Rebel Mechanics

Gr 7–10—It is 1888, and the Magisters, the magical British upper-class, rule the American colonies after their devastating victory in the American Revolution. The rebels now look elsewhere—to science and engineering—for the power to help them overthrow British rule. Seventeen-year-old Verity Newton comes to New York City looking for work and is quickly swept up in the revolutionary fervor of the young mechanics, engineers, and scientists who befriend her. Even the handsome, young magister who has hired her as a nanny for his nieces and nephew seems suspiciously sympathetic to the cause. So when Verity's rebel friends and developing love-interest ask her to become a spy among the magisters, she takes up the task. But in so doing, she puts her own secrets at risk of exposure. Verity, although only a professor's daughter, has magical abilities. Steam-powered and magic vehicles, electric dynamos, and other interesting inventions pepper the exciting steampunk setting of this rollicking, campy adventure that moves along at the pace of a charging train. New secrets unfold every chapter, speeding toward the action-packed ending that easily sets the scene (and the love triangle) for a follow-up novel. Recommend to fans of Gail Carriger's "The Finishing School" series (Little, Brown).