No catches, no fine print just unconditional book love and reading recommendations for your students and children.
You can create your own school's page, develop tailored reading lists to share with peers and parents...all helping encourage reading for pleasure in your children.
Find out moreFor those who enjoy a spooky tale, we have scary stories galore. From cute little ghosts for younger readers to truly terrifying reads for teenagers, you can find a wide selection of books in this section.
Toby leads a quiet and unhappy life in London, with his climate-?activist mother and his distant and frustrated father, whom he idolises. Overlooked as his parent’s divorce, Toby’s only friends are the family lodger Mrs Papadopoulos and her cat Alfred. When a mysterious shadow appears in his garden, and then in his dreams, Toby is drawn into an alternative land and immediately thrown into danger as he finds himself trapped in a raging forest fire, searching for Alfred who he has followed through the tunnel-?portal. Balthasar is a land enslaved by a cruel Regent and an absent and mysterious queen where the Dreamers have the magical power to dream things into existence. But at what cost? It soon becomes apparent that Balthasar is falling apart with fires, floods, earthquakes and tsunamis commonplace, all resulting from the energy expended by the Dreamers as they are forced to dream more things into reality to combat the disasters and unhappiness befalling the land. Toby meets Tamurlaine, a strange and otherworldly girl who has lost her memory. To uncover the mystery of her identity and to get Toby back home, the pair must go on a thrilling journey to the heart of the kingdom of Balthasar, right into the castle of the Regent... With the help of Tamurlaine’s friendship Toby finds his own identity, realising his father is as imperfect as the world around him. Tamurlaine too is on a journey of self-? discovery, uncovering a disturbing past and learning that she does not need to be defined by this, and can travel her own path rather than the one laid out for her.
October 2021 Debut of the Month | Shortlisted for the 2021 Branford Boase Award | A gobble-it-up fiery and intense yet thoughtful debut novel about family, betrayal, and witchcraft. Opening the pathway to a fabulous historical fantasy series this calls out as a must-read for young adults. Set during the civil war in 17th century England, 15 year old Evey has to flee with her little sister Dill when her mother is murdered. As with all good young adult novels, it is perfectly easy to slide into and really enjoy as an adult too, particularly with the wonderful cover drawing you in. Touching history, it flies into fantasy, as author Finbar Hawkins examines the meaning of witch. Evey is a complex character and as she tells her own story she has the ability of self-reflection, even if she doesn’t always like what she sees. Witch is a read that fair on crackles with energy, it also encourages thoughts to both consider and soar and deservedly sits as one of our LoveReading debuts of the month.
A moving, compelling and spooky YA romance. Fifteen-year-old Maggie is in foster care following the death of her mother and her grandmother's slip into dementia. When Ryder saves her life, she can't help but fall in love with him. The only problem is that he has been dead for five years... Unsentimental, passionate and immensely moving, The Wanderer takes a fresh look at first love and growing up.
A young girl lives in an old house – she thinks there may be a ghost, but she has never seen one. Perhaps the reader can help her find the ghost, or maybe more than one… This is a beautiful, funny, spooky picture book that will captivate children of all ages. The girl in the sumptuous house – built in 1760 – has been searching for her ghost and wonders if the reader can help – well, yes, we can – but that doesn’t really help her. The delightful gentle humour of the sparse text and the big greyscale illustrations of the house complement the brightly coloured small girl showing us around – and as we turn the transparent pages, we can see the array of friendly ghosts in all the parts of the house. They hide in plain sight, in the chandeliers, in the hall, under and over the bed – everywhere that will make children giggle with joy as they see them – and the little girl doesn’t. The transparent pages are very cleverly designed and printed so that the ‘ghosts’ only show up on the page turn against the darker illustrations of the house. What a brilliant idea! This will be a favourite for many years to come and be looked at every Halloween – as well as during the rest of the year.
Bethany and her new friend Ebeneezer Tweezer think they’ve seen the last of the Beast, the greedy and thoroughly nasty creature who has been Ebeneezer’s master for the last 500 years. After all, they watched their friend Claudette the singing parrot eat him up. But don’t count your parrots before they hatch is the lesson here. As Bethany tries to persuade Ebeneezer to ‘de-beast’ and take up do-gooding, things just get worse and worse. Whatever philanthropy Bethany tries goes wrong, Ebeneezer is being tormented by a possessed frilly shirt, and poor Claudette is losing her feathers and her voice. Don’t despair though, our friends are tougher than they look, and there’s always D.o.R.R.i.S. if things go really awry (the Division of Removing Rapscallions in Secret). This is zanier than the first Beast story, but as deliciously sharp and funny. Don’t miss! Find out more about the series in a Q&A with the author!
