Search results for ""Author Marcus Sedgwick""

A dazzling literary mystery from prizewinning author Marcus Sedgwick, for fans of Scarlett Thomas, Carlos Ruiz Zafon and Patrick Suskind.In Paris, in the year 1899, Marcel Després is arrested for the murder of his wife and transferred to Salpêtrière asylum. And so the story might have stopped.But this is no ordinary patient: Marcel Després, Mister Memory, is a man who cannot forget. And it is no ordinary case: the hurried cover-up hints at dark secrets in the shadows. A policeman and a doctor decide to unravel the mystery...but the answers lie inside Marcel's head. And how can he tell what is significant when he remembers every detail of every moment of his entire life?

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The Russian Revolution. Fairy tale, spy thriller, love story. One man's life during the last days of the Romanovs, beautifully imagined by award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick. Shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award. Set in the rich and atmospheric landscape of Russia during the revolution that sent shockwaves around the world, this is the partly true story of Arthur Ransome - a writer accused of being a spy. Fictionalising history and blending it with one man's real life, Marcus Sedgwick expertly crafts this innovative and stimulating novel of three parts - a fairy tale full of wise and foolish kings, princesses, wishes and magic; a bleak and threatening spy thriller, and a love story . . .

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Five days of glorious gothic alchemy and evil . . . An atmospheric, page-turning and powerful novel of sorcery and desperate magic by award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick. Shortlisted for the Guardian Children's Fiction prize and the Edgar Allan Poe Award.The days between 27 December and New Year's Eve are dead days - days when spirits roam and magic shifts restlessly just beneath the surface of our everyday lives.There is a man, Valerian, whose time is running out. He must pay the price for the pact he made with evil so many years ago. His servant is Boy, a child with no name and no past - a child he treats with contempt, but who serves his master well and finds solace in the company of his only friend, Willow. Unknown to any of them, it is Boy who holds the key to their destiny.Set in dark, threatening cities and the frozen countryside in a distant time, THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS conjures a spell-binding story as Valerian, Boy and Willow battle to stop time and cling to life.

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Join the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand.Solstice and Cudweed are appalled to find their father has appointed a new school master. But things get even worse when the grumpy, viciously mean teacher actually arrives. The Otherhand children are sure there's something more to him than meets the eye - the trouble is, who will believe them? No one it seems. Except, perhaps, Edgar.Winner of the 2011 Blue Peter Book Award for Most Fun Story With Pictures, LUNATICS AND LUCK is the third story in this hilarious six book mystery series (with a touch of goth-froth) for 9 year olds from bestselling author, Marcus Sedgwick with quirky black and white line illustrations from new talent, Pete Williamson.Dedicated website on Raven Mysteries: www.ravenmysteries.co.uk

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Sasha can see the future. But can she use her power to save her brothers and change their destiny? A stunning World War One anniversary edition of the mesmerising novel from award-winning author, Marcus Sedgwick. It is 1915, WWI. Seventeen-year-old Sasha Fox is the privileged only daughter of a respected doctor living in the wealthy seaside town of Brighton. But her brothers, Edgar and Tom, have gone to war and Sasha has a terrible gift: she can see the future. Her premonitions show untold horrors on the battlefields of the Somme, and the fate that awaits Edgar and Tom. But Sasha is trapped by power - no one will believe her. Even her family have lost faith in her, and she is determined to win them back, whatever the price. And it is a high one. Seeing the future is a fate too awful to contemplate - for who wants to see the end of their own story?A beautifully written story of a child in jeopardy, set in a world full of threat - but with a heroine determined to try to change the path of Fate.

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Sweeping, mesmerising gothic fantasy full of magic and intrigue, from award-winning author, Marcus Sedgwick. The action-packed and enthralling conclusion to THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS.Welcome to a world of dark magic, lurking evil and beguiling mystery. Following their thrilling journey in THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS, Boy and Willow are plunged into a world of gilded finery and splendour as they are held captive in the palace of the Emperor Frederick. But beneath its golden veneer lies cruelty, madness and desperation. They must face terrible danger as they confront the whirlwind furies of the Emperor and the calculating ambitions of his confidante, Maxim. What's more, they must follow a deadly trail which will lead them to the Phantom . . . The truth about Boy's identity is one among many shattering secrets as THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS is opened for the final time.

