Pontefract Reads

04/09/2026

Waiting for a reader on the bench outside Twine 💜📚💜

"I stop my ears to the whisperings as best I can; shut my inner eye to the blurred images barrelling towards me; refuse to reach for the threads and allow those images to wave into something intelligible."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Last Starborn Seer by Venetia Constantine across the UK today!

Who will use their seer powers to work out where they’re hidden?

About the book:

Leilani Stellarion is cursed.

The last of a ruined bloodline, she’s shunned for her volatile Starborn magic, which grants her prophetic visions but is slowly corrupting her mind. Branded a pariah, Leilani is blamed for the Sickening, a wasting curse that fractured the realms of Arcelia and plunged them into war.

When her dying mother’s health deteriorates and a forced marriage threatens her future, Leilani seizes the chance to reclaim her fate. A prophecy speaks of an ancient relic that could end the Sickening – and she’s determined to find it.

To retrieve the sceptre, she must survive the deadly climb to the Astral Mountain, forge alliances with enemies, outwit rebel forces, and navigate her own treacherous feelings for a rival envoy, which grow under the watchful eye of her betrothed.

Hunted by a vengeful spectre and haunted by her magic, Leilani must decide what she’s willing to sacrifice in the name of redemption – before her powers consume her.

03/09/2026

"The library is my favourite place in Meissa. Its books have offered me solace and companionship, opened gateways, allowed me to soar far beyond the city wall, though I've never once set foot outside it."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Last Starborn Seer by Venetia Constantine across the UK today!

Who will use their seer powers to work out where they’re hidden?

About the book:

Leilani Stellarion is cursed.

The last of a ruined bloodline, she’s shunned for her volatile Starborn magic, which grants her prophetic visions but is slowly corrupting her mind. Branded a pariah, Leilani is blamed for the Sickening, a wasting curse that fractured the realms of Arcelia and plunged them into war.

When her dying mother’s health deteriorates and a forced marriage threatens her future, Leilani seizes the chance to reclaim her fate. A prophecy speaks of an ancient relic that could end the Sickening – and she’s determined to find it.

To retrieve the sceptre, she must survive the deadly climb to the Astral Mountain, forge alliances with enemies, outwit rebel forces, and navigate her own treacherous feelings for a rival envoy, which grow under the watchful eye of her betrothed.

Hunted by a vengeful spectre and haunted by her magic, Leilani must decide what she’s willing to sacrifice in the name of redemption – before her powers consume her.

03/09/2026

"I stop my ears to the whisperings as best I can; shut my inner eye to the blurred images barrelling towards me; refuse to reach for the threads and allow those images to wave into something intelligible."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Last Starborn Seer by Venetia Constantine across the UK today!

Who will use their seer powers to work out where they’re hidden?

About the book:

Leilani Stellarion is cursed.

The last of a ruined bloodline, she’s shunned for her volatile Starborn magic, which grants her prophetic visions but is slowly corrupting her mind. Branded a pariah, Leilani is blamed for the Sickening, a wasting curse that fractured the realms of Arcelia and plunged them into war.

When her dying mother’s health deteriorates and a forced marriage threatens her future, Leilani seizes the chance to reclaim her fate. A prophecy speaks of an ancient relic that could end the Sickening – and she’s determined to find it.

To retrieve the sceptre, she must survive the deadly climb to the Astral Mountain, forge alliances with enemies, outwit rebel forces, and navigate her own treacherous feelings for a rival envoy, which grow under the watchful eye of her betrothed.

Hunted by a vengeful spectre and haunted by her magic, Leilani must decide what she’s willing to sacrifice in the name of redemption – before her powers consume her.

01/09/2026

"The atmosphere is electric."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Manchester Chronicles by Clint Boon around the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one outside The Old Grocers pub in Pontefract?

About the book:

A born storyteller, Clint Boon pieces together a collage of often hilarious stories to give us a unique take on the city's coming of age alongside his own. At art school, rehearsal studios and sweaty gigs, we meet the movers and shakers of Manchester, often well before they were famous, as they came together to forge their identities and put the city on the map.

Be it a near-fatal tour bus crash, or suffering the ignominy of being on Top of The Pops one week and signing on the dole the next - while your former roadie, Noel, makes pop history - Clint entertainingly captures the mayhem of music, success and the city's extraordinary musical family.

Encountering bands like Buzzcocks, Joy Division, The Fall, New Order, the Smiths, James, the Stone Roses, the Happy Mondays, Elbow and Oasis, raconteur Clint tells the Manchester legend not as an exhaustive history, but as what it felt like to be there at the time, taking the trip of a lifetime.

01/09/2026

"I was constantly playing records, buying records, swapping records or borrowing records"

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Manchester Chronicles by Clint Boon around the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one near Lightning Bolt Records in Pontefract?

About the book:

A born storyteller, Clint Boon pieces together a collage of often hilarious stories to give us a unique take on the city's coming of age alongside his own. At art school, rehearsal studios and sweaty gigs, we meet the movers and shakers of Manchester, often well before they were famous, as they came together to forge their identities and put the city on the map.

