BOOKS
series about a tiny paper witch who, armed with nothing more than a pencil, brightens up Molly’s life—and gets her into trouble.
Fiction 9-12
Ally Carter Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valour Orchard, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9781408357378 Five extraordinary orphans unravel one incredible mystery in the first in a new Middle Grade series from the Gallagher Girls author. Pitched for fans of Robin Stevens and A Series of Unfortunate Events.
Previews Children’s Previews
and the Tides of Time Orion, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9781510104211 The ninth adventure in the long-running mermaid series sees Emily spiral into the future with a magic wishing stone.
Jennifer Killick Crater Lake Firefly Press, 19th, £6.99, pb, 9781913102203 Can four children save their classmates from a fate worse than death? The Year Six residential takes a terrifying turn in a sci-fi horror story set at an outdoor activity centre. Just the right sort of scary and spirited for 10-year- olds, with plenty of Killick’s trademark humour too.
Alison Croggan The Threads of Magic Walker, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781406384741 Croggan makes her Middle Grade début with a historical fantasy adven- ture, inspired by the story of the Lost Dauphin, son of Marie Antoinette, who disappeared during the French Revolution.
S E Durrant Talking to the Moon Nosy Crow, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9781788004701 Iris’ grandmother Mimi has started to tie ribbons on her fingers to remind herself of things, and her house is more muddled than ever. As Mimi’s memory fades, a mystery is uncovered. The always excellent Durrant is on superb form in this perceptive and emotional look at dementia.
Judith Eagle, Kim Geyer (illus) The Pear Affair Faber, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9780571346851 On a trip to Paris, Penelope Magnificent sets out on a “spectacular” adventure through and under the streets of Paris, in search of her old au pair. No proof at the time of writing, but Eagle’s début The Secret Starling was well received.
Liz Kessler Emily Windsnap
46 13th December 2019
Mikki Lish & Kelly Ngai The House on Hoarder Hill Chicken House, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9781912626212 When Hedy and Spencer spend Christmas at their grandfather’s spooky house, they must solve an old family mystery when messages start appear- ing on dusty old picture frames. The début novel of screenwriter duo Lish and Ngai. TV rights have already been snapped up.
may have a murder to solve. A funny, contempo- rary mystery from actor and illusionist Mohammed, sporting a diverse cast of central characters.
coming-of-age verse novel tracing one boy’s journey from early childhood to finding his wings as a drag queen at university. Now in paperback.
Nicola Skinner Bloom HarperCollins, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9780008297404 In the town of Little Sterilis—where the school motto commands obedi- ence, conformity and rules—Sorrel Fallowfield’s discovery of a faded packet of seeds changes everything. One to Watch in hardback last year, this surprising and wonderfully surreal début is a peaen to the power of nature and imagination.
Nic Stone Clean Getaway Knights Of, 5th, £5.99, pb, 9781913311025 The first Middle Grade novel from US YA writer Stone sees a black boy and his white grand- mother take a road trip through America’s past and present. No proof yet, but Knight Of calls it an “enormously fun adven- ture story” packing a big emotional punch.
Damien Love Monstrous Devices Rock the Boat, 5th, £12.99, hb, 9781786077523 The gift of an old tin robot kick-starts an extraor- dinary adventure which whisks 12-year-old Alex away from his humdrum life into a world of strange, macabre magic. Cinematic and original, says the publisher.
Victoria Williamson The Boy with the Butterfly Mind Floris, 19th, £7.99, pb, 9781782506003 Jamie wants to be normal, but his ADHD isn’t making it easy. Elin wants to be perfect. When their families blend, their polar opposites collide. Now in paperback.
Teenage & YA
Leigh Bardugo King of Scars Orion, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781510104464 Now in paperback, the first book in a new duology set in the same Grishaverse as her Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows series. A Netflix series based on the books is in production.
Cassandra Clare The Last Hours: Chain of Gold Walker, 3rd £14.99, hb, 9781406358094 First in a new Shadowhunters trilogy, in which evil hides in plain sight and love cuts deeper than any blade. The protagonists are all chil- dren of characters from The Infernal Devices.
the fight to save her king- dom. Pitched for younger teens who enjoy Disney’s Twisted Tales series.
Sara Holland Havenfall Bloomsbury, 3rd, £7.99, pb, 9781526614889 The launch title in a contemporary fantasy series about the safe haven between worlds, and the girl sworn to protect it. From the New York Times-bestselling author of Everless, this is a lead title for Bloomsbury, which will back with a blockbuster campaign.
Sheena Kamal Fight Like a Girl Hot Key, 10th, £7.99, pb, 9781471408854 It’s been a month since Trisha’s dad was killed when he wandered drunk in front of the car she was driving. When her mother grabbed the wheel, was she trying to avoid him— or the opposite?
Rebecca Elliott Pretty Funny Penguin, 19th, £7.99, pb, 9780241374627 Hayah Swinton is an ace best friend, loving daughter and incredibly patient sister. But she has a secret. She wants to be a stand-up comedian. Trouble is, she’s pretty sure girls like her don’t belong on stage... No proof yet, but Penguin calls Elliott a “hugely exciting voice” in funny “clean teen”.
Sophie Gonzales Only Mostly Devastated Hodder, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781250315892 Ollie and Will were a summer fling... Now they are classmates, and only one of them is out. I love the sound of this LGBT re-imagining of “Grease”. A diverse, heartwarming love story, says Hodder.
Nick Mohammed The Young Magicians and the 24-Hour Telepathy Plot Puffin, 5th, £6.99, pb, 9780241331088 The young magicians are back, and this time they
Dean Atta
The Black Flamingo Hodder, 5th £7.99, pb, 9781444948608 One to Watch in hardback, spoken-word poet Atta makes his YA début with a timely
Alice Hemming The Darkest Unicorn Scholastic, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9780702300639 Not all unicorns are good… In a fairytale-style adventure, a young hero- ine becomes embroiled in
Intisar Khanani Thorn Hot Key, 24th, £7.99, pb, 9781471408724 For Princess Alyrra, choice is a luxury she’s never had—until she is betrayed. A fantasy standalone inspired by The Goose Girl fairytale, aimed at fans of Sarah J Maas.
Korean-American woman for her heroine.
Emery Lord The Map from Here to There Bloomsbury, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781526606648 What happens after happily ever after? Lord returns to the characters of The Start of Me and You in what Bloomsbury calls a “gorgeous” story of friendship and identity, which can be read as a sequel or a standalone.
Manjeet Mann Run, Rebel Penguin, 5th £7.99, pb, 9780241411421 A début YA novel in verse about being torn between two cultures, from a graduate of PRH’s WriteNow scheme to find creatives from under- represented communities. No proof yet, but Penguin sees this as a potential award-winner; one for fans of Sarah Crossan and Rupi Kaur.
Matt Killeen Devil, Darling, Spy Usborne, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781474942393 Young spy Sarah must track a lethal disease across bullet-torn Africa in pursuit of the monster who created it. Sequel to Orphan, Monster, Spy, which was shortlisted for the Costa and Branford Boase awards.
Jenny Lee Anna K Penguin, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9780241420218 “Gossip Girl” meets “Crazy Rich Asians”, says Penguin of this contemporary retelling of Anna Karenina set among the privileged teens of the Upper East Side. The author draws on her own experiences as a
David Owen Grief Angels Atom, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9780349003429 Following the death of his father, 15-year-old Owen starts to have strange, powerful hallucinations of skeletal birds. An urgent, heartfelt look, says Atom, at nostalgia and the many different forms of grief.
Louisa Reid Gloves Off Guppy Books, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781913101022 Shy, overweight, bullied Lily is counting down the days until she can leave school behind. When the bullying becomes physi- cal, her father sets up a punch-bag in the garage. Now in paperback, a memorable verse novel about body image, bully- ing and mental health.
Melinda Salisbury Hold Back the Tide Scholastic, 5th, £7.99, pb, 9781407180298 In a quiet lakeside community, rumours of dark forces cause Alva to question everything she
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