Book excerpt: WANTED Enthusiastic young assistant to help with top secret experiments Must like animals – and insects Must be fast worker and team player ENQUIRE WITHIN When Jay, on holiday in 'boring' Frimpton, sees an advertisement seeking a young assistant to help with 'top secret experiments', he could never have guessed that it will lead him on a quest that will take him from rural England to deep within the Arctic Circle. Along the way, Jay meets Professor Theobald Ricardo and makes new friends, the studious Tim and Ella with her faithful terrier, Chip. Together, the three children encounter a range of engaging characters and face many exciting and scary experiences. As problems mount from the Professor’s secret experiments they leave the safety of England in an attempt to solve the mystery of the Querulous Effect. Written in the style and spirit of a classic children’s adventure, the book also examines the challenges and dangers of cutting-edge bio-science and its interaction with global ecosystems. The Querulous Effectwill entertain, amuse and absorb children from the age of nine upwards, whilst stimulating their interest in the world around them.