Spit and Touch Iron

"With a faery, hand in hand..."

1949: Thomas Gregson, widowed WWII veteran turned Scotland Yard inspector, arrives on Ireland's remote west coast for what should be a simple visit with a former brother-in-arms. Colin's wife Marjorie has just given birth, and they've asked Thomas to serve as the baby's godfather.

A restless night and a driving storm change everything: in the morning, a wailing child lay unprotected in his crib. Was it wind or an intruder that knocked open the window? Was it happenstance or hostility that left the crib's protective charms thrown in a corner? Marjorie suspects the Good Folk have stolen their baby and left a fairy in its place. When local authorities are less than helpful and the dangerously appealing midwife is on Marjorie's side, Thomas reluctantly agrees to investigate.

Though started with sympathy and skepticism, the investigation soon spirals into something darker and deadlier--and as a struggling mother grapples with child or changeling, Thomas might just run out of time to find the truth.

"...For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand."
"The Stolen Child" by W.B. Yeats