Vesper Holly is the protagonist in a series of novels by

Lloyd Alexander Lloyd Chudley Alexander (January 30, 1924 – May 17, 2007) was an American author of more than 40 books, primarily fantasy novels for children and young adults. Over his seven-decade career, Alexander wrote 48 books, and his work has been tran ...

. She is a young high-society

orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, the daughter of an eccentric wealthy

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

who disappeared while on an expedition to the Balkan state of

Illyria In classical antiquity, Illyria (; grc, Ἰλλυρία, ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; la, Illyria, ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyr ...

. Vesper is looked after by her guardians, Uncle Brinnie and Aunt Mary. Vesper is young and wild—not at all the proper Victorian schoolgirl. Alexander describes her as having "the digestive talents of a goat and the mind of a chess master. She is familiar with half a dozen languages and can swear in all of them."''The Illyrian Adventure'' She is the main character in the following books: *'' The Illyrian Adventure'' (1987) *''The El Dorado Adventure'' (1987) *''The Drackenberg Adventure'' (1988) *''The Jedera Adventure'' (1989) *''The Philadelphia Adventure'' (1990) *''The Xanadu Adventure'' (2005)

Reception

Orson Scott Card Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is the first and (as of 2022) only person to win both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for both ...

reviewed ''The Illyrian Adventure'' favorably, saying "It is the stuff that dreams are made of. I wish I had had this book when I was twelve. I was delighted to read it even now when I'm old.""Books to Look For"
''

F&SF ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy fiction magazine, fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence E. Spivak, Lawrence Spiva ...

'', October 1987

References

Fictional characters from Philadelphia Fictional explorers Orphan characters in literature {{Child-lit-char-stub