posted on 15 Dec 2022

Wildsmith: Into the dark forest by Liz Flanagan

Early next year, award-winning children’s novelist, Liz Flanagan  - in conjunction with UCLan Publishing - will publish this first instalment in a new series of books aimed at 7-12 year-olds that will link fantasy, dragons, Pegasi and wildlife conservation. Wildsmith: Into the dark forest will be available from February 2023 with a second already slated for the following April.

Rowan is a young girl who enjoys her life at home in her village, safe with her mother and father - until war comes to the edges of the land and she is forced to flee with her mother while her father stays behind to defend the village.

They head for the forest where her mysterious grandfather lives with his pet wolf, Arto. Rowen doesn’t really know her grandfather and is apprehensive at first but she soon makes a firm friend of Arto and discovers that she’s in for more adventures than she expected.

The mystery of what her grandfather does is soon revealed when it turns out that he has special powers of natural healing and helps both the local animals and people when they fall ill. He is a ‘wildsmith’ - some part magic healer and some part common-sense advisor.

Then, one day, Rowen is in the forest and comes upon a seemingly helpless baby dragon who appears to have lost its mother. Looking around, Rowan is shocked to spot that rogue hunters have captured the mother dragon and are taking her off to sell for profit. She rushes back to her grandfather with the baby dragon concealed under her clothes and, along with her two new friends, Will and Cam, she decides to keep the baby dragon and names it Leaf.

Rowen, her grandfather, Cam and Will all consider the problem of the bandit hunters who are coming in increasing numbers to search for dragons to capture and sell. They all agree that something must be done but the plan they come up with is something they can't do on their own. Fortunately, grandfather Wildsmith has some unusual allies to call on - a trio of powerful witches. Between them, and with the help of the dragons themselves, they come up with a cunning plan…….

It probably won’t surprise you to know that I’m not going to reveal any more of the story at this point other than to tell you what you might already have guessed - that Rowan herself is a next-generation wildsmith.

The book is liberally illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton who won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2018 and was longlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, also in 2018. His gentle and atmospheric drawings are a perfect accompaniment for the story.

You can order your copy of the book from your local independent bookseller.

 

Terry Potter

December 2022