The Clockwork Conspiracy is shortlisted for the Independent Book Awards!

I’m utterly delighted that my debut middle grade novel as a solo author, The Clockwork Conspiracy, has been shortlisted for the Independent Book Awards 2024!

It’s such an honour to be selected for this shortlist alongside such incredibly talented authors, whose work is blisteringly adventurous and represents such an incredible variety of storytelling. These awards are chosen by booksellers at independent bookshops across the UK, and I feel ever so indebted to them for the warm and generous reception they have given The Clockwork Conspiracy, and for their incredible tireless efforts to get books like these into the hands of readers all over the country.

You can read more about the awards at the Books Are My Bag website - the winners will be announced later this year.

Pre-order a personalised copy of 'The Clockwork Conspiracy'

The lovely folk at West End Land Books in North London are taking pre-orders for signed and personalised copies of my new book, The Clockwork Conspiracy.

If you’d like to grab yourself a copy, or to order one as a gift, visit their website here. When you order, you’ll be able to specify the dedication you’d like me to write in the front of the book. I’ll be dropping by the bookshop before the end of the month to sign every copy and make sure they get sent out on publication day - February 1st.

I wrote about time for Fevered Sleep

A long time ago I had the privilege of working for the wonderful theatre company Fevered Sleep, who make beautiful stage experiences for children and families. They are running a project about time at the moment, and they were kind enough to ask me to make a contribution on the subject to their website.

I was delighted to be asked, and shared some of my experiences discovering a new understanding of time as I came to write The Clockwork Conspiracy. My piece is called Grandfather Clock and you can read it at the link below. You can also listen to me read it - I recorded an audio version for them as well.

My first solo book 'The Clockwork Conspiracy' goes to Bloomsbury!

I am delighted that my first solo fiction project will be published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books.

The Clockwork Conspiracy is the first novel in a new series for middle grade readers about aspiring inventor Isaac Turner, who lives with his dad, the chief horologist in charge of Big Ben. When Isaac’s father vanishes from the belfry on the night the clocks go back, leaving behind only a smashed pocket watch and a cryptic message, Isaac determines to find him. Hunting a trail of clues through London’s landmarks, Isaac uncovers a sinister plot in the gears of government and must race against time to save his father – and time itself.

I have worked on this book for a long time alongside Adventures on Trains, ever since the idea first struck me on a tour of Big Ben with my dad. I put in everything that 10-year-old me would have devoured: a locked-room mystery, rooftop chases, codes to crack and clues to solve, all set in a fascinating real place that’s crammed with weird and exciting facts about the amazing world around us.

Bloomsbury have shown tremendous faith in this new series and I couldn’t be happier to be joining their starried ranks of brilliant authors. It will be a major new release for them in Spring 2024 - which I know is a long way away! But I am very excited to begin sharing more about this story with you over the months to come.

The news of Bloomsbury’s acquisition was first reported in The Bookseller, and you can read the full story here.

The Highland Falcon Thief wins the FCBG Children's Book Award!

I was thrilled to discover that The Highland Falcon Thief has been named Best Book for Younger Readers by the Federation of Children’s Book Groups!

This fantastic award is voted for entirely by groups of young readers across the country. It is an incredibly special award to be nominated for, and to win it is a dream come true.

A great deal of thought and effort goes into the selection of the titles by the FCBG, who work so tirelessly with teachers and libraries to promote reading across the country. It’s a real honour to win this award, and though the ceremony was sadly cancelled due to a rail strike (how ironic!), we look forward to meeting some of the voters and receiving the award in person at an event later this year.

Prix Enfantaisie - Le vol du Highland Falcon

The French translation of The Highland Falcon Thief has won Switzerland’s prestigious Prix Enfantaisie 2022!

Mystéres Sur Les Rails is translated into French by Lilas Nord and published by Nathan, and we are tremendously grateful for their incredible work. I’m told it’s quite a rarity for this award to be presented to a book in translation, which just goes to show what a brilliant job Lilas and Nathan have done.

Over four thousand and eight hundred children in Switzerland voted for this award, which means so much to me and Maya - reader-selected awards are particularly special, because it means our story has been enjoyed by so many young people. And as a children’s author, that’s the thing I always want most.

