Darkwood - Gabby Hutchinson Crouch

Magic is forbidden in Myrsina, along with various other abominations, such as girlsdoing maths.

This is bad news for Gretel Mudd, who doesn't perform magic, butdoes know a lot of maths. When the sinister maskedHuntsmen accuse Gretel of witchcraft, she is forced to fleeinto the neighbouring Darkwood, where witches and monsters dwell.

There, she happens upon Buttercup, a witch who can't help turning things intogingerbread, Jack Trott, who can make plants grow at will, the White Knight withher band of dwarves and a talking spider called Trevor. These aren't the terrifyingvillains she's been warned about all her life. They're actually quite nice. Wellmost of them.

With the Huntsmen on the warpath, Gretel must act fast to saveboth the Darkwood and her home village, while unravelling the rhetoric and liesthat have demonised magical beings for far too long.

Take a journey into the Darkwood in this modern fairy tale that will bewitch adults and younger readers alike.