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The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack

(Burton & Swinburne #1)

Mark Hodder (Goodreads Author)

3.69 · Rating details · 6,873 ratings · 911 reviews

London, 1861.

Sir Richard Francis Burton—explorer, linguist, scholar, and swordsman; his reputation tarnished; his career in tatters; his former partner missing and probably dead.

Algernon Charles Swinburne—unsuccessful poet and follower of de Sade; for whom pain is pleasure, and brandy is ruin!

They stand at a crossroads in their lives and are caught in the epicenter of an e ...more

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Paperback, 371 pages

Published September 7th 2010 by Pyr (first published 2010)

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May 20, 2010 Stephen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sherlockian, punked, science-fiction, 2006-2010, ebooks, award-nominee-philip-k-dick, mystery, alternative-history

This super debut novel is like a sweet, dainty cup of mild English tea...if it was spiked with Absinthe, poured into a heavy brass goblet and served with Laudanum-laced cookies shaped like medical experiments gone awry. In other words, a great blend of prim, proper and the freakishly bizarre...somebody pass the hookah, this one’s gonna get weird.

Set in 1861 in an ~~Victorian~~ Albertian England, Mark Hodder has created one of the most enticingly strange and intriguing steampunk worlds I have come a ...more

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Dec 13, 2013 David - proud Gleeman in Branwen's adventuring party rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015-reads, science-fiction, steampunk, i-trust-irena

"Book, you have the right to a speedy trial" review

THE DEFENSE
- A brilliant reimagining of several historical figures.
- Loved how philosophical themes like "technology vs. humanity" and "propriety vs. freedom" were explored.
- Exemplary world-building and atmosphere throughout.
- Author succeeds where so many other sci-fi writers have failed, he manages to explore alternate timelines without being confusing at all!
- Swinburne is especially entertaining!

THE PROSECUTION
- Not enou ...more

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Jan 20, 2012 mark monday rated it it was ok

Shelves: fog-and-gears, i-gave-up

EH? EH! this desperate steampunk non-adventure plays like an overly hysterical farce with delusions of grandeur. although seemingly full of creative ideas, those ideas have run sadly amuck. there is no grounding of the frivolity within interesting characterization or sparkling dialogue - both of which remain almost obstinately insipid and amateurish; famous english personages are tossed around willy-nilly with little sense and zero resonance; cutesie-poo preciousness is found everywhere, from th ...more

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Dec 17, 2010 Brad rated it liked it

Shelves: steampunk, forty-for-2012-personal-challenge, sci-fantasy, new-novella

I'm sitting here trying to decide how to say what I need to say about The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack, and I can't get my review of Cherie Priest’s Boneshaker out of my head. So I'm going let it inspire me:

I dug Mark Hodder’s The Strange Affair of Spring-heeled Jack, but it was too damn much.

I dug Albertan England, but the changes from the Victorian England I am familiar with were too outrageous, too far beyond what even my whacked-out imagination could accept.

I dug the loups-garous, b ...more

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Jul 23, 2019 YouKneeK rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: completed-series, science-fiction

The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack is the first book in a steampunk series called “Burton & Swinburne”. This was a crazy, fun book. It’s kinda sorta set in the Victorian era and features many historical figures who are misused to serve the author’s evil purposes. I could imagine this book would surely drive some people crazy, but I really enjoyed it even while recognizing it has some flaws.

The main characters, Burton and Swinburne, are two of the aforementioned real people from history. Th The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack is the first book in a steampunk series called “Burton & Swinburne”. This was a crazy, fun book. It’s kinda sorta set in the Victorian era and features many historical figures who are misused to serve the author’s evil purposes. I could imagine this book would surely drive some people crazy, but I really enjoyed it even while recognizing it has some flaws.

The main characters, Burton and Swinburne, are two of the aforementioned real people from history. The story focuses mainly on Burton, but Swinburne plays more of a role eventually. Near the beginning of the book, Burton has returned to London after learning that a man he knew well has shot himself. While walking home drunk from a pub, he’s accosted by a strangely costumed man on spring-loaded stilts who leaps out of nowhere, beats him up, and yells at him to do what he’s supposed to do. Burton has never seen this man before and has no idea what he’s talking about.

In addition to the steampunk-type technology, there are also genetically altered creatures. They’re a bit silly, but fun. I particularly enjoyed the potty-mouth parakeets; I’m not sure what that says about me! Of course, nothing could beat the broom cats. Has there ever been a cat owner in all of history who has NEVER tried to convince their cat to serve as a broom? This is probably why modern cats love Roombas so much. (Lest anybody read this book and end up horribly disappointed, broom cats do not play a significant role in this book. They’re just briefly mentioned.)

This is probably not a book to read if unrealistic science bothers you. The genetic creations are pretty unlikely, and even the technological creations are more than a small stretch in the context of the story. The book might also bother people who want their historical figures to be portrayed consistent with how history portrays them. The history wasn’t much of a problem for me since I don’t know UK history well, and for the rest of it I found that I was able to suspend my disbelief pretty easily and just go with the flow. I found it a lot of fun, the story kept me interested as I worked to connect the scattered dots, and it made me laugh a lot. If I have one complaint, it was that people seemed to go off the deep end awfully easily, which made it difficult for me to buy into some of the characters' behaviors. Some of the characters did have experiences that would have been shocking and horrible to actually experience, yet I believe humans are more resilient than they were portrayed in this book.

