These Vicious Masks by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas
Summary: England, 1882. Evelyn is bored with society and its expectations. So when her beloved sister, Rose, mysteriously vanishes, she ignores her parents and travels to London to find her, accompanied by the dashing Mr. Kent. But they’re not the only ones looking for Rose. The reclusive young gentleman Sebastian Braddock is also searching for her, claiming that both sisters have special healing powers. Evelyn is convinced that Sebastian must be mad, until she discovers that his strange tales of extraordinary people are true—and that her sister is in graver danger than she feared.
What a terrific story! I loved Evelyn, our restless, sometimes reckless, heroine, to whom propriety matters but saving her sister matters more. I loved Mr. Braddock, our dark and brooding hero, who would rather not be dark and brooding, but can’t help it. I loved Mr. Kent, Evelyn’s ardent, smooth, sometimes-smarmy suitor. I REALLY loved Tuffins, the butler with a heart of gold. (I need a Tuffins. I think we all do.) And I loved the way the Victorian setting, complete with its underbelly of humans with secret powers and even more secret motivations, leapt off the page. Running through it all is Evelyn’s distinctive wry narrative voice. Can’t wait for the second book!
Kathy MacMillan 