Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Favourite Children's Book Picks - October 2026 - UK Post

 

Kieran Larwood (Author), Joe Todd Stanton (Illustrator) - Dungeon Runner: Foret Frenzy - Published by Noy Crow Ltd (8 Oct. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1807080181 - Paperback - Age: 7+

The fifth book in this action-packed adventure series from Blue Peter Award-winning author Kieran Larwood and Waterstones Children's Book Prize winner Joe Todd Stanton. Young readers will love discovering the world of the Dungeon Runners!

"A funny and exciting fantasy adventure story" - Frank Cottrell-Boyce, The Times

NEXT LEVEL ACTION! DON’T LOOK DOWN!

Kit can’t wait for the next dungeon – especially as he and his teammates, Sandy and Thorn, have been promoted to the next league. But with new challenges, bigger monsters and meaner opponents, as the dungeon is set high up in a forest, Kit will need to keep his wits about him, as well as his balance!

MOVING ON UP? THE STAKES ARE HIGHER THAN EVER.

"Highly illustrated, humorous and immediately enthralling, this series will appeal to 7+ DandD fans in particular" - The Guardian

Read a SAMPLE HERE

Philip Reeve. (Author), Sarah McIntyre (Author) - Adventuremice: Mini Mice Mayhem - Published by David Fickling Books (8 Oct. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1788454032 - Paperback - Age: 4 

The dynamic mouse adventurers return in the latest book in this perennially popular series . . . and they're joined by some miniature, mischievous companions!

'Absolutely stunning, beautiful, brilliant children's books. Instant classics' Jamie Smart, creator of Bunny vs Monkey

When mini mice descend on the Adventuremice's mousebase, Pedro and his friends will need all their wits about them!

The Adventuremice are visited by a class of cute but naughty mouselets and there's one almighty commotion in the offing. Charming chaos, sweet silliness and adorable anarchy are jam-packed into this warm, funny story.

Pari Thomson (Author), Elisa Paganelli (Illustrator) - Greenwild: The Frozen King - Published by Macmillan Children's Books (1 Oct. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1035078905 - Hardback - Age: 8+

Return to the magical world of the Greenwild ten years later in The Frozen King. Get ready for an epic adventure and a perilous, magical voyage to the ends of the earth in the sparkling tale from bestselling, award-winning Pari Thomson. Beautifully illustrated by Elisa Paganelli.

Eleven-year-old Annika may be heir to the ocean-ruled kingdom of Iffenwild, but she’d much rather be sailing with her traveling theater troupe than learning how to be queen. But when her beloved uncle Max - the king - returns gravely injured from a secret mission to the Utter North, her world shifts in an instant.

Determined to find a long-lost cure, Annika journeys into the frozen North: a land of towering ice cliffs, frozen seas, and powerful ice magic. But the deeper she ventures, the clearer it becomes that something far darker is stirring. If Annika fails, it won’t just be her uncle’s life at stake - it will be the fate of the entire magical world.

A thrilling standalone adventure set in the award-winning, bestselling Greenwild universe, which has enchanted thousands of readers across the globe.

Christopher Edge - Fear Files: A Trick of Light - Published by Walker Books (8 Oct. 2026) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1529527384 - Paperback - Age: 8+

A  school trip turns spooky in this spine-tingling adventure from award-winning author Christopher Edge, perfect for 9+ fans of Goosebumps.

Feeling ignored by her friends on a school residential trip at a creepy old manor house, ten-year-old Hazel meets a girl called Alice from another school, who is also on a residential and feeling a bit lonely. Together they hatch a plan to get their own back, inventing a legend about a resident ghost who haunts the house to fool their friends. But as the spooky games and tricks they plan become a little too scary, Hazel starts to wonder if Alice is pushing things too far…

Packed with mysterious found material and illustrations. Read a Sample Here

The Best Children's Book Picks FEB 2025 - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Kieran Larwood (Author), Joe Todd Stanton (Illustrator) - Dungeon Runners: Sky Battles - Published by Nosy Crow Ltd (13 Feb. 2025) -ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1839945212 - Paperback - Age: 7

An action-packed new adventure series from Blue Peter Award-winning author Kieran Larwood and Waterstones Children's Book Prize winner Joe Todd Stanton. Young readers will love discovering the world of the Dungeon Runners!

ARE YOU READY FOR THE CHALLENGE? It's time to fight or take flight!

"Highly illustrated, humorous and immediately enthralling" - The Guardian

Kit can hardly believe he's now a professional Dungeon Runner. With his teammates Sandy and Thorn, they set off to a city in the clouds to compete.

But with new dangers at every turn, Kit and his friends will need their wits and bravery to take on enemies as well as monsters. Are they ready for the big leagues? There's only one way to find out!

Have you got what it takes to survive the Dungeon? Now is your chance to prove it!

Helen Fairley - The Soul Collector - Published by The Book Guild Ltd (28 Feb. 2025) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1835741320 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

When siblings Sam and Jude are forced to leave London for a quiet village in the countryside due to their mother's illness, they expect boredom and isolation. But the village isn’t as peaceful as it seems. Next to their new home is an old graveyard with dark secrets.

One night, Sam sees strange flashing lights in the graveyard. He realises the village has mysteries waiting to be solved. Sam and Jude team up to uncover a mystery that has haunted the village for centuries.

Can they help the spirits that wander the village? Can they stop the monster who’s collecting souls?

With time running out, Sam, Jude, and their friends must act quickly to solve the puzzle before the Soul Collector claims his next victim.

Lucy Strange (Author), Rohan Eason (Illustrator) -  The Boy At The Window - Published by Barrington Stoke (13 Feb. 2025) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0008712785 - Paperback - Age: 9+ 

A spine-tingling ghost story from bestselling author Lucy Strange

Folk say the fog plays tricks – that it shapes itself into little hands and frightened faces that press at people’s doors and windows, desperate to come inside. But Hugo is convinced the ghost he has seen at the window is no trick of the fog. The boy’s hollow eyes are haunting him. What would happen if Hugo were to open the door and let him in? Brace yourselves for a chilling, wintery ghost story …

Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.

Sam Sedgman - The Forbidden Atlas (Isaac Turner Investigates) - Published by Bloomsbury Children's Books (27 Feb. 2025) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1526665430 - Paperback - Age: 8+

The exhilarating sequel to The Clockwork Conspiracy, Isaac Turner is back for another action-packed mystery adventure.

Isaac and Hattie have been invited to a high-profile event at the French National Archives in Paris to finally celebrate their achievement in saving time. But as Isaac prepares to make his speech, the lights go out and a single shot is fired.

The police think it was an assassination attempt on the infamous businessman Balthazar Blaise, but Isaac and Hattie realise that something very different is going on when they discover a boy taking something from the archives before vanishing without a trace.

As they investigate, Isaac and Hattie are pulled into an underground world, searching secret and forgotten places for a stolen letter, a missing sister and a map that will unearth a long buried secret ...

The Best Children's Book Picks July 2024 US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Christopher Lincoln - The Night Librarian - Published by Dial Books (July 30, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593617663 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

Night at the Museum meets The Land of Stories in this thrilling new graphic novel adventure series in which two siblings, a mysterious Night Librarian, and a motley cast of book characters try to save the New York Public Library

Twins Page and Turner know about the magic a library holds—they’ve been going to their beloved New York City public library for years, especially since their parents are always traveling for work.

But a secret mission involving their dad’s rare and valuable edition of Bram Stoker’s Dracula uncovers a world they’ve never known, featuring a mysterious Night Librarian, famous heroes (and villains) that have broken free from classic books, and an epic battle to save the library from total destruction.

William David Thomas - Hum - Published by Charlesbridge Moves (July 16, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1732213722 - Hardback - Age: 9+

A chance encounter with an old llama astonishingly reveals a language Allen didn’t know he could speak in this captivating and one-of-a-kind middle-grade novel.

Eleven-year-old Allen has a recurring nightmare, a persistent habit of humming, and difficulty connecting with other people. Making a fresh start, he and his grandmother move to a small village in northern New York. But when he meets an old llama at a winter festival, the encounter reveals a language he didn’t know he could speak and unveils repressed memories that contradict what he has long believed about his earliest years and his parents’ deaths.

When the llama’s life is threatened, Allen vows to free it. Together they begin a desperate trek through a snowy wilderness, a journey on which Allen must wrestle with lies about his past while struggling against the elements to survive.

Sarah Tolcser - Majestica - Published by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers (July 2, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-059369654 - Hardback - Age: 7+

Jurassic Park meets Skandar and the Unicorn Thief in this page-turning middle-grade fantasy adventure set at a nature preserve for magical beasts, where two girls find themselves on a wilderness expedition gone disastrously wrong.

Hattie Swift is a maid-in-training at Majestica, a resort and nature preserve where visitors come face-to-face with rare magical flora and fauna. She’s thrilled to be invited along on the park’s famous wilderness train excursion for the first time, but there’s a catch: She has to accompany Evelyn Ridgewell, the hotel owner’s haughty niece, who wants nothing to do with her.

Soon after embarking, Evelyn overhears a man who aims to hunt the park’s creatures for sport, and Hattie meets Jacob Threadborne, an apprentice magician sent by a foreign government on a top-secret mission. Then the magical fences keeping guests safe stop working, and the train breaks down in the most treacherous part of the jungle. Faced with poachers, man-eating trees, and a dragon on the loose, Hattie, Evelyn, and Jacob must stick together to figure out what’s gone wrong at Majestica . . . that is, if they want to make it out alive.

Features a richly illustrated map of the expansive nature preserve, as well as a bestiary with all the magical—and dangerous—creatures at Majestica.

R. L. Stine - Shark Night - Published by Blackstone Publishing (July 2, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8874712341 - Hardback - Age: 8+

From bestselling and award-winning author R. L. Stine, Shark Night is a terrifying seafaring adventure that will leave readers gasping for more.

After an accident with the original diver, Carlo finds himself alone in a giant water tank holding a camera. A twenty-foot-long hammerhead shark is about to be lowered into the tank with him ...

Carlo is helping his mom film a documentary for the Danger Channel. A twelve-year-old battling a shark! It'll be a sensation! But don't worry, the hammerhead is the gentlest of sharks, and this one is old and nearly toothless, so he should be fine.

But Carlo is still paralyzed with fear, and as the shark is lowered into the tank he realizes something isn't right ...

They sent down the WRONG shark!

The Witch in the Woods: Volume 1 (Grimmworld) by MichaelBrent Collings - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Children's Book Picks March 2024 US

The Witch in the Woods: Volume 1 (Grimmworld) by MichaelBrent Collings - Published by Shadow Mountain (March 5, 2024) - Hardback - Age: 10+ - READ SAMPLE

 Strange and terrifying things are suddenly happening in a mysterious town where people are disappearing and changing into characters from the Grimm fairy tales. 

Twins Willow and Jake Grimm are not prepared for the bizarre gadgets and scary changes in their new home of New Marburg, the location of the top-secret Think Tank where their parents now have jobs as scientists. In this town, people jetpack to work, robots direct traffic, and senior citizens duel with laser swords. 

Yet nothing compares to what happens the day after lightning strikes the twins’ house. Their school building transforms around them, becoming a medieval castle—complete with moat, drawbridge, and a dangerous giant who looks strangely like the school’s overly aggressive hall monitor. 

Barely managing to escape before a massive beanstalk lifts the castle above the clouds, Willow and Jake learn that their ancestors, the original Brothers Grimm, were more than storytellers. They were Grimmwalkers, able to travel from our universe to Grimmworld: the universe where all fairy tales are born. 

Somehow, Willow and Jake have been transported to Grimmworld as well. But before the twins can figure out how to get back to their own universe, they discover that their best friends, Hank and Pearl, have morphed into the fairy tale characters Hansel and Gretel and been captured by a candy-obsessed witch deep in the Cursed Forest. 

Now, aided by a mysterious wizard with shimmering golden eyes and a befuddled, talking naked mole-rat named Chet, the twins must trust in each other, believe in themselves, and find the courage to face their darkest fears in order to save their friends, return to their family, and maybe—just maybe—save the world. 

About the author: 

More than just a guy with a weird first name, Michaelbrent Collings is an international bestseller and multiple Bram Stoker Award and Dragon Award finalist. Best known as a master of thrills and chills, he has written bestsellers in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, YA, middle grade, suspense, humor, urban fantasy, and even Western romance. He also makes pretty good chocolate chip waffles.

The Best Children's Book Picks FEB 2024 US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Katherine Marsh - Medusa (The Myth of Monsters, 1) -  ‎Published by Clarion Books (February 20, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063303744 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

From National Book Award finalist Katherine Marsh: Percy Jackson meets Wednesday Addams in this fantastical adventure about Ava, who attends a boarding school for the descendants of Greek monsters and uncovers a terrible secret that could change the world forever. One of Kirkus's most anticipated books of 2024!

Ava Baldwin has always tried to keep her anger in check, just like her mom taught her. But when know-it-all classmate Owen King tries to speak over her yet again, Ava explodes . . . and Owen freezes, becoming totally unresponsive.

Although Owen recovers, Ava's parents whisk her off to her mother’s alma mater, the Accademia del Forte, a mysterious international boarding school in Venice. There, Ava and her brother, Jax, discover that the Olympian gods founded the Accademia to teach the descendants of mythological monsters how to control their emotions and their powers and become functioning, well-adjusted members of society.

But not everything at the Accademia is as it seems. After her friend Fia is almost expelled for challenging a teacher, Ava realizes the school is hiding a dangerous secret. To uncover the truth, Ava and her new friends embark on an adventure that could change the way they view history, mythology—and themselves—forever…or end their lives. 

Nedda Lewers - Daughters of the Lamp -  Published by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers (February 20, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593619308 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

Believe in fairy tales.

Sahara Rashad lives by logic. Loves science. And always has a plan. Except her dad just whisked her away to her uncle’s wedding in Egypt, upending every single plan she had for the summer.

In Cairo, Sahara’s days are filled with family—and mystery. First, Sahara’s cousins claim the pretentious bride-to-be is actually a witch. Then her late mother’s necklace starts glowing—and disappears.

Sahara’s attempts to recover the necklace lead her to the greatest mystery yet. Deep in an underground chamber lies Ali Baba’s magical treasure. Hidden from a line of sorcerers who threatened to use its powers for evil, the treasure was given to Sahara’s ancestor Morgana for safekeeping and passed down from mother to daughter for generations. Now only Sahara stands in the sorcerers’ way.

Can the girl who’s never believed in magic trust the unknown and claim her legacy as the treasure’s keeper?

Eireann Corrigan - I Will Follow - Published by Scholastic Press (February 6, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1339002880 - Hardback - Age: 12+ 

It's every influencer's biggest nightmare when a follower decides to kidnap her TikTok hero in order to become her BFF and a big star herself. Like Stephen King's Misery... for the TikTok generation.

The first time Nora saw one of Shea's videos on TikTok, something just clicked. You know how you can see someone and know you're supposed to be in each other’s lives? Well, that's how Nora felt. She knows Shea is a big star, with nearly a million followers, and Nora isn't. But, really, all Nora needs is her own viral moment. And who better to help her with that than Shea

If life isn't going to give Nora entry into Shea's world, Nora's going to have to take matters into her own hands.

Meeting Shea.

Kidnapping her.

Holding her hostage until Shea finally understands...

They are meant to be best, best friends.

Soyoung Park (Author), Joungmin Lee Comfort (Translator)- Snowglobe (The Snowglobe Duology) - Published by Delacorte Press (February 27, 2024) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593484975 - Hardback - Age: 11+

The gorgeous first edition hardcover of Snowglobe will feature two covers in one (a beautifully illustrated hardcover underneath the stunning jacket) and foil-stamped interior papers at the beginning and end of the book!

In a world of constant winter, only the citizens of the climate-controlled city of Snowglobe can escape the bitter cold—but this perfect society is hiding dark and dangerous secrets within its frozen heart. A groundbreaking Korean novel translated into English for the first time!

Enclosed under a vast dome, Snowglobe is the last place on Earth that’s warm. Outside Snowglobe is a frozen wasteland, and every day, citizens face the icy world to get to their jobs at the power plant, where they produce the energy Snowglobe needs. Their only solace comes in the form of twenty-four-hour television programming streamed directly from the domed city.

The residents of Snowglobe have everything: fame, fortune, and above all, safety from the desolation outside their walls. In exchange, their lives are broadcast to the less fortunate outside, who watch eagerly, hoping for the chance to one day become actors themselves.

Chobahm lives for the time she spends watching the shows produced inside Snowglobe. Her favorite? Goh Around, starring Goh Haeri, Snowglobe’s biggest star—and, it turns out, the key to getting Chobahm her dream life.

Because Haeri is dead, and Chobahm has been chosen to take her place. Only, life inside Snowglobe is nothing like what you see on television. Reality is a lie, and truth seems to be forever out of reach.

