A fantastical steampunk novel of magic and machines set in an alternate 1830s London.
Madame Magdala has settled comfortably into her new life in London, as the
proprietress of the Book View Café, a coffee shop and extensive library. Her silent partner is Ada Lovelace, who will one day become the world’s first computer programmer — but who now is simply the young woman for
whom Madame Magdala was a nursery maid.
Ten years ago, Ada’s
father, Lord Bryon, was known as a great writer. But few knew of his
powers as a necromancer. Upon his death, his devoted followers tried to
repair the Transference Engine — a device that would allow Byron’s soul to claim the body of its choice. Magadala, along with Mary Godwin — a.k.a.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley — had to stop them.
While the original
Transference Engine was destroyed, they were unsure whether they truly
stopped Bryon and his followers. Together, they fled to safety in
London, and built new futures for themselves.
Now, Magdala and
Mary care for the Book View Café’s community, leading fashion, following gossip, and reading the latest periodicals. But when members of the
café’s community mysteriously disappear, and rumors of a threat of royal assassinaton grow, Magdala finds herself with new mysteries to solve.
The more she learns, the clearer it becomes that this is the same
mystery returned — the Transference Engine is back with a vengeance.
