Perhaps it’s a little like sending a child off to school for the first time? In any case, The Cabinet of Earths has received its very first review, from Publishers Weekly, and it’s a kind and thoughtful one, to boot:
“Nesbet’s auspicious debut novel plunges readers into the story of 13-year-old Maya and her five-year-old brother, James, who are descendants of two feuding families with expertise in science and magic. After the siblings’ chemist father receives a fellowship, Maya and her family move from California to Paris, where she quickly becomes enmeshed in a mystery involving the disappearance of local children in decades past; ‘anbar,’ an alchemical substance with rejuvenating powers; and the strange and beautiful Cabinet of Earths that seems to call out to her. With her mother’s health in decline, James the target of evil forces, and distant relatives coming out of the woodwork, Maya decides to answer the call of the cabinet, despite the dangers, to try to set things right. Blending elements of magic, science, and even horror with evocative prose and a confident narrative voice, Nesbet immerses readers in her contemporary Parisian setting. At its heart, this is a story about change, as Maya struggles to accept unwelcome developments while growing aware of the sinister extent to which some will go in the name of self-preservation.” (PW, Nov. 7, 2011)
The Cabinet of Earths
To protect her baby brother James, 12-year-old Maya has to take on the magical underworld of Paris, in which houses have bronze salamanders for door handles, the most beautiful people are all hooked on the sweet-smelling “anbar,” and a shimmering glass Cabinet of Earths has chosen Maya to be its next keeper.
". . . All at once the world went very still. She was floating; she was underwater: all the room’s sound was replaced by a throbbing hum, light streaking slowly away from everything it touched. She stretched one hand out (the air was as thick as syrup; her arm moved with the slow grace of an aquatic plant) and tried to say something, but her voice was gone, too.
......Maya......
The cabinet itself was calling to her . . ."
“…evocative prose and a confident narrative voice”. I second that – and I’m sure there are many more positive reviews coming your way. Congrats Anne!