CHILDREN’S

WHICH WAY TO ANYWHERE by Cressida Cowell (Hodder £12.99, 464pp)

A new Cressida Cowell series lifts the spirits as autumn damp descends. Twins K2 and Izzabird and step-siblings Theo and Mabel are forced into an unhappily ‘ blended’ family — with a difference.

K2 has inherited ancient magic from his mother and has a rare gift: he can draw an alternative atlas of other cosmic worlds — and pinpoint the which way portal into them. when an evil alien hunter (disguised as a geography teacher) comes lookintense

ing for him, the children escape to excelsiar, a planet where The Beast kills humans for destroying all the silk trees.

A witty, rip-roaring battle of good and evil, secrets and lies, monsters and magic ensues, illustrated with Cowell’s signature black and white sketches, and underpinned by an ecological message. FAB-U-LOUS.

Age 9+

UNRAVELLER by Frances Hardinge

(Macmillan £14.99, 496pp)

A FANTASY world and special gifts are also at the heart of multi-award-winning hardinge’s new book. The clever concept is that volatile, 15-year-old Kellen can unravel curses cast by the spider-like Little Brothers.

Kellen teams up with nettle, a

girl he ‘unravelled’ from being bewitched into a heron, then discovers that someone with a grudge has vowed revenge on him, but who? Gall, a terrifying, one-eyed marsh horseman offers him a deal to survive — but can he be trusted? Can anyone?

It’s complex, twisty, with a sometimes bewilderingly large cast of characters, but the pace never flags. Age 12+

AS LONG AS THE LEMON TREES GROW by Zoulfa Katouh (Bloomsbury £12.99, 448pp)

The horrifying reality of war is the backdrop for this impressive and unflinching debut. Salama abandons her pharmacy studies to be a makeshift doctor during the war in Syria in 2011.

while bombs explode and chemical weapons burn, she loses most of her family and

promises her missing brother to help her pregnant sister-in-law escape in an illegal boat. But she’s haunted by the malevolent hallucination of Khawf (Fear) who shows her horrific images she wants to forget.

when she meets Kenan, a boy once suggested for an arranged marriage, she faces a life-changing moral dilemma in order to survive. First love, conscience, pragmatism, psychological damage and a shocking twist all collide in this touching and timely reminder of hope and human cruelty. Age 14+