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Author & Illustrators

Vashti Hardy Books

The Moonlight Mystery Agency: The Birthday Cake Thief

Chapter book

Hana joins the Moonlight Mystery Agency to help Spark the bionic unicorn find her missing birthday cake in the first of an exciting new series from bestseller Vashti Hardy.

Hana has always longed to have a pet of her own. So when a cat turns up at her bedroom window one night, she thinks her dream has come true. But Ace is no ordinary cat. He’s a detective cat who has come to invite Hana to join the Moonlight Mystery Agency, and that’s when the magical adventures begin!

Join Hana and Ace on their first mission to solve the mystery of Spark the bionic unicorn’s missing birthday cake!

North and the Only One

Vashti Hardy

Chapter book

Dealing with what it means to be human and to be part of a family (and to have a pet), this story presents a view of the future when humans have failed to take care of the world, and humanoids have felt forced to take over.

Rose is a wonderful heroine, confused and lost in every sense of the word. Her puppy, North, is a faithful companion of the best kind. The scenario is terrifying, the sense of isolation palpable. The villains are infinitely more complex than mere baddies, which is saying something for robots! I also really enjoyed the addition of not only real-life figures, such as Ada Lovelace, but also real plays and musicals, such as West Side Story.

This book would make a fantastic read-aloud for upper KS2; one can just imagine the groans when the teacher stops reading.

Harley Hitch and the Iron Forest

George Ermos & Vashti Hardy

Chapter book

A highly illustrated fiction series about a determined young inventor, from award-winning author Vashti Hardy.

Join Harley, her robot dog Sprocket and best friend Cosmo for problem-solving adventures and mysteries in Inventia, a world where science rules and technology grows in the forest; and where exploding science projects, giant slugs and runaway robots are all part of a normal school day.

The Iron Forest near Harley’s home is unlike any other – plants and trees grow cogs and hinges and other mechanical parts – and all of Inventia depends on it. So when a strange fungus is discovered, there’s a race to find a solution. Without essential parts for inventions, the town is quickly falling apart…

But just who or what is behind the mysterious infestation? Harley decides it’s up to her to save the day – with chaotic results!

Perfect for fans of Amelia Fang and Isadora Moon, this is a rollicking adventure that celebrates STEM learning!

Heavily illustrated with lively, humourous illustrations by George Ermos.

Vashti Hardy is an award-winning author of children’s books. Her novel Wildspark won the Blue Peter Book Award for Best Story 2020, and Brightstorm was shortlisted for the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize.

Harley Hitch and the Fossil Mystery

Vashti Hardy

Chapter book

This is the third book in the Harley Hitch series and it works as a standalone. Harley is an excellent role model, as a girl who is into STEM and fascinated by subjects such as palaeontology. She is smart and ecologically aware – and also has great hair!

Children who are starting on their reading journeys often love finding series they can devour and the Harley Hitch books entirely fit the bill. And just because it is aimed at younger readers does not mean they are talked down to – Vashti Hardy uses some great words (‘prodigious’ springs to mind), it is just a shorter and simpler story. The world-building is both imaginative and contains humour. Iron Regis was my particular favourite place name! Everything is almost like reality, but not quite. George Ermos’s illustrations are lively and amusing and perfectly fit the story. Harley with her purple (sorry, violet) hair springs to life on the page, and the book has an almost cartoon-like quality. In fact, this would make an excellent animated series as it entirely lends itself to visual representation.

Brightstorm: A Sky-Ship Adventure

Vashti Hardy

Chapter book

Brightstorm is a cracking adventure story with flying ships, intrepid explorers, identity quests, sapient animals and the most wonderful cast of characters.

This thrilling steampunk adventure follows siblings Arthur and Maudie Brightstorm as they try to find out what happened to their explorer father. Arthur, who has a prosthetic iron right arm, is a great problem solver and book lover, while his sister is good at fixing things. When they learn about a race to South Polaris, where their father was lost, they win a place onboard the Aurora, a fantastic sky-ship. Maudie’s talent with tools see her appointed as second engineer. Arthur is hired as cook’s assistant.

Stories about explorers and expeditions are always popular in primary classrooms and this one, with its fresh take on the adventure quest and its convincing world-building, is sure to fire up imaginations and become a firm favourite with budding adventurers across KS2.

Wildspark

Vashti Hardy

Chapter book

Fans of Brightstorm will be delighted to see a more challenging offering from Vashti Hardy. I just loved being immersed in the world of Wildspark, with imaginary worlds that are as inventive as they are thrilling.

Prue Haywood is an inventive and curious girl who lives on a remote farm. Her aptitude for engineering gains her entry into the exciting world of Medlock and its secretive guild of inventors – but only because she poses as her brother, who really passed away not too long before. I loved following Prue’s journey on the Gigantrak train into the great metal city of Medlock and I read on with wide eyes, as Prue – a farm girl – acclimatises to the bright amber lights and towering structures of the city and the advanced systems and technologies waiting for her at the guild. With the brightest minds developing ways of placing human spirits into animal-like machines, the work of the guild is completely alluring for budding young inventors like Prue.

Prue is driven by a desire to bring her brother to life again, but it’s her warm nature, natural creativity and loyalty to friends and family that really help her the most as she navigates the complex issues of using technology responsibly. The narrative provides plenty to think about; many of the issues raised will resonate with readers growing up in the current generation that’s used to the pace of technologies advancing faster than the Gigantrak itself. I’m sure the book will raise fascinating discussions in many classrooms.