I did like that my edition had some brief explanations at the end of the book about both the real legend of spring heeled jack as well as the many historical figures who showed up in the book. I was a little bit overwhelmed in the very beginning by all of these characters who had wiki entries when I touched their names in my Kindle, because only a few were familiar to me. However, the character introductions eventually settled down and I was able to keep everybody straight. I didn’t worry too much about who they really were while I read the book, but I was more interested in reading that historical info at the end of the book after I had already spent a few hundred pages with their fictional counterparts.

This book tells a complete story. I’m not sure if the setting can sustain my interest for an entire six-book series, but I enjoyed this first one well enough that I’m going to continue on to the second and see how things go. ...more

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May 27, 2012 David rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: sexy Indian nuns, time traveling perverts, poets who like a good birching

Shelves: audiobook, british-literature, england, urban-fantasy, victorian, time-travel, historical, 19th-century, steampunk, alternate-history

Steampunk is all the rage nowadays. The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack seizes the trend in an intriguingly weird story that turns history on its head, thanks to the inept bungling of a time-traveler who, in our world, was one of the most notorious urban legends of Victorian England.

I am not really a huge fan of steampunk. Actually, to put it bluntly, I think most steampunk is stupid, an excuse to mix corsets and Anglophilia with science fiction.

But I enjoyed this book a lot. It's rip-roari ...more

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Mar 25, 2015 Kaitlin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: my-sff-faves

This book was brilliant and one of the best books I have picked up in a while because of how vastly different it was, and yet thoroughly engrossing. I tend to read a lot of Epic or High Fantasy which is what I love to read, but this rings more as an adventure, Victorian-era fiction, Steampunk Fantasy and Sci-fi story all rolled into one. You may think that sounds like an awful lot of stuff, and it is, but it works!

Having never heard of or read anything by Hodder prior to this I went into this wi This book was brilliant and one of the best books I have picked up in a while because of how vastly different it was, and yet thoroughly engrossing. I tend to read a lot of Epic or High Fantasy which is what I love to read, but this rings more as an adventure, Victorian-era fiction, Steampunk Fantasy and Sci-fi story all rolled into one. You may think that sounds like an awful lot of stuff, and it is, but it works!

Having never heard of or read anything by Hodder prior to this I went into this with a very open mind and no real expectations other than I loved the cover designs, and one of my friends gave it a 5* review so I knew it had to be decent. I didn't know what it was other than it was a kind of absurdist steampunk novel, and I certainly didn't think I would fall in love with it as much as I did.

This is the story of a rather wacky world. It's kind of like our Victorian period, but it's also got a lot more cool inventions and some very comical characters. The author has clearly looked into people of the era who were influential and famous, and these make up the main part of the cast, however they do not act as they would have done in our world because the land that they live in is so different and wacky that their stories in this book are a lot more colourful and fun than their 'real--life' histories.

This book has some exceptionally witty and truly wonderful writing. Whilst it doesn't swerve away from bold language in some scenes, there's always a sense that you're living and reading about the proper period of history and even with the added contraptions of the world, there's a distinct gentlemanly feeling which sort of echoes Sherlock.

A large amount of this story focuses on two characters, Burton and Swinburne (as the title of the series would suggest). These two are pretty funny characters indeed with Burton being a famous explorer and the main protagonist, and Swinburne a semi-famous poet who is sort of a reluctantly accepted side-kick. These two make for some wonderful conversation and discourse, with a whole lot of charm and charisma thrown in too. They bounce well off of one another, and work well together as a team. I have to say that they were wonderful characters to get to know!

I actually listened to this on audiobook largely and I have to say I think that the Narrator, Gerard Doyle, was fabulous at making this world yet more exhilarating and the characters far more apt to their roles and society than I could have imagined in my head. He did some stellar voice acting and I would highly recommend this as a series you may consider to listen to.

However, equally another aspect which I loved about the physical edition was that at the start of every chapter we had something like a note, letter or advert which was either related to the story, characters or the world, and by far the adverts were my favourite. Over the course of this book we see a fair few absurd and hilarious advertisements and flyers with the appropriate embellishments of the time for all manner of bizarre and wonderful product such as motorised penny farthings to beard growing kits. It made me chuckle and smile every time I got to a new chapter!

Finally, what is the story all about? Well this is a funny one to explain because although everything links up we actually have 3 parts to the book, the first focusing on Burton as he returns from and adventure to find that his friend and enemy has supposedly died, and everything he wanted in his life is severely shaken when he's assigned a role by appointment of the King. His story gets more and more crazy but suffice to say it eventually involves a rather deranged and wild character of Spring-Heeled Jack who is a vibrant, interesting and baffling character all at once.
The second part of the story focuses on a character called Oxford who becomes an interesting part of the story and tells his own version of events which we have already experienced with our initial character.
The final part was the convergence of both storylines, and I have to say I think the book was wonderfully structured and a lot of fun to read and experience!

On the whole if you've never heard of or been interested in this book I would highly advise that you give it a look the next time you're out and about because this was certainly a book I adored and the start to what promises to be a wonderful series. A firm 5*s and I cannot wait to progress further with the next books as I do already own book 2 and 3 and can't wait to pick them up! ...more

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Mar 19, 2014 Marc *Dark Reader of the Woods* rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science-fiction, steampunk

I love this rollicking British steampunk alt-history period action/mystery/spec fic series so much. This was my second time reading this book and I am pleased to report that it was just as thrilling as I remembered from the less-dicerning me of ten years ago. Mark Hodder has created (or repurposed) an intriguing pulp hero worthy of his literary ancestors, the swarthy, scarred, well-travelled, fierce-faced, mesmeric, king's agent Richard Burton. The book is very British, very modern (despite it's I love this rollicking British steampunk alt-history period action/mystery/spec fic series so much. This was my second time reading this book and I am pleased to report that it was just as thrilling as I remembered from the less-dicerning me of ten years ago. Mark Hodder has created (or repurposed) an intriguing pulp hero worthy of his literary ancestors, the swarthy, scarred, well-travelled, fierce-faced, mesmeric, king's agent Richard Burton. The book is very British, very modern (despite it's 1860's setting), very fuckbonkers with its mad mix of aberrant technology, genetically altered animals, historical figures and legends, and other elements masterfully pieced together.

The cast is heavy on males; the few female characters are fierce but restrained to varying degrees by the social systems of 19th-century England, one historical factor that was not altered for this book. This could be a downside for some readers. If you are an impatient reader, the early portions of the book might come across as dry. There is some info-dumping, but skillfully done within the book's context and necessary; there is a lot of background information needed to get on with the main plot. At two fifths of the way in, though, there is plenty of explosive action and furthering of core mysteries to make it worth sticking around for.

I love the book design (the Pyr paperback edition) with its dynamic cover art, extended title ("Mark Hodder presents Burton & Swinburne in The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack"), interior graphics, and the in-world period-inspired advertisements, poetry, and quotes from the book's characters.

I first encountered this series in 2010 when my thoughtful wife picked out the second book, The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, for me from the public library based on the cover, which does not immediately reveal that it is part two in a series. I read that one, then came back to the first book, then the third, and was very surprised in a later year to see that there were further books because the story was fully encapsulated in the first three books. I only ever made it to book four before deciding that I wanted to start over at the beginning, and over time acquired copies of the whole series. This book sat for many months in my bedside to-read stack, continually cycling down to make time for library loans. Now, in the time of cholera, I am glad that I finally moved it back to the top of the pile. I am confident that I will enjoy the rest of the series and can't wait to see what the final volumes will bring. ...more

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Oct 22, 2014 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, sci-fi-fantasy-challenge-2016, brilliant-narration

I had to create a number of shelves to accommodate this wacky novel. It's primarily a Steampunk Victorian Detective Novel and then you add all of these other elements in. Rogue geneticists, time travel, the assassination of Queen Victoria, a mad Marquess (very Victorian), a timeline that goes increasingly awry, and my favorite bit, part swashbuckling adventure. I swear this book made me want to whip out a rapier and dance around like a mad lunatic. Which is what I would look like if I tried swor ...more

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Dec 28, 2019 Mike rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series-in-progress, read-all-the-books-the-sixth-sense, read-sf-award-winners

A really good steampunk-slash-alternate-history book, with an entertaining and plausible origin embedded in the story and some great characters. I'm going to refer folks over to friend David's review here, as his 5-star review captures most all of my feelings for this book.

My additional thoughts:
- I was not quite as taken with Swineburne as he was -- there was just enough of the Algy character for me.
- There was no logical reason for Quips to exist as he did in this story, which the author bas ...more

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May 02, 2012 aPriL does feral sometimes rated it really liked it

Shelves: alt-universe, historical-fiction, science-fiction, steampunk

‘The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack’ is a madcap movie, basically, and entertaining, but without the inventions this is a three-star read, really. But if you unpack the novel, the entire story is a Rube Goldberg machine. I liked but not loved. I've given four stars because the author Mark Hodder was clever by throwing in real inventions from the mid-1880's and the plot posed some interesting dilemmas which occurred from time traveling. I had the most fun Googling the inventions and studyin ‘The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack’ is a madcap movie, basically, and entertaining, but without the inventions this is a three-star read, really. But if you unpack the novel, the entire story is a Rube Goldberg machine. I liked but not loved. I've given four stars because the author Mark Hodder was clever by throwing in real inventions from the mid-1880's and the plot posed some interesting dilemmas which occurred from time traveling. I had the most fun Googling the inventions and studying the drawings.

