Relic Hamilton, Genie Hunter: The Door of the Dead

By Author / Illustrator

Joseph Coelho, Hyun Song We

Genre

Fantasy

Age range(s)

Publisher

Walker Books

ISBN

9781529509601

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

12-03-2026

Synopsis

Genies grant wishes! That's all anyone ever cares about. They forget that genies were imprisoned in those lamps for a reason...

From the former UK Children's Laureate, winner of the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing and author of the Fairytales Gone Bad series, comes the second instalment in an action-packed fantasy adventure trilogy.

Ravenna, the king of evil genies, has taken over Taya's body and has gone underground finding powerful genie allies ... its over to Relic and the Hermitic Sodality of Genie Hunters to try and stem the flood of chaos! But one genie proves a bigger threat than all the others combined: The Archivist was a terrible genie, so terrible that his lamp was kept hidden in Windsor Castle for centuries. Relic and the team must get to it before Ravenna...

Features 20 black-and-white illustrations throughout from Korean artist Hyun Song We, an animator who has worked on Pixar films including Inside Out 2.

Praise for Book 1: Relic Hamilton: Genie Hunter: "A witty, fast-paced adventure from the children's laureate." Guardian

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Reviews

Louisa

This gripping adventure story recasts the traditional tales of genies and explores why they might be trapped in lamps and why they might only be able to grant three wishes in a highly inventive and entertaining way.

Although it’s the second book in the series, The Door of the Dead works fine as a standalone read. The background is cleverly filled in with expressively illustrated character summaries at the start and further nuggets of information are encapsulated in the verse introductions to each chapter.

Relic is the newest member of the Hermitic Society of Genie Hunters and about to face a massive challenge. Ravenna, king of evil genies, is threatening to escape from his prison and seems to be making a connection to another ancient and powerful genie: the Archivist. When The Archivist is accidentally uploaded to the internet the imaginative invention and the adventure really ramp up.

The book has many elements that have made Harry Potter so popular but the setting is more futuristic and it plays with slightly different themes. There is a strong underlying message that being different can be a strength. The Society's members are unusual, but honest, bold and loyal. It also uses the genie stories wittily, to unpick the problems with wishing for things - especially if your wish is interpreted completely literally. Best of all, once you’re hooked, it's very hard to put this story down.

272 pages Louisa Farrow, teacher