Review: Ghost Machine: A Gothic Steampunk Novel by Kristen Brand

(The author sent me a free copy of this book in return for an honest review)

The combination of Gothic and Steampunk isn’t as unusual as one might at first think. The genre of science fiction actually has its origins in the early gothic pulps, many of which incorporated scientific elements in their plots. See, for example: Frankenstein; Dracula; The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Poe’s novella “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” and so on.

Ghost Machine begins in that most gothic of locals- an isolated asylum ( in Transylvania, no less! Though, there are no vampires to be found). Ella Rosenfeld has been brought to Auttenberg Asylum by her parents to cure her of the visions she’s been suffering from ever since she was caught in an accident involving her father’s automata creations. Ella is having hallucinations of ghosts, you see.  Well, she and her family would like to believe they’re only hallucinations. But Ella soon realizes the unquiet spirits she sees are quite real. And, unlucky for her, the head psychiatrist of the asylum, Dr. Grünewald, fully believes in her abilities too and furthermore intends to turn her into his prized test subject whether she is willing or not. After enduring several days of the doctor’s excruciatingly painful experiments, Ella escapes and manages to make it to the castle of Baron Szarka, a local noble and her inventor father’s current benefactor. But Dr. Grünewald will not let Ella go that easily and soon comes after her with a small army- including a gigantic iron war automaton (a surprising technological marvel for a seemingly ordinary medical doctor to have at his disposal...)

Ghost Machine starts off as a mostly gothic story with little dashes of Victorian “mad science” here and there. But as the novel progresses the steampunk elements become more pronounced, including the appearance of lightning guns, flying metal giants and that classic of the genre- airships. Brand seamlessly melds both genres together in her tale, and indeed supernatural and super-science eventually come together in an excellent denouement.

I really like the character of Ella Rosenfeld. Despite all the danger and pulpy action happening around her, she never feels like an unrealistically over-the-top “badass”. She is, rather, a very real normal young woman surviving a dangerous situation through resourcefulness and not a little bravery.

I appreciate that injury is handled realistically. A quarter of the way through the book, Ella’s foot is severely frostbitten and the pain and risk of infection continues to plague her throughout the rest of the story, though she does her best to deal with it.

I also appreciate that, although Grünewald and his staff are cruel and corrupt, the book portrays institutions for the treatment of mental illnesses as essentially good and positive places if they have genuinely compassionate administrators. 

  

 Ghost Machine is a great blending of gothic and steampunk that will please fans of either genre. You can get a copy on Amazon

And check out Kristen Brand's website here.