CHILDREN'S BOOKS: Dragon magic, learning witchcraft and sweet delights

Return to a magical land of dragons where love and bravery are weapons against evil, join a trainee witch tasked with finding a brand new spell, dive into a deliciously dangerous and mouth-watering mystery, and tuck into tasty pizzas and lots of laughter in a new super selection

Age 8 plus
Impossible Creatures: The Poisoned King
Katherine Rundell

TRAVEL back to a land of dragons where magic is only ever a heartbeat away, adventures are out of this world, and friendship, love and bravery are the armour with which to fight evil! Readers who left their hearts in the Archipelago after the delights of outstanding author Katherine Rundell’s epic and bestselling Impossible Creatures will be itching to get their hands on her magnificent second book, The Poisoned King. With artwork by Tomislav Tomić, and packed full of fantastical thrills and spills, this new chapter for our hero, Christopher Forrester, sweeps us back to the dangerous and dazzling land known as the Glimouria Archipelago, a cluster of magical islands where all the creatures of myth still live and breed and thrive in their thousands.

In his new adventure, Christopher – who has discovered a Way-Between his world and the Archipelago – is unexpectedly woken by a miniature dragon chewing on his face. Far from being frightened, his heart leaps for joy because for months he has dreamed of returning to the Archipelago’s secret islands. Called there to help save the dragons, which are mysteriously dying out, Christopher does not yet know that his return will involve a rescue mission on the back of a sphinx and a daring plan to enter a dragon’s lair. Nor could he have imagined that it would involve Princess Anya Phoebe Cornelia Argen of the Island of Dousha who arrives with a flock of birds at her side, a newly-hatched chick in her pocket… and a ravenous thirst for revenge and hunger for justice. With an audacious and daredevil princess – who has her own personal reasons for solving the dark mystery – joining Christopher for another all-action adventure, and a glossary of magical, mythical creatures at the back of the book, youngsters will be lapping up every word of this beautifully imagined, inspirational and emotion-packed classic.
(Bloomsbury Children’s Books, hardback, £14.99)

Age 9 plus
Stonewitch
Skye McKenna and Tomislav Tomić

IF you’re looking for adventures with a truly magical atmosphere, step back into the wonderful world of Hedgewitch, where the land of Faerie lies just beyond our own! Stonewitch is the fourth book in the enchanting Hedgewitch series, the debut creation of Skye McKenna who grew up surrounded by red dust in a mining town in the Australian outback but then travelled to England and fell in love with the British countryside. Illustrated by Tomislav Tomić, the series is already being hailed as a modern classic. Now living in Scotland, McKenna was inspired by her love of magic and adventure to write these captivating adventures which star a family of witches who protect Britain from the denizens of Faerie, creatures who are all too real and far more frightening than the story books suggest.

To complete the next step in her training in the practical skills of witchcraft, Cassie Morgan must invent a brand-new spell. However, she is struggling for inspiration… so she jumps at the chance to attend the Covenmoot. Every five years, covens from all over Britain and Ireland meet to take part in a series of challenging games in the hopes of winning the Covenmoot Cauldron. Cassie and her friends travel to Glen Carlin, a remote valley in the Scottish Highlands, to take part. But menacing forces haunt the moors and rumours of the ancient Stonewitch swirl through the camp. Cassie and her coven must work together to prove themselves in the Covenmoot, while long-hidden secrets come to light and the wicked Erl King’s power grows. Witches aren’t born, they’re made... McKenna is a born storyteller, building an enchanting, magical world that is as alluring as it is viscerally and thrillingly real… a place where the characters spring to glorious life, where the natural world takes centre stage, and where readers long to return to time and time again!
(Welbeck Children’s Books, hardback, £14.99)

Age 9 plus
The Wanderdays: The Midnight Sweet Factory
Clare Povey

DIVE into a deliciously dangerous and mouth-watering mystery in the second thrilling eco-adventure from master storyteller Clare Povey… and meet two superstar siblings. Author of the fabulous French-flavoured Bastien Bonlivre series, Povey’s ambitions to be a marine biologist never materialised but her love of the natural world shines through as we meet up again with the daring Wanderdays as they embark on an edge-of-your-seat , sugar-fuelled quest. When Flo and Joseph Wanderday unwrap a Midnight Treats gobstopper, they’re expecting to find a sugary sweet... not a mysterious message that kickstarts the adventure of a lifetime. ‘HELP! Trapped in Midnight Forest. Come before it is too late.’ With adventure in their hearts and sugar in their stomachs, the Wanderdays must find the Midnight Forest, journey through its sweet-themed tricks and trials, and face their greatest threat yet… sweet factory workers who aren’t in control of their own minds! Packed to the treetops with non-stop action, brilliant baddies, two breathtakingly audacious children and important reminders about the dangers of deforestation, the wonderful wanderings of the Wanderdays are guaranteed to have young readers turning the pages and already booking in for the next thrilling outing!
(Usborne Publishing, paperback, £7.99)

Age 9 plus
Witchlight
Dominique Valente and Eleonora Asparuhova

RETURN to a magical world of witches, royalty and curses in this spellbinding sequel to Witchspark, Dominique Valente’s thrilling fantasy series starring a girl born with only one hand, and an amazing house with a character all of its own. Valente – author of the bewitching Starfell series – uses her own experiences of living with one hand, including the challenges and frustrations, and her own special brand of magic to treat readers to quirky adventures brimming with witchery and wonder. Here we meet up again with Eglantine Bury who was born with just one hand and is a pupil at Miss Hegotty’s Secret Society of Witches which has a lot of work to do. The Department of Isle-Spark Regulation is up to no good. For Princess Victoria, a secret witch at the palace, this means possibly losing her magic powers forever. And for Eglantine, her magical home, Huswyvern, can’t stop sneezing, causing total chaos with each ‘achoo!’ And as if that wasn’t enough to worry about, Eglantine’s house isn’t the only magical being falling mysteriously ill. With dragons and gargoyles getting sicker and sicker, the witches will have to use time-travel, disguise spells and genie wishes to uncover the truth... before it’s too late. In this new spellbinding adventure, illustrated by Eleonora Asparuhova, youngsters are swept back to Eglantine’s captivating world which features a very unusual teacher and a talking dragon-butler, and a story that is filled with warmth, humour, wondrous adventures, offbeat fantasy, and characters to love. High-flying magic!
(Usborne Publishing, paperback, £8.99)

Age 9 plus
Pizza Pete and the Peculiar Professor
Carrie Sellon and Sarah Horne

TUCK into more laughter, tasty pizzas and words of wisdom as author Carrie Sellon and illustrator Sarah Horne return with the final laugh-out-loud adventure of their trilogy starring the irrepressible Pizza Pete! After finding a mysterious briefcase full of magic potions under the floorboards in the attic, Pete and his dad experimented with them to create some crazy, crowd-pleasing pizza toppings to help save the family business. Now the magical pizzas are selling like hot cakes… until something goes wrong with the Shrink potion and Anna stays shrunk. Eek! Pete and his friends must track down the elusive creator of the magical potions, Professor Tregoning, to get help. But there’s a lot to juggle, including a road trip, a talking dog, a large dollop of out-of-control magic and a ruthless villain with her own terrible plans for the potions. Team Useless must pull off their biggest mission yet, or Anna will have to stay tiny… forever! Pete is a true hero for young readers, a boy who helps the battle to save his family’s pizza business whilst struggling with his own anxiety issues. And it’s the author’s distinctive brand of slapstick humour – perfectly complemented by Horne’s extravagant, fun-filled illustrations – which provide the ideal wrapping for a story that gently, and sensitively, tackles serious issues around mental health and anxiety. Don’t miss the last epic slice of the pizza action fun!
(Guppy Books, paperback, £7.99)

Age 8 plus
Ultimate Football Heroes 2026
Matt Oldfield, Emily Stead, Seth Burkett
and John Murray

LOOK back at an amazing year in football with Ultimate Football Heroes 2026, a bumper special edition of the ever-popular Ultimate Football Heroes series. These brilliant books feature biographies and life stories of the biggest and best footballers in the world and their incredible journeys to stardom, as well as lots of fascinating football facts. And now you can relive the goals, games and glories of the 2024-25 season, including intense Premier League face-offs for the top-five finish, shocking moments as the Lionesses rise to glory in the Euros, and all the action from the biggest and best players from around the globe. Peek inside for Liverpool’s dash for the Premier League title, Salah’s unstoppable run of goals, the earth-shattering ‘El Clasico’ match between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Saka’s push to bring his team to the next Champion’s League and Hannah Hampton’s world-shattering penalty saves. And meet the top players from the latest season, including Bukayo Saka, Ousmane Dembélé, Alessia Russo, Lamine Yamal, Désiré Doué and Mohammed Salah. This brilliant yearbook – with its sparkling, gold-foiled cover – is stacked with the biggest football hero stories from across the world, plus stats and quizzes to test your knowledge… it's the ultimate yearbook for fans of the beautiful game and bang on goal for all aspiring young players!
(Dino Books, paperback, £8.99)

Age 7 plus
Betty Steady and the Fidgety Wizard
Nicky Smith-Dale and Sarah Horne

BETTY Steady, the Guardian of Wobbly Rock, is back and the fun factor is off the scale! As the daughter of two knights, Betty is blessed with unmatched strength and speed but due to a horrid shrinking spell by a wicked Toad Witch she’s now really, really tiny. Fortunately she is still the shining star (well, most of the time!) of a funny illustrated fiction series from the top team of author Nicky Smith-Dale and talented illustrator Sarah Horne. And in her third adventure, Betty and her Wobbly Rock pals must leap into action when the twin princesses, Pam and Pamm, fall under a dreadful spell. They have swooned into a coma, thanks to a bunch of poisonous daffodils inadvertently given to them by Betty’s swashbuckling, moustachioed 11-year-old cousin, Freddy Steady. Now the gang must go in search of wicked weasels on the island of Little Dollop to find the cure. But naughty sorcerer Hearty Stu has plans of his own for the princesses. And our noble stallion Simon Anderson has plans for Freddy Steady’s SUPER annoying green unicorn Salad whom he doesn’t like even a tiny little bit… no sir nuh-uh. With madcap humour at every turn of the page, a cast of the weirdest characters this side of Wobbly Rock, and a lead player who is just a teensy bit too big for her boots, this rollicking romp is joyful, big-hearted and serves up extra dollops of youthful exuberance for readers new to chapter books.
(Farshore, paperback, £6.99)

Age 5 plus
Isadora Moon and the Pop Stars
Harriet Muncaster

THE shining star that is half-vampire, half-fairy Isadora Moon shows no sign of losing her sparkle in this gorgeous silver-coated new adventure from the ever-inventive author and illustrator Harriet Muncaster. Full to its sparkly covers with crazy capers and enchanting pink and black illustrations, this magical series of first chapter books is perfect for early readers who like their glitter with a bit of bite and this special hardback, gift edition comes with silver-sprayed edges, extra activities, and things to make and do. Isadora is special because she is different. Her mum is a fairy and her dad is a vampire and she is a bit of both. Here we find Isadora excited because she has been invited to go to a pop concert with her friend, Araminta. She has never seen a band like Glitterbat before. The music is gothic and vampire-y and electric and she can’t wait to show the dance moves to her friends at school. But will they understand, or will they think her vampire music is a bit strange? Isadora and her out-of-this-world family are perfectly created for little girls who are getting bored with run-of-the-mill fairies and princesses, and are eager to get their teeth into something new and exciting. Clever, imaginative, funny, positively fizzing with fairies and vampires, and with themes of heritage, difference and fitting in, Isadora’s adventures always leave youngsters hungry for more!
(Oxford University Press, hardback, £9.99)

Age 5 plus
My Magic Hamster: Hide and Squeak
Leah Mohammed and Jess Rose

WHAT little mischief-maker could resist a very naughty magic hamster? Children’s author Leah Mohammed has always loved stories with magic at their heart, and there’s lots of heart and magic to enjoy in the second book of a sparkling series which includes two stories in each book and stars a mischievous hamster called Frank. Sana has always wanted a hamster but when she buys Frank, she gets a bit more than she'd bargained for. Because Frank is a special hamster… a magic hamster. In fact, he’s a very naughty magic hamster who keeps getting Sana into all kinds of trouble! As you can guess, life is never boring when Frank is around, especially when he discovers he has new time-freezing and shrinking powers. But can Sana keep the super-tiny Frank safe from the neighbour’s cats? Frank’s fun-filled adventures full of magic, mayhem and mischief are given extra vibrancy by Jess Rose’s illustrations and look set to run and run!
(Welbeck Children’s Books, paperback, £7.99)

Age 5 plus
Gordon: In the City
Alex Latimer

GORDON the goose is back and he’s still honkingly funny! Gordon: In the City is the fourth highly illustrated yarn in a hilarious debut chapter book series from bestselling author and illustrator Alex Latimer. Gordon is the meanest goose on earth. Well… he used to be, but now he’s trying to change his ways and be a good goose. The trouble is, it’s really tricky to be kind and patient and good, especially when you’ve always been mean. Now Gordon has been invited to a fancy award ceremony in the big city. He’s been asked to present this year’s award for The Meanest Goose on Earth, a prize he has won the previous eight years in a row! But now that he’s a good(ish) goose he’s nervous to be in the presence of such mean geese and one in particular… Mother Goose! That’s right, this year Gordon’s mum is up for the award, and she’s got something really mean planned… Perfect for emerging readers, these funny tales of redemption and about finding the courage to change your ways are packed with laugh-out-loud, edgy humour and brought to life by Latimer’s characterful black and red illustrations on every page. It would be simply mean not to fall in love with Gordon!
(Oxford University Press, paperback, £6.99)

Age 5 plus
Marv and the Funfair Fright
Alex Falase-Koya and Paula Bowles

SUIT up, step up! Superhero Marv is back and this time he’s up against a sinister supervillain and pack of pesky pandas! It’s ‘fair’ game for fast-paced fun and frolics in the ninth book of an exciting and action-packed series from award-winning writer Alex Falase-Koya and star illustrator Paula Bowles. When perfectly ordinary boy Marvin wears his super-suit – powered by kindness and imagination – he becomes MARV, a superhero with infinite abilities. In his new adventure, Marvin is excited but nervous about riding the Head Spinner rollercoaster at the funfair. But he suddenly has much more to worry about when the Conjuror, a supervillain from Marv's past, causes chaos by bringing a zombie and some giant toy pandas to life. Marv and his sidekick Pixel will have to use every trick in the book to put a stop to the panda-monium and defeat the cunning Conjuror. Kindness, resilience and courage are all celebrated in these thrill-filled Marv adventures which are brought to vibrant life by Bowles’ eye-caching two-tone illustrations. Don’t be coconut shy and miss out on all the mayhem!
(Oxford University Press, paperback, £6.99)

Age 5 plus
The Moonlight Mystery Agency: The Puzzling Paw Prints
Vashti Hardy and Agnes Saccani

JOIN a little girl and her detective cat on their mission to uncover the identity of a mysterious creature in the second book of a marvellously magical series from Blue Peter award-winning author Vashti Hardy and illustrator Agnes Saccani. The Moonlight Mystery Agency series is part of publisher Barrington Stoke’s super-readable Little Gems series which comes with a host of clever design and finishing techniques, like dyslexia-friendly fonts, to create easy-to-read, first chapter books in a format ideal for little hands. Hana and her cat Ace are helping the animals of Moonlight to track down the strange creature with great big paws and a terrible growl which is roaming their land. No one knows what it can be so they’ve called in the detective duo from the Moonlight Mystery Agency. Can Hana and Ace puzzle out what’s going on, and will solving the mystery help Hana find the answer to some worries of her own and discover something magic along the way? Wordsmith Hardy conjures up her world-building magic while Saccani’s illustrations bring the adorable characters and their fun-filled adventures to colourful life. Add on an intriguing puzzle inside the front cover and you have the perfect early reading package.
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
Family
Patricia Hegarty and Britta Teckentrup

‘On the savannah, whatever the weather, The animals must stick together. A herd of elephants cross the trail, Steadily walking, trunk to tail.’ 

EXPLORE what family means to all kinds of creatures – from diving dolphins to marvellous manatees – in a stunning peep-through picture book from children’s author Patricia Hegarty and award-winning illustrator Britta Teckentrup. Little ones will love turning the pages of this gorgeously produced book as they discover the incredible habits of animals and their families. Die-cuts let young readers peep through the pages, revealing different horizons all across the world, and offering a celebration of families, love, and the wonders of nature. Teckentrup's colourful and expressive artwork brings to life the amazing ways in which animals protect and support each other while Hegarty’s lyrical rhyming text creates a calming tone, making this an ideal book to help lull your child into sleep at bedtime or nap time. A visual and verbal trip into the delights of animal families!
(Little Tiger Press, paperback, £7.99) 

Venetian Vespers

John Banville

VENICE… a city that has inspired both artists and writers, a place of intense light and the deepest darkness, a meandering network of winding alleyways and opaque canals where imaginations are set alight and reality and fantasy have a habit of merging.

It’s also the larger-than-life setting for an enthralling and utterly transporting new novel from John Banville, one of Ireland’s most gifted authors who won the Man Booker Prize in 2005 and – far from resting on his laurels now that he is closing in on his eightieth birthday – is still treating readers to his extraordinary writing skills.

