House of Furies

It’s 1809 in Malton, England, and Louisa Rose Ditton barely scrapes by telling fortunes in the market. When an old woman approaches Louisa with an offer of employment and a warm bed, she is soon on her way to Coldthistle House, “a place for the wayward and lost.” There, she meets the strange staff: Poppy, a girl whose voice holds terrible power; the tall, enigmatic Chijioke, who has a certain way with the dead; and the inscrutable master of the house, Mr. Morningside. She also finds friendship in Coldthistle’s new guest, Lee Brimble, who is there to research his claim to an inheritance. When Louisa discovers that Mr. Morningside’s motives toward his guests are anything but benign and that Lee may be in danger, she is determined to help. Roux (the Asylum series) brings her gothic setting to rich life in this darkly delightful (and frequently gruesome) series opener. Snippets and sketches from a fictitious book, Rare Myths and Legends, complement the unsettling atmosphere, offering clues to what otherworldly creature readers, and brave Louisa, will face next. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kate McKean, Howard Morhaim Literary. (May)