The oddness of everything draws you into the book and keeps you reading (or maybe it will put you off the book). Nothing is normal, but not too alarming. Everything is a bit off, literally and figuratively. This is an alternative universe story that takes place in 1861 London. It has famous people in history as protagonists, but these people could not have ever been as represented here in this novel. Basic physical features and personalities are vaguely acknowledged, but how they lived in history is completely rearranged into Frankenstein mash ups. Instead of the usual romantic London we have come to expect from Sherlock Holmes movies, this London is similar to the bottom of a mine or Manhatten on 9/11, full of soot, dirt, dust and airborne filth. Admirable qualities of the hero characters are muted, while their darker natures are what make them successful. Women are cosseted in theory while mistreated and disrespected in all the usual ways (the author didn't have to twist anything here, the real world's attitudes are sufficiently twisted 'as is'). Vehicles of Travel of all sorts seems to be an underlying but powerful theme, a lot of them being crackpot inventions that work; however, everyone moves in circles revisiting the same streets or move only in time while jumping up and down in the same spot.

As a reader from 2012, in effect I'm a time travelor in the point-of-view position of the character Spring Heeled Jack. While he finds himself unable to accept his circumstances, I want to explore, examine and make friends with this world. Jack's feelings don't make sense to me. His costume is clownish, and the stilts that he has made necessary to the functioning of his invention is a peculiar way to solve the problem of its functioning. His time travel suit is a Rube Goldberg machine. In addition, his original quest is ridiculous considering the lengths he went to in order to change a long ago and ultimately minor historical note, but I suppose that's the nature of Rube Goldberg crackpots.

The cascade of disrupted history and displaced technology is the fun part of the book. But again, it's off kilter in application to the story. The only part of society that is disrupted is some of the upper class, particularly those who are crackpots in philosophical and science matters.

I think because the heart of the entire book is it's being an elaborate literary Rube Goldberg construction, I can't like it as much as I admire it. The off-kilter crackpot silliness overcomes this reader's ability to connect with anything emotionally. This alt-universe is ugly, too, despite the fact of everyone's either cheery soldiering on or stiff upper lip attitudes. Burton and Swinburne are not heroes, but bored dilettantes looking for something fun to do. They are not exactly haunted, but unhappy and unfulfilled. They both are rich, Burton more respectible and intellectually gifted while Swinburne fits the role of wing man. Burton, the 'hero' , is not a man burning with passion before, during or after events. For an explorer of harsh places, he is strangely unaffected by his discoveries, very one-dimensional. Swinburne is terrifically amusing, the only part of the book that had me laughing, but sadly, he is barely in the book. The werecreatures were appropriately monsterish and gory, so be warned graphic bits included.

Is it worth reading? I think so. Is it likable? Maybe. I loved the broom cats and the message birds with coprolalia. ...more

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Jul 27, 2014 Mpauli rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: rating_5-stars, orga_read-in-2014, setting_london, genre_steampunk, orga_favourites, topic_werewolves, topic_philosophy

The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack is a clever mash-up of well researched history and the author's wide imagination.

It follows the historical figure of Sir Richard Francis Burton, who does become a king's agent in this novel. His job is to solve the mystery of Spring Heeled Jack, an apparition on stilts who's supposed to have attacked a few people, but is disregarded as a myth. During the novel the strange masochistic poet Algernon Swinburne starts to assist Burton with his investigation.

A ...more

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Feb 10, 2011 Jason rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2011, e-books

5 pointy things that at one point were called stars...

Wow, this is a steam punk farce that is a joyride of a read. It is a whimsical, alt history, science fiction, steam punk novel that centers around time travel.

The alt world building is spectacular.

The protagonists Burton and Swineburne are a fantastic team and they really work as an investigative team.

The side characters are colorful and add depth to this romp.

The structure of this novel elevat the level of this book from good to absolutely ...more

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May 07, 2010 Liviu rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-sf, 2010_release_read, read_2010

The Spring Heeled Jack novel that introduces an alt-history England of the early 1860's with a steampunk flavor and features Richard Burton as main hero who becomes a "special agent" of the king - among other changes Queen Victoria is assassinated in 1840 - with Algernon Swinburne as a sort of sidekick, while many notables like Darwin, Brunel, Oscar Wilde have cameos is for most part an unstable mixture of the modern Victoriana - a bit of a misnomer as above but still - (Lazarus Club, Meaning of ...more

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Aug 24, 2011 Eric rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Steam-punk fans

Shelves: steam-punk, science-fiction

I'm so glad I stumbled onto this imaginative steam-punk series. I loved the protagonist, a fictionalized Sir Richard Francis Burton, his side-kick, an equally fictionalized Algernon Charles Swinburne, and their adventures in this alternate Victorian England, complete with genetically modified animals, steam engine-propelled penny farthings and flying rotochairs (view spoiler).

I loved the inclusion of so many personalities of the time, such as Charles D ...more

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Dec 07, 2019 Nick Imrie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, fantasy-gaslamp, adventure-fiction, award-philip-k-dick, fantasy

A mostly enjoyable adventure story. The hero is an admirable square-jawed fellow, who punches a satisfying number of bad guys. It's that sort of book. His poet side-kick is plucky but flakey. His girlfriend is quickly dispatched in the early chapters - despite the large number of dresses that are ripped open in the course of the story, it is not a kissing book.

I highly recommend it to any precocious 9 year old boys you might know.

