Review of Sky Hawk by Gill Lewis

Something lives deep in the forest... something that has not been seen on Callum's farm for over a hundred years.

Callum and Iona make a promise to keep their amazing discovery secret, but can they keep it safe from harm?

The pact they make will change lives forever.

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Sky Hawk is quite a rich book, filled with vivid descriptions of Callum's world. Callum lives in a village in Scotland and his family own a farm. Like most kids he's interested in the latest technology and hanging round with his friends. He first meets Iona when she's trying to catch a fish, on Callum's land. Well, his father's. Callum's friends, particularly Rob, weren't very interesting or likeable to me but I did start to like them more as the story went on.

I really liked Iona's character. She was a cute kid and seemed to be a pretty good artist too. I felt sorry for her because she was bullied so much by her other classmates, even Callum ignored her when he was in school. She's a social outcast and lives with her mad old drunk grandfather, who has a habit of turning up to school in his pyjamas. I do think that Callum's family should have tried to help her out more, as she clearly ahd to do all of the housework etc. by herself.

About half way through something terrible happens that had me yelling about it on Twitter. I'm still not sure why it happened, as I think Callum would have done the same thing had it not happened. You try reviewing without spoilers when you need to talk about something spoilerish. It gets confusing! Anyway, I hated it.

I liked that I got to read about a girl in a dire situation, in another country. I felt really added to the story and it kept me reading. The ending finishes off perfectly and I'd really like to read more from this promising author! I love the cover too, it's difficult to take your eyes off of it. I think this book is definitely one for fans of Michael Morpurgo, which is handy because his quote is on the cover!


4/5

Received free from OUP in exchange for an honest review

Review of Alis by Naomi Rich

At fourteen, Alis has never been outside her strict religious community. But when her parents arrange for her to marry a forty-year-old man, she flees desperately to the dangerous, unfamiliar city. She learns quickly that the only way to survive there is to become a thief?or worse. Facing an impossible choice between a forced marriage or life on the streets, Alis seizes control of her own fate. But the path she chooses sets off a disastrous chain of events that leave her accused of murder. Steadfastly loyal, Alis must decide: will she betray a loved one or sacrifice herself?

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It's difficult to know what to say about Alis. It's not really bad but it's not really good either. The story was interesting enough to keep me reading but some of the plot seemed a little unrealistic, like how quickly Alis found her brother. Another thing that put me off was that it kept skipping. Not a day or two, quite frequently weeks and months had gone by. I wouldn't mind this but the plot didn't really let me getting settled into any particular part of Alis' life before skipping again and I found it quite difficult to connect with Alis' character due to this.

The world that Alis was in didn't feel real to me. This may be because when Alis journey's from one place or another, she'd get in the wagon and BAM we're there. I wanted to get a feel for the city but again, due to the skipping I didn't learn much. As it seems to be a historical world unlike ours, that really didn't help. Although it felt very American. I no idea what the date was supposed to be or anything.

The only character in this story that seemed to have any substance was the Minister. He was very kind to Alis, considering she was quite horrible to him, even though he clearly wanted to be in that situation as much as she did. Other characters, like Ethan, Luke and Joel should have been memorable but due to the sheer lack of conversation (especially Joel, I remember him speaking once), I'm already forgetting them. I'm not even sure why Alis and Luke love each other. They just do.

There was just a general lack of detail that made the story feel a little washed out, like a painting that someone had done but hadn't bothered to colour it in properly. I don't think it will be a story that I will still be thinking about in months to come.

2/5

Received free from Andersen Press in exchange for an honest review 

Review of The Legend of the Oceina Dragon by J.F. Jenkins

Darien Oceina is the youngest son of the Great Dragon Lord of the Water. For years he¹s loved and cherished Tai Dawson from afar. Tai is a simple, ordinary girl who doesn¹t even know Darien exists. On his eighteenth birthday, he chooses her as his wife. But there’s one problem: She thinks his choice means she¹s going to be offered as a sacrifice to the Dragon Lord, but instead, she’s forced to move to his home, far away, to give up her life and be his bride.

When she first sees Darien after the ceremony, she doesn’t expect to feel anything but hatred toward him. The two are struggling with the complications of a new marriage when their nation is attacked by a rival dragon species. Together they learn to love one another while they struggle to stay one step ahead in a game where the prize is their survival.

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I'm not sure what to think of this book. When I started it I liked that it read the same as a fairy tale story but it went downhill after the first chapter I really started to hate it. Then, around page 110 I started to enjoy it again. It was really bizarre.

The writing style (barring the first chapter) is okay but needs some work. I just wanted... more? I'd just be getting into a chapter and then it would skip to the next, and it would be a day, a week later and that made it difficult to connect with the story. I'd class this as older YA as it feels more adult (plus there's sex in it). The story ends on a cliff-hanger and I have to admit that books that do this are really starting to annoy me.

Tai was an interesting character. One minute she's yelling at Darien for kidnapping her, the next she's humping him. Stockholm Syndrome? The story is really lacking in plot for a good 70 pages; I can't even remember what happened. I wanted to read about Tai settling in, getting to know the characters more. Apart from Tai and Darien, I never really understood any of the other characters as they didn't say much.

The breeding and birth was an... interesting... one. To be honest, I've never read anything so bizarre in my life, apart from Breaking Dawn. There are no graphic descriptions of birth of sex but if you read this you'll get what I mean.

The dragon politics and the possibility of war was one I'd not normally read a book for but in this it really felt like the plot was actually moving somewhere! Until it stopped dead and now I have to read the next one to find out what happens.

3/5

Received free from BLB Blog Tours in exchange for an honest review

Review of Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper

No, I don't understand this cover either.

Grace Parkes has just had to do a terrible thing. Having given birth to an illegitimate child, she has travelled to the famed Brookwood Cemetery to place her small infant's body in a rich lady's coffin. Following the advice of a kindly midwife, this is the only way that Grace can think of to give something at least to the little baby who died at birth, and to avoid the ignominy of a pauper's grave. Distraught and weeping, Grace meets two people at the cemetery: Mrs Emmeline Unwin and Mr James Solent. These two characters will have a profound affect upon Grace's life. But Grace doesn't know that yet. For now, she has to suppress her grief and get on with the business of living: scraping together enough pennies selling watercress for rent and food; looking after her older sister, who is incapable of caring for herself; thwarting the manipulative and conscience-free Unwin family, who are as capable of running a lucrative funeral business as they are of defrauding a young woman of her fortune. A stunning evocation of life in Victorian London, with vivid and accurate depictions, ranging from the deprivation that the truly poor suffered to the unthinking luxuries enjoyed by the rich: all bound up with a pacy and thrilling plot, as Grace races to unravel the fraud about to be perpetrated against her and her sister.

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This book felt much longer than it was for me. I liked the Dickensian feel to it, the plot could quite easily have been written by Dickens himself and he even makes a cameo appearance! However I did feel the plot was quite slow in places and others I wanted more detail. I would have like to have seen things from Lily's point of view more, she doesn't get much of a say in it. There's one particular situation that Lily finds herself in that I really wanted more detail on.

The strongest part of this story was the beginning, where Grace gives birth to her child. I loved that it wasn't glossed over and told you as much detail as possible without being too gross. This reminded me of the beginning of Oliver Twist, which I watched the other day. I'm not a huge fan of Dickens but I know Oliver Twist quite well and strangely enough, this plot feels similar.
Another strong part was when Grace recounted hers and Lily's pasts to James and to herself. These show you what London girls back then went through and really made me feel for Grace and Lily. Their situation slowly becomes more desperate before the Unwins take them in.

There's lots of twists and turns in this, a lot that I wasn't expecting which was nice but felt a little too clean, a little too coincidental, like they'd been thrown in the make the plot spicier or something. I really liked the addiction of James Solent, who was by far my favourite character in the story. It would be nice to have a sequel where James and Grace get married by I believe Mary Hooper isn't one for sequels!

I did enjoy this story, all in all. I thought it was quite rich and would make a perfect TV movie.

4/5

Received free from Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review

Review of Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin

Avery witnessed her parents' death-but as much as she wants to remember who killed them, her mind is a blank. Then Avery meets Ben, mysterious and beautiful, with whom she feels an intense connection. When Ben reveals he's a werewolf, Avery still trusts him-until she learns that he, too, can't remember the night her parents died.

