Cuckoo Song - Frances Hardinge

Oh. My. Goodness.   What an imaginative read this was! The first of Frances Hardinge's  I've read, but will be looking out for more because it's a long time since I was so gripped by a story. I didn't see the significance of the title for at least a quarter of the book, but that's all to the good. This creepy and twisty tale of a child interfered with by the "Besiders".  The Besiders are those who come from other places, seeking a safe new home place.  They have to come in disguise, for they are different and they need somewhere settle - and land is being eaten up at a rate of knots.  Are these Besiders faeries, other creatures?  Who knows, but their leader, and the  controller of their movements is a man who gets his own way at all times, and usually by using magic of some kind.  When Tris awakes and finds that she has been very ill, her mind is playing tricks. She doesn't feel real, exactly, her parents seem overly concerned, and her little sister hates her with a vengeance. If I say more there will be spoilers, so I won't, except to say that this may have been aimed at a YA audience, but whatever your age, if you believe in any kind of magic at all, I think you may race through this like I did. I was reminded of how I felt reading the first Harry Potter - although this story is nothing like any of those and there is no Hogwarts! Brilliant, very readable, and recommended!