The children turned their attention to the old man making his way towards them. Casper Tock had sensed the presence of magic before and so he knew when it was hovering close by again. He stopped in front of the ticket office and looked at the twins standing on the platform. To him, it felt just like yesterday that he had stumbled into Rumblestar and saved the world, and yet before him now were two more children, the unlikeliest of heroes, who had journeyed to an Unmapped Kingdom and restored hope to the Faraway.
The crowds in the street had no idea that Fox and Fibber Petty-Squabble had been the ones to bring rain back to their world, but the antiques collector knew.
‘So you found your way into an Unmapped Kingdom,’ he said quietly.
The twins nodded as the rain fell about them, full of promise.
Casper raised a wrinkled fist in triumph, then he chuckled. ‘However did you beat Morg?’
Fox thought of all that had stood in their way during their quest to find the Forever Fern: cursed monkeys, nightcreaks, hog-nosed vipers, witchcrocs, hunchbacks, giant apes, hexed ferns and the harpy herself.
‘By being kind,’ Fox replied. ‘And by believing, full tilt, in magic.’
The antiques collector shuffled closer to the twins until he was standing before them. ‘I saw many astonishing things during my time in Rumblestar, but you two have reminded me that the most astonishing creatures of all are, in fact, children. Because what they lack in size, they make up for in spirit.’
There was no podium or victory speech, no orchestral music or bubbling wine, as Fox had once imagined. Just the antiques collector’s words. But they made Fox’s heart swell with pride. And, together with Casper Tock and her brother, she watched as the Here and There Express melted into the rain and the last of the junglespit drifted away with the clouds.
Fox Petty-Squabble’s list of people to write thank you letters to following her quest in Jungledrop:
The brilliantly talented and endlessly dynamic team at Simon & Schuster for championing me and my story long before I started championing boglets and brothers, parrots and panthers: Eve Wersocki-Morris, Sarah Macmillan, Dan Fricker, Laura Hough, Rachel Denwood, Stephanie Purcell, Jane Tait, Mara Anastas and, finally, Jane Griffiths and Sarah McCabe – whose editorial prowess helped Abi bring my quest to life
Illustrator-extraordinaire, George Ermos, for not making me look too bratty or spoilt or stampy on the front cover
Literary agent superstar, Hannah Sheppard, for her unfaltering support of the Unmapped world and her excitement and expertise regarding adventures ahead
The wonderful teachers, librarians, booksellers and parents for placing my and Fibber’s quest into the hands of kids all over the globe
Abi’s author friends (particularly Piers Torday, Lauren St John, Katherine Rundell, Katie Webber, Mel Taylor, Ross Welford, Abie Longstaff and Perdita Cargill) for their humour and wisdom – wisdom to rival that of the Lofty Husks, I might add…
Abi’s family for their love and patience and her husband, Edo, who taught her more about kindness than anyone else in the Faraway – which she then handily passed on to me for the quest
Abi’s Coram Beanstalk (past and present) book clubs at Oxford Gardens Primary School – Adil, Tristan, Islam, Munirah, O’Shiannah, Tolmon, Tasneem, Lacey, Khawla, Raphi, Jack, Shyan, Fatima and Mimi – and the Reading Gladiators at Fox Primary School in Notting Hill, for reminding Abi why kids are infinitely more fun than grown-ups and channeling that playfulness into my story
Laura and Faith Jackson for naming Jungledrop’s secret cave, Cragheart, so well
Toby and Mark Nieman for letting Abi stay a night in the exquisite Elham Treehouse in Kent so that she could imagine what it might be like for me and Fibber sleeping up amongst the trees in Jungledrop (to book a night in their treehouse, visit: www.elhamtreehouse.com)
The fabulous Joy Court for giving Iggy Blether such a perfect surname.
More from this Series
Rumblestar
Book 1
More from the Author
Everdark: World Book Day…
Sky Song
The Night Spinner
The Shadow Keeper
About the Author
Abi Elphinstone grew up in Scotland where she spent most of her childhood building dens, hiding in tree houses and running wild across highland glens. After being coaxed out of her tree house, she studied English at Bristol University and then worked as a teacher in Africa, Berkshire and London. She is the author of THE UNMAPPED CHRONICLES, SKY SONG and THE DREAMSNATCHER TRILOGY. When she’s not writing, Abi volunteers for Beanstalk charity, speaks in schools and travels the world – from the Arctic Circle to the mountains of Mongolia – looking for her next story.
You can find out more about Abi at www.abielphinstone.com and more about how YOU can help protect our environment at www.authors4oceans.org. You can also follow Abi on social media.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/abi.elphinstone;
Twitter: @moontrug;
Instagram: @moontrugger
www.SimonandSchuster.co.uk/Authors/Abi-Elphinstone
Also by Abi Elphinstone
The Dreamsnatcher
The Shadow Keeper
The Night Spinner
Sky Song
The Unmapped Chronicles series
Everdark (A World Book Day Book)
Rumblestar
For Younger Readers
The Snow Dragon
First published in Great Britain in 2020 by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd
Text copyright © 2020 Abi Elphinstone
Illustrations copyright © George Ermos
Logo copyright © Patrick Knowles
This book is copyright under the Berne Convention.
No reproduction without permission.
All rights reserved.
Cover illustration © George Ermos
The right of Abi Elphinstone to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Design and Patent Act, 1988.
Simon & Schuster UK Ltd
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Simon & Schuster Australia, Sydney
Simon & Schuster India, New Delhi
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
PB ISBN 978-1-4711-7368-4
eBook ISBN 978-1-4711-7369-1
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either
