Anna Brooke - Monster Bogey - Author Interview (Q&A) - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Thank you for joining us once again. It's time to get messy and have a little sing-song with another one of our debut authors, Anna Brooke. Anna is the author of MONSTER BOGEY published by Chicken House this Jan 2023. The book is fantastically illustrated by Owen Lindsay and, as it states on the cover, just pick it up and come and have a laugh. To find out more, you just need to read on my little MONSTERS. 

How much slime should we expect to encounter in this book? Do we need to be wearing a hazmat suit before encountering this story?

Gooliemaloolie! There is so much slime in this book – almost on every page. Yes, I highly recommend wearing a hazmat suit. Or a diving suit. Or a rain suit. Or even just a few plastic bags. Anything you can to protect your clothes.

Can you tell us what the willy-willy-woo-woos are? 

The willy-willy-woo-woos are those uncomfortable feelings you get when you’re scared - like the ‘creeps’ or the ‘jitters’ or (the word most closely related to them) the ‘willies’.

How would you describe your debut book as a quick song?

Ooh. Good question. Either as a ballad (a very cheesy one) about adventure, friendship and accepting people as they are. Or it could be a proper upbeat number about nose-picking called Snot Ball Disco - which is precisely one of the two songs I wrote for it (with French composer Xavier Bussy)! 

The other song, called A-Chooooo! (also co-composed with pianist Sebastien Joly), is a silly Strauss-inspired aria about sneezing. 

I’m a huge fan of musicals, and for a while I sang in an electropop group, so right from the start I knew I wanted Monster Bogey to have a musical element. You can listen to the songs via QR codes and links in the book, or via all the usual streaming platforms.

Or here:

Snot Ball Disco, performed by Lucy Longlegs the cabaret-singing spider (featuring Honkerty Village’s Weird hedgehog): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulYFcLlq_S8 

A-Chooooo!, sung by Mum, an opera singer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk3yeGJvE-w 

Here are some of the lyrics:

Snot ball disco

Step in to the light

Greenie greenie

Forget all your strife

Snot ball disco

When you pick your friends

Greenie greenie

Love never ends

When you’re feeling down at the end of the day

Just Pick It

Just Pick It

Just Pick It

Yeah!

If you’re feeling shy and can’t think what to say

Just Pick It

Just Pick It

Just Pick It

Yeah!

And A-chooooo!:

Have you ever had a tickle in your nose? 

It gets you from your head down to your toes

Then there’s nothing left to do

But let out a sneezy, snotty, sloppy, sticky 

A-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Don’t try to hold it in

It’ll make you feel so grim

Your eyes will pop with nasal slop!

If you keep it all inside

It’ll come out your behind

And who wants snot around their bot?

Just let rip – go for the goo

It’s the only thing to do.

Just let rip – it’s a breeze

It’s the only way to sneeze.

From Yorkshire to Paris, has this journey influenced any part of the book? 

Yes, definitely. The obvious part is baddy Willamina’s French ancestry. She’s the descendent of French king William the ‘Conkerer’! And she spews French-sounding insults without knowing what they mean – like, ‘ferry pour Calais’ (Ferry to Calais) and ‘saucisson sec’ (cured sausage). 

The other part is the book’s humour, which I think is very much linked to my years growing up in Yorkshire and Birmingham (where I lived until I was ten). People in both regions love a good play on words and have a great sense of humour. I like to think I absorbed some of that and put it into the book. 

Would you recommend tea drinking, Yorkshire pudding flinging, or baguette jousting as a way of limbering up to read Monster Bogey?

Like most Parisians, I always begin a good reading session with un petit peu of baguette jousting. And occasionally croissant chucking. And on special occasions discus throwing with camembert along the Champs Elysées. But I’d recommend any of the above. Or you could just pick your nozzle!

This book sounds wonderful, do you think laughter plays an important role in children's books? 

They say laughter is the best medicine and I think it’s especially true when it comes to reading.  Laughter releases endorphins in your brain, which makes you feel good, which makes reading a positive experience. And what could be better for keeping kids hooked on books than that? 

That’s not to say that children shouldn’t be exposed to all sorts of books. They should. But I think laughter can be a precious tool for attracting kids of any age to reading – especially reluctant readers. If they’ve had a good experience with one book, they’re more likely to want to replicate it by trying another story, and then another, and so on. 

How would you like readers to feel once they have finished reading the story? 