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Although this followed a similar YA formula (girl's parents die, she meets a hot guy, madness ensues) I found I enjoyed this much, much more than other similar YA books. I think this was partly due to the writing style, which flowed really well, I quickly lost myself in it and also because of the plot, which concentrated mostly on Avery's parents deaths, instead of her boyfriend. There was plenty of romance but at appropriate times and it wasn't smothering the plot, which I really appreciated.

I also loved the setting. There wasn't much said about the town, which was tony anyway but plenty of descriptions of the woods, making the plot mysterious and suspenseful. It was also a perfect setting for the wolves, although there were only ever two wolves mentioned in the entire story, a lot of the time they were just there as an idea, howling away in the distance.

I love Avery's name. There needs to be more girls called Avery, it just isn't used enough! She was a great character and I could almost feel what she was feeling while she was trying desperately to remember what happened to her parents that night. I liked Ben's character too, who also has a dark past. His werewolf side isn't shown many times, it's more about his struggle to deal with that side of him while he's in love with Avery.

Couple of extra things that don't affect the review: I received this from Bloomsbury and then spent about half an hour on Twitter complaining about it. Why? It smells really bad. Like sheep's lungs or something. I don't know who the printers are but someone needs to fix that. Also, I liked that there was a new colour other than your usual black: red. There two pages of an illustration of some trees, done in red and the chapter headers, page numbers and the word moon are all printed in red too! There's also a little drawing of a couple of trees at the bottom of the page, which I think is a nice touch.

5/5

Received free from Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review

Review of Montacute House by Lucy Jago

At first a boy’s body is discovered, then John, Cess’s best friend, disappears . . . What is the mystery behind these sinister events?

Cess works caring for the chickens at Montacute House but on her thirteenth birthday everything changes. She finds a precious locket hidden in the chicken coop and is convinced someone has placed it there for her to find. But the day is overshadowed by fear as a boy’s body is found by the river, and then John disappears. Cess is determined to find him but is soon embroiled in a plot that threatens her world and forces her to draw on powers she never knew she possessed, powers that will place her life in danger if they are discovered by the villagers. Witchcraft, politics and religious ambition combine in this gripping and wonderfully realised novel set in the Somerset of the 1500s.

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I've wanted this book for a while, so I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy it as much as I wanted to. At points I had to physically force myself to read this book. The plot kinda felt like it was all over the place and the characters felt very clichéd. The plot was fairly basic with some uniqueness but not enough to make me want to keep reading.

The story felt like it was aimed toward the younger YA set but I'm not sure to be honest. The main character is 13 (unlike the model on the cover!) but she does come across as younger. On the other hand Drax, a man of around 30 years of age, I kept forgetting his character was over the age of 15. There was also Will, who I couldn't connect with at all. He wasn't around long enough for me to connect with him before he disappeared so I didn't really care whether he lived or died.

Somewhere down the line, to spice things up a bit, there's a new character thrown in that Cess ends up in love with. So the idea of a chick saving her boyfriend is thrown out of the window. Poor Will. I'm not quite sure why there needed to be a love interest thrown in. It didn't add anything to the story and although Jasper was useful at times and one of the most interesting characters he could quite easily have been a chick.

The main unique factor in this story was magic. Yes, real magic, not 'ooh, she's got a broom, burn her!' magic but actual witches and a coven, which I quite enjoyed reading about. I would have liked to have the story about that and not some complex political plot with a thousand holes in it. Another problem I had was the house itself. Montacute House is real, you can visit it and everything but it was completed in 1601. The story is set in 1596. I'm rather confused about this. I found this on Google very easily so I have to wonder where the author did her research.

3/5

Received free from Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review

Review of Released by Megan Duncan

After a demon apocalypse kills their parents and everyone they know, 17-year old Abby Phillips,  her brother, Carter, and friend, Max flee their home to travel through what has become the wastelands of America. When radio transmissions of a resistance offering shelter and safety cease, Abby is tempted to give up. Struggling to overcome life-threatening obstacles in their dangerous journey, Abby and her companions quickly discover there are much worse things lurking in the dark than they could have ever imagined.

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I would usually watch a movie of this kind of idea - apocalyptic future where demons (no zombies here (I think), sorry zombie fans) have invaded and a kick ass chick with weapons, her brother his friend head to New Mexico to find a military base, making friends and enemies along the way.

