Books like 'Quintessence'
Readers who enjoyed Quintessence by David Walton also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy alternate history action / adventure urban fantasy steampunk industrial-era historical-fiction magic alchemy
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The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsJohannes Cabal, a necromancer of some little infamy, has come into possession of a vital clue that may lead him to his ultimate goal: a cure for death. The path is vague, however, and certainly treacherous as it takes him into strange territories that, quite literally, no one has ever seen before... -
![The Untold Story by Genevieve Cogman]()
The Untold Story by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn this thrilling historical fantasy, time-traveling Librarian spy Irene will need to delve deep into a tangled web of loyalty and power to keep her friends safe.Irene is trying to learn the truth about Alberich-and the possibility that he's her father...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley]()
The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 29 ratings1888. Five years after they met in The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, Thaniel Steepleton, an unassuming translator, and Keita Mori, the watchmaker who remembers the future, are traveling to Japan. Thaniel has received an unexpected posting to the British legation in Tokyo, and Mori has business that is taking him to Yokohama... -
![Spellbound by Larry Correia]()
Spellbound by Larry Correia
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsDark fantasy goes hardboiled in #2 of the hard-hitting Grimnoir Chronicles by the New York Times best-selling creator of Monster Hunter International... -
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![Sword and Pen by Rachel Caine]()
Sword and Pen by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsWith the future of the Great Library in doubt, the unforgettable characters from Ink and Bone must decide if it's worth saving in this thrilling adventure in the New York Times bestselling series.The corrupt leadership of the Great Library has fallen. But with the Archivist plotting his return to power, and the Library under siege from outside empires and kingdoms, its future is uncertain...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud]()
The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsWhen the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine]()
Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFor the US hardback, see ISBN13: 9780451489210.To save the Great Library, the unforgettable characters from Ink and Bone, Paper and Fire, and Ash and Quill put themselves in danger in the next thrilling adventure in the New York Times bestselling series.The opening moves of a deadly game have begun...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Convent's Secret by C.J. Archer]()
The Convent's Secret by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsTo find the one man who can fix the magic in Matt’s watch, he and India are led to a convent where the nuns will do anything to keep their secrets private. Including murder? Matt and India must uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the mother superior and two babies given to her care many years ago. But sometimes, the truth is painful and its exposure can have deadly consequences...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Kindred Rites by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel]()
Kindred Rites by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNow that Alfreda has begun to learn the Wise Arts, she is needed at home in the village of Sun Return. The woods around the cabin are alive with poltergeists. Candles light by themselves, and even the rocks dance. There is much work for an apprentice practitioner.But a more dangerous task calls. For a new family has moved to the frontier; a family with strange ambitions and even stranger powers... -
![The Shadow of Water by Jacquelyn Benson]()
The Shadow of Water by Jacquelyn Benson
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsLily Albright can see the future, and it looks like hell. In an England on the brink of war, Lily is plagued by visions of the cataclysmic destruction of London. An ancient prophecy is coming to fruition, and it starts with the gruesome discovery of a corpse in the sewers.To save her city, Lily must untangle a web of conspiracy and violence... -
![In Plain Sight by Dan Willis]()
In Plain Sight by Dan Willis
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen a magical plague is released in a Depression-era New York soup kitchen, private detective Alex Lockerby finds himself in a desperate hunt to catch a madman before he can strike again.His investigations lead Alex to a famous thief, a daring heist, and the search for a mythic book of ancient magic, but none of that brings him any closer to finding the man responsible for the massacre... -
![Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg]()
Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsDead wizards, stolen enchantments, and broken promises force a young spellbreaker out of the shadows in the next thrilling installment of the Spellbreaker series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.England, 1895. An unsolved series of magician murders and opus thefts isn’t a puzzle to Elsie Camden...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Rising by Ian Tregillis]()
The Rising by Ian Tregillis
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe second book in the Alchemy Wars trilogy by Ian Tregillis, an epic tale of liberation and war. Jax, a rogue Clakker, has wreaked havoc upon the Clockmakers' Guild by destroying the Grand Forge. Reborn in the flames, he must begin his life as a free Clakker, but liberation proves its own burden...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era steampunk action-adventure adult ai alternate-history audiobook -
![The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon]()
