OK, I have to be honest here - this book really creeped me out at first. It also creeped out my then-thirteen-year-old son, so much so that I told him to stop reading it. However, I did finish it myself and found it wonderfully creative and haunting. It's great for those who love an intense read. Just be careful who, and what age, you recommend it for.

The imagery is amazing, the vocabulary is stimulating, and the story unfolds with many twists and turns that keep you in suspense. As an avid reader, I would have loved this book during my pre-teen years. It's creepy and lovely at the same time: it's also very challenging to explain the story without spoiling it, so here's a one sentence summary of the plot: "It's a dramatically told story-within-a-story about Heloise, a girl whose origins are hidden from her and whose challenge is to find the truth about her godmother, her mother and herself"(from the Australian Office of the Art website). Author Cassandra Golds is a well-known Australian author of children's books. This book was selected and reviewed as a favorite book to read by the School Library Journal. Click here and scroll down if you want to read it.