Abby is an awesome main character. She's tough, knows her guns but you know she's got the softer side of her too and she has quite motherly instincts towards Taya. I liked that she got on with things instead of expecting the guys to do everything for her. She's still grieving after the loss of her father and that shows in places through the book.

I loved this book. It's quite a quick read and I devoured every page. I'm not hoping to be able to buy a physical copy and the sequel. The story is quite action packed but not rushed, it's nicely paced and Megan writing really works with it, no huge descriptions, straight to the point. There's lots of suspense too and I was reading frantically, wondering if Abby and her family would make it to their destination.

The romance between Abby and Max is well written and really sweet but not heavy, it's more of a sub-plot in the book. I did find myself wondering if they would have dated if the demons hadn't of turned up, as in a situation like theirs, these things tend to happen. I'd like to think they did.

I also really liked Taya's character. She's smart, knows how to look after herself but still shows her younger side, which is what Abby needs, as Abby's still a teenager herself. I think the trio really needed a tough little sister to look after (even if she insists she doesn't need looking after!) and she really fits the part, I love her. It would be awesome if in the next book there's a scene where Abby shows Taya how to clean guns and stuff.

If you buy this book for any reason (and I hope you do!) at the very least buy it for the cover. This is a self published book and whoever created that amazing cover needs a pat on the back. I'm desperate to see it on my shelf!

5/5

Received free from the Author in exchange for an honest review

Review of Flawless by Lara Chapman

Sarah Burke is just about perfect. She's got killer blue eyes, gorgeous blond hair, and impeccable grades. There's just one tiny-all right, enormous-flaw: her nose. But even that's not so bad. Sarah's got the best best friend and big goals for print journalism fame.

On the first day of senior year, Rock Conway walks into her journalism class and, well, rocks her world. Problem is, her best friend, Kristen, falls for him too. And when Rock and Kristen stand together, it's like Barbie and Ken come to life. So when Kristen begs Sarah to help her nab Rock, Sarah does the only thing a best friend can do-she agrees. For someone so smart, what was she thinking?

This hip retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac is filled with hilariously misguided matchmaking, sweet romance, and a gentle reminder that we should all embrace our flaws.

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To start with, I adore that cover. As soon as I saw the cover, I knew I had to read it. The story itself is quite a quick read at around 250 pages and quite enjoyable as a quick, fluffy read (with nothing that you don't want the younger YA set to read about) about embracing your flaws. Perfect for a lazy day at the beach or something.

Part of the fun of Flawless for me was trying to imagine what Sarah's nose looks like, as every character in the book seem to point out how huge it is at some point. I ended up imaging it as the guy in the egg card advert with the huge nose. You know, the one where he sneezes? I miss those adverts! Sarah's character is definitely more likeable than Kristen's, a lot of the times I wanted to slap some sense into Kristen and make her realise what she was doing to her friend. I found it weird that they were friends as they were quite opposite from each other but then again, I had a friend like Kristen. I don't have a big nose though. Mine is quite cute.

One good thing about Sarah is that she's smart. Very smart in fact. She gets on with her school work, panics if she's late for class and is filling in every college application she's eligible for. Lara Chapman could have gone with your typical giggling blonde chick with no brains but I'm glad she didn't as that wouldn't have worked at all. Kristin however, is the opposite - she's not very bright and says a lot of things that are downright stupid (The Impressionists - not comedians!) and you can see she envies Sarah's writing ability. Oddly enough though, she's very good at maths!

Right from the start I could see that Sara and Rock worked together and I couldn't blame her for being jealous of her friend. I found her chats to Rock quite painful to read, I wanted him to realise it was her writing to him! I would have liked to know more about Rock's character as I never really connected with him.

4/5

Received free from Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review

Review of Need by Carrie Jones

Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane...but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now.

She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right - not human - in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

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I used run screaming from anything to do with Fae, unless Holly Black wrote it. I hadn't found anything that interested me at all wrote it. Until I read Need.

Just to make this clear, whoever designed this cover needs to be slapped. It's one of the worst cover's I've ever seen and it really creeps me out. I love the story however so it's all good as long as I don't have to look at it too much.

