"[A] bright, burning novel
intended for a young adult audience but powerful enough to engage any adult is set in the Philadelphia of 1870. Using surprising period details and a gorgeous turn of phrase, Kephart has called forth an interesting time in our city's history and made it live again for just a moment... While many historical novels, especially those for younger readers, can come across as corny or costumey, this one rings true, its language seeming to have been composed during the era it describes... These people feel real, and we have no trouble imagining them living out their dramas just as painfully and joyously as we do ours, 100 or more years before we were born."
The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 2013 "Kephart integrates her story of the Quinn family's hope for salvation with a celebration of the city's [Philadelphia's] rich and multifaceted history... Though the tone of the novel is somber, the author frequently incorporates upbeat, poetic phrases to suggest that the Quinns' fate is far from hopeless... Original news stories add an authentic touch to the book. Equally effective is the true account of the daring escape from the Eastern Penitentiary published in The Public Ledger on August 2, 1871... Pair this novel with Kephart's Dangerous Neighbors and Laurie Halse Anderson's Fever, 1793 for other key events about Philadelphia's intriguing past."
School Library Journal, October 2013 "In this exceptionally-researched novel targeted toward the tween/young adult audience, Beth Kephart captures not only the sights and sounds of Philadelphia during this industrial age, but also the language of the time. One of her many talents as a writer is her consistent ability - in every book she writes - to put her reader in the scene alongside her characters." - Melissa Firman's blog