Patrick Ness’ Doctor Who spin-off Class is currently airing on BBC Three, but if you’re dying for more advenutres of the Coal Hill students, BBC Books has released three tie-in novels that develop that world further.
In Joyride, written by Guy Adams (author of The Clown Service and The World House), the students of Coal Hill aren’t acting like themselves…
“Poppy is a quiet girl, right up until she steals a car and drives it through a shop window.
Max is a nice guy, but then he kills his whole family. Just for fun.
Amar always seems so happy, so why is he trying to jump to his death from the school roof?
Some of the students of Coal Hill School are not themselves. Some of them are dying. Ram has just woken up in a body he doesn’t recognise, and if he doesn’t figure out why he may well be next.”
In The Stone House, written by AK Benedict (Jonathan Dark Or The Evidence Of Ghosts, The Beauty Of Murder), there’s a terrifying secret in an old dark house…
“There’s an old stone house near Coal Hill School. Most people hurry past it. They’ve heard the stories. But, if you stop, and look up, you’ll see the face of a girl, pressed up against a window. Screaming.
Tanya finds herself drawn to the stone house. There’s a mystery there, and she’s going to solve it. But the more she investigates, the more she realises that there’s a presence in the house. One that wants her.
Something is waiting for Tanya in the stone house. Something that has been trapping others in its web over the years. Something that is far worse than any ghost.”
Finally, in What She Does Next Will Astound You, written by James Goss (veteran of Doctor Who and Torchwood novels and stories, including the brilliant Dead Air), a website pushes students to do very dangerous things indeed…
“At Coal Hill School, things have started to get public. Kids have become obsessed with a website that demands you perform risky stunts, or tell it your most painful secrets. And Seraphin, everyone’s favourite vlogger, wants you to get involved. All in the name of charity.
At first people just get hurt. Then their lives are ruined. Finally, they disappear.
As April’s fragile group of friends starts to fracture, she decides she’s going to uncover the truth behind this site herself. Whatever it takes, whoever she hurts, April’s going to win. But then, to her horror, she wakes up and finds her whole world’s changed.
What she does next will astound you.”
Joyride, The Stone House and What She Does Next Will Astound You are available now from BBC Books. Class is currently streaming on BBC Three. Keep up with the latest genre news with the new issue of SciFiNow.
