Some years ago, a faerie door opened in the city of Bath, nearly obliterating the city and releasing a wave of the Fae into the mundane world before closing again. There were skirmishes and struggles, but now the faeries are assimilating into human culture, kept in check by iron and tolling bells. The mixing of the two races has, however, created a despised sub-class of changelings, or Peculiars. Bartholomew Kettle is one such child. He and his sister Hettie live with their human mother in the slums of Bath, having been long since abandoned by their faerie father. When changelings start disappearing, nobody is particularly concerned, but when Hettie is taken, Bartholomew will do anything to rescue her. Along the way, he will find himself tangled up in political schemes far beyond anything he could have imagined.
I really enjoyed this book. I listened to the audio version, and found it difficult to tear myself away. The premise is interesting, the worldbuilding strong, and I loved the characters -- plucky Bartholomew, wistful Hettie, lackadaisical Mr. Jelliby -- and the Sidhe always make such convincing villains! The book does end on a cliffhanger, so I'll be reading the next book in the series soon.
(Reviewed from an e-audiobook borrowed through my library system.)
I'm so glad I found your post. This sounds great! I love books that have a mixing of the human world and fairyland - like Lud-in-the-Mist or Little, Big with the changelings. I will definitely add this to my TBR. But the cliffhanger ending kind of puts me off.
ReplyDeleteAt least the next book is already out, so there's no agonizing wait! And, as cliffhangers go, it's definitely not the worst I've read.
DeleteI need to go pick up the second book! I finally bought these for the library. Hard to believe how young the author was when he wrote these. Such great storytelling.
ReplyDeleteI know! I didn't realize when I started the book that the author was so young, but I'm definitely impressed.
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