"This Lake District-set adventure tingles with magic, mystery and sorcerer’s spells as it explores family bonds, the power of friendship, and facing fears"
March 2022 Debut of the Month
Radiant with otherworldly magic and the real-world beauty of the Lake District, Alex Mullarky's The Sky Beneath the Stone debut sees a relatable girl face her biggest fears as she embarks on a quest to free her younger sibling from a sorcerer’s spell.
Thirteen-year-old Ivy has an adventurer’s spirit, but since getting lost a year ago, the familiar lakes and mountains she loves now felt “like strangers to her…The fells she had once seen as gentle and rolling were now uncertain and menacing, a landscape waiting to swallow her whole”.
Then, when Ivy’s little brother Callum goes missing, Grendel the dog leads her to a mysterious hole in the wall, where she sees Callum transform into a kestrel. Wracked with worry, Ivy hears a woman’s voice in a shell: “Only you can find your brother. Come through the wall. Seek out Long Meg”.
Ivy’s anxiety is sensitively evoked, and palpable, but, armed with her map, she ventures beyond the wall, into the enchanted realm of Underfell. Though the landscape resembles places she knows, Ivy immediately senses a difference. Echoing Dorothy’s feelings about Kansas, she remarks, “I don’t think we’re in Cumbria at all”.
Beyond the wall, Ivy finds a kingdom of fairy magic and a friend in the form of Kit, a boy who’s lost his own brother. Together they embark on a captivating, folklore-infused quest to find both their siblings, with the Ordnance Survey grid references opening each chapter adding an extra element of immersive adventure – readers might be inspired to plot out the route and follow it during trips to the Lakes.
Thirteen-year-old Ivy North is an adventurer. She can pitch a tent in four minutes flat, knows the local landscape like the back of her hand, and she's an expert map reader. There's just one problem. She's afraid to go outside. But when her little brother is transformed into a kestrel by a powerful sorcerer, Ivy is the only one who can rescue him.
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Thirteen-year-old Ivy North is an adventurer. She can pitch a tent in four minutes flat, knows the local landscape like the back of her hand, and she's an expert map reader.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed The Sky Beneath the Stone and determined it is suitable for children aged 9-12 years old
The Sky Beneath the Stone features in the following genres: Adventure Stories, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Debuts of the Month, Recommendations, Fantasy / Magical, Featured Books for 11+ readers, Featured Books for 9+ readers
Paperback. £7.19, down from the £7.99 cover price. In Stock.
The Sky Beneath the Stone was written by Alex Mullarky and published by Floris Books
The Sky Beneath the Stone has 280 pages
Yes it is part of Kelpies series
£7.19, reduced from £7.99. In Stock.
