsessed with this story. 
 We have Deryn (I mean Dylan, pardon me), a female airshipman posing as a boy (a girl in the military? Never!). And we have Alek, who's not-so-secretly the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary. Deryn is clearly in love with Alek, which makes things a little complicated (and oh-so-amusing). Seriously, these guys make this story--a couple of teenagers with vastly different backgrounds, out to save the world (or their own little worlds, at least, which end up tangled together anyway). 
 But what I adore most is the setting. Set in a steampunk alternate WWI era, we see monstrous "Clanker" contraptions (mechanic walkers and the like) and "Darwinist" beasties, a bunch of fabricated animals. The way you're thrown into this world almost makes you believe it really existed, with its intricate details and the way it is worked into authentic history. 
 Oh, and the characters. I love a great character, and these books are chocked full of them. We learn a little bit more about Alek's crew in Behemoth, spending so much time with them through the story, and you actually become attached to them. All these people have such distinct personalities and work together flawlessly. 
 And the illustrations are beautiful, too. I can't let a proper review go by without mentioning them. 
 I've barely touched upon the story itself, but I'll get around to that when reviewing Goliath. Not proper to review a story without finishing it, after all.