Cliff McNish Books In Order

Publication Order of Doomspell Books

Publication Order of Silver Sequence Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Cliff McNish
Cliff McNish was born in Sunderland, however, he has spent a lot of his life in the southeast of England.

The first eight years of his life he doesn’t remember all that much besides he loved being outside, particularly in the woods close to their house. Each night, he would come home covered in scratches.

His family was constantly moving around, so he had to get used to new friends and a new school all the time. Like most children that age, he was shy and dreaded that first day in a new class.

During primary school, his grades were spectacularly average. According to his teachers, he was daydreaming all the time. Cliff didn’t do much reading during this time that wasn’t comics. The Silver Surfer, a Marvel superhero, zoomed all around the universe on a sleek, beautiful, interstellar surf board. Young Cliff identified with the aloof, lonely, genius.

His first true book memory is being given “The Magician’s Nephew” by C. S. Lewis by Mrs. Baldwin, his English teacher. He loved that book along with the rest of the Narnia series. Cliff remembers staring up at the ceiling and wishing with all his might that he could actually be C. S. Lewis.

Around the age of twelve or thirteen, he discovered “The Moon of Gomrath and Elidor” and “The Weirdstone of Brisingamen”, both by Alan Garner. He believes those are the best pure fantasy books to come out.

Unlike a lot of other writers, he had no burning ambitions to write stories, although, his little brothers remember him writing short stories for them. They are still able to remember some of his crazy characters like “Simon the Hippo” and “Stinky Linky”.

Without any career path in mind, he only drifted along, finishing up his A-levels and went on to study History at York University. Cliff left after just two years, unhappy and bored with the course. He didn’t have his degree and needed to make some money. It was during this time that he developed a love for science fiction, reading such authors as: Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke as well as others.

His first job included working in a warehouse where he put things into boxes. Not too tough, some may think, however his attention often strayed, he found. Instead of demoting him because of his incompetence at packing, they actually surprised him and promoted him into the IT department. He drifted along in computing before moving on into Project Management, pursuing a career that wound up lasting twenty years.

Rachel, his daughter, loved hearing stories from a young age. “The Doomspell” began as one of these. She wanted a story about a very nasty witch. Before Cliff even knew what was happening, however, the whole magical world of Ithrea wanted to come to life in a much bigger way. The story just wanted to live. The books in the series were published in 26 languages around the world.

In the year 1998, he began writing and has been writing full-time since the year 2003. He combines writing novels with visiting schools, performing workshops on the craft of fiction.

Cliff’s debut novel, called “The Doomspell”, was released in the year 2000. His work is from the young adult fantasy and children’s fiction genres.

“The Doomspell” is the first novel in the “Doomspell” series and was released in the year 2000. In a rush of wind, a blaze of light, and a scrabble of claws, Rachel, as well as her younger brother, get ripped through the wall and sent into another world. Like the thousands of kids before them, they have been taken by the Witch. However, this time the Witch has met her match.

Rachel learns that she has some extraordinary talents: she is able to transform herself into a fly on an owl’s back or just a speck of dust, just like the Witch. The Witch is excited, as she has discovered somebody that she is able to use for her evil purposes. Rachel is the only hope for the Witch’s victims.

“The Scent of Magic” is the second novel in the “Doomspell” series and was released in the year 2001. Rachel and Eric, her brother, are extraordinary. She is able to fly, a spell-maker, take any shape, see both far and wide with her many-colored eyes. And he is a spell destroyer.

On planet Ool, the home of the Witches, the high Witch Heebra wants her old adversaries the Wizards slayed and Eric and Rachel destroyed. A group of Witches is sent to Earth in order to locate the thousands of kids that have powers like Rachel’s and then transform them into a ferocious army.

Rachel, who is looking for the kids, discovers their magic is at work around the world. In Chile, she meets Heiki, a menacing girl that is willing to perform anything evil to win the Witches’ approval. While she is in Africa, she comes across the infant Yemi, someone whose gifts are far greater than all the others. Out in the frozen wastes in the Arctic, Eric and she engage in a desperate struggle to win the minds and hearts of all the children.

“The Wizard’s Promise” is the third novel in the “Doomspell” series and was released in the year 2002. The magic of all the children has just been released. Throughout Earth’s skies they are swooping, changing shape, crossing continents, diving down to the depths of the sea and playing lethal new spell-games.

Rachel only bides her time, watching the skies for what she knows is going to happen: the Witches’ invasion. However, when it does come, it is not in the same way that anybody expects, and there is also a new foe- the horrifying and huge Gridda-breed. Confronting them is going to require all of Eric and Rachel’s courage and skill, while embarking on a journey that takes them off to Ool, the home of the Witches. It is a world where mountains breathe and move, and the sun never pierces the clouds and the snows are alive.