The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

Pages: 318

Intended Audience: Teens and mature tweens

Genre: historical

Notes for parents: Some mildly frightening scenes

The Inside Cover

When a rumor that her uncle is squandering away the family fortune surfaces, Katharine Tulman is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of childlike rules, who is employing a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London.

Katharine becomes torn between protecting her own livelihood and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And things are made even more complicated by the developing feelings Katharine has for her uncle’s handsome apprentice.

As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle’s world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it. With twists and turns at every corner, this heart-racing adventure will captivate readers with its thrills and romance.

What the Inside Cover doesn’t tell you:

It told too much! On the author’s website, there’s a perfect description of the book that should have been on the cover:

Katharine Tulman discovers a fantastic world where science seems like magic when she arrives at her uncle’s remote estate to have him committed to a lunatic asylum. But instead of a lunatic she is confronted with a genius inventor with his own set of child-like rules, a brooding apprentice and a mysterious young student of science, the dwindling family fortune and the hundreds of families her uncle is using it to support. Having Uncle Tulman sent to the asylum is no longer an easy choice. And that’s when Katharine Tulman begins seeing things that aren’t really there.

This creates intrigue without revealing all of the interesting parts!

What’s good?

This is a compelling mystery with excellent characterization and a vibrant setting. While Katharine is a bit lacking, Uncle Tully, his helpers, and the townspeople are intriguing and very likeable characters. The town itself is charismatic and the mansion is a fascinating maze of rooms that come alive with their descriptions. The pace of the story is even—like a ticking clock—which makes the end a bit unnerving (and quite exciting!) when things speed up considerably. While there’s not a lot of action, there are many twists and turns that keep the story appealing.

Best part: Uncle Tully’s automatons are fun.

What’s not so good?

This story suffers from a bit of an identity crisis. While Uncle Tully’s trinkets aren’t enough to make this steampunk, and the story isn’t dark enough to be gothic, there are definite under tones of both genres with some history and mystery and Victorian romance mixed in. Pair that with a writing style that is, at times, so frenetic that it’s confusing and you wind up with a story that feels a little…schizophrenic.

Worst part: Thanks to a cover description that gives too much away, I often found myself waiting impatiently for things that I already knew were going to happen.

Recommendations þþþoo

This probably deserves more than three checkmarks, but when I compared it to other four-checkmark books, I felt it came up just a little short. Regardless, it was a fun read with characters I look forward to meeting again in the sequel. Recommended.

Cameron, Sharon. The Dark Unwinding. New York: Scholastic, 2012.  (hardcover)