J. M. Miro: Ordinary Monsters—Talents #1 [Spotlight]
Introducing Readers to the Dark, Labyrinthine World of the Talents
England, 1882. In Victorian London, two children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness—a man made of smoke.
Sixteen-year-old Charlie Ovid, despite a brutal childhood in Mississippi, doesn’t have a scar on him. His body heals itself, whether he wants it to or not. Marlowe, a foundling from a railway freight car, shines with a strange bluish light. He can melt or mend flesh. When a jaded female detective is recruited to escort them to safety, all three begin a journey into the nature of difference, and belonging, and the shadowy edges of the monstrous.
What follows is a story of wonder and betrayal, from the gaslit streets of London, and the wooden theatres of Meiji-era Tokyo, to an eerie estate outside Edinburgh where other children with gifts—the Talents—have been gathered. There, the world of the dead and the world of the living threaten to collide. And as secrets within the Institute unfurl, Marlowe, Charlie and the rest of the Talents will discover the truth about their abilities, and the nature of what is stalking them: that the worst monsters sometimes come bearing the sweetest gifts.
Riveting in its scope, exquisitely written, Ordinary Monsters presents a catastrophic vision of the Victorian world—and of the gifted, broken children who must save it.
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“The vivid cinematic quality of the world and its magic will appeal to classic-fantasy lovers.”—Booklist
“Complex, creepy, and atmospheric fantasy fiction.” —Laura Harvey, Copper Dog Books
“It’s been a minute since I found a book that both intrigued and terrified me, but J.M. Miro's novel fits the bill! l loved this cast of ‘monsters’ like were old friends." —Mystery To Me Bookstore
“Ordinary Monsters is the first in what promises to be my next series addiction.” —Mackenzie Johnston, Out West Books
“One of the most refreshing and engrossing books I have read.” —Lark and Owl Bookstore