The Difference Engine - Hardcover

Gibson, William

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 055307346X ISBN 13: 9780553073461

Publisher: Spectra, 1991

Synopsis

1855: The Industrial Revolution is in full and inexorable swing, powered by steam-driven cybernetic Engines. Charles Babbage perfects his Analytical Engine and the computer age arrives a century ahead of its time. And three extraordinary characters race toward a rendezvous with history—and the Sybil Gerard —a fallen woman, politician’s tart, daughter of a Luddite agitator Edward “Leviathan” Mallory —explorer and paleontologist Laurence Oliphant —diplomat, mystic, and spy. Their adventure begins with the discovery of a box of punched Engine cards of unknown origin and purpose. Cards someone wants badly enough to kill for…. Part detective story, part historical thriller, The Difference Engine is the collaborative masterpiece by two of the most acclaimed science fiction authors writing today. Provocative, compelling, intensely imagined, it is a startling extension of Gibson’s and Sterling’s unique visions—and the beginning of movement we know today as “steampunk!”

About this title

Review

A collaborative novel from the premier cyberpunk authors, William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. Part detective story, part historical thriller, The Difference Engine takes us not forward but back, to an imagined 1885: the Industrial Revolution is in full and inexorable swing, powered by steam-driven, cybernetic engines. Charles Babbage perfects his Analytical Engine, and the computer age arrives a century ahead of its time.

About the Author

William Gibson was born in South Carolina in 1948. Educated in the USA, he emigrated to Canada in 1968 and retains dual nationality. Gibson began writing in 1977 and burst upon the literary world with his acclaimed first novel, NEUROMANCER, the book that launched the cyberpunk generation, and the first novel to win the holy trinity of science fiction, the Hugo, Nebula and Philip K. Dick Awards. Although best known for his early cyberpunk novels, Gibson's work has continued to evolve over the ensuing years, always casting an astute critical eye on modern societal trends. In 1999 The Guardian praised him as 'probably the most important novelist of the past two decades'. His most recent books include ZERO HISTORY and THE PERIPHERAL. William Gibson's website is www.williamgibsonbooks.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @greatdismal Bruce Sterling burst onto the SF scene with the birth of Cyberpunk and co-authored THE DIFFERENCE ENGINE with his colleague William Gibson. His biggest UK success was with THE HACKER CRACKDOWN. He lives with his wife and daughters in Austin, Texas.

Edition details

• Publisher: Spectra
• Publication date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 055307346X
• ISBN 13: 9780553073461
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 429