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Rachel Ward, author of the NUMBERS series, grew up in Bookham, Surrey. After school she studied Geography at Durham University and, combined working for a number of local authorities with raising a family. She began writing in her 30's, starting out with short stories. One of these short stories formed the basis of the idea for NUMBERS. Rachel later came to the attention of Chicken House at a local writers' surgery and was signed to Chicken House as a result.
Her debut novel, NUMBERS, was the winner of Winner of the Flemish Children and Youth Literature Prize 2011 and the Angus Book Awards 2010, and was shortlisted for the prestigious Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2009 and the Branford Boase Award 2010.
The sequel to NUMBERS, entitled NUMBERS 2: THE CHAOS, was released in June 2010 and the third and final book in the series, NUMBERS 3: INFINITY was released in June 2011.
NUMBERS is currently in production as a film, and is being produced by the same film-makers who gave us This is England '86 and Four Lions.
Ward’s gritty YA thriller, THE DROWNING was published in May 2013. The second in the series, WATER BORN, will be published in August.
Brilliant swimmer Nic is haunted by the body of a boy she sees under the water when she is training. Who can he be and why does no-one else see him? As more and more strange things all connected to water – including the deaths of several girls of Nic’s age - Nic’s father gets more and more terrified about its dangers. To find out why, Nic begins to probe her past – and his. The terrible secret is uncovered but not before the evil at its heart has caused yet more deaths. Rachel Ward pulls no punches in this dark-hearted and tense thriller.. This is the second book in the dark psychological series that began with The Drowning, with the action taking place one generation later. A Piece of Passion for Water Born by Barry Cunningham, Publisher, Chicken House If you put a toe in the water with THE DROWNING then Rachel Ward’s stunning sequel takes what happens next on to new depths of scary emotion! More intense, more about relationships and with an even more disturbing evil in the water, this is a thriller that will keep you on the beach and out of the pool all year long! But more importantly I love the way Rachel makes those voices in your head come alive – you know, the ones that we think are the ‘real us’, comforting, commenting and encouraging. But can you trust what they are saying? We asked some of our readers to review the first book in this sequence, The Drowning....here's a taster....'I finished this book the day I got it partly because it captured my imagination and partly because I had real empathy for each one of the characters.....I absolutely love this book and I really think this is a great book for adults as well as children.' Read more reviews here.
May 2013 Book of the Month From the bestselling author of Numbers, comes the first in a new series of chilling ya/teen thrillers. A dark pyschological drama, with a supernatural twist, of jealousy, love and redemption...exploring the issues of teen identity and being true to yourself. Carl wakes up next to his drowned brother. What happened in the water? He can't remember. He sets out to discover the truth, but when the memories begin to flood back, he wishes he hadn't. And when he glimpses A beautiful girl he thinks he recognises, she runs away. Suddenly he knows he must find her - because together they must face the truth before it drowns them. This will stick in your mind long after you've read the last page. A Piece of Passion from the Publisher Barry Cunningham Black water does it for me. Not seeing the bottom but sensing movement below, the reeds pulling at your feet. And then there’s the power of water, suddenly transforming our towns and villages. What if something or someone began to direct that power for a dark purpose? Whatever you do, don’t read Rachel Ward’s brilliant new thriller in the bath – especially if you’ve got a dripping tap… In addition to our Lovereading expert opinion for The Drowning a small number of teenagers were lucky enough to be invited to review this title. Here's a taster....'I finished this book the day I got it partly because it captured my imagination and partly because I had real empathy for each one of the characters.....I absolutely love this book and I really think this is a great book for adults as well as children.' Scroll down to read more reviews.....
A gripping thriller set in a not too distant future tells of Adam’s secret and his dreaded power – he can tell the date of people’s death. As the waters rise and conditions in the countryside worsen, Adam and his Nan are forced to return to London. Here Adam makes the grim discovery that everyone has the same death date. What is going to happen? And what can Adam do about it?
A tough, teenage novel about being different. Jem’s life has been hard from the beginning and it is not made any easier by her dangerous secret; every time she looks into a person’s eyes, she sees the date on which they’ll die. Jem’s struggle with life and through it paints a dark and at times bleak picture but, after falling in love with Spider everything changes and the conclusion is one of optimism showing that wayward and unusual adolescent paths can lead to a life of value and happiness. A word from Barry Cunningham, the Publisher - "It’s not often that I’m absolutely gripped from the first chapter as I was with Numbers by Rachel Ward. When a big idea is so intense, important and moving that I can’t get it out of my mind... Brilliant." ...and a word from: Peter Carlton, head of WARP Films Europe (whose successes include BAFTA award winning film FOUR LIONS and hit television series THIS IS ENGLAND '86), believed right from the start that NUMBERS just had to be made into a film:'Rachel's book leaped off the page as a must for screen adaptation. A fantastic premise, brilliantly recognisable characters and a page-turning thriller set in the real contemporary London. This is a great story for teenagers and adults alike packed with thrills, tension and heart.' Shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2010
Post-Chaos 2029. Adam, Sarah and Mia are living together, struggling with the fame of seeing numbers - the dates when people will die. But something is about to tear them apart. During The Chaos, Sarah's young daughter Mia swapped her number for another. Suddenly her powerful new ability makes her a terrifying target. Everyone wants to live for ever...
Like his mother, Jem, when he looks in people's eyes, Adam can see the dates of their deaths. It's hard enough living with this terrible gift, but life is about to get tougher. Adam sees that everyone around him has the same date - January 2027. Something huge is going to happen. Something bad. But what is it? And what can he do about it?
Since her mother's death, fifteen-year-old Jem has kept a secret. When her eyes meet someone else's, a number pops into her head - the date on which they will die. Knowing that nothing lasts forever, Jem avoids relationships, but when she meets a boy called Spider, and they plan a day out together, her life takes a new twist and turn. Waiting for the London Eye, she sees everyone in the queue has the same number - something terrible is going to happen.
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