Set in Missouri in 1913, this is the story of a small town with a mysterious past.Thirteen year old Natalie Minks, who is fascinated by all mechanical things, is trying to ride the new bicycle her inventor father has designed. Everything changes the day a caravan rolls into town. Dr. Jake Limberg’s “Nostrum Fair and Technological Medicine Show” is full of strange people and machines and he claims to have cures for every ache and pain. When Natalie figures out that Dr. Jake’s remedies may be the source of a terrible plague overtaking the community, she and her friends must find the inner strength to battle forces that are both dark and mysterious. 384 pages Ages 11 and up

Recommended by Deborah E. Cohen