L'amulette de Samarcande (Bartimaeus, #1)

The Amulet of Samarkand is a children's novel of alternate history, fantasy and magic. It is the first book in the Bartimaeus trilogy written by English author Jonathan Stroud. The first edition (paperback) was published in September 2003 by Doubleday in the United Kingdom. The book and series are about power struggles in a magical dystopia centred in London, England, and features a mix of current and ancient, secular and mythological themes. The book is named after a magical artifact created in the ancient Asian city of Samarkand, around which the story revolves.