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Steampunk is defined as “a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that incorporates technology and aesthetic designs inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery.” To me, this genre is a “What-if” genre. It can take place in any time period from the 19th century on, but typically sticks to the etiquette of that time period. Magic may exist as long as the novel sticks to the steam-powered technology. The idea is that, instead of electricity taking off, steam power did.

Some examples include:

1. Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason amazon.com/Clockwork-Scarab-Stoker-Holm ... 00CC5VQ9A/

2. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld amazon.com/Leviathan-Scott-Westerfeld-e ... 002PMVQ7M/

3. Books by Gail Carriger

4. Time Machine by H.G. Wells amazon.com/Time-Machine-Enriched-Classi ... 004XVQ73G/

5. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne http://www.amazon.com/Twenty-Thousand-L ... 002RKSZJO/

6. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare amazon.com/Clockwork-Prince-Infernal-De ... 481456016/

7. Some modernized Sherlock Holmes books do.

8. Clockwork Man by William Jablonsky amazon.com/Clockwork-Man-William-Jablon ... 605420999/

9. Cold Magic by Kate Elliott amazon.com/Cold-Magic-Spiritwalker-Tril ... 031608087X

10. Johannes Cabal The Necromancer (Johannes Cabal, #1) by Jonathan Howard http://www.amazon.com/Johannes-Cabal-Ne ... punk_Books, google “Steampunk Booklist” or “Steampunk fiction,” or see the review forums for more ideas.

I'm excited to give this new genre (for me) a try!

Hey @gali, which book were you going to potentially read for this genre?

Oh! Maybe I'll read The Time Machine

I also have a series I've been meaning to catch up with

I have read "Leviathan" by Scott Westerfeld and loved it! I also read "Time Machine" and "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" a long time ago.

"Clockwork Prince", Books by Gail Carriger, and "Cold Magic are on my list. @"hsimone", I think will read "The Aeronaut's Windlass". What about you?

Hm...gali, I was trying to remember the one you mentioned before when we voted for May's genres. It might have been The Aeronaut's Windlass...Do you remember? Apparently, I didn't mark it down.

There's The Golden Owl by Lana Axe that also caught my eye. It just came out last month. If I have time, maybe I'll give both a try!

hsimone wrote:Hm...gali, I was trying to remember the one you mentioned before when we voted for May's genres. It might have been The Aeronaut's Windlass...Do you remember? Apparently, I didn't mark it down.

There's The Golden Owl by Lana Axe that also caught my eye. It just came out last month. If I have time, maybe I'll give both a try!

Yes, I mentioned "The Aeronaut's Windlass" on that thread.

"The Golden Owl" sounds good as well.

gali wrote:

hsimone wrote:Hm...gali, I was trying to remember the one you mentioned before when we voted for May's genres. It might have been The Aeronaut's Windlass...Do you remember? Apparently, I didn't mark it down.

There's The Golden Owl by Lana Axe that also caught my eye. It just came out last month. If I have time, maybe I'll give both a try!

Yes, I mentioned "The Aeronaut's Windlass" on that thread.

"The Golden Owl" sounds good as well.

Perfect! So my goal is to read both this month.

hsimone wrote:

gali wrote:

hsimone wrote:Hm...gali, I was trying to remember the one you mentioned before when we voted for May's genres. It might have been The Aeronaut's Windlass...Do you remember? Apparently, I didn't mark it down.

There's The Golden Owl by Lana Axe that also caught my eye. It just came out last month. If I have time, maybe I'll give both a try!

Yes, I mentioned "The Aeronaut's Windlass" on that thread.

"The Golden Owl" sounds good as well.

Perfect! So my goal is to read both this month.

Great!

Oh, I've ideas to add to my TBR list! I love steampunk. I've read Clockwork Scarab and Clockwork Prince. Both are great!

I think I'll pluck Leviathan off my list to read.

I've always been intrigued by steampunk, but am slightly embarrassed to say I've never read a book in this genre before. This discussion has got me thinking though, and I do believe it's time I gave steampunk a try!

Shelle wrote:I've always been intrigued by steampunk, but am slightly embarrassed to say I've never read a book in this genre before. This discussion has got me thinking though, and I do believe it's time I gave steampunk a try!

Same for me.

I had not heard about this genre until this month's genre review. It sounds interesting and I love books that push the limits of ideas.

Gail Carriger's Curtsies and Conspiracies series has caught my eye, so I'll be reading that.

Cassandra Clare is one of my favourite authors but I haven't yet finished reading the 'The Infernal Devices' series and can't wait to do so. Clockwork Angel is a great book. Steampunk is a wonderful genre, so perhaps I will give some of the others a try!

For this month's discussion, I read "Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger." Sophronia is a tomboy living in Victorian London. She'd rather climb a tree or rig a dumbwaiter than do embroidery or drink tea. When her mom sends her off to Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality, Sophronia discovers that her new finishing school is really a training school for spies and even some of the teachers are supernatural. One of her students, Monique de Paloose, is not who she seems. While pretending to be Mademoiselle Geraldine at Sophronia's house, she hid a prototype that everyone is after. What are her plans for the prototype? Who is Monique working for?

One element I noticed unique to this genre is the steam-powered technology. The airship is powered by coal, balloons, and steam. I also noticed a lot of furnishing made of polished wood and brass, which seems to be a common element in steampunk. There's also a romance element, not uncommonly romantic interest in the help. In this book, the romantic element comes between Sophronia and a Sooty (person who feeds the engines) names Soap. It seems each steampunk novel also seems to add their own twists on the rules in their steampunk world.

Overall, I'd rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. The story starts out a bit slow, but the characters are unique and entertaining. I liked the world-building in this book. The supernatural, flying, and shapeshifting elements seemed to fit well into the world without superimposing on the plot. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of paranormal mysteries.