Researching Oathbreaker

To research OATH BREAKER, I needed inspiration for the Deep Forest, which had to feel utterly different from the Open Forest where, until now, the story had been set.  So I travelled to the last remnant of primeval lowland Forest in Europe: the Bialowieza Forest in Poland. In Bialowieza I saw the zubron (a hybrid…

Read More

Outcast

The dreadful secret that Torak carries with him at the close of Soul Eater is revealed and he is cast out from the clans. It’s his fourteenth summer.  He’s alone, cut off even from Wolf and Renn.  Hunted and on the run he takes refuge in unknown territory – the haunted reed beds of Lake…

Read More

Soul Eater

Torak has survived the summer and his heart-stopping adventure in the Seal Islands.  He and Wolf are together again.   But their reunion is all too short-lived.   As mid-winter approaches Torak learns the worst from the White Fox clan – Wolf has been snatched. In a desperate bid to rescue him, Torak and Renn…

Read More

City Research

What sort of research about the world’s wildest places could you possibly do in the middle of the world’s biggest cities?  In fact, you can do a lot of research without leaving town… in your library. In addition to location and wolf research, I also did lots of library research. What weapons did Torak’s people…

Read More

Researching Ghost Hunter

For GHOST HUNTER, I needed inspiration for the Mountain of Ghosts, and to refresh my memory on what the Forest is like in winter. I visited Finnish Lapland in midwinter, where, in the Urkho Kekkonen National Park, I snowshoed for miles through the silent forest, following the tracks of a female elk, and watching reindeer…

Read More

From Africa to Wimbledon & Beyond…

Michelle was born in Nyasaland (now Malawi), where her South African father ran the tiny Nyasaland Times, and her Belgian mother wrote a weekly gossip column. But the days of genteel colonial society were numbered, and in 1963 the family moved to England, where she was educated in Wimbledon and at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford.…

Read More

Spirit Walker

In Spirit Walker, a horrible sickness attacks the Clans, and Torak has to find the cure.  His search takes him across the Sea to the islands of the Seal Clan, where he encounters demons and killer whales, and gets closer to uncovering the truth behind his father’s death, as well as learning of his own…

Read More

In The Studio With Ian McKellen

It was one of those amazingly lucky chances.  Just after I’d finished WOLF BROTHER, my agent was at a drinks party, where he encountered Ian McKellen.  They talked a bit about the book, a copy was subsequently sent round, and a few days later, Ian said he’d be interested in reading the audio book.  I…

Read More

Top 10 Books About The Natural World

This is an eclectic list of books which have in some way influenced my writing, and/or how I perceive the natural world.  All are beautifully written.  If you don’t know them, I’d urge you to try one or two. 1.  The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling Fresh, vivid and unpatronizing, this is the most marvellous…

Read More

Wolf Brother

Six thousand years ago.  Evil stalks the land.  Only twelve-year-old Torak and his wolf-cub companion can defeat it.  Their journey together takes them through deep forests, across giant glaciers, and into dangers they never imagined. In this page-turning, original, and spectacularly told adventure story, Torak and Wolf are joined by an incredible cast of characters…

Read More