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Available in Hardback, paperback and audio versions.
Orion audio read by Sian Phillips.

Listen to me talking about the Doomspell Books

Rachel and her brother Eric are extraordinary. She is a spell-maker, able to fly, take any shape, see far and wide with her many-coloured eyes. He is a destroyer of spells.

On the planet Ool, home of the Witches, the high Witch Heebra wants Rachel and Eric crushed, and her old adversaries the Wizards slayed. A party of Witches is dispatched to Earth to locate the thousands of children who have power’s like Rachel’s, and turn them into a ferocious army.

Rachel, in search of the children, find their magic at work across the world. In Africa she encounters the infant Yemi, whose gifts transcend all others. In Chile she meets the menacing Heiki, a girl who will perform any evil to win the approval of the Witches. And in the frozen wastes of the Arctic she and Eric engage in a desperate struggle for the hearts and minds of all children.

“McNish tells a rattling good tale, and his well-plotted narrative races through some excellent twists and turns to a spectacular climax.” - The Daily Telegraph.

“The language used is rich and evocative, full of visual and sensory imagery ?it captures the readers interest and imagination from the beginning and holds it with ease to the end.” - School Librarian.

“Anyone who enjoyed The Doomspell will want to follow it up with The Scent of Magic, in which the battle between the Witches and Earth’s children moves onto our planet ”  - The Times.

The Scent of Magic continues the Doomspell story, but if anything the characterisations are deeper, the plot even more intriguing, and it is all carried off with a verve, pace and sheer passion for pure storytelling that make McNish’s novels so compulsive.” - Amazon.

“This is a children’s book full of inventive touches ?great ideas, evocative descriptions, and page-turning pace.” - Vector

“It is a spellbinding read full of excitement and suspense. A brilliant sequel to The Doomspell.” - Cool Reads.

Read an extract from The Scent of Magic

“Rachel, wake up, get out of the dream!?Morpeth shook her gently, then more roughly when she did not move. “Come on, wake up!”

“What?” Rachel’s eyes half-opened.

Briefly Morpeth saw the remains of her nightmare. It dug into her cheek, as big as a dog: the gnarled black claw of a Witch. As Morpeth watched the thick green fingernails faded on Rachel’s pale face.

“It’s all right,” he said hastily, gripping her shoulders. “Don’t be afraid. You’re safe, at home, in your room. There’s no Witch.”

Rachel jerked awake and sat up, her breath coming in hurried gasps.

“Oh, Morpeth,” she murmured, “never wake me up like that. When I’m dreaming ... I might - I could have hurt you.” She buried her face in a pillow, waiting until the cold jagged sensation of the fingernails had gone. “You should know better,” she said at last. “A spell might have slipped out.”

“Would you rather your mum faced those claws?” he answered. “At least I can recognize them.”

Rachel nodded bleakly. “But it’s dangerous, even for you. Always let me wake up naturally, when I’m ready.”

Morpeth grunted, pointing at the sunlight filtering through the curtains. “I waited as long as I could. Half the day’s gone, and your mum was just about to get you up.” He picked a few strands of weed from her hair. “Interesting smell these have.”

“Oh no,” groaned Rachel, noticing the staleness for the first time. “I was in the pond again last night, wasn’t I?”

“I’m afraid so.”

Rachel bit her lip. “That’s twice this week.”

“Three times.”

“I suppose I had the gills?”

“Yes, the usual scarlet ones, on your neck.”

“Ugh!” Rachel felt below her ears in disgust. “How long was I under the water this time?”

“About an hour.”

“An hour!” Rachel shook her head grimly. “Then it’s getting worse. All right, I’m up.” She listened for a second. “Will you check the corridor and bathroom are clear?”

Morpeth nipped out, returning moments later. “Nobody about, and here’s a couple of fresh towels. I’ll stuff last night’s sheets in the wash, shall I?”

Rachel smiled, taking the towels. “Morpeth, you’re my guardian angel.”

Slipping quietly into the bathroom, she used a long hot shower to remove the stink of the pond. Returning to her room, she sat beside the dressing table mirror, half-heartedly brushing out her long straight dark hair.

Then she stopped. She put the brush down. She turned slowly to the mirror and examined her slim, lightly freckled face.

The eyes that gazed back were no longer quite human. Her old hazel-green eyes, matching her dad’s, had gone. Replacing them were her new magical eyes. Spells clustered in the corners, behind the lids. They liked it there, where they could look out onto the world. Throughout the day they crowded forward, eager for her attention. Each spell had its own unique colour. Yesterday’s spell-colours had started off scarlet and gold, surrounding her black pupil. This morning there was no pupil at all. There was only a deep wide blue in both eyes, the shade of a summer sky. Rachel had seen that colour many times recently. It was the colour of a flying spell, aching to be used.

Staring at her reflection in the mirror, Rachel said, “No. I won’t fly. I made a promise. I’m keeping it. I won’t give in to you!”

 

Background to The Scent of Magic

The Scent of Magic is a sequel to The Doomspell, in which the Witches come to Earth to get their revenge on Rachel and Eric ?and finish the wizards off once and for all.

I hadn’t originally intended to write a sequel. I was still making final minor revisions to The Doomspell for Orion when they asked me what I planned to do next. I mentioned that I had one or two vague ideas to continue The Doomspell ?and they liked that.

What I remember most vividly about this book is wanting to create a really nasty girl character ?Heiki. I could have made her a boy, but a girl felt right. Girl verses girl. I also wanted to expand Eric’s role, and make him a character who would eventually have as much weight as Rachel.

I hadn’t planned The Doomspell much at all, and while that made it fun to write, it left me with endless revisions. I was more disciplined this time, laying out an outline plan chapter by chapter - but giving myself license to alter that plan whenever I felt like it. That approach has served me pretty well ever since.