From Judith Rossell, internationally bestselling author–illustrator of Withering-by-Sea, comes The Midwatch, a multi-award-winning Australian novel that's perfect for middle-grade readers who love cosy mysteries, thrilling adventures and strong female characters.

‘The city was stuffed full of wickedness, everyone knew that …’

Banished to the Midwatch Institute for Orphans, Runaways and Unwanted Girls, Maggie Fishbone is sure she’s in for a life of drudgery. But she quickly discovers there’s more to the Midwatch than meets the eye …

The city shimmers with jewels and secrets, and soon Maggie is thrust into an adventure that takes her deep underground, high above the clouds and face to face with danger itself.

Turn the page and prepare to be drawn into a lavishly illustrated world, brimming with mystery, unlikely heroines and an adventure as big as the sky.

PRAISE FOR THE MIDWATCH
Winner of the 2025 BookPeople Children's Book of the Year Award
Winner of the 2025 Davitt Award for Best Children's Novel
Shortlisted for the 2025 Australian Book Industry Awards
Shortlisted for the 2025 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Children’s Literature
Shortlisted for the 2025 Indie Book Awards
Shortlisted for the 2025 Australian Book Design Awards
Shortlisted for the 2024 Aurealis Awards
Notable Book in the 2025 Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Awards

‘Gasp-out-loud brilliant! An absolute treasure of a book.’
— KATRINA NANNESTAD, bestselling author of We Are Wolves
 
‘I was hooked from the beginning ... Move over Lemony Snicket!’
— KAREN FOXLEE, award-winning author of Lenny’s Book of Everything

‘Welcome all treasure-hunters and mystery-solvers to the Midwatch Institute … [where] disobedient girls are not to be underestimated!' 
— AMELIA MELLOR, award-winning author of The Grandest Bookshop in the World
 
‘A cracking concept, sensational characters and absolutely smashing pictures: The Midwatch is the cat’s pyjamas!’
— JACLYN MORIARTY, award-winning author of the Kingdoms and Empires series

‘Cinematic, amusing, and exciting: a slightly subversive, delightfully empowering, all-around winner.’
– Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

‘Absolutely winning adventure tale brimming with awe-inspiring characters.’
– The Sydney Morning Herald 

'[A] subversive and captivating examination of adventure, lifelong learning, and sisterhood ... Action and adventure abound.'
– Publishers Weekly (starred review)