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George Mann
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The Affinity Bridge: A Newbury & Hobbes Investigation Kindle Edition

by George Mann (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 214 ratings
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Get ready to follow dazzling young writer George Mann to a London unlike any you've ever seen and into an adventure you will never forget, in The Affinity Bridge.

Welcome to the bizarre and dangerous world of Victorian London, a city teetering on the edge of revolution. Its people are ushering in a new era of technology, dazzled each day by unfamiliar inventions. Airships soar in the skies over the city, while ground trains rumble through the streets and clockwork automatons are programmed to carry out menial tasks in the offices of lawyers, policemen, and journalists.

But beneath this shiny veneer of progress lurks a sinister side.

Queen Victoria is kept alive by a primitive life-support system, while her agents, Sir Maurice Newbury and his delectable assistant Miss Veronica Hobbes, do battle with enemies of the crown, physical and supernatural. This time Newbury and Hobbes are called to investigate the wreckage of a crashed airship and its missing automaton pilot, while attempting to solve a string of strangulations attributed to a mysterious glowing policeman, and dealing with a zombie plague that is ravaging the slums of the capital.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

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  1. Book 1 of 6
    Newbury & Hobbes
  2. Print length
    340 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Tor Books
  6. Publication date
    May 6, 2014
  7. File size
    467 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

SF editor Mann (The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction) sets this leisurely mystery, published in the U.K. by Snowbooks in 2008, in an alternate 1901 London where steam-powered taxicabs fill the streets and brass automatons have begun to replace human labor. Sir Maurice Newbury, British Museum anthropologist and occult connoisseur, and his Watsonesque assistant, Miss Veronica Hobbes, are summoned to investigate the crash of a cyborg-piloted helium zeppelin. Meanwhile, a plague is spreading through London's poorer quarters, turning everyday citizens into bloodthirsty, zombielike revenants and threatening the stability of the Empire. Mann's stiff-upper-lipped Victorians chat at great length over cups of Earl Grey and occasionally whack zombies and robots in arduous action passages, and the unnecessary details and painfully stilted dialogue bring nothing fresh to the steampunk subgenre. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School—In this steampunk mystery, Sir Maurice Newbury maintains an office at the British Museum but actually works in a secret capacity for Queen Victoria, who is still alive, in late 1901, by means of an elaborate mechanical life-support system. Veronica Hobbes arrives to become Sir Maurice's assistant, and together the two investigate a series of incidents: a missing man, a crashed airship, automatons gone berserk, a string of murders apparently committed by a blue-glowing policeman, and a plague that is turning residents of London's Whitechapel into revenants (zombies). Mann may be trying to do a little too much here, but both Newbury and Hobbes are engaging characters and the world-building is done well. The last third of the novel is nonstop action, including a classic train-top chase scene. The author introduces some elements that are obviously intended to carry over into future books, and the epilogue reveals new information and clearly sets up the next episode. Fast-paced and well-written, this novel is likely to appeal to genre fans.—Sarah Flowers, formerly at Santa Clara County Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002HRY18G
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tor Books; Reprint edition (May 6, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 6, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 467 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 340 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 214 ratings

About the author

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George Mann

George Mann

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George Mann is a Sunday Times bestselling novelist and scriptwriter.

He’s the author of the Newbury & Hobbes Victorian mystery series, as well as four novels about a 1920s vigilante known as The Ghost. He’s also written bestselling Doctor Who novels, new adventures for Sherlock Holmes and the forthcoming supernatural crime series, Wychwood.

His comic writing includes extensive work on Doctor Who, Dark Souls, Warhammer 40,000 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

He’s written audio scripts for Doctor Who, Blake’s 7, Sherlock Holmes, Warhammer 40,000 and more.

As Editor he’s assembled four anthologies of original Sherlock Holmes fiction, as well as multiple volumes of The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction and The Solaris Book of New Fantasy.

His website is at www.george-mann.com, and you can find him on Twitter at @george_mann

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
214 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Michael G. Szymanski
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent Steampunk/Holmesian tale of mystical detection.
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2021
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This intriguing tale takes place in the Steampunk world of Victorian England, where a pair of investigators must use their wits and skills to solve a case in a world that might have been. Fun, action-packed and studded with the kind of deductive reasoning that would have made Mr. Holmes proud...
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John Lees
4.0 out of 5 stars A quick entertaining read despite the flaws
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2009
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I Purchased this book in the Kindle Edition after looking at the blurbs but not reading the review (deliberately). I'm glad for both.

The book was an enjoyable read. I did not expect much more than I got: an entertaining tale with plot elements I generally enjoy (Not-quite-Zombies, Steampunk, light sexual tension, Zepplins, et al.) The Affinity Bridge went very quickly (as Kindle books often do I have found for some reason), and I completed it in a single (albeit off-work) day not spent obsessively reading. At the same time, much of the critique of the reviews herein are accurate, and had I read them I may not have purchased the book. More would have been my loss though for the purpose of the purchase (light reading).

I gritted my teeth at some of the things written about in other reviews: particularly the modernisms and the somewhat ham-handed writing techniques scattered here and there through the text. If the infodump at the first crime scene had been in the preview I'm not certain I would have picked it up -- thankfully that was the most egregious violation (for me) and not typical. The stock characters were less of an issue for me than for some other reviewers; I didn't expect each character to lift off of the page on wings of originality, it is not that sort of book. The two main characters are a bit more than half-pastiche but with enough to distinguish them to make them interesting. The female character fits well into the Neo-Victorian model of a female protagonist. I do not expect her to act as a woman of the era; I would not want to read *that* book quite frankly. The male character is only tantalizingly Holmesian, with some of Holmes less savory habits to make his character have exploitable weaknesses but hardly the Holmesian full-bore pastiche. Sigerson Holmes maybe, but not Sherlock.

