PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Frances Hardinge spent her childhood in a huge old house that inspired her to write strange stories from an early age. She read English at Oxford University, then got a job at a software company. However, by this time a persistent friend had finally managed to bully Frances into sending a few chapters of Fly By Night, her first children's novel, to a publisher. Macmillan made her an immediate offer. The book went on to publish to huge critical acclaim and win the Branford Boase First Novel Award. Known for her beautiful use of language, she has since written many critically acclaimed novels, including A Skinful of Shadows, Verdigris Deep, Cuckoo Song, and the Costa Award-winning The Lie Tree.
Frances Hardinge has joined the company of writers whose books I will always seek out and read -- Garth Nix There is no mistaking the distinctive voice and vividly crafted prose of Frances Hardinge. She is a writer who delights in language, and whose stories fizz with ideas, allusions and eccentric detail * Metro * A novel by Hardinge is always an event * Sunday Times * Electrifyingly good -- Amanda Craig * New Statesman * Everyone should read Frances Hardinge. Everyone. Right now -- Patrick Ness