Otherwise, it is not very memorable and shares a great deal with o ...more

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Jun 15, 2013 Jack +Books & Bourbon+ rated it liked it · review of another edition

We are all told to not judge a book by its cover, but that is exactly what first put this exciting novel into my hands. With the antique-styled gold accents and decidely dangerous looking villain on the front, it practically screamed "read me!" And read it I did, finding it more and more difficult to put down as the story progressed.

Mark Hodder has taken several distinct genres (Steampunk, alternate history, science fiction, time-travel, and plain old action & adventure) and combined them, along We are all told to not judge a book by its cover, but that is exactly what first put this exciting novel into my hands. With the antique-styled gold accents and decidely dangerous looking villain on the front, it practically screamed "read me!" And read it I did, finding it more and more difficult to put down as the story progressed.

Mark Hodder has taken several distinct genres (Steampunk, alternate history, science fiction, time-travel, and plain old action & adventure) and combined them, along with smatterings of the occult and who-done-its, and created a thoroughly unique romp through Victorian era London. Historical events are peppered throughout, some well known, others not so much. The primary characters are well drawn, and while I generally have a hard time with protagonists who are unrivaled in nearly every field, Sir Richard Francis Burton definitely makes a compelling hero for this most unusual tale. An accomplished linguist, swordsman, explorer, and mesmerist, Sir Richard rises to the myriad challenges that await him. Along for the ride is the masochistic and alcoholic poet Algernon Swinburne, who becomes Burton's sidekick as the story progresses. I had a harder time connecting with Algernon than with Burton, especially since he is reckless mostly for recklessness' sake, but I do admit that his clumsiness and lack of experience with dangerous situations provided an excellent foil for Burton's seemingly endless array of abilities and tricks. The supporting characters were all colorful and intriguing, even if some true-life figures from history are handled a bit strangely. Villains are enjoyable and menacing when appropriate, and their various machinations are handled well.

The action scenes are sometimes over-the-top, but always enjoyable, but where the novel really shines is in the descriptions of the technological inventions and genetic creations that permeate the tale. Mark Hodder certainly has his imagination in the right place here, and I was always fascinated the new beings and inventions being brought into the mix. While some of them are general Steampunk staples, there were more than a few that were totally unique and inventive, and I look forward to what else he can dream up in the future novels.

I agree with the other reviewers in that the first portion of the tale feels slightly unfocused, as it tends to jump around quite a bit. I understand that there was a lot of narrative to bring to the table up front, but it still detracted from my initial enjoyment of the novel. Another quibble that has already been mentioned is the editing, which was spotty in places. There weren't any errors that ruined the novel, but several of the grammatical errors were certainly distracting. There is a small portion in the middle of the novel, with a character narrating a tale to an audience as it was narrated to him, and this felt very Mary Shelley-esque and didn't seem to fit well with the rest of the pacing, but all in all, the writing is consistent and gripping.

Despite the issues listed above, I found "The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack" to be an enjoyable read, and a worthy addition to the burgeoning Steampunk genre. I just picked up the sequel, "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" and look forward to starting that soon. If steampunk is your thing, you might want to check this one out! ...more

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Jan 24, 2011 Mike (the Paladin) rated it it was ok

I suppose after consideration, that maybe I'm just not going to be a fan of "Steam Punk". I've tried several books, I'll read the synopsis and think "wow, good idea, I should like this". I get the book, I go in expecting to be interested and to like the novel....but I don't.

Pretty much the same here. I considered giving the book 3 stars. I just couldn't justify going that high when by the end of the book I'd lost interest, didn't care much about the characters and was fairly glad to see it end. I suppose after consideration, that maybe I'm just not going to be a fan of "Steam Punk". I've tried several books, I'll read the synopsis and think "wow, good idea, I should like this". I get the book, I go in expecting to be interested and to like the novel....but I don't.

Pretty much the same here. I considered giving the book 3 stars. I just couldn't justify going that high when by the end of the book I'd lost interest, didn't care much about the characters and was fairly glad to see it end. I started out interested (of course I'm interested in the era, in the exploration of Africa, Sir Richard Burton, Stanley and Livingston, etc. so it started out with some things to boost my interest). The book opens with Sir Richard Burton as the protagonist, except that he had been knighted years too soon. We soon are introduced to the steam punk elements of the novel. I'll try not to give any spoilers here but....as in most steam punk universes the anachronisms include far more than simply steam technology. Electricity and the interest of the day in eugenics (which continued over into the 20th century) are referenced (and of course played fast and loose with) to give just a "teaser".

The problem here is that the story takes a nose dive as we get further into it, the characters are sometimes interesting but at other times too familiar. I found much of it annoying. There comes a point where I suspect most of you will say..."okay I see what's going/gone on here". Without a spoiler I suppose I can say that a big part of the story here involves time travel and unintended consequences.

The writer plays fast and loose with the people of the day and while I suppose the argument that this is a different world might be applied, they are still supposed to be the same people from history. The book ends or ties up with a short synopsis as to what actually went on in the time span involved in this book.

