"Dirigible on my Mind": Steampunk Deals/Freebies + Discussion

[peachiekene]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

More personal recommendation, since IIRC you love zombies as well as wanting to try out steampunk: Cherie Priest's (Wikipedia, ISFDB) imaginative and enjoyable Clockwork Century series, which combines them both in a western setting and keeps getting awards.

(I read and quite liked the 1st novel in a Hugo Voter Packet and ended up buying it via a Humble Bundle later, so if you got HB's eBook Bundle #2 you might already own it; and I also individually purchased a novella when Weightless Books was having a sale. If you're morbidly curious, here's my vintage non-spoiler review of the 2nd novel in the What Are You Reading? thread in the RR forum a few years ago.)

I do have Boneshaker (book 1 of Clockwork Century) - I may just have to bump it up on my TBR list

[sabredog]

Recommend the Tales of the Ketty Jay series by Chris Wooding.

[pdarnold]

Railroad! - A Steampunk Adventure Set In The American West.

Quoted from Amazon description, "Railroad is a weird western steampunk story of gadgetry, gunplay and grit!".

I've read books 1-3 (Railroad! Collection 1) thus far and found them to be a fun ride. It isn't the typical "Victorian" Steampunk, rather a side branch based in the American West. Each collection is priced at $3.99 US at Amazon. The books can be purchased individually, but it's cheaper paying for them via the Collection Sets.

Now, hopefully, I've created a clean link below:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...\c+tonia+brown

[crich70]

Sounds like a written version of Brisco County Jr. I never watched the show but I do remember seeing some of the previews, and of course there was "Wild, Wild, West" which was later made into a movie with Will Smith & Kevin Kline.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by crich70

...and of course there was "Wild, Wild, West" which was later made into a movie with Will Smith & Kevin Kline.

James Bond meets the wild west.

[mbovenka]

Originally Posted by crich70

The Tardis itself is Steampunk if you think about it. Part of the instrumentation includes an air pump, telephone and computer monitor (or netbook). And there was the one episode where clockwork robots were trying to repair a damaged spaceship. Not sure if it's the same episode you mentioned or not.

Nope, the one you're thinking of is 'The Girl in the Fireplace'. One of my all-time favourites.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by mbovenka

Nope, the one you're thinking of is 'The Girl in the Fireplace'. One of my all-time favourites.

I understand it was a difficult episode in several different ways according to the trivia page over at IMDB. It is a good episode though I agree.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

I don't know if you bothered to pick them up back when I was doing all those KDP freebie posts, but they frequently featured offerings from Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris, who write the apparently reasonably-popular Ace-published Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences series, for which you can see a fairly comprehensive official website with a character guide and lots of blurbed praise and subgenre awards listings.

If you happened to skip the tie-in story collections they were giving away, there's still two freebie shorts by the co-authors available. Only one of them is a steampunk, but the other is a zombie tale which should give you a taste of their style.

Linkage for: Silver Linings (a Ministry mystery set in Egypt, according to the tags), Daddy's Little Girl (apocalyptic zombie short), free to all @ Smashwords

And quite probably someone might be able to do the Kindle-lending thing so you could try any of the former freebies you missed out on if it turns out you're interested in reading more in that universe.

Disclaimer: I have not read these particular books, or for that matter, anything from the authors yet (and if I did, that Shakespearean elf fantasy would be the one I tried first). But people do seem to like them a lot.

More personal recommendation, since IIRC you love zombies as well as wanting to try out steampunk: Cherie Priest's (Wikipedia, ISFDB) imaginative and enjoyable Clockwork Century series, which combines them both in a western setting and keeps getting awards.

(I read and quite liked the 1st novel in a Hugo Voter Packet and ended up buying it via a Humble Bundle later, so if you got HB's eBook Bundle #2 you might already own it; and I also individually purchased a novella when Weightless Books was having a sale. If you're morbidly curious, here's my vintage non-spoiler review of the 2nd novel in the What Are You Reading? thread in the RR forum a few years ago.)

Not cheap, considering they're out from Tor, but there are tie-in novellas which are out from Subterranean Press and therefore couponable via Kobo, making the entire series available DRM-free.

Thank you for these recommendations.

I'm just now getting into steampunk, which I find has a fresh sense of humor in some of the stories I'm reading.

I'll check out the titles you mention and buy the first one in the series.

[Hampshire Nanny]

One of the best steampunk series I've read is the Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger. It starts with Soulless. It's a bit of cross-over between steampunk and supernatural (vampire and werewolf). Also the Agatha H series by Phil and Kaja Foglio. These are available at Baen as well as the usual eBook stores. I'm now reading the Magnificent Devices series by Shelley Adina. Book 1, Lady of Devices is free at Amazon.

Update: I almost forgot Steven Harper's Clockwork Empire series. Amazingly well done.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

James Bond meets the wild west.

Done right.
Unlike the movie.

The entire series DVD collection pops up on sale at Amazon from time to time.
Easily worth the $40 or so. (On sale.)

[Loosheesh]

Originally Posted by Hampshire Nanny

I'm now reading the Magnificent Devices series by Shelley Adina. Book 1, Lady of Devices is free at Amazon.

Would be interested in hearing what you think of this one. Last year I bought books 1-5 in the series but have yet to read any of them. The Clockwork Scarab, which is the only steampunk book I've read, seriously curbed my enthusiasm. It was a meh read for me; not that bad but I think my expectations were too high. I mean, Sherlock Holmes' niece and Bram Stoker's sister (plus Irene Adler), can you blame me?

[Dr. Drib]

Thread title changed to better reflect deals/freebies + discussion.


Don
(Moderator)

[tubemonkey]

Do works have to be written by modern authors to be considered steampunk? or are authors like Jules Verne and HG Wells also considered steampunk?

[crich70]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Do works have to be written by modern authors to be considered steampunk? or are authors like Jules Verne and HG Wells also considered steampunk?

Some say that H.G. Wells and Jules Verne's works were early steampunk efforts. Certainly the way Nemo's sub and the Time Traveller's machine are described I can see why some say that.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by crich70

Some say that H.G. Wells and Jules Verne's works were early steampunk efforts. Certainly the way Nemo's sub and the Time Traveller's machine are described I can see why some say that.

I'm inclined to classify them as steampunk; but then, I don't make the rules.