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Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded
Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded
Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded
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Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

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Gentle Readers, after the outraged letters following our first volume, I would be remiss not to warn you. The handsome tome of classic and original fiction, nonfiction, and illustrations is perhaps even more shocking than its predecessor. And yet, I see that your curiosity is piqued, so....

Enter the Scintillating Clockpunk Gear-o-Torium: Herein dwell the breathless adventures that you secretly seek. Gaze upon the rebellious Mecha-Ostrich, the seductive Steam Dancer, the intrepid Mssrs. Balfour and Meriwether, and the hithertofore undefeated Cast-Iron Kid.

Experience the Delights of the Chrononaut Odditorium: An esteemed panel of self-appointed experts, under pain of ridicule, will reveal Top Secret Historical Enticements. Be dazzled by the first English translation of the quintessential Steampunk story “Flying Fish Prometheus” by Vilhelm Bergsøe.

Oooh and Ahhh at the Subculture Contraptor Lounge: Authoress of the Parasol Protectorate Gail Carriger gaily holds forth on the fashionable subjects of fashion, fiction, and more. The Steampunk Workshop founder Jake von Slatt’s “Steampunk Manifesto” shares his musings amusing and profound on the future of Steam.

Look Upon Our Brass-Plated Wonders: From the rough streets of modern-day Manchester, world-famous adventurer John Coulthart provides the near-tactile visual experience of this elaborative tome. He is joined by the likes of the artistes Secret Agent Ramona Szczerba (a.k.a. Winona Cookie) and Lovereaftian maestro Eric Orchard.

Meet the Masterminds: Editors Extraordinaire Ann and Jeff VanderMeer, the well-known literary vagabonds and mesmerists, do fully guarantee your satisfaction. However, the publisher does regret that the VanderMeers have become mysteriously unavailable to respond to any grievances.

It’s Steampunk—and it’s reloaded.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateNov 15, 2010
ISBN9781616960599
Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded

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Rating: 3.4999999513513513 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This was a pretty stellar collection. Not only were the individual stories consistently interesting (and varied, which, given that they were all collected under the "steampunk" banner, I did not dare to hope for) but there were authors from all over the world, which is a lovely treat.

    I didn't care as much for the long absurdist piece at the end or the non-fiction essays (which seemed rather slight) but all the traditional-format short stories were lovely.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Steampunk Reloaded is a rather good collection of steampunk tales. It has it's ups and downs, but overall the stories are enjoyable. Along with the stories, there are a couple of interesting non-fiction pieces and a round-table interview about the future of steampunk. Here are a few of the stories that I especially enjoyed:-- In "The Unblinking Eye" by Stephen Baxter, Europe has advanced steam technology, but has never ventured toward the new world. Rather it is the Incas, who have developed their own advanced technology, and have ventured into lands unknown, colonizing each new territory they come across. come to pay Europe a visit.-- Caitlin R. Kiernan tells the story of a maimed young woman, who has been outfitted with steam-powered limbs in "The Steam Dancer." -- "The Mechanical Aviary of Emperor Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar" by Shweta Narayan, presents a new take on a traditional folktale, involving the beautiful clockwork birds of the Emperor's aviary.-- "Wild Copper" by Samantha Henderson can barely be labeled steampunk genre. It's more of a fairy story, in which a girl offers to serve Oberon to save her brother. Steampunk or not, this is still a great tale. -- An lonely orphan builds himself a mechanical friend in "Tanglefoot (A Clockwork Century Story)" by Cherie Priest. But his souless begins to take on a life of its own. -- "The Anachronist's Cookbook" by Cherie Priest rails against the accepted politics of a steampowered era as it presents the exploits of an angry and vicious young woman. While there were a couple of stories that I was not a fan of (i.e., "A Secret History of Steampunk" by The Mecha-Ostrich and "Flying Fish Prometheus" by Vilhelm Bergsøe), overall I enjoyed this collection of steampunk fiction and art.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Somehow, this took me a long time to work my way through. None of the stories were terrible, and some were great. My favorites included: Shweat Narayan, The Mechanical Aviary of Emperor Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar; Stephen Baxter, The Unblinking Eye (which ends inconclusively within the world of the story, but with a great reveal for the reader); and Margaret Ronald, A Serpent in the Gears. At least the first two of these, strictly speaking, reach well beyond steampunk into fantasy, or alternate history; and what makes each so effective is that it has a strong and interesting story/idea at the core. Other stories suffer from the characteristic flaw of weak steampunk - distinctive Victorian trappings, but no heart. One of the last stories in the book, Vilhelm Bergsoe, Flying Fish Prometheus, is reminiscent of a Jules Verne (mis-)adventure. First published in Danish in 1870, and translated into English for the first time in this collection, it compares favorably with the rest of the stories by living authors.

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Steampunk II - Tachyon Publications

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