So, as often before I'll say, I didn't hate this book I simply found it sliding from interesting to slow, you may find it less so. Try it, see what you think. I wasn't impressed, but then as noted, my record in liking steam punk is that I generally don't. So...only 2 stars. ...more

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Jan 25, 2011 Jasmine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: british

I had to switch the edition of this book upon reviewing, because I picked this book for the cover. after reading the iron duke I knew I wanted to try steampunk and knowing nothing about it and no one who knew anything about it I was left standing in front of a steampunk display at work which had among other things:

I'm not an idiot. and the problem with the last one was that it was a romance.

Which okay I read it, it was fine but not great, pretty pictures, but I want the full novel experience. ...more

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Dec 27, 2010 Christine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: london, fantasy-steampunk

Who or what was Spring Heeled Jack?

You don't know Spring Heeled Jack from Jack? Silly bugger. Spring Heeled Jack was a man (or was he?) that terrorized young women of London in the 1880s.

He was, well, a pervert.

He, supposedly, breathed fire and ripped the clothes off of women.

I can't remember if he came before the London Monster (who stabbed women in the buttucks) or after, but he is like that.

Mark Hodder takes the mystery of Spring Heeled Jack and combines it with an alternate universe, where t ...more

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Jun 10, 2010 Princessjay rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Plot: absurd and overly complicated. There is much action, but little sense.

Characterization: virtually nonexistent. People are differentiated only by one or two defining features (i.e. Burton has a fierce and savage face; A. C. Swinburne never spoke unless he could squeal and bounce as well). Everyone talked with the same voice and cadence, though they came from different class and station, even different centuries. Would a man from 400 years in the future speak the same way as a Victorian, yet Plot: absurd and overly complicated. There is much action, but little sense.

Characterization: virtually nonexistent. People are differentiated only by one or two defining features (i.e. Burton has a fierce and savage face; A. C. Swinburne never spoke unless he could squeal and bounce as well). Everyone talked with the same voice and cadence, though they came from different class and station, even different centuries. Would a man from 400 years in the future speak the same way as a Victorian, yet can still be driven insane by culture shock? Human psychology is not so fragile. And that insanity seems only indicated by more and more copious swearing. I don't recall ever seeing this many f-words in an sf novel.

The casual, even sexist, treatment of women had me checking whether I was reading something from the Golden Age. All the female characters in this novel are hollow cardboard. They faint, they tremble, they go insane upon the slightest violation, sexual or not. This must be why Burton can so easily end his engagement to Isabel in favor of his career, though they were engaged for years--justifying it as being better for her. (The brief coda that this helped to ultimately free her from the "shackles" of society and fate feels tacked-on and does not alleviate.) The termination a long engagement to a woman of good family should have greatly impugned Burton's honor as a Victorian gentleman--"I could not love thee, dear, so much, loved I not honor more" and what not--yet is treated as less than a blip on the radar of le societe. Then again, fool am I to expect any kind of realism to this novel.

The villains are even worse. What are their purposes? One is a dissolute aristocrat with a general predilection for eeeevil, but the others? A list of who's-who from the roster of Great Victorians, presumably having admirable morality and character in their day, yet here are twisted people out to wreak havoc for their own, unrevealed, purpose. Why is Florence Nightingale experimenting with genetic manipulation, to create tortured humanoid animals that explode at random? Why does Charles Darwin combine his brain with Francis Galton, and demonstrates so clearly that he has zero regard for human life?

World-building: ludicrous. The author took some random, cool-seeming "steampunk" creatures and technology, squished them together willy-nilly without regard or reason. In what rational universe would genetic manipulation create message-carrying parrots that, unavoidably, also toss-in random swear words into the relay? Or the grafting of a mechanical calculating machine onto a human brain to result in...what?

-------------------------------------------------------
I love movies such as The City of Lost Children, with equally dark steampunk aesthetic, much of it making no real sense, so it's not the weirdness or general illogic that put me off. Rather, it's the feeling that these things have NO relationship with one another, do not even belong in the same bizarro universe. You could be zany and hilarious, you can be dark and strange, but it takes real skill to be both, and this novel is not a successful attempt.

What a mess. I took months to get through this book, hoping for eventual improvement. There was none. ...more

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Aug 24, 2011 Charles Dee Mitchell rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-sf

Hodder needed a different, meaner editor for his first novel. Anywhere from 20% - 25% could go. Every incident goes on a little too long. The second half of every compound sentence could be dropped. Conversations are over before Hodder cuts them off. He never got the memo on adverbs.

This is the only steampunk novel I have read, and I am not the best audience. I don't care about the gadgetry, and the gadgetry seems to be much of the attraction here. On the other hand, I am a sucker for time trave ...more

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Aug 03, 2011 Nicky rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction-alternatehistory, mystery, steampunk

I'd been meaning to read this for ages, but when I finally got round to it I couldn't really find any enthusiasm. Which is sad, since there are some awesome reviews out there, but it really didn't come together well -- the characters are all caricatures, and if he could write more stereotypically Victorian women I don't want to read him doing it. Oh for some capable, sensible women...

