Nine-year-old Alfie Blackstack's parents have met a very unfortunate end. Now he's living in the SUPER CREEPY Switherbroom Hall with his mad-haired Aunt Gertie and warty Aunt Zita. The thing is, Alfie's aunts aren't just weird - they're WITCHES! When the circus arrives in town Alfie makes his first ever friend, the FEARLESS Calypso Fagan. But when Calypso's little sister Nova disappears, they must face the TERRIFYING Head Witch in a race to find Nova and stop the next Witch War.
Alfie Blackstock isn’t surprised to find himself an orphan. After all, his parents had always been careless. Comic, intriguing, full of possibilities, this opening sets the tone for the book that follows. Adopted by his aunts Gertrude and Zita, who we quickly realise are witches, Alfie settles into a new life in the remote village of Little Snoddington. He’s in need of friends his own age, if only to share all the extraordinary things that go on around him, and the arrival of the Famous Fagan Family Circus provides just that, in the form of daring young trapeze artists Calypso. When Calypso’s sister disappears, Alfie is there to help even though that means taking on the evil Head Witch – it’s what friends are for, after all. Full of humour and excitement, and with a proper emphasis on the importance of bravery, loyalty and friendships, Jess Kidd’s adventure story will delight young readers.