- Author: William Gibson & Bruce Sterling
- Genre: Steampunk / Sci-Fi
Overview
This steampunk novel imagines an alternate history where Charles Babbage successfully built his mechanical computer in the 1830s, kicking off the Information Age during the Victorian era. It shows a highly monitored British Empire ruled by the industrial class.
Plotline & Key Takeaways
The plot follows several characters caught up in a conspiracy involving a set of punched cards that could prove a secret mathematical theorem. As London is choked by pollution and political unrest, the steam-powered computers are used by the state to track citizens and centralize control. It's a gritty reminder that tech revolutions don't automatically free people; they're often used to reinforce class hierarchies and state power.