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Richard Smith

Richard SmithRichard Smith’s motto is: Never give up; it can happen. And his first book, Time Trap, is proof of that.

Born in London, the youngest of three children, Richard has loved writing stories since he was nine; and regularly got top marks for his essays at school – where his favourite subject was English. After leaving school, he worked in a succession of dead-end jobs. None brought him as much satisfaction as writing – which he kept up, with his mother’s constant encouragement. Richard credits her father, a taxi driver, who enjoyed writing as a hobby, for his talent with words.

Researching and writing Time Trap took many years of hard work – which Richard describes as a labour of love. One of his proudest moments came when he returned to his junior school to read extracts of the story to 9-year-old pupils, who loved it. He polished up the MS, self-published in 2012, and created the Time Trap Trail for young readers to follow and convinced both the British Museum and the Museum of Childhood to stock the book.

Another success has been finally finding a job he enjoys – working as a building manager, which gives him the opportunity to work on his second book: The Darziod’s Stone.

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Time Trap (Children’s Fiction/Science-Fiction)

Time TrapWho was the mysterious Hector Lightfoot? What was he up to when he disappeared, and who were the two ghosts once seen in his house? School friends Jamie and Todd are destined to find out when they go to London to spend a weekend with Jamie’s Uncle Simon, who now lives in that very house. Soon after they arrive, Jamie has a frightening encounter with the two ghosts.

Hector, a veteran from the First Afghan War, joined a covert expedition to China, and afterwards worked on a secret Government project in an underground lab at the British Museum. He vanished suddenly, and was never heard from again.

Simon takes the boys to the lab, where they find a strange contraption – which, unknown to any of them, is a time-travel device. When the building is struck by lightning, the device is energised, and sends the boys back in time to the year 1862. There, surrounded by danger and exposed to disease, they are sucked into a life of crime in order to survive.

Only if they can find Hector will they have any chance of getting home again, but he’s gone into hiding. As Jamie and Todd struggle to find him, Jamie becomes convinced that the two ghosts he saw earlier are following them…

And that’s not all! There is a London walk connected to the story (the Time Trap Trail)
Young readers, after reading the book, can then visit the locations featured in the story, and once completed, can print off the Adventurer’s Certificate!

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The Darziods’ Stone (Children’s Fiction/Action)

A special stone hidden in a quiet cove in Cornwall more than 200 years ago, is the object of a desperate search by two opposing factions. When Harry and his school friends discover a code whilst holidaying in the cove, they assume it will lead them to hidden treasure. But dark forces, with seemingly supernatural powers, are working against them. The teenagers soon find themselves caught up in a deadly battle, and will be lucky to escape with their lives, let alone get their hands on the treasure.

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