The Name of the Star (Shades of London, #1)

Maureen Johnson

Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux is accustomed to dramatic weather events and eccentric people. When she enrols at Wexford, a boarding school in the London’s East End, she looks forward to making new friends and having a bit of adventure. She does not bargain on grisly deaths and ghostly killers, though – nor does she expect to be so personally implicated in a dangerous mystery. If you cannot visit Whitechapel for a Jack the Ripper tour, this book provides an atmospheric alternative.

violence

Wild Boy and the Black Terror

Rob Lloyd Jones

Queen Victoria makes a guest appearance in this action-packed murder mystery set in London, 1842. Former circus acts Wild Boy and Clarissa may be the unlikeliest pair of detectives to serve the British Empire, but when the Black Terror starts claiming some prominent souls, they join forces with Her Majesty’s very own secret service. Fans of Darren Shan will enjoy this unique take on historical horror.

The Ruby in the Smoke (Sally Lockhart, #1)

Philip Pullman

When Sally Lockhart is orphaned under dubious circumstances, she feels utterly alone in the world. The arrival of a cryptic letter plunges her into dangerous adventures, aided by loyal new friends and plagued by more than a few enemies. Sally must explore her own murky origins and discover her link to an infamous ruby whose dark past involves both an Indian Maharajah and the opium trade. This engaging mystery, the first in a quartet, vividly portrays Victorian London during its colonial heyday – from the grimy wharves of Wapping to shabby-genteel Bloomsbury.

violence

The Line of Beauty

Alan Hollinghurst

London, 1983, and Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government has just been re-elected in a landslide victory. Nick Guest, 20 years old and just down from Oxford, is living in the glamorous Notting Hill home of Member of Parliament Gerald Fedden. Nick’s front-row access to the world of power, privilege and beauty intoxicates him; but as he matures with the decade, hopefulness and energy deteriorate into hedonism and world-weariness. The grim reality of AIDS stalks Nick and his social circle – a tragic backlash to this age of excess. This Booker Prize winning novel perfectly captures the Zeitgeist of 1980s London and will appeal to more mature adolescent readers

sexuality; strong language; drugs/alcohol

The Fallen, (The Enemy, #5)

Charlie Higson

The Fallen is the most recent book in Higson’s popular horror series set in near-future London. When a baffling new disease kills most of the adult populations and turns the rest into flesh-eating zombies, London becomes a battleground. Predatory zombies are far from the only challenge, though, as adolescent survivors learn how to care for themselves and rebuild some kind of workable society. In this latest instalment, a dangerous expedition to a medical warehouse near Heathrow leads to some surprising discoveries about the inception of the disease

gory scenes of violence

Neverwhere

Neil Gaiman

In this urban fantasy, author Neil Gaiman imagines a vast London underworld – not just the criminal sort, either, but a world literally underneath London. When the very ordinary (and not very brave) Richard Mayhew rescues a young girl, he is drawn into her world and will join forces with all manner of unlikely creatures. Despite its many dangers, the world of London Below has its attractions. Richard may not be able to leave, and he may not want to.

I, Coriander

Sally Gardner

This otherworldly book manages to combine fairy-tale fantasy with the dark realities of London under Oliver Cromwell's Puritan reign. Coriander Hobie, the only daughter of a rich merchant and his beautiful wife, has an enchanted life until political reversals lead to her father’s exile and her mother’s death. Coriander must overcome much more than an evil stepmother before setting her world to rights. This beautifully written story may be set in the past, but it has an empowering message for young women who want to shape their own lives.

Dodger

Terry Pratchett

Dodger, hero and rogue, is a tosher -- in other words, he makes his ‘living’ by skimming through the sewers, panning for gold through mud and muck. His aim is invisibility; and if that doesn't work, he has learned how to twist and turn his way out of trouble. But when he comes to the rescue of a mysterious young beauty, Dodger emerges from the underworld - becoming all too visible, to enemies and friends alike. This historical fantasy takes place in a Victorian London so Dickensian that Charles Dickens has more than a walk-on role in the story. Indeed, one of the pleasures of the novel is playing the ‘spot the eminent Victorian’ game. All readers should attempt a Terry Pratchett novel at some point. This entertaining adventure is a good place to start.

Brick Lane

Monica Ali

London has always been a city of immigrants; they are absorbed into the great city, and it changes them as it is changed by them. In this richly characterised story, eighteen year old Nazneen trades one life in a Bangladeshi village for another in London’s East End. Given to Chanu in an arranged marriage, Nazneen has been raised to accept powerlessness as her fate. Exposure to a new world of conflicting ideas about a woman’s place gradually transforms Nazneen. The novel’s treatment of cultural and feminist issues enlightens its readers as well.

sexuality

At the Sign of the Sugared Plum (Sign of the Sugared Plum, #1)

Mary Hooper

London has endured its share of tragedies over the centuries, and the Great Plague of 1665 provides some pretty horrific inspiration in this short but gripping novel. When Hannah travels up from the country to join her sister’s sweet-making business, she is eager to taste all of the experiences of the city. Unfortunately, Hannah arrives in London alongside the outbreak of the plague. Hannah and her sister struggle to carry on with business, friendship and romance as the ever-present fear of death takes over the city.