The Alchemyst’s Mirror (The Everturn Chronicles #1)

A mysterious trunk from their missing older brother Jiordan sends sisters Petra and Maisie Everturn on a dangerous journey to find him. Black-haired Petra, 20, and her golden-haired sister Maisie, 17, run their late parents’ tea shop in Harrowdel. Dead ends are all they find in their monthslong search for their explorer brother, until a flaxen-haired treasure hunter, Evan Rosslyn, appears at their shop with a mysteriously engraved trunk that may hold clues to Jiordan’s whereabouts—and was only supposed to be delivered upon his death. Told in alternating story lines, Petra scours the world of Harrowdel and Maisie explores the seas beyond as they both pursue their brother. But both sisters must confront the Guild of the Rose, an ancient, dark alchemist society searching for a powerful mirror that “can transport the person holding it to another place,” which Jiordan allegedly stole. Though Petra reads younger than her age, and the novel relies on a few plot conveniences, Delton (The Storm King) builds an absorbing steampunk setting in this series starter, from the lifts connecting the levels to the magical, mechanical trinkets used by the girls and the Guild. Ages 14–up. (Self-published)