Interesting novel in that the author never quite explains the background story and you, the reader, have to piece it together as you go along. Basically The City where the book is set is the remains of a once enormous city like London, and the only part that remains is that located on high ground; the water level has risen so much that it has covered the rest of the world. We are thrown into this world in which there has been an unusually high tide ans a whale has been washed up on the lower roof at the city's edge. Enter Ellie, our heroine, the daughter of an inventor who knows that dead whales can explode. She slices the belly open and out pops a hand that clasps a hold of her ankle. What? There is a live naked boy inside the whale! Then enter the Inquisitors, a group who have the role of stopping The Enemy ( an evil spiritual presence) from taking over a Vessel ( another human) and wreaking havoc on the City. The Inquisitors say that the whale boy named Seth by Ellie's best friend Anna is the Vessel and will therefore be executed the next day. Ellie must then make a bargain with the strange street urchin Finn to try and save Seth from death as she knows he is NOT the Vessel. Have I lost you yet?

Trust me, the book gets easier as it goes along. You could call it sort of dystopian paranormal steam punk but the story is catchy enough. I must admit though, I guessed why Ellie knew Seth wasn't the Vessel and who the Finn urchin really was a long time before the end of the novel. That being said, there were some surprise plot twists to keep me guessing. It seems to me that there will probably be a sequel after Eliie's discovery of the map showing another City and also the repair of her underwater boat meaning she could perhaps take a journey to it in a future novel. Fun book with a dark edge. ( )