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Cover of Hilda and the Nowhere Space
Illustrated · ages 7–10

Hilda and the Nowhere Space

Written by Stephen Davies · Illustrated by Seaerra Miller

Book 3 of 9 in Hilda Chapter BooksView the full series

Part of the Hilda universeOpen the collection

Netflix or streaming
Adults love it too

A slightly spookier, mystery-led Hilda tie-in that brings in Marra, Nisse, weather spirits and hidden spaces. It is a strong pick for children who want more plot momentum without leaving Hilda's gentle world.

  • Best for7–10
  • FormatIllustrated
  • Length200 pp
  • Read aloud~2 hr50 min
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The vibe

What it’s like.

Style

  • Conversational
  • Comedic

Tone

  • Adventurous
  • Whimsical
  • Suspenseful
  • Warm

Themes

On the pagehidden spaces, marra, nisse, weather spirits, nightmares, city mystery, black hound

Experience meters

Energy4/ 5
Humour3/ 5
Scariness4/ 5
Peril3/ 5
Wonder5/ 5
Cosiness4/ 5
Emotional intensity3/ 5
Conceptual intensity3/ 5

What’s it about?

The story.

Hilda's life in Trolberg keeps getting stranger. She has to deal with nightmare-bringing Marra, a homeless Nisse, mysterious hidden spaces and a city full of creatures most people barely notice. As she tries to help, investigate and make sense of it all, Hilda discovers that the ordinary world has pockets and passages where very unusual lives are unfolding. This third illustrated tie-in novel adapts multiple animated adventures into a single prose reading experience, giving children more sustained chapters while retaining the show's charm and strangeness. The story is busier and more mystery-driven than the first two tie-ins, with a little more suspense, but it still centres Hilda's empathy: odd creatures are rarely simply problems to be solved. They are neighbours, friends or frightened outsiders waiting to be understood.

Fit check

Right for your child?

Where it lands by age

  • 1
  • 3
  • 5
  • 7
  • 9
  • 11
  • 13
  • Best fit · 7–10
  • Read aloud · 6–9
  • Independent · 7–10

Prose load

Moderate

Visual support

Moderate

Reluctant-reader friendly

Very

Read-aloud quality

Workable

Works well for

  • Reading together
  • Reluctant readers
Moderate sensitivity1 content warning

Preview before sharing if a child is sensitive to: scary imagery.

Bedtime suitability

3 / 5 · Workable

Sensitive-child

2 / 5 · Use judgement

Graphic intensity

3 / 5 · Some

Best for

  • Slightly spooky
  • Magical mystery
  • Tv to book bridge
  • Hilda fans
  • Hidden worlds

Avoid if

  • Very sensitive to nightmares
  • Wants zero suspense
  • Prefers realistic stories

Particularly good for children who are…

  • Reluctant reader
  • Nightmares or fears
  • Making friends

In the classroom

How it works in school.

Illustrated Hilda adventures — a classroom-library pick for fans of the comics moving into longer reads.

Classroom role

  • Classroom library

A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.

Why it lands

Why they love it.

Why kids love it

The specific draw is the hidden architecture of Trolberg — Marra-creatures who bring nightmares, a homeless Nisse, spaces between spaces, a whole city full of folklore tucked behind ordinary walls. The Hilda chapter-book for a child who loves discovering secret rules.

  • Secret world
  • Making a difference
  • Surviving danger
  • Friendship and belonging

Why parents love it

The chapter-book Hilda that adapts the Black Hound storyline for prose — Marra, Nisse, hidden spaces, a busier mystery plot than the earlier tie-ins. Best for a child who's already comfortable with the cast and wants the world to keep expanding.

  • Shared humour
  • Quick to read
  • Conversation starter
  • Beautiful illustrations

In the series

Hilda Chapter Books.

9 books · open the series →

About the creators

About the creators.

SD

Stephen Davies

Writer · United Kingdom

Stephen Davies is a British author best known to children's-book readers as the writer of the Hilda chapter-book novels, middle-grade prose extensions of Luke Pearson's Hilda graphic novel universe, including Hilda and the Fairy Village, Hilda and the Hidden People, Hilda and the Ghost Ship, Hilda and the Nowhere Space and others. Davies' Hilda voice is faithful to Pearson's world, Scandinavian-fantasy, slightly melancholy, mythologically curious, while opening it up to longer-form prose adventures. He has also written stand-alone middle-grade fiction (Outlaw, The Yellowcake Conspiracy) and a number of West-African-set picture books drawing on his time living in Burkina Faso. A core gateway author for Hilda graphic-novel readers ready for prose-length adventures.

More from Stephen Davies
SM

Seaerra Miller

Illustrator · United Kingdom

Seaerra Miller is an illustrator best known to UK children's-book readers as the visual partner on several Hilda chapter-book novels by Stephen Davies (Hilda and the Great Parade, Hilda and the Nowhere Space, Hilda and the Hidden People), middle-grade prose extensions of Luke Pearson's Hilda graphic-novel universe. Miller's style stays faithful to Pearson's established Hilda visual language while bringing their own atmospheric warmth. A reliable contemporary middle-grade illustrator for fantasy-adventure novels in the Hilda universe, for ages 7–11.

More from Seaerra Miller

If you liked this

Three ways out of this book.

If you liked this, try…

Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.

Come into this from…

Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.

Where to go next…

Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.

Buy or borrow

Pick up a copy.

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  • Hive
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Last reviewed · April 2026Suggest a correctionHow we recommend

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