In Stefan Bachmann's impressive debut--set in a hybrid steampunk-faerieland England--two unlikely paths cross due to a string of murders of changeling children. In the old city of Bath, a door opened between the human and faerie worlds. Since then, some faeries live in slums, while others, once nobles in their own world, learn to manipulate the weapons of the English against them. ("A word could cause a riot, ink could spell a man's death.")
Bartholomew Kettle doesn't bear the markings of a changeling the way his younger sister, Hettie, does, with branches that grow like antlers. Their mother warns them, "Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged." But as Barth watches from an attic window, a pretty lady in a plum-colored dress leads his friend away. The woman also sees Barth. When his friend turns up dead, Barth fears the worst. His sister disappears soon afterward. Mr. Jelliby, a member of Parliament, becomes drawn into the situation when he visits a fellow councilman and spies a woman in plum-colored finery. Readers will make the connection before Mr. Jelliby does. Bachmann weaves a tale that pulls the two characters' fates together as Mr. Jelliby tries to do the right thing and Bartholomew tries to find his sister.
The author taps into the universal childhood impulse to cover up a misdeed with snowballing consequences. Bachmann charts the growth of both main characters to a satisfying conclusion while also leaving the door open for another adventure in this colorful, chilling world. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness