Book one of a two-part intriguing mystery series set in the perilous back alleys of Georgian London. From the multi-award-winning author of A Very Unusual Pursuit. Twelve-year-old Theophilus Grey - Philo to his friends - heads a team of linkboys who guide Londoners home through the dank eighteenth-century alleys by the light of their torches. In the process, the boys pick up useful information for their master, Garnet Hooke, who runs a spy network from his sickbed. When thieves and rogues start dropping without a scratch, rumours spread of a dangerous faery demon on the loose, and Philo begins to fear the worst. Then a sudden wave of crime sweeps the neighbourhood, and he can't help but wonder if the two are connected. With help from his new friend, Mr Paxton, Philo finds himself battling a threat far more sinister than any he's faced before. He will need to use all his cunning to uncover the truth behind the demon thief in time to save his friends. This gripping tale of spies, spells and secrets plunges the reader into a dark and perilous world where superstition clashes with the Age of Enlightenment.

With a plot that twists and turns, super-villains in training, and a child prodigy as hero, this comic-book-style novel in prose is a darkly brilliant page-turner exploring the fine line between good and evil.

The companion novel to Theophilus Grey and the Demon Thief is a fast-paced adventure as Philo graduates from petty fraud and street crime to high-level political espionage. You have too much honour for this trade, my dear. Abandon it now, while you still can. In eighteenth-century London, twelve-year-old linkboy Philo Grey has spent most of his childhood out on the streets, collecting information to sell. One of his best customers, Mr Bishop, pays him good money for intelligence about the Jacobites, who are plotting to overthrow King George. But spying on the Jacobites is a dangerous business - especially when Philo becomes the target of a rival gang of linkboys. And then there's Philo's old master, Garnet Hooke, who's never forgiven Philo for leaving him. Garnet feels so betrayed, he'll stop at nothing. Luckily, Philo has friends as well as enemies. He can trust his crew of linkboys, his team of informants, and his staunch friend Nathaniel Paxton, a surgeon with a background in espionage. Even his new friend, actress and master of disguise, Caroline Cowley, is a valuable ally. But with his enemies closing in, Philo has to ask himself: where should his loyalties really lie? And how far should they take him?

If ever a chill entered her soul, or the hope suddenly drained from her heart, she knew a bogle was to blame. Birdie McAdam, a ten-year-old orphan, is tougher than she looks. She's proud of her job as apprentice to Alfred the Bogler, a man who catches monsters for a living. Birdie lures the bogles out of their lairs with her sweet songs, and Alfred kills them before they kill her. On the mean streets of Victorian England, hunting bogles is actually less dangerous work than mudlarking for scraps along the vile river Thames. (See glossary!) Or so it seems—until the orphans of London start to disappear . . .

Noble is a knight with a heart that's true and, well, noble. With his not-so-trusty sword, Smite, he fights his way through a vicious, unfriendly landscape, sure (or at least, he thinks he's sure) that one day he'll defeat the bad guys (whoever they are) and win the heart (at least he guesses that's the idea) of a beautiful princess. Then one day Rufus comes along and turns his world upside down. Rufus has his own ideas about how to get ahead: don't fight, negotiate! Don't play by the rules! Suddenly, life is more interesting--and less painful--than ever before. But the new rules are harder to live by than the old ones, and suddenly, it appears possible that Rufus might have an ulterior motive--at the very least! With a slippery, ever twisting plot that is set inside a very confused computer, Catherine Jinks's latest novel will pull in fans of adventure, computer games, and just plain fun. Releases simultaneously in electronic book format (ISBN 978-1-60684-284-3)

When Tobias Richard Vandevelde wakes up in hospital with no memory of the night before, his horrified mother tells him that he was found unconscious. At Featherdale wildlife Park. In a dingo pen. He assumes that his two rambunctious best friends are somehow responsible, until he discovers that they're just as freaked out as he is. Then the mysterious Reuben turns up, claiming that Toby has a rare and dangerous 'condition'. Next thing he knows, Toby finds himself involved with a strange bunch of sickly insomniacs who seem convinced that he needs their help. It's not until he's kidnapped and imprisoned that he starts to believe them - and to understand what being a paranormal monster really means.

Fourteen-year-old convict Tom Clay lives in a shepherd's hut in the bush, protecting his master's sheep from wild dogs. When a vicious fellow shepherd returns to ensure there are no witnesses to his crimes, the bush-crafty Tom and his hapless mate Rowdy face a life-and-death battle to survive.

