In the Sussex seaside town of Bogham – about as inviting as a wet Tuesday in January – a reclusive old lady, Miss Eleanor Forgetmenot, resides, finding comfort amidst the chaos of her overgrown garden and the antics of her ginger cat, Snaps. Life putters along in blissful obscurity until a storm of biblical proportions transforms her quaint thatched cottage into a heap of kindling, leaving her open to the schemes of Charlie Wollock, a builder whose moral compass spins like a weathervane in a hurricane, and his slippery associate, Enoch Filch, an estate agent with all the scruples of a magpie in a jewellery shop.

With her home and feline companion gone, Miss Forgetmenot witnesses the takeover of her beloved cottage by the Hobbs family, lottery winners from London with money to burn but less taste than a motorway services sandwich. Their concept of ‘modernization’ involves transforming Mis F’s cherished garden into a playground for their obnoxious son Harry. 

But unbeknown to them, the garden harbours a band of irritable, beer-swilling elves who refuse to take this affront lying down. When Harry carelessly tosses their sacred statue into a puddle, it’s the final straw. The elves rally their fairy and furry friends to exact revenge, setting off a chain of events that spirals into an internationally televised incident, even attracting the attention of the US military.

Brace yourself for a whimsical adventure brimming with dastardly villains and cosmic justice, where the mundane collides with the bizarre, and a motley crew of fairy folk ensures an old lady gets the last laugh. Fans of Terry Pratchett, J.K. Rowling, Douglas Adams, and their ilk will delight in this rib-tickling fairy tale, a rollicking read for the young at heart of all ages.