Be it a near-fatal tour bus crash, or suffering the ignominy of being on Top of The Pops one week and signing on the dole the next - while your former roadie, Noel, makes pop history - Clint entertainingly captures the mayhem of music, success and the city's extraordinary musical family.

Encountering bands like Buzzcocks, Joy Division, The Fall, New Order, the Smiths, James, the Stone Roses, the Happy Mondays, Elbow and Oasis, raconteur Clint tells the Manchester legend not as an exhaustive history, but as what it felt like to be there at the time, taking the trip of a lifetime.

26/08/2026

Dolly Parton was a true icon.
Alongside her talent at songwriting and singing, her philanthropy work included The Imagination Library, putting free books into the hands of children. This is a huge part of the ethos of Pontefract Reads and we feel saddened by her loss to the world.
Be More Dolly and share free books.

22/08/2026

"I sometimes wonder, if we'd met at a different time, in a different place, whether things might have ended differently, too. I don't think there was ever really the possibility of a happy ending."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Exes by Leodora Darlington throughout the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one in Banks Avenue Little Free Library in Pontefract?

About the book:

Natalie chose James carefully, because he's different from all the men she'd loved before. Calm. Competent. Kind. And there are three very good reasons she needs to be so careful. Their names are Marc, Luca and George. Natalie prefers not to think about what they did to her. Let alone what she had to do to them.

Except now, on a night they are meant to be celebrating how happy they are together, Natalie and James are lying in separate bedrooms.

She is asking herself how she could have been foolish enough to let yet another man hurt her like this.

Slowly, Natalie realises she’s already holding a knife.

But she's not going to do anything with it.

She’s not. Not again.

About the author:

Leodora has quickly established herself as one of the UK’s most exciting literary voices.  She was recently shortlisted for the McDermid Debut Award 2026 and The Exes was selected as a Good Morning America Book Club pick.

22/08/2026

"I can't escape the thought that I'm playing with fire. Until I'm sure what happened with my exes can never happen again, I need to keep my distance from romantic interests. But James... James is not like anyone I've dated before."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Exes by Leodora Darlington throughout the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one outside The Counting House in Pontefract?

About the book:

Natalie chose James carefully, because he's different from all the men she'd loved before. Calm. Competent. Kind. And there are three very good reasons she needs to be so careful. Their names are Marc, Luca and George. Natalie prefers not to think about what they did to her. Let alone what she had to do to them.

Except now, on a night they are meant to be celebrating how happy they are together, Natalie and James are lying in separate bedrooms.

She is asking herself how she could have been foolish enough to let yet another man hurt her like this.

Slowly, Natalie realises she’s already holding a knife.

But she's not going to do anything with it.

She’s not. Not again.

About the author:

Leodora has quickly established herself as one of the UK’s most exciting literary voices.  She was recently shortlisted for the McDermid Debut Award 2026 and The Exes was selected as a Good Morning America Book Club pick.

22/08/2026

"Panic digs its fingers into the crevices of my jaw and squeezes, clenching it tight. While my eyes dart across the room, I try to keep my head still. Try not to make my scanning too obvious, lest I give away my intentional watching of them, should they now be watching me."

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Exes by Leodora Darlington throughout the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one outside The Old Grocers pub in Pontefract?

About the book:

Natalie chose James carefully, because he's different from all the men she'd loved before. Calm. Competent. Kind. And there are three very good reasons she needs to be so careful. Their names are Marc, Luca and George. Natalie prefers not to think about what they did to her. Let alone what she had to do to them.

Except now, on a night they are meant to be celebrating how happy they are together, Natalie and James are lying in separate bedrooms.

She is asking herself how she could have been foolish enough to let yet another man hurt her like this.

Slowly, Natalie realises she’s already holding a knife.

But she's not going to do anything with it.

She’s not. Not again.

About the author:

Leodora has quickly established herself as one of the UK’s most exciting literary voices.  She was recently shortlisted for the McDermid Debut Award 2026 and The Exes was selected as a Good Morning America Book Club pick.

22/08/2026

The Book Fairies are sharing copies of The Exes by Leodora Darlington throughout the UK today!

Who will be lucky enough to spot one?

About the book:

Natalie chose James carefully, because he's different from all the men she'd loved before. Calm. Competent. Kind. And there are three very good reasons she needs to be so careful. Their names are Marc, Luca and George. Natalie prefers not to think about what they did to her. Let alone what she had to do to them.

Except now, on a night they are meant to be celebrating how happy they are together, Natalie and James are lying in separate bedrooms.

She is asking herself how she could have been foolish enough to let yet another man hurt her like this.

Slowly, Natalie realises she’s already holding a knife.

But she's not going to do anything with it.

She’s not. Not again.

About the author:

Leodora has quickly established herself as one of the UK’s most exciting literary voices.  She was recently shortlisted for the McDermid Debut Award 2026 and The Exes was selected as a Good Morning America Book Club pick.

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