Break Time

by Pat Bertram, J. Conrad Guest, J.J. Dare

Welcome to Break Time, a collaborative steampunk anthology written by seven authors from four countries—USA, New Zealand, Canada, Australia—who have never met. The year is 1966. Steam still reigns. Oil never became king. Coal is used to heat water to create steam to run engines, and because of it, pollution is a serious problem. The last war was the Great War. World War II never happened. There was no Korean Conflict, and no build up of troops in Vietnam. Despite what might be idealistic times, not everyone is happy. Alexander Giston, 64 years old in 1966, invented a machine that broke time and allowed him to return to the past and save his wife and son from the train wreck that took their lives. Heeding his advice, they agreed to travel by aeroship instead, and were lost when the aeroship went down. A third attempt failed to keep them from dying. Al promised himself he wouldn’t again attempt to save his wife and son. Instead he decided to go to the past to kill steam, the means of their death. But some who live and prosper because of steam will do anything to save their way of life, even to kill Al as often as they need to.

164 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 29, 2014

About the author

Pat Bertram is the author of the suspense novels MADAME ZEEZEE'S NIGHTMARE, UNFINISHED, LIGHT BRINGER, DAUGHTER AM I, MORE DEATHS THAN ONE, and A SPARK OF HEAVENLY FIRE. Bertram is also the author of GRIEF: THE GREAT YEARNING, “an exquisite book, wrenching to read, and at the same time full of profound truths.”