The Lovely Dark

Beautifully moving and breathtakingly original, this is a story of bravery and second chances, for readers aged 9+.

When 12-year-old Eleanor Newton dies in an accident, she finds herself journeying down a mysterious river that takes her to The Underworld. She apprehensively embarks on her "afterlife" at Eventide House, a boarding school of sorts for children who have died.

The Underworld is captivating: always sunny and warm but also fractured. Strange things have been happening to Ellie since she arrived: she knows something isn't right, and she doesn't want to be there. She desperately wants to get back to the world of The Living to meet her new baby brother, even if it means being a ghost.

Can Ellie find a way out of the Underworld? And who - or what - will she be if she does?

The Lovely Dark is another breathtakingly original story from Matthew Fox, author of The Sky Over Rebecca. Set in the modern world, it features themes of life after a pandemic, mental health and grief, all handled with real lightness of touch.

"Fox is a beguiling writer, whose prose cocoons us through the unusual adventures that follow ... [the twist] left this not-so-young reader close to tears" The Telegraph, 5-star review

Fox is a beguiling writer, whose prose cocoons us through the unusual adventures that follow ... [the twist] left this not-so-young reader close to tears The Telegraph, 5-star review
A beautiful, reassuring, exciting, middle grade story of what might happen to us after we die. While it doesn't shy away from the pain of grief, The Lovely Dark isn't nearly as dark as it is lovely. -- Tia Fisher, author of Crossing the Line
Wow. Just wow. If you love atmospheric, mysterious middle grade with a magical edge, poetic writing, and a nod to Greek myth, you have to read this. -- Claire Fayers, author of The Accidental Pirates
Drawing on Greek myth, particularly the story of Orpheus, Fox's second novel sees 12-year-old Ellie die in an accident and travel to the Underworld. Her struggle to return to the land of the living forms the backbone of this tautly written ... story about friendship and loss. Financial Times, Best Books of 2023
A beautiful, elegiac story for 10+, based on Greek mythology ... Definitely worth picking up! Bags of Books, Lewes independent bookshop

Matthew Fox grew up in Wiltshire and now lives in Stockholm. He studied Philosophy and Politics at Balliol College, University of Oxford and holds a Masters in Screenwriting from the Northern Film School. Matthew's first novel for children, The Sky Over Rebecca, won the Bath Children's Novel Award 2019.

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