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After a sneak preview during our Get the Scoop: Books and Authors Preview Party back in April, we’re excited to be revealing the cover of Victoria Williamson’s new book: Hag Storm! Filled with mystery and magic, Hag Storm is a spooky, historical adventure with a supernatural twist, based on the life of Robert Burns and one of his most famous and best-loved poems, Tam O’Shanter.

We hope you love the cover as much as we do! We were very lucky to work with children’s illustrator and publishing Master’s student Elise Carmichael to bring this one to life, and we can’t wait to see it in print. Hag Storm is out on 4th November this year and we’ve no doubt, the witches will be gathering…

The witches are gathering…

In 1771, Robert Burns, future national poet and folk hero of Scotland, has big problems.

12-year-old Rab spends all of his time doing backbreaking work on his family’s farm instead of attending school, but when he finds a hag stone in one of the fields, everything changes.

Looking through its circular hole, he sees witches gathering in a coming storm, and they’ve set their sights on his family. Can Rab save his sisters from the clutches of the witches’ coven before their Halloween ceremony in the old kirk?

Hag Storm by Victoria Williamson
Children’s Fiction 8-12 | Historical | Fantasy | Witches
978-1-911279-91-4 | £7.99 | 4th Nov 2021
B-format PB | 200 pp tbc

Thank you to all the teachers who have been contacting us about continuing to read our books to their classes. There is no need to email us to ask for permission, we simply ask that you follow these guidelines:

Please note at the beginning of the video or audio recording that you are reading with permission of Cranachan, and note the title, author (& illustrator if appropriate) of the book. Live reading to your class is also permitted.

Please only post your video through your school’s private platform or through another channel with private or limited access for your pupils only. Please delete your video or disable access once you are finished with it.

You are all stars. Thank you for all you are doing.

Stay safe and take care,

From your pals @cranachanbooks x

We are super excited to reveal the cover for Barbara Henderson’s sixth (!) children’s novel The Chessmen Thief which will be coming to a bookshop near you on 29th April 2021!

Win. Lose. Survive.

I was the boy with a plan. Now I am the boy with nothing.

From the moment 12-year-old Kylan hatches a plan to escape from his Norse captors, and return to Scotland to find his mother, his life becomes a dangerous game.
The precious Lewis Chessmen pieces—which he helped carve—hold the key to his freedom, but he will need all his courage and wit to triumph against Sven Asleifsson, the cruellest Viking in the realm.
One false move could cost him his life.

Barbara Henderson has woven a thrilling origin story around the enduring mystery of the Lewis Chessmen, their creation in Norway, and how they ended up buried in the Hebrides before being discovered on Lewis in 1831.

Scottish publisher Cranachan has signed author Roy Peachey to its middle-grade imprint, Pokey Hat, for his debut children’s title, The Race.

The dual narrative, which will be published by Cranachan in early 2021, introduces Lili, a young athlete with her own point to prove, and features Eric ‘Chariots of Fire’ Liddell, the hero of the 1924 Olympics, as they both prepare for the race of their lives.

In 1944 Liddell is getting ready to run his final race in a Japanese prison camp in China, while in present day Lili DeLisle is preparing to race in front of the Queen when she visits the school as part of their anniversary celebrations at her school Sports Day.

United by the country of their birth, and their love of athletics, Eric and Lili face very different challenges. Having returned to China, the country where he was born, Eric finds himself in a war zone. Separated from his family and locked up in a prison camp, his lifelong principles are challenged by the imprisoned children he is trying to help.

Having been adopted from China as a baby, Lili also has issues to work through. When her athletic preparations are thrown into chaos by events outside her control, she too has to decide between family and the race of her life.

Anne Glennie, publisher at Cranachan, acquired The Race in a world rights deal directly from the author. Glennie said: The Race is a fantastic and refreshing addition to our Pokey Hat list, with sport as the central subject, it combines contemporary drama with illuminating historical flashbacks, and explores crucial themes including, adoption, racism, family and friendships. An inspiring tale of perseverance and personal achievement, The Race would make a perfect read for young people in the run up to the 2021 Olympics.”

Peachey added: “I am really delighted to be joining Clan Cranachan and am excited at the prospect of introducing readers to Lili, a dynamic young athlete with a love of running. As the Olympics approach, it’s also a great time to look again at the life of Eric Liddell, an inspiring athlete whose life became even more remarkable after he retired from the sport.”

About Roy Peachey 

Roy lives with his wife, two daughters, two dogs, two cats, one rabbit, one tortoise, and a few fish. When he isn’t spending time with his family, writing books, or looking after the menagerie, Roy is a teacher and charity worker.

Peachey’s first novel for adults, Between Darkness and Light, the story of a translator with the Chinese Labour Corps during World War I, was published in 2019 by Eyrie Press. He is also the author of three non-fiction books: Out of the Classroom and Into the World; 50 Books for Life; and Did Jesus Go To School? 

roypeachey.com

@roy_peachey

Cranachan Publishing has signed debut author Joan Haig to its middle-grade fiction imprint, Pokey Hat, purchasing the Worldwide rights to her first title Tiger Skin Rug.

This action-packed adventure tale, with elements of fantasy sprinkled throughout, takes the reader from the Scottish drizzle to the Indian monsoons using beautiful descriptive writing that brings both the Indian and Scottish landscapes and culture to life.

Anne Glennie, Publisher, says she is delighted to welcome Joan to the Clan Cranachan family, adding, “Tiger Skin Rug is a wonderful addition to the Pokey Hat imprint; it adds a very welcome splash of light fantasy and a diversity in terms of characters and locations. A thrilling adventure, where the children are in charge, it is also a gift for the classroom – an exciting, whole-class read that can also be used a springboard for learning about India, other customs and cultures, and Hinduism in particular. The novel also explores the concept of home and what that means to each character – such an appropriate theme for today.”

Based in the Scottish Borders, although she grew up in much hotter climates, Joan says of joining the clan “I’m thrilled that Tiger Skin Rug will sit alongside such wonderful talent. Cranachan was my first choice of publisher for my novel and I’m so grateful it’s been picked up.”

Joan’s writing dream is that her stories for children are enjoyed far and wide – and touch some grown-up hearts along the way, a perfect fit for the Cranachan Publishing philosophy.

Tiger Skin Rug will be published in February 2020, appealing in particular to fans of Jess Butterworth and fellow Clan Cranachan author Lindsay Littleson.

Click here to buy in the Cranachan shop.