Favourite Middle Grade Children's Book Reads 2015 Age 9+ Post Two

This is my second post sharing my top 10 favourite Middle Grade Reads this year. It was really hard to shorten the list; this is a very strong age group in 2015. Please check out the first post. Have a really good Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

Caleb Krisp - Anyone But Ivy Pocket - Published by Bloomsbury Children's (9 April 2015)

Ivy Pocket is a twelve-year-old maid of no importance, with a very lofty opinion of herself. Dumped in Paris by the Countess Carbunkle, who would rather run away to South America than continue in Ivy's companionship, our young heroine (of sorts) finds herself with no money and no home to go to ... until she is summoned to the bedside of the dying Duchess of Trinity. 

For the princely sum of £500 (enough to buy a carriage, and possibly a monkey), Ivy agrees to courier the Duchess's most precious possession - the Clock Diamond - to England, and to put it around the neck of the revolting Matilda Butterfield on her twelfth birthday. It's not long before Ivy finds herself at the heart of a conspiracy involving mischief, mayhem and murder.

Illustrated in humorous gothic detail by John Kelly, Anyone But Ivy Pocket is just the beginning of one girl's deadly comic journey to discover who she really is ...

Brian Selznick - The Marvels - Published by Scholastic Press (15 Sept. 2015)
In The Marvels, Selznick crafts another remarkable artistic and bookmaking achievement that weaves together two seemingly unrelated stories-one in words, the other in pictures-with spellbinding synergy. The illustrated story begins in 1766 with Billy Marvel, the lone survivor of a shipwreck, and charts the adventures of his family of actors over five generations. The prose story opens in 1990 and follows Joseph, who has run away from school to an estranged uncle's puzzling house in London, where he, along with the reader, must piece together many mysteries. Filled with mystery, vibrant characters, surprise twists, and heart-rending beauty, and featuring Selznick's most arresting art to date, The Marvels is a moving tribute to the power of story.

Garth Jennings - The Deadly 7 - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (15 Jan. 2015)

Who needs friends when you've got MONSTERS?

Everything was happening so fast and it was all so . . . mad. It was as if someone had taken reality, made it into a jigsaw, thrown the jigsaw on to the floor and then said, "Now, hurry up and put it all together!" as they danced all over the jigsaw pieces in a clown suit, blowing a trumpet.

When Nelson's beloved big sister goes missing on a school trip, Nelson is devastated - he's not that good at making friends and his sister is the only person he can talk to. His parents join the search party and leave Nelson in the care of his mad uncle Pogo. Uncle Pogo is the caretaker of St Paul's Cathedral and it is here that Nelson stumbles across a machine, invented by Christopher Wren and buried for hundreds of years. Designed to extract the 7 deadly sins, the machine had a fault - once extracted, the sins became living, breathing monsters who would then follow the sinner around for eternity (unless they ate him first, in the case of the particularly sinful). Nelson accidentally extracts 7 deadly monsters from his own little soul. Ugly, cantankerous, smelly and often the cause of much embarrassment, Nelson's monsters are the last thing he needed in his life, but at least they're fairly harmless (he's a pretty good kid, on the whole). When he learns of their individual powers he realises the monsters can be put to good use, and together Nelson and the Deadly 7 set out on a quest across the globe to find and rescue his big sister. Somewhere along the way, Nelson realises that he finally has friends, even if they are smelly, lazy friends who like smashing stuff up.

Danny Wallace - Hamish and the WorldStoppers - Published by Simon & Schuster Children's (12 Mar. 2015) 

What would YOU do... if the whole world just stopped?
Yes the WHOLE WORLD.
Birds in the air. Planes in the sky. And every single person on the planet - except you!
Because that's what keeps happening to ten-year-old Hamish Ellerby.
And it's being caused by The WorldStoppers and their terrifying friends The Terribles! They have a PLAN! They want to take our world for their own . . . Oh, and they hate children. Especially if you're a child who knows about them. Hang on - You know now, don't you? Oh dear.
Can Hamish save us from The WorldStoppers? Only time will tell!

Chris Riddell - Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fright - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (24 Sept. 2015) 

People are flocking to Ghastly-Gorm Hall from far and wide to compete in Lord Goth's Literary Dog Show. The esteemed judges are in place and the contestants are all ready to win. Sir Walter Splott is preparing his Lanarkshire Lurcher, Plain Austen is preening her Hampshire Hound and Homily Dickinson and her Yankee Poodle are raring to go. But there's something strange going on at Ghastly-Gorm - mysterious footprints, howls in the night and some suspiciously chewed shoes. Can Ada, the Attic Club and their new friends the Vicarage sisters (Charlotte, Emily and Anne) work out what's going on before the next full moon?

