The Emperor of all
Things by Paul Witcover is out from Bantam (£8.99):
“1758. England is embroiled in a globe-spanning conflict
that stretches from her North American colonies to Europe and beyond. Across
the Channel, the French prepare for an invasion — an invasion rumoured to be
led by none other than Bonnie Prince Charlie. It seems the map of Europe is
about to be redrawn. Yet behind these dramatic scenes, another war is raging –
a war that will determine not just the fate of nations but of humanity
itself...
Daniel Quare is a journeyman in an ancient guild, The
Worshipful Company of Clockmakers. He is also a Regulator, part of an elite
network within the guild devoted to searching out and claiming for England's
exclusive use any horological innovation that could give them an upper hand,
whether in business or in war.
Just such a mission has brought Quare to the London
townhouse of eccentric collector, Lord Wichcote. He seeks a pocket watch
rumoured to possess seemingly impossible properties that are more to do with
magic than with any science familiar to Quare or to his superiors. And the
strange timepiece has attracted the attention of others as well: the mysterious
masked thief known only as Grimalkin, and a deadly French spy who stop at
nothing to bring the prize back to his masters.”
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