{"product_id":"9780553294613","title":"The Difference Engine","description":"1855: The Industrial Revolution is in full and inexorable swing, powered by steam-driven cybernetic Engines.  Charles Babbage perfects his Analytical Engine and the computer age arrives a century ahead of its time.  And three extraordinary characters race toward a rendezvous with history—and the future: \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eSybil Gerard\u003c\/i\u003e—a fallen woman, politician’s tart, daughter of a Luddite agitator\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eEdward “Leviathan” Mallory\u003c\/i\u003e—explorer and paleontologist\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eLaurence Oliphant\u003c\/i\u003e—diplomat, mystic, and spy.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Their adventure begins with the discovery of a box of punched Engine cards of unknown origin and purpose.  Cards someone wants badly enough to kill for….\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Part detective story, part historical thriller, \u003ci\u003eThe Difference Engine\u003c\/i\u003e is the collaborative masterpiece by two of the most acclaimed science fiction authors writing today.  Provocative, compelling, intensely imagined, it is a startling extension of Gibson’s and Sterling’s unique visions—and the beginning of movement we know today as “steampunk!”","brand":"William Gibson","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback Mass market (rack) paperback","offer_id":48532004634784,"sku":"9780553294613","price":6.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0582\/8637\/5072\/files\/BNCImageAPI_1591e95b-229c-4f68-987c-2f5ffaa2da02.jpg?v=1706187608","url":"https:\/\/rivendell-books.com\/products\/9780553294613","provider":"Rivendell Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}