Matthew Skelton

Matthew Skelton (born 1971) is an English-Canadian novelist known for atmospheric children's fantasy steeped in the history of books and printing. His debut, Endymion Spring (2006), interweaves a present-day Oxford mystery with the workshop of Johannes Gutenberg, following a boy who discovers a sinister, centuries-old book with a will of its own; the novel drew comparisons to Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials and was optioned for film by Warner Bros. He followed it with The Story of Cirrus Flux (2009), a Georgian-era adventure blending science, alchemy, and orphaned heroes navigating eighteenth-century London. Skelton studied at Somerville College, Oxford, completing a doctorate before turning to fiction, and the college itself, along with its resident cat, informed settings and characters in his debut. His novels pair research into book history and print culture with fast-paced, puzzle-driven plotting for middle-grade and young readers.