Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Danny Weston - The Piper - Book Review

'Please,' he whispers as he thrust a copy of his book at me. 'Read this,' the strange man grunts at me. He leaves me with no choice as he quickly vaporises into thin air; I can still feel the prickly sensation from the strange encounter on that unusual day in November. To be brutally honest, that surreal vision kept me up all night as I read 'The Piper' by Danny Weston. Could he be the vision and the voice that I heard? Ah well, we will perhaps never know.

This story landed in the hands of a reader who loved every minute spent reading each page. It's the best spine-tingling, atmospheric tale that I've read for some time - I really love to read good books like this. Just of late, I feel that this genre is becoming quite scarce to find. It is a good old-fashioned campfire ghost story, but with a twist to the tale.....

The story is set on the eve of World War Two. At this time, children were evacuated from busy cities to the safer countryside. Peter and Daisy are two such children who have been sent to a rather strange farmhouse in the middle of a desolate landscape. The house and the family have a dark secret. From the moment they arrive, they are aware that something evil and mysterious haunts the place.

Just like the Pied Piper and the town rats, you are soon hypnotically drawn into the mysterious past. It is like an eerie melody that plays repetitively and alluringly until you finally wake up. Be aware though, as you might not be in the same place that you were before you started reading. It is a spooky fantasy that will hit you full in the face the more that you read. Watch out for the floating cold hands that drag down weary people into the murky waters and children vanishing on mass.  Peter's sister finds herself in terrible danger; her last breath may soon become her final scream.

I thought that the plot was very well written and cleverly executed. It is a classic blend of Pied Piper meets The Machine Gunners. I read the whole book in one night as I couldn't put it down. The bleak sensation of war mixed with a hidden dark family history pulls you in to a vice-like grip. The loose ends are tied together in a satisfying climax that will stay with you for some time. If you like the ghost horror genre, then this book is a recommended read. Warning: be prepared to be up all night.

This book is out in all good book shops now ready to buy for the festive season.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Headline News Post One

ADULT READ TO MENTION.... Award-winning author Philip Murdstone is in trouble. His star has waned. The world is leaving him behind. His agent, the beautiful and ruthless Minerva Cinch, convinces him that his only hope is to write a sword-and-sorcery blockbuster. Unfortunately, Philip - allergic to the faintest trace of Tolkien - is utterly unsuited to the task. In a dark hour, a dwarfish stranger comes to his rescue. But the deal he makes with Pocket Wellfair turns out to have Faustian consequences. The Murdstone Trilogy is a richly black comedy from an author described by one American critic as 'the best writer you've probably never heard of'.

http://www.davidficklingbooks.com/NewsStory.php?item=205

Scholastic gets Goosebumps

Scholastic is reissuing 21 Goosebumps titles (March and May, all £4.99) and R L Stine’s autobiography (It Came From Ohio: My Life as a Writer, May, £4.99) next year, in advance of the release of the first Goosebumps film in August 2015.

Goosebumps is the second- bestselling series of all time globally, selling over 350 million books across 32 languages. It is surpassed only by Harry Potter. The 2015 publications will be the first reissue of the series for a decade. http://www.thebookseller.com/news/scholastic-gets-goosebumps

Puffin Acquires Bestselling (non) Picture Book

Published just three weeks ago in the US, quickly claiming the top spot on the New York Times Bestseller list and shooting straight to no.1 across all book categories on Amazon.com, THE BOOK WITH NO PICTURES by award-winning US actor and comedian B.J. Novak is the most talked about (non) picture book in recent years. http://www.booktrade.info/index.php/showarticle/56622

Recently arrived on a Glasgow council estate, Logan is grateful to have made any friends at all. But will his best friend Baz be there when he really needs him? A stand-out teen thriller with a sensational twist.

Floris Book News: Mother and Son To Publish With Same Indie Imprint

Award-winning teen author Cathy MacPhail and her son David will both publish

in the Kelpies imprint with Floris Books in 2015.

