If you liked the steampunk collection...

The steampunk pax is a first for Amber Allure, so finding similar collections that readers might enjoy isn't as easy as you'd think. But one of the aspects that sets steampunk apart is how it takes you into a different, but familiar, world. You don't have to just go into the past for that.

Look to the Future is a collection of five m/m stories all set in the near or distant future. Stories include:

All or Nothing at All by Carolina Valdez

Duty Bound by Lynn Lorenz

Extreme Sports by D.J. Manly

My Big Fat SX-File Wedding by Mimi Riser

Tom Fleet's Incredible Machine by Deirdre O'Dare

The collection is currently 25% off, which means you can get all five stories for only $16.50. Now that's a deal!

Steampunk winner

What a great week! Who knew steampunk had such diverse roots? But the end of the week means it's also the end of our giveaway. The winner of the complete Days of Future's Past pax is...

Susan!

We have your email address, so expect a message from us very soon.

Thank you to everyone for taking part with us to celebrate our new release!

More from The Whore of New Slum by T.A. Chase

Enjoy the excerpt!

*_*_*_*

Abdur stared out the window of his room, watching the dark-haired man stride down the stairs and turn left on the sidewalk. He studied the way broad shoulders slimmed into narrow hips. The long fall of black hair intrigued him. His hands itched to touch and play with it.

He clenched his hands, and the hiss of steam as the metal joints making his left hand move drew a frown from him. He might want to touch the man, but he never would. Abdur had thought he had accepted the reality that he would always be alone.

"Abdur, you need to rest. The general wishes to talk to you tomorrow, so you need your strength for the trip to New Island."

The Mother Superior walked in. She'd gotten used to Abdur's ruined visage, so she didn't react when he turned to look at her. He'd taken off his mask when he'd gone back in his room and forgotten to put it back on.

"I don't feel like sleeping," he said, but he went to his bed and sat on it, accepting the tray she handed him.

"I know you don't, but I think it's best."

He set the plates aside before resting his hands on his thighs. "It still hurts."

Whether he was talking about his voice, his body, or his soul, he couldn't have said. All he knew was the pain had become second nature to him. It was a familiar weight he carried around, like a coat he never took off.

He simply knew it hurt.

"I'm sorry. Do you need more pills? Maybe I could convince the doctor to bring a magic user up to cast a pain spell on you." Mother Superior looked worried.

Abdur shook his head, even though moving it added to the ache. "Magic won't work on me any more. I had too many spells put on me right after my injuries to keep me alive."

She reached out, but held her hands inches from his left shoulder. He had to get used to never being touched again. No one would want to get close to the monster he'd become.

"Eat, then try to get some rest. If you need anything, you know where I'll be." She patted the sheets next to him.

"I'm not supposed to wander the halls. The generals were very specific about not letting anyone see me." He snorted. "That didn't work out so well this morning."

Mother Superior glared at him. "Who saw you?"

He shrugged. "He was pretty with long black hair and dark eyes. The doctor was a complete ass to him."

"Did he have a flower branded on his cheek?" She touched the same spot on her face where the man's brand had been.

"Yes."

Abdur shifted slightly as his cock stiffened at the memory of how beautiful the man had been. Why had this attraction hit him so hard? Before his attack, he'd jumped from bed to bed, never becoming attached to anyone in particular, but he'd discovered that kind of lifestyle ended up leaving him alone. No one had tried to see him while he was in the hospital, and once the military took him, he didn't have anyone to argue for him about their actions.

"Ah, I wonder how he got mixed up enough to come down this hall. Wendall comes every Monday to visit his sister. She's in the terminal ward on the third floor. He did tell me he'd be coming every day now, since Molly is dying and she doesn't have much time left." Mother Superior shook her head and sighed. "It's so sad. Such a beautiful young woman, yet this life crushed any chance she had of being anything more than a statistic."

"What does her brother do? Why was the doctor such an ass to him?" Abdur wasn't from New Britain. He'd been taken from New France and brought to the building he was in.

"Wendall is a sex peddler. He works at The Pink Carnation brothel a couple blocks from here." She didn't sound disgusted or upset by what Wendall did.

He glanced at her, studying her expression. "You don't look down on Wendall for what he does?"

