By Elle McNicoll (author) Part of the Like a Charm series
"This epic end to a duology reels with danger, magic, otherworldly beings, and the rousing resolve of its dyspraxic protagonist."
Paperback Pre-order. 4th March 2027 £8.99 £8.09
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Concluding the dazzling duology that began with Like a Charm , Elle McNicoll’s Like a Curse is a thrillingly plotted, magic-rich adventure underpinned by inspiring themes of self-belief.
For context, Ramya comes from a family of powerful women — “Aunt Leanna. A healer who can make plants and flowers bloom. Cassandra, my mum. Hard, tough, and capable of setting this entire house ablaze. Then, Aunt Opal. Who can do anything.” And Ramya herself has tremendous powers, which she’s learning to hone and harness. She also has dyspraxia, “a learning difficulty that affects coordination, speech, and motor skills.”
After fighting to save the city of Edinburgh from the clutches of Portia, a self-serving Siren who’ll stop at nothing to extend her power, Ramya and her family are holed up near Loch Ness, where she’s desperate to do something to restore order to the city, while learning magic from Aunt Opal.
Always attuned to the world around her, and to magic, Ramya notices something strange about the oak tree in the garden, and then discovers a surprising truth about Loch Ness monster myths. It’s not long before she takes it upon herself to take flight to Edinburgh to try to save the Hidden Folk.
Peppered with proud statements of self-affirmation that will serve as pep-talks for neuro-diverse readers, Like a Curse is at once a thrilling adventure and mightily empowering. With that in mind, I’ll leave the last words to Ramya: “If there’s one thing I know as a dyspraxic girl, it’s that staying down is not an option. People expect you to. They sometimes want you to. So, I always get back up.”
A thrilling and heartwarming sequel to Like A Charm follows Ramya as she seeks to rescue her beloved Edinburgh from the deadly grip of the Sirens. Like A Curse is a magical fantasy set in Scotland, by multi-award winning author, Elle McNicoll.Stuck in Loch Ness while Edinburgh falls under the control of a terrifyingly powerful Siren, Ramya Knox is frustrated. She's supposed to be learning magic from her Aunt Opal, but that isn't going as smoothly as she'd hoped. As she pushes to rescue her Hidden Folk friends in the city, long-buried secrets come to light and legends come to life.
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A thrilling and heartwarming sequel to Like A Charm follows Ramya as she seeks to rescue her beloved Edinburgh from the deadly grip of the Sirens. Like A Curse is a magical fantasy set in Scotland, by multi-award winning author, Elle McNicoll. Stuck in Loch Ness while Edinburgh falls under the control of a terrifyingly powerful Siren, Ramya Knox is frustrated. She's supposed to be learning magic from her Aunt Opal, but that isn't going as smoothly as she'd hoped. As she pushes to rescue her Hidden Folk friends in the city, long-buried secrets come to light and legends come to life.
Ramya knows she's different; she knows she's a witch. But now she must learn the true meaning of her powers . . . before all she loves is lost. Don't miss the first book in this exciting duology, Like a Charm!
“Full of twists and turns and gasp-out-loud moments. What. A. Read!” Jennifer Bell
Praise for Like a Charm;
“Another triumph from a star of children’s books.” Aisha Bushby
“Readers of all ages will fall in love with this neurodivergent, beret-rocking protagonist.” BookTrust
“A wildly imaginative world of secrets and spells” The Times
“Ablaze with magic, mythical beings, and the indomitable derring-do of its inspirational neuro-divergent heroine.” LoveReading4Kids
Elle McNicoll is an award-winning Scottish children’s author.
Her debut novel, A Kind of Spark , won the Blue Peter Book Award and the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. A live action TV adaptation from BBC Children’s and 9 Story Media will be hitting UK screens in Spring 2023.
She is an advocate for better representation of neurodiversity in publishing and in 2022 founded The Adrien Prize, to recognise children’s fiction that explores the disability experience. She lives in London.
Photo credit Aashfaria A. Anwar
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A thrilling and heartwarming sequel to Like A Charm follows Ramya as she seeks to rescue her beloved Edinburgh from the deadly grip of the Sirens. Like A Curse is a magical fantasy set in Scotland, by multi-award winning author, Elle McNicoll.Stuck in Loch Ness while Edinburgh falls under the control of a terrifyingly powerful Siren, Ramya Knox is frustrated.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Like a Curse and determined it is suitable for children aged 11-12 years old
Like a Curse features in the following genres: Adventure Stories, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Fantasy / Magical, Featured Books for 11+ readers, Recommendations
Paperback. £8.09, down from the £8.99 cover price. Pre-order. 4th March 2027.
Like a Curse was written by Elle McNicoll and published by Macmillan Children's Books an imprint of Pan Macmillan
Like a Curse has 320 pages
Yes it is part of Like a Charm series
£8.09, reduced from £8.99. Pre-order. 4th March 2027.
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