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Retellings
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Fierce Fearless & Free“Kandek didn’t want to be eaten by a werewolf. But she didn’t have a knife to slice her way out of the sack. She would have to cut herself free using words… “ The collection of myths and legends that young readers, parents, teachers and librarians most often mention to me is Girls Goddesses & Giants. So, we decided to do another one! … |
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The Legend of the First UnicornI am so excited about this book! It’s a retelling of an old Travellers’ tale, about the creation of the first unicorn, about why the unicorn is Scotland’s national animal, and about why there are so many unicorn statues in Scotland. And best of all, it’s illustrated by the wonderful Nataša Ilinčić. Our unicorn is not a delicate fluffy pretty unicorn, this is a strong muscular unicorn, who gets into fights!… |
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The Treasure of the Loch Ness Monster“‘A huge green head shot up from the depths of Loch Ness and crashed into the bottom of the boat. The wooden boat flew into the air. It splintered and split and broke apart…’” She is Scotland’s most famous monster, but what’s her story? When I started researching this book, I wanted to go past the question of whether or not Nessie exists, and find some authentic local folklore. I wanted to tell a story that feels like it might be true, a story that feels like it could have been told by people long ago beside the loch… |
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Dragon’s Hoard“I am a hero,” said Bodvar, “with a hero’s sword, and there is a monster outside. If I hide inside all night, I’ll never be a true hero. This is what I’m for…” Vikings! Dragons! Zombies! Polar Bears! This is a collection of Viking stories, but possibly not the Viking stories you know. Loki and Odin make guest appearances, but this book is about Viking warriors and Viking sailors rather than Viking gods. |
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Horse of Fire“The hero ordered the winged horse to fly nearer and nearer the fire and the fangs. Just as Pegasus was sure he was about to be roasted and eaten, Bellerophon jabbed his heavy-tipped spear at the lion’s mouth…” Any story with a horse in it has so much potential – for speed, for power, for beauty, even for magic. Lots of the adventures I write (about centaurs and about kelpies) are inspired by old myths, legends and folktales about horses, so I’ve gathered my favourite horse stories into this collection. |
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The Secret of the Kelpie“Every loch in Scotland, however beautiful, has its dark cold depths. And every loch in Scotland has its kelpie. But it’s easy to forget those dangers on a sunny afternoon.” What would you do if you found a beautiful white horse on the shores of a loch? Would you clamber on for a ride? Or would you be suspicious of its wet footprints on the grass? Flora is suspicious, but can she work out the kelpie’s secret in time to save her brothers and sister from the monster from the loch? |
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The House of the Nine Doors“Once there was a boy who could run so fast that he could catch birds in flight and hares in mid-leap. He could overtake the clouds above him and win a race against the wind blowing past him.” This is a retelling of one of my favourite Irish stories, about a boy trying to round up two of every animal and bird in Ireland, in order to free his uncle Finn McCool. It helps that Cole is very fast on his feet, but the task gets much harder when he’s told to keep the animals and birds overnight in a house with nine doors (and no locks…) |
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Serpents & WerewolvesI’ve always loved stories about people who magically change shape. I love the idea of gaining the powers and strengths of an animal or bird (would you want to soar in the sky like a hawk, or run as fast as a hare?) But I also love the drama and danger of being trapped as an animal (would you want to be turned into a swan, or a dragon, with no power to change yourself back?) I love playing with both the advantages and the disadvantages of shape-shifting. |
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The Tale of Tam LinnThe story of Tam Linn, who was stolen by the Fairy Queen as a boy, and Janet, who saves him, is my favourite Scottish fairy tale. Several storylines in the Fabled Beast Chronicles were inspired by elements of this traditional tale: by the fairies’ habit of stealing human children, by Janet’s bravery and by the shapeshifting magic of the Fairy Queen, and it’s also why Helen lives in the Borders, near where Tam Linn is set… |
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Breaking the Spell“A long time ago, the most dangerous place in Scotland wasn’t the border or the mountains or the cliffs. The most dangerous place in Scotland was the edge of the forest…”
Breaking the Spell is a collection of my favourite Scottish stories, containing magic and monsters, heroines and heroes, selkies and kelpies, burning forests and shaking mountains… |
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Winter’s Tales“When the gods were young, there was no winter.”
The final of three collections of myths, legend and folklore coming out this year, this is a collection of stories about winter, seasons, snow and ice. It contains polar bears and wolves, spiders and gods, and a bunch of mistletoe you really wouldn’t want to kiss under! I had great fun finding wonderful wintery tales, and have included some of my favourite Viking and Scottish myths. But there are stories from all over the world…
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Girls, Goddesses and Giants: Tales of Heroines from Around the WorldThis is my first ever collection of myths and legends, and I’m so proud of it. I have always been slightly disappointed that so many really exciting adventure stories are about boys, so I’ve spent years searching for authentic old stories with girls who fight their own battles. And here are all my favourite heroines gathered together in one book! There is a Japanese girl who meets a sea monster…
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Little Red Riding Hood
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The Tortoise’s Gift“You can’t go,” said the animals.
“You are too small and you are far too slow.” The rains have stopped falling, so all the animals are hungry, and they don’t know how to wake the magical tree which would feed them all. Surely the brave lion or huge elephant or clever chimpanzees will save them. Why would they need the help of a small slow tortoise?
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Never Trust a Tiger“Why would you eat me? I saved you! That’s not fair!”The tiger smiled. “I don’t want to be fair. I only want to be full!”
A merchant finds a beautiful bright stripy tiger trapped in a pit, and helps the tiger out. Then the tiger tries to eat him. Is that fair? They can’t agree, so they ask lots of other animals (and plants) whether it’s fair to repay a good deed with a bad one.
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The Hungry WolfSuddenly the wolf fell backwards off the cliff into the fast river below. As he was swept away, the fluffy animal perched on the cliff top and shouted,
“I’m a lamb, I am. I’m a lamb, you silly wolf, and you will never eat me!” This is a story about a hungry wolf and a clever lamb, built from many of my favourite trickster tales about small weak edible animals escaping from the jaws of bigger stronger dafter predators.
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Masha and the BearThe big bear led the little girl along a path in the forest. Masha said, “But this is a cave. This isn’t my home!”
“No,” laughed the bear. “This is MY home!” A little girl in the forest is tricked and trapped by a big furry animal. But this isn’t Red Riding Hood. Masha meets a bear not a wolf, and the bear doesn’t want to eat Masha, he wants her to cook and clean for him.
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The Mountain’s Blood“I opened my wardrobe, and an axe fell out, just missing my toes.“Goddess of LOVE! Yuck! Why do I have to be Goddess of LOVE? I’ll never get to use my axe when I’m just Goddess of Love.”
Being the Sumerian Goddess of Love doesn’t give Inanna much opportunity to use the weapons in her wardrobe. But then she discovers a mountain which is poisoning the land, which won’t stop growing, and which refuses to bow down to her. None of the other gods have the courage to face it. Can Inanna defeat the mountain?I wrote this book partly because I was so delighted to find an ancient myth with a real kick-ass heroine…
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Tam O Shanter
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