Worlds within Worlds by Amy Sparkes

The Tower at the End of Time is the sequel to The House at the Edge of Magic, and from Amy’s blog post, you can truly sense her enthusiasm for writing. This is a delightful post to read.

One of my favourite things about The House at The Edge Of Magic series is creating the storyworld. New corners are discovered. New surprises are delivered. New secrets are revealed. The House opens another door for me to explore and I’m never disappointed at the mystery, mischief and magic I find there. It’s quite probably the most fun I’ve ever had writing. The possibilities are endless, and yet somehow it all fits together so neatly, often in the way I least expect it to. And that’s a wonderfully satisfying experience for a spontaneous, seat-of-your-pants writer.

In The Tower At The End Of Time, I’ve been spoilt rotten. Firstly, I have had the chance to explore some more secrets inside the House itself. This has thrown more light onto the characters we have already met, and also introduces us to some that we haven’t. To peek behind some more closed doors, and climb a few unexplored staircases is always fun.

On top of that, I’ve had the opportunity to explore the worlds outside the House in this book. Rather a lot, actually, as the House has unfortunately got a nasty case of the hiccups, which causes it to bounce in and out of different realms as it travels through the World Between Worlds.

And if that wasn’t fun enough, I’ve also been able to explore the magical world of the witches and wizards in more detail, by specifically visiting the Hopscotch Championships. And this just demonstrates the absolute joy of writing these books. Originally, the Hopscotch Championships were mentioned in The House at The Edge Of Magic as a funny, throwaway line – offsetting the formality and arrogance of this High Wizard, Flabberghast the Great, with something silly and ridiculous. But as with many things in the House, the smallest, throwaway moments tend to brew away in a dark corner somewhere and grow into something more colourful, more spectacular … as if by magic. Working out what a magical Hopscotch Championship would look like was tremendous fun.

And if THAT wasn’t fun enough, I was also able to enter the Tower at The End Of Time. Another building in the magical storyworld, with secrets and surprises of its own – some of which definitely fall on the unpleasant side of the magical fence.

For someone who thrives on exploring, spontaneity and unpredictability, this series really is a gift. There is so much to discover. I don’t think I’ve even scratched the surface yet. Not in the House at The Edge of Magic itself. Not in the magical realms there are on offer. I have no idea what else is out there yet, but I really can’t wait to find out.

The Tower at the End of Time by Amy Sparkes is published by Walker Books and is available now.