Julia Golding has delivered in this the first in the ‘Companions Quartet’ an absolutely gripping story of good and evil. It’s a wonderful adventure story set in the modern day and yet in a magical and mythical world full of very believable mythological creatures and many abnormal happenings. The protagonist in the story, Connie, discovers she can talk to these creatures and it becomes clear that she must harness this immense power to defeat evil.
It’s totally absorbing and unputdownable and having read it you’ll be desperate to read the next one, Gorgon’s Gaze, which is just as good, if not better. Number three in the series is Mines of the Minotaur. Whether you’ve read fantasy fiction before or not this series is an absolute must for everyone young and old. Be sure to check out the latest new title in the series The Chimera's Curse: Companion's Quartet: Bk. 4.
When Connie is sent to live with her aunt, she knows it's going to be one more place where she doesn't fit in. But soon she realises how wrong she is. The seaside town is full of adults and children who have strange links to creatures. It's the heart of the secret Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures, a group of people sworn to ensure that mythical beasts are kept safe. Normally the creatures and their chosen humans work in harmony. But something abnormal is happening here. The Sirens, who for generations have kept their deadly song to themselves, are once again luring humans to their deaths. It doesn't take long for Connie to realise that the victims are oil workers. The Sirens are fed-up with their seas being polluted, but should the Society protect the Sirens or the oil industry? Connie doesn't think she has a role to play, until it becomes clear that she's a Universal - the first person in over a century who can communicate with every type of beast on earth and in the air. Her power is immense. It corrupted the previous Universal...and now he's back. And he'll use any means he can - from violence to the terrifying Storm Giants - to turn Connie to the dark side.
Julia Golding is the author of over thirty books for children and young adults. Her stories are set all over the world (and in some new worlds too) and span the centuries.
In her first year as a published author, she won the Nestlé Children’s Book Prize (Gold Award), was shortlisted for the Costa Children’s Book Award, longlisted for the prestigious Carnegie Medal, and won the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize. In the US, Secret of the Sirens won the honor book medal of the Green Earth Book Award. Dragonfly won the 2012 Beehive Book Award, Young Adult Division, given by the Children's Literature Association of Utah and voted on by readers in schools and public libraries.
She has sold over half a million books worldwide and they are translated into more than fifteen languages.
Julia Golding lives in Oxford with her husband and three children.
Click here to read a Q&A with the author from top children's publisher Egmont.
