Public Works Steampunk presents Jane Eyre

by R.A. Harding, Charlotte Brontë

The classic story of Jane Eyre reset in a steampunk world, complete with zephyr-ships, clockwork, and automatons in addition to the original romance and mystery! As a child, Jane Eyre lives with her cold aunt and cruel cousins in the levitating manor Gateshead Hall, but is soon sent to Lowood Institution, the austere boarding school for orphans across continents in India. Jane eventually journeys back to England, to take the job of governess at Thornfield Hall, a mysterious manor that floats in the air above a lake and harbors a dark and shrouded secret.
This retelling retains all of the original passion and intrigue but winds it up to something much more. Written by Charlotte Brontë and originally published in 1847, these steampunk additions were imagined and added by R.A. Harding almost one hundred and seventy five years later. This speaks to the enduring quality of the book and the unmitigated moxie of one of its fans.

492 pages, Paperback

Published June 12, 2021

Reviews

[B.L. Blankenship · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a terrific book. To me, it has a lot of Dickens-type stuff with the poverty, downtrodden status, and everything pertaining to the protagonist.

[Benjamin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I heard about this book during a convention I attended earlier this year. Jane Eyre was required reading for one of my High School English courses, so it intrigued me that someone would make steampunk additions to this literary classic. The original book naturally fits into the steampunk timeframe, so I'm a little surprised this mash-up hasn't been done before. Unfortunately, because Jane Eyre is so compatible with steampunk, it didn't feel like Steampunk Jane Eyre added anything to the narrative.

Perhaps my expectations were skewed for this modified classic from my experience with the "Classical Literature Monsters" series from Quirk Books. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters only add a little eldritch horror to a mostly unmodified book that's in the public domain. However, these minor changes make a significant shift in tone that ends up creating a fresh experience that's different from the original. With Steampunk Jane Eyre, the additions don't stand out that much, and when they do it's because they clash with the context of the original (e.g., why is there a need to teach Hindi when there's such an emphasis in this version on Christian-Hinduism?).

I listened to this book through a combination of Apple Podcasts and downloads from the book's website, which was only necessary because there were some re-uploaded tracks on the Podcasts app. The narrator was excellent, but there were a few moments where it was obviously different audio spliced into the original take. I can't honestly complain, though, as I could listen to this book for absolutely free. Overall, Jane Eyre is still a powerful story, and if this is the way someone wants to listen to it, I say go for it.

Some light steampunk additions to a classic that could easily adapt to them, I give Steampunk Jane Eyre 3.0 stars out of 5.