It began as a sudden strange fancy... Polly Perks had to become a boy in a hurry. Cutting off her hair and wearing trousers was easy. Learning to fart and belch in public and walk like an ape took more time. And now she’s enlisted in the army, searching for her lost brother. But there’s a war on and, whatever anyone says, her side’s coming off worse. Polly and her fellow recruits are suddenly in the thick of it, without any training and with the enemy hunting them. All they have on their side is the most artful sergeant in the army, a vampire with a lust for coffee, and a readiness to fight dirty. Oh, and they have a secret... as well as all the resources of the Monstrous Regiment.