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EAN: 9781849920049
Format: Paperback
Published: 1 Jan 2010
Other Editions:
Hardback, ebook
Synopsis
What good is a toy that will wind down? What if you could put a heart in one? A real heart. One that beat and beat and didn’t stop. What couldn’t you do if you could make a toy like that?
From the moment Mathias becomes the owner of a mysterious piece of paper, he is in terrible danger. Entangled in devious plots and pursued by the sinister Doctor Leiter and his devilish toys, Mathias finds himself on a quest to uncover a deadly secret.
What the critics say
An intriguing and atmospheric plot...The story is pacy, exciting and inventive with strong and interesting characters. It's violent in places too, with threats, torture (fingers snapped 'like dry twigs'), and death. The hero, Mathias, seems to be constantly sustaining new and painful injuries. The plot is essentially a race to uncover a secret: a battle between good and evil and shades of grey in-between, but the revelation of the secret is really worth waiting for. This is no MacGuffin, here simply to justify the chase. It is a dark and dirty secret at the very heart of what the story is all about.
- The Guardian
The sense of menace is maintained throughout and culminates in a chilling climax. Simply and effectively written and very visual, it all fits together like clockwork.
- The Children's Bookseller
Classic tale for long winter nights.
- The Bookseller
Fantastic story set in an imaginary world.
- School Librarian
This is a world of shadows and terror told with the utmost conviction. A remarkable debut novel.
- Enid Stephenson, Carousel