Again, after reading some of the Reviews, I am glad I opted not to look at them in the first place. Despite the fact that I gritted my teeth a few times I enjoyed the read. It was not a book I would call a "new essential", but I do look forward to the next Newberry & Hobbes and will certainly purchase it in a $9.99 (or less) Kindle edition.

For other Kindle Buyers:
There were occasional typographical mistakes in the Kindle edition. I could not tell either were or were not present in the hardtext: some od dspaci ng here and there but not too bad. I don't want to overstate this observation because I have seen some truly horrible examples and this was not one of them. Perhaps because I have seen such shoddyness frequently in Kindle Editions I have become a bit inured. Maybe I should be more cranky about them however as this is not a good thing. While I like getting Kindle Editions, they save me from storing the dead tree yada yada, the errors in the text of all-too many Kindle Editions are simply outrageous and could have been easily (and quickly) fixed. Here they are more infrequent annoyances than killers.

For example: The original text of the Affinity Bridge must have had Drop Caps because the first letter of each chapter (and only that thank goodness, not every scene change)is bold and hangs out in its own line. Doubtless the book was sent through "Ye Olde Standard Kindle-izer Programme" and dropped on Amazon without really looking at it. I know there are a lot of books to check, but c'mon guys The first line of every single Chapter? I use Mobicreator to transfer files to a Kindle-capable format myself, and I know that these sort of translation programs can produce unpredictable results, but geez this is a product you want me to spend money on. Get it right even if the costs are lower than paper versions.

I'm just guessing here, but nobody looked at this one at all. With all the added new content on Amazon, I sort of give their staff a pass (emphasis on "sort of"), but I'll make this a call to all publishers (and indeed Authors): Please take a look at these before you send them out. Even a cursory examination would have been able to spot some of these issues and allow the work as a whole to have a more professional appearance. It is truly in your best interest as the Author or Publisher to get the book out in the right shape.

Do not get me wrong though review-reader, this book was not the worst violator I have seen. In fact, credit is due in part: I do give "you" (whomever prepped the Kindle Edition) kudos for the chapters being already separated properly (I did not have to bookmark each as I must all-too often). This is a frequent mistake in Kindle Editions. Having the Chapters "pre-tagged" really helps, please keep that up.
5 people found this helpful
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Will C.
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoying Mann's Steampunk London
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2013
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I found the setting and characters fascinating. So much so, in fact, that I find myself randomly thinking about this story even though I finished it over a month ago and am reading other stories totally unrelated. Each time I pick up my Kindle to read, I'm a little out if sorts trying to jive what I'm reading with the steampunk London Mann has instilled in my head, and I have to remind myself to get back in the current book. Consequently, I already purchased the next three so they will be ready to read and I can just stay in that world for awhile. Recommending to my friends who enjoy a good mystery.
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Jose Irimia-dominguez
3.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2009
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I go exactly what I was expecting. A story in the victorian age with a some steampunk details. The atmosphere is nice, catchy. The action is continuous, which is an advantage, since you never get bored, but is also a drawback, since you never go deep enough into the characters. However, since is the first part of a triology, one may expect something left behind to retake it in the next books. And At least to me let me a good impression to read the next part.
Things I didn't like: the plot is very predictable, and is not really complex. George Mann tries to draw a detective with Sherlock Holmes features, but never get even close. What is going on in the plot and how the characters resolve it look childish, and ingenuous. I expected more in this aspect. Let's hope the next book is more brain-challenging.
In Summary, worth to give a try, at the very least, because not very many good steampunk stories are made.
2 people found this helpful
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JimT
4.0 out of 5 stars Passable
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2021
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The plot didn't really grab me. Couldn't get emotionally involved with the characters. Seemed to be trying to prove that the woman character was equal to a man. Time was spent providing explanations of how some machines worked that would be really unbelievable to anyone at all familiar with the limitations of the technology described.
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Kevin J.
5.0 out of 5 stars stop that robot
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2014
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Great read!!!! Love these books. The Sherlock Holmes feel and turn of the century sleuths make it a definite page turner. The situations that Hobbs and Newberry find themselves in are incredible.
Look forward to more from the storyteller.
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Top reviews from other countries

Jack Hawkins
4.0 out of 5 stars and i enjoyed it. Guessed most of the major plotline
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 30, 2015
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This is the first book of the series, and i enjoyed it. Guessed most of the major plotline.
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fastreader
5.0 out of 5 stars fastreader
Reviewed in Canada on August 31, 2011
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Mind blowing steampunk work with twists galore and the start of a series of books investigating crimes in a far future England still using steam as the main power source. Highly entertaining. Very imaginitive
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David Wegenast
2.0 out of 5 stars Steampunk setting, but no imagination
Reviewed in Canada on April 9, 2012
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I love the Steampunk genre, and had high hopes for this book, but it soon became a chore to read because the writing is mediocre: no scintillating dialogue, no surprising plot twists, no sharply drawn characters, no vivid descriptions. There are a few interesting gadgets, but the story just lurches along in a predictable way once the stage is set, and it's very easy to put down. This, by the way, is a fault of some other Steampunk books these days, notably the Alexia Tarabotti series by Gail Carriger.
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