Lily and the Night Creatures

by Nick Lake, Emily Gravett (Illustrator)

Overview

A young girl sets out to defeat the evil spirits inhabiting her home in this “thrilling...Coraline-like” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) illustrated middle grade adventure perfect for fans of The Beast and the Bethany and Margaret Peterson Haddix’s The Strangers.

Lily is used to hospitals—she’s spent more time in them than out of them thanks to her recent health issues. But when her mother goes into labor, her parents drop her off at her grandmother’s house and rush to the hospital without her. Lily doesn’t want the new baby to replace her, and she certainly doesn’t want to be sick anymore.

Most frustrating of all, she forgot to pack Willo, her favorite toy. Under her grandma’s not-so-watchful supervision, Lily sneaks back home to get Willo. Expecting to find an empty house, she is surprised to find her parents there. But something isn’t right... They look just like her mom and dad until she gets closer and sees their coal black eyes. And they refuse to let her in—it’s their house now.

With the help of some surprising new friends that she meets in her garden, Lily is determined to beat these shadowy replacements and be reunited with her real parents. But is she strong enough to triumph?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781534494626
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	08/29/2023
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 6.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	690L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Nick Lake is a children’s book editor at Harper UK. He received his degree in English from Oxford University. His Blood Ninja trilogy was inspired by his interest in the Far East, and by the fact that he is secretly a vampire ninja himself. Nick lives with his wife and daughter in England. Visit him on X @NickLakeAuthor.

Emily Gravett is the author and illustrator of many children’s books, including Matilda’s Cat, Again!, Little Mouse’s Big Book of Fears (winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal), Meerkat Mail, Tidy, and Old Hat. Her first book, Wolves, was the winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor Award for Illustration. Her second book, Orange Pear Apple Bear, was a Quills Award finalist, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, and on the shortlist for the Kate Greenaway Medal. Emily lives in Brighton, England, with her partner, their daughter, and the family dog. Visit her at EmilyGravett.com.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter 1

Editorial Reviews

"This story beautifully blends horror elements with animal fantasy and realistic issues. The replacement parents are creepy and reminiscent of those in Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, but there is plenty to differentiate the tales. The animals add humor and levity to the adventure, while Lily is believably frustrated with her sickness and scared that The Baby is taking over her place in the family. Gravett’s illustrations add to the magic and whimsy; they are particularly striking when showcasing the animals’ expressive features...[a]n appealing tale of fortitude with just the right amounts of spookiness, playfulness, and heart."

Kirkus Reviews

"An appealing tale of fortitude with just the right amounts of spookiness, playfulness, and heart."

starred review Booklist

"Gravett’s eerie illustrations capture the mood of the text and use visual cues, such as black backgrounds with white text when Lily is in the dark, to build tension. Full of twists, the story divulges key interpersonal details and magical elements with smart pacing, frequently allowing readers to reconsider everything from new perspectives."

Horn Book Magazine

"Viscerally rendered emotions and resonant chronic-illness representation build to a thrilling collaboration that deals in horror tropes...[e]mploying concrete metaphors, Lake (Satellite) confronts taboo but important emotions, including jealousy and passive suicidal ideation, softening them with the animals’ optimistic banter. Grayscale illustrations by Gravett (The Imaginary) unsettle through off-kilter architecture and whimsical figures as, alongside Lily, illustrations and text evolve toward hope."

starred review Publishers Weekly

2022-05-25
When alternate versions of her parents invade her home, a young English girl must find the strength to vanquish the demons.

Lily wishes things were how they used to be—before she got sick and before her mum got pregnant. When The Baby’s arrival is imminent, Lily is dropped off at Granny’s house. Missing the cuddly toy whale she sleeps with, Lily sneaks out at night and walks around the village toward home. There, she finds her mum and dad—but quickly realizes they aren’t her actual parents. They are cruel parent-things with strange eyes like lumps of coal, and they tell her this is no longer her house. Outside, Lily meets talking animals: Crow, Mouse, Mole, and Snake. Over the course of the night, they help her try to reclaim her home. Lily ultimately learns to accept her chronic illness and become a loving big sister. This story beautifully blends horror elements with animal fantasy and realistic issues. The replacement parents are creepy and reminiscent of those in Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, but there is plenty to differentiate the tales. The animals add humor and levity to the adventure, while Lily is believably frustrated with her sickness and scared that The Baby is taking over her place in the family. Gravett’s illustrations add to the magic and whimsy; they are particularly striking when showcasing the animals’ expressive features. Main characters read as White.

An appealing tale of fortitude with just the right amounts of spookiness, playfulness, and heart. (Fantasy. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews