PRODUCT OVERVIEW
- ISBN 9780765375247
- Categories [2022], BX, BXOS, F SFF, Fantasy and Science Fiction, Fic20, Fiction, H/C, Highlight
- Author(s) Elizabeth Bear
- Publisher Tor Books
- Pages 352
- Format Hardcover
- Dimensions 21.7cm x 3.1cm x 14.8cm
- Weight 0.44 kg
product description
Set in the late 19th century - when the city we now call Seattle Underground was the whole town (and still on the surface), when airships plied the trade routes, would-be gold miners were heading to the gold fields of Alaska, and steam-powered mechanicals stalked the waterfront, Karen is a young woman on her own, making the best of her orphaned state by working in Madame Damnable's high-quality bordello. Through Karen's eyes we get to know the other girls in the house - a resourceful group - and the poor and the powerful of the town. Trouble erupts one night when a badly injured girl arrives at their door, begging sanctuary, followed by the man who holds her indenture, and who has a machine that can take over anyone's mind and control their actions. And as if that wasn't bad enough, the next night brings a body dumped in their rubbish heap - a streetwalker who has been brutally murdered. Bear brings alive this Jack-the-Ripper yarn of the old west with a light touch in Karen's own memorable voice, and a mesmerizing evocation of classic steam-powered science.