I’d love them to feel as though they’ve been on a wild, funny and mischievous adventure.

My dream comment would be, ‘This made me happy and laugh a lot’. 

I’d also hope that by the end—through Bogey’s character and what happens to him—readers will feel more empathy towards people who are different.

And maybe, just maybe, some people will feel that my book is a refreshing antidote to Covid. During the pandemic, millions of kids must have been told off (more than usual) for picking their noses. And for good reason. But perhaps reading Monster Bogey will—on some level—offer a naughty sense of release, after all that pent-up stress and unchannelled picking energy!

What type of books do you like to read? 

Oh gosh! All sorts. I don’t really have a ‘type’ but here’s a list of some of my favourites books, from childhood through to adulthood:

• Alanna by Tamora Pierce
• The Silver Chair by C.S Lewis
• The Lockwood & Co series by Johnathan Stroud
• The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brian
• Anything by Oscar Wilde, but particularly The Canterville Ghost
• The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly 
• The Monk by Matthew Lewis. In fact, this is probably my all-time favourite.

The illustrations in the book look amazing. At which point of the publication process did you get to see these and how do you think they support the story process? 

By the time I saw Owen Lindsay’s brilliant cover and illustrations, the book was approaching final copy-edit stage. But I was so overwhelmed with some of his pictures, that I actually tweaked a few lines of the text to make it match his drawings. For instance, in the revolving fireplace scene, Owen put a bowler hat on a werewolf carving, and it looked so good I had to write it into the story.

In terms of story process, the illustrations didn’t really support the writing of Monster Bogey per se (aside from the above), because they came at the end. But for the sequel, Monster Stink (due out on August 3^rd 2023), Owen’s style has been very much at the forefront of my mind. I now see Frank, Tiffany and Bogey (the main characters) as the people he has drawn. And I wrote certain scenes thinking about how Owen might portray them. There are some seriously sticky bits in Monster Stink, I’m telling you! And Owen has come up trumps!

What three things would your characters get up to if you let them loose in Paris?

I think Frank and Bogey would head straight to the top of the Eiffel Tower, where Bogey would do an aerial choreography with Paris’ pigeons.

Tiffany would take the slugs to Parc de la Villette, a modern park in the north-east of the city where there are regular circus shows.

Mum would hit the Garnier Opera House and reminisce about when she sang there. And Dad would go straight to the Cinémathèque film museum.

What was the scariest book you read as a child?

I’d have to say, the B.F.G. by Roald Dahl. I was genuinely terrified by the non-friendly giants and what they’d do to Sophie if she got caught.

Anna Brooke

Anna’s writing career started in journalism as a film critic for Time Out Paris and the author of seven travel guidebooks for Frommer’s. She has written for multiple publications, including the Financial Times, The Times and The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, where she was the long-standing Paris expert. Her debut novel, Frank ‘n’ Bogey, was a SCBWI Undiscovered Voices winner and longlisted for the Bath Children’s Novel Award. When not writing, she has been an actress, a cabaret singer and an electro-pop artist, performing on stage and composing songs for films and commercials. Raised in Birmingham and Yorkshire, she now lives in Paris with her French-Canadian husband and son. Author Website: https://www.annabrookewriter.com

Lucy Ann Unwin - The Octopus, Dadu and Me - Author Interview (Q&A) - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Hello and welcome everybody. This week it's time to get acquainted with the debut book written by Lucy Ann Unwin called The Octopus, Dadu and Me. Firstly, what a great book title! The book was published in Jan 2023 by UCLan Publishing. This is the first in a series of interviews introducing a number of new fantastic children's authors and their debut books. Look out for the other interviews in this series and give the authors your support. In the meantime, let's get stuck into another fantastic read of the year. You can purchase a copy of the book HERE! 

1. As a bookseller, how would you describe your debut book to potential new readers?

Well, I have a lot to learn in the ways of bookselling as I’m only just starting out, but it’s about a girl who forms a special bond with an octopus. She becomes convinced she has to set him free from the aquarium so she enlists her lovely friends’ help in a heist mission to rescue him. In the background she’s dealing with a lot of confusion and grief as her beloved dadu — her grandparent — has dementia, and has stopped recognising her. I hope the fun and friendship of the octopus heist balances out her emotional journey with her dadu, which is inevitably a bit sad.