The first three instalments of Mystéres Sur Les Rails are currently available in French, with more to follow soon. Bon voyage!

The Highland Falcon Thief wins Belgium's Young Jury Prize!

Maya and I were thrilled to learn that De Juwelen Dief (The Highland Falcon Thief), translated by Marce Noordenbos and published by De Fontein has been voted the best children's book by reading groups of 10-12 year-olds winning Belgium's Young Jury Prize in its category!

Winning any award is special, but especially so when it is voted for by readers, like this one. It means a great deal to both of us that our books are being discovered by readers worldwide.

The Reading Jury is the largest young reading club in Flanders and Brussels. No fewer than 11,690 children and young people between the ages of 4 and 18 read and voted for their favourite books in the past year.

Each year, from September to April, children and young people read and discuss six or eight books and choose their winners. In each of the seven age categories, the book with the most votes wins. The children and young readers come together in groups in schools and libraries, or they can vote as an internet jury member.  You can learn more about it here.

I was lucky enough to be able to collect the Belgian award in person from Antwerp’s beautiful bookshop De Groene Waterman, where I signed editions of the first three books in the series, all available now in Belgium.

I'm part of the COP26 climate summit!

Me and M. G. Leonard are delighted to have been invited by Network Rail to take part in the COP26 Climate Summit in Glasgow this November, taking a ride on a hydrogen-powered train to showcase the environmental benefits of travelling by rail.

On Thursday 11th November we’ll we boarding the new HydroFLEX train at Glasgow Central Station, along with a class of Glasgow schoolchildren, and running a creative workshop with them about the future of train travel.

The HydroFLEX is a refurbished Class 319001 which has been converted to run on both electricity and hydrogen fuel cells. Green hydrogen produces no emissions harmful to the environment, meaning the train is far cleaner than alternative diesel-powered locomotives. With less than half of the UK’s rail network electrified, trains like the HydroFLEX are a fantastic way to reduce emissions from the rail network on routes without electrified lines. The train has been developed by Porterbrook in partnership with the University of Birmingham, with support from the UK government via InnovateUK.

We’re particularly excited about this event because our next book, Sabotage on the Solar Express, features a train powered by hydrogen fuel cells and solar panels. We never dreamed when writing it that we’d get to experience a hydrogen-powered train up close ourselves, so this is a dream come true.

Trains are by far the greenest form of public transport, and I hope through clever innovations like the HydroFLEX, and through investment in the UK’s rail infrastructure, like the further electrification of our lines, that we can reduce emissions for our future travels.

My new book, Epic Adventures, arrives February 2022!

I’m thrilled to announce my incredible new book project for chuffer-nutters and travel fans everywhere! Epic Adventures: Explore the World in 12 Amazing Train Journeys will be steaming into bookshops in February 2022 - and is available to pre-order now!

Epic Adventures is a fully-illustrated non-fiction hardback extravaganza, giving readers a whistle-stop tour of the world’s 12 most fascinating railway journeys, brought to life in gorgeous technicolour by the immensely talented illustrator Sam Brewster. Perfect for young readers and curious adults alike, this book is packed with details of the people and places woven together by the iron ribbons of these incredible journeys. Come with us on a round-the-world trip to discover the delights, dangers and secret histories of railways across the globe. Much on ekiben as your Japanese bullet train shakes cherry blossom from trees beside ancient temples - and board the iron-clad war trains of the Russian Revolution as they rumble past woolly mammoths buried in the Siberian tundra.

There are plenty of books out there about the history of trains, and how trains work, but I could never find a book that explained what I find most interesting about railways - where they go, and why. I’m delighted to have partnered with Kingfisher to produce this book - and I can’t wait for youh to see the jaw-dropping beauty of Sam Brewster’s illustrations.

The Highland Falcon Thief wins Children's Fiction Book of the Year!

I can’t quite believe it, but The Highland Falcon Thief has scooped the British Book Awards’ prize for Children’s Fiction Book of the Year!

