The compelling and disturbing story of a boy who turns from school bully to victim when a bump on his forehead grows into a rhinoceros's horn, and he learns how it feels to be pointed at, jeered at and whispered about. The story slides plausibly into fantasy, gathering pace with the media frenzy that develops. John Brindley's world is a harsh one of troubled adolescents in a tough environment, who get no help from difficult and uncomprehending families. But his characters, unlikeable at first, become sympathetic as the plot deepens and the boy himself learns to deal with his dreadful experience. John Brindley's urgent, taut prose gives him a unique and absolutely contemporary voice. His talent was recognised in The Times Educational Supplement which described THE TERRIBLE QUIN as 'crack[ling] with a latent violence that is both gripping and truly stomach-churning...Cliff-hanging stuff indeed.'

Author Biography

John Brindley lives with his partner in the southeast of England. He has two children, both of whom have been instrumental in the development of his early stories for young people. John is a keen music fan and enjoys playing squash and socialising in London.