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York: The Shadow Cipher Kindle Edition
“The pleasures of the novel go far beyond the crackling, breathless plot and the satisfaction of watching the puzzle fall into place. The book is shot through with humor, both laugh-out-loud and subtle.” —New York Times Book Review
From National Book Award finalist and Printz Award winner Laura Ruby comes an epic alternate history series about three kids who try to solve the greatest mystery of the modern world: a puzzle and treasure hunt laid into the very streets and buildings of New York City.
It was 1798 when the Morningstarr twins arrived in New York with a vision for a magnificent city: towering skyscrapers, dazzling machines, and winding train lines, all running on technology no one had ever seen before.
Fifty-seven years later, the enigmatic architects disappeared, leaving behind for the people of New York the Old York Cipher—a puzzle laid into the shining city they constructed, at the end of which was promised a treasure beyond all imagining. By the present day, however, the puzzle has never been solved, and the greatest mystery of the modern world is little more than a tourist attraction.
Tess and Theo Biedermann and their friend Jaime Cruz live in a Morningstarr apartment—until a real estate developer announces that the city has agreed to sell him the five remaining Morningstarr buildings. Their likely destruction means the end of a dream long held by the people of New York.
And if Tess, Theo, and Jaime want to save their home, they have to prove that the Old York Cipher is real. Which means they have to solve it.
"An epic mission to solve one of the greatest mysteries of their time. I loved this book. It is full of twists and turns" (from the Brightly.com review, which named York: The Shadow Cipher one of the best books of 2017).
- LanguageEnglish
- Grade level3 - 7
- Lexile measureHL780L
- PublisherWalden Pond Press
- Publication dateMay 16, 2017
- ISBN-13978-0062306944
Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Review
★ “In this smart, immersive series starter, Ruby expertly juggles stunning plot choreography, realistic stakes in a captivating fantasy setting, well-wrought characters, and flashes of sharp cultural commentary.” — Booklist (starred review)
“The pleasures of this novel go far beyond the crackling, breathless plot and the satisfaction of watching the puzzle fall into place. The book is shot through with humor, both laugh-out-loud and subtle.” — New York Times Book Review
★ “This first volume opens up an ever expanding sense of magic, culminating in a bittersweet ending that promises bigger things to come. The past informs the present as the review informs readers: don’t let this one go.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
★ “Ruby’s latest is a high-stakes mystery novel filled with intriguing puzzles, solid world-building, and diverse characters. An engaging series opener that will leave readers eagerly awaiting future installments.” — School Library Journal (starred review)
“The first book in an exciting new series that’s great for fans of steampunk, history, mystery, and magic. Let the puzzles begin!” — Brightly
From the Back Cover
From National Book Award finalist Laura Ruby comes a visionary epic set in a New York City at once familiar and wholly unexpected.
It was 1798 when the Morningstarr twins arrived in New York with a vision for a magnificent city: towering skyscrapers, dazzling machines, and winding train lines, all running on technology no one had ever seen before. Fifty-seven years later, the enigmatic architects disappeared, leaving behind for the people of New York the Old York Cipher—a puzzle laid into the shining city they constructed, at the end of which was promised a treasure beyond all imagining. By the present day, however, the puzzle has never been solved, and the greatest mystery of the modern world is little more than a tourist attraction.
Tess and Theo Biedermann and their friend Jaime Cruz live in a Morningstarr apartment—until a real estate developer announces that the city has agreed to sell him the five remaining Morningstarr buildings. Their likely destruction means the end of a dream long held by the people of New York. And if Tess, Theo, and Jaime want to save their home, they have to prove that the Old York Cipher is real. Which means they have to solve it.
About the Author
Laura Ruby is the Michael L. Printz Award–winning author of many books for adults, teens, and children, including Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All and Bone Gap, both National Book Award finalists; the ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection York: The Shadow Cipher and its sequels; the Edgar Award nominee Lily’s Ghosts; and the Book Sense Pick Good Girls. She is on the faculty of Hamline University’s MFA in writing for children and young adults program and lives in the Chicago area. You can visit her online at lauraruby.com.
Product details
- ASIN : B01KT0OVSM
- Publisher : Walden Pond Press; Reprint edition (May 16, 2017)
- Publication date : May 16, 2017
- Language : English
- File size : 6209 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
- Print length : 496 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #701,584 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Laura Ruby is the author of books for adults, teens and children. Her titles include the Edgar-nominated tween mystery LILY'S GHOSTS (now updated for 2011), the children's fantasy THE WALL AND THE WING (3/06) and a sequel, THE CHAOS KING (5/07) all published by Harpercollins. She writes for older teens as well, and her debut young adult novel, GOOD GIRLS (9/06), also from Harpercollins, was a Book Sense Pick for fall 2006 and an ALA Quick Pick for 2007. She followed this with the teen novels PLAY ME (2008) and BAD APPLE (2009).