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An interactive activity book for 9–12-year-olds on overcoming anxiety You can conquer your worries. The power is within you! We all experience anxiety from time to time. It can feel overwhelming and uncomfortable, and stops us from doing the things we enjoy – so what on earth can we do about it? Be the Change: Be Calm will show you how to shut down anxiety with fun and simple ways to calm your mind by listening to what your body is telling you. Ever tried the half-salamander exercise? You should! And have you ever performed a body scan? Thought not. These amazing activities along with many others will become your toolkit to a calmer and happier life. Award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick takes us on a fascinating journey to find out where anxiety comes from, looking at the power of storytelling in terms of training our brain to overcome worries. He also shows us what animals can teach us about dealing with stress AND introduces us to our second brain! Hello! It's time to make CALM your superpower. ARE YOU READY TO BE KIND TO YOUR MIND?

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Join the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand.The rumblings and wailings from the Lost South Wing can no longer be ignored, as one by one, members of the castle are being found frozen, 'scared to death'. With mother, Minty, obsessing over her latest fad - sewing - and father, Valevine, busy experimenting with a machine to discover the Lost Otherhand treasure, it's up to aspiring ghost-hunters Solstice and Cudweed to solve the mystery. But as usual, things don't go quite as planned... It's just as well Edgar is there to save the day!Second in a brand new six book series of tales of mystery (with a touch of goth-froth) for 9 year olds from bestselling author, Marcus Sedgwick. With quirky black and white line illustrations from new talent, Pete Williamson.Dedicated website on Raven Mysteries: www.ravenmysteries.co.uk

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In Paris, at the end of the nineteenth century, a man with a perfect memory murders his wife. But that is only the start of the story... A dazzling literary mystery from prizewinning author Marcus Sedgwick.Paris, 1899. Marcel Després is arrested for the murder of his wife and transferred to the famous Salpêtrière asylum. And there the story might have stopped. But the doctor assigned to his care soon realises this is no ordinary patient: Marcel Després, Mister Memory, is a man who cannot forget. And the policeman assigned to his case soon realises that something else is at stake: for why else would the criminal have been hurried off to hospital, and why are his superiors so keen for the whole affair to be closed? This crime involves something bigger and stranger than a lovers' fight - something with links to the highest and lowest establishments in France. The policeman and the doctor between them must unravel the mystery... but the answers lie inside Marcel's head. And how can he tell what is significant when he remembers every detail of every moment of his entire life? For fans of Scarlett Thomas, Carlos Ruiz Zafon and Patrick Suskind, this is a captivating literary mystery about memory, history and fate.

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An interactive activity title for 9-12-year-olds on the power of kindness You can choose to make the world a better place. The power is within you! Every one of us experiences the world differently – we have different worries and problems, and we all have unique hopes and dreams – but there’s one thing that can unite us and make the world a better place, and that’s KINDNESS! Kindness is cool! No, really! Kindness can create positive change in all our lives. Whether it’s being a friend to someone who seems lonely, or simply smiling or giving somebody a thumbs up. When we support each other, we can be our best selves. Be the Change: Be Kind is your handbook on how to use your own voice to empower yourself and others to spread kindness. Award-winning children’s author Marcus Sedgwick tells the story of kindness – where it comes from, what it feels like and perhaps most importantly why it matters – and asks YOU what you would do in different everyday scenarios. ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

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A timely novel challenging ideas around health - our own and our planet's - and the stigma that persists around illness.

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A gripping, prizewinning novel about a girl surviving in a devastated world.Imagine that a few years from now England is covered by water, and Norwich is an island. Zoe, left behind in the confusion when her parents escaped, survives there as best she can. Alone and desperate among marauding gangs, she manages to dig a derelict boat out of the mud and gets away to Eels Island. But Eels Island, whose raggle-taggle inhabitants are dominated by the strange boy Dooby, is full of danger too.The belief that she will one day find her parents spurs Zoe on to a dramatic escape in a story of courage and determination that is handled with warmth and humanity.This book was the winner of the Branford Boase Award 2001 and marked the start of author Marcus Sedgwick's multi-award-winning career.

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A dark and gothic novel of vampires and 18th Century Venice, filled with mystery and intrigue. A captivating story of love and loss, THE KISS OF DEATH is a stunning companion volume to the bestselling MY SWORDHAND IS SINGING.Peter's ongoing search for the Shadow Queen leads him to Venice - the fabled city with lapping waterways, crumbling magnificence, dark, twisting alleyways and surprising piazzas. A city whose beauty disguises many ugly secrets. The Shadow Queen is there, gathering strength, recruiting a new army of the Undead for a final confrontation.Marko and Sorrel meet in Venice for the first time. They must uncover the mystery of what has happened both to Sorrel's father, who is plagued by a strange madness that prevents him from sleeping, and to Marko's father, a doctor, who has mysteriously gone missing after travelling to Venice to help his old friend . . .

