Fireboy

by Edward Willett

Overview

"I knew things were getting weird when I saw my best friend’s face in the campfire. I didn’t realize how weird until the campfire followed me home . . ."

Thirteen-year-old Samantha “Sam” MacReady is nervous about the start of Grade 8, especially science class, which isn’t too surprising: last year, her Grade 7 science class mysteriously disappeared on the way to a field trip she missed out on.

But when her best friend, Lorenzo—whom no one has seen since he got on the bus with the rest of that class—suddenly appears in a campfire, she moves from nervous to freaked out. She teams up with Meg LeBlanc, the sole student survivor of what all adults refer to as “The Tragedy,” to uncover just what went on that day and why Lorenzo is now showing up in her back yard made entirely of flames.

What the two girls find out is far freakier and scarier than they ever imagined. Sam and Meg must use all their grit and intelligence to save the day and free their friends from magical enslavement . . . or fall victim to the very same fate.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781998273423
Publisher:	Shadowpaw Press
Publication date:	06/24/2025
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.53(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Edward Willett is the award-winning author (under his own name and as E.C. Blake and Lee Arthur Chane) of more than sixty books of science fiction, fantasy, and nonfiction for readers of all ages, including twelve novels for DAW Books. He has been shortlisted multiple times for Saskatchewan Book Awards, and won for his young adult fantasy Spirit Singer (Shadowpaw Press). He won Canada’s top science fiction and fantasy award, the Aurora, for his second novel for DAW, Marseguro, and has been shortlisted several times since, as well, including for his most recent young adult science fiction novel, Star Song (Shadowpaw Press). Ed has also won an Aurora Award for his podcast, The Worldshapers. In addition to being a writer and editor, Ed is a professional actor and singer. He lives in Regina, Saskatchewan with his wife, Margaret Anne Hodges, a professional engineer.

Editorial Reviews

"An exciting action-hero adventure centered on a compelling and competent narrator."—Kirkus Reviews

“Fireboy is a story jam-packed with mystery, action, humour, and surprises. You’ll never look at science class or elementals the same way again.” – Arthur Slade, Governor General’s Award-winning author of Dust

“A gripping read! . . . Sam’s engaging narrative voice in Fireboy is certain to draw readers into this mystery in which things are far from what they appear to be, and Sam herself is plunged deeper and deeper into mortal danger. Highly recommended!”—Alison Lohans, award-winning author of more than thirty books for young readers and adults

“Edward Willett’s Fireboy is a joy to read. His charming and clever main character faces an interesting and unusual situation that feels both like fantasy and like science fiction…the plot is quite exciting and kept me rapidly turning pages. An enjoyable book all around.” – L. Jagi Lamplighter, author of The Books of Unexpected Enlightenment

“A murderous tangle of kidnappings, treachery, weird alchemy, and an ancient evil that never dies.” – Matt Hughes, author of The Emir’s Falcon

From the Publisher

2025-05-03
Two girls battle supernatural forces to save their friend.

Thirteen-year-old Sam is horrified to see her best friend Lorenzo’s face in the flames of a campfire. Lorenzo, who’s been turned into the Human Torch, was last seen months ago, on a mysterious field trip during which an entire seventh grade class disappeared. Sam, who was home sick that fateful day, enlists the help of Meg—the one student who survived the outing. The small-town Alberta girls bond: Sam has lost her mother and lives with her unemployed father, while Meg’s alcoholic mother is largely absent. Together, their survival skills are second to none, which is fortunate, since they must foil Lorenzo’s captors without much help from adults. Sam’s narrative voice reads savvy beyond her years, sarcastically barbed in her defiance against morally corrupt—or simply short-sighted—grown-ups. The edgy humor aligns authentically with the middle school protagonist, although several references to the strict German vice principal’s being a “Nazi” feel uncomfortably stereotypical. The witty chapter titles—“I Wear Ugly Sunglasses During a Car Chase,” “I Find Out I Was Right the First Time”—combine with multiple action sequences to highlight Sam as a quick-thinking problem solver. The friendships in the story are satisfyingly ride or die, and the villains are reprehensibly villainous, sometimes filling the role of the bumbling adult. Characters are largely cued white; the language used to describe supporting characters of color unfortunately sounds othering.

An exciting action-hero adventure centered on a compelling and competent narrator.(Science fiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews