Aislinn O’Loughlin’s werewolf adventure goes to Little Island Books
Dublin-based children’s publisher Little Island Books is thrilled to announce the acquisition of a fast-paced and quirky supernatural YA adventure, the YA debut by former teenage author Aislinn O’Loughlin.
Little Island Publisher Matthew Parkinson-Bennett signed the deal for World rights in all languages with agent Amber Caravéo of Skylark Literary.
Big Bad Me publishes on the 13th of October 2022 in paperback and follows Evie, who is about to discover that she is a werewolf.
‘I’ve got two claws, Katie. Two giant, evil, freaking Freddy Krueger monster things. I am not calm.’
Evie Wilder is living a very normal life. Except for the fact that her mum has gone missing, she’s just found out she’s a werewolf, she and her sister have to go into hiding from supernatural beings, and there’s not a single helpful vampire slayer to be found.
With the help of Kevin, the dorky-hot, teenaged manager of the guesthouse where Evie and Kate go to lie low, Evie begins to learn to harness her wolfish abilities.
But there’s something a bit odd about Kevin that Evie can’t quite put her finger on. Meanwhile, reports of animal attacks are increasing, local teenagers have started to go missing, and Evie is about to find herself at the centre of a supernatural showdown.
Aislinn O’Loughlin grew up in Dublin, on a diet of fairy tales and horror stories – often at the same time. After publishing several books in her teens, Aislinn worked as a storyteller and creative writing teacher before moving to Toronto, where she sometimes took her kids to daycare in a sled. (Yes, really!) These days, she lives in Waterford with her scientist husband, three brilliant children and two evil genius cats.
“If you are a fan of werewolves and vampires, this is a book you are going to love,” says Editor Siobhan Parkinson. “It has all the tropes, with added hot chocolate and punchy dialogue. But there is so much more going on here. Sure, it’s a book about good versus evil, feisty young girls versus seriously disturbed baddies. But ultimately it’s a book about the importance of decency, loyalty, family ties. It is, essentially, a book about love.”
“I’ve always adored stories of quippy monster-hunters, found family and geeky girl-power – so I’m over-the-moon to be working with Little Island to bring my own rag-tag of band monster misfits to the world,” says Aislinn O’Loughlin.
“Evie, Kate and Kevin have been with me, in one form or another, since I was in Toronto – missing my family and writing a new (slightly more bloodthirsty) one. I hope readers love them as much as I do.”
