
The award-winning, best-selling author

Children of Winter
NEW EDITION PUBLISHED 2 NOVEMBER 2023!
Children of Winter is a historical time-slip novel set in the Derbyshire village of Eyam. Three siblings have to survive alone in a barn during the Great Plague of 1666. They long to know what is happening down in their village. Must they stay away?
Virtual school visits
Welcome to a new school year!
Ever since the pandemic I have frequently visited schools and universities all over the world by the magic of Zoom and similar video conferencing apps. I’m very pleased to say that I’ll be continuing to do so this coming school year. The way it works is that the school or college hosts the event. I spend about 40 minutes with the students, usually talking about the book they’ve been studying in class, my inspiration for it, answering questions and sometimes sharing some of the students’ own work. It’s always a lovely way to share ideas, and it’s wonderful to see how enthusiastic the children and teachers are.
I don’t ask for a fee as such, but I do suggest that participating hosts buy some of my books for classroom or library use, or prizes etc, from whatever supplier they choose.
The current calendar year has been very busy! I‘ve already made virtual visits to many schools and reading groups to talk about a variety of books at the schools’ request. The most frequently asked for titles have been Street Child and The Haunted Hills – in equal numbers – followed by Treason, Children of Winter, Blue John, Daughter of the Sea, Far From Home, Walking on Air and Tilly Mint Tales!
To contact me, visit my contact page.
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New editions of two of my most popular books
‘The Haunted Hills’ – launch events!
Holly Jackson: Five Survive – young adults’ crime fiction
Ruta Sepetys: I Must Betray You – Carnegie Shadowers’ winner 2023
Most popular pages and posts in the last 30 days
About me
Street Child – the bestselling novel
‘The Chime Seekers’ by Ross Montgomery
Treason – my Tudor novel
Writing ghost stories
Jim Jarvis meets Dr Barnardo
Children of Winter – my novel about the Plague in Eyam
Far From Home: The Sisters of Street Child
The Three Princes – my retelling of a Persian folk-tale
The Snake-Stone – a story of an adventurous quest
Main photo: Richard Harland Photography