The Watchmaker of Filigree Street / Natasha Pulley

Coming home after a night's work as a government telegraph operator, Thaniel Steepleton finds an unexpected birthday present in his room: a beautifully crafted pocket watch that he can't open. Six months later, the watch saves his life when a sophisticated bomb destroys Scotland Yard. This troubling incident prompts him to seek out his watch's maker, the remarkably talented but solitary Keita Mori, with whom he soon forms a close friendship. Shortly afterwards, while attending a ball, Thaniel meets Grace Carrow, an unconventional young woman who read physics at Oxford and wants nothing more than to pursue her experiments — and also (coincidence?) owns one of Mori's elaborate pocket watches. The complex relationships between these three misfits come to a head as Thaniel, amid his bafflement at Mori's odd predictions, is forced to entertain the possibility that his friend may be responsible for the explosive devices that continue to wreak havoc across London.

I went into this novel with no idea of what to expect, and for quite a while I didn't quite know what to make of it. Like Thaniel's watch, the story took a long time to get going. Once it did, however, I was captivated by the fairytale-like air of anticipation that permeates it, enhanced by the whimsical touches of Mori's world (his clockwork octopus, the multicoloured fireflies that flit about his garden). I also enjoyed how Thaniel's synesthesia (he perceives sounds as colours) adds texture to the narrative. In many ways, this strangely haunting tale resembles Mori's creations: unexpected, delicate, crafted with precision — an object of wonder.

(Note: A sequel to this novel is scheduled for publication later this year.)

I borrowed this e-book from the Bibliothèque et archives nationales du Québec.

Rating: ***½