Spark Hunter

Sonya Wilson is an award-winning novelist, journalist, television reporter, presenter and producer. She has a degree in Broadcasting Communications and has worked across a variety of platforms and programmes including TVNZ's Breakfast, 1News, 20/20, Sunday and Q+A programmes.​She also has a Masters in Creative Writing with First Class Honours from the University of Auckland. Her first novel, Spark Hunter, has made several bestseller and best-of lists since its release in October 2021. It won the NZSA Best First Book Award at the 2022 NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, a Storylines Notable Book Award 2022 and was shortlisted for the Esther Glen Junior Fiction prize. ​Sonya also writes essays, reviews and opinion pieces for a variety of publications including North & South, Newsroom, Canvas and The Spinoff, and produces and hosts the Bookland Presents: How to Love podcast series.​She is the founder and chief executive of the charity Kiwi Christmas Books (www.kiwichristmasbooks.org.nz) and is the co-director of a small film and television post-production company with her husband, colourist Pete Ritchie.​

The judges of the 2022 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults said: 'Perfectly pitched for middle fiction readers, Spark Hunter weaves history, culture, conservation, humour, tension and adventure into the story of Nissa Marshall, who has always known there is more to the Fiordland bush than meets the eye. While leaning into the fantastic just enough to encourage the imagination, the inclusion of archival excerpts will spark keen readers to hunt out their own discoveries within the mysterious history of this corner of Aotearoa. Making this story's light shine bright is te reo Māori blended throughout and a cast of supporting characters that are easily recognisable as classmates, teachers, and friends.' 'Spark Hunter is an original, fresh fantasy novel for young readers, lovingly crafted from author Sonya Wilson's memories of a childhood spent roaming Fiordland. Her contemporary mythological world is populated by Sparks - the essences of native flora and fauna, both threatened by and dependent on the human world. Drawing on both Māori and European cultural markers, Wilson successfully navigates between inspiration and appropriation, creating a unique world that will captivate middle grade readers, as well as their parents.' Kete Books'A stylish and immersive debut novel about fairies in Fiordland. Wilson has been obsessed with the place since she was little and she writes the forest so well you can smell it. Throughout, she maintains a winning mix of richness and sincerity, warmth and low-key easy humour. No content warnings, and no naff either - this book is versatile as anything. You could happily read it to your eight-year-old, give it to your teen for Christmas or simply snaffle it up yourself.' The Spinoff