Tales from the Gunpowder Chronicles

The Gunpowder Chronicles #3

by Jeannie Lin

Asian steampunk at its finest with three new tales of adventure from bestselling author Jeannie Lin

East meets West in a clash of gunpowder technology versus steam in an epic and richly-detailed series.

Big Trouble in Old Shanghai

The signs are there. Gangs roaming the streets, the very earth shaking beneath their feet. Ming-fen could tell something was coming to Old Shanghai, but she didn’t know exactly what until the city erupted in fiery rebellion — with her brother caught on the wrong side. With the streets in turmoil, Ming-fen must rely on her fighting skills and a blue-eyed foreign devil to survive the day, and perhaps keep an already broken city from all-out civil war.

The Island of the Opium-Eaters

Sagara Satomi hasn’t set foot on land since she was exiled from Nippon and cast adrift upon a ship owned by a notorious Chinese rebel. Rogue alchemist, Yang Hanzhu has spent years chasing dark rumors, plotting a course toward an unmarked island with a mysterious past. Will they uncover the island’s secrets? Or be buried there along with them?

Love in the Time of Engines

A prequel to Gunpowder Alchemy.

Amidst rumors the West has developed powerful steam engines, the Ministry of Science seeks to recruit new talent. Golden boy Jin Zhi-fu meets mathematics prodigy Shi Anlei while attending the Academy, but doesn’t realize his new friend is a woman disguised as a man. It’s the only way she’d be allowed to take the imperial examination.

When Anlei’s hidden identity is discovered, Zhi-fu and Anlei are forced into a test more difficult than the exam — one that challenges the limits of duty, friendship, and love.

Genres: Steampunk, Fantasy, Anthologies, Romance, Fiction, Short Stories

351 pages, Unknown Binding

First published November 12, 2019

About the author

USA TODAY Bestselling author Jeannie Lin grew up fascinated with stories of Western epic fantasy and Eastern martial arts adventures. When her best friend introduced her to romance novels in middle school, the stage was set. Jeannie started writing her first romance while working as a high school science teacher in South Central Los Angeles. After four years of trying to break into publishing with an Asian-set historical, her 2009 Golden Heart Award–winning manuscript, Butterfly Swords, sold to Harlequin Mills & Boon. Her books have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and Library Journal with The Dragon and the Pearl listed among Library Journal's Best Romances of 2011.

Titles by Jeannie Lin:
Gunpowder Alchemy (Gunpowder Chronicles #1)
The Jade Temptress (The Lotus Palace #2)
The Lotus Palace
Butterfly Swords
The Dragon and the Pearl
My Fair Concubine
The Sword Dancer

For updates, sign up for her newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/42oZL
Find out more about Jeannie Lin online at http://www.jeannielin.com

Reviews

[K.J. Charles]

Three novellas set in Jeannie Lin's Chinese steampunk world. I love the Gunpowder stories and really enjoyed this return, filling in backstories and putting some lovely minor characters centre stage. Also, there is a terrific zombie island sequence and you cannot argue with zombie islands.

Probably these work best if you've read the full novels, but this is not a hardship because they are all great stuff. I am bored to tears with most steampunk but these really work brilliantly--in large part because the author takes Chinese history seriously and bends it with so much care and thought to create this meticulously imagined, vivid alt world. I will always be up for more Gunpowder Chronicles.

[Janine Ballard]

So excited to see Jeannie Lin come out with a new book! I was moved by her related post, too. I’ve purchased it and I hope to read and review it soon.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though one could read these stories alone, I think reading Gunpowder Alchemy and Clockwork Samurai deepens one's enjoyment considerably.

Big Trouble in Old Shanghai: Having met Ming-fen in Gunpowder Alchemy, it's great to know she's not just some snooty and well-dressed waiter. Here, we find out she's got many talents, and only reluctantly gets involved with events in Shanghai, after her brother's rebellion and the escalating violence around her during the Taiping Rebellion. Ming-fen has no love for the Qing dynasty, but has no interest in the rebels' violence. Jeannie Lin also gives us a bit more info on Chang-wei's American friend and businessman Dean Burton.

