Just sounds better and better doesn't it?
Well it is. Better. Good. Really, really good.
Let me define a term in case you're not familiar with them
Steampunk is a genre which originated during the 1980s and early 1990s and incorporates elements of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, horror, and speculative fiction. It involves a setting where steam power is widely used—whether in an alternate history such as Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United States, or in a post-apocalyptic time (Wikipedia)Not a genre I'd ever read although I've read and continue to read all of the foundational genres. This book was handed to me by my daughter. Both she and my wife had read it and loved it. I'll be honest and say I began reading it because 1: I like to make my daughter happy (although not TOO happy) and 2: I like to support local authors.
Then Dearly, Departed did something startling. It sucked me in. With solid, believable characters, good storytelling and an astoundingly accomplished touch for a first time novelist. Habel handles dialogue with the skill of a much more experienced writer. She turns a lovely phrase and then does it again and again and again. Beyond that she did her research so that the minimal amount of science actually needed for her story was spot on. There's no more of it than needed but there's not a micro-gram less than needed either. She even presents a pretty fair argument on why vampires get all the publicity and zombies get the short rotting end of the stick.
It's never hard to market a good book. When you add in that the author was on the verge of applying for food stamps to keep food on her table when her book sold it's almost too good to be true (at least from a marketing point of view).
Looking for a great summer read? A change of pace from whatever your usual stuff might be? A new author to watch if you're into steampunk? Grab yourself a copy of Dearly Departed.
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