Books with author Joan Aiken (author)

When Dido Twite sets foot back on English soil, more mischief awaits. As her friend Captain Hughes recovers from a carriage accident, Dido stays at the Dogkennel Cottages and meets the odd inhabitants of Tegleaze Manor: strange old Lady Tegleaze, her nephew, Tobit, and his wizened, witchy nurse, Sannie. Soon suspicious things happen. A priceless miniature is stolen. Tobit is framed and then kidnapped. A twin sister is found. And when Dido catches a glimpse of her rascally father in Petworth, she is sure she’s in the midst of another Hanoverian plot. Can she get to London to warn the king and save St. Paul's Cathedral from sliding into the Thames?

Readers who have followed Dido Twite’s escapades in Black Hearts in Battersea and Nightbirds on Nantucket will welcome her return in another wild adventure. Now back in print, Dido and Pa continues the Wolves Chronicles, the exhilarating and imaginative series that stemmed from Joan Aiken’s classic The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. Dido Twite is finally back home in London and reunited with her old friend Simon, now the Duke of Battersea and a favorite of King Richard. But no sooner does Dido start to settle in than her rascally father, Abednago, appears and drags her off into the night. Soon Dido finds herself caught up in the midst of another dastardly Hanoverian conspiracy: a plot involving a mysterious double for the king, the miraculous healing powers of music, and a spy network made up of abandoned street children called lollpoops. Meanwhile, out in the forest, starving wolves are closing in on the city . . .

Dido Twite’s sharp wits are put to the test in this new adventure in the Wolves Chronicles. After King Richard dies, Dido’s good pal Simon is put on the English throne, but he hates being cooped up in drafty St. James Palace, and his crusty old advisors won’t let him have any fun at all. If only another descendent of the king could be found, Simon would gladly be replaced. Never short a solution, Dido discovers a lead to another member of the royal line. But no one knows exactly who—or where—the child is.The masterful storyteller Joan Aiken once again invites readers into a spellbinding world of magic, mystery, and mayhem—with a dose of “proper” English hilarity, of course.

Dido Twite, with the help of some sacred shaman healers, must foil a sinister plot to overthrow the king of a remote South Sea island healers Sailing the high seas in pursuit of Lord Herodsfoot, roving ambassador to the ageing King James III, Dido Twite’s search has led her to the remote South Sea island of Aratu. She arrives with a new friend she made en route, the enigmatic Dr. Talisman, who is returning to the isle after many years. Soon they discover that there’s something even more dangerous in the ancient rain forest than its poisonous pearl snakes, sting monkeys, and 30-foot-long crocodiles. Dido and Talisman are confronted by the Angrian invaders, who drove the Dilendi natives from their home 400 years earlier. Luckily, Dido befriends the gentle Forest People, who can heal with their magical touch. When she learns about a plot to overthrow the island’s suffering king, Dido enlists the Forest People to help her thwart the scheme, save the monarch, and reunite him with his long-lost daughter. Dangerous Games is the 5th book in the award-winning Wolves Chronicles, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order. This ebook features an illustrated personal history of Joan Aiken including rare images from the author’s estate.

Is Twite and her cousin, Arun, use their telepathic gifts to find Arun’s missing mother in this gripping adventure set in an alternate British kingdom When Is Twite and her cousin, Arun, return to Cold Shoulder Road in Folkestone after their astonishing adventures in the North, the town is deserted and Arun’s mother is missing. Some say she took off with the sect Arun was raised in before he ran away. Known as the Silent Folk, members of the group are not allowed to talk and must communicate through sign language. But there are others who insist that Ruth Twite is a witch. To make matters worse, Is’s sister Penny has also vanished, along with the mute Handsel child. The only clue to all of their whereabouts is an elusive stranger called Admiral Fishskin. When Is and Arun finally track down the cult, Arun discovers that they have new leader. Evil, charismatic Dominic de la Twite plays dangerous mind games and is able to block telepathic communication between Is and Arun. The cousins also find themselves up against a band of smugglers called the Merry Gentry that is using hidden tunnels beneath the city to search for buried treasure. With its sprawling cast of Dickensian characters and imaginative historical and social setting, this gripping adventure will delight existing fans of the Wolves Chronicles and new readers alike. Cold Shoulder Road is the 9th book in the award-winning Wolves Chronicles, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order. This ebook features an illustrated personal history of Joan Aiken including rare images from the author’s estate.

Dido and Simon are in danger in this new addition to the Wolves Chronicles. Dido, back in England from America, is almost instantly kidnapped and taken to a derelict mansion surrounded by a deadly moat. The evil baron residing there, who is also a werewolf, wants desperately to know where King Dick is hidden. For the king is dying, and the evil baron wants to put his own demented son on the throne. Meanwhile Simon is with the ailing king. Not only does King Dick want Simon to paint a portrait of him and his family, but Simon is also next in line for the throne. However, they do need to find the coronet for the ceremony that will crown Simon. Though the coronet is rumored to be in the derelict mansion where Dido is imprisoned, no one can find it. It’s one cliffhanging, hair-raising chapter after another in this tongue-in-cheek, devilishly delicious adventure.

Felix Brooke, the orphaned son of an English soldier and an aristocratic Spanish mother, has been raised in the strict, loveless household of his grandfather in Villaverde, Spain. When Felix gains possession of a letter that contains a clue to the whereabouts of his father’s family, he gladly runs away form home to pursue the trail. His journey from Spain to far-off England begins the adventure of a lifetime.

Readers who have followed Dido Twite’s escapades in BLACK HEARTS IN BATTERSEA and NIGHTBIRDS ON NANTUCKET will welcome her return in her wildest adventure yet. Now back in print, THE CUCKOO TREE and THE STOLEN LAKE continue the Wolves Chronicles, the exhilarating and imaginative series that stemmed from Joan Aiken’s classic THE WOLVES OF WILLOUGHBY CHASE. A dazzling piece of dramatic, snowballing adventure, THE STOLEN LAKE is full of fantastical details: revolving palaces, witches who are also court dressmakers, an apocalyptic volcanic eruption, and an infernal country with a noticeable lack of female children. On her way back to London aboard the British man-of-war Thrush, twelve-year-old Dido Twite finds herself and the crew summoned to the aid of the tyrannical queen of New Cumbria. A neighboring king has stolen the queen’s lake and is holding it for ransom, and it’s up to Dido and the crew to face fire, flood, execution, and wild beasts to get the lake back — or else.

Dido Twite, heroine of Black Hearts in Battersea and Nightbirds on Nantucket, is on her wildest adventure yet. On her way back to London aboard the Thrush, Dido and crew are summoned to the aid of the tyrannical queen of New Cumbria. Her island is an infernal place where birds carry off men and fish eat human flesh. The queen is greatly distressed because a neighbouring king has stolen her lake. Dido faces fire, flood, wild beasts and, ultimately, threat of execution in order to get the lake back. Is she equal to the challenge? A rich mixture of legend, fantasy, humour and pure snowballing adventure.

When Dido Twite sets foot back on English soil, more mischief awaits. As her friend Captain Hughes recovers from a carriage accident, Dido stays at the Dogkennel Cottages and meets the odd inhabitants of Tegleaze Manor: strange old Lady Tegleaze, her nephew, Tobit, and his wizened, witchy nurse, Sannie. Soon suspicious things happen. A priceless miniature is stolen. Tobit is framed and then kidnapped. A twin sister is found. And when Dido catches a glimpse of her rascally father in Petworth, she is sure she’s in the midst of another Hanoverian plot. Can she get to London to warn the king and save St. Paul's Cathedral from sliding into the Thames?