Translated for the first time into English from the original Korean, Snowglobe is a groundbreaking exploration of personal identity, and the future of the world as we know it.

The Best Children's Book Picks JAN 2024 US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Author: Ben Guterson 

Illustrator: Kristina Kister

Book Title: The World-Famous Nine

Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books (January 30, 2024)

Age: 9-12 Years

Zander Olinga’s grandmother is the owner of the fabled Number Nine Plaza, the spectacular nineteen-story skyscraper. The Nine, as it’s called, has everything imaginable, including a massive Ferris wheel on its rooftop, monorail tracks suspended from its ceiling, and twenty-five glass elevators. But there’s something evil looming in the shadows, and strange accidents start befalling the guests. When Zander and his friend Natasha come across a series of inscriptions hidden throughout the walls of The Nine, they discover that the clues will lead them to a magical object that protects the store’s very existence. With the future of The Nine on the line, the pair are determined to recover the mysterious object before the luxury plaza and its many guests are destroyed. 

 
Featuring an unforgettable setting and a larger-than-life cast of characters, here’s a spellbinding mystery involving puzzles, art, and high-stakes adventure.

Author: Marcykate Connolly 

Author: Kathryn Holmes

Book Title: The Thirteenth Circle 

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends (January 30, 2024)

Age: 9-12 Years

The X-Files meets Scooby-Doo in THE THIRTEENTH CIRCLE, a middle-grade mystery from MarcyKate Connolly and Kathryn Holmes, featuring two unexpected friends, crop circles, science fairs, and Men in Black, perfect for both the highly scientific and cryptid enthusiasts alike.

Cat knows aliens are real, and she’s determined to prove it. By studying the Weston Farm Circles, her town’s legendary crop circle phenomenon, she’ll not only demonstrate the existence of extraterrestrial life, but also win the grand prize in the McMurray Youth Science Competition―a feat she’s sure will impress her distant NASA scientist father.

Author: Cole Poindexter

Book Title: The Griffin's Egg

Publisher: Wild Rose Press (January 15, 2024)

Age: 10-12 Years 

Lost in a wild West Virginia forest, Phoebe Gray's world is upended when she finds an irritable goblin named Gnish-Gnash. She's stumbled into Lerch Hollow, a place of magic and mystery where trolls lurk in shadows and mermaids sway with the tide. The young adventurer soon finds herself caught up in a race against time; the Dark Mistress Lucinda is on the hunt for the last Griffin's egg, for its power will make her unstoppable. It is up to Phoebe to protect the egg while discovering the secrets of her own magical connection to the mysterious wizard Thatcher. With Gnish at her side and her grandfather's old cloak on her back, Phoebe must protect this enchanted world from destruction.

Author: Zack Loran Clark 

Author: Nick Eliopulos

Book Title: The Doomsday Archives: The Wandering Hour: BK 1 

Publisher: Zando Young Readers (January 30, 2024)

Age: 8-12 Years 

What if your favorite scary story was real?

With eerie illustrations and chilling creepypasta interstitials, The Doomsday Archives: The Wandering Hour by Zack Loran Clark and Nick Eliopulos is the first in a deliciously creepy series, perfect for readers of Jonathan Stroud, Christian McKay Heidicker, and Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

New Rotterdam is no place for a kid―and that’s what Emrys Houtman likes about it. Emrys obsessively documents his town’s urban legends and cryptid sightings in a Wiki, along with his neighbors and fellow horror fans Hazel and Serena. It’s all in good fun until one day, the trio stumbles upon the Doomsday Archives, a collection of relics with dazzling powers and dangerous consequences.

When a mysterious blood-red hourglass begins appearing around town and children begin to go missing, the trio must band together to stop the horrors plaguing New Rotterdam, or risk losing their home . . . and possibly their lives. Because after all this time hunting monsters, the kids have realized the monsters are now hunting them back.

Yvonne Banham - The Dark and Dangerous Gifts of Delores Mackenzie - Author Interview (Q&A) - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Hello Everybody. It's time to walk this way to read our second interview. This week we are delighted to introduce Yvonne Banham who is showcasing her debut children's book. The dark and Dangerous Gifts of Delores Mackenzie is a gothic escapade that will be published by Firefly Press in April 2023. The book looks and sounds fabulous - I already have it on my purchase list. If you need any more encouragement then read our little interview to find out more about the book and the author. In the meantime, if you have any questions please leave them in the comments section below. You can pre-order copies of this book at Firefly Press using this link Order Book HERE. 

