Warrington author causes world wide stir

A teen thriller which has been tipped as a successor to the famous Twilight novels has set two Guinness records in the literary world.

Half Bad, supernatural thriller for young adults by Cheshire author Sally Green, has created such a buzz that it was snapped up to appear in 45 languages before being published for the first time.

Green clinched her first deal with Penguin at the Bologna Children's Book Fair and her novel was finally published earlier this month.

Now it has taken two Guinness World Records for its global reach, as the most translated book - and the most translated children's book - by a debut author before publication.

Normally a book would only be translated and picked up in other territories if it had been shown to be doing well in its domestic market, but Green's book was causing waves internationally even at the manuscript stage.

The former accountant, who lives in Warrington, set her story in a modern world of good and bad witches who are living covertly in the modern world and are both afraid of a child called Nathan who is descended from both sides.

A deal has already been struck for the film rights, and Half Bad is the first in a trilogy of titles.