Her short fiction for adults has appeared in various literary magazines, including Other Voices and The Florida Review. A collection of these stories, I'M NOT JULIA ROBERTS, was published by Warner Books in January 2007. Called "hilarious and heart-wrenching" by People and "a knowing look at the costs and rewards of remaking a family," by the Miami Herald, the book was also featured in Redbook, Working Mother, and USA Today, among others.
Raised in the wilds of suburban New Jersey, Laura Ruby now lives in the Chicago area with her husband and two cats that serve as creative advisors.
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Tess and Theo Biedermann and their neighbor Jaime Cruz live in a city that is like New York City, but not. In this version of York the famous Morningstarr twins started inventing and building a fantastical array of dwellings, transportation, and life-like machines in the late 18th century, and the present-day result is a steampunk-like mashup of technological wonder. When they left, the Morningstarrs also left a trail of clues to rumored treasure – the mysterious Old York Cipher. For Tess, Theo, and Jaime, solving the Cipher may be the only way to keep their home safe from an avaricious real estate developer – but the clock is ticking. Will they solve the Cipher and save their building in time?
One of the things that this book did so well was establish the motivations of each of the main characters in an authentic way. Ruthless real estate developer Darnell Slant wants to make money, and doesn’t care who he displaces (sound familiar?) or whether he destroys history. His hirelings Stoop and Pinscher possibly want something even more sinister, and they’re the everyday ‘face of evil.’ The Biedermann twins want to keep their home and life, their parents want them to face reality, and the whole family is still reeling from the absence of grandfather Biedermann, the one-time occupant of the building penthouse and former president of the Cipher Society. Jaime wants his father in his life, good things for his Mima, and to draw superheroes. Six-year-old neighbor girl Cricket wants to be a spy. And what did the long-gone Morningstarrs want? Why did they set up this treasure hunt? It’s a question that Tess, Theo and Jaime keep asking themselves, and bits and pieces of answers emerge throughout the story. The grand themes? The line between technology and life, injustice (racial, gender, socioeconomic), the definition of family (in its different forms) and home, and erasing the past for the sake of the future.
Now on to the things that I liked particularly (a different kettle of fish from admiring a well-constructed plot & characters, or great writing!)(which this book has in spades): parents who are alive (how many times do you see that in a kidlit book?!)! A diverse main character and secondary characters! A main character with anxiety and a service animal. A cool map of alternate New York and great descriptions of that feeling of insignificance you get in big cities. Social justice (pro-immigrant, pro-education, pro-affordable housing) baked in. Added to that, this is just such a smart book, with believably smart characters. Author Ruby doesn’t hold back – her characters use big words and think big ideas because they are intelligent, and Ruby obviously believes her readers are as well. I love that trust in the reader, and I think readers will sense it immediately.
I cannot forget to mention Chapter 7 (and then later Chapter 27), or as I am calling it, “In which we find out that six-year old Cricket (real name: Zelda) is HILARE” (hilare = hilarious without those pesky final two syllables)(a made-up word for the modern age which I am probably too old to use, but whatever). I want to be Cricket when I grow up. WHAT A RIOT. One of my favorite lines from a York (it consistently made me laugh out loud, btw) is in Cricket’s voice, from page 122: “What would a deathmetalhead raccoon wear? A helmet of course. Probably one with antlers.” I die.
What did I dislike? One solitary thing, folks. And that is that it took until Chapter 2 (really Chapter 3 because there was a prologue) to get to the hook. Until then it’s a lot of set-up and I wasn’t sure why I should care. BUT ONCE THERE, well. I was on my way.
In all, York hit all of the sweet spots: it was a funny, intelligent, and exciting read, and it made me think, feel, and reflect. I hope you’ll give it a chance!
Recommended for: middle grade readers on up, and anyone who likes mystery, alternate cities, and clever speculative fiction.
The Shadow Cipher begins with a flashback to the time when men used walking canes and street lamps were lit by oil. We are introduced to a set of genius twins, The Morningstars, who are responsible for amazing mechanical creations that have changed the face of New York City and the world! Their inventions include everything from mechanical bugs that clean the streets to elevators that can move diagonally! Before the twins died, they created a cipher for the public: solve the riddles and find the treasure! Unfortunately, however, people have been trying to solve the cipher for hundreds of year unsuccessfully!
Enter another set of twins (modern-day Tess and Theo Biedermann) and their friend Jaime Cruz. All 13 years-old, the kids are in a situation where their current apartment building is about to be sold to a wealthy New York real estate magnate. When they intercept a mysterious letter address to their grandfather (a famous cipherist who has been trying to solve the puzzle his whole life!) they begin to suspect that there is a second set of clues to the cipher that have, as yet, been undiscovered (thus, the title: The Shadow Cipher.) They decide that the only way to save their building is to solve the cipher and find the treasure!
Tons of hijinks ensue…the kids are led all over the city searching for clues related to history, New York City and the Morningstars. While all of that is happening, strange things are occurring in their apartment building…the real estate magnate’s henchman are searching the building, members of their grandfather’s ciper society are getting involved and clues are turning up in unexpected places. Ultimately, the kids’ quest to solve the cipher is exciting and fast-paced, if sometimes a little to dependent on coincidences to drive the plot!
