The Inventor's Secret

As a fan of Andrea Cremer's Nightshade series, I was interested to see what her new book had in store. I am not usually a big fan of Steampunk, but this one had me from the get-go. Imagine if we had lost the Revolutionary War and the English were still in charge. The signers have all been hung as traitors and families of the rebellion are forced into indentured servitude for twenty years. A small group of rebel children are hiding in the Catacombs finding ways to help the Rebellion on the outside. Charlotte and her brother Ash live there. Ash is the leader. They are surrounded by interesting characters. Meg, the caretaker, Jack the lovable rogue, Pip, the outspoken rascal. When Charlotte finds a strange boy running from the Empire, she decides to save him and risk her brother's wrath. He turns out to have no memory of who he is or where he comes from. They name him Grave, which may turn out to be more apt than you would think. As they try to find out who he is, the boys- Jack and Ash, are up to their ears in a scheme to help the rebellion, but they will have to venture into the hear of the city to implement their plan. How is it possible, well, Jack has secrets of his own and they will devastate Charlotte who finds herself falling in love with him against her better judgement. Do things go wrong in the city- what do you think? Charlotte is going to have to grow up fast and decide which is more important, personal happiness or fighting for a cause. Especially if that cause is as important as freedom. This is book one, so there is the beginning of a love triangle that will pit brother against brother, lost love, adventure, humor and some pretty nifty inventions. If you haven't given Steampunk a try, this is a great way into the genre. Happy reading my friends!