Robbie loves his life in the country, and is appalled by the idea of moving to Edinburgh. With no space and no sun to bask in, his pet tortoise, Herman, will be equally perturbed by the change.

The new house and school look grim, and the class bullies are quick to pick on him. At first, the only consolation is the time he spends with Herman in the back yard. But when his teacher asks the class to write about their pets, Robbie's story about Herman, and recent reports of tortoise thefts, intrigue his classmates. With a few new friends, things are looking up...

Then, one afternoon, Herman goes missing. Perhaps he's been the victim of a tortoise gang ... or is the culprit is closer to home...?

There are 112 pages in this book. This book was published 2002 by Hachette Children's Group .

Joan Lingard was born in Edinburgh but grew up in Belfast. She has had a long and varied career in children's books, and was awarded the M. B. E, in 1998 for services to children's literature. She writes with equal success for teenagers, adults and the very young.