As I’ve mentioned before, I can’t read books out of order so I picked up this one to prepare myself for the release of York: The Clockwork Ghost. Knowing that there was a sequel to The Shadow Cipher somewhat prepared me for a cliffhanger at the end of the book, but I was slightly disappointed about the lack of closure that the book provided. While it left me anxious to find out what happens in the The Clockwork Ghost, I would have preferred a bit more effort to tie up the initial storyline without it. I really don’t like being left hanging! The prevalence of ‘coincidence’ as a plot driver and the lack of a satisfying ending were the only things that kept me from making this a 5-star review!
I must say, I loved Ruby’s writing. Her creation of a ‘better’ New York combined with the descriptions of the New York I know and love were incredibly compelling. She is also a very smart writer: there are tons of nods to history and subtle jokes throughout the book. As a kid, I loved being able to pick up on subtleties that an author embedded in her story. Not much has changed in that regard since then! Finally, the ‘world building’ that Ruby undertakes with her inventions and technological enhancements in the story are impressive. She folds mechanical inventions that do not exist today into the New York that we know and makes the whole thing hang together in a way that is coherent and believable.
Ruby definitely has a feminist agenda of sorts in her book as well. (And don’t get me wrong, I’m ALL for that!) There are many references debunking gender sterotypes and lots of female characters (young and old) who are depicted outside of cultural female norms. Tess and Theo’s mom is a detective while their dad loves to bake, Cricket (a neighborhood 5 year old) is dedicated to all kind of gender-bending in her wardrobe and Tess herself is, by far, the braver and ‘stronger’ of the two twins. As an adult, these feminist-type references were pretty obvious to me but, for the Middle Grade set, I think Ruby does a nice job folding the message seamlessly into the story without making her intentions too overt.
I must also commend Ruby for her characters: Tess, Theo and Jaime are interesting and distinct. Jaime is Latinx and cultural identities are explored occasionally via his relationship with his grandmother. There are sly references to the potential for a budding romance between Tess and Jaime and interesting passages that describe what it’s like to be a twin. While I found the 13 year olds a bit mature…they seem to only make good decisions and have a great deal of freedom to move about the city alone…as individuals, I understood their motivations and found them unique and likeable. Jaime’s struggle with his father’s absence and his identity as an artist were as compelling as Theo’s ‘Rain Main’-like mathmatical abilities and Tess’s struggle with anxiety!
The other characters within the book are, unfortunately, somewhat less distinguishable from one another: there are about 20 neighbors who live in the apartment building and another 10 members of the cipherist society and many of their identities tend to run together. Nonetheless, the important characters seem to distinguish themselves, when necessary. Cricket (as mentioned above) is hilarious and plays a key role in helping the kids with their quest while Mr. Stoop and Mr. Pincher (ridiculously funny names for super tall and super slouched guys) are both evil and idiotic as henchman should be!
Overall, this book has an incredible amount to recommend it. I won’t disclose the ‘message’ that is finally delivered to the kids in the closing chapter of the book as it would go to far in spoiling the ending but suffice it to say that (despite the book’s lack of closure) there is something to be learned from everything that happens to Tess, Theo and Jaime. Readers ages 9-12 (and potentially older, in my opinion) as well as adults will enjoy this wild romp of a read that brings a fantastical premise and setting together with some real, determined and lovable characters! I can’t wait to see what The Clockwork Ghost has in store!
Overall i have to say this was definitly a fun book to read. I liked the characters and the overall story was great.
However i was a little confused about the iventions of the morningstarrs... like what or who a guildman was. Also i was confused at first but this story seems to be happening in a strange futuristic word with different animlas (ex: the tiger cat) and so on...
overall i really enjoyed this book . Tess Jaime and Theo were relatable down to earth characters with big personalitys I also enjoyed all the mystery and suspence!! it was confusing but i would recommend this book to other readers! i will also continue this book so i can see how the mystery ends!
Top reviews from other countries
This is supposed to be middle grade, and I get why, but it didn’t read massively different to some YA so don’t let that put you off either. This is the pseudo fantasy mystery thriller book I didn’t know I was waiting for. It has everything. An almost recognisable but definitely different world. A brilliantly described New York. Amazing self running mysterious machines. Genius twins who create a city of wonders and suddenly disappear. Other eccentric and brilliant twins and their friend, who are curious, intelligent and strangely free of adult supervision! What more can one want from a book I ask.
Yes in places, it’s a little slow. I didn’t actually really notice, I was fully wrapped up in the story. It’s a great mystery - not sadly one you can really solve along with them or guess too much before, but it’s doled out in small enough parcels to feel like you’re there with Tess, Theo and Jaime. You get to explore this magical world and run around solving mysteries, being chased by creepy and/or sinister bad guys. I just enjoyed every second of it and I need the sequel right now please!
Kept me engaged through numerous distractions which is the sign of a good book. 4/5