Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0679826718, Mass Market Paperback)

Sally, now 25, is comfortably settled with her child, Harriet, her work, and her London friends. But when a complete stranger claims to be both her husband and Harriet's father, Sally's whole world comes crashing down around her. With nowhere to turn, she escapes with Harriet into the slums of London's East End--and finds help in some unexpected quarters.

"Pullman is fast becoming a modern-day Dickens for young adults. The setting is the same, the strong eye for characters is there, as are the brooding atmosphere, the social conscience, and the ability to spin plot within plot. Sally Lockhart is now a young woman, left alone with a toddler. Nothing prepares her for the shock of receiving a summons from a man she has never even heard of, suing for divorce and the custody of her beloved Harriet. Sally struggles against the net closing around her, seeking to find out who is persecuting her and why. The writing style is lively and direct, and there's lots of action. This is a suspense novel with a conscience, and a most enjoyable one."--School Library Journal.