The Clockwork Dynasty

Product Description

A Kirkus Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Book of 2017A Popsugar Best Book of the YearFrom the New York Times bestselling author of Robopocalypse comes an epic new thriller about a race of ageless automatons who have been hiding among us for untold centuries.

In the depths of the Kremlin in 1725, the tsar’s loyal mechanician brings to life two astonishingly humanlike mechanical beings. Peter and Elena are a brother and sister possessed with uncanny power and destined to fight an ancient war.
 
When June Stefanov, a young anthropologist specializing in ancient technology, uncovers a terrible secret concealed in the workings of a three-hundred-year-old mechanical doll, she finds herself in the middle of the hidden war that has raged for centuries. As June plunges deeper into their world, her choices will ultimately determine their fate.
 

The Clockwork Dynasty interweaves past and present, exploring a race of beings designed to live by ironclad principles, yet constantly searching for meaning. Richly-imagined and heart-pounding, Daniel H. Wilson’s novel combines exquisitely drawn characters with visionary technology—and riveting action.

Review

”
The Clockwork Dynasty is my new favorite secret history novel! It’s like some fantastic hybrid of 
Highlander and 
The Terminator–or maybe a cross between 
I, Robot and 
The Difference Engine, with a dash of 
Blade Runner for good measure. It reads like classic steampunk on steroids. In other words, it’s totally bad ass and you’re going to love it.”
 
–Ernest Cline, The New York Times bestselling author of Ready Player One

“Daniel H. Wilson is one of the foremost prophets of the near future. . . In
The Clockwork Dynasty, the irrepressibly readable Wilson has retreated to pseudo-vampiric sentient robots. I say retreated because he’s dealing with the past and present, rather than the future — though his rewriting of the past is no less radical than his speculative work. . .The plot is driven by a human protagonist, June Stefanov. She represents human history and continues Wilson’s excellent run of female lead characters — a distinction not to be sniffed at in male-written robot sci-fi.”

–The Los Angeles Review of Books

“This bold adventure is a stew of cult-classic concepts—the avtomat reflect the Immortals in the 
Highlander franchise, while the ancient and deadly Elena is reminiscent of child vampire Claudia in 
Interview with the Vampire. It may wear its influences on its sleeve but it’s also a welcome treat for steampunk and fantasy fans. A thrilling mix of influences, much like Sylvain Neuvel’s 
Sleeping Giants and HBO’s 
Westworld, that creates a captivating scenario begging for many sequels.”

–Kirkus (starred review)

“Brilliantly conceived and executed . . . this is science fiction at its best—thoughtful, challenging, beautifully written and astonishing.”

–Booklist (starred review)

”
The Clockwork Dynasty is a hybrid: engrossing historical fiction starring ancient androids and mile-a-minute present-day action thriller . . . June’s mad dash to flee a secret society bent on taking her knowledge and her life evokes the best moments of Dan Brown.”

–Shelf Awareness

”
New York Times bestselling author Daniel H. Wilson delivers a fascinating new thriller that takes us on a journey to the past discovering human-like machines that have lived among us for centuries.”

–Library Journal

“Wilson has a great knack for pace and engaging action; it’s a book that is very difficult to put down. It’s an exceptional piece of speculative fiction, set in a world that I would very much like to visit again. Steampunk and other genre fiction fans should give it a whirl.”

–The Maine Edge

“What Wilson does as well as any writer alive is create self-contained and fully realized worlds—the cinematic stuff of dreams and stardust, mixed with the dirt of actual living. He does so with sensitivity, intelligence and a gift for near-baroque detail.”
—
Willamette Wee