Based on a true story this is a compelling and intriguing family saga - a novel of closely guarded family secrets, public shame and private passion.The story of two fiercely strong women, mother and daughter, one determined never to explain her choices and the other equally as determined to dig deeply and unrelentingly for the truth.Charlotte Atkinson was born into a life of privilege. Raised by a widowed mother on a vast and wealthy estate near Sutton Forest, New South Wales, she and her three siblings enjoyed an idyllic early childhood in the great stone house still known today as Oldbury.But in the summer of 1836, a violent incident in the Belanglo wilderness set off a chain of events that transformed Charlotte's existence. Inexplicably, as a result of this affair, her mother was prompted to marry again - thereby surrendering her property, fortune and offspring to Charlotte's vicious and degenerate new stepfather, George Barton. His presence turned Oldbury into a...

After abandoning a life full of deception and mistrust, fifteen-year-old Cadel has finally found his niche. He has a proper home, good friends and loving parents. He's even studying at university. But he's still not safe from Prosper English, who's now a fugitive from justice and determined to smash everything that Cadel has struggled to build. When Cadel's nearest and dearest are threatened, he must launch an all-out attack on the man he once viewed as his father. Can he track down Prosper before it's too late? And what rules will he have to break in the process?

Catherine Jinks's follow-up to PAGAN'S CRUSADE is another tale with special appeal for boys -- filled with action, featuring a witty young narrator, and loaded with down-and-dirty details of medieval life. The year is 1188, and Jerusalem is in the hands of the Infidel. Upstanding Crusaders and their squires--like Lord Roland Roucy de Bram and Pagan Kidrouk--are returning to Europe, hoping to rally more knights to their cause. The sardonic young Pagan expects Lord Roland's family to be the picture of fortitude and good manners, but he is in for a rude awakening. Brutish and unfeeling, the de Bram clan cares nothing for the Crusades, or indeed for anything outside their neighborhood in France. Meanwhile, local unrest is brewing. Church authorities are duking it out with the de Brams over a group of "heretics" living nearby. And now Pagan and Roland, sworn to defend Christianity, are left to decide for themselves whom to stand by-and whom to trust.

Monsters have been infesting London's dark places for centuries, eating every child who gets too close. That's why ten-year-old Birdie McAdam works for Alfred Bunce, the bogler. With her beautiful voice and dainty looks, Birdie is the bait that draws bogles from their lairs so that Alfred can kill them.One life-changing day, Alfred and Birdie are approached by two very different women. Sarah Pickles runs a local gang of pickpockets, three of whom have disappeared. Edith Eames is an educated lady who's studying the mythical beasts of English folklore. Both of them threaten the only life Birdie's ever known.But Birdie soon realises she needs Miss Eames's help, to save her master, defeat Sarah Pickles, and vanquish an altogether nastier villain.Catherine Jinks, one of Australia's most inventive writers, has created a fast-paced and enthralling adventure story with edge-of-your-seat excitement and chills.

Now that the Axis Institute for World Domination has been blown up; the founder, Dr. Phineas Darkkon, has died; and Prosper English (who enrolled Cadel in the first place) is in jail for myriad offenses, Cadel Piggott has round-the-clock surveillance so he'll be safe until he testifies against Prosper English. But nobody seems to want Cadel. Not Fiona, his social worker; not Saul Greeniaus, the detective assigned to protect him.     When he is approached by the head of Genius Squad--a group formed to investigate GenoME, one of Darkkon's pet projects--Cadel is dubious Genius Squad can offer him a real home and all the technology his heart desires. But why can't he bring himself to tell Saul what the group is really up to? And how can Genius Squad protect Cadel once Prosper English breaks out of jail?

Meg lives alone: a little place in the bush outside town. A perfect place to hide. That's one of the reasons she offers to shelter Nerine, who's escaping a violent ex. The other is that Meg knows what it's like to live with an abusive partner. Nerine is jumpy and her two little girls are frightened. It tells Meg all she needs to know where they've come from, and she's not all that surprised when Nerine asks her to get hold of a gun. But she knows it's unnecessary. They're safe now.Then she starts to wonder about some little things. A disturbed flyscreen. A tune playing on her windchimes. Has Nerine's ex tracked them down? Has Meg's husband turned up to torment her some more? By the time she finds out, it'll be too late to do anything but run for her life.Catherine Jinks' books for adults, young adults and children have been published in a dozen countries and have won numerous awards, including a Victorian Premier's Literary Award and...

The road to Broken Hill has never been so scary: a compulsive read from one of Australia's finest writers.

Allie Gebhardt thought sharing a room with her younger brother Bethan was bad enough, but sharing a room with a ghost proves to be down right frightful. In this deliciously spooky tale, Allie’s family is haunted by Eglantine Higgins, the ghost of a young girl who used to live in their house. After mysterious writings appear on the walls of Bethan’s room, Bethan moves in with his older sister, much to her dismay. Irritated by her younger brother, Allie becomes determined to get rid of the unwanted guest in Bethan’s room. This suspenseful tale combines mystery, cleverness, and a little bit of humor to create a frightfully fun ghost story for younger readers.