The Spook's Tale by Joseph Delaney (The Wardstone Chronicles)

8/10

Dare you face the dark?

'How would you like to train as a spook?
I need a brave lad for my line of work…'

The Spook keeps the County safe from creatures of the dark; things that suck your blood and snatch your bones and squeeze the breath from your body. When young John Gregory stumbles into the trap set by a powerful witch, it seems he may possess some spook's skill of his own. But is he ready to face the dark or will his first fight be his last?

The Wardstone Chronicles are a wonderful series of young-adult fantasy books that began in 2004 with the publication of The Spook's Apprentice. The Spook's Apprentice spent 7 weeks in the Best-seller charts and sold over 35,000 copies in the first few months. The Spooks series is published in 24 countries: UK, USA, France, Germany. Hungary, Italy, Japan, Poland, Portugal, Brazil, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, The Netherlands, Greece, Israel, Thailand, Turkey and Indonesia. Life Sales World Wide across all titles are over 1 million copies!

The Spook's Tale was specially written and published for World Book Day 2009 and provides a fascinating and chilling account of John Gregory, the titular figure from the popular Spook's series. The style stays true to the existing series, the only difference being that the first person narrative is now told from the perspective of John Gregory rather than Thomas Ward. The beautifully drawn illustrations that decorate the first page of each chapter are thankfully also in place for this sixty-two page tale.

This a great addition to the series, an excellent introduction for those new to the series and an intriguing insight to the Spook's past-life for those who are, like me, already addicted to these dark and immensely enjoyable books.

The Spook's Tale is an essential buy, both for the reading pleasure it gives and the money it raises for charity. Go out and buy it today for only £1*.

“To my horror, the witch pulled a knife from the pocket of her black gown. It had a long sharp blade and she held it out, moving towards me purposefully. Was she going to take some of my bones? She held the knife above my head and suddenly grasped me very tightly by my hair, twisting my head backwards. She was going to kill me!”
The Spook's Tale: The Witch's Lair

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Joseph Delaney is a retired English teacher living in Lancashire. His home is in the middle of Boggart territory and his village has a boggart called the Hall Knocker, which was laid to rest under the step of a house near the church.

World Book Day in the UK and Ireland is made possible by generous sponsorship from National Book Tokens, participating publishers, authors and booksellers. Booksellers who accept the £1 World Book Day Token kindly agree to bear the full cost of redeeming it.

* The Spook's Tale makes up half of a flip-book, Mark Walden's interception point is on the other side (58 pages).