"Romantic, suspenseful, and witty all at once― Alice in Wonderland meets Neverwhere ."―Claudia Gray, New York Times bestselling author of the Evernight series In Selkie's family, you don't celebrate birthdays. You don't talk about birthdays. And you never, ever reveal your birth date. Until now. On Selkie's seventeenth birthday, Selkie finally understands why. All she wanted a simple "Happy Birthday" from her secret crush, Ben. But the instant she blurts out the truth, her whole world shatters. Because the world she's known is only an elaborate enchantment designed to conceal the truth: Selkie is a half-faerie princess. And her mother wants her dead. The faerie court believes Selkie is a child of prophecy―fated to destroy the court's powerful grip on the supernatural world. And the only way for Selkie to survive…is to prove them right. Gr 9 Up—Selkie Stewart lives with her great-aunts in the Beacon Hill section of Boston. She has just turned 17 on the autumnal equinox and is determined to find the birth mother who dropped her off on her father's doorstep when she was an infant. Selkie learns that she was born because her father saved her mother's life and asked for a child in return. She then discovers that her great-aunts and her father are ogres. Selkie's mother is a faerie queen who rules Otherworld at Seelie Court, and ruthlessly kills nonfaeries. Selkie has been protected by Ben, who appears to be a merchant on Boston Common but is actually a faerie who has created an enchantment for her and takes her traveling across time, space, and realms; she is in love with him. One of four faeries born on the seasonal equinox who are prophesied to take power away from Seelie Court and bring peace to the Otherworld, Selkie is in great danger; her faerie queen mother is determined to kill her. The protagonist takes many risks to become acquainted with her mother, and bravely overcomes evil enchantments, growing in confidence throughout the story. She lives dual roles as a changeling and a public high school student. This action-packed story is rich in snappy dialogue and descriptions of Boston. An additional purchase for middle school collections.—Laura Scott, Farmington Community Library, MI "This action-packed story is rich in snappy dialogue and descriptions of Boston" ― School Library Journal "Trading in a lavishly described Boston for a Carrollian Otherworld… Dorset excels in physical descriptions." ― Kirkus Reviews "Ben and Selkie's riveting adventures and touching mutual loyalty, along with a strong cast and central romance, keep this series opener engaging." ― Publishers Weekly "[A] suspenseful fantasy " ― Girls’ Life Magazine.com "THE GIRL WHO NEVER WAS is a promising first book in a fantasy series with relatable, modern characters and exciting, action-packed chapters." ― Teen Reads "The fantasy adventure intensifies, culminating with a satisfying conclusion…This book would appeal to readers who enjoy the fantasy of a faerie world." ― VOYA Magazine "THE GIRL WHO NEVER WAS is a promising first book in a fantasy series with relatable, modern characters and exciting, action-packed chapters." ― TeenReads "Skylar Dorset’s debut novel is an astoundingly well-done urban fantasy in the style of Neverworld and Daughter of Smoke & Bone. If you’re looking to get swept up in a world-spanning fantasy adventure, check out the Otherworld series!" ― YA Books Central SKYLAR DORSET grew up in Rhode Island (where she still lives), graduated from Boston College and Harvard Law School, and has lived in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Washington, D.C. But she actually spends most of her time living with the characters in her head. She hopes that doesn't make her sound too crazy. Visit her at www.skylardorset.com. Chapter 1 One day, my father walked into his Back Bay apartment to find a blond woman asleep on his couch. Nine months later, I appeared on his doorstep. One year later, my aunts succeeded in getting him committed to a psychiatric hospital. This is how the story of my birth goes. My father says my mother was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. I always ask how she ended up on his couch. Where did she come from? I ask. Why was she there? Did you know her? My father always looks at me vaguely. The most beautiful woman I had ever seen, he tells me, and then he tells me the story of my name. Selkie, he says. She told me to name you Selkie. And I ask, How did she tell you? And he replies, She etched it into a snowflake, sighed it into a gust of wind, rustled it through the trees of autumn, rippled it over a summer pond. And my aunts sigh and say, That's enough. And when I ask my aunts about my mother, all they will ever say is that she was "flighty." When I was little, I used to think maybe my mother would come to take me away. Aunt True and Aunt Virtue aren't exactly my aunts. They are my dad's aunts, making them my great-aunts, and therefore old―older than I could pinpoint when I was young. No