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Okay, I haven't read any professionally published steampunk and to some degree, I don't know if I will ike it. It seems to be heavy into world description, by necessity, and that's not always my thing. I do like fun characters and good action.
So you steakpunk fans, if you were going to recommend the best novel of the genre to win me over, what would it be?
Really fun stories. Steampunk background with werewolves and vampires, but done differently than anything else I've read. But mostly just plain fun. Oh, and Queen Victoria makes an occasional appearance, too.
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I don't read much, but did enjoy Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld. It's YA, set in WWI, where the Germans have "clankers" (machines that sound like the AT-ATs from Star Wars) and the English have "dna beasts" which are genetically engineered to serve as war machines. Interesting stuff, and a nice story. But I *really* like Scott Westerfeld...
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I agree that Gail Carriger's novels are a great place to start. Also, you might check out "Boneshaker" and "Dreadnought" by Cherie Priest.
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Interesting question I have heard of steampunk for years but have only read a couple of stories, I haven't seen any novels.
But I think I have looked Leviathan over.
And I think David Drake, maybe, may have one out like that. David Weber, maybe. It could be an anthology. But the cover shows WWI style warships with a huge statue in the back ground.
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Wow, thanks for all of the great suggestions. They're all on Audible.com so it's going to be a hard choice. (I get most of my reading done during my commute now.) I'll have to give each a good sample listen; sometimes a particularly good or bad reader can sway the decision.
quote:Okay, I'll bite. What in the world is Steampunk? I've never heard of it before.
A subgenre of speculative fiction with strong science fiction or fantasy elements, usually set in something approximating the 19th century, in which steam is widely used to power at least some machines that never really existed, often anachronistic inventions redesigned to operate by steam.
Gail Carriger's books often involve a bunch of mad scientists opposed to the more traditional werewolves and vampires. (The werewolves and at least most of the vampires are actually the good guys.)
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Like steam-powered spaceships, or at least "rocket" launchers, and steam-powered computers.
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Does time travel and alternate history count as steampunk? I'm thinking of Harry Turtledove's The Guns of the South, where time travelers interfere in the course of the Civil War...
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I'd say that steampunk is a kind of alternate history, but not all alternate history qualifies as steampunk. Harry Turtledove's GUNS OF THE SOUTH would probably not fit because it's a matter of bringing real technology from the future into the past, and steampunk is more "reinventing" modern kinds of gadgets using 19th century technology (it's sort of a joke, in a way).
Perhaps the only time-travel kind of story that might work would be something along the lines of A CONNECTICUTT YANKEE IN KING ARTHUR'S COURT by Twain, but with the Connecticutt Yankee going from our time to Victorian times and using his "Yankee know-how" to apply Victorian technology to accomplish things that the Victorians hadn't figured out how to do yet.
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Probably a better fit than straight alternate history, where somebody just did something different and something that didn't happen did. (Dubious about the value of that, and of alternate history in general...if the other choice had been so damn compelling, surely it would have been chosen instead of what was...)
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Okay, I'm starting with Leviathan by Westerfield. I still have to finish Wind-up Girl and that's a long one. But Leviathan is next. Then maybe I'll try Soulless. So many books...
Thanks again everyone.
[This message has been edited by genevive42 (edited October 30, 2010).]
quote: Probably a better fit than straight alternate history, where somebody just did something different and something that didn't happen did. (Dubious about the value of that, and of alternate history in general...if the other choice had been so damn compelling, surely it would have been chosen instead of what was...)
Not necessarily, there are many reasons for a choice to be made. But sometimes it has to do with people. What would have happened of George Washington wasn't born of born a female. Or Hitler.
Enterprise had an episode where someone went back in time and killed Stalin just at the beginning of WWII. No great leader in Russia to rally the troops there which took some of the pressure off of the US and England. Germany was able to land in the East coast and take over New York and I think DC. Not everyone was able to escape so some Americans were living under German occupation. But it turned out they had over extended themselves and the US had a good chance of driving them back.
Two anthologies were written for fun. One had JFK become a movie star and play Captain Kirk. Another one had Elvis as a Guerrilla fighter.
Fun stuff. I love it.
Now that might be an interesting story, a female Hitler.
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I enjoyed Jay Lake's Mainspring (despite the mixed reviews). It was followed by Escarpmentand Pinion, that are on my list to read.
There seems to be a variety of perceived subgenres in steampunk as within sf and fantasy. And sf fans can be snobs of whatever subgenre they find particularly "holy." This is true, I find, within steampunk as well. I'd place Mr. Lake's above books in the more "fantasy" edge of steampunk, much like Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy (i.e. The Golden Compass et. al.), and I enjoyed them as such.
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Glad you're starting with Leviathan, I hope you like it! He just released the second book (he's on the book tour right now.) - I haven't read it because it's not quite my thing, but I will probably read it soonish. I do love Scott Westerfeld.
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Sorry I can't recall the title but there's a new anthology filled with streampunk stories out. It's in paperback. Not sure when it came out but it's still considered a new book
I might even get it. I like some streampunk and I wouldn't mind writing some someday.
[This message has been edited by LDWriter2 (edited January 30, 2011).]
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Interesting I saw four different streampunk novels in the new section of B&N today.
One seems to be part of a spy series and I bought it. Another two were by Jeter (?) and one said it had been lost for a while. The first one was suppose to be like a sequel to the "The Time Machine" by Wells.
Another one was hardback and I can't recall who wrote it.
I haven't seen it lately though. If I do I will look it over.
But I don't do a lot of streampunk even though I would love to write some. This spy one sounded interesting and entertaining. Not to mention something different from what I have been reading for the last few months.
But and pardon a slight change of topic but I went to B&N because while checking out their e-books I noticed the next one in a space opera series was out. I found it but couldn't believe it, the blasted thing is in hardback. Something like the sixth one in a series and they switch to hardback I hate it when the do that. UGH.
I did find another one I noticed on the e-books list and its as it should be in paperback.
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