Goth Girl and The Wuthering Fright is the third beautifully illustrated book in the Goth Girl series by Chris Riddell, sequel to Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse and Goth Girl and the Fete Worse Than Death.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Top Favourite Middle Grade Book Reads 2015 (Part One)

I've had so much pleasure reading books for this age group this year. In fact, I've found it really difficult to leave out so many good books, but I've done my best to pick a selection of books. These are, in my eyes, the best 10 books that shone with fantasy magic and fairy dust during 2015. These are the first five of my favourite reads, can you guess which other books will be in the second post? Have a great festive time everybody!

Rob Stevens - Would the Real Stanley Carrot Please Stand Up? Published by Andersen Press (5 Feb. 2015)
Stanley ‘Carrot’ Harris is ginger, tubby and definitely not cool. And he has a secret: he’s adopted, and this makes him feel like he’s never quite fitted in.
On his thirteenth birthday, he receives the one thing he’s been waiting his whole life for: a card from his long-lost birth mother, asking to meet up. But Stanley isn’t sure: what if he’s a big disappointment to her? So he hatches a plan – and he’s going to need a stand-in Stanley, someone who is handsome, sporty and God’s Gift to Mothers. 
What Stanley doesn’t realise is he’s about to have the most confusing time of his life . . . just who is the real Stanley Carrot?

Ross MacKenzie - The Nowhere Emporium - Published by Kelpies (2 Mar. 2015)
When the mysterious Nowhere Emporium arrives in Glasgow, orphan Daniel Holmes stumbles upon it quite by accident. Before long, the 'shop from nowhere' -- and its owner, Mr Silver -- draw Daniel into a breathtaking world of magic and enchantment. Recruited as Mr Silver's apprentice, Daniel learns the secrets of the Emporium's vast labyrinth of passageways and rooms -- rooms that contain wonders beyond anything Daniel has ever imagined. But when Mr Silver disappears, and a shadow from the past threatens everything, the Emporium and all its wonders begin to crumble. Can Daniel save his home, and his new friends, before the Nowhere Emporium is destroyed forever? 

Jacob Grey - The Crow Talker ( Ferals, Book 1) HarperCollins Children's Books (26 Mar. 2015)

In a city ravaged by crime and corruption, 13-year-old orphan Caw’s only friends are the murder of crows he has lived with since his parents flung him from their house aged only five… Caw lives in a treehouse in an abandoned city park, surviving on scraps of food and only communicating with his three crows. But a jailbreak at the prison forces him into contact with other humans – particularly a girl called Lydia, who is attacked by the escaped prisoners and is saved by Caw. Caw realises that these escaped prisoners have more in common with him than he’d like… they too are FERALS – humans able to communicate with and control an animal species. And they want to bring their evil Feral master, The Spinning Man, back from the Land of the Dead. Only by joining forces with other good Ferals hiding throughout the city can Caw stand a chance of defeating them.

Nicholas Gannon - The Doldrums Bk1- Published by HarperCollins Children's Books (8 Oct. 2015)

Archer B. Helmsley longs for adventure. But how can he have an adventure when he can’t even leave his house?

Archer B. Helmsley has grown up in a house full of oddities and treasures collected by his grandparents, the famous explorers. Archer longs for grand adventures but ever since his grandparents went missing on an iceberg, his mother barely lets him leave the house. So, along with his best friends, Adélaïde L. Belmont and Oliver Grub, Archer forms a plan to get out of the house and set off on a grand adventure with crocodiles and parachutes and danger. It's a good plan. Well, it's not bad, anyway. But nothing goes quite as they expected…

Allan Boroughs - Bloodstone (Legend of Ironheart) - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (1 Jan.2015) 
Apprenticed to notorious tech-hunter Verity Brown, India Bentley has spent the last year travelling the globe, finding and selling long-lost technology and doing her best to stay out of trouble. Unfortunately, trouble has a habit of finding her. Accused of an assassination attempt and thrown in jail, India is rescued by scientist-adventurer Professor Moon: a man obsessed with finding the Bloodstone; key to a source of unlimited energy hidden in the lost city of Atlantis. Now Moon wants India and Verity to join his quest.

