Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution

Babel is set primarily in an alternate version of 19th century Oxford, England. The British empire spans the globe and is rapidly industrializing. The British assume that other people are eager to come to England and partake of the fruits of prosperity. Many laborers see their livelihood taken away by the industrialization and struggle to adapt. China has very little need for English goods and destroys the opium sitting in the harbors of Canton. Britain is ready to go to war to force Opium on the people.

So far, it is mostly historical. The "fantasy" part involves linguistics and silver.  Silver can heal disease, power machines and so much more. However, it only gets its power when words are spoken by an expert. It is the difference between two "similar" words in different languages that grants this power. A group of skilled translators work in a secure building in Oxford. They are linguistic experts. Many have been recruited from all over the world. They have been specially trained in different languages. Their special skills provide the power behind the "industrial revolution".

The book centers primarily on foreign youth who have been taken from their homes and come to Babel. A Chinese youth is taken from his family and taken under a guardianship before going to Oxford. These youth also meet with a secret group of other Oxford students who are opposed to the societal change. On a trip to Canton, they become disenchanted with what is going on (and accidentally kill a guardian.) They return to Oxford and lock themselves into the tower and withhold silver from society. This leads to a collapse of Oxford and then other parts of England.

The premise and the linguistic power is very well done. My biggest complaint was that it was not carried out enough. It would be possible to take away silver and just consider this "historical fiction". Why not eliminate the fantasy elements to explore the challenges of Anglo-centric industrialization? Or take the opposite approach and go further with the fantasy to explore more of the long term impacts?