It is a story of characters and of people finding their place in the world but it is also a story that casts its eye over how society and the powerful behave when things go wrong.

It was hard to put the book down as at the end of every chapter I was left wondering what was going to happen next. This is a brilliant piece of writing and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The characters are portrayed brilliantly, from the world weariness of Timor to the wide eyed innocence and idealism of Gloria (and of course, the clever, manipulating, power hungry politicians). I won't go any further into what actually happens in the story suffice to say that it is fascinating and engaging and there are plenty of twists in the tale that left me guessing what was going to happen a lot of the time. Praesto city is also the centre of industry and as a result the place were the rich and powerful live. The story shifts location as well as perspective as it centres on Praesto City, the seat of power and the refugees in the North near Rose City. This is where the social and political commentary come in because the politicians in the story generally look to their own self interest and and put greed and power above doing what is best for the people. The whole situation gets more and more fraught as the rains continue and the politicians need to take action in order to ensure peoples safety.

Timor, the Suprema's husband, decides to hide the fact that his wife has abandoned the city in its hour of need and gets Gloria, the maid to pretend to be the head of state. As it turns out she has in fact run away from her responsibilities, leaving her husband, the maid and the dog to face the music. The Suprema, at the start of the story, takes a train in secret to the north of the country to see what she can do to help, or so she says. The main premise of the story is that their is a disastrous flood that is affecting the country. I really enjoyed the way the writing shifted perspectives and there is a real fondness for 'man's best friend' in this story.

The other main point of view is of Gloria, a teenage girl who is maid to the Suprema (leader of the state of Afalia). Most interestingly the story often follows the point of view of Heinz, a dog belonging to a teenage boy called Clem. Geraldine McCaughrean is a very skilful writer and the story moves seamlessly between various different perspectives. This story operates on two levels one is a thrilling adventure story set in the scene of a disastrous flood the other is a clever piece of political and social commentary. Through the story you get clues to where about in the the world the country might be found with references to other near by countries and places Afalia trades with but it doesn't actually matter. This story is set in the fictional land of Afalia.

Geraldine mccaughrean books