Kevin Sands

In 1665 London, fourteen-year-old Christopher Rowe, apprentice to an apothecary, and his best friend, Tom, try to uncover the truth behind a mysterious cult, following a trail of puzzles, codes, pranks, and danger toward an unearthly secret with the power to tear the world apart.

When Christopher Rowe's code-breaking uncovers the true target of an assassination attempt, he and his friends are ordered to Paris to investigate a centuries-old curse on the French throne.

"Rule number one: Never mess with magic. Even so, a life-or-death situation calls for Callan and his criminal friends to make a deal with the Eye--the sinister, sentient artifact they stole from a sorcerer. It's Lachlan's life in exchange for a future task, and the gang has no choice but to agree. But even as Lachlan is resurrected, it's not without cost. Through the Eye, Callan can see a tiny purple stain inside Lachlan's soul, which will eventually...

In 1666, after four months away, friends Christopher Rowe, Tom, and Sally return to London triumphantly but, guided by coded riddles, face a conspiracy that threatens Christopher, as well as the King himself.

In their final task, junior con artist Callan and his friends mastermind a prison break from the empire's most impenetrable island fortress.