JESSICA TOWNSEND sometimes lives in London, and sometimes on the Sunshine Coast in Australia, where she grew up. She was previously a copywriter and the editor of a children's wildlife magazine for Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo. Her pet fascinations include public transport and secret societies, ancient cities and underground places, hotels and museums, Halloween and Christmas, old maps and giant cats - all of which have weaselled their way into her books. She is the author of the Nevermoor series and won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize Younger Fiction Category with her debut novel: Nevemoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow.

Jessica Townsend's writing is very satisfying and her pen masterfully creates a magical world which is mostly unique. A demanding, but satisfying, read, but readers will be readers will be rewarded with an absorbing story, with pace, plot and character aplenty. * The Carousel * Winner of the Waterstones Children's Books Prize, Younger Fiction Category. Shortlisted for the IBW Book Award, Children's Fiction. The plot is fast-paced, there is a pleasing mix of menace and humour and Morrigan is an appealing, compelling hero, always ready to 'step boldly' into the dangerous and enticing world of Nevermoor. * The School Librarian * 'Written with a wonderful deadpan humour and sharp dialogue, this is a must for the next Harry Potter generation' * Daily Mail * 'This magical debut novel is a dazzling and engrossing feat of imagination' * Daily Express * Charming, magical and the perfect book to lose yourself in during the Christmas break... * The School Run * A wonderful, warm-hearted magical adventure [that] will instantly draw you in * S Magazine - Sunday Express * 'Welcome to your new obsession, Harry Potter fans. This perfectly measured combination of mystery, magic, a loveable heroine and an engrossing plot is one of our favourite children's novels of 2017' * iBooks Review * Funny and delightful * The Sunday Times, children's book of the week * Jessica Townsend's Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow is more than just a spectacular debut. Exciting, charming, and wonderfully imagined, it's the sort of delightful grand adventure destined to be many a reader's favorite book * Trenton Lee Stewart, author of The Mysterious Benedict Society * Utterly mesmerising from start to finish, Nevermoor is a masterful piece of storytelling, full of wonderful characters and world so rich in magical detail you'll think you've actually stepped into it. * Claire Fayers, author of Accidental Pirates: Voyage to Magical North * The subject of a heated publishers' auction, Townsend's debut fully lives up to the hype * Mail on Sunday * Townsend's intensely cinematic writing, quirky humour and superior world-building conjure a genuinely fresh take on magical fantasy * Fiona Noble - The Bookseller * Townsend's debut fully lives up to its hype * YOU magazine * 'A full-speed joy of a book; funny, quick-footed, and wildly, magically inventive' * Katherine Rundell - author of ROOFTOPPERS * Endlessly inventive, with a fresh delight on every page, Nevermoor rewrites the genre of the Chosen Child novel. This is a special book. * David Solomons, author of MY BROTHER IS A SUPERHERO * An extraordinary story full of magics great and small, from the Hotel Deucalion to the Magnificat . . . Townsend has created a book of wunders. In Morrigan Crow I've found a heroine I'm willing to step boldly after, and follow her wherever her adventure takes her next * Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of THE GIRL OF INK AND STARS * Exciting, mysterious, marvellous and magical . . . quite simply one of the best children's books I've read in years * Robin Stevens, author of Murder Most Unladylike *