Castle in the Stars: The Space Race of 1869

Description

What if man journeyed into space in 1869, not 1969? In search of the mysterious element known as aether, Claire Dulac flew her hot-air balloon toward the edge of our stratosphere-and never returned. One year after her disappearance, her son and husband are delivered a tantalizing clue: a letter from an unknown sender who claims to have Claire's lost logbook. The letter summons them to a Bavarian castle, where an ambitious young king dreams of flying the skies in a ship powered by aether. But within the castle walls, danger lurks-there are those who would stop at nothing to conquer the stars.

Alex Alice is a French graphic novelist whose works have been translated into more than fifteen languages. His comics in English include the esoteric thriller The Third Testament and the operatic fantasy Siegfried. In Castle in the Stars, he draws on Jules Verne and nineteenth-century romanticism to create a watercolour world of adventure and wonder.

"A terrific adventure story." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review and a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2017 "Lushly painted scenes, an abundance of banter among the young heroes, and plenty of action and gadgetry make for an engrossing tale of discovery and betrayal." --Publishers Weekly, starred review "A visual delight, with myriad small frames that facilitate careful plotting and delicate line and watercolor artwork that revels both in the details of airship and castle and in the cat-and-mouse chase scenes set at vertiginous heights." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "Castle in the Stars: The Space Race of 1869 is, in a word, glorious." --Fantasy Literature