Winning this award is the most incredible honour. It’s the most prestigious award in the publishing industry, and for my very first novel to be recognised this way is truly something incredible. The Nibbies are considered the Oscars of the book world, and it brings me so much joy to know that mine and Maya’s story has been embraced so wholeheartedly by the industry, and taken to heart by readers in such a difficult year.

Maya and I were quite emotional when we heard the news, and through the magic of video you can watch the moment for yourselves below. We’re the first award of the night, about seven minutes in. Sir Lenny Henry himself announced the result.

The Highland Falcon Thief nominated at the Nibbies!

I’m over the moon to learn that my first book, The Highland Falcon Thief, has been nominated in the Children’s Fiction category at this year’s British Book Awards!

Presented by The Bookseller, the British Book Awards are also known as the Nibbies, and are widely regarded in the industry as ‘the Oscars of books’. So it’s a true honour and a privilege to be nominated.

The Highland Falcon Thief was published in February 2020, and has been nominated in the category alongside books by Tom Fletcher, Serena Patel, J. K. Rowling, Katie & Kevin Tsang, and David Walliams. Being nominated alongside such incredible heavyweights means the absolute world.

See the full list of nominees here.

A virtual ceremony to announce the winner will be held on May 13th.

Cover reveal for Danger at Dead Man's Pass!

I’m delighted to reveal the cover for the fourth instalment in the Adventures on Trains series, Danger at Dead Man’s Pass!

This cover could be my favourite yet! As ever, it’s designed by the incomparable Elisa Paganelli, who has really outdone herself this time, brilliantly conjuring the Brockenbahn, a famous narrow gauge steam railway that climbs to the peak of the Brocken mountain in Germany, which sits at the heart of our story.

Hal and Uncle Nat answer a cry for help from an old friend, and must take a railway adventure across Europe, going undercover to investigate an old family curse in the Harz Mountains, where nothing is what it seems.

We’re really excited about this one. It steams into bookshops in September 2021, but is available to pre-order now!

Title reveal for 'Adventures on Trains' book 4!

I’m delighted to reveal the title for the next instalment in the bestselling Adventures on Trains series will be: "‘Danger at Dead Man’s Pass”!

Steaming into UK bookshops in September 2021, this fourth adventure will see Hal and his Uncle Nat travelling by train deep into the heart of Germany to come to the aid of an old friend. In the foothills of the Harz mountains, a strange figure has been spotted on the railway line - and tales of an an old family curse could be behind it. It’s up to Hal and his talent for drawing to get to the bottom of the mystery.

This spooky adventure comes just in time for Halloween, and I can’t wait to tell you more about it later this year.

'The Highland Falcon Thief' is the Indie Book of the Month!

I’m delighted to announce that ‘The Highland Falcon Thief’ has been selected as the December Children’s Book of the Month. As bookshops open their doors once more now that lockdown has lifted here in England, signed and stickered copies are making their way to wonderful independent bookshops all over the UK. It was an honour to win the Books Are My Bag Readers’ Award earlier this autumn, and to have brilliant independent booksellers championing our book across the country fills my heart with joy.

If you see a copy of The Highland Falcon Thief out in the wild with a Book of the Month sticker on it, be sure to get in touch. It’s lovely to see our books out in the world.

Two new Adventures on Trains are coming!

This week I’m delighted to announce there will be a fifth and sixth book in the award-winning Adventures on Trains series!

The wonderful team at Macmillan have thrown their weight behind Harrison’s adventures, and will be publishing both the new titles in 2022. It’s been wonderful to work with a publishing team who have supported our series every step of the way.

Me and Maya are incredibly excited, and can’t wait to start work on these brand new adventures.

They will follow hot on the heels of Murder on the Safari Star, which steams into bookshops in February 2021, and a fourth adventure due to arrive in autumn 2021, in which Hal and Uncle Nat encounter a spooky mystery on a Germany mountain railway. The new fifth and sixth titles are scheduled to be published in Spring and Autumn of 2022 respectively.

'The Highland Falcon Thief' wins Books Are My Bag Readers Award!

I’m overjoyed to announce that my debut novel for young readers, ‘The Highland Falcon Thief’, has won the Books Are My Bag Readers’ Award for Children’s Fiction!

