The Steampunk Scholar is a brilliant in-depth resource on all things steampunk fiction. He’s doing a PhD, so the “scholar” part is not just for the alliteration.
This is his post on the best of 2011, and this is the best part (I’ve unlinked things, so you’ll have to click through to the post to know what he’s referring to):
- Steampunk! – Candlewick anthology edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant – check out my review at Tor.comto see why.
- Heartless by Gail Carriger – I’ll be writing a series of posts leading up to the release of Timeless, the final book in the Parasol Protectorate series. In the meantime, I’ll simply say that anyone who has naysayed Carriger’s inclusion in the steampunk fold due to a lack of technofantasy should be reviewing their crow recipes. This is the best book of the series since Soulless, and was a delight to read.
- Curious Case of the Clockwork Man by Mark Hodder – read my reviewto find out why Hodder is one of the strongest voices in second wave steampunk fiction.
- Goliath by Scott Westerfeld – check out my retrospective on the Leviathan trilogyfor why this was such a satisfying ending to one of the best steampunk series, and why it shouldn’t be dismissed simply for being YA.
- Empire of Ruins by Arthur Slade – another YA novel you shouldn’t be avoiding, and the reasons why.
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I am a huge fan of Gail Carringer, Scott Westerfeld, and anyone who can see YA as a genre worthy of adult reading. As soon as I’ve posted this, I’ll be ordering every other book on this list from my local library. If they’re there, I’ll read and review them for you.
Have you read Heartless yet? I can’t remember if you have or not. I can bring it down for you to read if you like.
W: Although I admire Carringer’s writing in all its forms, the sex scenes were a little much for my delicate constitution, so I decided not to read on. (I might find out where babies come from, and that would be a terrible shock.)