Steampunk: 13 Titles To Update Your Collections
By John KlimaJun 16, 2011
In March 2010, I wrote "Steampunk: 20 Core Titles" for BookSmack! Since then, more quality steampunk fiction has been published, so it was time for a catch-up article. All 13 of these books will make fine additions to your collections, whether you know you have steampunk patrons or not (many people are fans of the movement but haven't sampled the fiction). Several come from the beginning of series that have picked up a lot of fans—and, dare I say it, steam—since they started.
Steampunk has exploded in fashion, art, music, conventions, and literature. Stock your library with this baker's dozen and last year's 20 titles, and you'll feed hungry fans and grow new ones.
Clare, Cassandra. Clockwork Angel. Walker & Co. 2011. ISBN 9781406330342. 400p. $19.99. YA FIC
This is the first entry in Clare's "Infernal Devices" series, prequels set in the same universe as the author's immensely popular "Mortal Instruments" novels. Young Tessa finds herself moving from New York to London in 1878 after the death of her guardian aunt. Once there, like Clary in the "Mortal Instruments" books, Tessa learns that there is more about the world around her than she previously thought. Take, for instance, the Shadowhunters, descendants of humans and angels, who protect the world from demons and other supernatural creatures, including vampires and werewolves. She quickly finds herself caught up among the groups trying to overthrow Britain. On top of all that, as in any Clare novel, Tessa has boy trouble to deal with, too.
Gilman, Felix. The Half-Made World. Tor. 2010. ISBN 9780765325525. 480p. $25.99. FANTASY
Like Valentine's Mechanique (see below), Gilman's novel is quite different from most steampunk in that it's set in a different world rather than the familiar Victorian setting of our own world. Because of this, Gilman spends a lot of time world building, an effort that pays off as the setting blends seamlessly with the plot of a never-ending war between the people of the Gun—who use demon-powered guns-and the people of the Line—who, among other things, have sentient engines. Rumor of a long-lost secret weapon sets several characters on a collision course. Wildly original with complex characters, this book will be something unexpected, in a good way, for your steampunk patrons.
Griffith, Clay & Susan. The Greyfriar. Pyr. (Vampire Empire, Bk. 1). 2010. ISBN 9781616142476. 301p. pap. $16. FANTASY
It was only a matter of time before a steampunk vampire novel was published. Thankfully, the first one is well written and entertaining. The story starts in 1870, when vampires conquer the north and send human elites to the south; it picks up again in 2020, when Princess Adele of the Equatorian Empire becomes lost in vampire territory. Alone with the mysterious Greyfriar, Adele becomes the driving factor behind a final war between humans and vampires. It is a testament to the writing skill of the Griffiths that they were able to take something so overdone as vampires and make it feel fresh. Fans of Cherie Priest will gobble up this book and its forthcoming sequels.
Hobson, M.K. The Native Star. Spectra: Bantam. 2010. ISBN 9780553592658. 400p. pap. $7.99. ALTERNATE HIST
Focusing more on history, magic, and the romance between its main characters, Hobson's novel nonetheless features steam engines and biomechnical machines, so you can be confident in calling it steampunk. Set in the late 1800s, the story centers on local witch Emily Edwards, who botches a love spell and encounters a powerful magical artifact before she can undo it. Powerful wizard Dreadnaught Stanton grudgingly takes Edwards under his wing in order to have the artifact researched and removed physically from Edwards. Things go awry, and Stanton and Edwards are on the run for their lives while learning more about each other. A nominee for the Best Novel Nebula; see also the sequel, The Hidden Goddess.
Hodder, Mark. The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack (Burton & Swinburne in). Pyr. 2010. ISBN 9781616142407. 373p. pap. $16. SF
This is big, meaty steampunk, set in the mid- to late 1800s, featuring historical figures (e.g., Richard Burton, Charles Darwin, and Florence Nightingale) in new roles, lots of steam-driven science (including my favorite: velocipedes), and crazy mutated creatures. Hodder's fast-paced and lively writing will keep readers of all levels engaged. There is coarse language, but this would work well in a YA collection, too. That Hodder brings the story full circle at the end is an impressive feat. Winner of the Philip K. Dick Award for distinguished original science fiction paperback; a sequel, The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, has also been published. (See LJ's review.)
Hunt, Stephen. The Court of the Air. Tor. ISBN 9780765360229. 608p. pap. $8.99. FANTASY
Hunt's work is chock-full of all sorts of plot devices: orphans, flying ships, robots, underground cities, war, and explosions. While the miscellany of story lines turned off some reviewers, as in Mann's The Affinity Bridge (see below), Hunt keeps the pace moving along briskly. Orphan Molly takes to the underground, while orphan Oliver takes to the sky as they both work to outrun assailants and the Special Guard. Their separate flights eventually bring them together against a common foe. This book was followed by The Kingdom Beyond the Waves in 2009 and The Rise of the Iron Moon in early 2011. Several more novels in the series have not been published in the States yet.