The Island of Opium-Eaters: It's the Island of Doctor Moreau plus zombies, so this story is a lot of fun. Plus, one of my favourite characters from Gunpowder Alchemy, Yang Hanzhu, and from Clockwork Samurai, Sagara Satomi, feature prominently, giving us some great moments for both.
The two investigate an island shrouded in secrets, and find much more than they bargained for. Anytime I get to spend with Yang is good, so of course I liked this story.

Love in the Time of Engines: This story is particularly poignant, considering what happened to Jin Soling's family years ater. It's a sweet love story about Soling's parents meeting and falling for each other, and it's a great way to find out just how awesome Soling's mother Shi Anlei was in her youth, and why Soling's dad Jin Zhi-fu fell for her.

[Sophia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Asian steampunk at it's best in these shorter, colorful visits to the Gunpowder Chronicles' world featuring some of the side characters and a prequel tale. Chinese history from the nineteenth century Qing Dynasty painted with a colorful, detailed backdrop, engaging characters, and plots that pull the reader in.

Big Trouble in Old Shanghai
Follow up to Gunpowder Alchemy
Shanghai is a pot waiting to boil over between government conscription of people to slave labor for little more than a rumor, the foreigners capturing people as slaves overseas, the rival gangs growing stronger, and good work hard to come by. Ming's parents were taken away and she was raised in an orphanage from which her brother who had escaped the government's conscripted labor, brought her away from so they could be together. People are taking sides, but Ming can't fully support any of them which is why she finds herself turning to an American spy.
Ming-fen and Mr. Burton do what they can to survive a rebel attack on Shanghai and stop some of the death.

Island of the Opium Eaters
A chilling, mysterious follow-up to a few minor characters in the Clockwork Samurai.

A disgraced Chinese businessman, Yang, has taken two exiled Japanese with him on his boat. Makoto was a Shogun warrior and, Sagara Satomi, a lost young noblewoman who is daughter to dead engineer and gifted inventor. They go to a mysterious, hidden island to get answers about the strain of Opium that affected people in a horrific way. But, the island is not uninhabited and secrets abound... To survive, Satomi and Yang must learn to work together.

Love in the Time of Engines
A Prequel

Anlei is a woman disguised as a young male scholar headed to Peking to take the Imperial examination that women are excluded from. Lost in the big city after her provincial village, she encounters scholar Jin Zhi-fu who is a veteran at studying for the exams and is determined to pass this year. Sharing camaraderie over their studies and a connection, things deepen until the inevitable happens and Anlei's secret is exposed. Can they get past this and protect the special connection they have forged and can An Lei make a future that allows her to be the brilliant scholar she is without hiding?

I loved getting Jin Soling's parents' story before the heartbreaking circumstances that happened to them later. A satisfying love story and a woman's triumph over stifling tradition.

And, so, each tale was different in focus, but all captivated me in their own ways. They make me want to go back and start re-reading the books all over again. Those who love steampunk with strong characters, romance, and intrigue should definitely give this series a go.

[Em · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave Love in the Time of Engines (a short novel within Tales from the Gunpowder Chronicles) a B+ at All About Romance.

Although Tales from the Gunpowder Chronicles features three separate steampunk novellas, I only read and reviewed the third novella, Love in the Time of Engines. The other two novellas are standalone stories; LitToE is a prequel to Gunpowder Alchemy, published in 2014.

LitToE is tough to grade. Not because I didn’t enjoy it. I did. It’s absorbing and interesting, and a refreshing, welcome change from the european historical romances I regularly read. The challenge is whether I grade it as a standalone novella with some problematic loose ends, or grade it as a prequel assuming some of these loose ends are wrapped up in the novel that follows (which, for the record, I haven’t read. Yet.). The grade is a compromise; Love in the Time of Engines is a great read – masterfully baiting the hook for the rest of this series – but as a standalone, the conclusion is a disappointment.

A year ago, imperial messengers had come to Anhui province with a special summons for “scholars of undiscovered talents in science and mathematics.”