So, if I knew a kid who craved big emotions from their reading…maybe a little cry… I would definitely lead them to The Octopus Dadu and Me. Anyone who enjoyed The Night Animals, Sadé and Her Shadow Beasts, or The Storm Swimmer for example, or a Jaqueline Wilson fan maybe.

I also tried to make the writing quite simple and accessible, and Lucy Mulligan’s wonderful comic strips add space in the narrative. I think there are plenty of kids who are emotionally mature and want to engage with big feelings, but also want a pacy, accessible read.

2. Are octopuses really psychic? If so, what is the most exciting prediction they have made?

Ah, if only! I guess there’s still a lot we don’t know about octopuses, so I still hold out hope they have abilities that are, as yet, unproven — even if there’s no evidence at the moment that they're psychic.

That said… I was always utterly intrigued by Paul, potentially the world’s most famous octopus? At the time of the 2010 World Cup Paul was said to be able to predict the outcome of matches. His owners would give him boxes with food in, each labelled with the flag of a team in an upcoming match, and Paul would have to choose which box to eat from. He got 8 out of 8 match predictions right — so you can draw your own conclusions!!! Paul gets a namecheck in The Octopus, Dadu and Me, of course.

3. Apparently, octopuses have three hearts. What three important pieces of advice/support have you had that helped you to write this book?

Writing wise, I take most of my advice from the internet…Twitter can be a great teacher! (As well as the opposite, of course.) I had a couple of quotes from authors on Post-It notes attached to my monitor to see me through.

One is a classic Kurt Vonnegut: “Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.”

The other is a quote from The Minaturist author Jessie Burton about first drafts: “If the layering and nuance isn’t there, why would it be? You’ve only written it once.”

The first really helped me bring every character to life, and the second kept me going through each edit.

And then another piece of advice that I continue to find incredibly helpful came from the brilliant children’s author Sally Nicholls. She was talking on Twitter about getting in the habit of “Filling Your Cup” creatively, suggesting that you have to go out and experience life and art as part of your creative process. This was so helpful, not just because it's a great idea, but also because it gave me permission to step away from the laptop and know it was helping my writing. I still find that hard, but I’m working on it.

4. How did you visualise your fantasy aquarium in the story?

The aquarium in the book is actually pretty closely modelled on my local Sea Life centre in Brighton, which is the world’s oldest aquarium! It has the most beautiful Victorian Arcade when you first walk in, with soaring arches all lit up in rainbow colours and the tanks set in the side of the walls. The opening scene of the book pretty much describes the moment in real life when the book was conceived. I was sat at the same little table my main character Sashi is sat at in Chapter 1, looking at the same octopus, when the idea for the story started to take hold. So, I didn’t have to draw very deeply on my visualisation skills!

A lot of details beyond that are different though. For one thing, the characters have to try and work out how to break in to the aquarium, as well as how to access the tanks, and I wasn’t particularly keen on giving ideas about how to break into a real building! So, the rest is all made up to fit what was needed for the plot.

5. One of the characters in the book has dementia, at what point did you decide to include this illness in the story and why?

I’ve thought a lot about this since The Octopus, Dadu and Me was published, and I genuinely don’t know the answer. Dadu had dementia all along, it wasn’t something I introduced. Although in the first draft his relationship with Sashi was much less developed. It was only when I started to edit during the Covid lockdown — when children being separated from their grandparents was on my mind — that I started adding in the flashbacks and really trying to deepen and share their bond a bit more. But as to why he had dementia, I don’t have a good answer. My own Nan, who I was very devoted to as a child, developed Alzheimers when I was in my teens, so I’m sure that must have subconsciously filtered into it somewhere along the line.

6. Having been a music journalist, does this book have a music playlist? If so, what would it feature?

I find it so hard to listen to music while I write! Certainly nothing with words. I have a Spotify playlist of lots of non-vocal tracks that powered me through the writing and editing process… some Bicep and The Comet is Coming and lots of old trip-hop and dubstep.

But when we had the book launch my family tried to put together a little playlist that represented the book. My daughter chose Head Up by The Score to represent Sashi’s emotional struggle, my husband went with the classic link and picked The Beatles' Octopus's Garden, I personally think Radiohead’s Weird Fishes is perfect. The lyrics really connect with Sashi and Ian’s relationship and eye-to-eye connection. (I’ll skip over the getting “picked over by the worms” bit!!)

Here are some of the lyrics:
In the deepest ocean
The bottom of the sea
Your eyes
They turn me
Why should I stay here?
Why should I stay?

