The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart by Loretta Schauer

The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart by Loretta Schauer

By Loretta Schauer (author) , Loretta Schauer (illustrator)

"A sparkling comic adventure full of highway robbers (and turnips)"

Paperback In Stock £8.99 £8.09

View All Editions (1)

Young Lil works at the Squawking Mackerel Inn, not the most salubrious of places and its turnip-heavy menu seems hard likely to attract foodies.

It’s always busy though: by blocking the village ditch (with stale turnip pies), Lil’s managed to cause a nice oozy puddle, just the thing to stop carriages in their tracks. Stranded passengers struggle into the inn for refreshments while the local farmer pulls their transport free.

So far so gooey good, but the bogged carriages also prove a magnet for highwaymen and soon the place is crawling with them. Passengers robbed of all their wealth do not make good paying customers and landlady Ma Scroggins is contemplating selling the pub and moving into turnip farming.

Lil can’t have that (no tips on a turnip farm, no chance of escape to a new life). She’ll have to scare off the highwayman hordes somehow – perhaps an invented ghost story will do it? Fortunately, her friends, fellow servant Ned and smart young crow, Scratchy are there to help.

The story is immense fun, Loretta Schauer’s spritely black and white illustrations adding to the excitement, and this will become a real favourite with readers (it already is with this one).

For Lil, life at the Squawking Mackerel inn couldn’t be more miserable. She's tasked with the sloppiest, grottiest jobs and picked on at every turn. Her only friend is Augustus Scratchy, a cantankerous crow with a habit of stealing.

Read the full description

When the dread villain Rotten Bob Hatchet and his gang of cut-throat highwaymen begin attacking travellers on the road, things get really dire. Joining forces with a new servant boy, Ned, and armed with the contents of the inn’s lost property cupboard, a pocket full of revolting dumplings and some knicker elastic, Lil comes up with a plot to scare off Rotten Bob. And so the legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart the Demon Highwayman is born!

Dangerous highwaymen, furious crows, ludicrous underwear, and a turnip apocalypse - stand and deliver!

Lil and her pet crow must frighten off a gang of ruthless highwaymen in this funny-but-spooky tale.

Packed with wonderfully atmospheric illustrations throughout by the author.

'A funny, fast paced adventure that will keep you on the edge of your saddle' - Mo O'Hara

'Glorious, a laugh-out-loud tale' - Chris Mould

Loretta Schauer originally trained as a dancer and managed a conservation charity on Hampstead Heath for many years. A self-taught artist, Loretta won the 2011 Waterstones Picture This competition and has been illustrating children's fiction and picture books ever since.

The LoveReading4Kids Best Children's Books of 2023

the best books for 9-12 year olds · the best books for teenagers

Mallory Vayle and Maggoty Skull In The Castle of Horrors

Mallory Vayle and Maggoty Skull in the Beast from Beneath

Stitch Head: The Graphic Novel

Greta and the Ghost Hunters

The Wizard In My Shed

For Lil, life at the Squawking Mackerel inn couldn’t be more miserable. She's tasked with the sloppiest, grottiest jobs and picked on at every turn.

The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart and determined it is suitable for children aged 9-12 years old

The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart features in the following genres: Featured Books for 11+ readers, Recommendations, Funny, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Historical Fiction, Horror & Ghost Stories, Star Books, Featured Books for 9+ readers

Paperback. £8.09, down from the £8.99 cover price. In Stock.

The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart was written by Loretta Schauer and published by Andersen Press Ltd

The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart has 247 pages

£8.09, reduced from £8.99. In Stock.

©PTC International Ltd T/A LoveReading is registered in England. Company number: 10193437. VAT number: 270 4538 09. Registered address: 157 Shooters Hill, London, SE18 3HP. Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer

The National Year of Reading starts here. Join thousands of families and schools supporting reading for pleasure across the UK.