book cover

The Nothing to See Here Hotel

by Steven Butler, illustrated by Steven Lenton

Interest age: 7 to 10
Reading age: 8+

Published by Simon & Schuster, 2018

  • Chapter books
  • Fantasy
  • Funny

About this book

Frankie Banister and his family run the Nothing to See Here Hotel, which is cunningly hidden from human view by magic and lots of really, really bad TripAdvisor reviews. It’s not for humans, you see, and instead is the perfect getaway for magical creatures of all kinds – mermaids are welcomed through the sea door and stairs are rented to ghosts looking for a holiday from their usual haunts.

However, one day, a messenger arrives through the sky door and announces that the family have 24 hours to prepare for the arrival of the Goblin prince Grogbah, who is definitely not hiding out at the hotel for nefarious purposes. Mum, Dad, Frankie, Ooof the ogre and all the hotel guests prepare a huge and lavish party for his arrival, but when the offensively rude Grogbah arrives, he brings with him more chaos than anyone could have expected.

The cast of characters in this laugh-out-loud first book in a series are full of sparkle, oddness and vitality, from the lisping Molar Sisters to Granny Regurgita, the terrifying troll nan that rules the roost from her attic bedroom. The hotel has bags of potential to be explored in further books, and the offbeat humour will ensure readers visit again and again.

About the author

Steven Butler is a writer, actor, dancer and trained circus performer as well as a keen observer of trolls and their disgusting habits! Having trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts and The Toronto Circus School (in Aerial Ropes), he has starred in Peter Pan, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and as Henry in Horrid Henry Live and Horrid! His future as a writer was almost guaranteed when his primary school headmaster turned out to be the fantastically funny author Jeremy Strong! The Wrong Pong is Steven’s debut novel and before writing this he lived at sea for two years onboard the Disney Cruiseliner.

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