Steam-powered machines, unusual inventions, adventure, and a little bit of imagination come together in steampunk. Often set in an alternative version of the past, these stories blend history, science fiction, fantasy, and plenty of mechanical ingenuity. Some are dark and mysterious, while others are simply fun to explore.
Steampunk precursors
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea — Jules Verne
From the Earth to the Moon — Jules Verne
Journey to the Center of the Earth — Jules Verne
The Time Machine — H. G. Wells
The War of the Worlds — H. G. Wells
The First Men in the Moon — H. G. Wells
Famous Steampunk
The Difference Engine — William Gibson & Bruce Sterling
The Anubis Gates — Tim Powers
Mortal Engines — Philip Reeve
Leviathan — Scott Westerfeld
Boneshaker — Cherie Priest
Perdido Street Station — China Miéville
The Diamond Age — Neal Stephenson
Infernal Devices — K. W. Jeter
Morlock Night — K. W. Jeter
The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives — James P. Blaylock
Homunculus — James P. Blaylock
The Scar — China Miéville
Soulless — Gail Carriger
The Watchmaker of Filigree Street — Natasha Pulley
The Clockwork Dagger — Beth Cato
Newer Reads
The Colonel and the Bee
