Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby

Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby
321 pages

    Solveig, the third child of the king, is in hiding with he siblings, waiting for their father to win the war so they can return home. With the ocean freezing over and their supplies running low, they begin to loose hope. When their father sends his berserker warriors, hope is born only briefly. No one trusts these unpredictable men and they only seem to cause trouble.
    Solveig is troubled by her father's lack of attention. When Aldric, the storyteller, suggests that she learn his craft, she agrees. But she is afraid of what her family will think. Will she be brave enough to be herself? Will they even survive until the end of the war? With the possibility of a traitor in their midst, hope does not seem likely.

The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby

The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby
386 pages

    Giuseppe is a street musician who works for a cruel employer. If he doesn't bring in enough money, he will not get food or could possibly get thrown into the rat cellar. Giuseppe begins to think his life is hopeless, until one day, he finds a green violin floating in the river.
    Frederick is a clockmaker who wants to start his own business instead of being an apprentice. Secretly, his works on making a clockwork man, but he cannot do it alone.
    Hannah is a hotel maid, working to keep her family's apartment. Her father is deathly ill and she is their only hope. When she hears of a hidden treasure at the hotel, she knows she must find it to help her family.
    All three children are brought together and they realize that they need each other. But can they solve the mysteries before Giuseppe's master finds him, Hannah's father gets worse, or Frederick is caught?