It's fright-time in the supermarket, and the veggies are seriously spooked! Strange shapes, weird noises and eerie shuffling - whatever can be behind these ghostly goings-on? Join Supertato and the gang to find out in their latest unmissable adventure! The perfect book to calm bedtime fears and snuggle up with this Autumn.
Stranger Things meets Point Horror in the first of a brilliant new series for readers aged 11+ from Yvette Fielding, British television's first lady of the paranormal and presenter of Most Haunted. When Clovis, Eve and Tom decide to play with a ouija board in an old abandoned house on Halloween, none of them foresees the horrors they're about to unleash. What starts out as a bit of fun, soon transcends into something far more terrifying when a distressed and determined spirit follows them home. Before long the friends are caught up in a series of events beyond their wildest imaginings and their journey as ghost hunters begins . . .
October 2021 Debut of the Month | Vibrant world-building, hilarious horror happenings, and splendidly quirky characters - Alex Foulkes’ debut, Rules for Vampires (the first in a series), has plenty for adventure-loving 9+ year-olds to sink their teeth into, a devour-in-one-bloodthirsty-sitting story that’s made even more engaging by Sara Ogilvie’s cleverly comic illustrations. “Slow as creeping nuns, stealthy as a stalking cat, the girl slunk closer to the door.” Thus we’re introduced to Leo on the eve of her one hundred and eleventh birthnight, as she must embark on her first solo mission as a vampire - The Hunt of the Waxing Moon, no less. Trouble is, following Vampiric Laws and negotiating that ghoulish line between the Living and the Undead sure ain’t no stroll in the cemetery, and all this while feeling the pressure to live up to the high and spiky expectations of the Great and Terrible Sieglinde. The writing is slick as blood, with smart turns of phrase that Lemony Snicket aficionados will adore, and cracking whip-smart dialogue that drives the story at bat-out-of-hell pace. Oh, and it’s divinely packed with a cast of top quality, quirky characters readers will want to get under the skin of (though not literally, of course…)
Despite its setting – leafy English countryside in late summer – this is a deliciously dark story, with one of the creepiest scenes you’re likely to read. Aveline is enjoying a late summer break with her mum. Her friend Harold is coming to stay but until he arrives it’s a bit lonely, so it’s a thrill to meet Hazel. Hazel is about the same age as Aveline, local, but also looking for a friend. There’s no denying that Hazel is great company, but there’s something just a little strange about her as well. The truth is very strange indeed and the more she learns, the more Aveline realises that their friendship could prove very dangerous. This is the second story about Aveline, who seems to attract the supernatural, and, like the first, is cleverly told and guaranteed to send shivers down the spine. If you like spooky stories, you’ll love this. Perfect Hallowe’en reading!
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month September 2021 | September 2021 Book of the Month | Billy is desperate to make things change at home. Her father disappeared before he was born: he and mum had been ok when they had been alone together but now his mother’s new partner has spoilt everything. Billy is frightened for himself and he is frighted for his mum. To make a point he runs away for a few days hiding in a semi-ruined pill-box in a local graveyard. Cleverly telling the story in two narratives, from Billy’s perspective and his mum’s and interweaving other characters and their experience from whom they can learn, Pam Smy explores a range of complex emotions thrown up by a difficult situation.
Winner of the Klaus Flugge Prize 2021 | The Klaus Flugge judges said: ‘A visual treat and the text and illustrations work very well together; it’s full of detail but never cluttered; pace is cleverly controlled; just the right balance of fun and fright!’. Flavia Z. Drago introduces us to Gustavo, a gorgeous little ghost who is so shy he’s literally invisible. Her folk-art style with its palette of orange and Rosa Mexicana creates a distinctive playground for Gustavo as he suddenly and unexpectedly makes new friends. Flavia Zorrilla Drago joined prize founder, Klaus Flugge, the Chair of Judges, Julia Eccleshare and Judge Posy Simmonds to discuss with the importance of the Klaus Flugge prize at the LoveReading LitFest. The event is free to view and you can find out more here.
A hilarious and accessible story, packed full of illustrations - that gives a twist to all your favourite fairytales and will change everything you thought you knew about monsters! Perfect for apprentice monster hunters aged 8 to 800.
