He arrives in the dead of night at a remote village, where he crosses paths with the tall and limping figure of Joe Zabbidou - a pawnbroker with a difference. For Joe trades secrets, not goods, for cash.Employed as Joe's assistant, Ludlow records the villagers' fiendish confessions in an ancient leather-bound volume: The Black Book of Secrets. There's the gravedigger who has been resurrecting bodies; the butcher who made a mouse-meat pie for his bullying father, with fatal consequences; the wizened bookseller who went to murderous lengths to get her hands on a priceless tome.Ludlow longs to trust his mysterious master, but he senses Joe has much to hide. But then Ludlow Fitch has his own, very dark, secrets . . .

    He lives in the Heaps, a vast sea of lost and discarded items collected from all over London. At the centre is Heap House, a puzzle of houses, castles, homes and mysteries reclaimed from the city and built into a living maze of staircases and scurrying rats.The Iremongers are a mean and cruel family, robust and hardworking, but Clod has an illness. He can hear the objects whispering. His birth object, a universal bath plug, says ‘James Henry’, Cousin Tummis’s tap is squeaking ‘Hilary Evelyn Ward-Jackson’ and something in the attic is shouting ‘Robert Burrington‘ and it sounds angry.A storm is brewing over Heap House. The Iremongers are growing restless and the whispers are getting louder. When Clod meets Lucy Pennant, a girl newly arrived from the city, everything changes. The secrets that bind Heap House together begin to unravel to reveal a dark truth that threatens to destroy Clod’s world.

    She is nearly invisible. At seven, terrified of school, Anna retreats within the walls of her family's enormous house, and builds a world of passageways and hidden rooms. As the years go by, people forget she ever existed. Then a mysterious note is thrust through a crack in the wall, and Anna must decide whether or not to come out of hiding. Patrice Kindl's astounding, inventive novel blends fantasy and reality -- and readers will not forget it.

    Walt Elliot’s dad, the famed colonel, has just ordered Walt to join him on the planet Aqua, where Walt finds himself battling his father to prevent the environmental destruction of the planet and its creatures. PREVIOUS EDITION: 0-00-647963-4

    But her mother's sudden death brings on a dark time for Coriander, and after mourning her beloved mother and dealing with the disappearance of her father and the wrath of her evil stepmother, Coriander finds herself locked in a chest with no hope of escape and no will to survive. But when a bright light beckons to her, it is then that Coriander's journey truly begins. Beautifully written, this magical and luminous story is destined to become a children's classic.

    Jone's Rest Cure / A Call at the Joneses'.

    Lucy, a schoolgirl of 11, finds that the animals of the world have been expecting her for more than a million years. Her exciting adventures take her to the heart of the greatest jungle on Earth, where the animals help her to overcome ruthless and deadly foes.

    Normal, respectable, and proud of it, they turn up their noses at anyone strange or different. But from the moment Barnaby Brocket comes into the world, it's clear he's anything but ordinary. To his parents’ horror, Barnaby defies the laws of gravity - and floats.Desperate to please his parents, Barnaby does his best to keep both feet on the ground – but he just can't do it. One fateful day, the Brockets decide enough is enough. They never asked for a weird, abnormal, floating child. Barnaby has to go . . .Betrayed, frightened and alone, Barnaby floats into the path of a very special hot air balloon – and so begins a magical journey around the world, with a cast of extraordinary new friends.

    But soon the shining concrete began to crack and the gleaming windows became grimy and dull. Into this colourless decay comes Mercedes Ice, Crown Prince of Shadow Point, with an impossible demand: colour.

    But for Steve, it’s just another season of worries. Worries about his sick newborn baby brother who is fighting to survive, worries about his parents who are struggling to cope, even worries about the wasp’s nest looming ominously from the eaves. So when a mysterious wasp queen invades his dreams, offering to “fix” the baby, Steve thinks his prayers have been answered.All he has to do is say “Yes.” But “yes” is a powerful word. It is also a dangerous one. And once it is uttered, can it be taken back?

    True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck which left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive, but that means still possible. You should never ignore a possible. So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, she takes matters into her own hands and flees to Paris to look for her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker. Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - urchins who live in the sky. Together they scour the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London, and most importantly before she loses hope.

    Full of exciting story shorts and activities – perfect for readers of 7+!MEET AMELIA FANG Everyone's favourite little vampire - and friends! Amelia Fang lives in Nocturnia - a dark and gloomy place full of furry, fanged and frightful creatures . . . and the occasional glittery unicorn!Along with her friends and pet pumpkin, Squashy, Amelia has the most eyeball-spinningly exciting adventures EVER!So come and join Amelia and her friends. They're all dying to meet you . . . Sink your fangs into Amelia’s other howlingly hilarious adventures:Amelia Fang and the Barbaric BallAmelia Fang and the Unicorn LordsAmelia Fang and the Memory ThiefAmelia Fang and the Half-Moon Holiday'The perfect mix of funny, foul and fearful' - Metro'Brilliantly imagined . . . laugh-out-loud funny' - Sunday Express Amelia Fang is perfect for readers of 7+ and fans of Witch Wars, The Worst Witch and Isadora Moon When she's not trying to take over the world or fighting sock-stealing monsters, Laura Ellen Anderson is a professional children's book author & illustrator, with an increasing addiction to coffee. She spends every waking hour creating and drawing, and would quite like to live on the moon when humans finally make it possible. Laura is the creator of EVIL EMPEROR PENGUIN and illustrator of WITCH WARS, as well as many other children’s books. AMELIA FANG is her first series as author-illustrator.

    A curl-up-on-the-sofa debut from a uniquely talented author.Eleven year-old Tilly has lived above her grandparents' bookshop ever since her mother disappeared shortly after she was born. Like the rest of her family, Tilly loves nothing more than to escape into the pages of her favourite stories.One day Tilly realises that classic children's characters are appearing in the shop through the magic of `book wandering' - crossing over from the page into real life.With the help of Anne of Green Gables and Alice in Wonderland. Tilly is determined to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother all those years ago, so she bravely steps into the unknown, unsure of what adventure lies ahead and what dangers she may face.

    When Leo comes to, Tim is gone, and no one believes his story. After Leo sees a psychiatrist and undergoes hypnosis, even he doesn't believe his story. But then memories begin to surface, and when Tim suddenly returns, Leo knows they are in otherworldly, extraterrestrial danger.The author's many fans...will find plenty here to please. -- Kirkus Reviews

    But what does being a princess really mean? With wise advice from her Gramma ringing in her ears, Sophia learns to stay true to her values, treat others with fairness and to find ways to make the world a better place.Will standing tall and using good manners make Sophia a real princess? A perfect read for little ones to learn that they don’t need to be like others to be special!