In this sequel to The Name of the Star, Maureen Johnson raises the stakes for Rory and the Shades.
Following the Ripper's defeat, Rory's parents have taken her to Bristol (and who can blame them?). Rory has been told by the government never to contact her friends in the London ghost police squad (the Shades) again. She's in therapy, but she can't tell anyone the real story of her attack, and she can't even befriend any ghosts because she has been turned into a human terminus (with the power to eliminate ghosts on contact). What's a girl to do?
When Rory is offered a chance to return to Wexford, she eagerly takes it, thinking that even if life can't go back to normal, at least it can be better. Instead, she sets off a chain of events that bring new villains out of the woodwork, and puts Rory and her friends in serious jeopardy. As in the first book, Johnson balances out the grisly details and extreme peril her characters face with impeccable comedic timing and a surprising new love story. But nothing is sacred and no one is safe, and the ending is a cliffhanger that will have fans on the edges of their seats yet again. --Jenn Northington, events manager, WORD bookstore