With a gift for words that raises novel-writing to dizzy heights of literary excellence, Wexford-born Banville (pictured below) is producing some of his best work yet, not least the award-winning Strafford and Quirke crime series which is based in Dublin in the Fifties and mired in dirty politics, religious tensions and the debates and concerns of the post-war period in Ireland. And now he has turned his talents to Venetian Vespers, a haunting and atmospheric fin de siècle noir which harnesses all the chilling tropes of a decaying and decadent city and brings them to glorious life with the tale of a hapless and hopelessly inept English hack caught up in a web of mystery, malice and supernatural skulduggery while honeymooning in wintertime Venice.

And what a mesmerising mixed bag of genres Banville dishes up for us as our self-styled ‘man of letters’ – whose lofty ambitions  to be a ‘lord of language’ have so far taken him no further than Grub Street – grapples with an unwilling bride, unsettling dreams, and a pair of roguish siblings whose arrival turns his life upside down.

In the winter of 1899 as the new century approaches, struggling English writer Evelyn Dolman – who harbours a grandiose dream of one day being ‘placed among the immortals’ – marries Laura Rensselaer, the younger daughter of a renowned and immensely wealthy American oil tycoon. Evelyn anticipates that he and Laura will inherit a substantial fortune, leading to a comfortable and settled life for himself.

But his hopes are dashed when a mysterious rift between Laura and her father, just before his death in a riding accident and only weeks after their wedding, leads to her being disinherited. The now unhappy newlyweds continue with their plans to travel to Venice to celebrate the New Year at the Palazzo Dioscuri, ancestral home of the charming but treacherous Count Barbarigo.

Laura – his ‘vivid’ and ‘inscrutable’ wife who is ‘indifferent’ to both him and his advances – sees the overarching stillness of the palazzo as ‘the very essence of hushed romance’ but to Evelyn,

Crucified

Lynda La Plante

STILL haunted by a harrowing case involving a sadistic serial killer who butchered and decapitated young girls, London Met Detective Sergeant Jack Warr is fast reaching breaking point.

With his home life at high pressure point after the birth of a new baby, his doctor wife Maggie on maternity leave, and the family finances struggling to cope with house renovations, the last thing Jack needs is another grisly murder.

Liverpool-born screenwriter and author Lynda La Plante (pictured below), one of the nation’s favourite police procedural writers, is back to dazzle and delight readers with the fifth book in her latest coruscating crime-cracking series which has its seeds planted in Widows, the runaway hit story starring a group of robbers’ widows who attempt a daring heist after the demise of their crooked husbands.

Harnessing the same gripping cocktail of crooks, cops and cunning plot twists, the DS Jack Warr novels have fast forwarded over 25 years to discover not just what happened to those nefarious gangsters’ molls but to meet intriguing new star Jack, a thirty-something detective finding his feet in the Met after a move from rural Devon, and discovering links to the past that, even in his wildest dreams, he could never have imagined. In Crucified, we find Jack struggling to cope with life at a time when he should be resting on his laurels. He’s just

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: Modern-day Bard, a fearsome fairy tale and scintillating sci-fi

Share fun and adventures with William Shakespeare’s last living relative, travel into the deep, dark woods in a terrific new take on Hansel and Gretel, have your spine well and truly tingled by some seriously scary science, and roll up for your ticket to race around the world with a colourful selection of new autumn titles

Age 9 plus
The Last Bard
Maz Evans

ALL'S well that ends well as superstar children’s writer Maz Evans – bestselling author of the Who Let the Gods Out and Oh Maya Gods! series – is back to stage one of her most entertaining stories yet with Shakespeare’s last living relative taking the lead role. The Last Bard is a brilliant standalone novel inspired by the works of England’s greatest ever playwright and poet, and introducing children to some of his most famous heroes in a veritable feast of adventure, comedy, memorable Shakespearean quotes, and Evans’ signature heartfelt storytelling. Meet Will Davenant, a boy who has known more tragedy than laughter. But in an unexpected twist, he inherits his grandfather’s copy of The Complete Works of Shakespeare – and makes a surprising discovery. As the last living relative of William Shakespeare himself, Will can summon the Bard’s heroes from the pages… and that includes the murderous Lady Macbeth, Juliet (without her Romeo), Yorick the mournful skull, and a mischievous Puck. And now, with his late grandfather’s home under threat, Will, the new friends who have turned his life around, and Ani from next door must fight for their future in a comedy of errors. Can love’s labours win, or will it all be much ado about nothing? Youngsters will love spending time and sharing adventures, comedy and drama with the Bard’s immortal characters and a plucky boy fighting for his family’s future as Evans works her own special storytelling genius on a brilliantly imagined and heartwarming celebration of Shakespeare’s iconic plays. An unmissable gift book that puts the Bard where he belongs… at centre stage!
(Chicken House, hardback, £12.99)

Age 8 plus
Hansel and Gretel
Stephen King and Maurice Sendak

TAKE the dark and inventive imagination of legendary ‘King of Horror’ author Stephen King, the stunning artwork of award-winning author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, and the perennially popular story of Hansel and Gretel, and what do you have? A thrilling rendition of what Sendak called ‘the most profound of all Grimm fairy tales’ and a surefire classic for all discerning collectors. Pairing the two titans of literature together for the first time, this glorious picture book features King’s reimagining of the late illustrator Sendak’s beautiful opera set and costume designs for the Humperdinck opera based on Hansel and Gretel. The result is a thrilling book brimming with the menace and haunting atmospherics of Sendak’s artwork and a story which King sees as having ‘a sunny exterior’ but ‘a dark and terrible centre’ with two brave and resourceful children taking centre stage. So open the pages, follow the children who are lost in an eerie and dangerous forest then see if you can find your way out again. This daring picture book package comes in a stunning, high-quality hardback with jacket, includes a personal introduction from King, and has been created in close collaboration with the Maurice Sendak Foundation. The perfect gift for fans of two literary giants… and all lovers of nightmarish fairy tales!
(Hodder Children’s Books, hardback, £20)

Age 11 plus
The Night House Files: The Wintermoor Lights
Dan Smith and Luke Brookes

GET ready to have your spine well and truly tingled as award-winning author and master of creepy sci-fi, Dan Smith, returns with the second book of his super-charged Night House Files series which began with The Deadsoul Project and is full of thrills, chills and some seriously scary science. At the heart of this gripping and gruesome opener is a secret organisation called The Night House which exposes some horrifying ‘truths’ and this time the focus is on the spooky Wintermoor Lights. The story opens in 1984, the year of the tragedy… when everything came to a head. Tara Fisher’s best friend Zoe is the first to see the lights over Wintermoor – and she’s never the same again. Soon more and more teenagers are affected and start behaving strangely, often appearing to be trapped in some kind of trance, while talking about being ‘chosen.’ The adults dismiss what is happening as some kind of hoax or mass hysteria. But will they finally listen when the kids start to disappear? Packed with multi-visual elements like diary entries, interview transcripts and newspaper clippings, and Brookes’ wonderfully graphic and atmospheric black and white illustrations, and published in Barrington Stoke’s trademark dyslexia-friendly format, this fast-paced, bone-chilling adventure will hook in readers from the first page… and is best read in daylight hours!
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £7.99)

Age 9 plus
The Girl Who Raced the World
Nat Harrison

ROLL up, roll up, roll up… and collect a ticket to race around the world by steamship, locomotive, and even an ice sled, on a non-stop, heart-thumping adventure! The Girl Who Raced the World – a page-turning retelling of Jules Verne’s classic Around the World in Eighty Days – is the dazzling debut novel of the much-travelled Nat Harrison whose life began on the tiny island of Ascension in the South Atlantic Ocean. Packed with high-stakes action, peril, intrigue and a big helping of fun, Harrison’s thriller takes us back to 1872 where we meet eleven-year-old Maggie Appleton whose beloved mother has died leaving her with nothing but a letter for a mysterious stranger called Passepartout. With nowhere else to turn, Maggie seeks out Passepartout and, in doing so, is drawn into an adventure beyond her wildest dreams. Together with Passepartout’s employer, the enigmatic Mr Phileas Fogg, Maggie journeys to Italy, India, Hong Kong, Japan and America in a daring race against time to win the wager Mr Fogg has accepted. But with a bank robber on the loose, an angry Inspector on their tail, and unread secrets in her mother’s letter, Maggie soon discovers that there is much more at stake than keeping on schedule to win the bet. Who can she really trust… and will she ever find out where she truly belongs? With a cast of larger-than-life characters, some familiar from the original and others giving the famous Mr Fogg a run for his money, this timeless tale of travel, treachery and trust is a must-read for readers young… and not-so-young!
(Piccadilly Press, hardback, £12.99)

Age 9 plus
The Big Bad Wolf Murder
P.G. Bell and George Ermos

YOU'RE never too young to enjoy cosy crime so join master storyteller P.G. Bell – the Welsh author who conjured up the award-winning The Train to Impossible Places series – as he blends fairytale magic with murder mystery in a wonderfully wild and wolfish adventure. The Big Bad Wolf Murder is Bell’s second standalone fairytale-inspired whodunit murder mystery starring a wonderfully quirky cast of characters and an all-action plot full of epic chases, gangsters, brawls… and sporting rivalry turned deadly. The Big Bad Wolf is dead… and what's worse is he was murdered! Alarick was a sporting superstar, top wolf in the Tooth & Claw games and when he drops dead in the middle of the championship game against the Reds, it’s a huge scandal. When his rival, Ruby of the Reds, realises she has been framed for the crime, she goes on the run, determined to clear her name. But with a dogged detective, a wolf assassin and a gangster granny on her tail, she’s going to need more than a little help from her new wolf-cub friend Fillan. Only her Tooth & Claw skills will help her evade capture and nail the real murderer. Bell lets his imagination take flight as he plunges us into a thrilling, atmospheric and world-building crime romp, illustrated by George Ermos and with all those favourite mystery ingredients… lashings of danger, oodles of intrigue, lots of laugh-out-loud fun, and unexpected twists and turns to keep YOU guessing and the pages turning!
(Usborne Publishing, paperback, £7.99)

Age 7 plus
The Incredible Pop-up Frog
Ben Hoare and Jasmine Floyd

DISCOVER a dazzling treasure trove of frogs and wetland creatures in this spectacular, deluxe pop-up book written by award-winning wildlife journalist and self-confessed nature nerd Ben Hoare and illustrated in striking colour and texture by rising star Jasmine Floyd. Home to pond skaters and platypuses, and kingfishers and crocodiles, wetlands are among the richest habitats on our planet and a crucial home to some of the world's most endangered species. Bursting with frogs and other amphibians, as well as a whole host of other wildlife, wetlands are dazzling havens of activity and just waiting to be explored. Packed with multi-layered pop-ups and flaps to lift, The Incredible Pop-up Frog takes a close-up look at these fascinating creatures. The incredible feat of paper-engineering allows young readers to look inside three wetland habitats, revealing wonder after wonder, page after page. From the surface of the water, where bugs skate, spiders hunt and flowers spread their petals, to the murky depths, where myriad creatures fight for survival, this book takes readers on a tour of some of the richest habitats on our planet and reveals the true beauty of frogs, amphibians and the wildlife they live alongside. Readers aged from seven to one hundred will love taking the plunge!
(Templar Books, hardback, £25)

Age 7 plus
Raising the Roof!
Jack Pepper and Michele Bruttomesso

MUSIC maestro, please! Twenty-six-year-old Jack Pepper, one of the UK’s youngest commissioned composers and youngest-ever national radio presenters, hits all the right notes in this cool, clever and captivating introduction to classical music. Youngsters will love tuning in to the spectacular world of classical music and its colourful characters when they turn the pages of this brilliant interactive book which comes packed with learning, discovery and marvellous music-making, and is brought to life by Italian artist Michele Bruttomesso’s joyful and energetic illustrations. Take a tour of musical history, and learn your timbre from your tempo, your tuba from your cello and your symphony from your concerto. Rub shoulders with twenty great composers – including Bach, Beethoven and child prodigy Mozart – meet American pioneer Florence Price, trailblazers like Barbara Strozzi and Joseph Bologne, film score composer Hans Zimmer and video game composer Nobuo Uematsu and find out what it really takes to write a timeless classical hit. And you can listen as you read by using the playlist inside which covers over 40 classical pieces spanning one thousand years of music. And explore how the story doesn’t stop here as classical continues to influence music today and future sounds. Informal, amusing and written with Pepper’s infectious enthusiasm, this book is sure to inspire the budding composer in every reader and open up the dazzling world of music to new fans.
(Templar Books, paperback, £10.99)

Age 7 plus
The Mubbles: When Berry Met Terry
Liz Pichon

BE warned… this book is seriously funny! Put some added colour, fun and sheer unadulterated joy into your autumn with The Mubbles: When Berry Met Terry, the second book in an outrageously entertaining graphic novel series from the multi-talented Liz Pichon, bestselling creator of the global phenomenon Tom Gates books. Youngsters – and their parents – will be laughing all the way on a welcome return trip to the Isle of Smile, a beautiful island that runs on sun, wind and flower power, and is home to the colourful, fun-loving Mubbles… Berry, Dash, Cheery and the gang. The Mubbles love their island, especially the mysterious Uncertain Curtain which always delivers an unexpected surprise. What will it be today? Today the Uncertain Curtain delivers Terry, a very cute but very naughty dog! Berry is delighted to finally have a friend to play with but Terry soon causes a lot of chaos on the Isle of Smile. Will Terry have to leave early or can Berry’s furry plan save the day? Packed full of colourful characters, boundless fun and lots of adventures, this is the ideal series for youngsters who like their stories to come with bags of eye-catching artwork. Add on a QR code that takes you to a website packed with extra content, including arts and crafts and many fun songs from The Mubbles world, and the result is a fabulous, all-singing, all-dancing book of laughter!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, hardback, £9.99)

Age 7 plus
Jack-Jack, A Dog with a Job
Ben Garrod and Charli Vince

ENJOY a dog’s-eye-view of his amazing world in the fourth and final book of delightfully cute and funny fiction series written by Ben Garrod, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Science Engagement at the University of East Anglia. Garrod was inspired to pen The Adventures of a Dog Called Jack-Jack books after filming the hit BBC2 series, Baby Chimp Rescue in Africa, falling in love with Jack, and bringing him back to the UK where the two are now inseparable. So meet Jack-Jack who is not just any old dog... he’s the world’s coolest dog and used to look after orphaned chimpanzees in Africa until his owner Ben flew him thousands of miles away to live in the ‘Yookay.’ Now every day is full of adventure although Jack-Jack is never just along for the ride. And after his pretty special job in Africa, super-clever Jack-Jack is now heading off for some varied work experience to try out the different jobs a dog can do. But is he barking up the wrong tree as he sets out to find the perfect job for him? He tries his paw at police dog training, herding runaway sheep, at search and rescue… until he finally finds a job that fits and it’s much closer to home than he had expected! With short chapters narrated by Jack-Jack himself, the richly detailed and fun-filled black and white illustrations of Charli Vince on every page, this very special dog’s adventures and misadventures cannot help but win the hearts of all young (and old!) animal lovers!
(Zephyr, paperback, £7.99)

Age 5 plus
A Wild Child’s Guide to Nature at Night
Dara McAnulty and Barry Falls

HAVE you ever wondered which creatures wake up when you go to sleep? Let the brilliant young Northern Irish author, activist and conservationist Dara McAnulty, winner of the Wainwright Prize for Diary of a Young Naturalist, show you the magic of nature at night with this visually stunning and informative gift book which is lavishly illustrated in full colour by Barry Falls. A Wild Child’s Guide to Nature at Night is the perfect guide for aspiring young naturalists and is the follow-on to this dynamic duo’s brilliant books, Wild Child and A Wild Child’s Book of Birds. So prepare to embark on a night-time adventure, learning how to use all your senses to experience the wonders that unfold at night. Journey through five different habitats in Britain and Ireland and meet hedgehogs and moths in the garden, bats, owls, foxes and badgers in the woodland, corncrakes and dormice in the countryside, pine martens, glow-worms and mountain hares in the heathlands, and the animals that live as constellations in our sky. Learn about circadian rhythms, hibernation, echolocation, biofluorescence, murmurations, the dawn chorus and how to use the stars for orientation. Youngsters will love exploring nature at night with this visually atmospheric and lyrically written book full of fantastic facts about nocturnal animals, activities on how to spot them, tips on attracting wildlife and creating havens, and ways that we can all protect the amazing but fragile natural world around us. The perfect gift book to inspire young nature lovers and to let children experience for themselves
(Macmillan Children’s Books, hardback, £14.99)

Age 4 plus
Fold-Out + Play: Doll’s House
Ingela P Arrhenius

SOME books offer so much ingenious fun that you want to take them with you wherever you go! Creative artist Ingela P Arrhenius, who lives in Stockholm, has collaborated with several toy producers around the world and now she has turned her talents to a fantastic fold-out book which effortlessly transforms into a stylish 3D doll’s house that children can explore and play with time and time again. Inside the enticing, child-friendly package are stand-up animal characters to bring to life, pieces of press-out furniture to build, and colourful stickers which youngsters can use to decorate the house. Children will love making the kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom and then enjoying hours of play with their own customised doll’s house. Designed with Arrhenius’ signature retro style, typography and colour, this delightful Fold-out + Play Doll's House is perfect for on-the-go playtime or for those with limited space as all the press-out pieces can be stored away in the sturdy drawer attached so they are always ready for play wherever travels take you. With its self-contained format, an instruction sheet and QR code with assembly videos to help build the house, this is the perfect gift book to inspire independent, imaginative play and provide hours of entertainment.
(Nosy Crow, board book, £20)

Age 3 plus
Over the Rainbow Bridge
Noel Fitzpatrick and Alison Brown

LOVE is forever… Noel Fitzpatrick, best known to one and all as the nation’s favourite TV Supervet, pulls on heartstrings with his debut picture book, Over the Rainbow Bridge, a moving and beautiful exploration of a friendship that last a lifetime. Fitzpatrick is a world leading orthopaedic-neuro veterinary surgeon, admired for his compassionate and innovative work treating companion animals and, in this heartfelt story about family loss and the power of love, his words are paired with the emotionally powerful illustrations of the talented Alison Brown. Sam loved Dog and Dog loved Sam. They spoke without words and dreamed big dreams side by side in the sunbeams. Sam thinks they will go on adventures together forever. Then the time comes for Dog to go over the Rainbow Bridge. By remembering their happy times together, Sam faces sadness but finds joy again… and understands that Dog’s love and friendship are gifts that last forever. A simply stunning celebration of the eternal dog and human bonds.
(Gallery Kids, paperback, £7.99)

Age 3 plus
The Wild Robot On The Island
Peter Brown

WHAT happens when the natural world collides with technology? Bestselling author and illustrator Peter Brown’s heartfelt novel, The Wild Robot, has become a modern classic since it was first published in 2016. Described by one critic as a ‘fable for our age,’ the story has been adapted as a major DreamWorks animation film starring Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal and Kit Connor. And now little ones can venture into robot Roz’s wild world in this gorgeously illustrated picture book that brings to colourful life all the adventures in Brown’s much-loved book. Roz is not where she's supposed to be, she wasn’t designed to live in the wilderness. But when she washes up on a remote island, Roz must learn from the animal inhabitants and adapt to her new, natural surroundings. And before long, the seasons change and the island begins to feel like home. Filled with Brown's stunning artwork, this moving picture book – which gently explores important themes like caring for the environment, motherhood and technology – is the perfect gift for readers new to the modern classic or for long-time fans of the series that sparked a global phenomenon. An unmissable tale of our times!
(Piccadilly Press, paperback, £7.99)

Age one plus
Glow
Nicola Edwards and Sophie Ledesma

LIGHT up the darkness with a little firefly who has lost his glow in a brilliant sound and light novelty board book from the clever creators at Little Tiger Press.‘Moon’s glow is so bold, she lights up the night! I'm supposed to shine too, but I don’t know how...’ Firefly wants to glow like the moon, shine bright like the lighthouse and shimmer like the jellyfish, but he just doesn't know how. Little ones will love joining him on his adventures across land, sky and sea as he travels the world… only to discover his shine was hiding in plain sight all along! With a heartwarming text by Nicola Edwards and illustrated with the bold and adorably atmospheric artwork of Sophie Ledesma, this quirky, light-up sound book delivers an empowering message about believing in yourself and is perfect reading to soothe and calm little ones at naptime or bedtime.
(Little Tiger Press, board book, £12.99)

Age one plus
Disney Stitch: Five Little Aliens 
Sian Bowman

‘Five little aliens flew off one night, Across the galaxy of stars so bright. Cousin Stitch said, ‘Get back to base!’ How many aliens are left to chase?’ 

JOIN Stitch and his cousins as they blast through the galaxy on a hide-and-seek mission in this colourful this lift-the-flap book from Disney. There's so much to see and do, with planets to visit and spaceships to fly, as well as familiar faces to spot. But wait… the aliens are disappearing one by one until they reach a planet called Ee-arth. Based on the nursery rhyme Five Little Ducks, this interactive book is perfect for sharing with Stitch’s youngest fans. Simply lift the flaps to find the aliens and discover a delicious surprise at the end.
(Studio Press, paperback, £7.99)

Walking the King Charles III England Coast Path: North West

NATIONAL TRAIL – Cumbria, Lancashire and Merseyside Coast

Ange Harker

TO mark the King’s coronation in May of 2023, it was announced that the England Coast Path would be renamed the King Charles III England Coast Path and will include exciting new stretches of the route.

At around 2,700 miles long when complete, the National Trail will go all the way around the coast of England and is set to be the longest managed coastal path in the world. And it doesn’t end there because, in many areas, walkers will also have the right to explore the beaches and coastal margin alongside the path as they pass by the many coastal towns, cities and ports which have shaped our island nation.

The North West coast offers up a spectacular 367 miles between Gretna and Chester, taking in many lengths of newly created public access around the spectacular eastern shores of the Irish Sea, and to mark a new era for the trail, Kendal-based Cicerone Press – an enthusiastic publisher specialising in outdoor activities guidebooks – have an impressive new full-colour trail guide to the Cumbria, Lancashire and Merseyside stretch of coast.

Written by one of the path’s creators, qualified walking guide Ange Harker (pictured left) who has a special interest in accessibility, this book is not just a guide to the route and how to plan your journey, but a definitive insight into the new National Trail and an exploration of how the newly created Coastal Access rights work in practice on this unique and under-represented stretch of coastline.

The guide covers the walk in 28 stages, taking in stunning beaches, Lake District mountain views and estuaries, the Solway Firth, Morecambe Bay, Blackpool and Wirral, and includes a link route to the Wales Coast Path, as well as facilities, accommodation and public transport details to help plan your trek, which is suitable for all year round walking.

The trail along the Cumbria, Lancashire and Merseyside coast – best walked in spring and summer for the longest days – takes around one month to hike, is described from north to south in stages between eight and 18 miles in length, contains a step-by-step description of the route alongside 1:50,000 OS maps, and provides refreshment information for each route stage. Public transport by stage is also listed for those wanting to break the trail into shorter sections.

Highlights include the Solway Firth, Hadrian’s Wall, Lake District mountain views, Morecambe Bay and Lancaster, the longest dune system in England at Sefton, Merseyside’s arts and musical culture, Wirral’s heritage and Cheshire’s coastal reed beds.

Also available from Cicerone Press are two accompanying route mapping booklets… Walking the King Charles III England Coast Path: North West – Lancashire & Merseyside Map Booklet and Walking the King Charles III England Coast Path: North West – Cumbria Map Booklet.

The map booklet to the Lancashire and Merseyside section of the coast path contains detailed mapping for walking the route in either direction. With easy access at many points along the way, the section can be enjoyed as a trek of around 12 days or in shorter sections. The full route shown is on 1:25,000 OS maps and covers the coast path from Arnside to Chester.

The Cumbrian map booklet contains detailed mapping for walking the route in either direction. With easy access at many points along the way, this section can be enjoyed as a trek of around 15 days or in shorter sections. Again, the full route is shown on 1:25,000 OS maps, and this time covers the coast path from Gretna on the Scottish border to Grange-over-Sands. Conveniently sized for slipping into a jacket pocket or top of a rucksack, both booklets are priced at £12.95.

With links to both the iconic places and heritage on the coast and the less well-known corners of interest, this complete set of three beautifully produced guides – packed with Cicerone’s trademark expertise and stunning photography – provides all the information walkers need to unlock some areas for the very first time… and makes our glorious coastlines available to so many more people.
(Cicerone Press, paperback, £17.95)

Appointment in Paris

Jane Thynne

IN April of 1940, Britain is on a knife edge… Neville Chamberlain’s government is teetering, Paris is in increasing danger of falling to Hitler’s forces, and the danger from hidden fifth columnists is ringing alarm bells at MI5 headquarters in London.

The ending of what many have called the ‘Phoney War’ means a Nazi invasion of Britain is becoming a very real threat, and fears of ‘the enemy within’ would seem to be justified when the body of a captured German officer is found in the grounds of a stately home which has become not just a prisoner holding camp but the site of the biggest bugging operation ever mounted against a British enemy.

After the huge success of last year’s historical gem, Midnight in Vienna, a classy murder mystery steeped in the febrile atmosphere and dark suspicion of the pre-war months, author, journalist and broadcaster Jane Thynne (pictured below) returns with her unlikely – and utterly charming – partnership of MI5 agents Harry Fox and Stella Fry. Best known for her much-loved Clara Vine wartime espionage thrillers, Thynne has also written two acclaimed dystopian novels, Widowland and Queen High, under the pen name of C.J. Carey, and now she brings us the perfect blend of mystery, menace, thrills, chills and escapism with these entertaining, edge-of-the-seat spy adventures.

In the spring of 1940, Britain is in political turmoil, a German invasion may now be only weeks away, and the worst possible time for the body of a man wearing the uniform of a Luftwaffe captain to be found in the grounds of Trent Park, the stately home at Cockfosters which is now being used as a prison to house high level German PoWs.

Trent Park’s true purpose, however, is intelligence, gathered covertly from prisoners by secret listeners who record ‘every conversation, every chance remark, every quiet confidence’ and the inmates have no idea.

To make matters worse, the morning after the discovery of the officer, one of the listeners, German-born Robert Handel, goes missing, along with a gun from the firing range. Horrified that this could blow the highly confidential operation wide open, the authorities know the missing man must be tracked down.

Cue Harry Fox – the former MI5 Watcher is currently suspended and working as a private investigator. A ‘patriot who couldn’t fight,’ Harry is desperate to assist the war effort but at 41, he is over the conscription age. Then his former boss gets in touch with a job for him… he must locate the missing man who may well be hiding amongst London’s émigré community.

But his boss stipulates that the job must also be shared with Harry’s former associate, Stella Fry, who is currently working at the GPO Film Unit in London, editing scripts for documentaries and information films. A fluent German speaker, Stella was a fellow student with Handel at Oxford University and this new mission will take her across the Channel, from far from events in London, and into more danger than she had ever imagined

Appointment in Paris delivers the same winning formula that captured the hearts and minds of readers in Harry and Stella’s debut outing… a gritty, suspense-packed story filled with Thynne’s trademark richly detailed world-building and intelligent plotting, and featuring a seductive cast of real and fictional characters including secret British agent and author Noël Coward, crime writer Agatha Christie, controversial American Ambassador Joe Kennedy, and a maverick Winston Churchill.

Against a gloriously vibrant and authentic backdrop of Britain in its ‘darkest hour,’ and with fascinating insights into the real-life work of the ‘secret listeners’ at Trent Park in North London whose work led to major intelligence breakthroughs, our dynamic duo run the gauntlet of death, danger, false identities and diplomatic complexities in a hostile world.

It’s a time of uncertainty and fear, when the relationship between Britain and the United States was strained by the reluctance of some high-ranking Americans to help the war effort in Europe… and when the dark arts of espionage and subterfuge were flourishing in the shadows of the international stage. And aiding the hunt for hidden traitors are the likeable, dyslexic detective Harry and his ‘partner in crime’ Stella, a strong, highly intelligent and brave woman whose hunt for the truth takes her from London to Paris in the frantic, fear-filled days before the Nazis arrived.

With Thynne’s meticulous research underpinning every inch of the twisting, turning plot, bristling with menace and malice, and with romance only ever a heartbeat away, Appointment in Paris is an autumnal reading treat that historical fiction fans will relish!
(Quercus, hardback, £20)