Howl's Moving Castle meets The House in the Cerulean Sea in Andrea Eames’ debut cosy fantasy: a cheeky butcher's daughter, a befuddlingly handsome sorcerer, and his clever talking cat unlock magical secrets in the dark heart of their kingdom – and just might discover the meaning of true love. Everyone in Foss Butcher’s village knows what happens when the magic-workers come; they harvest human hearts to use in their spells. That’s just how life in her kingdom works. But Foss, plain, clumsy, and practical as a boot, never expected anyone would want hers.When a sorcerer snags a piece of Foss’s heart without meaning to, she is furious. For once a heart is snagged, the experience is … well, unpleasant. So, Foss finds herself stomping toward the grand City to keep his enchanted House and demands that he fixes her before she keels over and dies, or whatever happens when hearts are Snagged.But the sorcerer, Sylvester, is not what she expected. Petulant, idle, and new to his powers, Sylvester has no clue how to undo the heart-taking, or how to do much of anything really, apart from sulk. Foss’s only friend is a talking cat and the walls themselves have moods.As Foss searches for a cure, she accidentally uncovers that there is much more to the heart-taking – and to the magic-workers themselves – than she could have ever imagined…This latest novel by Andrea Eames is a blend of romance and mythology, where the protagonist Foss finds herself in a humorous and unexpected situation. Her journey through the grand City and her interactions with the magic-workers become tales that are passed down as legends.For fans of V. E. Schwab (Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil), Rachel Gillig (Two Twisted Crowns), Carissa Broadbent (Six Scorched Roses), Ava Reid (A Theory of Dreaming), and Elise Kova (A Dawn with the Wolf Knight).HarperCollins 2025
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