Lesley Harcourt

Now a fully-fledged unicorn (no, not the horse kind, the ultra-powerful human-looking kind), Neon Gallup is LOVING her secret double life in the extraordinary UNIverse, creating goo-powered magic and going on adventures with her unicorn friends. Little does she know that she has been spotted opening a portal by none other than the neighbourhood unicorn hunter, Priscilla. N

ow that she's seen Neon's portal opener, Priscilla is determined to steal it and destroy unicorns once and for all. With the unicorn hunters closing in on all sides, will Neon discover the sinister plot in time to save the day once again?

Unicorns are NOT horse creatures with horns. In fact, they are the most powerful magical beings on the planet and they look just like you and me. They live in a secret realm known as the Universe, and the horse with a horn thing was just something a unicorn called Greg made up to distract the humans - and it really worked!

But a young human girl called Neon Gallup is about to find the last remaining Universe portal opener (an old, battered green lipstick) and step into a zany world where magic is made with goo and the possibilities are endless! Unfortunately, if there was one person you wouldn't want keeping the greatest magical secret of all time, it would be Neon Gallup...

 

A thousand years ago in an ancient Scottish landscape, a woman is on the run with her three bosom companions - a healer, a weaver and a seer. If the men hunting her find them, they will kill her because she is the only one who stands between them and their violent ambition. She is no lady: she is the first queen of Scotland, married to a king called Macbeth. Shakespeare fed us the myth of the Macbeths as power-hungry murderous conspirators.

But now Val McDermid drags the truth out of the shadows, exposing the patriarchal prejudices of history. As the net closes in on the queen, we discover a tale of passion, forced marriage, bloody massacre and the harsh realities of medieval Scotland. At the heart of it, one strong charismatic woman who survived loss and jeopardy to finally outwit the endless plotting of a string of ruthless and ambitious men. Her struggle won her a country. But now it could cost her life.

It's 1952 in smog-shrouded London. Christmas might be fast approaching, but with her mum away and Uncle Frank busy running the post office, Penny Black is lonelier than ever. All that changes when Penny discovers a small, fluffy, funny, springy and - most importantly - talking creature in the post office one night, trying to make off with a letter.

But Wishyouwas is no thief. He's a Sorter, and he soon introduces Penny to a fascinating secret world hidden in the tunnels underneath the city's streets. Self-appointed guardians of lost mail, the Sorters have dedicated their lives to rescuing letters that have gone astray and making sure they get delivered to their rightful owners. Penny is determined to protect the Sorters, but how long will she be able to keep them safe with Stanley Scrawl, the sinister Royal Mail Rat Catcher, on the prowl?