Melanie Gate is a foundling at the Merrytrails Orphanage for Girls. One night, the orphanage is visited by Traveler, a gearling automaton seeking an apprentice for his magical mistress. Melanie, who has a mysterious talent for opening any lock, is the obvious choice. Yet Traveler turns out to be a sentient being trying to avoid notice. Melanie agrees to help, adopting the persona of the magical “Lady Porta the Periwinkle,” and getting a new outfit from a girl tailor who quickly becomes a crush. An imperial aldermage, however, seeks to use Melanie for his own evil ends (and tries to get Melanie to wear “gender-appropriate clothing”). Will he succeed?
Clark creates a world imbued with many of the fantasy tropes we love and expect, while also blending them into something wholly original and new. Woven throughout are surprisingly touching themes about finding oneself (and what it even means to have a self), chosen family, the perils of power, and the difficulties of achieving peace. This is one of the most fun middle-grade novels I’ve ever read, bursting with magic, memorable characters, and epic adventure in a richly imagined world.
