This novel has a standard Fantasy setting with a political underlay of 1930’s German Fascism, combined with steam-punk-style technology, alchemistic science, and plain old magic with a touch of zombies. In the long run, this comes out as too much of a good thing. Combined with the multiple points of view, there is simply too […]
“America: Dr. Wiley’s Construct – Episode 1” by Jackson Wilder
This is a short book comprising 69 pages, a single episode in a longer serial, an old-style Steampunk story with echoes of modern social and political problems, deftly merged. While the publicity calls this book a novella, it really isn’t. It is the first episode of a series, and as such has a different structure […]
“The Epiphany Club” by Andrew Knighton
Whooda thunk it? Steampunk fantasy with depth. I kid you not. What starts out to be just another hi-jinx adventure with turn-of-the-century (19thto 20th, that is) steam-powered sci-fi and stereotypical characters, turns quickly into something more interesting. Oh, don’t worry. The tales are still full of the whole shooting match of far-fetched action sequences, mutated […]
“Calico Thunder Rides Again” by T. A. Hernandez
This kind of Fantasy ought to have its own sub-genre. Sort of “steampunk art but modern-day with fantasy creatures thrown in.” The plot of this novel involves a late 19thcentury traveling circus with dragons and griffins and twenties-era gangsters with trolls as enforcers. So much for creativity. The story is peppered with Characters with a […]
“Count the Rain” by Kathryn Lee Martin
Despite the flaws in this book, I enjoyed it, mainly because it has a good “feel” to it. The characters and the physical and social setting blend together to give a realistic gestalt that pulls you into the story. Which is a good thing, because this author is in need of all sorts of […]
“Rotten Magic” by Jeffrey Bardwell
Okay, how to put this. “Rotten Magic” is not a novel. According to the title of the Introduction, it is “Notes from the Artificer’s Guild.” A much more apt description. It is more like a series of short stories with chapters interspersed between each other. Likewise, the writing style comes at you just a bit […]
“Aftan Whispers” by Phil Williams
“Aftan Whispers” takes place in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic society, where Tyler, a tradesman with a Pollyanna approach to human nature teams up with a Deni, cynical, self-destructive former slave to save…well…something: themselves, the world, who knows? Thus the success of the story revolves around the two characters, and the conflict is based on their different […]
“Bodacious Creed” by John Fesmire
As steampunk novels go, this is a good one. There is always a certain amount of tongue-in-cheek in this genre, but too many authors use it as an excuse to show how funny they aren’t. If there is such a thing, “Bodacious Creed” is serious steampunk. Sure, there’s an over-the-top riotous quality to the setting […]