Independent Edinburgh publisher Floris Books today announce that 2015 will see the publication of separate books by a mother and son: award-winning teen author Cathy MacPhail and her son David MacPhail. The books will come out in Floris’s Kelpies range of children’s books.  http://www.florisbooks.co.uk/press/Floris-MacphailPR.pdf

Mr Ripley's Book Review: Rob Davis - The Motherless Oven - Published by SelfMadeHero

"The Weather Clock said knife o'clock, so I chained Dad up in the shed." 

I had such a great time again at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival in Kendal. One of the events that I attended was by Rob Davis 'The Motherless Oven' book launch. I heard him talk about his book in a relaxed and casual manner, but by the end of the event I still had no idea really what the story was about. However, this was perhaps partly due to me looking around the Council Chambers, playing with the microphone and also taking in the monochrome frenzy of images projected onto a screen. All of these probably played a large part in my distraction! After the event, I was very intrigued to plunge into the story and images, so clutching my character sketch prize I went home to read it with post haste.

Now I've read it twice and I love it even more. I still can't really tell you what the book is about, but what I can tell you is why I liked it. To me that is as important when I'm reviewing a book, so these are my thoughts . . . . . . 

The first thing that I loved was that it was 100% crazy - in fact it was raining knives (see illustration below). It's such a surreal fantasy that has been pulled from the hidden depths of Rob's imagination. It is a whirlpool of memoirs from his childhood with strong connections to his past and present. The narrative picks up on this and writes an alternate future that may require some reflection and perhaps a couple of reads, so that it can mature in your brain. 

We are living in a world of Scarper Lee where parents don't make children, children make parents. Scarper's father is a wind-powered brass construction whilst his mother is a bakelite hairdryer. 

These lines strike a chord with me; they indicate an unusual beauty through their words. The story has a twisted melancholic feel which is reflected in the black and white illustrations. 

It’s also a world without birthdays, only deathdays, and Scarper's deathday is fast approaching. With just three weeks left to live, Scarper is forced from his routine and strikes out into the unknown—where relationships are tested and authority challenged.

Graphically, this book is very special. Each illustration is very well executed and really takes you in to the world of the characters. It delivers a unique and enhancing strangeness that washes over the reader. Literally, it is puzzling, captivating, but also highly original. Once you have read the last page it will leave you asking: what has just happened here? Chaos ensues on every page, but if you look closer you may find some kind of order within a dream-like state. I can guarantee that it will have made you smile from ear to ear. 

Very cool teenagers will relate to this story in some places, whilst the older generation should feel it through their DNA. No heroes, no villains, but a world in a monochrome bubble full of teenage angst and a school-like rebellion that replicates some very real human interaction. This is a story full of metaphors and a play on words that beats it's own heart. 

I loved both the story and the visual experience right down to the unresolved ending. Hopefully, this should make a great start to another superb book.
Mr Ripley's recommended reading experience .....

Published by SelfMadeHero - October 2014, Check out more great things published by them here: http://www.selfmadehero.com/

Book Review: Angie Sage - TodHunter Moon: PathFinder - Book One (Septimus Heap)

I've decided to review the US copy of TodHunter Moon:Pathfinder by Angie Sage. You can see by the above front cover that it is inkeeping with the previous books. It is lavishly illustrated with brilliant pencil drawings by the talented Mark Zug - you can see some of these in the book trailer below. In comparison, the UK copy IS VERY disappointing, in my opinion, as it is published without the drawings and the book cover does not reflect the story inside. Perhaps the book publishers wanted a totally different look in order to gain a greater adult audience, but I'm not too sure. 

PathFinder is the first book in this series and begins 7 years after Fyre ends. In my opinion there isn't really a need to read the previous books first. However, if you haven't already read these then I would really recommend them as they too are equally fantastic. Though new fans will welcome this new adventure which introduces three different characters; Alice TodHunter Moon (Tod) and her best friends, Ferdie and Oskar Sarn, the book still features most of the well-loved characters that have graced the previous books.  

The series will be a trilogy and will span a short period of time. In fact, as long as it takes to recover the stolen Egg of the Great Orm. Although a mountain of magic spells may be required to achieve this. This new story is very imaginative and light-hearted; the author has a great ability to throw your imagination straight into a fantasy place and time of her choosing. It's another great slice of family fun, which I absolutely loved. The new characters really fit in well and the flow of the story is just about perfect. The climatic ending is funny, action packed and slightly bizarre, but brilliantly written.  

This is another great read by Angie Sage which is brimming with magical power. Every page will put a spell on you as you find your way through this fantastic adventure. Adult or child, male or female, you will definitely enjoy this book at your own reading pace. Mr Ripley's Recommended Read - the power is in the story. 

From the Back Cover

When Alice TodHunter Moon was five years old, she saw a beautiful golden Dragon Boat fly over her PathFinder village. She knew at once that the boat was Magykal. That was years ago, before her mother died, her father disappeared at sea, and the Garmin took her best friend, Ferdie.

Now it's up to Tod and Ferdie's brother Oskar to rescue Ferdie from the Garmins' keeper, the malevolent Lady. Their journey takes them to the Castle, where they receive help from ExtraOrdinary Wizard Septimus Heap and ex–ExtraOrdinary Wizard Marcia Overstrand.

But the Lady's brother, the Darke sorcerer Oraton-Marr, has a plan that will put everyone Tod holds dear in danger. To save her people, Tod must embrace her identity as a PathFinder and navigate the Ancient Ways, mysterious Magykal paths leading to unfamiliar—and sometimes dangerous—lands.

Taking place seven years after the story arc of the original bestselling Septimus Heap series, PathFinder celebrates the joy of discovering one's own personal Magyk and of choosing the path that lets that Magyk flourish and grow.

Published by Katherine Tegen Books (October 14, 2014)

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: US Published Recommended Read October 2014 - Ben Tripp - The Accidental Highwayman: Being the Tale of Kit Bristol, His Horse Midnight, a Mysterious Princess, and Sundry Magical Persons Besides

The Accidental Highwayman is the first swashbuckling adventure for young adults by talented author and illustrator, Ben Tripp. This thrilling tale of dark magic and true love is the perfect story for fans of William Goldman’s The Princess Bride.

In eighteenth-century England, young Christopher “Kit” Bristol is the unwitting servant of notorious highwayman Whistling Jack. One dark night, Kit finds his master bleeding from a mortal wound, dons the man’s riding cloak to seek help, and changes the course of his life forever. Mistaken for Whistling Jack and on the run from redcoats, Kit is catapulted into a world of magic and wonders he thought the stuff of fairy tales.

Bound by magical law, Kit takes up his master’s quest to rescue a rebellious fairy princess from an arranged marriage to King George III of England. But his task is not an easy one, for Kit must contend with the feisty Princess Morgana, gobling attacks, and a magical map that portends his destiny: as a hanged man upon the gallows….

Fans of classic fairy-tale fantasies such as Stardust by Neil Gaiman and will find much to love in this irresistible YA debut by Ben Tripp, the son of one of America’s most beloved illustrators, Wallace Tripp (Amelia Bedelia). Following in his father’s footsteps, Ben has woven illustrations throughout the story.

“Delightful and charming. A swashbuckling adventure in the vein of Robert Louis Stevenson.” —#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson.

Published by Tor Teen (October 14, 2014)

Listen to an Excerpt from the Audiobook Here.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Marie Lu - The Young Elites - US Book Recommended October 2014

Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.

Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all.

Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen.
Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.
 
It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

It’s been nearly a year since we said goodbye to Day, June, and the rest of the characters from the bestselling Legend trilogy. But while readers have been searching for dystopians to fill the void, Marie Lu has been hard at work crafting a new world.

