UCLan Publishing – The Bell Bookshop

Aphrodite

Emma — Thu, 01 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

She’s just the Goddess of Love and Beauty. And that’s exactly what she wants them to think.Naked and salt-soaked, Aphrodite is born from the waves. Knowing nothing of who or what she is, she quickly discovers that she has incredible power and the kind of beauty that makes men mad. Her blood pulses with the same call: home, home, home.Cue Olympus, the home of the gods.But Olympus turns out to be a seething snake-pit, and love is never simple. Ordained the mere Goddess of Love and Beauty, the threatened and spiteful gods and goddesses seek different ways to control Aphrodite. As a trap closes in around her, she learns that it is a curse to be seen as nothing but beautiful – but it may also be her strongest weapon.The gods of Olympus will soon learn not to underestimate the Goddess of Love and Beauty.

Wrong tracks

Emma — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Who is sabotaging the Rainhill Trials?

It is 1829. Everyone is talking about the exciting new railways and young Edward Entwistle cannot believe his good fortune: a chance encounter sees him offered a job at the Stephensons’ Steam Locomotive Manufactory.

The Stephensons are preparing for an important competition – The Rainhill Trials. A race of innovation and daring which will award the winner a contract to run the new Liverpool & Manchester Rail Way. Edward must protect the father and son inventors’ latest creation – their precious Premium Engine – but strange and dangerous accidents keep stalling construction.

Edward and his new loco-mad friend Prudence soon realise someone is trying to scupper the Stephensons’ chances. It is up to the friends to spot sabotage and chase down spies in a thrilling race against the clock.

Inspired by the Rainhill Trials.

The lost dogs

Emma — Thu, 03 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

?Meet THE LOST DOGS:? Luna the labrador. She’s a worrier. She can’t imagine how her family will survive without her to look after them. Bella the cocker spaniel. She’s lost most of her memories but can still remember a home where she was loved. Eddie the terrier. An optimist who sees the funny side in everything. But since his owner died, it looks as if the dog pound might be his fate. Thrown together when their worlds fall apart, these three dogs will share the biggest adventure of their lives. They’ll break out of prison, go on the run, be shipwrecked and homeless; they will dodge the cruel dog warden and risk their lives to save other dogs from a criminal gang. However much they have lost, they will discover a new kind of family in each other. But will they find their way home? Cover and interior illustrations by James Brown.

Magical Mountain Rescue

Emma — Thu, 03 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The epic conclusion to the Wildsmith series.

When the young prince is kidnapped, the wildsmith Rowan has an important to role to play in his rescue – but time is running out. Can she rescue the prince, keep the fragile peace, and save another magical animal in need?

Praise for Wildsmith: ‘A lush, rich, page-turning adventure from one of the most versatile writers we have. There’s no genre Liz can’t write in?’ Phil Earle

‘Wildsmith has everything I want in a story – magic, mystery and dragons! Liz is the mistress of dragons and in this thrilling adventure she has cast her story-telling spell with utter charm and skill. Children are in for such a treat! Thank goodness there’s a sequel – I want more!’ Jasbinder Bilan,

Into the Dark Forest was shortlisted for the Week Junior Book Award, and named winner of the SPARK Book Awards, UKLA Book Awards and the Fantastic Book Awards.

The seamaiden’s odyssey

Emma — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A strange and beautiful sea-creature is brought into the marine sanctuary where Sasha works. The sea-girl is kept as an exhibit and for scientific research. But Sasha wants to know more about her – are there more of her kind? What sort of community does she come from? Does she have a family?There is a story to be told, in exchange for a promise. It is a story of cruelty and grief, of love and longing and pride; the story of Merryn, who makes a traumatic journey from sea and to land, from defiance to finding her true self and the power of sisterhood.This new fable is from twice Carnegie Medal-winning author, Berlie Doherty. She draws on the folklore of ocean and landscape and, in the language of our oldest tales, weaves the traditional into our modern preoccupations. Powerful ink and silhouette illustrations by Tamsin Rosewell brighten the tale with a vibrant but classical language of visual storytelling. Rosewell draws on the long heritage of silhouette and paper-cut work for her inspiration, and adds it to her well-known boldness with colour and structure.

Missing at sea

Emma — Mon, 01 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The whole of Pirate Academy is abuzz with anticipation for the upcoming Oceans Bound weekend. It’s the first time the young pirate apprentices of Barracuda Class will set sail as five independent crews – with no teacher oversight! Excitement reaches fever-pitch as Commodore Kuo and Captain Salt reveal which of the fifteen Barracudas will act as captains for Oceans Bound. Jacoby is devastated when he isn’t picked, which makes things difficult for Jasmine when she is chosen. But worse, much worse, is in store, when Jasmine is told that her Uncle Noah – a ringleader of the League of True Pirates – has, against all odds, broken out of the Pirate Federation’s maximum security prison. Fearing that he will try to make contact with Jasmine, the Head and Deputy give Jasmine the chance to opt out of Oceans Bound. But Jasmine is not about to let her renegade uncle ruin everything. The five Barracuda crews set sail with hope and adventure in their hearts, beginning a complex trail of tasks, each delivered to its crew via a note in a coloured glass bottle. For one crew, the tasks quickly become much more dangerous. As they bravely navigate poisonous snakes, venomous spiders, sharks and skulls, it becomes clear that someone else is now in control of Oceans Bound. It’s going to take everything they’ve got for our plucky young pirates to complete the course and triumph against their fiendish enemy.

Garden of her heart

Emma — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A story of healing and recovery that will warm your soul?and get you into the garden. Garden of Her Heart is the story of one loner, two secrets, and three weeks at the Pinewoods Retreat. When Holly Bush (yes, she still hasn’t forgiven her mother for that combination) is made redundant with gardening leave, after a brutal attack, she decides to visit a retreat not far from home. There she finds friendship and a garden in need of love, she ends up doing literal gardening leave, bringing the community of guests together. Journaling her way through her holiday, Holly works on both her mental and physical scars and discovers an inner strength as her secrets are revealed.

The mercury in me

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

Maya Pritik is seventeen, an aspiring doctor and wants to get through Sixth Form in one piece. This is not made easy by school bully Candice Riley, who has a target on Maya’s back and is the owner of the not-so-anonymous Hot-Or-Not Instagram account. Luckily Maya has her best friend, Lucie Perry, and older brother, Tamir, to keep her together. Maya’s passion is music, so when she hears musical theatre heartthrob Harry Wu singing an original song, she has to go investigate.Perfect for fans of Sex Education, When Dimple Met Rishi and Never Have I Ever, THE MERCURY IN ME is an ode to romcoms, musicals, and being British Indian. Featuring an ensemble cast including one ride-or-die best friend, a smattering of theatre kids, and a brother in turmoil, this is a YA debut not to be missed.

Hannah Messenger and the gods of Hockwold

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

The Gods of Olympus and their descendants have lost their memories. They think they are ordinary humans. Only Hannah Messenger and her friends know who they really are. And that means when the God’s objects of power start to go missing, only Hannah and her friends can stop the thief.A MG urban fantasy about learning that real power is in the friendships you make.