The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsThe hotly anticipated third book in the bestselling Bone Season series – a ground-breaking, dystopian fantasy of extraordinary imaginationFollowing a bloody battle against foes on every side, Paige Mahoney has risen to the dangerous position of Underqueen, ruling over London's criminal population... -
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![The Magician's Diary by C.J. Archer]()
The Magician's Diary by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsPRAISE FOR C.J. ARCHER'S GLASS AND STEELE SERIES: "Part romance, part mystery, part magic; all of which a joy to read." - Dreamer J's Book Reviews "This story has everything I look for in a quality, entertaining piece of fiction. 1) A strong female lead, 2) a dark and mysterious male character (I admit, they are my weakness), 3) eloquent writing, and 4) lots of quirky humor and banter...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Marking Time by April White]()
Marking Time by April White
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSeventeen-year-old tagger Saira Elian can handle anything... a mother who mysteriously disappears, a stranger who stalks her around London, and even the noble English Grandmother who kicked Saira and her mother out of the family... -
![The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman]()
The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsA corrupt countessA spy in dangerAnd an assassin at largeThe fifth title in Genevieve Cogman's witty and wonderful Invisible Library series, The Mortal Word is a rollicking literary adventure.Peace talks are always tricky, especially when a key diplomat gets stabbed. This rudely interrupts a top-secret summit between the warring dragons and Fae...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Night Calls by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel]()
Night Calls by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe werewolves came shattering the peace of the village of Sun Return. Five were taken before the girl's parents agreed to give her up. They called in Cousin Cory, Aunt Marta, all the known practitioners. The ones who could teach me how to hide in a leaf, dip into minds, and find the secret herbs that heal. Her childhood now over, the girl must face the Dark of the Other Side... -
![The Lost Plot by Genevieve Cogman]()
The Lost Plot by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsAfter being commissioned to find a rare book, Librarian Irene and her assistant, Kai, head to Prohibition-era New York and are thrust into the middle of a political fight with dragons, mobsters, and Fae. In a 1920s-esque New York, Prohibition is in force; fedoras, flapper dresses, and tommy guns are in fashion: and intrigue is afoot...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Dark Archive by Genevieve Cogman]()
The Dark Archive by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsA professional spy for a mysterious Library which harvests fiction from different realities, Irene faces a series of assassination attempts that threaten to destroy her and everything she has worked for.Irene is teaching her new assistant the fundamentals of a Librarian's job, and finding that training a young Fae is more difficult than she expected... -
![Stolen Magic by Stephanie Burgis]()
Stolen Magic by Stephanie Burgis
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen Kat’s family travels to a grand country house on the Devon coast for her sister Angeline’s wedding, Kat is stalked by a dangerous magical enemy - and finds everything she thought she knew about her late mother called into question...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic action-adventure alternate-history book children family -
![The Shotgun Arcana by R.S. Belcher]()
The Shotgun Arcana by R.S. Belcher
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsR. S. Belcher’s debut novel, The Six-Gun Tarot, was enthusiastically greeted by critics and readers, who praised its wildly inventive mixture of dark fantasy, steampunk, and the Wild West. Now Belcher returns to Golgotha, Nevada, a bustling frontier town that hides more than its fair share of unnatural secrets.1870...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure adult alternate-history angels -
![Hexbreaker by Jordan L. Hawk]()
Hexbreaker by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsWill a dark history doom their future together?New York copper Tom Halloran is a man with a past. If anyone finds out he once ran with the notorious O'Connell tunnel gang, he'll spend the rest of his life doing hard time behind bars. But Tom's secret is threatened when a horrible murder on his beat seems to have been caused by the same ancient magic that killed his gang... -
![The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman]()
The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsA Librarian’s work is never done, and once Irene has a quick rest after their latest adventure, she is summoned to the Library. The world where she grew up is in danger of veering deep into chaos, and she needs to obtain a particular book to stop this from happening...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
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![The Apothecary's Poison by C.J. Archer]()
The Apothecary's Poison by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen a newspaper report of a medical miracle catches Matt's eye, he and India go in search of Dr. Hale in the hope he is more magical doctor than miracle worker and can lead them to Chronos. But Hale turns out to be an apothecary magician keen to educate the public about magic. Their disappointment at not finding Chronos is soon forgotten when Hale is murdered, and Matt becomes a suspect...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May]()
The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsEverything she loved is gone.Trapped. Aileana Kameron, the Falconer, disappeared through the fae portal she was trying to close forever. Now she wakes in an alien world of mirrors, magic, and deception—a prisoner of the evil fae Lonnrach, who has a desperate and deadly plan for his new captive.Tortured...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alpha-mc alternate-history book -
