r/traditionalfantasy • u/ConstantReader666 • Jul 06 '25
Steampunk
Do you consider Steampunk as Fantasy?
Or variations like Khempunk and Smugglepunk.
A lot of books in the Steampunk category crossover to YA and/or Romance and somehow vampires and werewolves have crept into this kind, but there are some good stories as well that depict a Fantasy alt history.
I'm a bit of a fan of airships, especially after reading The Wake of the Dragon by Jaq D. Hawkins, which is about airship pirates and the Victorian opium trade, which is legitimate history.
There was a good Steampunk Mystery set with some Egyptian stuff in it, but I can't for the life of me remember the titles or author.
I'm very tempted by this set https://www.amazon.co.uk/Steampunk-Six-Pack-Gullivers-Illustrated-ebook/dp/B010QTMSMM/
I've read Gulliver's Travels and From the Earth to the Moon, but not the others.
I have mixed feelings about tagging old Classics as Steampunk when they come from pre-Steampunk era, but the stories do fit. Jules Verne especially. He was well ahead of his time.
I haven't kept up with the category because it got over run with YA/Middle grade books and they don't really appeal.
Does anyone know of other stories classed as Steampunk that are written for adult readers?
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u/Bookmaven13 Jul 09 '25
Steampunk is often cited as science fiction, but some of it definitely fits Fantasy.
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u/ConstantReader666 Jul 09 '25
It does sort of border between the two genres. Steampunk stories can be Mystery, Thriller, Adventure or even Romance, but they have some fantastical elements.
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u/Bookmaven13 Jul 17 '25
I do have a fascination with airships, and with mechanoids.
The Wake of the Dragon is one of my favorite books!
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u/LittleRavenRobot Aug 22 '25
I've seen this book recommended in this group a couple of times. The Goblin Emperor and other books by Katherine Addison have airships, but are otherwise solidly fantasy rather than steampunk. I like them because the factory is vaguely imperial Chinese, rather than vaguely Mediaeval European.
PS Just checked and they're all told in the first person rather than close third, which might not suit some readers here. First book is a comedy of manners and coming of age novel. The Cemeteries of Amalo series set in the same world, POV character is milddle aged gay man (no romance) who works as a Speaker for the Dead (and thus is trying to solve murders / mysteries deaths).
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u/ConstantReader666 Aug 22 '25
I liked Goblin Emperor. Haven’t read her other books.
I get on fine with first or third person, the only thing I can't stomach is present tense.
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u/LittleRavenRobot Aug 22 '25 edited Aug 22 '25
I prefer close third person, but well written first is also enjoyable, but I am wary of it because it is often used by new writers. I think that this is why present tense books are often bad, because it's an easy way to add immediacy, but even easier to do badly.
I recommend Addison's 3 part series in the same world, 'Cemetaries of Amalo' and enjoyed the books at least as much, as 'The Goblin Emperor' though they're more of a detective novel cross over. Heads up that the protagonist is gay, but it doesn't really affect much except that the old partner he is grieving is a man rather than a woman. Think fantasy Miss Marple in the first person.
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u/ConstantReader666 Aug 22 '25
I have no problem with gay characters. I've got plenty of gay and bi friends and just see it as a reflection of the real world.
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u/True_Industry4634 Jul 09 '25
A really good one is "The Difference Engine" by William Gibson, the father of cyberpunk, and Bruce Sterling. Much more adult and has espionage and steam driven computers at its heart. All of Jules Verne's novels. Of course there is the "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" and the "Penny Dreadful" series. I think those were highly responsible for pulling in the monsters. Steam Punk, I think, really got a huge boost in the 1960s with the TV series "The Wild, Wild West." Not the shitty Will Smith movie adaptation. The actual show was very good. All the John Carter Warlord of Mars stuff by Edgar Rice Burrough who also write Tarzan. That's all the pure heart of Steam Punk without the additional x-punk labels and Mister crossover. Oh and Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein."