P.G. Bell switches things up in a middle grade adventure where Jack and the Beanstalk meets The Borrowers with a dash of murder mystery thrown in. Super fun and the perfect summer holiday read for confident readers who love to fully immerse themselves in a new world.
This one is already on the shelves at our indie bookshop and I can’t wait to start recommending it to local schools come September.

Which was your favourite once upon a time story growing up? Jack and the Beanstalk was definitely one of my favourites with golden eggs and an enchanted harp. Bestselling Children’s author, P.G. Bell has had huge success with his ‘Train to Impossible Places’ (Usborne, 2018-2021) series - a fave of my daughter’s.

I was absolutely delighted to receive a proof of this new adventure as this author has been missed as one of the great magical adventure writers of books with wit, imagination and suspense for middle grade.

What a brilliant concept though. A murder mystery following all the traditional plot developments - detecting, discovering a body, looking for a murder weapon, witnesses, suspects, and motive - it’s all here in spades. However to take a veritable Agatha Christie style whodunit and wrap it up in a post human vs giants fairy tale world war is super genius.

Meet girls, Anwen and Cerys, who live in a rural village called Old Stump. Can you guess why? Yep! It’s the original site of the ACTUAL beanstalk - now chopped down for the sake of peace following an all out war between humans and giants, all because of that naughty thieving Jack!!

Cerys and Anwen are not exactly the best of friends (well at the beginning of the book anyway). Whilst Cerys has managed to get into the Academy of High Magic, Anwen hasn’t, and this has led to some rivalry between them, and some rather petty oneupwomanship that might or might not involve Anwen speaking to her seagull mate Colin (for she has a witch talent of communicating with animals, birds etc) and asking it to poop on Cerys at any given opportunity… (Note to self not to get on the wrong side with Anwen, as living by the sea might mean absolute bird plop blizzards!)

Anwen, a Meadow Witch (apprentice), so reminds me of a gutsy Alice from Wonderland… a little stubborn, but brave, caring and accepting, and a little naive, but with it all comes adventure, cleverness and curiosity.

Readers, there’s nothing like a major event, a catastrophic emergency to bring people to their senses. The ‘CerWen’ nonsense has to pause suddenly as out of the sky, from the Sky Kingdom above, falls a DEAD BODY OF A GIANT!!!!!!!!!! The village is crushed and thanks to the magic spells cast by villagers, no-one is killed, only injured. O.M.G.

You’ll be interested to know that any child with an interest in the slightly macabre will love that as a Meadow Witch, Anwen is very used to seeing dead bodies, because one of the services she and her Grandmother perform is preparing the dead for burial. She’s almost forensic in her methods, fantastic at finding clues, and this is going to be very useful in solving the MURDER CASE!! The way she examines the body (fully clothed and in situ, don’t worry)… I’m thinking CSI for kids!! Pretty cool actually.

In trying to notify, extremely diplomatically, via a letter delivered by beanstalk, the giants in the Sky Kingdom that one of theirs had dropped through rather dead, Cerys and Anwen accidentally end up accompanying said message to come face to face with actual living giants. Yikes!! After discovering that the body is in actual fact the King’s, and observing the courtiers, especially the King’s sister-now-Queen, Anwen is desperate to solve the murder, and she’s got a perfect ally in Captain - a kindly giant, who is himself in charge of solving the case for the new Queen.

Imagine the tiny Cerys and Anwen, minute in a giant’s world, it’s not going to be easy to survive, let alone accomplish dangerous detective work. There’s a killer on the loose still after all… and cats. Cosy in their royal dolls house, the girls are forced to appreciate each other’s different strengths and skills, whether it’s casting a spell to increase the volume of their tiny voices so Captain can hear them, or talking to the mice to take them through tunnels to explore rooms at night for clues, or to commandeer highly comical pigeons with high aspirations to look for elusive witnesses. Now isn’t the time for bird droppings revenge. It’s time to work together, which means that they might actually become friends at this rate.

Will this trusty team of giants and humans solve the mystery of the murdered King, an unlikely guitar playing fiend, before the assassin strikes again? And, can they save the peace treaty in time!! More to the point, do you think you’ll guess who the murder is before the big reveal? I’m not so sure you will, which is a good thing and adds to the fun of the WOW NO WAY at the end.

Beneath the glamour… who is really better than whom? Underneath it all are two girls coming from kind and humble families who just want to make their way in the world. Comparing ourselves to each other can be disastrous, and children of this age are full of all sorts of anxieties and insecurities. Natural talents are not to be scoffed at or ashamed of because of envy of another’s!!

‘The Beanstalk Murder’ is exciting, a bit giggly, cryptic and pacy. It’s a full blown fairy tale adventure, with musical mayhem and magical mischief. Plus, there are more red herrings than you can shake a solid gold giant treble clef cuff link at!!

I’m glad there’s more to come from P.G. Bell with his murderous twisted fairy tale middle grades. Very enjoyable Summer holiday read indeed.

P.S. Here’s one of Anwen’s Folk Magic spell incantations in Welsh…
“Glöyn Byw, Glöyn Byw, rwy’n dy weld di, dere ataf i.” - no guarantees of it working though, ahem. Perhaps apologise to any nearby pixies in advance…

A smart, funny, fairy-tale-inspired middle grade book with a giant murder mystery at its heart! Anwen and Cerys make a great (if squabblesome) pair of detectives and the clever twists and turns of the case will keep young readers hooked right to the end. I really enjoyed this cracking whodunnit tale of magic and giants and look forward to reading more by P.G. Bell.

Anwen is learning the skills to be a meadow witch and is jealous of Cerys and her 'showier' magic.
When the body of a giant lands on their doorstep, Cerys and Anwen are thrown into adventure as they investigate murder.
This was such a fun concept and really enjoyable.
Think kids will really enjoy this whodunit.

A completely fresh take on the idea of giants and humans. Filled with magic (high and meadow), a giant-sized mystery, the Sky Kingdom and lots of twists and turns, I just couldn't put this down until I'd found out who the culprit was. The characters were engaging and I found myself willing Anwen and her unlikely partner Cerys to uncover the real truth behind the mystery.
I'll definitely be recommending this to my new class.

This is a fast paced, fun adventure set many, many years after the misadventures of Jack, his cow and the magic beans.
The two worlds were living their separate lives until a dead giant dropped through the thin layer of separation and landed on a village.
Dreading the hostilities happening again if the military became involved, the local people decide to send a message up to the Sky Kingdom giants explaining what has happened. However planting an ancient magic bean and hoping for the best was never going to go to plan, was it? Anwen and Cerys get stuck amongst the giants and have to use their cunning and magic to help solve the murder.
The author has brought some elements of fairy tale to this story and yet taken it further. The themes of family, friendship and problem solving all add to a fabulously adventurous story that also sends the message that we should not judge people on just the things that we see, as we may not get looking closely enough to realise what is actually happening.

A fun read for 9-11 yrs, this adventure will delight anyone who loves a great mystery and likes a heroine (or two) who learns to stand up for herself and get the recognition she deserves. When a giant falls from their lands in the sky it destroys Anwen and Cerys's village and leaves them with a dilemma, how on earth will they alert the giants above the clouds? Anwen gets caught up in the excitement and when an accident gives her the opportunity, she is determined to solve the murder, but will any of the giants listen to her?
Loved the idea of what happens generations later in a land made famous by Jack and the beanstalk he grew and giant he stole from. Cerys's character development from annoying show-off pampered princess to a girl strong in her beliefs and ability but who is also more aware of those around her was a great back story. Anwen's development was less pronounced as she was a likeable character from the start, but you cheer as she gets a future of her choosing, she is spunky and curious and you have faith in her 🤩
Overall an engaging read

This is a joyous read. Combining the familiar plot of climbing up the beanstalk to the land of giants with a twisty murder mystery is inspired. I loved it!
Anwen is a trainee meadow witch who is not very happy . Firstly, her rival Cerys is boasting about winning a place at the school Anwen wanted to go to and then on top of that a dead giant has fallen from the sky squashing her little village .
Inadvertently, both girls find themselves trapped high up in the land of giants where they discover the king has also been killed.. In order to get home Anwen and Cerys have to track down the person responsible for the killings.
I liked the blend of traditional fairy tale characters with the more modern personalities of the girls. I think readers will like the squabbling between them as well as the realisation about each other which they find at the end. It's a great story!
My thanks to Usborne and Net galley for this arc.

The story presents an interesting spin on a well-known tale. I love the chemistry between the two main characters. I am sure children would love this one.

4 stars for adults
5 stars for children aged 9+
The Beanstalk Murder is an action and mystery-packed fantasy adventure, which is very well-written and has lovely humour.
Anwen is a relatable character, as an 11-year-old, meadow witch in training.
She is resourceful and together with the contrasting character Cerys and others, they help solve the murder mystery around the giant’s death.
Plot 3.5/5
Characterisation 4/5
Prose 4/5
Suitability and engagement level for mid graders (best suited for 10+ in my experience) 5/5