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: iSybil Gerard/i - fallen woman, politicians tart, daughter of a Luddite agitator; iEdward "Leviathan" Mallory/i - explorer and paleontologist. iLaurence Oliphant/i - diplomat, mystic, and spy. 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...pPart detective story, part historical thriller, iThe Difference Engine/i is the first collaborative novel by two of the most brilliant and controversial science fiction authors of our time. Provacative, compelling, intensely imagined, it is a startling extension of Gibson's and Sterling's unique visions - in a new and totally unexpected direction!