I'd be crazy not to follow
Follow where you lead.
…
Everybody leaves
If they get the chance
And this is my chance

So if I had to sum up the book in a song, it would be that one. Also, it’s my favourite song so any excuse!

On a side note, I picked Harry Styles Music for a Sushi Restaurant for an “unboxing video” I made when my author copies arrived in the post — because it’s an EPIC song — but it only occurred to me writing this how dark that is!!! Eek.

7. Who and what are the key influences of this story?

I think, like all writers, I’m influenced by everything! The weather, an article in the paper, a snatch of overheard conversation, a million subconscious currents…. I mentioned earlier that the Covid lockdown was a big influence, and it really was. It was heartbreaking to see close, tactile grandparent relationships being moved online or worse. There’s a lot of my mum in there. And, writing-wise, I think I’m influenced by every book I’ve ever read, but also by movies. I went through a phase of re-watching a lot of the films of my childhood, so there’s more than a little Free Willy in there!

8. What do you think the different illustrations bring to the book and story? 

Ah, I love the illustrations so much! The last one makes me cry every time I see it. Lucy Mulligan really did an excellent job. And they’re so crucial to the story! I was very nervous before I saw them, because they don’t just illustrate what is described in the narrative, the comic strips contain key plot points. Without the illustrations, the story wouldn’t make any sense.

The comic panels were always in the book from the first draft. Sashi is a comic artist, and she processes all her emotions through drawing, so when she’s convinced she’s communicating with the octopus Ian, it’s through her drawing that the communications happen.

I also really hope they provide a light touch. There are some big emotions in The Octopus Dadu and Me and I think the graphic sections give the reader a chance to slow down a bit as they take in all the visual information. Hopefully that change of pace allows them a little breather to process their own emotions too.

9. What would Ian say about you (as the writer) and did he predict any part of the story?

Well, Ian always knew the ending, but that’s his own little secret and to share that would be a bit of a spoiler! I love Lucy Mulligan’s first comic strip in the book where Sashi tries to imagine what’s going on in Ian’s head and the final panel says “You have NO IDEA what I’m thinking!” So I’m just going to project, and say Ian would be very happy that we’ve shared so many fascinating facts about this amazing species!

10. What is your favourite place you have visited recently?

I don’t leave my dark little writing room very frequently, but we went camping for a few days in Norfolk last summer and spent some time stomping along the tidal flats… the landscape was so fascinating. They’d apparently had a very high tide recently and the footpaths were encrusted with thousands of tiny crabs. There were swallows darting everywhere and you could see for miles. I absolutely loved it, it felt like the perfect setting for a story… and then I recently read Wilder by Penny Chrimes set on marshland and it brought it all to life perfectly!

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Children's Book Cover Competition Final Winner 2022/23

Another exciting children's book cover competition has drawn to a close; this was the fourteenth competition in fifteen years. We would like to thank every voter and supporter, illustrator, author, and publisher who got behind our little competition. We have had a challenging time shouting about this one and making it visible. However, we've had five fabulous rounds where you voted with a good sense of adventure. We're delighted to have showcased 34 brilliant book covers. We could have chosen many more as there is such a wealth of talent and such amazing illustrators around. Unfortunately, they do not always get the credit they really deserve but we hope this platform helps to highlight such creative talent and work. A big thank you to everyone who supported and voted for them through the rounds - you have done them proud. 

Last night, the final came to a fantastic conclusion with another excellent winner ... I'm delighted to announce that the winning book cover was illustrated by Becka Moor for the second book by Jo Clarke - Libby and the Highland Heist (The Travelling School Mysteries Book 2) which will be published by Firefly Press on the 19th January 2023. 

You can check out more of her brilliant work on her website HERE. We welcome her to the hall of fame featuring all the other past winners across the years (see below). Many congratulations, Becka!

