13-year-old Tom Morgan and his friends live on the streets of an alternate London, shining shoes and picking pockets – until one day Tom’s friends are caught and sent to a brutal workhouse. Frantic and without a way to save them, Tom bumps into the mysterious Corsair, who offers him an opportunity to train at an elite international boarding school for thieves. Seeing a glimmer of hope, Tom lets himself be whisked away to the snowy Alps in a zeppelin.

Swept into a thrilling world of danger and intrigue, the more secrets he learns about the Shadow League, the harder it becomes for Tom to leave. But there are dark forces at work and real danger is coming… Can Tom save his fellow pupils from disaster – and ever be able to get home again to rescue his friends?