New:Moira Young - Blood Red Road - Costa Children's Book Award Winner 2011

WINNER OF THE 2011 COSTA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD
BLOOD RED ROAD
By Moira Young


Marion Lloyd Books is delighted to announce that Blood Red Road, the debut novel by Moira Young, has won the 2011 Costa Children’s Book Award.
The judges called Blood Red Road: “An astonishing debut novel which had us all hooked from the beginning to the unpredictable end.”

The Costa Book Awards is one of the UK’s most prestigious and popular literary prizes. It is unique for having five categories: First Novel, Novel, Poetry, Biography and Children’s Book. The Costa Book Awards started life in 1971 as the Whitbread Literary Awards and Costa Coffee took over ownership of the awards in 2006. The award ceremony presentation evening will be held on Tuesday 24th January 2012.

Moira Young says: “To be shortlisted with such experienced and acclaimed writers and their excellent books was wonderful. To win the Costa Children's Book Award is amazing. I am immensely gratified that the story and characters I’ve lived with and cared about for so long, seem to speak not only to young people but readers of all ages.”
Marion Lloyd, adds: “I am very proud to be the publisher of Blood Red Road. Reading the first manuscript pages made my heart race. I wanted to aim Saba’s steely crossbow at anyone who might stop me from acquiring the publishing rights in this super-charged story of a girl’s search for her brother in a dangerous future world. Moira Young is a new writer of phenomenally powerful skills. To have the Costa judges crown her first novel as the winner of the children’s book award is simply fabulous.”


Blood Red Road is a fast-paced thriller written in fresh, pared-down language. Set in a lawless future land where life is cheap and survival is hard, Saba’s twin brother is stolen by mysterious, black-robed riders. She pursues his captors on a desperate journey full of violence and treachery where she will need a spirit as tough as her crossbow to survive. But among her companions are the cleverest bird that ever flew, and a handsome thief with eyes the colour of moonlight...
Moira Young’s searing, soaring survival story is arresting from the very first line. It is written in a compelling but very accessible dialect with an extremely distinctive authorial voice. The scope of the plot is epic and the pace is fierce, with unexpected twists throughout. The combination of a startlingly original voice, unforgettably vivid characters and a compelling teen love story sets this novel apart as one of the most sensational books for young adults in recent years.

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