It’s wartime Suffolk. Spitfires fly overhead, leaving air bases for raids on Europe. There’s a threat of invasion and a sense that neighbours can’t be trusted.

Two children, one an evacuee from London, the other a refugee from Germany via Kindertransport, amuse themselves with the idea of hidden treasure on the hill. But their games take on a much more sinister slant when it seems they are not the only ones searching for the buried crown.

This gripping adventure is set around Sutton Hoo, the River Deben and the Suffolk coast, and draws on the myths and legends of the Anglo-Saxon finds here between the wars.

The story covers issues such as friendship and betrayal, bullying and loyalty, superstition and faith, courage and grief, and its historical references coincide with anniversaries marked by the RAF and Kindertransport this year, and the Sutton Hoo excavation in 2019. It’s a fabulous way of introducing these big subjects to young minds and the author, Ally Sherrick, says that through delivering “a rip-roaring story, I hope I will inspire young readers to go digging in the past for stories of their own”.

Buried Crown is aimed at children of eight years and above, but it is a great read and has many themes which will appeal to all ages!

Read my interview with Ally Sherrick here.