The Weird and the Wonderful

There's something almost magical about this time of year. An ethereal, sparkling air of whimsy in the weeks leading up to Christmas. It makes us want to hunker down with a giant, other-worldly novel and escape for hours. Luckily, there is a good selection of recently released spellbinding books to accompany these weeks of hibernation. Here are our picks of the best!

An Evening with Erin Morgenstern | 25th November, 8:00pm, Greenside Church, Edinburgh

It has been eight years since The Night Circus first visited us and Erin is finally back with a new magical follow-up. The Starless Sea takes us on an adventure into a subterreanean labyrinth driven by stories and puzzles and it's the perfect November read. Come and ask Erin all your questions and discuss her wonderfully strange novels.

An Evening with Alan Lee | 12th November, 7:00pm, Waterstones Truro 

Featuring brand new artwork by the incredibly talented Alan Lee, The Hobbit Sketchbook is a must-buy for Tolkienites. He'll tell us how he came to create the stunning illustrations that influenced Peter Jackson and gained himself an Academy Award. Alan will also be visiting a few other bookshops in November, so check out where you can catch him!

Titans of Sci-Fi: Peter F. Hamilton, Temi Oh, Stephen Baxter and Tamsyn Muir | 6th November, 7:00pm, Waterstones Piccadilly, London 

Hop in a spaceship and explore the universe with some of the best-loved sci-fi writers of today. From a quest to discover a new habitable planet to lesbian necromancers in gothic space palaces, this will be a fascinating evening on where the genre is now and the endless ethers it still has to explore.



Meet Eoin Colfer | 30th October, 4:00pm, Waterstones Glasgow 

Artemis Fowl fans, get ready to meet Artemis' younger brothers Myles and Beckett. The fantastic Eoin Colfer is back with the first instalment in a brand new series, full of madcap tricksy adventure. Get a signed copy and ask him all of your Fowl-related questions!

Meet James Nicol | 2nd November, 2:00pm, Waterstones Harrogate

On failing her final witchcraft assessment, Arianwyn is sent to a sleepy town called Lull to finish her training but Lull is far from the mundane place it seems. Come and meet James Nicol as he signs copies of his popular trilogy -which recently received beautiful new covers!

Book Signing with Sophie Anderson | 9th November, 11:00am, Waterstones Durham

Travel to ancient Russia and follow the story of Yanka, abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, as she begins her journey of self-discovery. Bestselling middle-grade author Sophie Anderson will be signing her Slavic folktale-inspired novels and discussing the weird and wonderful worlds they come from.