Shi Anlei is almost their perfect candidate. A mathematics prodigy with dreams of attending the Academy and sitting for the Imperial Exam, Anlei longed for a chance to prove herself. But since girls were barred from attending the Imperial Academy, taking the imperial examination or accepting a scholarly appointment, Anlei is resigned to a life in the country. Her tutor, a somewhat unconventional woman who tutored boys and girls, isn’t. Unbeknownst to Anlei, Mistress Wang plotted and planned to send Anlei anyway. When LitToE begins, Anlei has left her family and home behind, traveling on a gunpowder crawler bound for the Imperial city of Peking.

A month ago, Anlei had shaved back her hairline and braided her long hair into a traditional queue. She’d wrapped her breasts tight with a band of cloth. The high-collared mandarin jacket she wore was buttoned all the way up to her chin to cover up the lack of know at her throat.

Anlei had become Shi Han, a young scholar traveling to Peking.

When ‘Shi Han’ arrives, Peking is nothing like she expected. It’s confusing and loud, and the Imperial Academy is nowhere to be found. After an hour spent wandering the hutong maze, she spots a young man dressed in scholars’ clothing. Despite her fear of discovery, Shi Han approaches and asks him for directions. After an awkward exchange, Jin Zhi-fu, the handsome scholar, agrees to show Han the way.

Zhi-fu has already taken the imperial exams twice. If he fails again, he’ll be forced to return home in shame, and work alongside his father, an appointed official of the Ministry of War, on the frontier defense in the northeast. It would either be an imperial appointment or the garrison. A life of science and learning or cannons and gunpowder. Popular and well-liked by his peers, ambitious and determined to pass, Zhi-fu has lost the optimistic, naiveté that marked his first two years in Peking. But with rumors of steam propelled airships in the West, Zhi-fu is determined to pass and earn a place at the Ministry of Science. After spending some time with old friends (who also failed to pass in previous years), Zhi-fu spots Han emerging from the headmasters office. He assumes young Han has failed to earn a place at the academy, but soon realizes he’s mistaken; after helping his new young friend to find a place to stay (in the storage closet adjacent to his room), he spies on him in class the following day. It’s quickly apparent to Zhi-fu (and others) that behind Han’s shy and reserved persona lurks a clever, brilliant mind.

From the moment Anlei meets Zhi-fu, she feels a frisson of attraction to him. It doesn’t hurt that he’s also generous, kind, and protective of Anlei in her role as country bumpkin Han. Meanwhile, Zhi-fu remains remains blissfully ignorant of her gender, but is attracted to Han’s mind and unwavering dedication despite his meagre circumstances and limited resources. The contrasts between them – at least the version they reveal to each other – are extreme. They have wonderful chemistry anyway; despite their differences, they form an unlikely and intense friendship – a seemingly impenetrable bond, forged by the challenge of passing the examination. Unfortunately, the very nature of their relationship ensures they keep their deepest, truest selves hidden.

From the outset, I was fully immersed in Ms. Lin’s early nineteenth century Peking, and Anlei and Zhi-fu’s place within it. We mostly see Peking through Anlei’s unworldly viewpoint – her confusion and awe, pleasures and frustrations, her successes and failures. The Imperial City, the academy… all of it is strange and new and scary and marvelous, and Ms. Lin masterfully renders it through Anlei. Meanwhile, she slowly and carefully develops her principal characters, confiding their individual hopes – Anlei’s struggle to break free from the barriers of her sex to realize her dreams and Zhi-fu’s doubts and worries about his own place in the world. At the same time, Lin ratchets up the tension inherent in Anlei’s subterfuge – with Zhi-fu, amongst their friends, and at the Imperial Academy – keeping readers on edge alongside her heroine.

Zhi-fu predictably discovers Anlei’s secret, and somewhat less predictably, he freaks out. Reader – even though you knew it was coming – his reaction is devastating; proving Anhei right when she decided he couldn’t be trusted with the truth. Zhi-fu, despite his own struggle to forge an identity separate from his father and his somewhat enlightened worldview, immediately reverts to patriarchal type. He ignores Anlei’s entreaties and explanations, and lashes out. Oh reader, you’re waiting for me to tell you it all works out right? It does… sort of. Zhi-fu’s immediate reaction proves to have lasting repercussions, but this is a romance! Anlei and Zhi-fu do get past this major roadblock, but even while I enjoyed their new romantic relationship (a lot!), I struggled with the implications of Zhi-fu’s selfish choices.

While the set-up, characterization of the principal characters, and the world building are supremely well realized, ultimately LitToE stumbles and falls short of the DIK as it winds its way to an unsatisfying conclusion. The final quarter is tragically underdeveloped, and I assume it’s because the author continues this story in Gunpowder Alchemy. I’m guessing shifty secondary characters are more fully realized, and Anlei’s future is better defined. Unfortunately, the story length here doesn’t give the author quite enough time to sell us on the final chain of events, and I was still struggling with my feelings about Zhi-fu.

[aarya · Rating 3 out of 5]

B- review: https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/r...

Big Trouble in Old Shanghai: B

The Island of the Opium-Eaters: B-

Love in the Time of Engines: C

Disclaimer: I received a free e-ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Rei A · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved The Gunpowder Chronicles and I was really excited to dive back into Jeannie Lin's Chinese steampunk Qing dynasty world. These three novellas take place in that world. I enjoyed all of them, though the last one--and the longest story in this collection--was my favorite, perhaps because of its more historical romance aspects, but I enjoyed the other two stories' more sci-fi and steampunk vibes as well. The second story dragged a little for me, even though it's a very adventurous and dark story.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t love rating books with multiple novellas for the same reason I don’t like rating anthologies—invariably there are weaker and stronger components. That said, I really enjoyed “The Island of the Opium-Eaters” and “Love in the Time of Engines”—5 stars for both of those—but found the first novella lacking in comparison…maybe just 3 stars for that.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I figured steampunk samurai would be very different, and it was. I enjoyed it, though it was a little more plodding than I expected, and it was kind of like steampunk lite, to me, there were less dirigibles than I hoped for. But good fun, a really cool mix of genres.

[Angel Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

These were good. It took me awhile to get into them, but that was 100% me. I have to be in a certain mood to read steampunk.

[GwenPeds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stayed up half the night finishing. Sure, I'll try the first novel in the series now!

[August Schau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three tales that give a taste for a different universe with whispers of history and romance. An excellent introduction to the author’s world.

[Courtney K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories about the side characters. The last story about the MC parents from the series was so bittersweet.

[Virginia Rounds]

3 stories that I enjoyed very much.
1) Main Character is caught in an uprising/riot, where do loyalties lie?
2) MCs land on an island, find terrible things, have to escape. Is the “Island of Dr Moreau” its own trope? Starring one important side character from book 1 and one from book 2.
3) Woman dresses up as man in order to take the imperial exams. This is a whole trope on its own, I think! Or maybe it’s just Jeannie Lin characters that are always thinking about these stories. (Anyone got info on this?) Regardless, it’s a great story and the longest of the bunch. It’s also a prequel: the MCs here are the mother and father of Soling, the main character of books 1 & 2.
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Each of these is a nice little package; each stands alone quite well. One thing that stands out for the third story is, it felt like its own thing. Like it could have been written first, and not as an afterthought to fill in the backstory. I even forgot after reading it that these are the parents.
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You likely don’t have to read these to keep reading the series, but they’re a pleasure and I recommend them.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read first the third story (about Soling's parents) as an introduction to the main story, and the two other stories after reading the first two volumes of the main series.
I enjoyed Soling's parents story a lot (I would recommend starting with it - I thought it was a great introduction to the main series). Both were endearing - Soling's mother is such a badass! After reading the main series I was especially glad for this backstory which shed lights on both parents, as their story is only hinted at in the story and both are very interesting.

The two other stories were fun, starring characters spotted in the main series. My favourite of the two was the "zombie" island story, as I was happy to read about characters I had enjoyed in the main series. Plus the pastiche tone made for a fun read!

[Angel Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read. Just had trouble getting in the mood to read. 100% me, not the author or the book. I have to be in particular mindset to read historical or steampunk.