Little Spark
Aug 2026 · Canongate Books
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About this ebook
A SUNDAY TIMES HISTORICAL FICTION PICK 2026
'A sumptuous Gothic mystery' NAT REEVE, author of NETTLEBLACK
'Kidd has imagination to die for' Guardian
'This tale of secrets and mysteries is steeped in atmospheric suspense. Gothic, yes, but galvanised by flashes of inventive wonder' Mail on Sunday
Wildly imaginative . . . [a] terrific steampunk tale' Daily Mail
A secret cannot stay locked away forever
Bodkin Bell, orphan, pickpocket and survivor, doesn't know where she came from, but she knows she's different. Gaslights flare as she walks past. Cutlery spins. Shocks fly from her fingertips.
For years, she was ‘Little Spark’, the star of an electrifying travelling act – until it went too far and she ended up in a London gaol.
Now she’s been offered a way out. A chance to serve at Point Mote, a vast, desolate house marooned on the misty Kent marshes. There, she will assist a reclusive family of cunning inventors in the creation of automata: miraculous, lifelike machines for which gentlemen collectors will pay handsomely.
But this house of wonders hides mysteries too. As Bodkin starts to question why she is really there, she unearths secrets that have been buried bone-deep for years – and a truth beyond all imagining. One that was never meant to be found.
'A sumptuous Gothic mystery' NAT REEVE, author of NETTLEBLACK
'Kidd has imagination to die for' Guardian
'This tale of secrets and mysteries is steeped in atmospheric suspense. Gothic, yes, but galvanised by flashes of inventive wonder' Mail on Sunday
Wildly imaginative . . . [a] terrific steampunk tale' Daily Mail
A secret cannot stay locked away forever
Bodkin Bell, orphan, pickpocket and survivor, doesn't know where she came from, but she knows she's different. Gaslights flare as she walks past. Cutlery spins. Shocks fly from her fingertips.
For years, she was ‘Little Spark’, the star of an electrifying travelling act – until it went too far and she ended up in a London gaol.
Now she’s been offered a way out. A chance to serve at Point Mote, a vast, desolate house marooned on the misty Kent marshes. There, she will assist a reclusive family of cunning inventors in the creation of automata: miraculous, lifelike machines for which gentlemen collectors will pay handsomely.
But this house of wonders hides mysteries too. As Bodkin starts to question why she is really there, she unearths secrets that have been buried bone-deep for years – and a truth beyond all imagining. One that was never meant to be found.
A SUNDAY TIMES HISTORICAL FICTION PICK 2026
'A sumptuous Gothic mystery' NAT REEVE, author of NETTLEBLACK
'Kidd has imagination to die for' Guardian
'This tale of secrets and mysteries is steeped in atmospheric suspense. Gothic, yes, but galvanised by flashes of inventive wonder' Mail on Sunday
...
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About the author
Jess Kidd was brought up in London as part of a large family from County Mayo. She is the author of several acclaimed novels for adults including Himself, The Hoarder, Things in Jars and The Night Ship, and a book for children, Everyday Magic. In 2017, Kidd won the Costa Short Story Award and in 2020 she was picked by The Times as one of the best emerging Irish writers.
@JessKiddHerself | jesskidd.com
Jess Kidd was brought up in London as part of a large family from County Mayo. She is the author of several acclaimed novels for adults including Himself, The Hoarder, Things in Jars and The Night Ship, and a book for children, Everyday Magic. In 2017, Kidd won the Costa Short Story Award and in ...
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