The Heart of the Weird Wood
Following the stunning revelation that the evil mage Manfred Tarr is seeking a magical key to free the Widow—the dreadful despot he both loves and fears—Benjamiah has been filled with worry about his friends and the world he has grown to love. Despite his parents’ objections, he makes his way back to that enchanting land of unmappable streets, only to find his worst fears have come true: Blight has come to Wreathenwold. Worse still, it is crossing into Benjamiah’s world too.
Together with his best friends and his trusty poppet Nuisance, Benjamiah is determined to find the key before Manfred can, put Wreathenwold back to rights, and banish the Widow once and for all. Only…the Widow claims she is waking up. And that the person who will free her from her cage will be him: Benjamiah Creek.
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Jordan Lees
In a quiet corner of Essex, where the shadows of old stories linger and imagination still seeps through the cracks in everyday life, Jordan Lees began building a world of his own. That world—Wreathenwold—is a labyrinth of forgotten alleyways, secret doors, and peculiar magic, now brought to life in The Whisperwicks series, a breakout in contemporary middle-grade fantasy.
Though new to bookshelves, Lees isn’t new to the magic of storytelling. A lifelong reader shaped by the mythic depth of Neil Gaiman and the emotional resonance of Philip Pullman, he started writing the early threads of The Whisperwicks more than a decade before its publication. At the time, he was working behind the scenes in publishing—first in royalties, then as a literary agent—quietly sketching out the bones of a story that would one day carry a curious boy named Benjamiah Creek into the heart of a living labyrinth.
The Whisperwicks
In a world where the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur, The Whisperwicks series by Jordan Lees transports readers into a mysterious labyrinth of magic, secrets, and discovery. At its heart, the series revolves around the journey of young Benjamiah Creek, an eleven-year-old boy whose logical mind is upended when he receives an enigmatic doll that transforms into a bird. This unusual event spirals him into a realm of whispers, wonders, and untold dangers, guided by a spirited ally, Elizabella.
The Whisperwicks consists of two books and series is set to expand with the upcoming release of one more book. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