She shook her head. "I understand why he chose to do what he does. When one lives in New Slum, one must do whatever one can to survive to the next day. My sisters and I came here to help them, but after a week, I realized we couldn't save them all. Abdur, we will be unlikely to save most of them."

Mother Superior headed toward the door, but she turned and looked back at him. "Wendall is a good man, no matter what he does to survive. It's not my place to judge anyone. I'm simply here to help as best I can."

Abdur waited until she left before he stood and made his way back to the window. He stared out at the dirty streets and soot-covered buildings surrounding him. As he studied the people strolling along outside, he heard some nuns chatting outside his room.

"Some medical supplies arrived earlier today," one said.

"Did The Whore send them?" Excitement colored the other nun's voice.

"Yes--or at least I think so. Mother Superior wouldn't answer me when I asked."

Their voices faded away, and Abdur wondered who The Whore was. He'd overheard the nuns and doctors at the hospital talk in whispers about the person almost from the minute he arrived. Suddenly, he wanted out and he wasn't going to stay in the hospital anymore. The general would have him brought back to the base any day now. Once that happened, he would never be free again.

After making his decision, he sat and ate. It helped to have a plan, so he stripped and laid down to rest. If all worked out, he would be spending the night somewhere else, and maybe be touched for the last time in his life.

The Whore of New Slum is now available at Amber Allure.

If you'd like the chance to win the entire pax collection, just leave a comment on today's post. On Saturday, a winner will be picked at random from all the comments made this week on the blog. Comment on all five, and that's five chances to win!

Seeing Steampunk: A Highly Personalized List of Favorite Steampunk TV shows, Movies, and Comics by Helen Louise Caroll

Steampunk is a wide open genre that seems to be, if you’ll pardon the pun, steaming right along, gathering new fans every day.  Some come to it through the literary door: either by way of classics like Michael Moorlock’s Warlord of the Air, K.W. Jeter’s Infernal Devices, or William Gibson and Bruce Sterling’s The Difference Engine, or newer entries such as Meljean Brook’s Iron Seas series, Philippa Ballantine and Tee Morris’s The Ministry of Peculiar Occurances series, and Karina Cooper’s St. Croix Chronicles. 

But steampunk also has a history in the visual arts, whether in costumes, inventions, or a short-lived TV series.  The latter is what caught my attention and brought me into the steampunk fold.  Following is a short – very short – list of the movies, TV shows, and graphic novels that made me a fan of the possibilities of the genre.

Voyagers!:  My first.  Not that I realized this television show was steampunk at the time.  No, when it first aired on NBC back in 1982 for its one and only season, I was more interested in watching the very cute Jon-Erik Hexum dashing about in quasi-piratical duds with young Meeno Peluce.  It wasn’t until later that I realized the alternate histories they were trying to fix were often steampunk in nature.

Nadia: the Secret of Blue Water:  This anime (Japanese animation) features the spunky, orphaned acrobat Nadia, the adorkable inventor Jean, Nadia’s pet lion King, the comic Grandis Gang, Captain Nemo, and the Gargoyle organization.  Over thirty-nine episodes, viewers watch Nadia grow from a stubborn, narrow-minded girl to a compassionate young woman as she uncovers the secrets of her origin and learns to love the faithful Jean.  Though the “Island” arc of the storyline moves a bit slowly for my taste, the series as a whole is funny, romantic, gripping, and dramatic.  It’s a classic for a reason.

Laputa: the Castle in the Sky and Howl’s Moving Castle:  Two films by the great Hayao Miyazaki.  While they aren’t my favorite of his many works – my heart will always belong to My Neighbor Totoro – both really need to be seen by anyone who enjoys steampunk.  Laputa is similar to Nadia – only without the submarine.  Heroine Sheeta literally falls into hero Pazu’s arms from the sky, her glowing pendent protecting her from harm.  Pursued by Ma Dola’s comic air pirates and a much more sinister organization, the pair discovers the legendary floating city of Laputa, forcing Sheeta to make a difficult choice.  Howl’s has only a surface similarity to the Dianna Wynne Jones book it’s based on.  However, if you enjoy cocky wizards with soft hearts, smart-mouthed fire demons, and a heroine who finds the freedom to be herself after she’s turned into an old woman, this is the movie for you.  Both films are full of Miyazaki’s trademark flying scenes, strong female characters, and visually stunning worldbuilding.  Labeled children’s films, they’re very much for anyone who enjoys great movies.

