Sci-fi and fantasy

Tuftorious Snook awakes while his fellow Finders hibernate, and he cannot get back to sleep. He decides to break the strict rule against seeking the Faraway Forest, a place whither many Finders set out, and whence none of them returned. Tuft’s own parents were among those lost, and his aunt Timordora has become a cautionary tale for the young.

Andrew Perrault is convinced that when he returns to Wickwood Academy, everything will be alright; his twin sister Dove will make up with Thomas, the school rebel who illustrates Andrew’s macabre fairytales, and the only person who truly understands him. But on his first day back, Andrew realises nothing will be the same again. Dove is still angry, and Thomas is the number one suspect behind his abusive parents disappearance. Following Thomas to the out-of-bounds forest beside their school one night, Andrew learns that the truth is far more gruesome than he could have imagined.

This is a sequel to the immensely popular middle-grade fantasy The House with Chicken Legs, published in 2018, and combines the same winning team of author and illustrators. The plot of the original novel is synopsised in a short prologue, so a reader approaching the sequel won’t feel lost, though they will surely want to seek out the first volume.

Aoife Dooley’s latest graphic novel is another headfirst dive into bountiful colour and expressive, playful illustration. A marvellous follow-up to the first Squid Squad story, Nothing to Sea Here, readers rejoin Ollie and Zing and their underwater crew for more deep-sea adventures.

Fans of intrigue, escape rooms and reality TV will be delighted with this page-turning thriller. It’s season five of The Escape Game, ‘a feel-good family show, featuring some of the most brilliant minds of the next generation.’ Teams of teenage contestants compete against one another to solve puzzles, and viewers at home can join in on the Domain, trying to figure out the solutions before the show reveals them.

Eleven-year-old Alex’s whole world turns upside down when his untimely death means that he is now a vampire. You’d think that being a vampire would mean lots of cool superpowers and a whole new way of life, but not for Alex. His parents insist that he carries on with his (after)life as though everything is perfectly normal. This means school, swim trials, and secrets as he can’t reveal the truth to anyone, not even his best friends Archie and Mia.

A space portal is opening in front of our very eyes, we might get to see aliens! Except, in this very clever reversal of perspective, we are on the outside and have become someone else’s aliens. Addressing the reader directly and inviting plenty of audience participation, Zrg and Blrg zoom through all the emotions from fear to relief to excitement and even cheekiness as an unusual inter-species friendship grows over the pages.

Hannah Rooney wants to stay invisible. She is desperate to escape the life of crime her family is caught up in, and save her sister from it in the process. However, when tragedy strikes, Hannah must help to save the last person in the world she would ever want to help …

If you enjoy mysteries, fast-paced adventures and an irresistible animal cast then The Feathered Book is the perfect middle-grade book to read. From the very first page, the story grabs your attention and doesn’t let go.

Wanzu lives in Sealand with his grandmother, the wise and gentle Jjajja. In Sealand, every person shares a unique bond with one of the four elements – air, fire, water, or earth. When disaster strikes their homeland, Wanzu and his friends must harness these elemental connections, embarking on a journey through the natural world. Guided by the wisdom of those they encounter, they uncover their inner strengths and ultimately strive to restore balance to Sealand.