The first book of a major fantasy series from New York Times bestselling authors Garth Nix and Sean Williams, in which twins find that they must act as wards against a threatening evil.

'Come to us, Troubletwisters, join us ... welcome, most welcome!'

When their home mysteriously explodes around their ears, twins Jack and Jaide are sent to stay with a grandmother they have never met, in a town they have never heard of. Portland might seem boring and quiet, but it soon becomes apparent that Grandma X is more than a little eccentric, and there are very strange happenings in the town. Talking cats, swarms of cockroaches, a miniature tornado trashing their room - the twins are about to find out what it means to be a troubletwister!

Something growing
Something read
Something living
Someone dead