Guppy Books lands ghost story from ‘master storyteller’ Oppel  

Guppy Books has landed Ghostlight, a “fast-paced” ghost story for readers aged 10 and over from Kenneth Oppel.  

Publisher Bella Pearson acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Alessandra Birch on behalf of Steve Malk at Writers House. Ghostlight will be published in October 2022. Publication will be accompanied by a “suitably spooky” promotional campaign.  

Oppel’s latest upper middle-grade follows Gabe, who works on the ghost tour on Toronto Island. The publisher wrote: “Every day he tells eager tourists the spooky story of Rebecca Strand, who was just 16 when she and her father fell to their deaths from the top of the Gibraltar Point Lighthouse in 1839. Just how they fell—or were they pushed?—remains a mystery. Gabe doesn’t actually believe in ghosts—until he finds himself face to face with Rebecca Strand. He and his friends become swept up in a thriller that threatens not only them but the whole of humankind in this roller-coaster ride of a story, perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman and ‘Stranger Things’."

Oppel is the author of Airborn (Hachette Children’s), winner of the Governor General’s Award for children’s literature and a Michael L Printz Honor Book Award, the Silverwing trilogy (David Fickling) and Inkling (Walker Books), which was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal.  

Pearson commented: “We are absolutely thrilled to be publishing Ken’s latest novel. He is such an extraordinary and versatile storyteller. Ghostlight is both terrifying and compelling with characters you would follow anywhere—and we can’t wait for readers to discover what ’page-turning’ really means.”  

Oppel added: “Bella Pearson has been a wonderful editor for many of my books, and I am so delighted that she is now my publisher. I couldn’t imagine a better home for Ghostlight than the mighty Guppy."