Spindlewood

The first book in a gripping, eerie and unputdownable new series, perfect for fans of The Swifts, Murder Most Unladylike, Lockwood and Co and Wednesday.

Lilac Black does not believe in ghosts. So she’s rather surprised to learn she comes from a long line of gifted Seers, all of whom attended Spindlewood: a top-secret boarding school for children with the power to see, hear and communicate with spirits.

And now, Lilac has an invitation herself. The only problem? There's been a huge misunderstanding. Lilac does not have the gift.

Reluctant to disappoint her proud uncles, and curious to see this mysterious school for herself, she decides to play along. But bluffing through classes like Summoning and Banishment as an Unseeing kid is a challenge. It’s even harder when Lilac begins to feel complicated new feelings for another student: tough, vulnerable and gifted Emmanuelle, whose sight is so powerful that she sees ghosts at every turn.

But as Lilac’s web of lies becomes more tangled, one thing becomes clear: there is something wrong at Spindlewood. The ghosts are being drawn to a locked door hidden under the library. Something ancient and sinister is waiting down there . . . something connected to the long-ago deaths of Lilac's parents.

• Publication date: 27 August 2026
• Page count: 368
• Dimensions: Height 196 mm; Width 128 mm; Thickness 24 mm
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's UK
• Format: Paperback
• ISBN-13: 9780241753873