What is an ARC, you might ask? Read on!

The Blackhope Enigma will be published in the USA on August 9 by Candlewick Press and I have two ARC’s to give away to US readers. ‘ARC’ stands for Advance Reading Copy and according to the blog, Crime Fiction Dossier, an ARC is also “known as a bound galley or uncorrected proof. It’s a pre-publication edition of a book that is printed by the publisher to send out to reviewers, producers, booksellers and other trade people..”.


The Blackhope Enigma will be published in hardcover but the ARC is a paperback. It has been ‘translated’ from British English into American English (this was an interesting experience for me!) and is pretty much the same as the edition that will come out in August. But the thing with ARC’s is that they are uncorrected, which means a few details might change in the final version. The cover shown here is the US cover with my name moved down below the labyrinth.

A little something about the story: The Blackhope Enigma is an illustrated historical fantasy book suitable for middle grade readers aged about 10+ (I say about because I have met nine year olds who loved it). You can read all about it on the book’s dedicated website and get free downloads, too.

To enter the competition, you must be based in the US (since this is the US edition). All you need to do is fill in your name and email address on my Contact Form, plus answer this question in the message box: What does ‘ARC’ stand for?

If you are under 16 years old and would like to enter, please ask a parent or guardian to enter for you, using his or her email address. And by the way, I won’t keep your information or pass it on to any third parties.

This competition will run until Sunday, May 8, 2011. I’ll email the two winners and arrange to send their books to them.