At the chiming of the thirteenth hour,
At the plucking of the thirteenth flower,
On the hundred-and-thirty-third Naming Day ...
In the Greenwood Forest
By the Tambling River.
On the Stepping Bones ...
The Queen will sacrifice a life
Of a single sister
Born in strife
And given to her as kith and kin
To save her royal soul and skin,
She'll cry cold and bitter tears,
But will rule Fairyland for a hundred-and-thirty-three more years.
This is the prophecy but what if it were to be changed. The Queen's sister should be the one to die - she should be the sacrifice but on the naming day for the twin babies - Thomas (The Wild Boy) and his sister Tempest (The Storm Girl), Lady Hawthorn changes the line and now it reads "of a single twin". She also casts a spell so her sister the Queen will never know about this change. The Queen wants to continue her reign at all costs. She has no relationship with her twin children. It is clear she will need to murder one of them. She hunts them across her kingdom forcing them to try to leave - Tempest makes it but all her memories of life in the other world are gone.
Then one night a strange man arrives. He puts a spell on Tempest and forces her to row across the river because he is hunting the wild boy. The wild boy is in fact Thomas and both children are captured. They each have a talisman that gives them powers, but this evil man, Lord Hawthorn takes their precious things and gains control over their magic.
"A Talisman is a charm that focuses magic ... Like a magnifying glass can focus rays from the sun. But it only works if the owner of the Talisman has magical ability in the first place. To cast a spell, the owner must touch their Talisman with their bare hands or wear it against their skin."
At this point you might notice the names - Lord and Lady Hawthorn.
"This is not a fairy tale, though there are Fairies in it. And Kings and Queens and Princesses and Princelings, and magic that comes from faraway places not found on any map ... This is a story of discovering yourself a stranger in a strange land, with nothing but the words in your head, the charm round your neck and the wild hope in your pocket to see you through. And it does not begin with the usual 'Once upon a time ...'"
The story see-saws back and forth between the present when Tempest and Thomas are reunited and desperate to avoid their fate and past scenes when they lived with their cold mother and learnt the truth of the prophecy. Both have tried to flee from Fairyland across the Stepping Bones.
Luckily, both children have magical powers and they do find a way to reclaim their Talisman treasures. Tempest also has her wise (and funny) little companion - a robin named Coriel. I love his voice as he chatters in Tempest's ear:
"I don't recall anything from our past, little gannet ... Not a dicky bird. I feel clueless as a chick straight out of the egg when I try to think of it."
"Don't do it little house martin! ... It's fool's gold and only a fool would take it."
"Vile and grim items, my little gossander ... Vials are glass jars to store magical ingredients. A Grimoire's a powerful spell book."
"Didn't I tell you we'd make it, my ringed plover! ... Didn't I say we'd escape? My fussing even altered these humans who saved you from drowning."
The twins also have a wonderful friend named Kwesi. He has also been taken by Lord Hawthorn because he has magical abilities. His back story has links with slavery. If you want to explore this theme try to find
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson.
Bookseller burb: The Curse is changed. You'll never know. The truth is lost. The lie will grow. The year is 1726 and the Royal Sorcerer of England is on the hunt for those who are Magicborn. When Tempest is captured, she is taken to Kensington Palace alongside a boy like her, Thomas. Trapped, Tempest and Thomas find their magic flickering to life and, with it, long-buried memories. For they are the lost prince and princess of Fairyland, bound by a deadly curse. But now the fairies are coming to get them, and with the truth revealed...can they both survive? The first in a sumptuous and enthralling new historical-fantasy adventure series from the bestselling author of The Cogheart Adventures.
Here are a couple of character descriptions:
Lord Hawthorn - "The Lord with the charm necklace unfolded himself from the carriage doorway like a praying mantis. He was tall and thin and narrow of waist and his shoulders and chest were couched in a jacket of shiny silken green, part-hidden by a long black woollen traveling cloak that flapped about in the high wind."
The King of England - "A pallid man in a brown wig, wearing a cape trimmed with ermine over a velvet suit jacket with buttons made from glittering diamonds. The King's outfit was completed with lace ruffles, silk stockings and large polished gold buckles that sprouted from his shoes like priceless carbuncles."
Mehmet the King's head servant - "a large bald gentleman with a jowly round face and arched eyebrows. He wore a silken red jacket trimmed with fur, and a fine green waistcoat embroidered with flowers and gold ferns."
Lady Hawthorn - "She was tall and pale and wore a highly embroidered dress with a black diamond brooch pinned to her breast. On her head was a grey wig that fluttered with pink ribbons, and on her shoulder was a white raven, with a beak as sharp as a scythe."
Think about the contrasting language in these descriptions - praying mantis; carbuncles; jowly round face; black brooch; pink ribbons; a sharp as a scythe!
This book has close to 400 pages but it was such a gripping adventure I almost read the whole book in one day! The story has overtones of Sleeping Beauty (Christening scene) and also Shakespeare - Tempest is rescued by Prosper and Marino (The Tempest).
In this video Peter Bunzl talks about his book.
The magic which fuels this thrilling adventure will keep readers spell bound from start to finish! Set in a far off time and in a far off land the story tells of two children, Tempest and Peter. Both have one green eye and one blue eye. Both have lost their parents. And both are in great danger because they are MagicBorn which means that the Royal Sorcerer is determined to track them down…There is much wickedness in this world which Tempest and Peter must survive but also much kindness which helps to keep them safe. And throughout it all there’s thrumming magic which means that anything can happen. Julia Eccleshare M.B.E
Here is the second book from this series:
Here are the other books by Peter Bunzl that I loved:
Companion read:
