Walker Books has acquired the licence for the globally bestselling Beast Quest series, including original graphic novels, and is expanding the world with fresh storylines and formats to appeal to new and existing fans.
The series, which celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2027, has sold over 25 million copies globally, and Adam Blade (a pseudonym) was the 8th most borrowed author in the UK across adult and children’s authors combined in 2024.
Walker Books will relaunch the titles together with sister companies Candlewick Press and Walker Books Australia from February 2027. Shannon Cullen, publishing director, acquired World English rights from Chris Snowdon, managing director at Working Partners Ltd, part of the Coolabi Group. The current licence for Beast Quest with Hachette Children’s Group remains in place until the end of April 2026, after which they are able to sell-off any existing stock.
Across the programme, graphic novels will introduce never-before-seen stories featuring the most popular Beasts, as well as building on the bestselling storylines from the series. The first title, Rise of the Fire Dragon, will be illustrated in full-colour by Berat Pekmezci and be perfect for the 7–10-year-old readers who enjoy series like Rune and City of Dragons. Illustration rights were acquired by Walker’s Fiction Art Director, Jamie Hammond, from Robyn Newton at The Bright Agency.
Along with audio expansion, the original fiction will be re-released in its six-book arcs, and will be updated with dyslexia-friendly fonts, brand-new cover art and series branding, as well as a fresh take on the gaming cards that popularised the original launch.
Shannon Cullen, Publishing Director, says:
“Beast Quest, and its heroes Tom and Elenna, burst on to the scene when it instantly established itself as a game-changing, child-magnet reading experience that kick-started a love of books for millions of children. As someone whose childhood reading habit was built almost entirely on series, I know how essential books like Beast Quest can be when faced with the crisis in reading for enjoyment. But let’s not ignore the optimism of the exciting rise of graphic novels, which will lead our relaunch in February 2027. With the introduction of dyslexia-friendly fonts across the programme and added audio editions to meet a growing market, we aim to make Beast Quest as accessible as possible, removing barriers to even more children enjoying these epic adventures.”
Chris Snowdon says: “We are thrilled to be working on Beast Quest with Belinda, Shannon, and the wonderful teams at Walker/ Candlewick globally. They are the ideal partner for world-wide English language publishing of the classic Beast Quest series and the new graphic novel range. We are so excited for a new generation of readers to join Beast Quest’s huge, multigenerational fan base. We must also thank everyone at Hachette Children’s for the brilliant job they have done to build Beast Quest over the years.”
Belinda Ioni Rasmussen, CEO of Walker Books Group added: “How do you get a child to devour a 60,000 word book as they are gaining confidence as readers? Well, you break it down into six manageable books, fill it with action, adventure and epic beasts, and then you have one of the most iconic young series in children’s publishing. We are excited to collaborate with Working Partners, to relaunch Beast Quest for readers around the globe with our joined-up programme within the Walker Books Group. Chris and his team have built an amazing legacy with Beast Quest and we are truly thrilled to be continuing this adventure with them.”
