''Kidd has imagination to die for'' Guardian 1868. Bodkin Bell is released early from prison to serve at Point Mote, a vast, isolated house which looms large out in the marshes of Kent. She doesn''t know why she''s been brought to this strange new place, and the Haseley family who reside there are an eccentric, reclusive bunch , obsessed with crafting intricate - and often disturbingly lifelike - automata. Unbeknownst to her, Bodkin has some unique inner workings of her own. And as she observes the peculiar goings on at the house, she realises that the Haseleys are not being entirely honest with her. Once the cogs start turning, Bodkin investigates further - and the secrets she soon uncovers may very well hold the key to her own locked, shadowed past.

Autorentext

Jess Kidd was brought up in London as part of a large family from County Mayo. She is the author of several acclaimed novels for adults including Himself, The Hoarder, Things in Jars and The Night Ship, and a book for children, Everyday Magic. In 2017, Kidd won the Costa Short Story Award and in 2020 she was picked by The Times as one of the best emerging Irish writers.

@JessKiddHerself | jesskidd.com

Klappentext

'Kidd has imagination to die for' Guardian

A secret cannot stay locked away forever

Bodkin Bell, orphan, pickpocket and survivor, doesn't know where she came from, but she knows she's different. Gaslights flare as she walks past. Cutlery spins. Shocks fly from her fingertips.

For years, she was 'Little Spark', the star of an electrifying travelling act - until it went too far and she ended up in a London gaol.

Now she's been offered a way out. A chance to serve at Point Mote, a vast, desolate house marooned on the misty Kent marshes. There, she will assist a reclusive family of cunning inventors in the creation of automata: miraculous, lifelike machines for which gentlemen collectors will pay handsomely.

But this house of wonders hides mysteries too. As Bodkin starts to question why she is really there, she unearths secrets that have been buried bone-deep for years - and a truth beyond all imagining. One that was never meant to be found.