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New Amsterdam by Elizabeth Bear
Aug. 29th, 2008 05:54 pmIt begins in 1899 with a vampire detective aboard a Zeppelin, migrating to the colonies, and ends in 1903 with Tesla and Paris. I say this first and in relative isolation because there are a few people who won’t care about anything I have to say beyond that.
A collection of six stories ranging from short story to novella length, creating a continuous, novel length story despite each individual story managing to stand on its own, New Amsterdam is an AU book set from 1809-1903, in a world where England still controls the American colonies. Part steampunk, part eldritch horror and part detective noir, the book focus on the lives of Lady Abigail Irene Garrett, a sorceress and Detective Crown Investigator for the English crown, and Don Sebastien de Ulloa, a wampyr (vampire) over a thousand years old who is also a renown detective, as well as Abigail Irene’s friend and sometimes lover, and their various loves.
Abigail Irene (never to be referred to only as Abigail) drinks too much and has been famous for both her lovers and her beauty, though she seems to have slowed down a bit as she approaches her middle years. Absolutely loyal to the crown-and the former lover of Prince Henry, heir to the thrown-Abigail Irene finds herself in the position of being far from home and caught between different political factions, the crown, nobility who expects her to cover for them before standing for justice, and a mayor who plots rebellion. A mortal with mortal worries and investments, her concerns lie in her here and now, and what side is ultimately best for her generation, and the next few.
Sebastien is so old that he doesn’t remember his real name, or even the name of the town where he was born. His chief concern is for the people in his life, his court. First, there’s Jack, his young courtesan who dreams of revolution. Then, of course, there’s Abigail Irene, who probably comes closer to understanding him than any one else. Then there’s Phoebe, an American authoress he met aboard the zeppelin, and with whom he later seeks shelter. Last, there’s David, another wampyr he turned centuries before, eventually moved on, but who seeks him again. The larger picture is only an issue with him in terms of his court and their wants. Not because he doesn’t care about mortals (there’s no “bad boy emo anti-hero” air about him) but because he knows that, in a few generations, it won’t matter anymore because someone else will decide the world needs changing again.
( Slightly spoilery ramble about relationships and sexuality in the book. )
Some people, I suspect, will have problems with the ending, but I thought it was extremely fitting with the theme of the book. It’s written to give a fitting conclusion to the story, not to give the readers warm and fuzzy feelings.
A collection of six stories ranging from short story to novella length, creating a continuous, novel length story despite each individual story managing to stand on its own, New Amsterdam is an AU book set from 1809-1903, in a world where England still controls the American colonies. Part steampunk, part eldritch horror and part detective noir, the book focus on the lives of Lady Abigail Irene Garrett, a sorceress and Detective Crown Investigator for the English crown, and Don Sebastien de Ulloa, a wampyr (vampire) over a thousand years old who is also a renown detective, as well as Abigail Irene’s friend and sometimes lover, and their various loves.
Abigail Irene (never to be referred to only as Abigail) drinks too much and has been famous for both her lovers and her beauty, though she seems to have slowed down a bit as she approaches her middle years. Absolutely loyal to the crown-and the former lover of Prince Henry, heir to the thrown-Abigail Irene finds herself in the position of being far from home and caught between different political factions, the crown, nobility who expects her to cover for them before standing for justice, and a mayor who plots rebellion. A mortal with mortal worries and investments, her concerns lie in her here and now, and what side is ultimately best for her generation, and the next few.
Sebastien is so old that he doesn’t remember his real name, or even the name of the town where he was born. His chief concern is for the people in his life, his court. First, there’s Jack, his young courtesan who dreams of revolution. Then, of course, there’s Abigail Irene, who probably comes closer to understanding him than any one else. Then there’s Phoebe, an American authoress he met aboard the zeppelin, and with whom he later seeks shelter. Last, there’s David, another wampyr he turned centuries before, eventually moved on, but who seeks him again. The larger picture is only an issue with him in terms of his court and their wants. Not because he doesn’t care about mortals (there’s no “bad boy emo anti-hero” air about him) but because he knows that, in a few generations, it won’t matter anymore because someone else will decide the world needs changing again.
( Slightly spoilery ramble about relationships and sexuality in the book. )
Some people, I suspect, will have problems with the ending, but I thought it was extremely fitting with the theme of the book. It’s written to give a fitting conclusion to the story, not to give the readers warm and fuzzy feelings.