{"product_id":"9781925410327","title":"Ballad for a Mad Girl","description":"\u003cp\u003eEveryone knows seventeen-year-old Grace Foley is a bit mad. She's a prankster and a risk-taker, and she's not afraid of anything—except losing. As part of the long-running feud between two local schools in Swanston, Grace accepts a challenge to walk the pipe. That night she experiences something she can't explain. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe funny girl isn't laughing anymore. She's haunted by voices and visions—but nobody believes a girl who cries wolf. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs she’s drawn deeper into a twenty-year-old mystery surrounding missing girl Hannah Holt, the thin veil between this world and the next begins to slip. She can no longer tell what's real or imagined—all she knows is the ghosts of Swanston, including that of her own mother, are restless. It seems one of them has granted her an extraordinary gift at a terrible price. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEverything about her is changing—her body, her thoughts, even her actions seem to belong to a stranger. Grace is losing herself, and her friends don’t understand. Is she moving closer to the truth? Or is she heading for madness? \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eI trace the word with my finger. It shimmers. A sharp impact near my ribs knocks me sideways and the pipe seems to buckle and twist. My legs lose grip. Close by, someone is sobbing as if their heart could break.  \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eVikki Wakefield’s\u003c\/b\u003e first YA novel, \u003ci\u003eAll I Ever Wanted\u003c\/i\u003e, won the 2012 Adelaide Festival Literary Award for YA Fiction, as did her second novel, \u003ci\u003eFriday Brown\u003c\/i\u003e, in 2014. \u003ci\u003eFriday Brown\u003c\/i\u003e  was also an Honour Book at the Children’s Book Council of Australia, in 2013, and was shortlisted for the prestigious Prime Minister’s Awards. Vikki’s third novel, \u003ci\u003eInbetween Days\u003c\/i\u003e, was Highly Commended in the 2016 Barbara Jefferis Award, was a 2016 CBCA Honour Book and was shortlisted for the 2016 Prime Minister's Awards. Vikki lives in the  Adelaide foothills with her family.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Fans of intelligent, unflinching, spine-crawling thrillers…will love \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e.’ \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooks + Publishing\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e ‘Vikki Wakefield is a formidable author…Intriguing and captivating. Absolutely phenomenal.’ \u003cb\u003eDiva Book Nerd\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e ‘Wakefield tightropes confidently between fact and fantasy, the real and the surreal in this gripping tale of a daredevil teenager.’ \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAdelaide Advertiser\u003c\/i\u003e, Favourite Books of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Everything you already love about Vikki Wakefield—plus a spine-tingling supernatural mystery. \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is brilliantly creepy and thrilling.’ \u003cb\u003eFiona Wood\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘There’s a dark side to being the funny one in the group. This is a piercing, creepy tale about a wild girl who could lose herself to a ghost. Vikki Wakefield’s writing never fails to give me chills.’ \u003cb\u003eEmily Gale\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Vikki Wakefield writes stories that will break your heart.’ \u003cb\u003eReadings\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is brilliant, edgy and unsettling. Grace is a tough and sympathetic anti-heroine. I felt her grief and, even when I cursed her curiosity, was compelled to follow her to the story’s satisfying, cinematic end.’ \u003cb\u003eSimmone Howell\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Vikki Wakefield is one of Australia’s best YA writers. I couldn’t put down \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e.’ \u003cb\u003eCath Crowley\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Vikki Wakefield is one of the most creative and daring authors writing for young adults today. \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is an Aussie YA Gothic tale that smartly uses the supernatural to explore the depths of grief and growing up, and the pain to be found in both. This is a caring and keening novel, creepy but tender and wholly marvellous.’ \u003cb\u003eDanielle Binks\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is an intense, unsettling read…Every page is charged with emotion.’ \u003cb\u003eLoony Literate\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is about the living, the dead, the long journey of grief, and what happens when the lines between them blur. A spooky, gripping rollercoaster ride!’ \u003cb\u003eNadia L King\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eIn Ballad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e, Vikki Wakefield does it again, this time raising the bar with a riveting, beautifully told ghost story that draws you in until the very last page.’ \u003cb\u003eKids’ Book Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Vikki Wakefield is one of the most creative and daring authors writing for young adults today. \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is an Aussie YA Gothic tale that smartly uses the supernatural to explore the depths of grief and growing up, and the pain to be found in both. This is a caring and keening novel, creepy but tender and wholly marvellous.’ \u003cb\u003eALPHA Reader\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Talented author Vikki Wakefield produced another gripping novel for YA readers…A clever mystery and insightful working out of newly adult relationships among characters as real and nuanced as ourselves.’ \u003cb\u003eAdelaide Advertiser\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘A beautifully creepy book.’ \u003cb\u003eBooktopia\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘With complex and genuine characters, a captivating narrative and the authenticity of a small-town setting, \u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is the epitome of great Aussie YA.’ \u003cb\u003eWritten Word Worlds\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘Beautifully written, chilling and atmospheric, Ballad for a Mad Girl is a story with heart, horror, and hope.’ \u003cb\u003eBookish Manicurist \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e is a real page turner...Beautifully written. The gothic, literary tone adds to the creepy atmosphere.’ \u003cb\u003eReading Time\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘\u003ci\u003eBallad for a Mad Girl\u003c\/i\u003e has all the features to appeal to its intended audience, with its tight plot, its claustrophobic country town atmosphere and a group of longtime friends growing up and sometimes growing apart. Many are sure to enjoy the tension and edginess of Vikki Wakefield’s novel.’ \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMagpies\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘A tightly drawn story of compulsion...I could picture the landscapes so carefully created by Wakefield. The striking cover will impel young adults to choose to read it and they will be stunned by the extraordinary thriller within.’ \u003cb\u003eReadPlus\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e‘This is another great young adult novel by Vikki Wakefield that looks at the real world of a teenager, and what might be happening on the other side.’ \u003cb\u003eBig Book Club\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Text Publishing Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47141113594096,"sku":"9781925410327","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781925410327_p0.jpg?v=1763636336","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781925410327","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}