2009/10 - Jon Mayhew 'Mortlock' Illustrated by Christian Lorenz Scheurer

2010/11 - Darren Shan 'Birth of a Killer' Illustrated by David Wyatt

2011/12 - Curtis Jobling 'Werewolf: Shadow of the Hawk' Illustrated by Andrew Farley

2012/13 - Thomas Taylor 'Haunters' Illustrated by Steve Wells 

2013/14 - Niel Bushnell 'Timesmith' Illustrated by James Fraser 

2014/15 - M. G. Harris/Gerry Anderson's 'Gemini Force One' Black Horizon Illustrated by Blacksheep

2015/16 -  M. G. Leonard 'Beetle Boy' Illustrated by Julia Sarda 

2016/17 - Roderick Gordon 'Summerhouse Land' - Illustrated by Stanley Donwood

2017/18 - (No Book Cover Wars) 

2018/19 - Vashti Hardy 'Brightstorm: A Sky-Ship Adventure' Illustrated by George Ermos 

2019/20 - Joan Haig - 'Tiger Skin Rug' - Illustrated by Annie Glennie

2020/21 - Nizrana Farook -' The Boy Who Met a Whale' - Illustrated by David Dean

2021/22 - Michael Mann - 'Ghostcloud '- Illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat

Sarah Todd Taylor - Alice Éclair, Spy Extraordinaire! A Spoonful of Spying - BOOK REVIEW - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Are we ready for a sweet adventure? Then it's time to be whisked away by the second book featuring Alice Éclair Spy Extraordinaire. A Spoonful of Spying will be thrown into the mixing bowl (early January 2023) by Nosy Crow Books. 

The story has moved on from the first adventure where we were on board France's most glamorous train, The Sapphire Express. In book 2, the setting is the exciting and wonderful Paris World Fair. It's a new world full of invention, discovery, and arts. This really drives the narrative to a fabulous, fantastical world of mystery, and espionage that the amateur sleuth will love to read and be immersed in. 

Alice Éclair leads an exciting double life - a baker by day and a spy by night! From fashion to aviation we rush into a whirlwind of baked goods to a waltz down Paris surrounded by enemy spies. Alice needs to choose her friends wisely as some of the inventors she encounters are in terrible danger.  As we plunge into the book (and the river Seine!) we are treated to an immersive story that is really uplifting to read whilst keeping the readers on their sugar-coated toes. 

This is a rapid read which is spiked with danger; Alice must save her friends and foil the enemy's plot to save the ever-changing world. It's part of a brilliant series in an ever-expanding popular genre. Real events and great character-driven plots fuel this story. It's a really comfy armchair read for anyone and everyone. Does anyone fancy some cake? 

The Best Children's Book Picks January 2023 - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Abi Elphinstone - Saving Neverland -  Puffin Children's Books (5 Jan. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241473320 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

Number 14 Darlington Road, looks like a perfectly ordinary townhouse - at first glance, anyway, but magic is good at hiding . . . when it's waiting for the right person to discover it . . .

Martha Pennydrop is ten, and desperate to grow up. But growing up is a tricky business. It means turning your back on imagination, fun and magic, because those were the things that led to the Terrible Day when something awful nearly happened to Martha's younger brother, Scruff, which would have been All Her Fault.

But when Martha and Scruff discover a drawer full of mysterious gold dust in the bedroom of their new house - along with a window that's seemingly impossible to close - it's the start of an incredible adventure to a magical world: Neverland! The Pennydrop's new house used to belong to another family - the Darlings - who once visited this world themselves. Now Peter Panis back, and in need of their help. Neverland is in the icy grip of a terrible curse - cast long ago by Captain Hook. And only Martha and Scruff can save it . . .

A reluctant Martha and excited Scruff are swept off to Neverland and into the company of the Lost Kids. But when Scruff is kidnapped, Martha must rediscover all the imagination, magic and belief she has buried deep inside herself for so long, to save him - and Neverland itself.

Sarah Ann Juckes (Author), Sharon King-Chai - The Night Animals - Published by Simon & Schuster Children's UK (5 Jan. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1398510920. - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

Uncover the ghost animals within in this moving and uplifting story about finding help where you need it, from the highly acclaimed author and illustrator of The Hunt for the Nightingale.  

Nora's mum has good days and bad days, but the bad days are getting worse.  It's been just the two of them for always, and they don't need anyone else.  When the rainbow-shimmering ghost animals Nora used to see when she was small start to reappear, she's convinced that they hold all the answers.  Along with new friend Kwame, Nora follows a glittering ghostly fox, hare, raven and otter on the adventure of a lifetime, helping her to find the strength she needs to help her family.

In a heartbreaking and hopeful narrative, Sarah Ann Juckes' stunning novel, illustrated by the award-winning Sharon King-Chai sees a brave young girl face down her ghosts.  For fans of The Last Bear and Julia and the Shark.

