Hidden Family

The Hidden Family by Charles Stross is the second instalment of The Merchant Princes series - an energetic saga of parallel worlds. The six families of the Clan rule the kingdom of Gruinmarkt from behind the scenes, a mixture of nobility and criminal conspirators whose power to walk between their world and ours makes them rich in both. Braids of family loyalty and intermarriage provide a fragile guarantee of peace, but a recently ended civil war has left the families shaken and suspicious. Miriam, a hip tech journalist from Boston, discovered her alternate-world relatives with explosive results that shook the worlds. Now, as the prodigal Countess Helge Thorold-Hjorth, she finds herself ensnared in schemes and plots centuries in the making. She is surrounded by unlikely allies, lethal contraband, and, most dangerous of all, her family. With her modern American attitudes, she's not sure she can fit in, or if she even wants to, but to stay alive, she really has no choice . . .

"The Hidden Family" A Book Sense Notable Title "Charles Stross brings info-tech philosophy to the world of fantasy. . . .Stories unfold across three worlds that are brought to life with humor-laced action." -"The ""Denver"" Post" "It's an obvious homage to Zelazny's Amber series, but I like it a good deal more." -"The San Diego Union-Tribune" ""The Hidden Family" is a festival of ideas in action, fast moving and often very funny, but underpinned by a rigorous logical strategy. . . .Stross's breezy, almost Heinleinian mode of narration is on fine display in "The Hidden Family,"" --"Locus" "Miriam Beckstein, aka Countess Helge Thorold-Hjorth of the Clan, finds her own world to conquer in this fast-moving sequel to "The Family Trade," . . . Stross continues to mix high and low tech in amusing and surprising ways. . . .[he] weaves a tale worthy of Robert Ludlum or Dan Brown." -"Publishers Weekly" "English writer Charles Stross, whose books burst with pop-science ideas, intrigue, strong characters and even romance, continues his Merchant Princes series . . . . Stross is an energetic writer . . . who creates page-turning reads . . . . Readers will be relieved to learn that there is a lot to look forward to in "The Hidden Family," including a finale that is all Gothic Romance: regrets, a ball and a happy reunion." --"Bookpage", The Hidden Family A Book Sense Notable Title "Charles Stross brings info-tech philosophy to the world of fantasy. . . .Stories unfold across three worlds that are brought to life with humor-laced action." -"The ""Denver"" Post" "It's an obvious homage to Zelazny's Amber series, but I like it a good deal more." -"The San Diego Union-Tribune" ""The Hidden Family" is a festival of ideas in action, fast moving and often very funny, but underpinned by a rigorous logical strategy. . . .Stross's breezy, almost Heinleinian mode of narration is on fine display in "The Hidden Family."" --"Locus" "Miriam Beckstein, aka Countess Helge Thorold-Hjorth of the Clan, finds her own world to conquer in this fast-moving sequel to "The Family Trade." . . . Stross continues to mix high and low tech in amusing and surprising ways. . . .[he] weaves a tale worthy of Robert Ludlum or Dan Brown." -"Publishers Weekly" "English writer Charles Stross, whose books burst with pop-science ideas, intrigue, strong characters and even romance, continues his Merchant Princes series . . . . Stross is an energetic writer . . . who creates page-turning reads . . . . Readers will be relieved to learn that there is a lot to look forward to in "The Hidden Family," including a finale that is all Gothic Romance: regrets, a ball and a happy reunion." --"Bookpage"

Charles Stross was born in Leeds, England, in 1964. He has worked as a pharmacist, software engineer and freelance journalist, but now writes full-time. Stross has won two Hugo awards and been nominated multiple times. He has also won the Locus Award for Best Novel, the Locus Award for Best Novella and has been shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke and Nebula Awards. In addition, his fiction has been translated into around a dozen languages. His novels include the popular Merchant Princes and Laundry Files series. Stross lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, with his wife Feorag, a couple of cats, several thousand books, and an ever-changing herd of obsolescent computers.