Books: Parasol Protectorate
A while ago I was contacted by the makers of Steampunk Magazine for the iPhone and asked to check out their application. I did, and it was fun, and inspired me to look into more Steampunk Books. A series that I really enjoy is the Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger.
The series is a comedy Victorian supernatural affair, with some mad science thrown in for good measure. It has a European focus, as most of the books in this genre do, but it has a feel for the European areas that seems overlooked by many other Steampunk writers. Heck, they even have Scotland featured in the first book rather than just London everything; very progressive. It goes beyond the Vampires, Werewolves and Spirits oh my trope as well, bringing in a new supernatural that fills its own niche very successfully. Its writing style is such that it really pulls you on from book to book; the series isn't over yet but the author has announced a definitive End point being book five in the series (three was released in August) so the book has a life and an end point that I find VERY REASSURING coughFantasy authors*/cough*. Each character has its own style and voice, but sarcasm is almost a universal constant in the main characters (which I love). Maybe that's what powers the supernatural? The world Gail has built is brilliant and very well developed, delving into more of the world in each book.
As part of WorldCon, Gail Carriger came over to Australia and I got to meet her at an impromptu local book signing, and she was an absolute pleasure to talk with even if she had the gathering sprung on her. I joined her, her publisher friend and the owner of Pulp Fiction and heard some great news about upcoming Parasol Protectorate events that I'm not allowed to talk about. Suffice to say, it's very much an ongoing affair and VERY worth your while.
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Updated 2020-05-18 with new Booko links