Mann, George. The Affinity Bridge. Tom Doherty Assoc. (Newbury & Hobbes Investigations). 2010. ISBN 9780765323224. 336p. pap. $13.99. SF
Mann, an sf editor by trade, has crafted a complicated Victorian world for his detectives Newbury and Hobbes. Some reviewers have complained that too much goes on here. As the plot points include a missing person, a crashed airship, out-of-control automatons, a string of unsolved murders, and a plague that's turning Whitechapel residents into zombies, they may have a point. Our humble detectives have enough cases for a half-dozen books in just this one alone. Nonetheless, Mann displays a talent for engaging characters and paces the multiple story lines well. By novel's end, readers will be looking for more. Luckily for them, several sequels are planned, with The Osiris Ritual already available and The Immortality Engine coming out later in 2011.
Priest, Cherie. Dreadnought. Tor. 2010. ISBN 9780765325785. 400p. pap. $14.99. SF
Priest's Boneshaker made last year's article. This novel, set in the same world, is strong enough, and Priest is popular enough among steampunk fans that we'd be remiss to exclude it here. Mercy Lynch—another hard-nosed heroine from Priest (see Briar Wilke in the first book)—is trying to escape the Confederate South to reach her father in the Northwest, and her journey must be made on the titular train Dreadnought. Priest's characters drive her novels and draw people to them. The world she's created is also quite engaging and action-packed. Given those strengths and how active Priest is in the steampunk world, you simply cannot have a steampunk collection without her.
Steampunk Prime: A Vintage Steampunk Reader. NonStop Pr. 2010. ISBN 9781933065182. 240p. ed. by Mike Ashley. pap. $15.95. FANTASY
Many core steampunk fans will not consider this book steampunk. Collected in its pages are stories written between 1880 and 1914 by mostly unknown contemporaries of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. Call them protosteampunk, forerunners to today's steampunk aesthetic. All semantics aside, this anthology presents shorter works that will appeal to modern steampunk fans. Hopefully, it will lead to explorations of more 19th-century writers.
Tidhar, Lavie. The Bookman. Angry Robot. 2010. ISBN 9780857660343. 416p. pap. $7.99. FANTASY
Tidhar's book gives readers airships, pirates, automatons, cannons to launch people to Mars, and giant lizards; in short, everything but the kitchen sink. The basic plot revolves around a masked terrorist who puts bombs in books and holds London under his power. Orphan, a young poet, finds himself caught up in the world of the Bookman and sets out to unravel the Bookman's mysteries and his own past. The story may challenge some readers with its premises of giant lizards as royalty of the time and the freedom-fighting automatons. Still, Tidhar ushers readers along from one situation to the next with a deft touch. Camera Obscura, a sequel, was published earlier this year.
Valentine, Genevieve. Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti. Prime Bks. 2011. ISBN 9781607012535. 320p. pap. $14.95. FANTASY
Unlike a lot of steampunk, Valentine's novel seems to be set in a postapocalyptic future world. The Circus Tresaulti is made up of mechanically modified performers who travel the countryside, never visiting any city twice. The plot is fairly basic: a shadowy character wants to return to preapocalypse prosperity with the help of the circus, but his motives are muddled and may not actually be a good thing for the circus and its performers. This is not a flaw, however, as it lets the reader delve into Valentine's wonderful characters and descriptive voice. Darker than a lot of steampunk, this isn't for everyone, but it will suit fans of Angela Carter and Jack O'Connell
VanderMeer, Jeff with S.J. Chambers. The Steampunk Bible: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Imaginary Airships, Corsets and Goggles, Mad Scientists, and Strange Literature. Abrams Image. 2011. ISBN 9780810989580. 224p. illus. $24.95. LIT
If you decide to add only one book from this list to your collection, make it The Steampunk Bible, a beautifully designed collection of articles and essays about everything steampunk, illustrated with photographs and diagrams. Those unfamiliar with the genre couldn't find a better place to start. It begins by talking about where the literary side of the phenomenon came from before moving on to art and craftmanship, fashion and music, and films and television—areas of particular interest to fans and librarians alike. The only problem is deciding whether to order two copies so you can have one in nonfiction for searching discovery and one in fiction for browsing discovery.
Westerfeld, Scott. Leviathan. Simon Pulse. 2009. ISBN 9781416971733. 448p. $19.99. YA FIC
Westerfeld's book starts on the eve of World War I but then moves away from history and off into fiction. After the Arhduke's assassination, it's the Clankers, devotees of machines, and the Darwinists, followers of genetic development, who are set against each other in global conflict. The Archduke's son, Prince Aleksander, a devout Clanker, flees Austria. On the other side of the conflict is Deryn Sharp, a girl pretending to be a young man in the British Air Services. Except they don't fly planes-they fly the Leviathan, an enormous flying whalelike creature. When she crashes in Switzerland and meets young Alexsander, the differences between their beliefs are no longer clear. A sequel, Behemoth, was published last year, and a third book, Goliath, will come out later in 2011.
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John Klima is the assistant director of the Waukesha Public Library. He also edits the Hugo Award–winning magazine Electric Velocipede.
