What do you think?
Rate this book
The Wrench in the Machine: A Steampunk Detective in a World of Cosmic Mystery
When a double homicide leads to a techno conspiracy, can one detective keep the human world from descending into orchestrated chaos?
If you like reluctant heroes, fascinating worlds, and twists and turns, then you’ll love Bonsart Bokel’s Cyberpunk-science-fiction-pulp mashup.
Dover, UK., 1875. Inspector David Ol’Barrow is feeling his age. So when two night watchmen bizarrely die in the railway station, the seasoned officer is more perplexed by the nearby crate with a frozen body and “fifty-four” scratched on the lid. But his curiosity turns into horror when his partner is executed by a blade-wielding assassin.
Losing his hand to the same culprit, Ol’Barrow struggles to cope with both losses as he uncovers a young girl with powers over gravity, and shadowy agents protecting his world. But when his investigation reveals a cult-like movement that believes humans are better when enhanced by technology, the policeman fears humanity is about to come to a mechanical catastrophe.
Can Ol’Barrow stay alive long enough to prevent a bloody end?
The Wrench in the Machine is the highly immersive first book in The Association of Ishtar series of Steampunk techno-thrillers. If you like reluctant heroes, fascinating worlds, and nail-biting twists and turns, then you’ll love Bonsart Bokel’s Cyberpunk-science-fiction-pulp mashup.
Buy The Wrench in the Machine today to slam the brakes on chaos!
If you like reluctant heroes, fascinating worlds, and twists and turns, then you’ll love Bonsart Bokel’s Cyberpunk-science-fiction-pulp mashup.
Dover, UK., 1875. Inspector David Ol’Barrow is feeling his age. So when two night watchmen bizarrely die in the railway station, the seasoned officer is more perplexed by the nearby crate with a frozen body and “fifty-four” scratched on the lid. But his curiosity turns into horror when his partner is executed by a blade-wielding assassin.
Losing his hand to the same culprit, Ol’Barrow struggles to cope with both losses as he uncovers a young girl with powers over gravity, and shadowy agents protecting his world. But when his investigation reveals a cult-like movement that believes humans are better when enhanced by technology, the policeman fears humanity is about to come to a mechanical catastrophe.
Can Ol’Barrow stay alive long enough to prevent a bloody end?
The Wrench in the Machine is the highly immersive first book in The Association of Ishtar series of Steampunk techno-thrillers. If you like reluctant heroes, fascinating worlds, and nail-biting twists and turns, then you’ll love Bonsart Bokel’s Cyberpunk-science-fiction-pulp mashup.
Buy The Wrench in the Machine today to slam the brakes on chaos!
518 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2021
10 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 11, 2022
The Wrench in the Machine
by Bonsart Bokel
Rating:5/5
Description:
"There is a murder to solve, a child with more talent than meets the eye, and a scramble for power. Mr. Bokel has created a world so complete you will think about this tale long after you finish it."
The Association of Ishtar takes place inside a Multiverse of Cosmic Horror and Steampunk adventure. Investigate the mysteries and explore strange new worlds.In 1875 Inspector Ol’Barrow of Dover’s borough police is still coming to terms with the advent of the radio dramas when he is confronted by a murder mystery. During their investigation, he and his colleague Bibsby come eye to eye with an assassin with otherworldly origins.
Spurred on by his sense of duty and a desire to redeem himself, inspector Ol’Barrow collaborates with a clandestine organization called the Association of Ishtar. They claim to be mere advisors who aid the authorities with the containment of anomalies known as Rifts. These are harmless gateways to other worlds, but also provide access to the many threats lurking inside the multiverse.
Review:
👉Talking about the title of the book, the title of the book is really so interesting to read.
👉The cover is appealing and attractive as well.Writing style is quite appreciable .
👉The Wrench In The Machine is the book one in The Association of Ishtar. It's a Steampunk adventure fiction that will pull you into the narration with quite an ease and
👉It follows Inspector Ol’Barrow of Dover’s borough who is investigating a mysterious murder along with his colleague Bibsby. Their probe leads them to an assassin with deadly and uncanny otherworldly provenance. In his attempt to solve the mystery and reclaim his reputation he forges a partnership with The Association of Ishtar, who claim to contain any and all anomalies which is categorised as Rifts. These are generally the harmless gateways to the multiverse but also an acess point for dangers that are in the multiverse.This opens up a world of such incredible reveals that it will shock and surprise Inspector Ol’Barrow. As he learns these startling declarations.
For complete read do order the book on @amazondotin
Happy reading!
by Bonsart Bokel
Rating:5/5
Description:
"There is a murder to solve, a child with more talent than meets the eye, and a scramble for power. Mr. Bokel has created a world so complete you will think about this tale long after you finish it."
The Association of Ishtar takes place inside a Multiverse of Cosmic Horror and Steampunk adventure. Investigate the mysteries and explore strange new worlds.In 1875 Inspector Ol’Barrow of Dover’s borough police is still coming to terms with the advent of the radio dramas when he is confronted by a murder mystery. During their investigation, he and his colleague Bibsby come eye to eye with an assassin with otherworldly origins.