Pursued by gangsters, lumbered with a stowaway and haunted by the ghosts of her past, India must risk everything to uncover Atlantis's secrets. But the truth comes at a price.

Top Favourite Young Adult Book Reads 2015

It's that time of year yet again. After a very productive year and, as usual, never enough reading time which I blame on social media and too much daydreaming, it's time to reflect on some of my personal favourite and most enjoyable Young Adult reads of 2015. This is just a small snapshot of books, as it's always hard to make a list like this one. However, I'd love to hear what you have enjoyed reading this year, so please get in touch and let me know.... Merry Christmas everybody!

Paul Magrs - Lost on Mars - Published by Firefly Press Ltd (14 May 2015)

With the scale and scope of the great science fiction epics, Lost on Mars tells the story of Lora and her family, third generation human settlers on the red planet who are strugging to survive in incredible circumstances. The family clings to life on a smallholding in the desert landscape, surviving storms and sinister rumours of un- explained disappearances until one night Lora sees the Dancers. When her father and grandmother disappear themselves, Lora's family is driven out to seek a new life across the plains. But none of them are ready for what they find the beautiful, dangerous City Inside.

Derek Landy - Demon Road - Published by HarperCollins Children's Books (27 Aug. 2015)

Full of Landy’s trademark wit, action and razor sharp dialogue, DEMON ROAD kicks off with a shocking opener and never lets up the pace in an epic road-trip across the supernatural landscape of America. Killer cars, vampires, undead serial killers: they’re all here. And the demons? Well, that’s where Amber comes in...Sixteen years old, smart and spirited, she’s just a normal American teenager until the lies are torn away and the demons reveal themselves.  
Forced to go on the run, she hurtles from one threat to another, revealing a tapestry of terror woven into the very fabric of her life. Her only chance rests with her fellow travellers, who are not at all what they appear to be…

Joseph Delaney - Arena 13 - Published by Bodley Head (4 Jun. 2015)

Welcome to Arena 13. Here warriors fight. Death is never far away . . .
Leif has one ambition: to become the best fighter in the notorious Arena 13. Here, punters place wagers on which fighter will draw first blood. And in grudge matches, they bet on which fighter will die.
But the country is terrorized by the creature Hob, an evil being who delights in torturing its people, displaying his devasting power by challenging an Arena 13 combatant in a fight to the death whenever he chooses. And this is exactly what Leif wants . . . For he knows Hob's crimes well. and at the heart of his ambition burns the desire for vengeance. Leif is going to take on the monster who destroyed his family. Even if it kills him.

Sally Gardner - The Door That Led to Where - Published by Hot Key Books (1 Jan. 2015)

AJ Flynn has just failed all but one of his GCSEs, and his future is looking far from rosy. So when he is offered a junior position at a London law firm he hopes his life is about to change - but he could never have imagined by how much.

Tidying up the archive one day, AJ finds an old key, mysteriously labelled with his name and date of birth - and he becomes determined to find the door that fits the key. And so begins an amazing journey to a very real and tangible past - 1830, to be precise - where the streets of modern Clerkenwell are replaced with cobbles and carts, and the law can be twisted to suit a villain's means. Although life in 1830 is cheap, AJ and his friends quickly find that their own lives have much more value. They've gone from sad youth statistics to young men with purpose - and at the heart of everything lies a crime that only they can solve. But with enemies all around, can they unravel the mysteries of the past, before it unravels them?

Tom Becker - Dark Room (Red Eye) - Published by Stripes Publishing (10 Sept. 2015) 

The camera never lies...Darla and her dad are looking for a fresh start. But when they wind up in affluent Saffron Hills, Darla stands no chance of fitting in with the beautiful, selfie-obsessed teens at her new school. Just when she thinks things can't get any worse, she starts having visions. The gruesome snapshots flashing into Darla's mind seem to suggest she's going crazy...until she realizes they're actually a horrifying glimpse into the future. With a killer on the loose, can she make sense of what she's seeing before it's too late?

Danny Weston - Mr Sparks - Published by Andersen Press (1 Oct. 2015)

After his father goes missing in the Great War, Owen is abandoned to live with his cruel aunt, and wishes he could escape his life of drudgery in her small seaside guesthouse. There he meets a mysterious guest, who appears to make his ventriloquist’s dummy speak, even in his sleep.
Soon Owen realises that the dummy, Mr Sparks, can really talk – and he’s looking for a newer, younger puppetmaster. But Mr Sparks has a dark past . . .

Chris Wooding - Velocity - Published by Scholastic Press (2 July 2015)
Cassica and Shiara have grown up in an outback settlement far from anywhere. Life's hard where they live, but these two girls have a dream. They want to take on the Widowmaker: an off-road rally through some of the most dangerous places on Earth. It's their ticket to fame and fortune. But it just might be the death of them...

This is How we Read in the UK (Parcel Hero Infographic)

 ParcelHero have created an interesting infographic in the run up to the Man Booker Prize on the UK's reading habits.

The infographic looks at everything from the most well-read regions of the UK to a head-to-head comparison between eBooks and hardbacks. We thought this would be something that you would be interested in reading, children's books have overall done really well in 2014, but are they still lacking the coverage they so deserve...

Take a look and see what you think?

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Great New Summer Children's Publications by David Fickling Books

Conrad Mason - The Hero's Tomb - Published by David Fickling - Hardback ISBN:978-1910200346 - Out Now!

Azurmouth! In all the Old World there is no city so vast, so sprawling . . . or so dangerous.

Half-goblin boy Joseph Grubb has come to find the truth about his parents. His friend Tabitha has followed him across the ocean, hoping to protect him from the deadly white-coated butchers of the League of the Light. Meanwhile her guardian Captain Newton is determined to recover an ancient artifact stolen by the League’s sinister Duke of Garran.

But in Azurmouth nothing is as it seems. Old enemies will rise. Long-buried secrets will be uncovered. And the League will awaken an ancient power, threatening the Old World with a terrifying new dawn.

Soon Joseph, Tabitha and Newton will have to face their deepest fears, and a final reckoning, at the Hero’s Tomb . . .

Mal Peet - The Murdstone Trilogy - Published by David Fickling - Paperback ISBN: 978-1910200216 - Out Now! 

Philip Murdstone is a writer.

He writes subtle YA books about sensitive boys. Subtle books which don’t sell.

He does NOT write fantasy. He HATES fantasy - even the faintest whiff of goblins and elves brings him

out in hives. But - his agent Minerva Cinch informs him - his career as a writer is kaput if he DOESN’T

write fantasy.

Luckily for Murdstone, it is at this exact moment that he meets a strange creature from another realm.

What could possibly go wrong?

Jon Walter - My Name's Not Friday - Published by David Fickling - Hardback ISBN: 978-1910200438 - Out Now!

Samuel’s an educated boy. Been taught by a priest. He was never supposed to be a slave.

He’s a good boy too, thought- ful and kind. The type of boy who’d take the blame for something he didn’t do, if

it meant he could save his brother.

So now they don’t call him Samuel anymore.

And the sound of guns is getting ever closer . . .

Jon Walter’s second novel is a beautiful and moving story about the power of belief and the strength of the human spirit, set against the terrifying backdrop of the American Civil War.

For more cracking reads check out the David Fickling Website: http://www.davidficklingbooks.com

Cision Literature Blogs UK Top 10

It is great to be part of the below list alongside many other passionate and dedicated book bloggers. Yet again, I feel that this list represents a varied UK blog community. If you haven't had the opportunity to visit these sites already, then perhaps you may find a moment to explore them for the first time. Thank you to Cision social media expert for compiling another interesting list. 

http://www.cision.com/uk/social-media-index/literature-blogs-uk-top-10/

1. The Book Smugglers

2. Playing by the book

3. Savidge Reads 

4. An Awfully Big Blog Adventure

5. Book Chick City

6. Girls Heart Books

7. Wondrous Reads

8. Mr Ripleys Enchanted Books

9. Vulpes Libris

10. One more page

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Sally Green - Half Wild First Chapter Reveal - Penguin 2015

Strong language warning . This extract may not be suitable for younger readers. 

Here is the first chapter of Half Wild which doesn’t come out until March 2015! 

You’ll feel my heavy spirit chill your chest, And climb your throat on sobs, Wild with all Regrets, Wilfred Owen

a new day

a crossbill calls

another bird replies, not a crossbill

the first bird takes over again

and again

the crossbill-

shit, it’s morning

i’ve been asleep

it’s morning, very early

shit, shit, shit

don’t panic

need to wake up need to wake up

can’t believe i’ve been asl-

chchchchchchchhchchchc chhhhhchchch hchcchchchhhchc hchhchchchcchchhcchhchchhchchchhcchchchchchchhchch chchchhchchchchhchhhchchchchccchchchchh chchchchhchchc hhchchchchhc hchchhchhchch chchchchchchchhchh hchchccchchchchhchchchh hchhchchch

SHIT!

the noise is here. HERE!

chchchchchchchhchchchcchhhhhch chchhchcc hchchhhchchchhchch chcchchhcchchchhchchchhcch chchchchchhchchc hchchhchchchchhchhh chchchchccchchchchhhchchc hchhchchchhchchchchhchchc hhchhchchchch chchchchchhchhhch chccchchchchhc hchchhhchhchchch 

that level of noise means, oh shit, someone with a mobile is close. very close. shit, i can’t believe i’ve been asleep with Hunters on my tail. and her. the fast one. she was close last night.

chchchchch chchhchchchcchh hhhchchc hhchcchchchhhch chchhch chchcchchhcchh chchhchchchhcchch chchchchhchchchc hchhchchchchhchhhchchchch ccchchch cchhchchchchhc hchchhchchchchhchc hchhchhchchchchchchchchchhc hhhchchccchchchchh chchchhhchhchchch 

THINK! THINK!

chchchchchchch hchchchcchhhhhchchchh chcchchchhhchchchhchchchc chchhcch chchchhchchchhcchchchchchchhch chchchchhc hchchchhchh hchchchchc cchchchchhhc hchchc hhchchchhchch chchhchchch hchhchc hchc hchchch chchhchh hchchccchc hchchhchch chhhchhchchch

it’s a mobile phone, for sure it’s a mobile phone. the noise is in my head, not in my ears, it’s to the upper right side, inside, constant, like an electrical interference, pure hiss, mobile hiss, loud, three or four meters away loud. SHIT! THINK! THINK!

chchchchchchchhch chchcchhhhhchchchhc hcchchchh hchchchhchchchcchc hhcchchchc hhchchchhcchchc hchchchhchch chchchhchc hchchhchhhc hchchchc cchchchch

ok right, lots of people have mobiles. if it’s a Hunter, that Hunter, and she could see me, i’d be dead by now.

i’m not dead

she can’t see me

chchchchchc hchhchchchcchhhh hchchchhchcc hchchhhchchch hchchch cchchhcch chchchhchchchh cchchchchc hchhchchch chchhchchchchh chhhchchchchccchchc hch

the noise isn’t getting louder. she’s not moving closer. but she’s not moving away either.

am i hidden?

i’m lying on my side, face pressed into the ground. totally still. can’t see anything but earth.

got to move a little.

but not yet. think first. stay calm and work it out.

there’s no breeze, no sun, just a lightness. it’s early. the sun has to be behind the mountain still. there’s the smell of earth, the pine of the forest. the ground is cool, dry, no dew. there’s the smell of the forest and . . . there’s another smell.

what is that smell?

and there’s a taste.

a bad taste. it tastes like . . . oh no-

don’t think about it

don’t think about it

don’t think about it

don’t think about it

think about something else

think about where you are

You’re lying on the ground, in the early morning and the air is cool. You’re cold. You’re cold because . . . oh shit, oh shit . . . you’re naked. You’re naked and the top half of you is wet. Your chest, your arms . . . your face are wet.

And you move the fingers of your left hand, the tiniest of movements, and they’re sticky. Sticking together. As if with drying, sugary juice. But it’s not juice.

don’t think about it

don’t think about it don’t think about it don’t think about it don’t think about it

DoN’t THiNk aBOUT IT

THINK ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE

THINK ABOUT STAYING ALIVE

You’ve got to move. The Hunters are close on your tail. That fast one was close. She was very close last night.

what happened last night?

what happened?

remember!

NO.

FORGET THAT. THINK ABOUT STAYING ALIVE

WORK OUT WHAT TO DO

You can look, move your head a fraction to see more. The ground by your face is thick with pine-needles. Brown pine-needles. But the brown isn’t from the pine, it’s the colour of dried blood. You’re left arm is extended. It’s streaked in it, dried, brown. But your hand isn’t streaked in it, it’s thick with it. Sopping. Red

close your eyes

close your eyes

close your eyes

chchchchchchchhc hchchcchhhhhch chchhchcc hchchhhchc hchhchchchcchchhcch cchchchhc hchchhcchchchch chchhchchchchchh chchchchhchh hchc hchch ccchch chchchh chchchchhchchc hhchchchchhc hchchhchhch chchchchch chchchh chhhch chccchchch chhchchc hhhchhchchch

You need to go. Without thinking or looking or remembering. You need to go. For you’re own safety you have to get out of here. You need to get moving. Get away from here. You can find a stream and wash. Wash it all off.