Girl Genuis:  Originally a comic book by Phil and Kaja Foglio Girl Genuis has since become a webcomic, and a series of novels.  Heroine Agatha Clay is a “spark,” an inventor of weird and wonderful gadgets.  But she doesn’t know it.  She does it in her sleep.  She’s also heir to a fascinating legacy that puts her right in the crosshairs of the powerful Baron Wulfenbach and his son Gilgamesh.  There’s also a talking cat, a bloodthirsty air-pirate queen, an army of monsters, an enthusiastic swordswoman, and plenty of mad science. While there’s action, adventure, humor, time-travel, betrayal and romance Girl Genius is at heart a story about the weirdness and wonderfulness of family. 

The League of Extraordinary Gentleman: Originally a comic book mini-series by Alan Moore and artist Kevin O’Neill featuring Victorian-era characters such as Mina Harker, Allan Quartermain, Captain Nemo, Dr. Jekyll, and the Invisible Man in a fight to save Britain from Fu Manchu and Doctor Moriarty, the League became a series of mini-series collected in graphic novels, and, eventually, a movie.  While the comics are fantastic, showcasing Moore’s imagination and intelligence, I actually like the movie a smidge more.  If only because it has Sean Connery’s Quartermain mentoring Shane West’s cocky Tom Sawyer.  Mrrrwww.

The Adventures of Luther Arkwright:  The original graphic novel by Bryan Talbot is dense with information and sometimes confusing, but it’s fascinating reading and viewing.  In contrast, the sequel seemed kind of blah.  Able to travel across parallel universes, hero Arkwright is taxed with protecting them from upset and ushering in a new age of humanity.  It’s a more adult and philosophically sophisticated Voyagers, without the kid sidekick.  Which brings me back to where I started.

Steampunk embraces a variety of styles and stories and is waiting open-armed for new readers.  Dip in and try it.  You might like it a lot.  

*_*_*_*

Pinkerton agent Brom Donker’s arm and legs were taken from him during the American Civil War. Now, ten years later, although he’s adjusted to the metal limbs that replaced his real ones, there are times when he still feels like less than a man. Especially when he’s near Simon Wain, his physician/mechanic.

Simon has cared about Brom for years. As his patient. Lately, though, he’s been seeing the handsome agent as more than that. But how can a lowly physician/mechanic fit in with a man from a powerful and influential family?

As Brom deals with missing gun shipments, rogue Sasquatches, and disaffected Southerners, he and Simon confront their feelings about themselves and for each other.

The Tinkered Pinkerton is now available at Amber Allure.

If you'd like the chance to win the entire pax collection, just leave a comment on today's post. On Saturday, a winner will be picked at random from all the comments made this week on the blog. Comment on all five, and that's five chances to win!

Another glimpse at Iron Eyes by Vivien Dean

When it came time to try my hand at writing steampunk, I wanted to do something different. I love the genre to pieces, from the gadgets to the punk mentality, but at the same time, I wanted to focus on the romance. That meant taking a risk.

I chose to pluck ordinary men from a steampunk world and concentrate on them. I also opted for a time and place that I hadn't seen before.

Iron Eyes is set in 1922 on a northern Canadian island, cut off from civilization. Cap Kaufman is an ex-soldier who kidnaps a talented Hollywood engineer named Hector Gabourel. Hector is a genius when it comes to lenses, and Cap wants him to find a way to restore his ward's sight. The story focuses on the drama between them, rather than the world they inhabit. In this case, that's what the romance dictated.

On the Amber Allure website, you can read the excerpt where Cap first proposes the deal to Hector. The scene that follows takes place that night...

*_*_*_*

During the day, the view was spectacular. The cliffs stood sentinel for the rest of the island against the vastness of the ocean and its denizens, the rocks below just as deadly and beautiful. The constant roar of the waves lapping at the shore underscored any visit. Even the birds that circled overhead in search of dinner couldn't drown it out. The woods carpeted the hill that led up to the escarpment in rich greens and browns, but in the winter, their bare branches looked like skeletons rising from the earth to protect intruders from plundering below.

