From the author of the mysterious The Village at the Edge of the World comes this allegorical adventure that melds timeless terrors and Alice in Wonderland absurdity with an engaging modern world heroine.
After texting friends to say she wished she didn’t have to spend another weekend in her father’s sleepy village, Scarlett gets more than she bargained for when her wish comes true. In a terrifying turn of events, her train takes her to a peculiar place called Knoware where Scarlett encounters a creepy crone called Crimsin who steals Scarlett’s shadow, without which she can’t leave Knoware.
Armed only with a crudely drawn map and a magic mirror, Scarlett embarks on a perilous Wizard of Oz-esque quest to Crimsin’s castle to reclaim her shadow, encountering all manner of troublesome beings and fairy tale figures along the way. There’s much menace, atmosphere and a tense sense of time running out as Scarlett strives for her very own “there’s no place like home” moment. Recommended for fans of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline.
Every Friday, Scarlett has to catch the last train of the night to her dad’s sleepy village. Every weekend she misses out on all the fun and parties, left only to jealously stare at photos in her shared WhatsApp groups. One Friday night, when she is particularly missing her friends on the last train of the night, she wishes she never has to go to her dad’s again and she falls asleep. Just before she closes her eyes though, she notices another stretch of track she swears has never been there before. When she wakes up, she finds she is in the middle of nowhere.
Stuart Fryd is a dad to two lively boys and husband to a beautiful wife. He writes fiction for children and young adults and is a deputy headteacher in a London school. He loves reading fantasy, sci-fi, steam-punk and horror. His hair never does what he wants it to do and he hates having his photo taken!
His favourite children's authors are Phillip Pullman, Neil Gaiman and Anthony Browne.
