The concluding volume in an epic and terrifying trilogy for teen readers.Throughout the world, Dancing Jax reigns supreme. The Ismus and his court are celebrated and adored, and the Ismus is writing the much-awaited sequel to Dancing Jax. But when someone accidentally reads the manuscript, the true, evil purpose of Austerly Fellows is finally revealed. Can the resistance halt the publication of Fighting Pax? Or is humanity doomed and will the Dawn Prince arise at last?
The saga of the Deptford Mice continues in this sequel to The Dark Portal. The evil rat Jupiter has been defeated, and the young Deptford mice emerge from the sewers to start a new life in the country. But the albino mouse Oswald is seized by an illness and lies near death. His friend Audrey enlists the help of the ancient squirrel mystic Starwife, who agrees to heal him on one condition. She reintroduces Audrey to the once villainous rat Madam Akkikuyu, whose mind is now broken, and decrees that Madam Akkikuyu must stay with Audrey until she dies.
In the country, the mice find a bucolic existence, until they find themselves embroiled in a series of murders. The country mice suspect that headstrong city mouse, Audrey, is the culprit. But the truth is far more sinister, as Audrey witnesses the return of the supernatural evil she thought had been destroyed.
"[A] terrific page-turner, drenched in foreboding atmosphere and punctuated with grisly discoveries and sinister revelations."-Kirkus Reviews
The hideous spirit of Jupiter, the evil cat who was once lord of the sewer rats, has returned, bent on revenge. A rat army is building underground, thirsty for the blood of the Deptford Mice. And most frightening of all: the Starglass, their magical source of knowledge and power, has been stolen.
This first episode in the Deptford Mice trilogy is a tale of horror and valor, good and evil, leavened with humor. In it, Audrey and other brave little mice search for Albert and encounter the sinister Jupiter, who rules the rats through terror. Jupiter's evil presence manifests itself only through the glare of his red eyes peering from the inky blackness of an arched portal. Jarvis gives the story a mystical twist through the mysterious, farseeing bats that live in the attic and give counsel in riddles and through the mousebrass medallion that each mouse receives when coming of age.
"A spooky and enthralling animal fantasy...Jarvis provides counterpoint to the heart-racing adventure with scenes of haunting beauty...[and] conveys a sense of place powerful enough to elevate the South London boroughs of Greenwich and Blackheath to requisite stops on any bookish child's literary tour of the British capital."-Publishers Weekly
