The Book of Dust Volume One: La Belle Sauvage

Philip Pullman, David Fickling. Out now

Pullman’s fans have been champing at the bit for this first part of his new trilogy. Set 10 years before Northern Lights, he describes it as an “equel”, and this gorgeously imagined fantasy is every bit as bewitching as its smash hit predecessors. Returning to the world where witches are real and humans come with their own animal soul – daemons – our hero is elevenyear-old Malcolm. With the dark forces of an authoritarian regime on the rise, he’s tasked with rescuing baby future heroine Lyra, from both an apocalyptic flood and those who wish her harm. Bold and brilliant. DEIRDRE O’BRIEN