The alternate history and so on is interesting, and there's a certain energy to the prose, but it started slowly, ...more

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Dec 15, 2012 ᴥ Irena ᴥ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, werewolves, mystery, steampunk, time-travel, alternate-history

Sir Richard Francis Burton thought his reputation was ruined after his friend betrayed him, but unknown to him certain things happened which changed the course of his life and the history of the Empire.
He gets an unexpected job offer from the Prime minister to be a king's agent who would investigate the things Scotland Yard wouldn't or couldn't. He accepts, of course.
He is not alone. A lot of people want to help. Some of them die because of it ((view spoiler) Sir Richard Francis Burton thought his reputation was ruined after his friend betrayed him, but unknown to him certain things happened which changed the course of his life and the history of the Empire.
He gets an unexpected job offer from the Prime minister to be a king's agent who would investigate the things Scotland Yard wouldn't or couldn't. He accepts, of course.
He is not alone. A lot of people want to help. Some of them die because of it ((view spoiler)).
And there is his friend Algernon Charles Swinburne, who might be an unsuccessful poet, but Burton couldn’t have wished a better, more courageous and crazier partner.
I like the fact that the author did not use a romantic plot to make the story. Burton has a fiancé, (view spoiler).
The world is beautifully depicted. There is a chapter, The Cauldron, which describes the poorest areas in London and, I swear, I could have smelled the stench and felt the fear while reading it.

The honeycomb of narrow, uneven passages, bordered by the most decrepit and crowded tenements in the city, was flowing with raw sewage and rubbish of every description, including occasional corpses. The stench was overpowering and both men had vomited more than once.
They passed tall houses-“rookeries”-mostly of wood, which slumped upon their own foundations as if tired of standing; houses whose gaping windows were devoid of glass and patched, instead, with paper or cloth or broken pieces of wood; windows from which slops and cracked chamber pots were emptied; from which defeated eyes gazed blankly.

Or, another disturbing picture:

Time and again the two men were approached by girls barely out of childhood, who materialised out of the fog with matted hair and bare feet, smeared with excrement up to their knees, covered only by a rough coat or a thin, torn dress or a man's shirt which hung loosely over their bones; who offered themselves for a few coppers; who lowered the price when refused; who begged and wheedled and finally cursed viciously when the men pushed past.
Time and again they were approached by boys and men in every variety of torn and filthy apparel, who demanded and bullied and threatened and finally, when the pistols appeared, spat and swore and sidled away.

But, not everything is horrible. There are hilarious things. One of these are parakeets they use for messages. One of the downsides of using them is their language.

“Message from the stinking prime minister's office,” it cackled. “You are requested to attend that prattle-brain Lord Palmerston at 10 Downing Street at nine o'clock in the morning. Please confirm, arse-face. Message ends.

Both horrible and great things are depicted with great detail. I loved the writing. I tried not to say too much and I think I've managed it, but those who like steampunk and time-travel themes, will not be disappointed with this book, nor with the way it is written. (view spoiler). ...more

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Jun 17, 2012 retroj rated it it was ok

Shelves: reviewed, steamy-fantasy

Two stars means it was okay, and three stars means I liked it, so call it a 2½ or a 2¾. I wanted to like this book, and it was filled with great ideas, and really did have its moments, but the things that dragged it down for me were lackluster prose that felt incongruous with the Victorian setting, the predictability of the plot, the villain's stupidity (SHJ), a catalog of names and dates to keep track of without sufficient supporting context (should have made a cheat sheet!), and elements of fa Two stars means it was okay, and three stars means I liked it, so call it a 2½ or a 2¾. I wanted to like this book, and it was filled with great ideas, and really did have its moments, but the things that dragged it down for me were lackluster prose that felt incongruous with the Victorian setting, the predictability of the plot, the villain's stupidity (SHJ), a catalog of names and dates to keep track of without sufficient supporting context (should have made a cheat sheet!), and elements of fantasy that were way out of proportion to the setup. Setting up the alternate history as departing from our history at SHJ's "intervention" didn't square with pre-existing elements of fantasy like the power of mesmerism and the rapid success of eugenics; those things would have impacted earlier history as well. (Or am I just trying to fit a fantasy shaped peg into a science-fiction shaped hole?) I definitely had a hard time getting on board with the full extent of the eugenics (and cybernetics!) depicted in this story.

Some of the famous personages, notably Darwin, were way out of character — he might as well have been named Evil Arch Villain #1 instead of Darwin for all the resemblance the character bore to the beloved naturalist; he was like a caricature drawn by his enemies. And what was up with Florence Nightingale, mastermind eugenicist?

Note the curious blend of mutability and immutability in this book's flavor of time travel: the past was mutable when Oxford first went back to encounter his ancestor, but immutable thereafter — why? As the inventor of the time machine, one would think Oxford would have had a better understanding of the nature of time travel from the outset. We also saw in Oxford a level of bad planning in his venture that was so astonishing it strained plausibility. Time travel stories must always walk a fine line, free will versus predestination, revelation and exposition, while keeping a few surprises in store; this book offered no surprises.

What did I like about this book? Burton, Swinburn, Trounce, Honesty, Oliphant, and even Oxford, all enjoyable characters. Victorian mannerisms and turns of phrase that occasionally peeked through the flat prose always made me smile. I love the idea of Spring Heeled Jack's suit, and how it turns a curious Victorian myth into a thing of science fiction.

