The Legend of Blackwick (Blackwick, #2)

"When I read, I feel like I’m entering into their world. I can imagine myself right there with them, as if I too were a character in the story.” And with that, Betty Talbin is swept into the society of the Inter-Story Intercessors, where even a housemaid like her can become empowered by a love of reading. But her days working for wealthy relatives in 1930s England seem long ago now that she has joined the dragon guardian of all stories. With her friends in the story worlds depending on her, Betty, with Blackwick, her loyal protector, keeps a constant vigil. But a sinister faction has emerged, The Epilogues, bent on releasing the evil two-headed dragon from the Netherworld. Already, the dragon’s spirit of corruption is infiltrating the story worlds, putting the lives of Betty’s friends . . . and herself . . . in danger. Betty is charged to fight back the spreading corruption. But she is not yet fully trained. Will her knowledge of books and her newly aquired powers be enough to hold back so much evil? Can she count on Blackwick, a man of shadow, wax, and flame, to stand with her against insurmountable odds? As one by one, she loses the things she relies on, can she even trust herself to do what is right?