"Be careful," Cap said. "It ices over quickly up here, and it's impossible to see it in the dark."

Hector nodded. "Is that why there's no train to get up the slope like there is to the beach? So you can keep Diana from wandering up here?"

"She doesn't leave the house without someone with her, though Miss Forster would never bring her this far out. She thinks it's too dangerous."

"You just warned me," Hector said with a quirk of his brow. "It is too dangerous for a little blind girl."

Cap let that go. He had no need to contest a valid point.

Moving away from the trees, Hector tilted his head toward the heavens, circling around and around in a seemingly aimless pattern. Cap retained a respectful distance, content to watch. It was better to be the primary set of eyes on their surroundings, too, since, in spite of accepting Cap's alert, Hector didn't appear to be heeding where he stepped.

As right as Hector looked amidst the iron and glass of his workroom, both on the island and back in Los Angeles, he fit in just as well out here, his wildness a near ideal complement to the ragged terrain. The clumps of grass around his feet might have sprung up there at his presence, clustering to adorn his roots as much as any tree. Best of all, this was how Cap felt most comfortable around him, watching without being watched in return, free to appreciate and assess when the subject of his attraction was focused on something else.

"The stars are different here," Hector commented without looking away.

"Is there one in particular you're looking for?" He'd spent hours on these cliffs, his primary escape when he felt smothered. "I could help."

"Nah, that's okay." Bringing the telescope to his eye, his fingers moved over the unexplained gears as he continued to wander around. "They've never looked so bright before."

"That's because they're not fighting with the city for your attention." Cap edged closer, his gaze darting to the precipice to gauge the distance. Still safe. "Have you always lived in Los Angeles?"

"Mostly. I was born in Belize, but my parents moved us all to California in '97."

"Do you remember anything about Belize?"

He caught a flash of white as Hector grinned. "I was three. What do you think?"

Cap chuckled. The age surprised him, though. He'd pegged Hector as older than him, but at thirty-four, that made Cap the senior by six years. "I've been a lot of places, but nothing south of the American border."

"According to my parents, you're not missing too much."

"So they like it in L.A."

"Love it."

Hector froze, fingers, feet, all of him, his breath pluming in front of his face as he fixated on the star he'd been looking for. Cap did the same, searching the sky for what had ultimately captured Hector's focus. The aim of the scope didn't correspond with any constellation Cap recognized. All he saw was a cluster of stars, most of them duller than their neighbors.

"Like I said, Doc's book was pretty boring." The comment came out of the blue, as if they'd been discussing it all along instead of it being a throwaway observation made forty minutes ago. "But it convinced me of one thing. Even if I did make a lens Doc could use to replace the one she's got, in the long run, Diana wouldn't be better off for it."

Hope surged through him. Hector wasn't saying he couldn't do it anymore. "What're you talking about? Of course, it would help her."

"For how long, though?" His fingers shifted a fraction of an inch. A metallic click as one of the gears moved echoed between them. "Glass doesn't grow, Cap. Little girls do."

He was too stunned by the logical statement to fully appreciate Hector's new familiarity with him. Doc had said all along he could remove the cataract that had completely obscured her vision, but replacing the damaged lens required special treatment, something well beyond the current medical establishment's expertise.

"It can't be done," he'd said, and Cap had ignored his negativity.

"So we think outside the medical establishment," he'd countered.

And thus, Hector Gabourel and his magical cameras that were turning the budding film industry into an international phenomenon had been discovered.

But in his focus on the bigger picture, Cap hadn't seen the simple facts. Diana would not remain a seven-year-old child forever. Whatever was created for her now would need to be replaced with a larger model, even if it was only marginally bigger. The operations wouldn't stop at one. The risk of something going wrong would increase every time.

He lacked the words to argue, his throat like ice, his eyelids frozen open to keep him staring sightlessly toward the invisible horizon. Hector broke the silence first.

"Doc told me you don't hear what gets said to you." He lowered the scope to turn his sympathetic gaze to Cap. "Looks like he's wrong about that, too."

"I'd be torturing her," Cap murmured. "I just want her to see again, but the price of it..." A brittle laugh escaped. It cut through his chest, more painful than the phantom aches that still plagued him when he least expected. "That might've been the easiest money you ever made. Less than a day's work."