I love that Zara's a hippie. You don't get enough Hippie girls in books. Weres and Pixies after I've posted my Urgent Appeal letter! I love it. The plan didn't work out well but it was hilarious all the same. I cracked up when she started yelling about Were-Bunnies. I liked her character from the beginning which is unusual for me, I usually find them annoying at first. I think it was partly because she's a part of Amnesty International. I'm more of a Greenpeace girl myself. Saving sharks from becoming tuna and all that jazz.

I actually liked the love interest! A certain blogger will love me for this. Usually I'm quite picky but Nick was a really good character and actually fit in with the story instead of just being there or having the story centred around him. I liked that his and Zara's relationship was there but not really full on and heavy like in other books. Usually I feel like I'm suffocating with it.

When you start the book it might feel a little like Twilight but I didn't notice that until a review pointed it out. Sure, Zara's mom has packed her off to a small town but I honestly didn't notice any Twilight references as the plot is a lot stronger and the characters aren't cardboard.
I found the Stephen King references fascinating (although one does wonder if there are any Vampires in his books? I think not). Of course, she's going to Maine so that's an obvious one. I also picked up the quote as soon as I saw it, which I wanted to pat myself on the back for.
There's a few clichéd moments in this and moments where you go 'I knew it!' but that's to be expected after all. I'm curious to see how the plot develops in the next book as this could quite easily have been a stand-alone.

5/5

Review of Divergent by Veronica Roth

In a future Chicago, 16-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomaly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

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Unless you've been living under a rock or you don't know me, you'll probably know about Divergent and how much I've been wanting to read it (I've been commenting on every IMM post that has it, saying how much I want it!). Was the wait worth it?

Divergent is amazing. I loved that it didn't concentrate entirely on the romance between Tris and Four, as romance in YA books has really been getting on my nerves lately. The romance that was there was really sweet and enjoyable. The story mostly concentrates on Tris's survival - there's a lot of moments in this where I'm honestly not sure if she's going to survive or not. I managed to read it in about 4 hours, which is impressive even for me considering this book is nearly 500 pages long!

I liked that it wasn't bubble wrapped either, beating characters up to the point of death frequently and killing a lot of them off too. Tris is no exception - she gets beaten up more than most, even getting a few injuries from Four. To say this book is action packed is an understatement.
I hated Peter and his crew. I was glad when Tris got her own back on a lot of them. He's also a total pervert. I wished she'd have kicked him somewhere. In fact, I'm surprised she didn't. I would have.
Lots of suspense in this, I was panicking when it came to the results to find out who stays and who goes in Tris's new faction, as I honestly wasn't sure. It never failed to surprise me, which is a major plus - I usually guess everything.

I loved the world that Veronica creates, it feels so real I almost want to live there - but I doubt I'd survive! I would probably go for the Erudite faction unfortunately. You could probably find me sitting in some dusty corner of a library. Well, not too dusty. I seem to have a bad cough lately.

5/5

Review of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won't talk to her, and people she doesn't even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that's not safe. Because there's something she's trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth. This extraordinary first novel has captured the imaginations of teenagers and adults across the country.

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Speak is written with a great narrative that I got into really quickly. There's no real chapters, just different sections, almost like Melissa is scribbling down her thoughts as I was reading them. I was thrown straight into the story, just after some major key events have happened and now Melissa is dealing with the aftermath. She doesn't speak much, preferring her own world and of course, I had to follow her through that. I would imagine that many readers would want to jump up and be her friend! Her voice isn't one I'll forget quickly.
There's lots of quotes that are quite meaningful, of course and I imagine many fans of Speak will have them all favourited on GoodReads. There's lots of humour too, all from Melissa.

Of course if you know of Speak, you'll know it deals with a very difficult subject. I think Laurie Halse Anderson handled the subject very well and the build up to Melissa finally telling someone was very well written. When she did finally tell someone I breathed a sigh of relief, as many readers would have. I did feel that the reactions from her old friends were a little extreme and unrealistic, as with the ending. The ending was way too over the top, to be honest. I would have liked to have read about the year after and see how Melissa was doing because it did seem to cut short for me. I think I would have enjoyed the book more too.

I hated Melissa parents. Her father wasn't too bad in some parts but her mother was incessantly annoying. I wanted to just slap her. Surely she must know that something was wrong with her daughter? You don't just go from being a social butterfly to a recluse overnight unless something severely traumatic happens.

