Merryweathers Mysteries Books in Order

The Merryweathers Mysteries are spooky, funny middle-grade adventures written by Rhys Dylan as Rhys A. Jones. They follow Sam Jones, a boy who discovers that his grandmother is far more interesting than she first appears. Gran, Gwladys Merryweather, bakes cakes, helps at a cat sanctuary and knows a great deal about old magic.

She is also one of the Cunning Folk. Her job is to keep ordinary people safe from the things in old stories that are not quite stories at all. Sam has inherited some of that ability, though he is still learning what it means and how to use it.

The first book, The Curse of Wihtlea Barrows, was originally published as The Dreables. Sam expects a boring holiday at his grandmother's cottage, only to find that a cry for help from an old village leads to danger in the ancient barrows. A charmed cherry Bakewell turns out to be more useful than it sounds.

Cake helps, but it cannot fix everything.

In The Curse of Borage-Doone, Sam and Gran travel to Scotland after she wins a baking competition. Their trip brings them face to face with someone who knows Gran's past and wants to use it against the people she loves. The Curse of Ragman's Hollow sends Sam to a remote cottage in west Wales, where a place avoided by locals has a very good reason for its reputation.

The books are gently scary rather than relentlessly dark. There are wraiths, curses, folklore and dangerous old forces, but there is also warmth, family friction, pets, jokes and food. Sam is brave without being fearless, and Gran's practical kindness sits alongside her knowledge of magic.

Begin with The Curse of Wihtlea Barrows to meet Sam, Gran, Troop the dog and Ginger the cat. The later books can be enjoyed for their individual mysteries, but reading in order makes Sam's growing confidence and his family's complicated history clearer.