The Shepherds' War

The Leksotis "know too much." For centuries they were despised for their reputed supernatural powers and reclusiveness. Even the Gypsies looked down on them. They retreated into the wilderness and into legend. But World War II flushed them from their mountain refuges, making them pawns of the great powers locked in mortal struggle. 1968 was supposed to be Spencer's Best Summer Vacation Ever. For as long as the fifth grader could remember, life had been getting better and better. He got to witness the introduction of color TV, Frisbees, and the race for the Moon.. Even his big pain of a brother Noah couldn't ruin it. Noah didn't talk, didn't go to school, didn't play outside, and it was Spencer's job to keep an eye on him. But he wasn't going to let that drag down his summer. Out of the blue Noah started talking. Out of the blue he began knowing things he shouldn't know. Then, just as suddenly, Noah vanished into the blue. Spencer's search for his brother leads him into a shadowy world where nobody is quite what he seems to be, the world of the Leksotis. To rescue his brother, Spencer has to take on a Nazi psychologist, a KGB mom, and a teen-age bully with mind-control powers. Raised on Frankenstein movies and Iron Man comics, Spencer doesn't shrink from the challenge. After all, he is ten-and-a-half years old.