Book One: Into the Dark Forest
Wildsmith: Into the Dark Forest, cover art by Joe Todd-Stanton, design by Becky Chilcott
When war comes to her city, Rowan and her mum must flee to the Dark Forest to live with the grandfather Rowan never knew she had - and his white wolf Arto. Although she misses her father, Rowan makes new friends, including a trio of powerful witches. When she rescues a baby dragon from poachers, she discovers the secret of her own identity: could Rowan really be a wildsmith just like her grandfather? And when new danger threatens, Rowan will need all her courage and more.
Published in the UK February 2023;
published in the USA December 2024
ISBN: 9781915235046 £7.99
Available from your local bookshop, Blackwells, Waterstones, Bookshop.org or Amazon.
Winner of the UKLA Awards 2024 (7-10 category), Winner of the Spark Book Awards (7+ category), Winner of the Stockton Book of the Year Award, Winner of a Fantastic Book Award 2024, Shortlisted for The Week Junior Book Awards 2023, and the Book Awards St Helens.
I am so excited to tell you about my new book: Wildsmith, Into the Dark Forest, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton
What people are saying about the WILDSMITH series:
“Wildsmiths, dragons, witches and the protection of magical animals! What’s not to love? An enchanting read. Beautifully written and utterly charming. I can’t wait for the next adventure!”
“A lush, rich, page-turning adventure from one of the most versatile writers we have. There’s no genre Liz can’t write in…”
“Liz has crafted a stunningly rich world and characters – brimming with magic and wonder, yet wonderfully warm and familiar. The lush illustrations feel reminiscent of the beautiful animations of Studio Ghibli.”
“Wildsmith has everything I want in a story – magic, mystery and dragons! Liz is the mistress of dragons and in this thrilling adventure she has cast her story-telling spell with utter charm and skill. Children are in for such a treat! Thank goodness there’s a sequel – I want more!”
“Into The Dark Forest is packed full of the best kind of magic - I want to be a wildsmith!”
Here I explain why I love Joe Todd-Stanton’s art so much - and share my favourite of his illustrations…
Below are the German and Czech editions of the Wildsmith series! The German editions are translated by Bettina Münch, cover art is by Angelo Rinaldi, published by Von Hacht Verlag. The Czech edition is translated by Lenka Štěpaníková, published by Albatros Media, with the original cover art by Joe Todd-Stanton.
Book Two: City of Secrets
Cover art by Joe Todd-Stanton, design by Becky Chilcott
In the second adventure, Rowan starts to embrace her gifts as a magical wildsmith who heals and speaks to animals. But saving a young pegasus brings difficult decisions. Danger comes closer than ever, threatening her family and even Rowan’s own life. When she is betrayed, which friends can she trust? With her family divided and war still raging, where does Rowan belong now?
Published in UK: 6th April 2023
ISBN 9781915235077
Available now from Waterstones, Blackwells, Foyles, Bookshop.org and your local bookshop or library.
Book three: The hidden sea
Design by Becky Chilcott, art by Joe Todd-Stanton
Rowan has been working as a wildsmith, rescuing magical animals. But when she finds herself alone and far from home, this time Rowan is the one who needs to be rescued.
Travelling deep into enemy territory, Rowan makes some surprising discoveries, coming face to face with great danger. With the help of new friends – and old ones – will she ever make it home again?
Published in the UK on 4th July 2024
ISBN: 978-1-915235-96-1
£7.99
Please choose your order link: Blackwells, Waterstones, WH Smith, Bookshop.org, Amazon.
I’m very grateful to Veronica Price for a wonderful review in which she writes: “I cannot speak highly enough of Liz Flanagan’s ability to blend adventure, the classic elements of the fantasy genre, a real feeling of yearning for family and the message that mistakes can be rectified and forgiven, into this novel.” Read the full review here.
Book four: Magical Mountain Rescue
Book four in the series was published in the UK in October 2024
When the prince of Gallren is kidnapped, the young wildsmith Rowan has an important to role to play in his rescue – but time is running out. Can she rescue the prince, keep the fragile peace, and save another magical animal in need?
Please choose your preferred order link here: Bookshop.org, Blackwells, Waterstones, WH Smith, Amazon.
ISBN: 9781916747050 £7.99
I’m so happy with the first review of this series, from Emma Suffield:
”Magical Mountain Rescue is the epic adventure conclusion to the Wildsmith series and I am so sad this wonderful series is coming to an end. Full of magic, magical creatures, myth and adventure whilst celebrating and championing wildlife conservation and the natural world. These books are so important for young readers, not just because they’re fabulous to read but subtly teaching readers about wild spaces and what the next generation need to do to look after the planet in the future.”
For schools
Assembly Talk & Q&A
Liz can offer an assembly talk for KS1 & 2. Her focus is on promoting reading and writing, describing why she loves books and her own reading and writing journey. She will explain where the ideas for this series came from and how to draw from your own life in your writing. She will offer a behind-the-scenes look at how a book is made - including the importance of editing!
Wildsmith Storymakers Workshop
Liz Flanagan will talk about her new Wildsmith series (illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton). She will describe how she drew on her own experience of fostering cats and her love of wild places when writing these stories. Then she will lead children through a series of accessible exercises to inspire new ideas. These steps invite children to imagine a new story using material from their own lives: we are all storymakers!
Download these extensive teaching resources for Wildsmith, devised by Jake Hope for UCLan Publishing. Includes:
Reading comprehension & vocabulary task
discussion points & further reading
activities including drawing a map, devising your own dragon and more…
