Where The World Turns Wild
Part of the collectionWhere The World Turns Wild→A tense, thought-provoking eco-dystopian duology about siblings, a rewilded world and the fight to bring loved ones out of a city that fears nature.
- Books2
- Arcs1
- Span2020–2024
- StatusUnknown
The series
At a glance.
Nicola Penfold's two-book eco-dystopian series opens with Where The World Turns Wild, in which siblings Juniper and Bear escape a sterile walled city — where nature has been banished since a man-made plague — and cross into the rewilded wilderness to find their lost mother. When the Wild Calls returns in dual voices: Juniper, safe in the reclaimed valley of Ennerdale but desperate to rescue those she left behind, and Etienne, still trapped inside the disease-struck city as a ruthless leader tightens his grip and rebellion stirs. The follow-up stands on its own while deepening everything the first book began. Together the books blend survival, ecological hope and quiet courage into a thought-provoking adventure about freedom, loyalty and the pull of the living world.
A tense, thought-provoking eco-dystopian duology about siblings, a rewilded world and the fight to bring loved ones out of a city that fears nature.
Primary themes
Overall tone
- Exciting
- Suspenseful
- Thought provoking
- Adventurous
Read in order: Where The World Turns Wild first, then When the Wild Calls, which continues the story in dual perspectives while remaining accessible on its own.
One arc
The shape of the series.
- INarrative arcBooks 1–2 · 2020–2024Moderate sensitivity
Where The World Turns Wild
Siblings flee a nature-fearing city into the rewilded wild, then fight to free those left behind.
The two books tell one continuing story. In the first, Juniper and Bear break out of a walled city that has outlawed nature since a man-made plague, escaping the scientists who want their disease-resistant blood, and strike out into the wolf-haunted wilderness to find their mother. In the second, safe in the reclaimed valley of Ennerdale, Juniper resolves to rescue her grandmother and best friend Etienne when the sickness breaks through the city walls — while Etienne, still trapped inside under a ruthless leader, is ready to fight for his freedom as rebellion stirs. Told in dual voices, the sequel raises the stakes and widens the world, carrying the first book's ecological hope and quiet courage through to a tense, thoughtful conclusion.
Fit check
Right for your reader?
Where the series lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- 15
- 17
- 19
- Best fit · 9–12
- Read aloud · 8–11
- Independent · 9–12
Reluctant-reader friendliness
Patchy
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Adult crossover
Low
Grows with the reader
Not especially
Sensitivity envelope
Moderate overall, and consistent.
Content notes
- Absent parent
- Illness or disability
- Violence
Where it sits
In conversation with other series.
About the author