Cirrus@Austlit

'Discover times and places only dreamt of in your wildest imagination, with gadgets, gizmos and robots driven by aether and steam. Encounter angels, zombie soldiers and aliens walking through the Victorian age. And what would any steampunk anthology be without zeppelins, time machines and a guest appearance by Sherlock Holmes? It’s steampunk, so we even threw in a great dinosaur hunt simply because the kitchen sink just wasn’t big enough. Sit back, relax and explore the world as it could have been if people like Mary Shelley, Jules Verne and H.G. Wells got their way. “Penny Dread Tales: Volume One” is a steampunk short story anthology dedicated to the 19th and early 20th century publication format affectionately referred to as the Penny Dreadful. At four-hundred pages and 18 steampunk stories long, you’re sure to find plenty of fun, action and excitement. Whether you’re a long-time devotee of steampunk or newly introduced to the world of brass goggles, giant zeppelins and impossible inventions from the mad minds of Victorian scientists, you’re sure to find a tale or three that catches your fancy. This steampunk anthology has an assortment of tales ranging from purist steampunk to fantasy steampunk to brushes-up-against-steampunk. It even includes a science fiction short story actually written during the Victorian era. Edited by Christopher Ficco and with cover artwork by Laura Givens, we’ve gathered writers and authors from all over the world. Contributors come from the U.S., Israel, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. It’s a smorgasbord of steampunk, and you’re sure to find something (or somethings) you like.'

Source: Publisher's Blurb

'Penny Dread Tales Volume Two truly is a phantasmagorical calliope of clockwork and steam, one that will spirit you away to the four corners of the globe. Steampunk is not just British and it’s not just American, although you may have heard different. Steampunk is everywhere and forever. This anthology celebrates the notion that steampunk also has a home in places like China, Budapest, Panama and beyond. In this collection of short steampunk stories, a prince will face the curse of his ancestors, airship privateers will face down a murderer in the rugged Outback of Australia, the cities of Buda and Pest will face annihilation, and a lone, clockwork cowboy will face down the meanest werewolf in the west. So sit back, relax and step into the Victorian age that never happened, even in your wildest dreams!'

Source: Publisher's Blurb

'In this tome, the third installment of the Penny Dread Tales series, we explore not only the darker side of steampunk but also the black, sullied underbelly of the human condition. The nightmare of Jack the Ripper stalks these pages… drenching them in blood… twice. Slavery, the murder of the weak and helpless, dire choices of life and death: these tragedies and more become fodder for the mind, where the possessed and dispossessed steal men’s lives, and in some cases, their souls. This volume is rich with shadowy settings shrouded in fog, and the ensuing brutality is glimpsed piecemeal through windows of moonlight where dark shadows hide nefarious villains plotting murder and mayhem upon unsuspecting victims. PDT3 carries the reader to the four corners of the Earth and beyond. It traverses the centuries, from the Victorian era all the way into a future 40,000 years distant. It is an exploration of mankind’s darkest dreams and nightmares, and in its reading you too may experience nightmares where might In Darkness Clockwork Shine.'

Source: Publisher's Blurb

'Penny Dread Tales Volume IV explores the darker side of steampunk, where demons reign and the human spirit can be as unwholesome and unholy as your worst nightmare. Immerse yourself in this tome of light and darkness. Revel in the triumphs of adventurous heroes and despair in the maleficence of heartless villains, human and inhuman alike. These short stories will take you across the globe and across dimensions. You will find yourself soaring through the skies over America and Europe. You will visit the seedy underside of Seattle, the dusty plains of the southwest, and the great savannahs of darkest Africa. Within these pages are ghosts, demons, and the undead seeking to take your very soul. Necromancers feed upon the blood of the innocent. Murderers and thieves abound, and the line between good and evil blurs to nonexistence. Limitless worlds and landscapes lay within in this latest installment of Penny Dread Tales ... for it is truly Perfidious and Paranormal Punkery of Steam.'

Source: Publisher's Blurb

'Four years of Penny Dread Tales have revealed some fantastic talent. In this edition we’ve collected the cream of the crop. Herein lies the very Best of Penny Dread Tales: sixteen stories of boiler-splitting steampunk with a blend of sci-fi, paranormal, western, and horror. These stories will take you on a thrilling ride and you will love every minute of it!'

Source: Publisher's Blurb