![The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman]()
The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsJune 1812. Just weeks after her catastrophic coming-out ball, Lady Helen Wrexhall—now disowned by her uncle—is a full member of the demon-hunting Dark Days Club. Her mentor, Lord Carlston, has arranged for Helen to spend the summer season in Brighton so that he can train her new Reclaimer powers... -
![A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark]()
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsNebula, Locus, and Alex Award-winner P. Djèlí Clark returns to his popular alternate Cairo universe for his fantasy novel debut, A Master of DjinnCairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha’arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she’s certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure adult africa alternate-history -
![The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi]()
The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsThey are each other's fiercest love, greatest danger, and only hope. Séverin and his team members might have successfully thwarted the Fallen House, but victory came at a terrible cost -- one that still haunts all of them. Desperate to make amends, Séverin pursues a dangerous lead to find a long lost artifact rumoured to grant its possessor the power of God... -
![Magician's Ward by Patricia C. Wrede]()
Magician's Ward by Patricia C. Wrede
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsWhen Mairelon made Kim his ward, he promised to teach her to be a lady and a magician. But magic proves to be harder than it looks for a girl who has just learned to read, and being a lady is even harder. Before frustration - and Merrill's formidably correct aunt - can drive her mad, a mysterious gentleman attempts to burgle the Merrill town house...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history book children -
![Of Noble Family by Mary Robinette Kowal]()
Of Noble Family by Mary Robinette Kowal
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe final book of the acclaimed Glamourist Histories is the magical adventure that might result if Jane Austen walked on the darker side of the Regency...Jane and Vincent have finally gotten some much-needed rest after their adventures in Italy when Vincent receives word that his estranged father has passed away on one of his properties in the West Indies... -
![Hemmed in Silver by Forthright .]()
Hemmed in Silver by Forthright .
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFairies in the garden. Frost on the pumpkins. Farmhands at the dance. Wyn Outler doesn’t talk about where he came from (or how long ago). All part of the vows he took when he and his best friend turned their backs on the In-between...Categorized as:
industrial-era magic action-adventure adult alternate-history book coming-of-age fiction -
![The Timeseer's Gambit by Kate McIntyre]()
The Timeseer's Gambit by Kate McIntyre
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt’s been three months since mild-mannered Christopher Buckley began working with Olivia Faraday, the eccentric Deathsniffer. They’ve hunted killers, solved murders, and learned to work together. But their greatest challenges are yet to come…As a brutal heat wave wracks an increasingly unstable Darrington City, someone is killing young priests. Worse, they are using bound elementals to do it...Categorized as:
industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure adult alternate-history alternate-universe book -
![Time of Trial by Michael Pryor]()
Time of Trial by Michael Pryor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIn the fourth book of this utterly addictive series, magical genius Aubrey Fitzwilliam is heading deep into the heart of enemy territoryluckily, with his friends by his side It may look like a simple wire device, but the Beccaria Cage could be the cure for Aubrey's condition: a way to reunite his body and soul. But can Aubrey solve its mysteries while Dr...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history book fiction -
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![Word of Honour by Michael Pryor]()
Word of Honour by Michael Pryor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSinister plots, schemes within schemes, magical upheavals, and a world to save from evil. As always, Aubrey goes looking for trouble--and finds it, in spades.Magical genius Aubrey Fitzwilliam, along with his loyal friend George, is trying to immerse himself in his new life at university. But for Aubrey life is never straightforward... -
![The Queen of Swords by R.S. Belcher]()
The Queen of Swords by R.S. Belcher
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings1870. Maude Stapleton, late of Golgotha, Nevada, is a respectable widow raising a daughter on her own. Few know that Maude belongs to an ancient order of assassins, the Daughters of Lilith, and is as well the great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Anne Bonney, the legendary female pirate...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure adult alternate-history book -
![The Cecelia and Kate Novels: Sorcery & Cecelia, The Grand Tour, and The Mislaid Magician by Patricia C. Wrede]()
The Cecelia and Kate Novels: Sorcery & Cecelia, The Grand Tour, and The Mislaid Magician by Patricia C. Wrede
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsCourageous cousins are forced to do battle with magical foes in this series, collected here in a single volume In Sorcery & Cecelia, cousins Kate and Cecelia have been inseparable since childhood. But in 1817, as they approach adulthood, their families force them to spend a summer apart... -
![The Paradox by Charlie Fletcher]()
The Paradox by Charlie Fletcher