These awards are nominated by independent booksellers all over the country, and voted for by readers, so to win is so touching. In the year of my debut, the coronavirus pandemic has curtailed most of my opportunities to go out into the world as an author and connect with readers and booksellers. Sometimes it has all felt a little imaginary. So to win this award is really touching. Maya and I are over the moon.

Thank you to everyone who voted for us, and to all the amazing booksellers who championed our story, sharing it with readers everywhere. We love you.

Cover reveal for Murder on the Safari Star!

I’m delighted to reveal Elisa Paganelli’s incredible cover for our third Adventures On Trains title, Murder on the Safari Star!

Published in the UK in February 2021, this story will be Hal’s most dangerous adventure yet, as he becomes entangled with the mystery of a passenger found dead inside a locked compartment on the famous Safari Star - a cross-country rail safari from Pretoria to Victoria Falls.

Packed as ever with clues to solve, sweeping landscapes and a cast of exciting characters, this adventure is my favourite yet - and I can’t wait for you to discover the fun. I’m thrilled to bits with this amazing cover, which gives you a sense of the wonder, excitement and adrenaline we’ve tried to pack into this book.

You can pre-order your copy now from Waterstones and most independent bookshops.

Kidnap on the California Comet is out now!

Kidnap on the California Comet steamed into UK bookshops on September 3rd and we have been bowled over by everyone’s response!

In its first week on sale, our beloved second book in the ‘Adventures on Trains’ series reached number 12 in the Children’s and YA fiction chart, selling more copies than The Highland Falcon Thief in its first week. Maya and I are overjoyed.

‘Kidnap on the California Comet’ follows Hal and Uncle Nat to America, where a transcontinental adventure from Chicago to San Francisco goes awry when the daughter of a billionaire goes missing. It’s up to Hal and his new friends Hadley and Mason to solve the mystery, and save Marianne before the end of the line.

Waterstones and many independent bookshops still have some signed copies available, so be sure to snap them up quickly if you want to get your hands on one. And don’t forget - if you’ve enjoyed reading any of our books, please give us a review wherever you bought it from - it really makes a difference.

Title revealed for the third Adventures on Trains book!

I’m thrilled to announce that the title for Hal and Uncle Nat’s next adventure will be Murder on the Safari Star!

Steaming into bookshops across the UK in February 2021, the third instalment in the bestselling Adventures on Trains series will take Harrison further from home than ever before, as he travels with his uncle to South Africa, for a luxurious safari travelling by rail from Pretoria, through Zimbabwe, to the breathtaking Victoria Falls.

Hoping to relax after their escapades in America on board the California Comet, and draw some of Africa’s incredible wildlife from the train, Hal quickly finds himself immersed in a deadly plot, where nothing is as it seems. With new companions to befriend, new passengers to suspect, and new clues to solve, Hal embarks on his most dangerous adventure yet. We can’t wait to share it with you.

Maya and I are fizzing with excitement to take Hal and his readers to a brilliant new destination, and look forward to sharing more details with you as soon as we can.

As ever, for more information about the Adventures on Trains books, including news, resources, and information on events and how to book school visits, please visit adventuresontrains.com

Cover reveal for Kidnap on the California Comet!

I’m over the moon to reveal Elisa Paganelli’s breathtaking cover for the second Adventures On Trains title, Kidnap on the California Comet!

Inspired by the book’s transamerican setting, the iconic streamlined Amtrak Vistadome carriages, and with a glorious art-deco twist, this blue and gold marvel is a thing of beauty. I can’t stop gazing at it in wonder.

M. G. Leonard and I can’t wait to welcome you on Hal and Uncle Nat’s second adventure, which takes them to the United States, where they ride the breathtaking California Comet right across America, from Chicago to San Francisco. Along the way, Hal makes some new friends, but when one of them goes missing, he finds himself thrust into a dangerous new adventure full of surprises.

Kidnap on the California Comet is rolling into UK bookshops from 3rd September 2020. But you can already pre-order your special signed copy from our friends at Waterstones. Bon voyage!