This is a gentle and magical story with a strong retro feel, from a time when mobile phones and computers only existed in science fiction and perhaps life was a bit simpler. As well as providing some amusing insights into the differences between the American and British versions of the English language, it vividly brings alive some of the fascinating pageantry and drama of English History and integrates them into an exciting adventure.

Set in the 1980s it is about two American girls.

Alysa is in England for a year and Julie is visiting her for the summer vacation. Julie is surprised at how much England has changed her cousin! But things get complicated when they visit Windsor Castle to see Queen Mary’s Doll’s House. The girls get separated from their parents and find themselves locked in for the night! In several dreamlike passages they meet a series of ghostly characters and scary heraldic monsters from English History: are they awake or not? Things build up to a terrifying climax and then turn nasty when they come up against some ruthless art thieves …

Gerda Weissmann Klein