Determination and agency
Lily, described as strong-willed, leaves London with companions to investigate her father’s disappearance and the locked box.
Book details
Peter Bunzl - Author
A fast-moving mystery-adventure about a girl investigating her father’s disappearance, with clockwork inventions, pursuit and an unusual animal companion at the centre of the journey.
Thirteen-year-old Lily Hartman always dreamed of adventure. A strong-willed girl, Lily felt trapped in a life of Victorian stuffiness at her prim boarding school. But after her father-a famous inventor-disappears on a routine zeppelin flight, Lily's life gets turned upside down. Now cared for by her guardian, the heartless Madame Verdigris, Lily is quite certain that she's being watched. Mysterious, silver-eyed men are lurking in the shadows, just waiting for their chance to strike. But what could they possibly want from her?There are rumors, Lily learns, that her father had invented the most valuable invention ever made-a perpetual motion machine. But if he made such a miraculous discovery, he certainly never told Lily. And all he left behind is a small box-with no key, no hinges.With the help of a clockmaker's son, Robert, and her mechanimal fox, Malkin, Lily escapes London in search of the one person who might know something about her father's disappearance-and what he left behind.
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Sign in for personalised guidanceA fast-moving mystery-adventure about a girl investigating her father’s disappearance, with clockwork inventions, pursuit and an unusual animal companion at the centre of the journey.
Lily, described as strong-willed, leaves London with companions to investigate her father’s disappearance and the locked box.
Lily is cared for by Madame Verdigris, suspects she is being watched and relies on Robert and Malkin while pursuing answers.
Rumours link Lily’s father to a valuable perpetual-motion machine, while a small keyless box becomes part of the search.
The main point to consider is sustained peril: Lily’s father is missing, she believes she is being watched, shadowy figures may attack, and she leaves London while seeking answers.
This is a grounded book brief while Suitabook strengthens the analysis: the current material supports only a cautious reading; some draft conclusions still depend on unresolved evidence.
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