Brightstorm

Twelve-year-old twins Maudie and Arthur’s world comes crashing in when their explorer dad is reported dead in his mission to get to South Polaris. Not only that, their family name is tainted when he is accused of stealing another skyship’s fuel before he died, which means they are unable to inherit their family home.

The twins are sold to a horrible couple in The Slumps of Lontown, but they soon escape with the noble explorer Captain Harriet Culpepper, on a mission back to South Polaris to restore honour to the Brightstorm name.

This is an unputdownable Victoriana adventure with characters that are vivid and most refreshing in their portrayal of gender roles. Maudie is a serious-minded inventor (who would very probably be best friends with Lemony Snicket’s Violet in A Series of Unfortunate Events) and Arthur is a boy who doesn’t quite know who he is, with empathy so deep that he learns to speak with the wonderful "thought wolves", previously seen as vicious, wild beasts. Oh, and we have a new baddie to worry about: the thoroughly evil and ruthless Eudora Vane.

A real edge-of-your-seat romp that travels with lightning speed.