Whiteadder/ Wolfspider (2027)

Wolfadder/Whitespider is a book in two parts, set in the early 1970s in England, in the grubby and chaotic world of the fictional psychedlic rock band Once Upon a Time. In its first section, Wolfadder, set in 1973, the band and their entourage decamp to a row of dilapidated cottages in Scotland, by the Wolfadder river, to work on new material. Accompanying them is Kit, a thirteen year old who’s still figuring himself out (fittingly for the time, many of those who encounter Kit are ‘not sure if they’re a boy or a girl’) and is the son on Bronwyn, the partner of one of the band’s members, Bob (himself the somewhat passive foil to the band’s creative leader, Alex). Into their cold, wet and dark world comes the mysterious figure Johnathan, who despite his ominous vibes and general grumpiness ends up joining the band and taking them in an unpromising new direction. While the rest of the band are generally too mashed to notice, Kit is threatened by Johnathan and ends up taking desperate measures to deal with that threat.