• The book cover is brilliant as it says so much about the story. What can you tell us about the plot that might entice new readers to give it a go? 

I LOVE the cover. Nathan Collins’ vision of Delores is spot on. The story opens as Delores is being chased home by a restless spirit These spirits crave Delores’ energy to help them return from the dead. They’re not like ordinary ghosts (simply memories stuck on repeat), these spirits know they’re dead and they’re not happy about it! So, Delores is sent to the mysterious Uncles in Edinburgh Old Town to learn to control her paranormal gifts, but a sinister apparition appears and threatens the lives of her strange new housemates. Can Delores Mackenzie really push back the dead? Read on to find out! If you like Jonathan Stroud, Phil Hicks or Frances Hardinge, you might enjoy this too!

• How much of your personality is featured in the different characters? 

Delores and Prudence have a lot of traits stolen from my daughters (though I’ll never say which is which!)  Delores’ love of gothic fiction, her hatred of coriander and the word lobule are all me, as well as a fair bit of Prudence’s sarcasm sorry to say! 

• Tolbooth Book Store is full of curious surprises, what surprises did you find when writing this book?

 I’m not a planner so there were LOTS of surprises. When I started, I didn’t know about the Uncles, or the little demon gargoyle Bartleby, or how unintentionally funny Prudence would be, I didn’t even know the ending. The biggest surprise was Prudence’s secret and I loved going back and weaving that through the plot.

• What do you think makes a really effective dark mystery and do you think you have achieved this in your debut book? 

Maintaining the tension is crucial, but also having resting spots so the reader isn’t overwhelmed by the dark; include lighter characters such as Katy Starr (great fun to write!), grumpy Bartleby, or Sweet-Shop Esme. Mix the clues amongst lots of twists and turns and tap into things that genuinely scare you. Use those feelings to keep the story dark. I hope I’ve achieved that tricky balance, but really that’s for the readers to decide.

• How much has your story changed since the first draft? 

I’m always going back over sections as I write, so I don’t have as many full drafts as most writers. The biggest changes came when I started to thread new ideas through the existing plot to give a more satisfying ending. I also got to add a scene at the end which in hindsight was crucial to the shape of the story. Delores’ world is also much now more richly curated, and I love doing that part. If I had to put a number on it, I’d say 80% of it is from the really proper, fully worked first draft. 

• If you could have a dangerous gift what would it be and why?

 I LOVE that question. I think I’d choose shapeshifting but as shapeshifters are basically outlaws, I’d need to make sure not to get caught. As I’m sometimes late, being able to fly everywhere would be amazing – and just image what you’d see from the sky! Or I’d be a cat next to a log fire when I wanted to just lie there and create spooky plots in my head.

• What has inspired you the most to write a book for children? 

I read lots of books for children and young adults. I love the plots, the characters and the worlds. When I write, that’s where my head’s at and that’s how my own stories come out. My biggest inspiration is Frances Hardinge. Her books show how far you can push the boundaries in children’s fiction and that subject fascinates me. She never patronises her readers in terms of plot, character, dialogue or levels of creepiness.

• What would you like people to know about you?

 I write dark stuff and adore dark stories, but I also love an uncontrollable, unstoppable belly-laugh. You feel amazing after! 

• What are some of the common traps for new writers as they pursue their dreams of getting their book published?

 Trying to guess the trends or following what’s popular. By the time you’ve written yours, the publishing world will have moved on. And sending stuff out too soon; join a writing community, get some feedback, let your story rest a while and come back to it. That story gets one chance to make an impression so make it count. 

• What and where is the spookiest place you've ever been to? 

The Blair Street Vaults under Edinburgh Old Town. SUPER creepy. There’s supposedly the ghost of a young boy down there. I didn’t see him, but other people say they have. It has a peculiar atmosphere and one of the rooms had a very odd kind of dark. It features in the book; go there, I dare you! I want to visit the Covenanter’s Jail in Greyfriars Kirkyard but so far, I’m too scared to go in! It supposedly has the most active poltergeist in all of Edinburgh and that’s up against some pretty steep competition!