History and historical fiction

From pizza delivering scuba divers, to cassowaries, and from the hero shrew, to ‘Rubberboy,’ this book will keep children and adults alike mesmerised, as they embark on their own journey on the trail of epic facts.

Fans of the intrepid trio of Clare, Rose and Molly will be delighted to make their acquaintance again in this second instalment of the Sycamore Hill Mystery series.

Set in Dublin in 1986, Gwen is bright, imaginative and has been homeschooled by her mother for as long as she can remember. This changes dramatically when her mother becomes too ill to care for her and Gwen is sent to Loughmoe Abbey, a mysterious boarding school in the countryside.

Marsha knows every inch of her little island. It is the perfect home for a dinosaur and she admires all of the nature on her doorstep. She stops and watches as the dragonflies zoom around in pairs, the flowers dance in huddles and even the bubbles from the mud pond float high into the sky together. Marsha however, has a funny feeling in her tummy. She is alone.

A truly heartwarming tale of friendship, adventure and the magic of movies, set in 1937 Dublin. From the very first page, readers are drawn into Sylvie’s world and her plans to make it to the cinemas on Dublin’s Northside. At The Grand Central Cinema, she meets Juno and a lively group of friends from the tenements in Sheriff Street. Their shared love of movies brings them together, and every Saturday, they go to see the movies.

‘It’s November, midnight: the perfect time to steal a corpse.’ From the first sentence of Dracula & Daughters, the first book in Emma Carroll’s new adventure series, we are plunged straight into a fully realised alternative reality. Temstown (a version of London; say it aloud and it makes sense) has managed to stay free of vampire ‘contagion’ for twenty years. But when a popular young actress, Elsie Irving, dies onstage fear stalks the streets. Is Elsie safely in her grave, or have vampires once more unleashed their horror?

Six Queens is a richly illustrated and evocatively written book that breathes new life into the oft-repeated rhyme ‘Divorced, beheaded, died. Divorced, beheaded, survived’ by peeling back the layers of myth and silence that have long hidden the lives of Henry VIII’s six wives.

Marking the eightieth anniversary of the end of World War II, this lavishly illustrated graphic novel is a timely reminder of the importance of embracing cultural differences when the world so badly needs an example of friendship and acceptance.

Sarah Underwood’s latest novel is a vampiric, sapphic reimagining of Psyche and Eros from Greek mythology.