"Well, I'm good, but there's no way I'll have it done by morning."

"You're done now."

"Not the way I see it."

He could finally move, though his entire body hurt from the effort. He felt like he'd aged a century in the last two minutes. "What's there to do? She's still growing. Her eye--"

"Will be done in six or seven years," Hector finished. "That's what I learned from that book. So anything I could come up with now, even if having a chunk of glass in your eye wouldn't hurt like the dickens, would be useless within months. Because every millimeter matters. As soon as her eye grows, even the smallest bit, the lens wouldn't work the same."

"This sounds like I'm right, then. You're done."

"If you want me to focus on fixing her eye, then yeah, I'm done. On the other hand, if you want me to fashion something that works on the outside of her eye..." With a quick flick of his wrist, he tossed the telescope to Cap.

Cap caught it on reflex, but his brain had tripped over Hector's implication. The outside? He hadn't considered that, but people wore glasses, didn't they? He'd thought Diana's injuries were too extensive for anything but replacement--so did Doc, for that matter--but maybe Hector had thought of something they hadn't.

His gaze fell to the scope.

"I can't guarantee it'll be pretty," Hector said. "And the gears might do what I want to move the lenses in the telescope, but I'm still not sure I can speed them up enough to keep up with her blinking. But the thing is, you paid me to try, right? Not to mention, you had a valid point before."

"About what?"

"About the last thing she ever saw." He jerked his chin toward the view. "That's a hell of a lot better to have memories of. For anyone."

The hope that had been squashed at Hector's reality check began to blossom again, seeking out the light he offered, but Cap was almost afraid to let it. He held the scope to his eye and looked into the sky, but the stars were a blur, no matter how much he fiddled with the tiny gears at the side.

When Hector's hand closed around his on the copper, his fingers were oddly warm. Cap lowered and released it, but the heat lingered.

"This what you want?" Hector said, his voice low.

Cap only had one answer. For everything Hector was asking.

"Absolutely."


Iron Eyes is now available at Amber Allure.

If you'd like the chance to win the entire pax collection, just leave a comment on today's post. On Saturday, a winner will be picked at random from all the comments made this week on the blog. Comment on all five, and that's five chances to win!

Balthazar Starblitz: Steampunk, Werewolves and blood, oh my! by A.J. Llewellyn

I've loved steampunk ever since I first heard the word attached to the Back to the Future movies and the Doctor Who TV series. I had no idea that some of my favorite 'classic' books such as the works of Robert Louis Stevenson (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde) and H.G. Wells's The Time Machine, were also considered steampunk and began to delve into more contemporary titles. 

My first purchase of a contemporary steampunk novel was The Girl in the Steel Corset. I absolutely loved this book and relished the traditional steampunk elements such as gas lit streets (the book is set in Victorian England), a character called The Machinist and a feisty heroine who is clearly contemporary and strong as all hell.

I then discovered Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices series. Though I loved Clockwork Angel, my geriatric next door neighbor mentioned Clare's Mortal Instruments series and I fell in love. We talk all day about the books and the upcoming movie based on the first one, The City of Bones.

There are, frankly dozens of stories that can be categorized as steampunk but there are purists who will argue. At the risk of inciting a war right here I'll leave it at that.

When my lovely friend, author Christiane France posted the suggestion of a steampunk anthology to the Amber Allure PAX authors, I jumped at the chance to pen my own tale. 

I wanted to honor a rich tradition of stories that involve historical times, steam engines and of course, a megadose of paranormal activity. 

Balthazar Starblitz tells the story of Flip McCabe, a young LA guy who answers an ad to work in a tea shop at Union Station. When he gets there, he finds the tea shop doesn't exist…except that it does. It is trapped in time appearing and disappearing on an old steam train line at the fabled train station.

I had so much fun writing this story and wove in certain well known criminals from the past who were all somehow involved with train travel. Remember Winnie Ruth Judd, who arrived at Union Station with her steamer trunks containing the hacked-up bodies of her best friends?

No? Well, here's your opportunity to get to know her since she was in the past an obsession of mine. And then there is Balthazar Starblitz, a werewolf whom Flip falls for before he learns the secret of the were's lonely existence.