In The Young Elites, Lu takes readers to a nation in recovery. A decade earlier, a contagious blood fever swept through the land and left nearly all of the infected dead and the survivors badly scarred. The physical marks they carry aren’t all that alienates them from society though: The fever brought with it strange and powerful gifts. The Young Elites formed to protect themselves from the Inquisition Axis, a movement by the king to destroy the Elites. OUT NOW....

Published by Putnam Juvenile.

Have a look at the book's trailer:

Mr Ripley's New Book Picks: Children's and Teens - Published in October 2014

Tricia Sullivan - Shadowboxer - Published by Ravenstone (9 Oct 2014)
Nothing she's faced in the cage will prepare her... Jade is a young mixed martial arts fighter. When she's in the cage she dominates her opponents but in real life she's out of control. After she has a confrontation with a Hollywood martial arts star that threatens her gym's reputation, Jade's coach sends her to a training camp in Thailand for an attitude adjustment. Hoping to discover herself, she instead uncovers a shocking conspiracy. In a world just beyond our own, a man is stealing the souls of children to try and live forever.

Danny Weston - The Piper - Published by Andersen (2 Oct 2014)

He who pays the piper calls the tune. When Peter and his little sister, Daisy, are evacuated from London to the countryside, they find themselves on an isolated farm in the middle of a treacherous marshland. As Daisy gets drawn deeper into the secrets of their new home, Peter starts to realise that something very sinister is going on. What is that music they can hear at night? And who are the children dancing to it?

Toby Ibbotson - Mountwood School For Ghosts - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (9 Oct 2014)

Fredegonda, Goneril, and Drusilla are Great Hagges, much more important and much rarer than regular old hags. They think that ghosts these days are decidedly lacking and that people haven't been scared of ghosts for years. So one day they decide that something needs to change - it's time for these ghosts to learn a thing or two about being scary. And what better way to teach them than to set up their very own school for ghosts?

James Frey & Nils Johnson - Shelton - The Calling ( Endgame Book One) - Published by HarperCollinsChildren'sBooks (7 Oct 2014)

Endgame is real. Endgame is now. Endgame has begun.

Twelve ancient cultures were chosen millennia ago to represent humanity in Endgame, a global game that will decide the fate of humankind. Endgame has always been a possibility, but never a reality… until now. Twelve meteorites have just struck Earth, each meteorite containing a message for a Player who has been trained for this moment. At stake for the Players: saving their bloodline, as well as the fate of the world. And only one can win.

Endgame is real. Endgame is now. Endgame has begun.

Google Niantic is building a mobile location-based augmented reality video game inextricably tied to the books and mythology, a major prize will be tied to a puzzle in each book, and Twentieth Century Fox has bought the movie rights.

Read the Books. Find the Clues. Solve the Puzzle. Who will Win?Endgame is real. Endgame is now. Endgame has begun.

Twelve ancient cultures were chosen millennia ago to represent humanity in Endgame, a global game that will decide the fate of humankind. Endgame has always been a possibility, but never a reality… until now. Twelve meteorites have just struck Earth, each meteorite containing a message for a Player who has been trained for this moment. At stake for the Players: saving their bloodline, as well as the fate of the world. And only one can win.

Endgame is real. Endgame is now. Endgame has begun.

Google Niantic is building a mobile location-based augmented reality videogame inextricably tied to the books and mythology, a major prize will be tied to a puzzle in each book, and Twentieth Century Fox has bought the movie rights.

Read the Books. Find the Clues. Solve the Puzzle. Who will Win?

Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Picks October 2014 - Adult Post

Patrick Rothfuss - The Slow Regard of Silent Things - Published by Gollancz (28 Oct 2014)

The University, a renowned bastion of knowledge, attracts the brightest minds to unravel the mysteries of enlightened sciences like artificing and alchemy. Yet deep below its bustling halls lies a complex and cavernous maze of abandoned rooms and ancient passageways - and in the heart of it all lives Auri.

