Simmons, Jo – The Bell Bookshop

The reluctant vampire queen finds her fangs

Emma — Thu, 11 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The perfect lighthearted summer read for 11 – 14 year olds

BOOK 1 SHORTLISTED FOR THE LAUGH OUT LOUD BOOK AWARDS 2024!

Mo Merrydrew. Reluctant Vampire Queen. A human leader of vampires. Who would have thought it? Mo had always dreamed of being a leader, but never thought she’d be chosen to be the Vampire Queen of Great Britain. But Mo is in a slump – things haven’t been going so well. Yes, the vampires she rules over have pledged their allegiance to her, and yes, there now seems to be a relative harmony between humans and vampires, but she’s also managed to blow up the Vampire King himself, and lose her gorgeous boyfriend Luca. Frankly all she wants to do right now is sit on the sofa and eat cheesy puffs. She’s had enough of being Vampire Queen.
But when a high-profile celebrity is apparently attacked by a vampire, and the country is once again buzzing with rumours about vampires on the prowl, Mo is going to have to summon all her queenly strength to find a way to bring about a lasting peace between vampires and humans. If vegans can give up dairy, can’t vampires ditch the blood? Looks like Mo’s reign as Vampire Queen is far from over …

Geek Girl meets Buffy in a brilliantly funny new teen series from bestselling author Jo Simmons

The day of the jackdaw

Emma — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Village newcomer Alex must vanquish a vicious feathered foe to finally feel at home in this madcap caper from comedy genius and bestselling author Jo Simmons.

Alex is not happy that his family are moving to the village of Noggings. He’s even less happy when he discovers that Noggings is under siege from Graham, a vicious jackdaw that has been terrorising the locals, dive-bombing kids in the school playground and targeting dog walkers and picnickers. As he tries to settle in to his new home, can Alex find a way to dodge the flapping fiend and learn what’s really behind these angry avian attacks?

The reluctant vampire queen bites back

Emma — Thu, 13 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Meet Mo Merrydrew – independent young woman, Mini Battenberg fan, president of the debating society – and reluctant vampire queen …Mo Merrydrew, fifteen-year-old Vampire Queen of Great Britain, has found a way to have her cake and eat it (and that’ll be a mini Battenberg, please). Becoming Vampire Queen wasn’t the easiest of decisions, but she’s settling into it quite happily, now that she has dreamy familiar Luca by her side, and she doesn’t actually have to bite any humans. She now just has the … er … teeny-tiny task of finding a way to get all the vampires in the land to swear allegiance to her, and save them from the vampire hunters who are rapidly picking them off. Easy-peasy, eh? Throw in gorgeous Vanya, sent by the Vampire King of the East to keep an eye on Mo, unruly vampires hellbent on causing havoc and a dad with a dark secret, and that cake of Mo’s starts to look distinctly less appetising …Geek Girl meets Buffy in a brilliantly funny new teen series from bestselling author Jo Simmons

The day the hiccups took over

Emma — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

When Frank’s hiccups just won’t STOP, they get him into all kinds of trouble in this madcap caper from comedy genius and bestselling author Jo Simmons.

A case of incurable hiccups leads to hilarity in this hilarious caper from comedy genius and bestselling author Jo Simmons.

Frank has a big day ahead of him, with a trip to the dentist, a trumpet exam, a swimming contest and, most important of all, he has tickets to see his knitting hero on stage right here in his hometown! But all that is put at risk when Frank wakes up with the hiccups. And they just won’t STOP! Helped by his new friend Daisy, Frank tries ever more madcap ideas to get the hiccups to go away. But will the whole day end in disappointment and humiliation, or will Frank manage to turn calamity into a dramatic triumph?

The Day My Family Disappeared

Emma — Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Home Alone meets Adrian Mole in this hilarious madcap adventure from the bestselling author of I Swapped My Brother on the Internet.

Bob Bunyon is fed up. In a family full of artists and performers, he’s the one with no talent, the one bypassed by the creativity gene – and his four siblings just won’t let him forget it. Finally sick of being taunted for being so “normal”, Bob wishes that his family would all just disappear, but he doesn’t really expect his wish to come true!

When he wakes the next day to find everyone gone, Bob’s initial delight quickly turns to worry. Does he have supernatural powers? Is he the only survivor of a zombie apocalypse or an alien invasion?

Gathering all his courage, and employing survival skills learned from TV endurance shows, Bob sets out to find his missing family …

The Reluctant Vampire Queen

Emma — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0000

‘Geek Girl with a supernatural twist’ The Observer Meet Mo Merrydrew – independent young woman, Mini Battenberg fan, president of the debating society – and reluctant vampire queen …Fifteen-year-old Mo Merrydrew isn’t exactly expecting to be asked to be Vampire Queen of Great Britain when she’s cycling home from school one wet Tuesday evening. Apparently, she is ‘the Chosen One’. Aside from being uncomfortable with the idea of unelected power (not very democratic), there’s the blood drinking to consider (Mo is a vegetarian), and frankly it’s just not really the sort of role Mo’s looking for (she wants to aim for a real job in politics). But – if you’re Vampire Queen, you probably don’t have to do PE any more, and when the dreamy Luca, a vampire familiar, turns up, it all suddenly starts to look a bit more appealing …Geek Girl meets Buffy in a brilliantly funny new teen series from bestselling author Jo Simmons

I Lost My Granny in the Supermarket

Emma — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Perfect for fans of Pamela Butchart and David Solomons, this is a new, hilarious adventure from the author and illustrator of the bestselling I Swapped My Brother on the Internet.Harry – known as Harry the Hulk to his friends, because he is freakishly tall for an 11-year-old – is desperate for a dog. His mum has said if he can earn 500 Puppy Points then he’s allowed to get one. And today she has offered him 50 points if he takes Gran to the Caught Short Awards, where she has won the Lifetime Achievement Award for services to Loo Roll. All Harry has to do is take her for a haircut and then to the ceremony. It should be easy! It should be a piece of cake. But what Harry doesn’t know is that Gran has her own agenda in mind, and after a stop at the supermarket for some toffees (the sweet she is BANNED from having!) things go very wrong indeed!