Hughes is an <b>undeniably unique wordsmith</b> . . . [<i>The Black Locomotive</i>] manages to communicate an <b>excited and passionate vision</b> while holding fast to a nostalgic affinity that <b>warms the bones of any would-be industrial revolutionary.</b>
Sci Fi Now
A <b>brilliantly original</b> novel of literary SF from the acclaimed author of <i>XX</i>, <i>The Black Locomotive </i>weaves steam trains, the history and architecture of London, and a mysterious alien artefact below the city into <b>a work of stunning inventiveness and originality</b>.
The Guardian
What’s to be said about a book that blends boys’ own adventures with semiotics, complex sci-fi with steam engines, conspiracy theory with discourses on urban planning? Only that something <b>so cleverly conceptual, ridiculously romantic and utterly unique </b>must be the new Rian Hughes.
Daily Mail
Rian Hughes’s graphic-design extravaganza hits the rails screeching, wailing and showering sparks . . . Part a callback to science fiction’s New Wave, part architect’s coffee-table must-have, part <b>ripping yarn</b>.
The Times
The genius of Hughes is that he pulls off wild flights of fancy with a swagger and confidence that are utterly convincing . . . <b>If only all fiction was this adventurous and original.</b>
The Big Issue