NOTTINGHAM, NOTTINGHAMSHIRE, UK – September 4, 2026 – Author A.J. Priest has released his debut children’s book, The Night Riders: A Magical Rescue, now available in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle eBook.
The story follows nine-year-old Ashleigh, who discovers an old, dirt-covered necklace after her dog, Nelson, digs it up from her mother’s flowerbed. According to the book, the necklace carries an unexplained magic: once cleaned and activated, it allows Nelson to talk, and soon reveals that the family’s four donkeys, Misty, Myles, Doughnut, and the notably stubborn Noodles, can fly. Ashleigh and her animal companions quietly begin calling themselves the Night Riders.
The central plot is set in motion when Ashleigh realizes she has left her favorite teddy bear, Molly, behind at school just days before Christmas. Unwilling to leave Molly there over the holiday, Ashleigh and the Night Riders set out after dark to retrieve her. Once inside the school, they discover two burglars in the process of breaking into the classrooms. What follows is a chaotic and comic sequence as Ashleigh and Nelson try to remain hidden while the burglars move through the school and police officers begin closing in. In the story’s climax, the burglars are caught and arrested, though not before Noodles the donkey is mistaken by police for an escaped horse and is taken away in a police horsebox, an outcome the book plays for both humor and heart.
The book features full-color illustrations throughout, bringing Ashleigh’s world and the Night Riders to life for young readers. Priest has said the book was written to capture the kind of imaginative, slightly chaotic adventures that can seem to unfold just outside a child’s bedroom window after dark. The book is dedicated to Ashleigh and Nathan, described in its dedication as the inspiration behind the story’s “kindness, courage, and laughter.”
The Night Riders: A Magical Rescue is intended for readers ages 7 to 10 and combines humor, family relationships, and gentle peril in a story built around loyalty, mischief, and the specific kind of bravery only a nine-year-old and her animal friends can manage.
Available now in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle eBook on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Night-Riders-Magical-Childrens-Illustrated-ebook/dp/B0H9WXXZRB
About A. J. Priest
A.J. Priest is the author of The Night Riders: A Magical Rescue, his debut children’s book. The story is dedicated to Ashleigh and Nathan, whose kindness, courage, and laughter Priest has credited as the inspiration behind the book. A sequel, A Magicless Christmas, is planned as the next installment in the Night Riders series.
For interviews, review copies, or further information about A.J. Priest or The Night Riders: A Magical Rescue, please send an
email via [email protected].
Follow on Social Media
YouTube: youtube.com/@authorajpriest
Media ContactCompany Name: A. J. PriestContact Person: Media RelationsEmail: Send EmailCountry: United KingdomWebsite: https://www.amazon.com/Night-Riders-Magical-Childrens-Illustrated-ebook/dp/B0H9WXXZRB
