Starminster: New for 2024, a thrilling fantasy adventure story for kids aged 8+ (Starminster, Book 1)

Shortlisted for Foyles Book of the Year 2024 Take flight on this beautifully-written, epic and soaring new adventure, perfect for fans of Abi Elphinstone, Aisling Fowler, A. F. Steadman and Pari Thompson. Astrid has lived in the rhubarb shed her whole life. The outside world is dangerous, Mama explains; she will understand when she’s older, but she cannot set foot beyond the door. Astrid longs to see the world; to meet other children; to live in the farmhouse with Mama. But what she longs for most of all is to see the stars. Then one night, a stranger unlocks the shed: a stranger with wings. She has come to take Astrid to a secret city in the sky called London Overhead, far above the highest peak of the Shard. For Astrid, like her, is a Librae – and will soon grow wings of her own . . . Astrid is swept into a breathtaking and magical world of new friendships, sweeping adventures and unimaginable discoveries at the ancient, beautiful school for Librae students: Starminster. But quickly she learns that all is not well in the glimmering city. And when rumours abound of missing children in London Underfoot, she begins to realise that Mama may have been right about the dangers waiting for Astrid all along . . . The final action-packed chapters will leave the reader on the edge of their seat, eagerly anticipating the next book in the series. The social dynamics and challenges Astrid faces in Starminster are a reflexion of real-world issues, making this children's fiction both entertaining and thought-provoking. For fans of Abi Elphinstone (Ember Spark and the Frost Phoenix), and Katherine Rundell (The Explorer). HarperCollins Children's 2024