Waking (Clockwork Twist)

This is the first book of 12, in a long series of steampunk adventure books. Set in a magical fantasy version of the Victorian era, the Clockwork Twist series follows an unassuming and introverted clockmaker from London, named Twist. When a clockwork princess needs his help, Twist find himself on an adventures around the world surrounded by airship pirates, secret societies, treasure hunters, vampires, magical kitsune, a genie or two, and even a ninja. How does this all get started?

Find out in Book One: Waking!

Twist has never left London, until today. Now he's traveling on an airship—with a crew that insists they're not pirates—on his way to find the clockwork princess because he's the only one who can fix her.

In the style of adventurous gaslamp fantasy, Clockwork Twist is set in a lush and vibrant world where thing are as you might expect in 1878. That is, of course, if fantastic creatures like djinn, faeries, kitsunes and vampires were commonplace. An increasing number of people are being born with supernatural senses, called Sights. While airship tourism is sweeping the globe, air-piracy is also on the rise.

Twist is among the Sighted, but his Sight is unusual. While others might be able to see and hear over great distances, find anything they can imagine anywhere in the world, or even recognize every type of flower by scent alone, Twist's Sight shows him only damage. Whenever he touches a broken clock or machine, he can instantly understand the damage and can fix it easily. If he touches a person, even for a moment, his mind fills with a terrible vision of whatever trauma or pain once broke them. Naturally, he's chosen a solitary existence and shuns all human contact.

Unfortunately, thanks to his seclusion, Twist is also unfamiliar with everything beyond his own clock shop, hidden away on a quiet and ever-drizzly London street. When a treasure hunter arrives at his door with proof that they have found the fabled clockwork princess—Twist's favorite old fairy tale—it's up to Twist alone to bring her back to life.

The continuing series of Clockwork Twist begins with book one: Waking. Join Twist as he embarks on his first adventure, and find out first hand if he can actually survive it.

This series is also posted on Royalroad.com

Emily Thompson is an author and artist, from northern California. Although she adores Steampunk and all things Victoriana, she also writes occasional Sci-fi and fantasy. After studying film and animation in university, she changed to a Japanese language focus and studied abroad in Tokyo for a year. She received a degree in Japanese and later spent nearly another two years in Japan, teaching English and writing. She now lives in Silicon Valley and spends most of her time writing in coffee shops, painting, and playing far too many video games.