Nigel Baines - A Tricky Kind of Magic - Published by Hodder Children's Books (5 Jan. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1444960266 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

Cooper is brilliant at magic tricks. Card tricks, clever illusions - he can do them all. His dad, also known as the Great Eduardo, taught him the tricks of the magical trade before he passed away. But the one thing Cooper can't do is see his dad again. 

So when a talking rabbit appears from his dad's top hat, and reveals there is a place where Cooper might find him, he jumps at the chance. Magic is about believing the impossible, after all. And Cooper desperately wants to believe that he can see his dad once more.

But what - and who - is waiting for them in the land where magic goes wrong?

Filled with humour and emotion, this is an action-packed graphic novel about finding magic when you need it the most.

Peter Lantos - The Boy Who Didn't Want to Die - Published by Scholastic (5 Jan. 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0702323089 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

A story of survival, of love between mother and son and of enduring hope in the face of unspeakable hardship. An important read. 

The Boy Who Didn't Want to Die describes an extraordinary journey, made by Peter, a boy of five, through war-torn Europe in 1944 and 1945. Peter and his parents set out from a small Hungarian town, travelling through Austria and then Germany together. Along the way, unforgettable images of adventure flash one after another: sleeping in a tent and then under the sky, discovering a disused brick factory, catching butterflies in the meadows – and as Peter realises that this adventure is really a nightmare – watching bombs falling from the blue sky outside Vienna, learning maths from his mother in Belsen. All this is drawn against a background of terror, starvation, infection and, inevitably, death, before Peter and his mother can return home. 

The Best Children's Book Picks January 2023 - US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Pam Muñoz Ryan - Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs - Published by Disney-Hyperion (January 31, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1368078443 - Paperback - Age: 8+

"I advise you to tell no one about the gift unless you trust them implicitly."

Ever since Solimar was a little girl, she has gone to the ouamel forest bordering her kingdom to observe the monarch butterflies during their migration, but always from a safe distance. Now, on the brink of her quinceañera and her official coronation, Solimar crosses the dangerous creek to sit among the butterflies. There, a mysterious event gives her a gift and a burden--the responsibility to protect the young and weak butterflies with her magical rebozo, or silk shawl. 

Solimar is committed to fulfilling her role, and has a plan that might have worked. But when her father, the king, and her brother, the prince, leave on an expedition, a neighboring king overthrows the kingdom and holds everyone left in the village hostage. It takes all of Solimar's courage to escape and then embark on a dangerous journey to save her kingdom, but she's not alone. Her pet bird, Lázaro, the butterflies she protects, and a magical rag doll, Zarita, are with her. Then, at a precarious moment, she meets a river boy who knows the rapids. 

Even with help, can Solimar save her family, the kingdom, and the future of the monarchs from a greedy king?

Megan Reyes - Heroes of Havensong: Dragonboy - Labyrinth Road (January 24, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593482377 - Hardback - Age: 7+ 
This timeless fantasy debut follows four unlikely heroes—a boy-turned-dragon, his reluctant dragon rider, a runaway witch, and a young soldier—bound by the Fates to save their world, and magic itself, from being destroyed.

Blue, River, Wren, and Shenli grew up on different sides of a war they didn’t start. Their land has been torn apart over centuries of conflict, with humans taught to fear all things magical, dragons driven to near extinction, and magic under attack. But an ancient prophecy has put the four of them on a collision course with destiny—and with each other—in a mission to heal the fractured realm once known as Haven. 

All of them must follow the threads of Fate, leaving behind the lives and homes they know to discover the truth about the seemingly endless war—and the truth about themselves. As the barriers between them begin to crumble, can they unravel the lies they’ve been taught to believe in order to restore the balance between humans, dragons, and magic before it’s too late?

John David Anderson - Riley's Ghost - Published by Walden Pond Press (January 11, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062985972 - Hardback - Age: 8

From John David Anderson, acclaimed author of Posted, comes a ghost story pulled from the darkest shadows of middle school.

Riley Flynn is alone. 

It feels like she’s been on her own since sixth grade, when her best friend, Emily, ditched her for the cool girls. Girls who don’t like Riley. Girls who decide one day to lock her in the science closet after hours, after everyone else has gone home.

When Riley is finally able to escape, however, she finds that her horror story is only just beginning. All the school doors are locked, the windows won’t budge, the phones are dead, and the lights aren't working. Through halls lit only by the narrow beam of her flashlight, Riley roams the building, seeking a way out, an answer, an explanation. And as she does, she starts to suspect she isn’t alone after all. 

