These Vicious Masks

Jane Austin meets The X-men in this YA Historical Paranormal Romance series from authors Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas.

England is filled with gifted people, unknown to Evelyn, who was sure that she was going to die of boredom, despite her mother’s plots to marry her off. But that was before her beloved sister Rose is kidnapped and the reclusive gentleman Sebastian Braddock starts spouting tales of mysterious powers and secret societies roaming beneath her city’s streets. Yet as they search through Victorian London for her missing sister, Evelyn discovers her own direct link to this underground society&mdashthat she may have special healing powers. And falling in love with a gentleman who has a dangerous power may prove to be a grave mistake. Caught between England’s high society and a very different type of Society underground, Evelyn is forced to face the fact that the world contains stranger and more deadly problems than which suitor her mother will force upon her at their next ball.

Praise for These Vicious Masks

“Striking a strong balance between romance and mystery, this novel captures society’s rules just as well as it does the unbelievable powers of the main characters. Readers will easily be swept up in its fast pace and sympathetic narrator, who is filled with both self-doubt and resolve to do anything to protect those she loves. This is a perfect pick for someone who wants a little magic in their Victorian novels, and its combination of historical fiction and mysticism will remind readers of Libba Bray’s Gemma Doyle trilogy.” -Booklist

“This tale has brisk pacing, plenty of action, and a heroine with more than her fair share of girl-power confidence.” -School Library Journal

“So much fun! Like a story by one of the Bronte sisters or Jane Austen, except the characters are much more self-aware and genre-savvy.” -Duncan Pflaster, Swoon Reader

“I need book two!! Where is book two?? This sucked me in right away (it was a terrible idea to start reading on a break at work – I could barely bring myself to go back to work) and kept me engaged the whole way through. Some really great characters. (Also any book that mentions self-defenestration wins). But seriously, can I read book two now??” -Erin Keskeny, Swoon Reader