The Microcosm by Timothy Plant

n this book, the sequel to Beyond the Wall, Michael Goodroute, an English teenager, joins his "cousin" Theo on a journey to a castle in the Carpathian Mountains to meet Michael's girlfriend Ramana and his Uncle Dominic for a skiing holiday. But when Michael decides to take along his uncle's peculiar gift, the Microcosm - a broken device with a mysterious purpose - life becomes much more exciting...and dangerous. A lot of people seem to be after the Microcosm...but why? What strange powers does it hold?