Nate Wilderstern's brother has been killed, and the finger is pointed at him… After nearly two years, eighteen-year-old Nate returns home to the family empire ruled by his father – the ruthless Wildenstern Patriarch. But Nate's life is soon shattered by his brother's death, and the Rules of Ascension, allowing the assassination of one male family member by another, means he's being blamed. He knows that he is not the murderer, but who is? With the aid of his troublesome sister-in-law, Daisy, and his cousin Gerald, he means to find out. But when the victims of the family's tyrannical regime chose the funeral to seek their revenge, they accidentally uncover the bodies of some ancient Wildenstern ancestors, one of whom bears a Patriarch's ring. The lives of Nate and his family are about to take a strange and horrifying turn…

Two worlds. Two different lives. Divided by hate and violence. Thrown together by chance. Chamus's nightmare begins when he survives a massacre. Suicide-bombers from neighbouring Bartokhrin are terrorising his country, Altima. How do you fight someone who isn't afraid of death? Across the border, Riadni is no ordinary Bartokhrin girl; she dresses like a boy, fights like a boy, spits and rides her horse like a boy. When the Hadram Cassal set up camp on her father's land, she is drawn to these rebels who are prepared to fight – and to die – for their homeland. A crash-landing in Bartokhrin territory forces Chamus and Riadni together and they find themselves on the run, hunted by killers. Danger and death are closing in on them from all sides.

Taya and Lorkrin are Myunans – shape-changers who can sculpt their flesh like modelling clay. They accidentally release Shessil Groach, a timid botanist working in captivity on the top-secret Harvest Tide Project. A massive manhunt is launched by the sinister Noranian Empire, which will stop at nothing to protect its Project.With the help of a scent-seller, a barbarian mapmaker and their uncle Emos, the teenagers and Groach keep one step ahead of the Noranians, while they try to find a way to sabotage the Harvest Tide Project and avert the disaster it will unleash.

Deep in the cellars of the O'Brien Press is a safe that contained stories too horrible to be read. But somebody has broken into that safe and the stories have been released.This is one of those Forbidden Files. Crazy dentists, secret agents and remote controlled braces – welcome to Jason's world! Jason McGinty's a bad kid – he pushes people around and his gang rule the schoolyard. But when he gets braces on his teeth, things start to get hard for him – his mouth looks awful, and worst of all he begins to hear voices that no one else can hear. Are the voices real, and do they anything to do with the braces? And who's the big, scary boy who looks so like Jason? Something sinister is going on ... READ ONLY IF YOU DARE!

There's no such thing as escaping the Wildensterns . . . It's been three years since Nathaniel Wildenstern left Ireland and his ruthless family behind. But no one turns his back on the Wildensterns, the powerful family controlling what was once the British Empire. While Nate's been gone, one of his maniacal cousins has been hard at work researching engimals—the bizarre living machines with the brains of animals—with the intent of creating the ultimate new species.When Nate learns what his cousin has been up to, he knows he must return and put a stop to it. But in his absence, his clan has become even more despised for its merciless hunger for power. For Nate to succeed, he'll have to return in secret—because wherever the Wildensterns go, violence and betrayal are sure to follow.

A young journalist uncovers what might be the world's biggest conspiracy—if only he can prove it For years, Chi Sandwith has written about things like alien abductions, puppet masters, and brainwashing. He's not a "conspiracy theorist" though—he's a serious journalist and a seeker of the Truth. When Chi meets a man who claims to be a former secret agent, it looks like evidence of a huge conspiracy has landed right in the reporter's lap. But can Chi believe a single word he hears from the professional liar? And why is the old spook so intent on introducing Chi to a woman who could expose the agent's dark past? Over the course of 1 day, Chi is faced with spies, anarchists, a tough-as-nails policewoman, a highly valuable refrigerator, and a very harsh truth: He is a rank amateur in a world of dangerous professionals . . . The Need for Fear is a companion novella to Strangled Silence.

Deep in the cellars of the O'Brien Press is a safe that contained stories too horrible to be read. But somebody has broken into that safe and the stories have been released. This is one of those Forbidden Files. 'They called it 'The Fart Factory', it smelled so bad. The Kanker & Byle Chemical Company was a towering heap of buildings and pipes and walkways, just piled on top of each other. Then somebody had stuck some chimneys on the top, like candles on the world's ugliest birthday cake'. When the Root Street Gang lose their football in the Kanker & Byle Chemical Factory, Gaz sends his little brother Joey in to get it back. And then they lose Joey. Faced with returning home without his brother and facing his Mam's wrath, Gaz has no choice but to lead his friends Hayley and Damo into the factory to find Joey and their football. But this is no ordinary factory, and in no time at all, Gaz, Hayley and Damo encounter the living dead, giant insects, and a man with the most...

When pretty, talented and very ambitious Amina Mir manages to land a newspaper work experience placement she thinks it might just be making coffee and following-up tame stories. But then, when by chance she's sent to interview Ivor MacMorris, a veteran of the war in Sinnostan who's just won millions on the lottery, but bizarrely hasn't spent a penny, things start to get interesting . . . and dangerous. Ivor thinks he's been made to forget what happened in Sinnostan. He believes false memories of how and why he lost an eye have been planted in his brain and that he's being followed by threatening faceless people. At first Amina thinks Ivor's suffering from some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder, but soon Ivor, conspiracy theorist Chi Sandwith and events persuade Amina that she could have stumbled into one of the biggest and most terrifying cover-ups ever.

Volume II of The Archisan Tales. Taya and Lorkrin's shape-changing Myunan tribe faces an invasion by Noran, which is intent on mining the valuable iron ore from their sacred mountain, Absaleth. But the mountain is haunted and fights back with supernatural powers. Then a mine tunnel collapses and the miners are trapped. With them are Taya and Lorkrin's parents, Nayalla and Mirkrin, who had been searching for their unruly children. Taya and Lorkrin are terrified for their parents. But help arrives in the form of their Uncle Emos. He and his friend Draegar know there is one chance for the trapped people – another entrance to the caves far back in the mountain range. A rescue party sets out as the mountain starts to collapse in on itself.

Deep in the cellars of the O'Brien Press is a safe that contained stories too horrible to be read. But somebody has broken into that safe and the stories have been released. This is one of those Forbidden Files. 'It started with my favourite girlband WitchCraft. They were beautiful. They could sing and dance and above all they were cool. And I wanted the WitchCraft hairdo more than anything else in the world.' But then I got it, and that's when the trouble started. Because it turned out that my hair was evil ... Ten year old Melanie gets her WitchCraft hairdo in a mysterious salon that appears out of nowhere. Although thrilled with it, she soon realises that her hair is evil and has a mind of its own. From cutting up all her Mum's clothes to summoning a plague of rats, Melanie's hair tries to destroy her whole life.