While she’s always liked a good scary story, Riley knows there is no such thing as ghosts. But what else could explain the things happening in the school, the haunting force that seems to lurk in every shadow, around every corner? As she tries to find answers, she starts reliving moments that brought her to this night. Moments from her own life...and a life that is not her own., acclaimed author of Posted, comes a ghost story pulled from the darkest shadows of middle school.

Riley Flynn is alone. 

It feels like she’s been on her own since sixth grade, when her best friend, Emily, ditched her for the cool girls. Girls who don’t like Riley. Girls who decide one day to lock her in the science closet after hours, after everyone else has gone home.

When Riley is finally able to escape, however, she finds that her horror story is only just beginning. All the school doors are locked, the windows won’t budge, the phones are dead, and the lights aren't working. Through halls lit only by the narrow beam of her flashlight, Riley roams the building, seeking a way out, an answer, an explanation. And as she does, she starts to suspect she isn’t alone after all. 

While she’s always liked a good scary story, Riley knows there is no such thing as ghosts. But what else could explain the things happening in the school, the haunting force that seems to lurk in every shadow, around every corner? As she tries to find answers, she starts reliving moments that brought her to this night. Moments from her own life...and a life that is not her own.

Dianne K. Salerni - The Carrefour Curse - Published by Holiday House (January 31, 2023) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0823452675 - Hardback - Age: 8

The Addams Family meets The Westing Game in this exhilarating mystery about a modern magical dynasty trapped in the ruins of their once-grand, now-crumbling ancestral home.

Twelve-year-old Garnet regrets that she doesn’t know her family. Her mother has done her best to keep it that way, living far from the rest of the magical Carrefour clan and their dark, dangerous mansion known as Crossroad House.

But when Garnet finally gets summoned to the estate, it isn’t quite what she hoped for. Her relatives are strange and quarrelsome, each room in Crossroad House is more dilapidated than the last, and she can’t keep straight which dusty hallways and cobwebbed corners are forbidden. 

Then Garnet learns the family secret: their dying patriarch fights to retain his life by stealing power from others. Every accident that isn’t an accident, every unexpected illness and unexplained disappearance grants Jasper Carrefour a little more time. While the Carrefours squabbles over who will inherit his role when (if) he dies, Garnet encounters evidence of an even deeper curse. Was she brought to Crossroad House as part of the curse . . . or is she meant to break it?

Written with loads of creepy atmosphere and an edge-of-your-seat magical mystery, this thrilling story reads like The Haunting of Hill House for preteens. Perfect for late-night reading under the covers.

Ryan Hammond - Villains Academy - Book Review - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Villains Academy is Ryan's first author-illustrated book to be published by Simon & Schuster Children's. It is not available to buy at the moment as it isn't due to be published until February 2023. This is the first book in a planned series featuring no cute animals but only bad ones at the school full of villains (or is it?). The book is a really light-hearted and fun read that might just give you a boost producing an upbeat feeling. It is an excellent choice for particularly the younger but also the older reader with a big heart.

On the first day at Villains Academy, we are welcomed into class Z with Master Mardybum and his group of students. Each student is hoping to be crowned VILLIAN of the Week. The book follows a group of things - this is really the best way to describe the motley class of characters. One team is called The Cereal Killers and comprises of A Werewolf called Bram, Mona the elf-witch, Bryan the lion, Shelia the ghost, and Tony the skeleton. The other team is called The Overlords and includes Mr Toad, Spike the Snappy Croc, Jeeves, The Tooth Hairy, and MAL the lost. 

The teams compete in a mayhem plot that fills the reader with joy, sadness, and a rollercoaster of emotions. Bram needs to find his inner badness to become the villain he's always dreamed of being to win. However, everyone has to work as a TEAM which is easier said than DONE! The book is written in a fantasy, dream-like way as the quirky characters take you on the most wicked and nastiest adventure you could ever think of. It's a school adventure where it's always good to be bad or just to be able to leave in one piece. It's a cracking story full of laughs, wit, sarcasm, and huge dollops of bad smells. 

If you dare to enter Villian's Academy be prepared to expect lots of farting as well as illustrations that will delight an explosion of nightmares. It's a fast-page, evil adventure with the most frightening word, are you ready to hear it? "SHUBBLEMEGUMP" .... There, you have been warned. If this sounds like your kind of tasty toes to read then grab a copy as soon as you can. We may see you next time Soony Peeps or will we?