Jack Perdu, a shy, ninth grade classics prodigy lives with father on the Yale Univerity campus. Smart and introverted, Jack spends most of his time alone, his nose buried in a book. But when Jack suffers a near fatal accident, his life is forever changed. & nbsp; His father sends him to a mysterious doctor in New York City???a place Jack hasn't been since his mother died there eight years ago. While in the city, Jack meets Euri, a young girl who offers to show him the secrets of Grand Central Station. Here, Jack discovers New York's Underworld, a place where those who died in New York reside until they are ready to move on. This, Jack belives, is a chance to see his mother again. But as secrets about Euri's past& nbsp; are revealed, so are the true reasons for Jack??'s visit to the Underworld. & nbsp; Masterfully told, The Night Tourist weaves together New York City's secret history and its modern-day landscape to create a highly vivid ghost world, full of magical adventure and page-turning action. & nbsp; & nbsp;

"Marsh, a New Republic editor making her children's book debut, reworks the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice in a supernatural tale about a 14-year-old boy's quest through an underworld in New York City, in search of his late mother's spirit. After introverted ninth-grade prodigy Jack Perdu is involved in a near-fatal accident, he is sent to see a specialist in Manhattan. There he meets Euri, a self-proclaimed 'urban explorer' who reveals herself to be a ghost — part of a vast and complex community of people who have died in NYC. (Euri tells Jack that he might be able to find his mother if she has not completed her unfinished business in the world and 'moved on' to Elysium, which is 'somewhere in the Hamptons,' by her best guess.) Euri becomes his personal tour guide as they explore the city by night, when ghosts can leave the underworld to roam unseen. The pair tries to avoid capture by underworld authorities as they seek Jack's mother, in the process unraveling mysteries surrounding his parents' relationship and Jack's ability to infiltrate the spirit world. Mixing numerous references to mythology and classical literature with deft touches of humor and extensive historical details (former mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, Dylan Thomas and corrupt police captain 'Clubber' Williams, among others, make cameo appearances), this intelligent and self-assured debut will compel readers from its outset, and leave them satisfied as it explores universal themes of love, loss and closure. Ages 10-up. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

In this haunting adventure, Marsh weaves together New York Citys secret history and its modern-day landscape to create a highly vivid ghost world, full of magical adventure and page-turning action.