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What would you sacrifice for someone you've loved forever? Winner of the Michael L. Printz Award, MIDWINTERBLOOD is a dark, breathtaking and cleverly crafted paranormal love story like no other, beautifully told in seven parts and spanning ten centuries.Have you ever had the feeling that you've lived another life? Been somewhere that has felt totally familiar even though you've never been there before, or felt that you've known someone even though you are meeting them for the first time?Eric and Merle loved and lost one another, and have been searching for each other through time ever since. This novel comprises seven short stories and travels in time, from 2073 back to the days of Viking sagas. Across the different tales, the two souls appear as lovers, mother and son, brother and sister, and artist and child as they come close to finding each other before facing the ultimate sacrifice . . .

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Of all weathers, snow is the one that has always affected Marcus Sedgwick the most. While many people's idea of the perfect holiday involves sun, sea an sand, he instead makes trips to cold, snowy parts of the world: Russia, Scandinavia or the Arctic Circle. A few years ago he bought a mountain home, an old chalet d'alpage high in the Haute Savoie, and for the first time he began to understand what it is to live in an environment where extreme snowfall is frequent.Like the six sides of a snowflake, the book has six chapters, each exploring the art, literature and science of snow, as well as his own experiences and memories, asking whether it really did snow more during his boyhood in Kent and whether changing climate patterns might mean,that for some areas of the world, snow may become a thing of the past. He also wonders why snow is so powerful for our imagination, so transformative and as fundamental as our response to darkness, to sunlight.

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A timely, contemporary novel challenging ideas around health – our own and our planet's – and the stigma that persists around illness, by Printz Medallist and internationally bestselling novelist, Marcus Sedgwick. Ash has lived in eight states in as many years. Mom has gone walkabout, but stepdad Jack is like a father, and stepbrother Bly the best anyone could wish for. When Bly goes missing too, Ash sets off to search for him – and finds something much bigger: the sickness of the world. Arriving in Snowflake, Arizona, Ash discovers Bly living with a community 6000 feet high in the wide red desert. They call themselves the Canaries and all suffer from some kind of environmental illness. They are ostracised by modern society, as it continues to ignore climate change, global warming and so much more of our self-inflicted poisoning of the planet. When Ash takes ill, the doctor's response is, 'it's all in your mind'. In a story spanning seven years with triumphs and tragedies, Ash learns how to live as the world is pushed to a point of no return. This humane and deeply thoughtful novel is about resilience, trust, family and love.

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A potent, powerful and timely thriller about migrants, drug lords and gang warfare set on the US/Mexican border by PRINTZ MEDAL winning and CARNEGIE MEDAL, COSTA BOOK AWARD and GUARDIAN CHILDREN'S FICTION PRIZE shortlisted novelist, Marcus Sedgwick. Anapra is one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the Mexican city of Juarez - twenty metres outside town lies a fence, and beyond it, America - the dangerous goal of many a migrant. Faustino is one such trying to escape from the gang he's been working for. He's dipped into a pile of dollars he was supposed to be hiding and now he's on the run. He and his friend, Arturo, have only 36 hours to replace the missing money, or they're as good as dead. Watching over them is Saint Death. Saint Death (or Santissima Muerte) - she of pure bone and charcoal-black eye, she of absolute loyalty and neutral morality, holy patron to rich and poor, to prostitute and narco-lord, criminal and police-chief. A folk saint, a rebel angel, a sinister guardian.

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Sig Andersson has a choice to make - use the gun or die. An unforgettable, razor-sharp psychological thriller set in the snowy wilderness of the Arctic Circle. Recipient of a Michael L. Printz Honor 2011, shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2010 and longlisted for the GUARDIAN Children's Fiction Prize 2010. 1910. A cabin north of the Arctic Circle. Fifteen-year-old Sig Andersson is alone. Alone, except for the corpse of his father, who died earlier that day after falling through a weak spot on the ice-covered lake. His sister, Anna, and step-mother, Nadya, have gone to the local town for help.Then comes a knock at the door. It's a man, the flash of a revolver's butt at his hip, and a mean glare in his eyes. Sig has never seen him before but Wolff claims to have unfinished business with his father. As Sig gradually learns the awful truth about Wolff's connection to his father, his thoughts are drawn to a certain box hidden on a shelf in the storeroom, in which lies his father's prized possession - a revolver. As the stakes rise and Wolff begins to close in, Sig's choice is pulled into sharp focus. Should he use the gun?

