Skip to navigation Skip to content
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • facebook
Shop Now
House of Books & Friends
My Account
  • £0.00 0
House of Books & Friends
  • Home
  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Resources for Connection
    • News
  • Shop
  • Events
    • Events Calendar
    • Create Your Own Love Story
  • Our Café
    • Bookish Afternoon Tea
  • Contact
    • Hire Us
    • Accessibility Information
  • Home
  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Resources for Connection
    • News
  • Shop
  • Events
    • Events Calendar
    • Create Your Own Love Story
  • Our Café
    • Bookish Afternoon Tea
  • Contact
    • Hire Us
    • Accessibility Information

Buy Online

Impossible creatures

£8.99

Christopher is visiting his reclusive grandfather when he sees an avalanche of mythical creatures come tearing down the hill. This is how he learns that his grandfather is the guardian of one of the ways between the non-magical world and the Archipelago, a cluster of magical islands where the creatures we tell of in myth live and breed and thrive alongside humans. They have been protected from being discovered for thousands of years; now, terrifyingly, the protection has worn thin, and creatures are breaking through. Then Mal appears in Christopher’s world. She is in possession of a flying coat, is being pursued by a killer and is herself in pursuit of a baby griffin. Mal, Christopher and the griffin embark on an urgent quest across the wild splendour of the Archipelago, where sphinxes hold secrets and centaurs do murder, to find the truth – with unimaginable consequences for both their worlds.

In Stock

ISBN: 9781408897430 Category: Older Readers Tags: "Children's / Teenage general interest: Monsters, dragons & mythological creatures", Children's / Teenage fiction: Action & adventure stories, Children's / Teenage fiction: Fantasy & magical realism, Children's / Teenage personal & social issues: Friends & friendship issues
  • Description
  • Additional information
  • Reviews (0)

Description

‘There was Tolkien, there is Pullman and now there is Katherine Rundell. Wondrous invention, marvellous writing.’ – Michael Morpurgo

‘A book stuffed full of fantastical, magical delight, and a world of richly imagined wonder‘ – Cressida Cowell


* BRITISH BOOK AWARDS CHILDREN’S FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR * WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR WINNER * BOOKS ARE MY BAG READERS’ AWARD WINNER * FOYLES CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE YEAR * SHORTLISTED FOR AMAZON KIDS AND YA BOOK OF THE YEAR


* THE TIMES CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE WEEK * THE INDEPENDENT CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE WEEK * THE DAILY TELEGRAPH CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE WEEK * SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER IN SEPTEMBER 2023

There’s a place where all the wildest stories began ? From Katherine Rundell, the British Book Awards Author of the Year, comes the paperback release of the first novel in the critically acclaimed, award winning, best-selling Impossible Creatures series. This edition includes The Centaur’s Spectacles bonus short story.

Christopher is stunned when he discovers a passage to the Archipelago: a cluster of magical islands where all the creatures of myth still live and breed and thrive in their thousands. There he meets Mal: a girl from the islands, who is in possession of a flying coat and a baby griffin, and who is being pursued by a killer. Together they embark on an urgent quest to discover why the creatures are suddenly perishing, voyaging across the wild splendour of the Archipelago, where sphinxes hold secrets and centaurs do murder, in a bid to save both the islands and the world beyond them from a rising evil – before it’s too late.

‘Rundell’s first foray into fantasy is both a deft, rich homage to the greats of children’s literature and an absorbing, profoundly poignant quest story for those aged 9+ – quite possibly her best yet’ – The Guardian

‘A marvellous, imaginative fantasy told with great style and sparkle – a book to race through in a day and keep for a lifetime’ – Jacqueline Wilson

‘The world of this new book is so intriguing and so well put together that I couldn’t resist it. Readers who already know her books will seize this with delight, and new readers will love it and demand all her others at once’ – Philip Pullman

‘A masterpiece to rival Tolkien and Pullman’ – The Daily Telegraph

‘Fantastically exuberant, wildly imaginative, impossibly brilliant. Rundell’s best, which is something to be marvelled at’ – Kiran Millwood Hargrave


‘Between the covers of Impossible Creatures is a world as enchanting, as perilous, as richly imagined as Narnia or Middle Earth‘ – Frank Cottrell-Boyce


‘Rundell’s book packs a punch with imagination and creativity in its purest form. She has created a story with potential to be adored by fantasy lovers for years to come’ – The Independent


‘With a delightful cast of characters, breathless adventure, and an abundance of myth and magic, Impossible Creatures offers the very best of fantasy’ – Aisha Bushby


‘A fierce, fantastic, wild-hearted adventure that roars and bristles with imagination. I devoured it like a hungry dragon’ – Sam Sedgman