4/5

Review of Die For Me by Amy Plum

In the City of Lights, two star-crossed lovers battle a fate that is destined to tear them apart again and again for eternity.

When Kate Mercier's parents die in a tragic car accident, she leaves her life--and memories--behind to live with her grandparents in Paris. For Kate, the only way to survive her pain is escaping into the world of books and Parisian art. Until she meets Vincent.

Mysterious, charming, and devastatingly handsome, Vincent threatens to melt the ice around Kate's guarded heart with just his smile. As she begins to fall in love with Vincent, Kate discovers that he's a revenant--an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save the lives of others. Vincent and those like him are bound in a centuries-old war against a group of evil revenants who exist only to murder and betray. Kate soon realizes that if she follows her heart, she may never be safe again.

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When I started this book I thought, 'Wow, this is pretty good!' I really liked the writing style. Then cue page 20, Kate sees Vincent and everything goes mushy. The writing is still good but it's a romance I have read so many times before that I wanted to bang my head against a wall. This could have been so much better. I don't know if the Author just wanted to play it safe but I didn't enjoy the book at all.

Kate would be a good character but Vincent's character is awful, a typical Edward Cullen/Damon Auguste character that I've seen in a million other YA books. I really wanted to get into the story and read about the Revenants but there wasn't much mentioned as everything is centred around her obsession with Vincent.

Kate's and Vincent's romance drove me up the wall. They get together far to quickly for my liking and when she decides to avoid him he stalks her, standing outside her house for hours on end. I don't about you but that reminds me of someone... ~cough~EdwardCullen~cough~
What is it with the growing trend of teenage heroines in YA books dating really old men? 'Oh well, it's okay because he looks 19.' Um, he's still in his 80's!
I actually wanted Kate to get with Catherine, I think that would have been a far cuter storyline. I can picture them holding hands down the street and visiting little cafes. Or Bistros. Whatever the French call them. The word Bistro makes me think of gravy. Anyway.

I found the ending a lot duller than I was expecting. I was half expecting cartoon characters it was so silly. It wasn't as weak as the ending in Finding Sky but I felt that the author just threw whatever in, knowing it would sell anyway. It was quite disappointing. I'm not sure if I'll read the next book, unless it sounds like it will be better.

3/5

Review of Sleight by Jennifer Sommersby

Her mom is dead.
Ghosts follow her around.
Her best friend is an elephant.
And she’s about to meet the biggest game changer of all: a boy. With a secret.

When circus-dwelling Gemma Flannery learns she will be attending public school for the first time in her seventeen years, little does she know that fitting in with her 12th-grade classmates will be the least of her concerns. A pro at hiding her knack for seeing the dead (“shades”), Gemma is grieving the recent suicide of her mentally ill mother, a process eased by the introduction of her first real love interest, the charming and painfully handsome Henry Dmitri, who is harboring his own collection of dangerous secrets. Together, they will be presented with a frightening challenge: to assume their roles as heirs to a 3000-year-old magical text, the AVRAKEDAVRA, a book the über-rich, sleight-of-being master Lucian Dmitri would do anything to get his hands on. As each terrifying layer in her new reality melts away, Gemma unearths truths that her quiet, nomadic life with the Cinzio Traveling Players is not at all what she’d always cherished. Gemma and Henry must rely on each other to stop Lucian’s diabolical plotting that will bring the world to its tired, scab-riddled knees, and are sent on the flight of their young lives, to save themselves, their families, and the world from the darkest kind of destruction.

Let the chase begin.

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This was recommended to me by Cait (The Cait Files), so I bought it for my Kindle. I found it a little hard to get into but after a few chapters I liked Gemma more and more and connected with her better. I loved the idea that she lives in a travelling circus, I think that angle isn't done enough in YA books. There's a lot of swearing and violence in this, which I liked as it felt more realistic.

The story has lots of twists and turns that you don't quite expect. Gemma gets kicked around quite a lot but her character is really strong and puts up with all of that, giving a few punches herself. Henry and Gemma complement each other perfectly and work really well together, although I'll admit that I was hoping they wouldn't get together at one point - I felt that they would work better together if they didn't. But as a couple they're just as cool.

I think I liked the last 25% the most, where Gemma and Henry are on the run, it was full of action and suspense (who doesn't love a good chase scene?).  I was on edge, wondering if they were about to be caught or not, if someone would recognise them. I think a lot of the story was just building up to that point. I think the sequel will be interesting as I believe it will be set in a different country, with (hopefully) some new characters too!

(2014 note: no sequel has been released for this story, which I find very disappointing.)

4/5

Review of The Vampire's Warden by S.J. Wright

He moved. It was a flash in the moonlight, a blur of motion like I'd never witnessed before. No human had the capacity to move like that. When I found myself face-to-face with him there in the meadow, I knew without a doubt that the journal was authentic. I knew that my grandfather hadn't been crazy at all.

Because a foot away from me stood a vampire.

What do you do when you find out the people you trust have been hiding a terrible secret? When Sarah Wood's father passes away and hands over to her the responsibility of running the family's inn, she finds put things are far more complicated than she first imagined. She's not just responsible for running the inn. She's become the Vampire's Warden.

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The Vampire's Warden has a good plot line but needs some work. Instead of building up the storyline and letting me get used to the characters, I was just sort of throw in. This works for some books but not this one. I didn't really get a feel for Sarah's character and as a consequence, I didn't care about her. Pace is also something that needs to be worked on, this book should have been thicker - it needed more descriptions or the characters, scenery, you get the idea. Some descriptions felt a little repetitive at times, especially when Sarah was describing Alex and Michael's muscles...

Sarah's sister was confusing. She entered the story and then left very quickly, for a reason that I couldn't work out. I think she should have stayed longer so we could understand her character and sympathise with her.
For a debut by a self pubbed, it's quite good and I look forward to reading more of S.J. Wright's books in the hope that her writing will improve over time.

3/5

Review of Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home. As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

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I don't think I've read a single bad review of this. Now I've finally read it, I can understand why. This is one of the most perfectly written books I have ever read. The writing and story is so beautiful that I was completely lost in it, I looked up after what felt like hours blissfully following Anna in Paris, only to discover only 10 minutes had gone by. It was very disorientating. When I finished it, I wanted to cry. I wanted more! I want to read every bit of their story until Anna and Etienne are old and wearing incontinence pants.

The romance between Anna wasn't a typical YA 'Oh hi, we're dating now' romance. It was very slow and frustrating, full of twists and turns. Like it should be! Etienne is gorgeous (in my mind anyway) and more importantly, he feels real. Not like cardboard. He has thoughts, feelings, emotions. I nearly fell over laughing when he threw up all over Anna. Needless to say, the characters should not be allowed near alcohol. I think there was only one cardboard person in this and that was Amanda, your typical posh brat who wanted Etienne for herself. I wanted someone to punch her.

One thing I discovered when reading was that I've retained a lot more French than I wanted to at High School. I easily translated a whole sentence and then sat there giggling whilst Anna tried to work it out. French has never been my favourite language because I always link it to High School but I like it a little more now.

If you're looking for a romance that feels real, with all the twists and turns and bumps in the road that real romances have, one that you can lose yourself in, buy this. And then buy the rest of Stephanie's books. When you've read them, bug her until she writes more. I know I will...

5/5

Review of Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

After Renee Winters discovers her parents lying dead in California’s Redwood Forest in what appears to be a strange double murder, her grandfather sends her off to Gottfried Academy in Maine, a remote and mysterious high school dedicated to philosophy, “crude sciences,” and Latin: the Language of the Dead. It’s here she meets Dante, a dark and elusive student to whom she feels inexplicably drawn.
As they get to know each other better, Dante can’t seem to control his attraction either, and their desires gradually deepen into a complex and dangerous romance. Dangerous because Dante is hiding a frightening secret. A secret so terrible, it has him fearing for Renee’s life.
Dante’s not the only one with secrets, though. Turns out Gottfried Academy has a few of its own... Like, how come students keep disappearing? Why are the prefect-like Monitors creeping around campus during the night? And what exactly are the Headmistress and Professors really up to? Renee is determined to find out why.

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The cover of this is beautiful. I love how gothic it looks with the moths flying around and the woods behind the model, who looks like a younger Karen Gillian. The moths are also flying around the chapter headers too, which I think looks really pretty.