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Join the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand.It's Halloween and the Otherhands are enjoying the Annual Pumpkin Hunt. And there are preparations to be made for the Great Halloween Ball. Minty is all a-fluster. Solstice is busy spraying fake cobwebs everywhere. Valevine is in charge of disorganising everyone's carefully laid plans, and Cudweed seems hungrier than ever and oddly preoccupied with 'fresh brains'. In fact when Silas, Valevine's long lost brother, turns up with Samantha, the Otherhands would be well-advised to check out their guests. It's not long before wily Edgar works out that there's a preponderance of vampires and not all of them have false teeth. Just when he's about to solve the latest mystery at Otherhand Castle, the lights go out...Dedicated website on Raven Mysteries: www.ravenmysteries.co.uk

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Writer Marcus Sedgwick’s short story uses the past to illustrate how humanity is once again at a pivotal moment in time. Is now the time for a revolution? And what part will you play in making change? Features artwork by debut illustrator Daniel Ido. For young readers age 10 and up.

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Marcus Sedgwick crafts a characteristically unsettling mystery exploring teen relationships and our connection to the world around us in his gripping Barrington Stoke debut. From the multi-award-winning author of Midwinterblood and The Ghosts of Heaven comes a suspenseful, gripping tale about teen life and relationships, exploring our wavering connection to the world around us. WRATH: extreme anger or rage Cassie Cotton has always been unusual, a bit different – but this only makes her more intriguing to her classmate Fitz. Cassie can hear a noise that most people don’t notice or recognise, and she believes it’s a sound that shows the Earth is in distress, damaged by human activity that is causing climate change. When this belief leads to her being ridiculed and bullied at school, Cassie disappears. Fitz is determined to find her, but he has no idea where to start looking, or if he’ll be in time to help her…

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Saving the world isn't going very well for Elf Girl and Raven Boy. They've left Fright Forest and crossed a huge plain to the worryingly named Monster Mountains, where they find a sign telling them to Turn Back. They really shouldn't have ignored it! It's not the strange wailing noises they hear in the dark, or the gigantic yeti who wants to eat them for breakfast that they find alarming, so much as the crazy wizard, Jeremy, who seems intent on adding Elf Girl and Raven Boy, not to mention Rat, to his collection of all too life-like stone statues.

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Meet the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand.Edgar is alarmed when he sees a nasty looking black tail slinking under the castle walls. But his warnings to the inhabitants of the castle go unheeded: Lord Valevine Otherhand is too busy trying to invent the unthinkable and discover the unknowable; his wife, Minty, is too absorbed in her latest obsession - baking; and ten-year-old Cudweed is running riot with his infernal pet monkey. Only Solstice, the black-haired, poetry-writing Otherhand daughter, seems to pay any attention. As the lower storeys of the castle begin mysteriously to flood, and kitchen maids continue to go missing, the family come ever closer to the owner of the black tail...Dedicated website on Raven Mysteries: www.ravenmysteries.co.uk

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A grim discovery brings disturbing revelations in this chilling ghost story from the late Marcus Sedgwick. A grim discovery brings disturbing revelations in this chilling ghost story from the late Marcus Sedgwick. While mucking about in the ruins of an old farm while on holiday in Yorkshire, James hears strange laughter echoing around the walls. The ghost of a young girl appears to him and urges James to follow her but at first he’s too afraid. When she appears again, this time James follows. But will he be able to face the terrible truth she reveals …?

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Eep ... The final adventure awaits!Nothing can stand in the way of Elf Girl and Raven Boy saving the world... Well, almost nothing. Just a sea monster, a dragon, and rivers of molten lava. Not to mention some seriously Creepy Caves. Defeating the Goblin King might be harder than they thought. The sixth laugh-out-loud adventure from BLUE PETER BOOK AWARD-shortlisted Marcus Sedgwick and Pete Williamson.

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Eep . . . the adventure begins!Raven Boy has short black spiky hair, amazing night vision and can talk to animals. Elf Girl is light of foot, sharp of mind and . . . elfish all over. She hadn't expected to meet Raven Boy; it's not that often someone falls out of the trees and squashes your home flat like Raven Boy did. Before they know it they are plunged into some very strange, creepy, altogether spooky and hilarious adventures as they save their world from trolls, ogres, witches and things that slither and slide in the fiendish forest.From the creators of the Blue Peter award-winning Funniest Book with Pictures RAVEN MYSTERIES team, this is the first in a humourous and magical adventure series, RAVEN BOY AND ELF GIRL, perfect for readers of 8+.

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A lyrical and dreamlike story of two brothers in conflict amidst the devastation of WWII London.Harry Black wakes in hospital to learn that his brother Ellis has almost certainly been killed by a V2 rocket falling during a German air raid on London. In a state of wounded delirium, Harry’s mind begins to blur the distinctions between the reality of the war-torn city, the fiction of his unpublished sci-fi novel and the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Driven by visions of Ellis still alive and a sense of poetic inevitability, Harry discharges himself from hospital and begins a search for his brother that will lead him deep into the city’s Underworld...

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