Back to entry: sparkes_ali | Show links blue

Sparkes, Ali

(1966-    ) UK author of fiction, at first within what seemed to be an encompassing fantasy frame, addressed to younger readers crossing over into Young Adult expectations and focusing mostly on series. The first of these is the Shapeshifter sequence beginning with The Shapeshifter: Finding the Fox (2006), in which a cohort of Shapeshifter teenagers, the Children of Limitless Ability, engage in exploits that also involve Telekinesis and other Psi Powers. Darker and more argued, her follow-on sequence, the Shapeshifter: Unleashed series beginning with A Life and Death Job (2011), carries individual members of the gang into more sustained adventures. The S.W.I.T.C.H. sequence beginning with Spider Stampede (2011) is directed to a younger audience, and lacks much in the way of rationale. Sparke's occasional singletons, like Frozen in Time (2009), tend to focus on young protagonists who, lacking convenient skill-kits, must confront challenges like Time Travel with intelligence. [JC]

Ali Sparkes

born Southampton, Hampshire: 1966

works

series

Shapeshifter

• The Shapeshifter: Finding the Fox (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2006) [Shapeshifter: pb/David Wyatt]
• The Shapeshifter: Running the Risk (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2007) [Shapeshifter: pb/David Wyatt]
• The Shapeshifter: Going to Ground (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2007) [Shapeshifter: pb/David Wyatt]
• The Shapeshifter: Dowsing the Dead (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2007) [Shapeshifter: pb/David Wyatt]
• The Shapeshifter: Stirring the Storm (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2008) [Shapeshifter: pb/David Wyatt]

Shapeshifter: Unleashed

• A Life and Death Job (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [Shapeshifter: Unleashed: pb/Eamon O'Donoghue and Dynamo]
• Mind Over Matter (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [Shapeshifter: Unleashed: pb/Eamon O'Donoghue and Dynamo]
• Speak Evil (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2013) [Shapeshifter: Unleashed: pb/Eamon O'Donoghue and Dynamo]
• The Burning Beach (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2014) [Shapeshifter: Unleashed: pb/Eamon O'Donoghue and Dynamo]

S.W.I.T.C.H.

• Spider Stampede (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Fly Frenzy (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Grasshopper Glitch (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Ant Attack (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Crane Fly Crash (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Frog Freak Out (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• New Nemesis (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
  • Frog Freak Out (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2014) [omni of the above two: S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Lizard Loopy (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Chameleon Chaos (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Turtle Terror (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Gecko Gladiator (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Anaconda Adventure (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2012) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]
• Alligator Action (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2011) [S.W.I.T.C.H.: pb/]

Destination Earth

• Destination Earth (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2014) [Destination Earth: pb/James Fraser]

individual titles

• Frozen in Time (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2009) [pb/]
• Wishful Thinking (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2010) [pb/]
• Out of this World (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2013) [pb/]
• Dark Summer (Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2014) [pb/]

links

• Ali Sparkes
• Internet Speculative Fiction Database

Entry from The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (2011-current) edited by John Clute and David Langford.
Accessed 03:07 am on 27 April 2024.
<https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/sparkes_ali>