STIKKI THE SQUIRREL: TREE SPIRITS.

 

STIKKI THE SQUIRREL: TREE SPIRITS by JANE H WOOD.

Target Age ... Children / MG / YA (8-12 Years)

Genre ... Children’s Animal Adventure Fiction.

Publication Date ... February 28th, 2026.

Publisher ... The Book Guild Publishing Ltd.

Estimated Page Count ... 240

Standalone Second Book in a series

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stikki-Squirrel-Jane-H-Wood/dp/183574351X

Join Stikki and his mate Rella on their second exciting adventure—full of mystery, danger, and the wonders of magic found in the most unexpected places.

Winter has arrived in Hazy Hills Wood, covering everything in a blanket of snow. Food is hard to find, and the animals are getting hungry. To make things worse, there is a scary food thief on the prowl.

Stikki heads out into the cold to find his secret stash, but when he doesn’t come home, Rella goes searching for him. A frightening journey looms ahead as Stikki and Rella are forced to confront their enemies and the dreaded longlegs.

Deep in the heart of the ancient wood stands the animals’ sacred ash tree. When Brodboar the badger spots something strange high on the tree’s branches, he is shocked by the discovery and begins to worry. Is it a warning?

With Stikki and Rella still missing—can the woodland animals work together to find their friends before it’s too late?

First off, the small matter of a confession.
I have yet to read Stikki the Squirrel, the first book in the series.

Did this have any impact on my enjoyment of this, the second book?
Hmm! I can't say it did BUT what I will say is it has me really wanting to read the first instalment ... a great testimony in itself to how much I adored this book.
But I digress,

The story of exceptional and yet everyday woodland animals, of a squirrel, Stikki and his mate, Rella, now parents to young kits who are joined by 'longlegs', Sophie and her dad.
Delightful, charming, heart warming and full of a wonderfully endearing innocence; its woodland setting perfect for the author's message of wildlife preservation.
I have no doubt that Stikki The Squirrel: Tree Spirits {along with any other books in the series} will prove to be a firm favourite with all those who love animals and, with its nod to mid-winter, will make a great read for those with Pagan children in their lives.

Jane H. Wood is a multi-award-winning author who enjoys writing stories for children and young adults. Jane’s wonderful animal adventure books have captivated readers of all ages, earning her acclaim for her vivid storytelling and enchanting illustrations that feature in her Stikki the Squirrel books.
Jane lives in the sunny seaside town of Worthing on the south coast of England, with her husband, Peter. She has two grown-up sons and is a proud grandmother as well. Jane enjoys art, photography, hand crafting activities, and writing children’s stories. Jane is an animal rights advocate and environmentalist, and she supports a few animal welfare charities.

FaceBook ... https://www.facebook.com/JaneHWood16Instagram ... https://www.instagram.com/janewood705Twitter/X ... https://www.twitter.com/JaneHWood1Website: https://janehwood.com

With thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for organising a paper copy. One of several bloggers participating in the Blog Tour of this book, agree or disagree with me, all opinions are my own; no financial compensation was asked for nor given; threats of violence towards my favourite teddy bear went unheeded as did promises of chocolate.

Share the love by following their blog. Take a few minutes to check out their newest post and leaving a comment, you’ll instantly put a smile on their face. Share on FaceBook, X, Pinterest, and other social media sites, it shows that you care about their work and want others to enjoy it too! The next time you see their post pop up on your feed, hit the like button, leave a comment, or even share it with your followers. It’ll defiantly make their day.

YEAR OF THE LYNX.

 

YEAR OF THE LYNX by LIZZIE LANE.

Genre ... Historical Fiction

Publication Date ... 18th February 2026

Estimated Page Count ... 356

Standalone First Book in the Celtic Chronicles seriesAuthor Content Warning ... Bloodthirsty in places.

When the news comes of Roman invasion, Morcant the druid, also known as brother of the lynx, heads for home only to find it destroyed, the flames reaching the sky. Overcome by a thirst for vengeance he joins the army of Caradoc, who the Romans call Caractacus. As a druid, he becomes a trusted advisor and his advice is to head west with a view to uniting the disparate tribes. After their main settlement is lost, the bedraggled host head west into action and adventure where not all tribes are willing to fight, and some are too terrible to make allies.

All they can do is survive and perhaps in so doing, the land of their fathers will also survive.

Reliably informed by fellow fans of historical novels that this is an author best known for her equally enjoyable World War II fiction.

For myself,  entirely new to the work of Lizzie Lane, I found this novel to be a well paced read in which I rapidly became emerged in the lives of the characters; quickly coming to know and care for them.

Packed with many superstations and myths, a huge draw for me as was the fact that the main character {Morcant aka Brother of the Lynx} was a druid. I thought the book a drama fuelled read, steeped in realism in which the author did not shy away from descriptions of the hard, often violent life of this period in history which resulted in the vulnerability of the characters being positively palpable.

The first book in a planned trilogy, to read Year Of The Lynx is to find yourself on an epic quest.

Lizzie Lane is the author of over 50 books, a number of which have been bestsellers.  She was born and bred in Bristol where many of her family worked in the cigarette and cigar factories, this inspired her saga series for Boldwood The Tobacco Girls.

Twitter ... https://twitter.com/baywriterallat1 Instagram ... https://www.instagram.com/baywriterallatsea/ Newsletter Sign Up ... https://bit.ly/LizzieLaneNews Bookbub Profile ... https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lizzie-lane
With thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for organising a paper copy. One of several bloggers participating in the Blog Tour of this book, agree or disagree with me, all opinions are my own; no financial compensation was asked for nor given; threats of violence towards my favourite teddy bear went unheeded as did promises of chocolate.

Share the love by following their blog. Take a few minutes to check out their newest post and leaving a comment, you’ll instantly put a smile on their face. Share on FaceBook, X, Pinterest, and other social media sites, it shows that you care about their work and want others to enjoy it too! The next time you see their post pop up on your feed, hit the like button, leave a comment, or even share it with your followers. It’ll defiantly make their day.