The first in a magical realist series set in Shakespearean London and written with the kind of lyrical dexterity and power that one would expect from Akala, The Dark Lady references the Bard’s sonnets as well as crafting an uncompromising picture of street life in Renaissance England.
A natural storyteller with a vision of his own, The Dark Lady, Akala's debut novel for teens will enthuse and entertain teenagers and young adults, showing that reading is a true super-power.
A pickpocket with an exceptional gift.
A prisoner of extraordinary value
An orphan haunted by dreams of the mysterious Dark Lady
Henry is an orphan, an outsider, a thief. He is also a fifteen-year-old invested with magical powers ...
This brilliant, at times brutal, first novel from the amazing imagination that is Akala, will glue you to your seat as you are hurled into a time when London stank and boys like Henry were forced to find their own route through the tangled streets and out the other side.
Publisher: Hachette Children's Group
ISBN: 9781444943696
Number of pages: 320
Weight: 420 g
Dimensions: 218 x 140 x 34 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Powerful ... The kind of disruptive, aggressive intellect that a new generation is closely watching' - The Guardian
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“An elegantly written and promising start to a new YA series.”
A refreshingly unique blend of fantasy and history. It has a slower pace than other current YA fantasy works, which is no bad thing. The more detailed focus on the characters and world rather than action should pay... More
“A new view of Elizabethan England”
I first came across Akala two years ago when I read his fabulous and thought-provoking book on race and class in modern Britain. The folk at the Bradford Literature Festival that year agreed with me and it was our... More
“Oliver Twist updated!”
The Dark Lady is a Dickensesque escapade following the lives of three street pickpockets as they navigate the backstreets of London. Henry is many things; a thief; an orphan; literate and distinguished by his race.... More
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