A Calculus of Angels (1999)

by J. Gregory Keyes

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: The Age of Unreason (2)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
404	4	23,893	(3.54)	4

Add to your library

Add to wishlist

all members

▾Members

Recently added by

car02, Mougwee, BenKline, ogorobez, JenneB, paperloverevolution, georgemoot

numbers

show all

▾Tags

18th century (7) Age of Unreason (18) Age of Unreason series (5) alternate history (46) Benjamin Franklin (3) ebook (2) England (3) Enlightenment (3) fantasy (87) fiction (38) hardcover (3) historical (3) historical fantasy (11) historical fiction (8) library (2) not yet read (2) novel (7) own (2) paperback (4) read (5) science (3) science fiction (28) series (8) sf (7) sff (10) speculative fiction (6) steampunk (13) to-read (5) unread (8) war (2)

▾LibraryThing recommendations

Empire of Unreason by J. Gregory Keyes (2000)
Same series: The Shadows of God, Newton's Cannon (The Age of Unreason)
The Blackgod by J. Gregory Keyes (1997)
Same series: The Waterborn (Chosen of the Changeling)
The Charnel Prince by Greg Keyes (2004)
Same series: The Briar King, The Blood Knight (Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone)
The Light Ages by Ian R. MacLeod (2003)
The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers (1979)

The Iron Dragon's Daughter by Michael Swanwick (1993)
Expiration Date by Tim Powers (1995)
Same series: Earthquake Weather (The Fisher King trilogy)
The Peshawar Lancers by S. M. Stirling (2002)
Declare by Tim Powers (2001)
Mendoza in Hollywood by Kage Baker (2000)

see more recommendations for this work

refresh

▾Member recommendations

None.

▾Will you like it?

▾Member reviews

date ▼ | votes

Showing 4 of 4

Feb12:

Characters: Still young Ben, very nice. I liked his friends a lot. Isaac could have been developed more, but oh well. And I loved the pirates.

Plot: Still very good. Nice to transform into a post-apocalyptic nature.

Style: Still very consistent with his other work. (

)

Isamoor | Apr 19, 2012 |

This one picks up right where the previous book left off. In this alternate Earth, historical figures from the 1700's study science and magic and produce amazing new discoveries - but are they inspired by angels, or by something with harm to humans in mind? The various governments of the time struggle to control the new technologies and magics, and defeat each other in the various wars of Earth at that time in history. This has a great feeling of realism with great characters in a very different Earth. Good stuff. (

)

Karlstar | May 13, 2011 |

http://martlet-blog.blogspot.com/2007/05/age-of-unreason-de-greg-keyes.html (

)

martlet | Jun 14, 2007 |

A worthy sequel to Newton's Cannon. Good characterisations and a lively plot - but the science/fantasy element has seemed to take a life of its own that doesn't always hang together. And the final few chapters - the inevitable battle sequence at the end of a fantasy novel (why must there always be one?) - are messy and not as clear as they should be. Still I will continue reading the series. (

)

justininlondon | Feb 19, 2007 |

date ▼ | votes

Showing 4 of 4

▾Published reviews

no reviews | add a review

▾Other authors

» Add other authors (8 possible)

Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
J. Gregory Keyes	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Harman, Dominic	Cover illustration	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Nielsen, Terese	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Work-to-work relationships

view history

▾Common Knowledge

You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.

For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.

Series (with order)

The Age of Unreason (2)

Canonical title

A Calculus of Angels

Original title

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1999

People/Characters

Important places

Important events

Related movies

Awards and honors

Sidewise Award Finalist (Long Form, 2001)

Epigraph

Dedication

For my grandparents,
Earl and Helen Ridout

First words

Peter flinched at the single drop of blood that spattered onto his coat.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Publisher series

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (3)

A Calculus of Angels

Gregory Keyes

The Age of Unreason

▾LibraryThing members' description

Book description

Haiku summary

▾Book descriptions

Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0345406087, Mass Market Paperback)

What if Isaac Newton had discovered that alchemy works? J. Gregory Keyes has based his Age of Unreason series on an alternate 18th century shaped by a "science" that grew from Newton's discovery of "philosopher's mercury," which "can transmit vibrations into the aether" and thus "alter the states and composition of matter." In A Calculus of Angels, Keyes continues the tale he began in Newton's Cannon. It's a satisfying sequel that nevertheless leaves the reader impatient for the next book.

Two years have passed since the asteroid struck. The weather is unnaturally cold, the skies perpetually overcast. England is devastated, the French government has collapsed upon the death of Louis XIV. Peter the Great, now inspired by the guardian spirit who preserved Louis, has marched his armies westward into the Netherlands and France. In the New World, the abandoned colonists send a delegation including Blackbeard, Cotton Mather, and a Choctaw shaman named Red Shoes to find out what's happened. In Prague, Newton and his apprentice, Ben Franklin, seek to protect the city from aetheric attack. The mathematically gifted Adrienne de Montchevreuil is also back and expanding her knowledge of the mysterious malakim who inhabit the aether and menace mankind.

Keyes creates a very believable mixture of history, fantasy, and plausibly imagined historical characters. Each book has been exciting, suspenseful, and beautifully written. No admirer of alternate history should miss this series. --Nona Vero

(retrieved from Amazon Sun, 06 Jan 2013 13:06:37 -0500)

(see all 3 descriptions)

▾Library descriptions

No library descriptions found.