
The Girl in Wooden Armour
by Conrad Mason, illustrated by George Ermos
Interest age: 11 to 14
Reading age: 11+
Published by David Fickling Books, 2020
About this book
Hattie knows her grandmother Dee is quite eccentric. But even after receiving a cryptic note from her, asking the family to visit, when Hattie arrives in the town of Brokewood, the last thing she expects to discover is a magical legacy she knew nothing about, and that Brokewood shares an otherworldly border with a nightmare world called the Un Forest.
A deadly creature has slipped through from the Un Forest and stolen Dee away. It’s searching for something and soon Hattie will become its target. But all this monster and magic stuff is new to Hattie, and she’s got a bunch of other things to deal with too, like her mum’s death, and her dad’s surprise new girlfriend turning up ‘to get to know her’.
Fantasy and horror combine in this edge-of-your-seat tale that is at times quite scary. There are lots of twists and turns, and the action-adventure side of the story is balanced by the very human and emotional themes of grief and change. As the various pieces of the puzzle of Hattie’s family history, and of Brokewood itself, are revealed, it’s up to Hattie to find the truth behind a tragic event that took place here six years ago, and prevent a terrifying monster from gaining power.
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