Formerly a student at the University, now Auri spends her days tending the world around her. She has learned that some mysteries are best left settled and safe. No longer fooled by the sharp rationality so treasured by the University, Auri sees beyond the surface of things, into subtle dangers and hidden names.

At once joyous and haunting, THE SLOW REGARD OF SILENT THINGS is a rich, atmospheric and lyrical tale, featuring one of the most beloved characters from Rothfuss' acclaimed fantasy series.

Mark Charan Newton - Retribution (Drakenfeld 2) - Published by Macmillan (23 Oct 2014)

WHEN JUSTICE FAILS, REVENGE FOLLOWS... Having just solved a difficult case in his home city of Tryum, Sun Chamber Officer Lucan Drakenfeld and his associate Leana are ordered to journey to the exotic city of Kuvash in Koton, where a revered priest has gone missing. When they arrive, they discover the priest has already been found - or at least parts of him have.

But investigating the unusual death isn't a priority for the legislature of Kuvash; there's a kingdom to run, a census to create and a dictatorial Queen to placate. Soon Drakenfeld finds that he is suddenly in charge of an investigation in a strange city, whose customs and politics are as complex as they are dangerous.

Kuvash is a city of contradictions; wealth and poverty exist uneasily side-by-side and behind the rich façades of gilded streets and buildings, all levels of depravity and decadence are practised.

When several more bodies are discovered mutilated and dumped in a public place, Drakenfeld realizes there's a killer at work who seems to delight in torture and pain. With no motive, no leads and no suspects, he feels like he's running out of options. And in a city where nothing is as it seems, seeking the truth is likely to get him killed . . .

Rebecca ALexander - The Secrets of Blood and Bone - Published by Del Rey (9 Oct 2014)

Venice, 16th Century.

Having undertaken a mission of the upmost discretion, occultist and scholar Edward Kelley finds the answers he seeks are more perilous than can be believed, and his ultimate salvation means confronting the darkest deeds of his past.

England, 21st Century.

Running from her past and hiding from her future, Jackdaw Hammond buys a new home in the middle

of nowhere. But her fresh start is threatened by a wild magic similar to her own. The legacy of Edward Kelley remains, and with their fates inexorably entwined, the battle for Jackdaw’s soul has just begun.

A stunning follow up to The Secrets of Life and Death, Rebecca Alexander has created a gripping supernatural thriller that bridges time, legend and the power of blood.

Brian Froud & Wendy Froud  - Faeries Tale - Published by Abrams Books (1 Oct 2014) 

Following in the footsteps of his popular Trolls and faeries books, Brian and Wendy Froud lead readers deeply into the world of Faeries. Humans throughout history have always had special relationships and bonds with faeries, whether loving and helpful or at times destructive. This new book explores that complex relationship and the liminal state between the human and faery world where meeting and interaction occur. In Brian Froud's Faeries' Tales, readers encounter individual faeries, each with a story to uncover, as told by the faeries themselves. Many of the stories are familiar to humans, but the "true" story is told by the faeries. Similar to the Trolls fragments, the faeries' tales are coupled with portraits and interspersed with drawings and studies of the mysterious and enchanting folk who flit back and forth between the human world and theirs.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: New Children's and Teen Books Published October 2014 - Post One

Garth Nix - Clariel ( The Old Kingdom) - Published by Hot Key Books (2 Oct 2014)
Sixteen-year-old Clariel is not adjusting well to her new life in the city of Belisaere, the capital of the Old Kingdom. She misses roaming freely within the forests of Estwael, and she feels trapped within the stone city walls. And in Belisaere she is forced to follow the plans, plots and demands of everyone, from her parents to her maid to the sinister Guildmaster Kilip. Clariel can see her freedom slipping away. It seems too that the city itself is descending into chaos, as the ancient rules binding Abhorsen, King and Clayr appear to be disintegrating. With the discovery of a dangerous Free Magic creature loose in the city, Clariel is given the chance both to prove her worth and make her escape. But events spin rapidly out of control. Clariel finds herself more trapped than ever, until help comes from an unlikely source. But the help comes at a terrible cost. Clariel must question the motivations and secret hearts of everyone around her - and it is herself she must question most of all.

Neil Gaiman & Chris Riddell - The Sleeper and the Spindle - Published by Bloomsbury Childrens (23 Oct 2014)

A thrillingly reimagined fairy tale from the truly magical combination of author Neil Gaiman and illustrator Chris Riddell - weaving together a sort-of Snow White and an almost Sleeping Beauty with a thread of dark magic, which will hold readers spellbound from start to finish.

On the eve of her wedding, a young queen sets out to rescue a princess from an enchantment. She casts aside her fine wedding clothes, takes her chain mail and her sword and follows her brave dwarf retainers into the tunnels under the mountain towards the sleeping kingdom. This queen will decide her own future - and the princess who needs rescuing is not quite what she seems. Twisting together the familiar and the new, this perfectly delicious, captivating and darkly funny tale shows its creators at the peak of their talents.

Lavishly produced, packed with glorious Chris Riddell illustrations enhanced with metallic ink, this is a spectacular and magical gift.

Marcus Sedgwick - The Ghosts of Heaven - Published by  Indigo (2 Oct 2014)

A cleverly interlinked novel written in four parts by PRINTZ AWARD-winning author, Marcus Sedgwick, about survival and discovery, and about the effect of the spiral, a symbol that has no end, on all our lives.

The spiral has existed as long as time has existed.

It's there when a girl walks through the forest, the moist green air clinging to her skin.

There centuries later in a pleasant green dale, hiding the treacherous waters of Golden Beck that take Anna, who they call a witch.

There on the other side of the world, where a mad poet watches the waves and knows the horrors they hide, and far into the future as Keir Bowman realises his destiny.

Each takes their next step in life.

None will ever go back to the same place.

And so their journeys begin...

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Angie Sage - TodHunter Moon: PathFinder Book One - Book Preview/ Trailer

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books US, and Bloomsbury UK. Publication date: October 14, 2014

Official synopsis:

When Alice TodHunter Moon—who insists on being called Tod—was five years old, she saw a beautiful golden dragon boat fly over her PathFinder village. She knew at once that the boat was Magykal.

That was years ago, before her mother died, her father disappeared at sea, and the Garmin took her best friend, Ferdie.

Now it’s up to Tod and Ferdie’s brother Oskar to rescue Ferdie from the Garmins’ keeper, the malevolent Lady. Their journey takes them to the Castle, where they receive help from ExtraOrdinary Wizard Septimus Heap and Ex-ExtraOrdinary Wizard Marcia Overstrand.

But the Lady’s brother, the Darke Sorcerer Oraton-Marr, has a plan that will put everyone Tod holds dear in danger. To save her people, Tod must embrace her identity as a PathFinder and navigate the Ancient Ways—mysterious Magykal paths leading to unfamiliar—and sometimes dangerous—lands.

Taking place seven years after the story arc of the original bestselling Septimus Heap series, and full of Angie Sage’s characteristic humor and heart, PathFinder celebrates the joy of discovering one’s own personal Magyk, and of choosing the path that lets that Magyk flourish and grow.

Adult Movie News: UK Trailer/Main Poster - Alexandre Aja's - HORNS ( Joe Hill) Starring Daniel Radcliffe - #HornsMovie

Warning rated for 15 years and over.

Lionsgate is pleased to bring you the Main UK Trailer and Main UK Poster for Alexandre Aja's HORNS. Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Juno Temple and Max Minghella. Released into UK cinemas on Wednesday, 29 October, 2014. 

#HornsMovie

Synopsis:

From master-of-horror Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes, Piranha 3D) comes this supernatural, offbeat thriller starring beloved British actor Danielle Radcliffe (Harry Potter, Kill Your Darlings) and the talented Juno Temple (Magic Magic, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For).

