
Author: Stefan Bachmann.
Pages: 384.
Published: September 18th 2012.
Publisher: Greenwillow Books.
Sort: Part one of ‘The peculiar.’
Source: Netgalley and Publisher. Also won my own copy in the Goodreads giveaway.
Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings--Peculiars--and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them. One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. Who is she? What does she want? And when Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away, in a whirling ring of feathers, the boy who lives across the alley--Bartholomew forgets the rules and gets himself noticed. First he's noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious, by Jack Box and the Raggedy Man, by the powerful Mr. Lickerish .. and by Arthur Jelliby, a young man trying to slip through the world unnoticed, too, and who, against all odds, offers Bartholomew friendship and a way to belong.
Summary.
Once upon a time there was a city called Bath. That was until strange things started to happen. The faeries slipped into the world and the Smiling wars began until humans converged on the fay and scattered them. The ages of Smoke started in New Bath and the fay adapted to their new lives, waiting for a new change to change the world.
“Don’t get yourself noticed and you won’t get yourself hanged.”
That is the rule ever Peculiar must follow if he/she wants to stay alive. They are changelings or Halflings. They don’t belong to the faeries nor to the humans, so they must survive under poor conditions. Bartholomew is one of them, together with his sister Hettie. When a lady in plum appears in their neighborhood, things are about to change. She takes one of his friends with her and he will be one of the many dead Peculiars. Nobody gives the strange murder any attention – they are scum after all – until Mr. Jelliby decides to investigate the matter. He suspects that one of the most important man has something to do with it.
When Hettie disappears, Bartholomew and Mr. Jelliby’s lives become entwined. Bartie will do anything to save his little sister from a horrible fate and Mr. Jelliby is the only one who can stop the destruction of their world.
Opinion.
It’s unbelievable that this author is so young, because his writing style is amazing, almost poetic.
Mr. Jelliby grew on me. He felt a bit arrogant in the beginning, but he is the only one who seem to care about the Peculiars. He puts himself in a lot of danger to safe the world and Hettie. He makes smart choices.
Bartie is a sweetheart. He will do anything to save his little sister. He is very young, but it never bothered me.The enemy is well done. It’s a cruel and unkind person. The world will be plunged into darkness to gain more power and Peculiars are used for his own sake. I liked that one of his helpers reminded me of Voldemort in the first book from Harry Potter.
I absolutely can’t wait for part 2. There is something comforting about his style, like wrapping yourself in a warm blanket. His words read so easy, you hardly have the feeling you are reading at all. It’s like everything is playing in your head like a movie, do you know that feeling?
If you like Harry Potter and Neil Gaiman, this is something for you. There is darkness, action and some spooky magic, but there is also hope, love and friendship. Here on Goodreads. You can read 57 pages. Don’t you think it’s wonderful that each chapter has those black feathers?