Secret Beast Club will make a fantastic addition to a class library with an appeal to fans of Beast Quest, Rainbow Magic and The Boy Who Grew Dragons. It will definitely be a popular reading-for-pleasure choice and even better it’s the start of a series to collect.

Aisha and Jayden are polar opposites, but best friends. One thing they can always agree on is that it’s best to stay inside their inner city flat. That is until Aisha’s tablet is taken and they race after the culprit to the canal. The thief turns out to be a gargoyle and the canal boat is the headquarters of the Secret Beast Club – an ancient Society dedicated to protecting magical creatures!

After meeting the society’s leader, Leila, and the ghostly founder Pablo Fanque, the children are invited to join the society. The children have been recruited as they possess the skill of secret sight and are needed to help track a young unicorn, who escaped from a nearby Bewilder Bubble (an ancient, hidden space where magical creatures reside) on Hackney Marshes. They must get to it before SUUCS do, as the Seekers of Unusual and Unique Creatures Society hunt magical creatures.

As well as the unicorn rescue mission, this is a story about friendship and also highlights the beauty and value of the natural spaces that can be found in the city. The pair of friends learn much about themselves and the power that lies in their unique differences and they discover that there is magic everywhere, especially when you look outside. This is a great illustrated early chapter book that will engage children with the pacey, modern storyline and magical elements.