Ig Perrish (Daniel Radcliffe) is accused for the violent rape and killing of his girlfriend, Merrin Williams (Juno Temple). After a hard night of drinking, Ig awakens, hungover, to find horns growing out of his head; they have the ability to drive people to confess sins and give in to selfish impulses. Ig decides to use this effective tool to discover the circumstances of his girlfriend's death and to seek revenge by finding the true murderer.

Daniel and Juno lead an all-star cast with strong support from David Morse (The Green Mile, The Hurt Locker) and Heather Graham (The Hangover I&II, Boogie Nights).

HORNS is based on the dark fantasy novel of the same name from New York Times best-selling author Joe Hill (Heart Shaped Box) with a screenplay by Keith Burnin. Alexandre Aja, Riza Aziz, Joey McFarland and Cathy Schulman produce.

Director: Alexandre Aja
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Juno Temple, Max Minghella with Heather Graham and David Morse
Producers: Alexandre Aja, Riza Aziz, Joey McFarland and Cathy Schulman

Lionsgate releases HORNS on Wednesday 29 October 2014 

Join the conversation on Twitter with #HornsMovie

Holly Black Announced as New Doctor Who Writer - Lights Out ( 12 Doctors 12 Stories) - Puffin

A Twelfth Doctor needs a twelfth adventure written by a twelfth author. That author is: Holly Black 

To celebrate the arrival of Peter Capaldi on to our screens as the newly regenerated Doctor, Puffin is reissuing its sensational series of Doctor Who short stories, each written by a different author but with an extra brand new twelfth adventure, available in eBook and as part of the 12 Doctors 12 Stories paperback anthology, publishing on 23^rd October. Offering the perfect addition to the top-selling series, the twelfth story, Lights Out, has been penned by self-confessed Doctor Who fan and best-selling female sci-fi writer Holly Black. 

Following short stories by Eoin Colfer, Michael Scott, Marcus Sedgwick, Philip Reeve, Patrick Ness, Richelle Mead, Malorie Blackman, Alex Scarrow, Charlie Higson, Derek Landy and Neil Gaiman, Holly has written the twelfth adventure in this series, based on the Twelfth Doctor played by Peter Capaldi. Holly Black commented: "It's a huge honour to get to write a story in such an amazing science fiction universe, one which makes for an ultimate writer's playground with its flexibility across time and space. I am a big fan of the series and of the Doctor himself, our alien hero who reminds us over and over of our humanity and carries a screwdriver instead of a gun."

Doctor Who is the longest running sci-fi TV show in the world and celebrated its 50^th anniversary last year. The anniversary TV episode saw an average of 12.8 million viewers tune in to BBC One to watch the Doctor regenerate. To celebrate the anniversary, Puffin – in partnership with BBC Worldwide – published a series of eleven eShorts each based on one of the eleven Doctors, priced at £1.99 and released monthly from January to November 2013. The series has brought together some of the most exciting names in children’s fiction, from commercial blockbusters to literary award-winners. These authors have brought their own interpretation and reimagining of their chosen Doctor, creating a unique Doctor Who adventure in their own inimitable style. 

Holly Black is the bestselling author of contemporary fantasy novels for teens and children. She is co-creator of the hugely successful series, The Spiderwick Chronicles, which secured her several top spots in the New York Times Bestsellers List and was adapted into a film in 2008. More recently, Holly has collaborated with fellow writer Cassandra Clare, on a brand new series titled Magisterium which is due to publish this autumn. Holly lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Theo, in a house with a secret library.

The story will be available in eBook for £1.99 and will be included in a paperback anthology (£12.99) of the twelve stories, Doctor Who: 12 Doctors, 12 stories. Holly’s new story will also be included in a stylish gift slipcase, the perfect Christmas present for Doctor Who fans, containing all 12 adventures for £18.