NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Years ago, a reclusive mega-bestselling children’s author quit writing under mysterious circumstances. Suddenly he resurfaces with a brand-new book and a one-of-a-kind competition, offering a prize that will change the winner’s life in this absorbing and whimsical novel. “Clever, dark, and hopeful . . . a love letter to reading and the power that childhood stories have over us long after we’ve grown up.”—V. E. Schwab, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Washington Post, She Reads, Bookreporter Make a wish. . . . Lucy Hart knows better than anyone what it’s like to grow up without parents who loved her. In a childhood marked by neglect and loneliness, Lucy found her solace in books, namely the Clock Island series by Jack Masterson. Now a twenty-six-year-old teacher’s aide, she is able to share her love of reading with bright, young students, especially seven-year-old Christopher Lamb, who was left orphaned after the tragic death of his parents. Lucy would give anything to adopt Christopher, but even the idea of becoming a family seems like an impossible dream without proper funds and stability. But be careful what you wish for. . . . Just when Lucy is about to give up, Jack Masterson announces he’s finally written a new book. Even better, he’s holding a contest at his home on the real Clock Island, and Lucy is one of the four lucky contestants chosen to compete to win the one and only copy. For Lucy, the chance of winning the most sought-after book in the world means everything to her and Christopher. But first she must contend with ruthless book collectors, wily opponents, and the distractingly handsome (and grumpy) Hugo Reese, the illustrator of the Clock Island books. Meanwhile, Jack “the Mastermind” Masterson is plotting the ultimate twist ending that could change all their lives forever. . . . You might just get it.

A retired bestselling author hosts a one-of-a-kind competition, with high risks and high rewards-giving the winner a chance to change lives. Lucy Hart has come a long way since feeling the cold neglect of her parents, whose attention always centered around her chronically ill sister's needs. Now a twenty-six-year-old teacher's aide, Lucy is able to share her love of books with bright, young students, and one in particular, a seven-year-old orphan named Christopher, has her yearning for a family of her own. The Clock Island books were Lucy's passion and refuge as a child, and now she shares them with Christopher, who's become as big of a fan as she ever was. No matter how badly Lucy wants him in her life, even the idea of adopting him seems out of reach without proper funds and stability. Then a blue envelope arrives at her school, inviting Lucy to compete for the one and only copy of Jack Masterson's final novel in the iconic Clock Island series. No one has seen or heard from Jack Masterson in years, but now four diehard Clock Island fans have received the invitation of a lifetime to stay on his private island and compete for the final installment, and un-published manuscript, of the well-loved series. For Lucy, a chance to read the last-ever Clock Island book is a prize worth playing for, but the possibility of winning and securing a better future for her and Christopher means everything. But first, she must contend with opportunists, cheaters, and, perhaps most distressingly, Jack's illustrator and companion on the island, Hugo Reese, whom Lucy has admired since first reading the books as a girl. All the while, the master of ceremonies, the prolific author himself, has his own secrets to keep-and a larger plan in the works that will change everything for all of them.

'This wildly imaginative book speaks to every reader who yearns for a more magical world' - THAO THAI, author of Banyan Moon 'If you'd like to dream instead of a parallel world where love and loyalty and friendship are the magic that transforms the least of us into genuine heroes, then Meg Shaffer's The Lost Story is the book you've been waiting for' - RICHARD RUSSO, author of Empire Falls From the author of the bestselling novel The Wishing Game comes a Narnia-inspired fairy tale for grown-ups who still knock on the back of wardrobe doors . . . just in case. Once upon a time, two boys went missing in the woods. Six months later, they reappeared, with no explanation for where they'd been or how they'd survived. Fifteen years on, Rafe is a reclusive artist with no memory of what happened during those months, despite the scars he bears. Meanwhile, Jeremy is a famed missing persons investigator. With his uncanny abilities, he is the one person who can help vet tech Emilie Wendell find her long-lost sister, who vanished in the very same forest as Rafe and Jeremy. Jeremy also keeps a secret: the fantastical truth about the magical realm they made home for those six months. And it's there they may find Emilie's sister. Alongside Emilie, Rafe and Jeremy must return to the enchanted world they left behind - for only then can they get back everything and everyone they've lost. 'Wholly moving . . . reminded me that even as an adult, if you look hard enough, you can find the child still inside you' - Jodi Picoult, author of Mad Honey, on The Wishing Game 'A heartwarming, page-turning story of found family [and] love triumphing over indifference' - Melissa Albert, author of The Hazel Wood, on The Wishing Game 'A dreamy, inventive novel . . . Full of the power of imagination, it's one of my favourite books of the year' - Sarah Addison Allen, author of Other Birds, on The Wishing Game 'A meditation on the power of hope when all else seems lost' - Kirkus Reviews on The Wishing Game

In this collection of articles, Isherwood writes about his teachers, his conversion to Vedanta, and various literary concerns.