Scareground

12 year old Nancy Crumpet loves nothing more than talking to the sky, going on adventures with her best friend Arthur, and eating the delicious cakes and pies that her adoptive parents make in their bakery. But despite her charmed life, Nancy's past is full of secrets she's desperate to unravel. What happened to her birth parents? Why does she have a mysterious horse-shaped birthmark? And why does she feel such an affinity with the sky?

When Skelter's Scareground rolls into town, it's heralded by black feathers and balloons and the smell of popcorn and smoke... and Nancy and Arthur can't wait to go. But this macabre playground is full of darkness and magic, and Nancy might soon lose herself in a mysterious world in her search for answers...

Vividly written and with a host of fabulously spooky characters, this is a perfect chapter book to read together or for more confident readers to enjoy independently. Nancy's adoptive parents are loving and kind, althought it should be mentioned that she is subjected to some bullying by minor characters due to her being adopted. There are also a few rather dark and frightening scenes which are more unsettling than upsetting, so it may be one to accompany sensitive readers with.