CHESTER author David Whitley is hoping his follow-up book will be as much of a page-turner as his debut work.
The former King’s School student and University Challenge winner celebrated the official launch of The Children of the Lost in the Eastgate Street branch of Waterstone’s last Thursday.
The fantasy thriller is the direct sequel to his first book, The Midnight Charter, which was released in August last year to critical acclaim, and marks the midpoint of the planned trilogy.
And David, 25, is optimistic his second book, which continues to follow Mark and Lily as they embark on adventures outside the fictional city of Agora, will continue to enthral readers.
He said: “The feedback has been very positive so far. I have not found a bad review on the internet, and I have been looking, so that is good.”
The latest book is being released across Europe and America, and David, who is currently on a promotion and book signing tour around the UK, said writing the sequel came much easier than his initial effort.
“Having established the characters, it was easier to write for Mark and Lily, although I ended up writing too much. The only challenging thing was to be revealing just enough by the end of book two, without having nothing for the third book, which will be out next year.”
And fans of the first book can expect new faces and places.
“There’s a whole set of new characters and new places, and is definitely darker than the first, but children tend to enjoy that.”
David Whitley will be appearing in the Shell Chester Literature Festival as part of GobbleDEEbook, aimed at children and young teenagers, which runs from October 23-30 in St Mary’s Centre.
