Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld, published in 2010, is the second installment in the critically acclaimed Leviathan trilogy, a steampunk alternate-history saga set during a reimagined World War I. The novel continues the adventure of two protagonists from opposing worlds – Deryn Sharp, a girl disguised as a British airman aboard the living airship Leviathan, and Alek, the fugitive heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. With vivid action, biopunk inventions, and political intrigue, Behemoth transports readers into the heart of Istanbul, where allegiances are tested, secrets revealed, and revolutions begin to stir.

Plot Summary

The living airship Leviathan soared through the skies, a wondrous beast of bone, hydrogen, and biology, heading east toward the Clanker world of Istanbul. Within its humming, breathing halls, two young stowaways navigated the delicate web of loyalty, secrecy, and impending war. Deryn Sharp, still hidden in her guise as Midshipman Dylan Sharp, carried the burden of a secret identity with growing unease. Alek, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, tended wounds both physical and emotional, his rib bruised from a recent battle and his future weighed down by the title he could neither claim nor escape.

As the airship healed from damage dealt in battle with German ironclads, Alek and his Clanker companions worked alongside the Darwinist crew to repair the ship’s hybrid engines. The cooperation was uneasy. The Leviathan ran on fabricated beasts and symbiotic organisms, while Alek’s people hailed from the world of machines and metal. Count Volger, ever wary, warned Alek to trust no one, least of all the Darwinists who now knew too much. But Alek had made a choice – he had told Deryn his secret. He had seen in her something true and loyal, even if she was hiding something of her own.

Suspicion circled through the ship like storm winds. Count Volger feared capture now that Britain and Austria-Hungary were officially at war. He urged Alek to prepare for escape before the Leviathan returned to British shores. Alek agreed, but as he crept through the ship in the dead of night searching for a route of escape, he stumbled into the message lizard chamber – a dark, chittering room alive with dozens of fabricated creatures whispering borrowed words. It was there that Deryn found him.

In that dimly lit junction, surrounded by the Leviathan’s living communication network, Deryn revealed something of herself. She spoke of her father, lost in a fireball during a balloon accident, of the nightmares that never quite faded. Her voice trembled with old grief, but Alek listened. And then, as the airship glided silently above the sea, the boy who was a prince and the girl who was not quite a boy sat close in the belly of the beast, not entirely certain what tethered them together, only that it mattered.

By dawn, the Leviathan reached the sprawling city of Istanbul – or Constantinople, as the British still called it. The city lay in a haze of smoke and sunlight, its domes and spires pierced by steel towers and ironclad streets. The Ottomans, neither fully Clanker nor Darwinist, maintained their own blend of science and symbolism. Their walkers were shaped like animals – elephants, camels, even scarabs – decorated in vibrant cloth and ancient designs. And among their people stirred the whispers of unrest.

Dr. Barlow led a diplomatic party into the city aboard an ornate elephantine walker. Deryn, dressed stiffly in her full-dress uniform, accompanied her with Newkirk, while a peculiar American reporter named Eddie Malone joined the ride, bullfrog recorder perched on his shoulder. Crowds greeted them with chants and fury. Red-fezzed protesters, furious over Britain’s seizure of a prized Ottoman ship, surrounded the walker. Then, chaos erupted. Men in blue uniforms – German agents in disguise – attacked the walker, pulling the pilots from their saddles and seizing control of its limbs.

Amid the lurching strides and panicked yells, Deryn swung into action. With no weapon at hand, she used her wits – and a bag of burning spice from a market stall – to blind one of the hijackers. The giant machine staggered to a halt, but the destruction it left behind was severe. Though Deryn had stopped the attackers, their true aim remained a mystery.

Back on the Leviathan, Alek and his men began putting their escape into motion. With help from Deryn, who had not betrayed him despite every reason to do so, Alek descended into the streets of Istanbul. There, fate led him into the shadows beneath the sultan’s palace, where revolution simmered. A group of rebels called the Committee of Union and Progress – the Young Turks – prepared to rise against both the sultan and the growing German influence. Alek offered his knowledge, his technology, and his silent hope that helping them might also give him a future.

Dr. Barlow had her own secrets to deliver. The eggs she carried aboard the Leviathan hatched into a strange, tentacled beast, a creature designed to awe and alarm – the Behemoth. Engineered to disrupt and terrify, the Behemoth was Britain’s gift to the Ottomans, meant to prove Darwinist power. But in a city already brimming with tension, the creature became something else entirely – a spark.

As the Behemoth roared into the city, towering above rooftops, drawing crowds and gasps, Alek made his move. With the help of the revolutionaries, he sabotaged a German command center. Deryn, slipping away from her duties again, joined him in disguise. Together, they moved through alleys and underworld passages, past steaming factories and whispering newspapers, hearts beating with the fear and thrill of rebellion.

But the path was never clear. Trust frayed under pressure. When the Leviathan’s crew discovered the sabotage, suspicions turned inward. Deryn’s loyalties were questioned, and Alek risked everything by staying too long. As Istanbul spiraled closer to upheaval, the two fugitives – one hiding a crown, the other hiding her name – faced the truth that their paths, however entwined, might not run together for much longer.

On the final night before Leviathan’s departure, the city stood on the edge of change. The Young Turks rose, emboldened by the Behemoth and by Alek’s sabotage. German influence faltered, and the sultan’s grip weakened. The Leviathan, its diplomatic mission complete in chaos and fire, prepared to take flight once more.

Alek stood on the edge of a decision, his friends urging him to flee, to find safety and sanctuary in the rising rebellion. Deryn, her uniform marked by soot and spice, met him in the shadows. Their words were few, but they were enough. War had taught them to speak through action, through sacrifice, through presence.

The Leviathan lifted into the air once again, its belly carrying the strange, stitched beast that had shifted the fate of an empire. And somewhere below, beneath the domes of Istanbul, a fugitive prince vanished into the waking dream of revolution.

Main Characters

• Deryn Sharp (alias Dylan Sharp): A courageous and quick-witted teenage girl who conceals her gender to serve in the British Air Service. Her loyalty to her crewmates, especially Alek, is fierce, and she consistently proves her bravery and ingenuity. Over the course of Behemoth, Deryn grapples with her deepening feelings for Alek and the burden of her secret, all while navigating the complex moral terrain of espionage and loyalty in wartime.

• Alek (Prince Aleksandar of Hohenberg): The orphaned son of the assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Alek is a noble by birth but a fugitive in the eyes of the world. Intelligent and principled, Alek matures significantly in Behemoth, taking greater initiative in both mechanical repair and political maneuvering. His internal conflict – between duty, identity, and loyalty – becomes more pronounced as he plans his escape from the British airship and becomes involved with revolutionaries in Istanbul.

• Dr. Nora Barlow: A sharp, enigmatic “lady boffin” who serves as the Leviathan’s diplomatic and scientific envoy. Witty, unflappable, and always calculating, Dr. Barlow is instrumental in both scientific innovation and strategic diplomacy, particularly in delivering the mysterious eggs central to Britain’s secret weapon.

• Count Volger: Alek’s stoic and distrustful guardian, Volger is both mentor and strategist. His rigid worldview often clashes with Alek’s growing idealism, yet he remains steadfast in his mission to protect the prince. His suspicion of Deryn and the Darwinists underscores the ideological divide between the Clanker and Darwinist factions.

• Eddie Malone: A clever, persistent American journalist who inserts himself into the intrigue surrounding the Leviathan’s visit to Istanbul. With his memory frog and inquisitive nature, Malone becomes a wild card, potentially tipping the delicate balance of secrets and allegiances.

Theme

• Identity and Disguise: At the heart of the novel is the tension between appearance and reality. Deryn’s disguised identity as a male soldier and Alek’s hidden royal lineage serve as dual metaphors for suppressed truths. Both characters must navigate who they are versus who they must pretend to be, raising questions about gender roles, social class, and personal authenticity.

• Loyalty and Betrayal: Behemoth delves deep into the shifting nature of loyalty during war. Whether it’s Deryn risking mutiny for Alek, or Alek defying Count Volger to ally with strangers, each character confronts where their true loyalties lie – to nation, to cause, or to each other.

• Technology vs. Nature: The ongoing Clanker-Darwinist conflict embodies the broader theme of technological versus biological innovation. The fabricated beasties of the Darwinists clash ideologically and visually with the mechanical walkers of the Clankers, presenting two opposing visions of progress and power.

• Coming of Age in Wartime: Both Alek and Deryn face the brutal awakening that war is not only about heroics but also complex moral choices. The novel emphasizes their personal growth, as they transition from naive idealists to more seasoned participants in a global conflict.

• Revolution and Empire: The political backdrop of Istanbul – with secret societies like the Young Turks, anti-imperialist sentiment, and ethnic diversity – introduces the theme of revolution against empire. Alek’s alliance with local rebels underlines the tension between inherited power and the rising call for democratic reform.

Writing Style and Tone

Scott Westerfeld’s prose in Behemoth is a kinetic blend of sharp dialogue, lush worldbuilding, and cinematic pacing. His style is accessible yet richly detailed, using alternating third-person perspectives to give readers a direct line into the thoughts and emotions of both Deryn and Alek. Westerfeld seamlessly weaves steampunk aesthetics with historical elements, creating a world that feels both grounded in history and vibrantly imaginative. His descriptions of fabricated animals and complex machinery are evocative without being bogged down in exposition, ensuring the narrative remains agile.

The tone throughout Behemoth is adventurous and tense, punctuated by moments of humor and poignancy. Deryn’s Scottish expressions and inner monologue add levity and charm, while Alek’s more philosophical introspections ground the story in emotional depth. Westerfeld balances suspense with emotional resonance, crafting a tone that evolves as the stakes rise, relationships deepen, and secrets unravel. The result is a gripping, multifaceted narrative that never sacrifices heart for spectacle.