By Curtis Jobling (author)
"This suspenseful horror story is sure to bewitch teenage fans of creepy tales that combine contemporary contexts with age-old folklore."
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Steeped in mystery and slow-simmering suspense, Curtis Jobling’s Wyrdwood melds the menace of rural folklore (meet Twig Man, if you dare…) with a relatable modern-day context. In this case, when Kiki returns home from school to surprise her writer dad (who’s known as “The King of Creepy”) ahead of the Christmas break and finds a strange woman in her deceased mother’s place.
An edgy ambience is evoked from the off, when Kiki’s train pulls into the end-of-the-line village of Merryweather-by-the-Sea and readers become immersed in Wyrdwood, “an impenetrable crescent of wilderness” that lies beyond Merryweather’s rolling fields.
Early on, we’re introduced to an intriguing cast of small-town characters, whom the narrative follows in episodic fashion, layering the plot, and weaving the story, with a jolt coming when Kiki enters her family home to find a strange woman wearing her mother’s clothes: “It wasn’t every day that your father literally picked up a strange woman in the woods and brought her home.”
Stranger still to Kiki, all the villagers have fallen for beautiful Fay, who has a habit of wearing a twig in her hair. At the same time, the village teacher has noticed a change in her pupils’ behaviour — they’ve taken to drawing “scarecrow stick figures”, with the “impossibly spindly limbs and bony fingers” of one child’s drawing looking especially “demonic”. Then follows a series of eerie sightings that escalate to so much more.
Painstakingly plotted, Wyrdwood weaves a sinister story that twists in unexpected ways, and never lets up on suspense.
A bewitching tale, weaving folklore with contemporary horror for a teen audience.
Read the full description
Sticks and stones will break your bones . . .
Something strange is happening in Merryweather-by-the-Sea.
Whispers in the playground abound - a spring-heeled phantom haunts the edge of the Wyrdwood, the ancient forest which surrounds the sleepy coastal town. But the Twig Man is the least of Kiki Harper's concerns.
Returning home for the holidays, Kiki discovers a peculiar woman has moved into her family home, having stolen everybody's hearts. Who is the beautiful Fay - and could Kiki's family really be bewitched?
Cover illustration by Alice Cao.
Curtis Jobling is an author, illustrator and animation creator. He has both designed and created some of the UK's best loved children's shows, including the BAFTA-winning Bob the Builder, Frankenstein's Cat and Raa Raa the Noisy Lion , while also writing and illustrating numerous picture books for young audiences. He has had eleven novels published for older audiences, including the acclaimed and bestselling Wereworld series, now adapted into a major new animated series for Netflix, titled Wolf King .
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A bewitching tale, weaving folklore with contemporary horror for a teen audience. Sticks and stones will break your bones . . .
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Wyrdwood and determined it is suitable for children aged 11-14 years old
Wyrdwood features in the following genres: Featured Books for 11+ readers, Featured Books for 13+ readers, Recommendations, Fantasy / Magical, Horror & Ghost Stories, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Contemporary and urban fantasy, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational
Paperback. £8.09, down from the £8.99 cover price. In Stock.
Wyrdwood was written by Curtis Jobling and published by Fox & Ink
Wyrdwood has 370 pages
£8.09, reduced from £8.99. In Stock.
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