Here is the link for Balthazar Starblitz: http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/BalthazarStarblitz.html

And the blurb: 

When Flip McCabe spots an unusual ad in a magazine requesting a young man or woman to train in the fine art of tea service, he's pleasantly surprised to learn that it's still available. He needs this job—any job—desperately, but his new boss, Mr. Chen, will mysteriously tell him only to report for duty at Platform Thirteen at LA's Union Station at nine o'clock the following morning. 

Arriving in plenty of time, Flip becomes panic-stricken when he can't find any such platform, nor is there a tea shop listed at the bustling railway station. Frantic to get to work, he stumbles across an old line on an outdoor platform and is catapulted in another era of the station somewhere else in time. 

The elegant, old-worldly Mr. Chen dispenses tea and serious help for those who need it, but his frail body is no longer up to the dangerous escapades involved with murder, mayhem and steam trains. Flip is sent back to the past to help various famous, often wrongfully convicted criminals, and then plunged back to the present to find a man who needs not only his help, but his love. 

But will Flip be able to aid the dynamic, exhilarating Balthazar Starblitz, a werewolf on the run from charges related to a series of grisly murders he did not commit? 

Genres: Gay/Steampunk/Dark Fantasy/Werewolf/Action/Adventure/Time Travel 

Heat Level: 3 

Length: Novella (23k words) 

Aloha oe,

A.J.

www.ajllewellyn.com

*_*_*_*

If you'd like the chance to win the entire pax collection, just leave a comment on today's post. On Saturday, a winner will be picked at random from all the comments made this week on the blog. Comment on all five, and that's five chances to win!

What is steampunk?

When I decided to write this story, it was a little scary, like going into a world I had little connection with or knowledge of. The first thing I asked myself was… what in the world is Steam punk and how do you write a story worthy of being called one?

The answers I received varied widely. Basically, I was told that steam punk is anything with steam in it.  Steam? Okay, old steam engines, a flat iron, industrial revolution…ah... great. So I’d signed on to write a story about an old steam engine? How thrilling! How in the world was I going to write a story someone wanted to read about an old steam engine?

But there is a lot more to steam punk than steam. Steam punk is the unusual. It can be a melting pot of genres wrapped around the mysterious and the unknown, kind of cool and different but with all the elements we’ve come to love in our genre. Steam Punk is like entering a cave to go exploring and finding the unexpected that feels well…somehow familiar.

Harnessing just came to me. Angus tells the story of how as a child everything was turned upside down when the blood drinkers came out of the skies and took over his world. He lost everything. His entire life became devoted to finding a way to defeat them, to take back his world.

But things don’t always go as planned. All seemed lost until he came, beautiful and deadly; Shylar just walked into his world, and represented all Angus had come to despise.

But then steam punk is all about the unexpected and the unusual. Read it and find out.

*_*_*_*

Angus has never known freedom. He was born into a world overtaken by aliens who drank the blood of humans. Only Doctor Often offered hope for survival, and every day a fascinated Angus would sneak into the caves to watch the brilliant man tinker in a laboratory with its menagerie of gadgets, glued-together test tubes, and frayed wires.

Then one day, Angus goes home only to discover both his mother and little brother missing. Alone, he returns to Doctor Often, who trains and mentors him. As time passes, Angus and the doctor build their underground community, rescuing humans while food sources dwindle for both aliens and humans alike. Meanwhile, they also work on a steam engine that will one day, hopefully, allow them to build a flying machine to fight their overseers in the sky. But even though steam is the necessity to their possible survival, it’s also in dreadfully short supply.

When a blood-drinker named Shylar surprisingly surrenders to Doctor Often and his followers, he says he can supply them with steam, claims he holds the key to defeating his own race, and will help them restore the world to the remaining humans. But can Angus and the doctor trust one of their world’s bloodthirsty captors, even if Angus has seen the compelling and alluring vampire in his dreams? Is Shylar leading them all into a deadly trap, or is the beautiful, mysterious alien their dark angel?

Harnessing is now available at Amber Allure.

If you'd like the chance to win the entire pax collection, just leave a comment on today's post. On Saturday, a winner will be picked at random from all the comments made this week on the blog. Comment on all five, and that's five chances to win!