The Sky Beneath the Stone

Alex Mullarky

Thirteen-year-old Ivy North is an adventurer. She can pitch a tent in four minutes flat, knows the local landscape like the back of her hand, and she’s an expert map reader. There’s just one problem.

She’s afraid to go outside.

But when her little brother is transformed into a kestrel by a powerful sorcerer, Ivy is the only one who can rescue him. Following him through a mysterious hole in the garden wall, she emerges in Underfell — an enchanted realm that seems like the Lake District she knows, but is dangerously different.

Battling her dread of being out in the open, Ivy must gather all her courage to navigate a path across this extraordinary world, where powerful fairies with birds’ wings fly through purple skies and a ghostly spectre haunts her every step. With the help of an unexpected new friend, can Ivy break the spell — before her brother becomes a bird forever?

An immersive and beautifully written fantasy adventure, The Sky Beneath the Stone is a soaring journey of family, friendship, overcoming fear — and realising that we are never as lost as we think we are. Alex Mullarky’s debut novel introduces a captivating new talent in children’s fiction.