Introduction to The Twelve Quests
The Twelve Quests are a series of children's fairy tale books that revive the darkly Gothic atmosphere of the 19th century and reignite the richness of European folklore. This series of modern classics tell the woeful tale of ten year old twins, Albert and Florence Leadington, who are forced to embark on an extraordinary trip to complete twelve devious and deadly quests.Their epic journey begins in 1849 and times were as bad as bad could be for most people, indeed Victorian London was certainly not a pleasant place if you were poor but even worse if you had the misfortune to be stuck in Mrs. Snagglesnarle's orphanage, which was exactly where Albert and Florrie found themselves. However, one fateful day the strange and hapless Mr. Arthur Canarthy turns up and informs them that their parents are in fact alive but cursed.
They discover if they are to break the curse then they must strike a deal with the vindictive sorceress Madam Divitan, who assigns them twelve seemingly impossible tasks which they must successfully complete within the year. After Arthur Canarthy is forced to assume the reluctant role of their guardian, he decides to enlist the help of a roguish smuggler by the name of Ebenezer Smythe and together they all set off on an uncertain and dangerous journey to far away lands.
From the murderous Bluebeard's French chateaux, to the frozen domain of The Ice Queen's palace in Lapland, their terrifying adventures with werewolves, vampires and other such mythical creatures weave through the fabric of old folklore and fairy stories and dark magic, as they struggle to complete the challenges before their time runs out.