Spurred on by his sense of duty and a desire to redeem himself, inspector Ol’Barrow collaborates with a clandestine organization called the Association of Ishtar. They claim to be mere advisors who aid the authorities with the containment of anomalies known as Rifts. These are harmless gateways to other worlds, but also provide access to the many threats lurking inside the multiverse.
Review:
👉Talking about the title of the book, the title of the book is really so interesting to read.
👉The cover is appealing and attractive as well.Writing style is quite appreciable .
👉The Wrench In The Machine is the book one in The Association of Ishtar. It's a Steampunk adventure fiction that will pull you into the narration with quite an ease and
👉It follows Inspector Ol’Barrow of Dover’s borough who is investigating a mysterious murder along with his colleague Bibsby. Their probe leads them to an assassin with deadly and uncanny otherworldly provenance. In his attempt to solve the mystery and reclaim his reputation he forges a partnership with The Association of Ishtar, who claim to contain any and all anomalies which is categorised as Rifts. These are generally the harmless gateways to the multiverse but also an acess point for dangers that are in the multiverse.This opens up a world of such incredible reveals that it will shock and surprise Inspector Ol’Barrow. As he learns these startling declarations.
For complete read do order the book on @amazondotin
Happy reading!
Read
May 29, 2024Other reviewers have highlighted the typographical/grammatical errors (of which there are many). While these exist, they do not influence my two-star review.
The overriding feeling that I got from this book was that everything made sense in the author's head, but that they were unable to translate that to the page. The story starts promisingly enough with a murder case being investigated, but quickly goes off the rails. The main character lurches from scene to scene, with all dialogue being cryptic and unclear. The character motivations are all very nebulous, and the fact that there are 'rifts' between worlds is treated almost mundanely. Most of the time I did not know what was going on, or why, and worst of all, I did not care.
Some of the action sequences are fun, but it still feels like someone is narrating what they are seeing on a movie screen; the human element is missing.
As such, I struggled to finish this book. I regret having to give it only two stars, as I know how challenging it is for aspiring authors.
The overriding feeling that I got from this book was that everything made sense in the author's head, but that they were unable to translate that to the page. The story starts promisingly enough with a murder case being investigated, but quickly goes off the rails. The main character lurches from scene to scene, with all dialogue being cryptic and unclear. The character motivations are all very nebulous, and the fact that there are 'rifts' between worlds is treated almost mundanely. Most of the time I did not know what was going on, or why, and worst of all, I did not care.
Some of the action sequences are fun, but it still feels like someone is narrating what they are seeing on a movie screen; the human element is missing.
As such, I struggled to finish this book. I regret having to give it only two stars, as I know how challenging it is for aspiring authors.
June 26, 2022
It started of very promising as the story sounded really original. It is, but the execution is lacking.
This book is in desperate need of an editor as there are many spelling mistakes. The spelling of some names change as well: McArthur becomes MacArthur, sometimes macarthur or another spelling and/or missing capitals. The use of interpunction is not always correct. The English feels forced and obviously written by a Dutch person, with sometimes literal translations. The writing style is blunt and inelegant. All of which took me right out of the story, which for me lacked a bit of emotional depth. The book inside looks like a word document made into a book, with handmade illustrations inside that have been scanned. Not very professional! I give it 2 stars instead of 1 for the original idea and cover art.
This book is in desperate need of an editor as there are many spelling mistakes. The spelling of some names change as well: McArthur becomes MacArthur, sometimes macarthur or another spelling and/or missing capitals. The use of interpunction is not always correct. The English feels forced and obviously written by a Dutch person, with sometimes literal translations. The writing style is blunt and inelegant. All of which took me right out of the story, which for me lacked a bit of emotional depth. The book inside looks like a word document made into a book, with handmade illustrations inside that have been scanned. Not very professional! I give it 2 stars instead of 1 for the original idea and cover art.
September 25, 2023
It was a little hard to connect with the main character, Ol Barrow at first., but as the story progresses and we know a little more about his background, it grows on me. The story begins with a seemingly simple murder story with a little fantastical elements but it gradually evolves to something more. The worldbuilding is quite crazy but well realised. It's basically steampunk multiverse mystery/detective story. Some spelling or grammatical errors didn't bother me much, so I enjoyed it overall.
June 16, 2022
Very original story of the multiverse set in a steampunk world. Very original characters, fast-paced action. The author skillfully combines elements of mystery, horror, and Victorian science fiction that took me on a journey like no other.
April 3, 2025
Really enjoyed the book look forward to more from Bonsart
July 14, 2025
I feel terrible about giving this book two stars. I want to say that I did thoroughly enjoyed the story. I loved this steampunk elements, the world building, the action, tthe plot, it was all very enjoyable however, the book was riddled with grammatical errors. It was a major need of a really really good editor. Errors start off slow in the first half of the book and by the end, it seems like every page had some sort of type-o and grammar issue. There were even font inconsistencies.
Yet I persevered and really did enjoy the book and am looking forward to the next volume, errors and all.
Yet I persevered and really did enjoy the book and am looking forward to the next volume, errors and all.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews