Free books will be handed out as part of a month-long literary festival to help people "fall in love" with reading across Waltham Forest.

The Cityread festival, starting next month in collaboration with Waltham Forest council, will host a variety of free events including a ‘literary cruise along the Thames’, family art workshops and a one-off talk from the author at the heart of this year’s Cityread, Ben Aaronovitch.

Aaronovitch’s fantasy-crime fiction book, ‘Rivers of London’, about a young officer in the Metropolitan Police who trains to become a wizard, has been chosen as the focus of Cityread's 2015 campaign.

To mark this, the  council is offering free copies of the book to reading groups based in the borough to encourage others to discover the 'joy of reading'.

Ben Aaronovitch, who is hosting a talk about his book at Walthamstow Library in High Street on April 10, said: “My love of reading began in my local library and I frequently find myself drawn into the many fabulous local history libraries when researching my books - they are a resource beyond price and their contribution to the intellectual and cultural capital of London is beyond measure.

“If I have one hope for Cityread 2015 it is that many other people, young, old and those travelling in between, who have yet to fall in love with books will find that same first love.”

If you run a reading group in Waltham Forest and would like to request free copies of 'Rivers of London', email librarypromotions@walthamforest.gov.uk by April 1.

For more information on the full Cityread schedule click here.