Blair Zielinksi is furious when her parents follow their dream and move to Roscoe, a Scottish island so remote there’s never any phone signal. She’s desperate to get back to her old life with her friends back in Cumbria and to be joining in their climate activism.
Angry and lonely, she falls prey to one of the island’s strange fairy inhabitants and enters into a deal with her. Complete three tasks, says the imposing Cailleach, and I’ll grant your wish.
As anyone familiar with fairy lore knows, any kind of bargain with the fey is a bad idea and tends to exact heavy and unforeseen penalties on humans. With her new friend Alasdair to help, Blair makes good progress, though her activities risk destroying his family, and by the time the third task approaches, she realises just how much is at stake.
The story mixes magic, adventure with Blair’s growing self-awareness as she realises the impact of her actions on others. The magical creatures she encounters, all drawn from Scottish myth, give the story a distinct flavour and sense of place as does the vividly described island setting. The story crackles with an authentic sense of old magic while also touching on contemporary issues and sensitivities. This is a thoroughly engaging and enjoyable magic-infused adventure.
PS. I love a story with a kelpie and there’s a great one here. Compare and contrast with the kelpies in Rachael King’s The Grimmelings and Frances Hardinge’s extraordinary Unraveller.
"A hundred miles from the mainland, half in the sea, half out of it. The rules are different here..."
All 13-year-old Blair Zielinski wants is a way off the remote Scottish island her parents have dragged her to. Roscoe is home to thousands of deer, a couple of hundred people, a complete lack of phone signal, and some unusual violet-eyed creatures.
Blair is miserable, until an otherworldly woman with antlers, one of the island's darkly magical fey folk, offers her an irresistible deal: complete three tasks and Blair's wish will be granted.
As she unravels the island's secrets, Blair soon discovers that a fey bargain cannot be broken, and her wish has put everyone on Roscoe at risk. Can Blair find a way to save her family, and the place at the edge of the silver sea that she has come to call home?
From the author of The Sky Beneath the Stone, this wildly magical upper middle-grade fantasy explores family and friendship, the balance between humans and nature, and the people and places we embrace as our own. The Edge of the SilverSea deftly weaves Celtic mythology and folklore -- from kelpies and selkies, to will-o'-the-wisps and river spirits -- with themes of environmentalism, in Alex Mullarky's trademark captivating style.
A non-binary author whose works feature LGBTQIA+ characters, Alex Mullarky will be donating 10% of author royalties from sales of The Edge of the Silver Sea to Mermaids, a UK charity working to support transgender, non-binary and gender diverse children, young people and their families.
'Sparkling with myth, magic and the wonder of wild places.' – Sophie Anderson, author of The House with Chicken Legs
Author
About Alex Mullarky
Alex Mullarky is a writer, veterinary nurse and the author of The Sky Beneath the Stone. They transport injured seals as a Marine Mammal Medic and scan the sea for whales and dolphins with Shorewatch. Their work with wildlife inspires their stories about nature and magic. Alex lives on the edge of Edinburgh with their family and loves to explore Scotland's wild coasts and islands in their free time. They can often be found wild swimming, playing roller derby, or running along the beach with their dog Finn.
