The Clockmaker and the Shrike

Upon her father's death, Caoimhe has no choice but to assume his role as the Clockmaker, despite having little knowledge of what his work entails.

Confused but determined, she finds herself transported to a peculiar reality, where paintings act as portals, her friends walk into each other's dreams, and she wears the face of a bird in place of her own.

In this strange, surreal world, Caoimhe meets the mysterious Shrike, a soldier whose dark past elicits more questions than answers. Drawn to him, and unable to tear herself away from this fantastical place, she soon becomes embroiled in a quest, after her new world is attacked by the Lord of the Dead.

Even when nothing makes sense, the truth has a way of revealing itself. Yet the truth about the Clockmaker's world may be the strangest truth of all.

Author: Olivia Thomas-Neher

Fantasy romance, Fiction: special features

Published on 30 Jun 2026 by Cranthorpe Millner Publishers.