The mobile phone is close, not changing. It won’t be coming closer.

You should look, check. Turn your head to the other side. You can do it. Look, check. . .

it looks like a log

Please be a log. Please be a log. Please be a log.

Please.

it’s not a log.

it’s a shape in black and red, with black boots and with two legs; one straight, one bent. legs dressed in black. black material covering the torso. light-brown hair. her hair. cut short. sopping with blood. her face is turned away.

she’s lying as still as a log

still wet

still oozing

not fast any more

the mobile phone is hers

chchchchchc hchhchchchcch hhhhchch chhchcchc hchhhchch chhchchchc chchhcch cchchch hchchchhcchchchc hchchhchchchchchhchchc hchhchhh chchchch ccchch chchchh

and as you raise your head you see the wound that is her throat

and it is jagged and bloody and deep and red

Half Bad has gone into the new Guinness World Record as the most translated book and most translated children’s book by a debut author before publication. Now comes book two in the trilogy, Half Wild. 

Penguin have also announced an e-short which will come out on 13^th November and is called Half Lies.

You can watch the trailer of Half Bad here.

RELEATED POSTS: Also check out my book review HERE AND A Exclusive Interview From Sally Green - HERE Thank you all for reading....

Publishers News: Paul Magrs Signs New YA Book Deal - Lost on Mars 2105

Wales-based children’s and young adult publisher Firefly Press has acquired a YA science fiction title by Dr Who novel writer Paul Magrs.
 
Lost on Mars, which will be published in spring 2015, tells the story of Lora and her family, who are human settlers on the red planet and struggling to survive.
 
“I wanted to write a science fiction epic set on another planet, about human beings surviving in incredible new circumstances and encountering mysterious and fascinating new ideas,” said Magrs. “It’s a kind of blend of the best elements of classic children’s fiction, such as Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books, and Golden Age space operas such as Ray Bradbury’s Martian Chronicles.”
 
Firefly publisher Penny Thomas, which acquired world rights from literary agent Charlotte Robertson at United Agents, said she was “delighted” to sign Magrs and described the book as a “thrilling read from a terrific writer”.
 
Magrs has written more than 25 original Dr Who novels for BBC Books, as well as YA title Exchange (Simon & Schuster Children's), which was shortlisted for the Book TrustTeen Book Award in 2006 and longlisted for the Carnegie in 2007.

Book News: Tor Acquires Stunning Science Fiction From Adrian Tchaikovsky - Portia's Children

                             

Pan Macmillan's Tor imprint is thrilled to share news of its latest acquisition – a breath-taking science fiction epic by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Senior Commissioning Editor Bella Pagan bought World Rights to the novel, from Simon Kavanagh of the Mic Cheetham Agency. Tor UK has published nine of Adrian's highly accomplished Shadows of the Apt fantasy novels so far. But with this science fictional departure, Tchaikovsky has proved that he is a true master of speculative fiction – being more than capable of making this challenging transition from one sub genre to another.

Portia's Children tells the story of a desperate quest to preserve the last remnants of humanity, which brings out the best and very worst in his impressive cast of characters. It describes a future where our kind once travelled the stars. But here our reach exceeded our grasp, and we fell back to Earth. Now, the ragged remnants of our species are fleeing a dying planet one last time, following ancient star maps and searching for a new home. But they cannot know that mankind's oldest fear is already waiting for them.

Adrian Tchaikovsky enthused: 'I'm delighted that Tor has decided to take me up on this. I've been wanting for a long time to turn my hand to science fiction, and Portia's Children is a book that I poured a lot of myself into. I'm looking forward to seeing it unleashed on the world.'

Bella Pagan praised the book, saying: 'I knew Adrian was an impressive fantasy writer, but I was really blown away by his science fiction. This novel is utterly compulsive, powerfully ambitious and a palpable sense of menace and danger informs the urgent writing throughout.'

Tor UK plans to release Portia's Children in summer 2015, in between Tchaikovsky's forthcoming fantasy titles.