Author(s): Joan Aiken

Children's

"Dido Twite on board a ship bound for England is waylaid by a search for Lord Herodsfoot on the tropical island of Aratu. Aratu means the Island of Pearl Snakes in the Dilendi language and a bite from one of them can do for you in a brace of shakes. That is only one of many hazards encountered by Dido as she searches for the lost Lord reputedly to be found in Limbo Lodge. For who can she trust as she tramps across the island - and when she finally approached the lodge it hardly seems to be welcoming. Limbo Lodge was sited at the edge of the forest line, among clumps of clove and djeela trees, in a kind of wild garden. Over to the eastern boundary of this, the ground seemed to come to an abrupt stop; here, Dido guessed, was the Cliff of Death '