Wilton Books

15/05/2026

Mae Donaldson’s Methods for Writing a Proper Book Review

(A Blog Post for Cockermouth School)

At Cockermouth School, we’ve been assigned to write a literary book review. Some people sighed dramatically, but I don’t see the problem. A review is simply a matter of truth, structure, and courage. And since Uncle Warren has already written down our family’s adventures in The Lakeland Mysteries, I’ve decided to practise on those. Other reviewers say the characters “feel like people you know personally” and that the stories are “engaging from the very first page”, so I have set myself to test my hypothesis. It would be only natural to say I’m biased, and that’s where integrity comes into it. So here are the rules I intend to apply: https://lakelandmysteries.com/maes-methods/

Explore Mae’s approach to solving mysteries with curiosity, logic, and a fearless attitude—straight from the heart of Lakeland.

15/04/2026

Day 3 of the Bologna Children's Book Fair and had a moment to chat with the Gruffalo.

14/04/2026

Excellent day at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in particular the presentation given by The Bright Agency on brand licensing.

13/04/2026

The Lakeland Mysteries on display at the Foreword Indies stand at the Bologna Children's Book Fair.

24/03/2026

The real life "Isla" and "Mae" of the Lakeland Mysteries series of children's action adventure mystery stories set in the Lake District pose next to the display stand of the five book series at the Kirkgate Arts Centre audio theatre event for Book 1 in the series The Fire on Slate Fell.

21/03/2026

The flesh and blood inspiration for the Donaldson family in the Lakeland Mysteries series of children's action adventure books by Warren Cabral featured at the Cumbria Book Festival at Whitehaven. https://www.facebook.com/share/1DZfKpZMvi/

05/03/2026

https://www.forewordreviews.com/awards/books/the-vanishing-young-of-rydal-cave/
"The Vanishing Young of Rydal Cave" is a Foreword INDIES finalist in Juvenile Fiction (Children's). In the intriguing series mystery novel "The Vanishing Young of Rydal Cave", sisters pursue the truth behind the inexplicable lights in the sky above their town."

24/02/2026

Audio Theatre at The Kirkgate Centre, Cockermouth on Monday 23 March

14/02/2026

The Mystery of The Chemic Tavern - at The Chemic Tavern! Fans of the famous pub in Leeds have become fans of the book inspired by its name.
https://chemictavern.co.uk/
https://wiltonbooks.com/books/

07/02/2026

Smart ways to deal with drunks and pests, according to fictional mother and retired police officer Penny Donaldson: https://lakelandmysteries.com/pennys-take-down-techniques/