First published 1995
Constable Michael Walsmear bursts into Charles Castle's London photography studio in the 1920s. The country policeman carries photographs that show something impossible. Castle, a renowned American photographer, stares at images that challenge everything he knows about reality. The negatives reveal fairy creatures captured on film. Castle seeks verification from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but the famous author offers him money to destroy the evidence instead. Castle refuses the bribe. He travels to Burkinwell, the remote village where Walsmear took the photographs. There he uncovers a community built on hidden truths. The villagers guard their secrets carefully. Strange rituals and forbidden desires flourish behind closed doors. Beautiful gardens mask darker realities. Castle must decide whether to expose what he discovers or protect the people he comes to understand. His search for truth becomes a journey into the complexities of human desire and the mysteries that bind communities together.
Genres: 20th-century, mystery, fantasy, supernatural
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: hidden-secrets, mystery
Setting: Burkinwell, London
Period: 1920s
304 pages · Paperback · SCEPTRE