Not Going to Plan, the powerful verse novel about sexual consent, unplanned pregnancy and the breaking of taboos by Carnegie Shadowers’ Award-winner Tia Fisher, has been praised as one of the best children’s books of Autumn 2025 by School Reading List.

In the review, Tom Tolkien writes:

“Marnie’s just been expelled; Zed’s all about grades. They meet through tutoring, hardly a natural match, but a fragile friendship begins to form. Then Marnie’s world shifts again: an unplanned pregnancy after non-consensual sex. Told in alternating voices, the story doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff: consent, trust, and what comes next. The visual verse format adds urgency and space to breathe, making it a powerful, relatable read for teens facing big questions. Highly recommended for KS4.'”

You can read the review and see the full list of books here.

When Marnie’s rebellious streak gets her excluded from her exclusive school, she’s forced to take her GCSEs elsewhere, and sit next to Zed, a control-freak physics nerd with zero tolerance for mistakes—which is awkward because Marnie’s about to make the biggest blunder of her life.

Not Going to Plan is a taboo-busting novel about gender identity, consent and shame, which unflinchingly explores the heart-rending decisions a teenager must make as a result of a sexual encounter she didn’t fully consent to.

Not Going to Plan will be published on 28th August 2025. Pre-order your copy here or, better, via your local bookstore and bookshop.org.

Follow Tia on Bluesky @tiafisher.bsky.social.