In 1842, the gunpowder might of China’s Qing Dynasty fell to Britain’s steam engines. Furious, the Emperor ordered the death of his engineers—and killed China’s best chance of fighting back… Since her father’s execution eight years ago, Jin Soling kept her family from falling into poverty. But her meager savings are running out, leaving her with no choice but to sell the last of her father’s possessions—her last memento of him. Only, while attempting to find a buyer, Soling is caught and brought before the Crown Prince. Unlike his father, the Emperor, the Prince knows that the only chance of expelling the English invaders is to once again unite China’s cleverest minds to create fantastic weapons. He also realizes that Soling is the one person who could convince her father’s former allies—many who have turned rebel—to once again work for the Empire. He promises to restore her family name if she’ll help him in his cause. But after the betrayal of her family all those years ago, Soling is unsure if she can trust anyone in the Forbidden City—even if her heart is longing to believe in the engineer with a hidden past who was once meant to be her husband… Includes a preview of the second book in the Gunpowder Chronicles.

National bestselling author Jeannie Lin’s Gunpowder Chronicles continue as a woman left adrift by the fall of a Dynasty attempts to reclaim her family’s honor... As a physician, Jin Soling can see that the Emperor is cracking, relying on Opium to drown his troubles. The Ch’ing Empire is failing, and war with the British is imminent, but the man to whom Soling was once engaged has a bold idea to save it. A leader within the Ministry of Engineering, Chang-wei suggests an alliance with Japan, whose scientists claim to have technical advancements that could turn the tide of the war. But Japan has kept itself in isolation for the last two hundred years, cutting all diplomatic ties with the Ch'ing Empire. Chang-wei must enter the island nation in disguise to seek an alliance—an alliance forbidden by the Japanese shogunate. Seeking to escape the politics of the imperial court, Soling arranges her own passage on the airship to Japan. But once they land, Chang-wei and Soling become targets of the shogunate's armored assassins. Caught between two empires, in a land distrustful of foreigners, the deadly war machines are the least of their worries...

A Gunpowder Chronicles steampunk short story. Hanzo the karakuri puppet maker is summoned to Koriya Castle to build a mysterious device for a fearsome warlord. Within the walls, he encounters a beautiful courtesan who must sing from dusk until dawn to chase away nightmares. Caught in a madman’s domain, will Hanzo find his escape, or sacrifice himself for the sake of love? A classic fairy-tale retold with a steampunk twist in feudal Japan. The first novel of the series, Gunpowder Alchemy, is set in China, and the second, Clockwork Samurai, ventures into 19th century Japan. For more information, go to: www.jeannielin.com.

A clash of gunpowder-tech and the machineries of war leading to a showdown in steampunk Shanghai. Physician Jin Soling and Engineer Chen Chang-wei are stationed at a secret factory complex tasked with creating war machines. When a series of industrial accidents reveals an underground resistance, the two are faced with questions of loyalty, sacrifice and honor. Will they sacrifice their souls for the empire they have sworn to save? The third book in the Gunpowder Chronicles trilogy which started with Gunpowder Alchemy.