Jayben and the Golden Torch

At 19-years-old Thomas Leeds was hit by a London Black Cab. Whilst he was lucky to survive, his childhood memories did not. Unable to remember the places he loved as a child or to recognise faces, including those of his family, Thomas set about building a new life. Without knowing where his beginning was, he began adjusting to a future that included navigating the severe epilepsy that resulted from his brain injury. 11-years-later, creating an 80s playlist for his upcoming 30th, Thomas heard the first line of the Waterboys' The Whole of the Moon and his childhood memories began to emerge.

Thomas held on to those memories and with them came the seed of his debut Middle Grade novel, exploring and championing the power of memory and epilepsy. Nowadays, Thomas lives in Essex with his wife (the only face he can remember) and his two daughters.

Can one boy with no memories save the world?

'I loved this book - a triumphant and richly imagined fantasy as well as a compelling insight into life with seizures and memory loss. I can't wait to see where this story goes!' - Lee Newbery, author of The Last Firefox


In the Earth world, a boy dreams of faraway lands to escape life with his horrible aunt.
In the Elf world, he wakes up with a mysterious golden torch but without any clue who he is ...
except for the compass he pulls from his pocket, engraved with one name: JAYBEN

Jayben discovers that many moons ago, a giant put a dark spell on the golden torch, and the elves forgot everything that had come before. Now they hang precious memories in jars on trees, just to try to remember.

But a new darkness grows among them.

An evil villain called Null is burning down the forests, hellbent on finding the torch and becoming the most powerful being ever to live.

If Jayben can find his own magic and ignite the torch with its fierce violet flame, his power will be unstoppable ... Can Jayben save the world before the lights go out forever?

A story of courage, hope and friendship. Whatever pages are missing in your story, you can be the hero on the next page.

'A modern classic of children's fantasy with a necessary hero' - Lizzie Huxley-Jones

Can one boy with no memories save the world?

Inspired by the author's unique personal experience of memory-loss comes an incredible, immersive fantasy series about a boy with no memories and a world that only he can save. Perfect for fans of Francesca Gibbons and The Land of Roar.