Following the success of his debut novel, Harold Hill author Nick Barrett has followed it up with a sequel which is as wacky as the first.

Romford Recorder: Nick Barrett's Advent Term (Or - snowmen don't wear thermals)Nick Barrett's Advent Term (Or - snowmen don't wear thermals) (Image: Archant)

Nick’s St Onan’s Chronicles series is a (semi) fictional account of the author’s school days at Kings School in Grantham and the second book Advent Term (Or - snowmen don’t wear thermals) picks up where the last book left off – in a private school filled with eccentric characters.

Nick’s first book Michaelmas Term (or - why is that boy naked?) proved to be popular with adults and children alike and Nick has been delighted with the response so far.

“It’s gone very well actually, it sold extremely well and it’s starting to pick up again, it tends to go in waves,” said Nick.

“And it’s been picked up in different corners of the world.”

A number of old faces from Kings School have since got in touch with the witty author trying to guess which characters are based on real people from their time at the school.

“I had a lot of ex-school friends get in touch on social media and it’s been really good getting in touch with them.

“I’m getting them on a daily basis. Someone will email me saying is that me? Or is this that teacher? It’s like guess the teacher at the moment, they’re loving it.”

Advent term, quite predictably, is set during the winter term with the protagonist Nicky now 13. It has been a rich vein of material for Nick to use.

“Christmas is magical and there’s an air of informality around it – it’s not quite as rigid as other terms at the school.

“In terms of the age I just thought that, moving on, 13 is a funny age.

“I was trying to write somebody who isn’t a child but isn’t an adult.”

Advent Term came out on Wednesday, May 3 and is available from amazon.