Reviews of Ghostcloud

  • “A superbly inventive and magical debut.”

    — Piers Torday, Author of the Last Wild, and Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize winner

  • “A diamond of a book... with one of the best villains I've encountered in ages."

    — Ross MacKenzie, Author of the Nowhere Emporium and Blue Peter Book Award winner

  • Ghostcloud is an utterly brilliant debut children's novel.

    Lindsay Littleson, Carnegie Medal Nominated Author

  • Smartly wrought worldbuilding aptly engages with themes of identity and equity while conjuring an atmospherically gritty London that’s at once singularly inventive and reminiscent of works by Joan Aiken, Charles Dickens, and Philip Pullman.

    — Publishers Weekly, Starred Review (GHOSTCLOUD US Edition)

  • Thrilling... like Charles Dickens, Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, and Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book rolled into one. Mann creates empathy for Luke, who shows clear hope and compassion for others during this evil time. The quick-witted humor and fast pace keep the entertainment factor high.

    Kirkus Reviews, Starred Revew (GHOSTCLOUD US Edition)

  • This inventive adventure swirls elements of steampunk into a unique world where ghosts bond with water to become clouds, lose themselves in rivers, and read your thoughts through rain. It’s a satisfying and often surprising fantasy world that children will no doubt enjoy coming back to again and again.

    BookTrust, Great Books Guide 2022, for age 10-11

  • Fantasy fans will dive headlong into this imaginative, action-packed debut.

    Guardian, Children’s Book Roundup - The Best Recent picture books and novels.

  • Set amidst a vividly evoked, smoke-stained underworld beneath Battersea Power Station, Ghostcloud is a wildly imaginative debut about friendship, courage and finding your freedom against all odds

    Waterstones, & one of Waterstones ‘Best Children’s Books of 2021’

  • Utterly original, thrilling, strange and cracking good fun... every chapter is packed full of wild imagination.

    Liz Hyder, author of Bearmouth

  • I think it is absolutely phenomenal!

    Nikhil, age 9

  • This is the best book I've ever read... the story honestly transfixed me.

    Student, age 10

  • Very thrilling... kept me hanging to the end!

    Bella, age 9

  • Shortlisted for the East Sussex Children's Book Award, Salford Children's Book Award, and Oxfordshire Children's Book Award (Secondary school category)

    Regional awards

  • A Waterstones Best Children's book of 2021, A BookTrust Great Books Guide 2022, Toppsta Top 10 childrens book of year (voted by kids)

    Book of the year lists

  • Guardian Newspaper 'Best Children's Books roundup', BookTrust book of the month, Toppsta book of the month, LoveRead4Kids Debut of the Month

    Book of the Month lists