From Valda

Rainforest

Rainforest
Valda Writes…

Hello Michelle,
I have been lucky enough to get hold of an advance copy of Rainforest and just wanted to drop you a line to let you know how much I enjoyed it.

I would love to be able to go into more detail and let you know exactly why, but I don’t want to enter into ‘spoiler’ territory. I will say that at one point I had to put the book down and go for a walk around the garden before continuing as a chapter towards the end completely, claustrophobically, freaked me out. Terror from an unexpected direction!
I can also now confirm that I have read the most disturbing line I’ve read all year. ‘My torch blinks out’
The unexpected gift from the slice of jungle noir was how beautifully descriptive it was; ripe and full of colour, sounds and smells.

I don’t expect a reply to this, I just wanted to tell you that I loved it.
Valda.

Michelle Replies…

Dear Valda, I know you don’t expect a reply, but I couldn’t ignore your message.  I’m so glad that you liked Rainforest!  And I love the fact that you had to take a walk in the garden before carrying on reading.  Jungle noir is a great term; and thanks for avoiding spoilers.  Thank you so much for letting me know your response.  With very best wishes, Michelle


Upcoming Live Events With Michelle

Incredible… Inspiring… In Person!

Only 51 days to grab your ticket!

Wimbledon Book Festival

October 17, 2025
Festival patron and Sunday Times bestselling author Michelle Paver will talk about her latest supernatural fiction in this live recording with Always Take Notes, a podcast for and about writers and writing.

Michelle will discuss her incredible career, from finding inspiration for Wolf Brother on Wimbledon Common to her latest novel Rainforest, which weaves Mayan culture with themes of obsession, gender and rebirth.

Only 54 days to grab your ticket!

The Witching Hour with Bridget Collins, Michelle Paver and Laura Shepherd-Robinson – Waterstones Canterbury

October 20, 2025

Join Bridget Collins, Michelle Paver and Laura Sheperd-Robinson as they discuss their stories in a brand new collection of ghostly tales called The Witching Hour.

In this dazzling collection of original haunted tales, thirteen bestselling and much-loved authors bring the old superstition of the witching hour to new and vivid life.
Transporting you from the smog of London to the freezing mists of Svalbard, from an Irish town riddled with rumour to a sinister English boarding school, these thirteen stories will serve as your spine tingling companion to the long hours of winter.
So curl up, light a candle, and wait for the clock to strike . . .
Only 59 days to grab your ticket!

Yeovil Literary Festival

October 25, 2025

An experience like no other. From a writer like no other...

Successfully published as an adult author, the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness (“Wolf Brother”) were her first books for younger readers, followed by her brilliant 5-part series set in the bronze age, Gods and Warriors. On the adult side, her first ghost story, Dark Matter, was a UK bestseller and won massive praise from reviewers and readers alike, as did her second ghost story, Thin Air.

Oxford Literary Festival 2026

March 29, 2026

The Oxford Literary Festival takes place in venues across central Oxford, such as Blackwell's bookshop, the Bodleian Library, the Sheldonian Theatre, the Weston Library, and Oxford colleges such as Christ Church and Worcester College. The festival includes international authors, journalists, intellectuals, historians, and poets.