Fairytale Frankie and the Mermaid Escapade by Greg Gormley and Steven Lenton (Orchard Books)

We're well and truly back into the swing of things and today (Jan 12th) is definitely a red letter day for plenty of artists and authors, as the first big launch push of the year begins in earnest.
We're very pleased to see a sequel to a rather cool little story, featuring a distinctly different hero. Fairytale Frankie and the Tricky Witch was a superb little book and now Frankie is joined by a winsome lass with a fishy tale (or should that be tail?) of her own.

In "Fairytale Frankie and the Mermaid Escapade", Frankie is back - and this time she's enjoying a wonderful holiday by the seashore. A dark shadow is being cast across the coast though, as a rather grumpy sea monster is on the way to spoil everyone's summertime fun. The mermaids are worried, the wizard lifeguard is frantic and even a surfing prince doesn't want to go back into the water...

Oo-er that doesn't sound good!

Frankie and her new-found friends decide that the only way to deal with a big grumpy bully is to rally round, stick together and be extremely brave.

Uh oh! Is it doom for our plucky heroine?

The story's core message is relayed in a tale full of excitement and adventure, and as before Frankie is a heroine that kids can identify with.

The story builds the tension and excitement perfectly!

Fab art from Steven Lenton helps to make this an early shoe-in for a favourite storytime treat.

"Fairytale Frankie and the Mermaid Escapade" by Greg Gormley and Steven Lenton is out today, published by Orchard Books.