As I have composed this review, I have wondered, maybe steampunk just isn't the genre for me; I seem to come at it from the point of view of someone who wants hard science fiction, and I need to remind myself that steampunk is more about going back to the steam era and speculating forward from what they might have thought of the future, plus a few elements of what we know really did happen. Spring Heeled Jack tries to do both of those things, and the mixture came out rather awkward.
...more

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Jun 29, 2010 Natalie rated it did not like it

Shelves: for-fun, did-not-finish, sff

I couldn't finish this. Hell, I couldn't get more than 60 pages into it.

If you have enough imagination to create an alternate Victorian England with genetically engineered animals and steam-powered bicycles, you should have enough imagination to do something about the casual sexism, racism, and classism of the time as well. Or at least examine those issues instead of just accepting them. Feh.

I also bounced pretty hard off the writing style, but that's a personal preference--I generally prefer a ...more

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Mar 17, 2015 Karl rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Read July 1 to July 5 2010. The first adventure of Sir Richard Francis Burton and Algernon Charles Swinburne. Lots of fun.

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Feb 18, 2020 Hank rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi-club-read, tbr-clean-2020

This book was outrageous! It is hard to even describe the madness that went on. Alt-history, steampunk, sci-fi, lunacy. I both appreciated and did not appreciate knowing nothing about the book before starting. The beginning was rough to say the least, the writing is the worst part about the novel and since the story had not started I almost gave up in the first 40 pages.

From human-animal hybrids, mechanical, centipede like trash collectors, (view spoiler), and James B ...more

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Jan 01, 2011 Lea rated it really liked it

Recommended to Lea by: Stephen

Shelves: read-2011, acquired-2011, books-i-own, reviews

Whoo hoo! This book is so much FUN!

Okay, here's my breakdown on the book . . .

The first part -- roughly 2/3 of the book -- is set in Victorian (-ish) London and focuses on Sir Richard Burton and Algernon Swinburne. Burton is faced with a bizarre mystery concerning the abduction of young chimney sweeps, as well as attacks by the legendary (and believed to be fictional) Spring Heeled Jack.

This part of the book was an easy 3 stars for me. The world described here is very well imagined, and includes ...more

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Sep 15, 2013 Andy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, 2014-trl, steampunk-alt-reality, top10-2014, 2014-sci-fi-fantasy-book-ch

4.5pts rounded up to 5pts.

PS Sorry if I missed any of you out on the Recomms :) Anyone loving Steampunk & Alternate History should have this on their trl!

A grand insight into the world of Burton & Swinburne which we cant quite call "Victorian" Steampunk but all is very akin as various Gothic characters & notorieties of the time appear in various guises a la Tarantino style with their bit parts. Mr Hodder fare stokes up the atmosphere of the foggy coal infused East End with his writing & characte 4.5pts rounded up to 5pts.

PS Sorry if I missed any of you out on the Recomms :) Anyone loving Steampunk & Alternate History should have this on their trl!

A grand insight into the world of Burton & Swinburne which we cant quite call "Victorian" Steampunk but all is very akin as various Gothic characters & notorieties of the time appear in various guises a la Tarantino style with their bit parts. Mr Hodder fare stokes up the atmosphere of the foggy coal infused East End with his writing & characters may come & go but all can be visualised as every scene is brought to life giving import into the storyline. A lot of research has gone into the historical content of the era which is brilliant imo as a h/f follower. The chapter on the chimney sweeps being a case example, even if I’m not sure about the goose part, very inventive for sure!

As to the fiendish plot, I'll quote some from Swinburne who wraps it up neatly.... "you are flooding the Empire with new machines that will destabilise the current social order; you intend to create a new social order compromised of specialist humans who will serve as drones in what amounts to a scientific hive; and you are interfering with animal biology to manufacture a sub-level of mindless slaves. All this to expand the British Empire, under the rule of scientists, until it dominates the entire world. Am I right.....?" With Charles Darwin, Isambard Kingdom Brunel & Florence Nightingale as the fiendish plotters! Just brilliant imagination!

Even a simple tracking of the kidnapped Swinburne at one point by Burton & Fidget across London becomes an adventure within the story, a cameo of only 5-6pg's but so well crafted & entertaining with all its nuances. & this comes from someone like me is a narrative hungry fiend. Fidget being a hound that keeps nipping Swinburne’s ankles..... YEOOOOOOOW!

There are some bits of repetition that perhaps could have been trimmed but are integral to the context of the story & so forgiven as I still award the full 5 stars, cant praise it enough, especially as a debut work.
And the appendix is a nice touch too, giving the real life stories behind some of the players.

READ IT, you WILL love it I'm sure
...more

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About Mark Hodder

Mark Hodder

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British writer living in Valencia, Spain.

Becoming the father of twins really slowed my writing down for three years. However, I'm happy to report that it's now returning to its former pace ... high time I got something new into the bookshops. I'm currently working on the final edit of a new SF novel which is the first in what I hope will be a massive new series.

To find out more about it, read a p ...more