The Children of Wolf Rock

By Author / Illustrator

Natasha Farrant

Genre

Adventure

Age range(s)

Publisher

Faber & Faber

ISBN

9780571382521

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

04-06-2026

Synopsis

Stormy Loch Academy is about to change the lives of three children forever - from the world of bestseller, The Children of Castle Rock.

High in the mountains of western Scotland, there is a loch, and on its shores there is a castle, and in that castle there is a school . . . Stormy Loch Academy is like no other teaching establishment. For one, its headmaster, Major Fortescue, believes in sharing the beauty of the world with his students, so that they will have the courage to fight for it.

For Minna, Kass and Tom it proves to be the safe haven from their chaotic home lives, giving them all a chance to breathe freely, and to roam the valleys and lakes on their doorstep. But then they come across Addie, an older ex-student, hiding out in the wild, with only her guitar and her dog for company . . . At first they believe her stories, but when she goes missing, the lies she has told start to emerge.

With Addie at risk, Minna, Kass and Tom must travel to London to uncover her past. The journey is dangerous, especially for those so young . . . But these are the children of Stormy Loch, and bravery and adventure runs through their bones . . .

'You won't read a better story this summer.' Emma Carroll 'One of our greatest living children's writers.' Ross Montgomery 'Truly masterful.' Hannah Gold 'Glorious . . . pure heaven.' Piers Torday 'Rich with atmosphere and heart.' Jenny Pearson 'Breathtaking adventure.' Lucy Strange 'Tremendously exciting.' Judith Eagle 'A master storyteller.' Joanna Nadin 'A thrilling, evocative adventure.' Andy Shepherd

Reviews

Sue

Minna, Kass and Tom are all students at Stormy Loch Academy, a school hidden in the mountains of western Scotland. Its headmaster, Major Fortescue, encourages his pupils to be independent, allowing them to roam the countryside. Each of these children is at the school for very different reasons, but staying over the summer whilst everyone but the Major and an assistant called Kelly have gone home, the three come together. When they come across Addie, an ex-student, who is hiding out near the school with her dog, they are keen to help her, but as they learn she has not been telling them the whole truth, things change and Addie disappears. Determined to help her, the children travel to London to uncover the truth, finding themselves caught up in the adventure of a lifetime.

Natasha Farrant is one of my favourite authors, always offering an unmissable adventure. The Children of Wolf Rock is a perfect example of her heart-warming, exciting storytelling - and I loved it! There is an immediacy to her writing, instantly engaging readers and making the book so hard to put down.

The story starts with Minna and the issues she has with 'conventional' schooling, which lead her parents to choose Stormy Loch Academy. Captured by the beauty of the setting and the new freedoms she discovers, Minna has found somewhere she feels she belongs and can be happy. Kass has arrived there because his adventurous parents are off on another filming assignment. Pursued and tormented by bullies, his time at the school so far has not been happy. Tom also finds himself at school over the summer. Desperately unhappy and feeling forgotten by his recently divorced parents, Tom fell in with the 'wrong crowd' and became one of the gang making Kass's life a misery.

When they come together, this unlikely trio of very different children make an excellent team, solving the mystery of Addie's disappearance and helping to save her family. Each shows incredible courage and determination, learning much about themselves, about making mistakes and facing new situations and new challenges whilst remaining true to themselves.

Vivid descriptions of the countryside, the wild beauty of the mountains and the joys of the outdoors make an excellent backdrop to the story, showing the healing power of nature. The freedoms the children are allowed help them to pace their own days and find their own rhythm, giving them an inner strength which they can draw on in other situations.

Sharing the same setting as The Children of Castle Rock, the book also makes reference to (my favourite!) Voyage of the Sparrowhawk, when Minna meets a couple called Gen and Amir on their narrowboat in London. Although all of these books (and the others) are thoroughly enjoyable as stand-alone stories, anyone who has read one of Natasha Farrant's books is sure to be keen to read them all. Full of adventure and heart, this is an incredible story!

304 pages / Reviewed by Sue Wilsher, teacher