Celeste

"From the first, I knew the Little Miss was a most wicked child."

At the manor of Navino, Agnes has devoted herself to raising a respectable young lady. Cici has fine clothes, an indulgent father, and more books than anyone could reasonably need. A little gratitude should not be beyond her.

Instead, she questions everything. Why must the villagers labour for her family? Why should a king be obeyed? And why does the history in her father's library bear so little resemblance to the country beyond its walls?

Agnes has answers. Unfortunately, Cici insists on finding her own - from forbidden books and the impossible memories of a servant.

To Agnes, these discoveries are proof of the girl's growing delusions. To Cici, they offer glimpses of the truth - a truth that grows harder to bear the more she uncovers. What began as a disturbance in the schoolroom soon threatens the order of the estate, the kingdom, perhaps the world.

Now, summoned before a mysterious tribunal, Agnes must account for the catastrophe that followed. She has come to condemn the girl she raised - but her testimony may reveal more than she intends.

Darkly funny and unsettling, Celeste is a literary speculative novel about love, obedience, and the cost of trying to put the world right. The second novel in The Earthling Condition series, it can also be read as a standalone.