London, 1899. But not the London you know.
This city breathes differently — lights flicker at the edges of sight, there one moment, gone the next. In these in-between spaces, in the shadows at the margins of the everyday, something stirs. The Shadowbloods are returning; banished magical creatures, slipping slowly back through the marchlands between worlds. And two children, each feeling profoundly alone and unseen, are about to find themselves at the heart of it all.
Blood Song is a middle-grade fantasy for readers aged 9-12, exploring identity, belonging, and the courage it takes to let your true self be known.
I had the best time visiting schools with The Unfortunate Archibald Marble. The children were all bursting with creative ideas, so much so that they designed their own magical creatures for Blood Song. Jannah came up with a nine-tailed reindeer, a clever twist on the nine-tailed fox from Chinese mythology. I absolutely loved this idea and Jannah’s reindeer will make her first appearance in Book one of Blood Song (we’ll see even more of her in Book two!).
Blood Song, historical middle-grade fantasy (62,000 words), is currently seeking representation.
Extract below from Blood Song, Chapter Six: The Shadow House.