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSOMETIMES YOU LOOK IN THE MIRROR – SOMETIMES IT LOOKS BACKThose who belong to the secret society called the Oversight know many things. They know cold iron will hold back the beasts in the darkness. They know it is dangerous to stand between two mirrors. And they know that, despite their dwindling numbers, it remains their duty to protect humanity from the supernatural. And vice versa...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Renegade Magic by Stephanie Burgis]()
Renegade Magic by Stephanie Burgis
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe feisty Kat Stephenson is back in the second installment of the Regency era magical trilogy Kirkus Reviews calls “enjoyable mayhem...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic action-adventure alternate-history book children comedy -
![Chainbreaker by Tara Sim]()
Chainbreaker by Tara Sim
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsClock mechanic Danny Hart knows he's being watched. But by whom, or what, remains a mystery. To make matters worse, clock towers have begun falling in India, though time hasn't Stopped yet. He'd hoped after reuniting with his father and exploring his relationship with Colton, he'd have some time to settle into his new life. Instead, he's asked to investigate the attacks... -
![The Ink Master's Silence by C.J. Archer]()
The Ink Master's Silence by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIt should be a happy time for India and Matt, but forces beyond their control conspire to ruin their future. A distraction from their troubles comes in the form of murder. When the editor of The Weekly Gazette is killed, controversial journalist and ink magician Oscar Barratt asks India and Matt to investigate...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Her Majesty's Necromancer by C.J. Archer]()
Her Majesty's Necromancer by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen bodies go missing from the cemetery, Lincoln and the Ministry of Curiosities investigate. But not Charlie. As a housemaid at Lichfield Towers, she doesn't get involved in Ministry business.Instead, she conducts investigations of her own. She searches for details about her real mother, and makes inquiries into Lincoln's background...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine]()
Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWords can kill. Hoarding all the knowledge of the world, the Great Library jealously guards its secrets. But now a group of rebels poses a dangerous threat to its tyranny… Jess Brightwell and his band of exiles have fled London, only to find themselves imprisoned in Philadelphia, a city led by those who would rather burn books than submit... -
![Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg]()
Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsA world of enchanted injustice needs a disenchanting woman in the newest fantasy series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.The orphaned Elsie Camden learned as a girl that there were two kinds of wizards in the world: those who pay for the power to cast spells and those, like her, born with the ability to break them... -
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![Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine]()
Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsLet the world burn.With an iron fist, the Great Library controls the knowledge of the world, ruthlessly stamping out all rebellion and, in the name of the greater good, forbidding the personal ownership of books.Jess Brightwell has survived his introduction to the sinister, seductive world of the Library, but serving in its army is nothing like he envisioned... -
![The Plastic Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg]()
The Plastic Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWall Street Journal bestselling author Charlie N. Holmberg returns to the enchanting world of The Paper Magician.Alvie Brechenmacher has arrived in London to begin her training in Polymaking—the magical discipline of bespelling plastic. Polymaking is the newest form of magic, and in a field where there is so much left to learn, every Polymaker dreams of making the next big discovery... -
![The Mapmaker's Apprentice by C.J. Archer]()
The Mapmaker's Apprentice by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen an apprentice from the Mapmakers' Guild goes missing, Matt and India are employed to find him. Going undercover as a married couple, they discover that not everyone at the guild is what they seem, and the lad's unearthly maps caused jealousy, suspicion and fear...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby]()
The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsThree ordinary children are brought together by extraordinary events...Giuseppe is an orphaned street musician from Italy, who was sold by his uncle to work as a slave for an evil padrone in the U.S. But when a mysterious green violin enters his life he begins to imagine a life of freedom...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book -
![Manners and Monsters by Tilly Wallace]()
Manners and Monsters by Tilly Wallace
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA lady never reveals the true extent of her decay... Hannah Miles lives a quiet existence, helping her parents conduct research into a most terrible affliction - until a gruesome murder during her best friend's engagement party pulls her from the shadows. With her specialist's knowledge and demure disposition, Hannah is requested to aid the investigation... -
![Crucible Zero by Devon Monk]()
Crucible Zero by Devon Monk
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe national bestselling author of Infinity Bell returns to her “fresh and unique”* world where the truce between the ruling Houses has shattered and chaos now reigns. Only one woman has the power to save the world—but she could also destroy it...Matilda Case never thought of herself as a hero...Categorized as:
industrial-era magic steampunk action-adventure adult alternate-history book dystopia
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