Crosspost:mytokyoblues.wordpress.com 
 "I have a gift that is, as far as I have found, unique to me. It allows me to see truth where others see illusion - and there are many illusions, so many masks and facades. All the world's a stage, as they say, and I seem to have the only seat in the house with a view behind the curtain." - Jackaby 
 I won an advanced reader's copy of the novel through a goodreads giveaway. For anyone interested in buying the book, it goes on sale September 16, 2014. Winning a free book did not influence my opinions. 
 The Cover:Did anyone feel the cover? It's so soft and it feels very different from your typical paperback. I loved the cover of the novel, it was quite beautiful. I loved the details of the cover such as the woman in red. It is one of my favorite covers of 2014. 
 The Plot:Abigail Rook is not your typical Victorian socialite, she seeks adventure and travel, and would rather get her hands dirty be seeking a husband to maintain her. She arrives to New England after having a disappointing experience excavating dinosaurs. Abigail seeks a employment right away because she is in need of money and meets Jackaby, her future employer who is a detective. The people of New Fiddleham view Mr. R.F. Jackaby as a maniac since he deals with the supernatural. Naturally, he is talented in his work, he is compassionate and kind to supernatural creatures. The duo works together in order to solve the mysterious murders in New Fiddleham with some help from the police force. 
 The Characters:Abigail definitely proved that she was not your stereotypical girl, she worked hard for her job. Jackaby, I had no complaints about his character. For some reason, I kept imagining Matt Smith as Jackaby because he reminded me of the eleventh doctor. At the same time, Jackaby really reminded me of Sherlock since he sees what others can't see. Then there is Charlie Cane, who I thought was adorable, I thought he was human until the middle of the book. The side characters were great, I would have loved it if Jenny the ghost had a bigger backstory, the same going for Douglas the duck. 
 The Villain: I knew it! I loved how he was a creature rather than a person! 
 The Romance: Thank the heavens that there was no love triangle in this novel. It would have ruined the novel for me that is. I didn't not like how some of the characters in the novel tried to ship Jackaby and Abigail, I did roll my eyes during those parts. Jackaby and Abigail make an awesome team, I loved their friendship. The only two characters that developed some feelings for each other were Abigail and Charlie Cane. I did want to them together, but it's okay that they did not become a couple. 
 I would like to see the author wrote more stories about Jackaby. The novel is relatively easy to read and it is only 299 pages long. I would recommend this novel for anyone wanting to read a short mystery book with a hint of fantasy. For a standalone novel, I thought it was really good and I would really love more of Jackaby's adventures. 
 My rating is a 4 out of 5 :D