I found this at work while tidying the kids' section, and it looked awesome so I borrowed it. I'm really glad I did.
Penny Tredwell is a 13 year old orphan who lives in London in 1900. Along with her guardian, the lawyer Mr Wigram, she owns her father's magazine 'The Penny Dreadful'. The Penny Dreadful is very popular for its tales of terror, written by one Montgomery Flinch. Unknown to everyone except the very small staff of the monthly magazine, 'Montgomery Flinch' is actually Penny herself. She writes the stories, and an actor, Monty Maples, plays the public face of Mr Flinch.
Penny and Monty are both thrilled when they are approached by one Mr Edward Gold, the owner of a small cinematograph company. This is the era of the silent movie, and he wants to make a film of one of 'Monty's' stories, 'Daughter of Darkness' - a story of murder, betrayal, revenge and ghosts set on the wild Devon moors. What's more, he has an innovative new contraption called the Veritescope, which can capture moving images along with sound.
Penny and Monty set off for Devon to film the story in a creepy old manor house and tiny mining village in the Devon wilds. But once they get there, strange and creepy things start to happen. Not only is the house itself haunted, but the story too seems to be haunted, with the actors being taken over by the characters they play. Mr Gold starts acting creepy and weird, and just what is the secret of his mysterious Veritescope?
Along with her best friend and assistant at the magazine, Alfie, Penny begins to investigate.
A very creepy story. Well-researched, with a real feeling of the time and places it is set. Penny is a wonderful character, smart, strong, curious, and daring. I really enjoyed the supporting characters too, particularly her guardian, Mr Wigram, and her friend Alfie.
I will definitely be checking out the rest of the series.