‘A rare and remarkable feat of glittering imagination from a truly masterful storyteller’ – Catherine Doyle


‘The action is gripping. Every sentence sparkles. You can feel the flutter of griffin feathers and the menace of strange poisonous shrews. Magnificent’ – The Times


‘Surely the next classic’ – The I

Additional information

Weight 0.32 kg
Dimensions 19.4 × 12.8 × 2.2 cm
Author

Rundell, Katherine

Publisher

Bloomsbury Children's Books

Imprint

Bloomsbury Children's Books

Cover

Paperback

Pages

384

Language

English

Edition

1st paperback ed

Dewey

823.92 (edition:23)

Readership

Children – juvenile / Code: J

Reviews

There are no reviews yet.

Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.

Related products

  • Murtagh

    £10.99
    Add to basket
  • Deep dark

    £7.99
    Add to basket
  • The land of lost things

    £12.99
    Add to basket

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 28



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 18098691124645586


Bookseller Heather offers her insight into Arundhati Roy's memoir, 'Mother Mary Comes To Me':

Arundhati Roy's dry humour shines through in this fascinating unravelling of the complex relationship between Roy and her mother, and the turbulent political environment they lived through.

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 25



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 18027380543719835


📣 OCTOBER BOOK CLUB 📣
THANK YOU to everyone who joined us for Beautyland this month. For our October Book Club, we will be reading Our Sister Killjoy by Ama Ata Aidoo.

Tickets and more information available on our website, or ask in-store and our booksellers can get you registered. As always, there are three sessions with complimentary tickets available if needed.

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 24



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 18354949585094230


🚨 INDIE EXCLUSIVE 🚨

TJ Klune's Cerulean Chronicles have had a make over! Take a gander at the gorgeous sprayed edge editions of everybodies favourite cosy fantasy series! 

Grab yours in store or on our website while stocks last!

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 23



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 18052170605278061


BOOKSHOP MEET CUTE 💞📚

We have another singles night with the team at BODA on 1st October! We asked our bookworms and some of our regulars: what book would you bring to a dating event?

Let us know what you'd want to offer a bookish beau 🥰
@boredofdatingapps

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 22



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 18075650963283148


House of Books & Friends is ecstatic to welcome Pete Kalu on 23rd October to discuss his memoir, Act Normal. The event will begin at 6pm, and will consist of a discussion between Pete and chair Esther Lisk-Carew, a Q&A, and a chance to get your copy signed.

Tickets on our website or in-store.

About the book

Through fragmented memories, vivid imagery, and introspective musings, Kalu explores a range of themes, from the joys and anxieties of childhood to the complexities of adult relationships, career struggles, and the enduring search for meaning. Act Normal invites readers to delve into the author's inner world, confronting universal themes of love, loss, identity, and the search for connection.

Through his unique and insightful perspective, Kalu challenges conventional narratives and encourages readers to question their own assumptions about life, love, and the world around them.

houseofbooksandfriends



View Instagram post by houseofbooksandfriends


Sep 21



Open post by houseofbooksandfriends with ID 17909661873090364


It's here Bunny! 🐰💗

Mona Awad's highly-anticipated follow up to the viral sensation Bunny, is a brilliantly written, laugh-out-loud funny, dark and delirious novel. Get your signed special edition in store or on our website while stocks last!

About the book: Sam has just published her first novel to critical acclaim. But at a New England stop on her book tour, her one-time frenemies, furious at the way they’ve been portrayed, kidnap her. Now a captive audience, it’s her (and our) turn to hear the Bunnies’ side of the story. One by one, they take turns holding the axe, and recount the birth throes of their unholy alliance, their discovery of their unusual creative powers — and the phantasmagoric adventure of conjuring their first creation. With a bound and gagged Sam, we embark on a wickedly intoxicating journey into the heart of dark academia: a fairy tale slasher that explores the wonder and horror of creation itself.


Follow on Instagram

You're here, so you must like reading.... our newsletter is akin to a literary classic! We have so many projects, events and plans for House of Books & Friends all of which we will pack in to our newsletter so you can be among the first to find out about all the latest news. Don't worry, we promise not to bombard you!

SUBSCRIBE
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • facebook

Get in Touch

We love to hearing from fellow Bookworms!

Please drop us a message, find out where we are or get directions via our contact page.
Contact Us

 

© House of Books and Friends 2025 / Website designed by Bookswarm

The House of Books and Friends CIC is a community interest company registration number 13909633, the registered office of which is 53 King Street, Manchester, M2 4LQ. Trading Address - 81 King Street, Manchester M2 4AH. what3words ///stars.wished.papers

  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy and Cookies
  • My Account
  • Search
  • Basket 0