6 reasons we love the Dragon Rider series
The dragons are back – and soaring into bookshops everywhere this month! We're hugely excited to see Dragon Rider and The Griffin's Feather as books of the month in WH Smith and Waterstones respectively. In celebration, we've put together our fave reasons why we love Firedrake and co. so much! (more…)
DRAGON RIDER is getting a sequel!
We are super proud and pleased to announce some very exciting news – the wonderful Cornelia Funke is back with a sequel to the bestselling fantasy novel Dragon Rider! (more…)
Dragon Rider: The Griffin's Feather
The last winged horses are on the brink of extinction. Three foals lie curled in their eggs in a sanctuary for threatened creatures, where a young dragon rider lives with his silver dragon. The foals are ill, and the pair volunteer to seek the only cure: a Griffin's feather. But Griffins, with the heads of eagles and bodies of lions, are a dragon's fiercest enemy, and live far across the world in the sweltering jungle. A dangerous and exciting adventure begins ...
The sequel to the bestselling Dragon Rider, featuring stunning art from Laura Ellen Anderson.
Wintry reads!
It’s December, which officially means WE CAN GET EXCITED ABOUT CHRISTMAS. My advent calendar is out, you cannot see my desk for tinsel and I’m considering buying a vat of hot spiced apple juice. And what better to get you in the wintry mood than curling up with a CH read? (more…)
Cornelia Funke
Cornelia Funke is the New York Times bestselling author of the Inkheart trilogy, The Thief Lord and a whole host of popular children’s novels and picture books.
Born in 1958 in the German town of Dorsten, Cornelia initially worked as an illustrator but soon began writing her own stories, quickly establishing a reputation as one of Germany’s best-loved children’s authors.
Her international breakthrough came with the fantasy novel Dragon Rider, which spent 78 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Success continued with the publication of The Thief Lord, which immediately climbed to the #2 spot on the New York Times bestseller list and stayed there for 19 weeks, selling 1.5 million copies.
Inkheart the movie, starring Brendan Fraser, Helen Mirren and Paul Bettany, was released in 2008.
Cornelia Funke now lives in California and is working on several new books.
Inkdeath
Life in the Inkworld has been far from easy since the extraordinary events of Inkspell, when the book Inkheart magically drew Meggie, Mo and Dustfinger back into its pages.
With Dustfinger dead, and the evil Adderhead now in control, the story in which they are all caught has taken an unhappy turn. Even Elinor, left alone in the real world, believes her family to be lost between the covers of a book.
But as winter comes on there is reason to hope – if only Meggie and Mo can rewrite the wrongs of the past and make a dangerous pact with death.
Igraine the Brave
An adventure is what Igraine wants most in the world – and on her twelfth birthday she finds one!
Everyone at Castle Pimpernel is looking forward to Igraine’s birthday. But when her magical present goes wrong and her parents accidentally turn themselves into pigs, it’s up to Igraine to put things right – even if that means facing giants, three-headed dragons and a particularly spiky knight.
An enchanting story of courage and magic from bestselling children's author Cornelia Funke.
When Santa Fell to Earth
Mischievous reindeer Twinklestar has bolted – leaving his Christmas caravan to fall from the sky.
Luckily the extraordinary passengers – Niklas, a real-life Santa Claus, two angels and assorted elves – crash-land in a friendly neighbourhood where two children called Ben and Charlotte come to their rescue.
But they’re still in terrible danger. On their trail are Gerold Goblynch and his motor-sledge-riding bad Santas, a treacherous bunch from Yule Land, who will stop at nothing to steal Christmas.
Includes gorgeous, characterful illustrations from Blue Peter Book Award winner Paul Howard.
From the bestselling author of The Thief Lord, Inkheart and Dragon Rider, this is a heartwarming adventure celebrating the magic of Christmas in a funny and original way.
Inkspell
Although a year has passed, not a day goes by without Meggie thinking of the extraordinary events of Inkheart, and the story whose characters strode out of the pages and changed her life for ever.
But for Dustfinger, the fire-eater torn from his world of words, the need to return has become desperate. When he finds a crooked storyteller with the magical ability to read him back, he sets in motion a dangerous reversal that sees the characters of Inkheart transported to a charmed Inkworld, about to be fought over by rival rebels and princes.
But can Meggie, Farid and Fenoglio ‘write’ the wrongs of the Inkworld in time to avert disaster?
Thief Lord
Two orphaned children are on the run, hiding among the crumbling canals and misty alleyways of the city of Venice.
Befriended by a gang of street children and their mysterious leader, the Thief Lord, they shelter in an old, disused cinema. On their trail is a bungling detective, obsessed with disguises and the health of his pet tortoises. But a greater threat to the boys' new-found freedom is something from a forgotten past – a beautiful magical treasure with the power to spin time itself.
An atmospheric and magical thriller told in the best storytelling tradition by the wonderful Cornelia Funke.
Inkheart
Meggie loves stories, but her book-binding father, Mo, hasn't read aloud to her since her mother mysteriously disappeared some years ago.
When a stranger who knows her father knocks at their door, Mo is forced to reveal an extraordinary secret – when he reads aloud, words come alive, and dangerous characters step out of the pages.
Suddenly, Meggie is living the kind of adventure she has only read about in books, but this one will change her life for ever.
More than three million copies sold worldwide and released as a major motion picture in 2008.
Dragon Rider
A stunning edition of the much-loved classic featuring cover art from Laura Ellen Anderson!
Firedrake, a brave young dragon, and a lonely boy called Ben are united as if by destiny. Together, they embark on a magical journey to find the legendary place where silver dragons can live in peace. With only a curious map and the whispered memories of an old dragon to guide them, they fly across moonlit lands to reach the highest mountains in the world.
Along the way, they discover extraordinary new friends in unlikely places, and a courage they never knew they had. Just as well, for the greatest enemy of all is never far behind them – a heartless monster from the past, who's been waiting a very long time to destroy the last dragons on earth.
A big-hearted story of heroism, friendship and adventure.
