The Stolen Lake

Description

Aboard the man o`war, the Thrush, on the way back to London from Nantucket , Dido and crew are summoned to the aid of the tyrannical Queen of New Cumbria who has appealed to England as her oldest ally for help - someone has stolen her lake. Her island is an infernal place with a suspicious lack of girl children, where birds called Aurocs carry off men and fish eat human flesh, streets are cobbled in silver and thirteen active volcanoes keep the citizens in a state of apprehension. Dido who is abducted twice and has many dangers to overcome, ultimately triumphs and the rightful heir to the throne is in place before the Thrush sets sail once more for London. Fitting in between Nightbirds on Nantucket and Limbo Lodge, The Stolen Lake can be read as an independent story.

Prize-winning Joan Aiken was born in Sussex in 1924 and came from a family of writers. Her father was the novelist and poet, Conrad Aiken and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge, writes historical fiction for adults. Before joining the 'family business' herself, Joan had a variety of jobs, including working for the BBC, the United Nations Information Centre and then as features editor for a short story magazine. Her first children's novel, The Kingdom of the Cave was published in 1960. Since then she has written over 100 books for young readers and adults and has been awarded the MBE for her services to literature. Joan Aiken died in 2004.

The Stolen Lake is zanier and more devilishly fiendish than ever * The New York Times * A natural storyteller with the gift of endless and usually comic invention * Guardian * Joan Aiken's imagination is inexhaustible * Daily Telegraph * Joan Aiken is the best contemporary writer of historical fantasy we have -- Susan Hill