Dead Beautiful would be the book you'd end up with if you got Twilight, Fallen and Harry Potter, threw them into a pot and gave it a really good mix. The storyline isn't the best, although I enjoyed the mystery through it and the setting I found the ending disappointing - it felt quite rushed and I was rather confused.

As for Dante, I didn't like him, there was too many moments where he acted like Edward Cullen. I prefer a love interest that's actually realistic. There's a few moments in this where he saves her even though he's nowhere near her and this is never explained - I think the Author just wanted to copy parts of Twilight. Renee's character is better but quite annoying at times, she's a strong character but when it comes to Dante she just acts like all the other pathetic YA girls. After snubbing Dante for a week or two she has the nerve to complain when he snubs her back! Her character was steadily less likeable throughout the book, at the end I couldn't actually give a damn whether she died or not.

The ending. I honestly have no idea what happened. After writing 470 pages of the book, the ending was rushed and the last two chapters weren't really explained. After reading that amount of rubbish I was hoping for some reward, an ending I could actually remember instead of sitting around and thinking, 'Wait... what just happened?'

2/5

Review of Rage by Jackie Morse Kessler

Missy didn’t mean to cut so deep. But after the party where she was humiliated in front of practically everyone in school, who could blame her for wanting some comfort? Sure, most people don’t find comfort in the touch of a razor blade, but Missy always was . . . different. That’s why she was chosen to become one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: War. Now Missy wields a new kind of blade—a big, brutal sword that can cut down anyone and anything in her path. But it’s with this weapon in her hand that Missy learns something that could help her triumph over her own pain: control. A unique approach to the topic of self-mutilation, Rage is the story of a young woman who discovers her own power and refuses to be defeated by the world.

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The main thing that keep me reading this book was that I wanted to know if Missy had killed her cat or not. What? You must have typed that wrong! No, I didn't. Did she kill her cat? Well, you'll have to read it and find out.

The writing style is flows well and I found it easy to be lost in Missy's story. There's plenty of humour too, particularly from a very recognisable Death - I love him! The plot felt similar to Hunger, which I liked. I like a bit of familiarity, although this may be a negative thing for other readers.

I believe many readers will be able to relate to Missy, who self harms. The writing is quit beautiful and you can see that the author has done her research into self harm well. She doesn't gloss over it or glamorise it - it's there, it's brutal, it's honest and you have to be able to deal with that if you're going to read it.

"The world will end with neither a bang nor a whimper, but with blood. In the end, it's always blood."


The struggle between Rage and Missy was fascinating and Missy's self control is quite admirable - she could easily take the easy way out, accept Rage and destroy everything and everyone that hates her. But she doesn't and I think that's what makes her character so likeable. Instead of going all Carrie she says no. War, unfortunately, isn't going to take no for an answer.

If you've read Hunger then like me you'll be wanting to know what happened to Lisa. You do get a few glimpses of her and she appears to be older now but you don't get to learn as much about her as I was hoping. In the next book I'm hoping we get to learn Pestilence's side of the story as he's easily the most interesting and mysterious character. For me anyway, I think everyone else will be rooting for Death.


4/5

Review of Dustbin Baby by Jacqueline Wilson

April Showers (so called because of her birth date, April 1, and her tendency to burst into tears at the drop of a hat) was unceremoniously dumped in a rubbish bin when she was only a few hours old. Her young life has passed by in a blur of ever-changing foster homes but as she enters her teens she decides it is time to find out the truth about her real family.

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Is there any girl who hasn't read a Jacqueline Wilson book when they were a younger teen? I read many, although I've never found many to be particularly believable or memorable. I adored Love Lessons and can still remember most of the plot but Dustbin Baby isn't a interesting one for me, despite having read it about 4 times. I remember it, of course.

This one is about a girl called April, she's just turned 14 and decided to bunk from school, after having a temper tantrum because her foster mother bought her earrings instead of a mobile phone. Deciding to revisit her past, she starts at her first foster home and works from there. Throughout this journey April tells the story of her life, of her old foster mothers suicide and how she was severely bullied in another foster home.

What the story could have really done with was a better ending. The ending felt quite rushed and I was left wanting to know what happened afterwards. In the movie (with Dakota Blue Richards as April!) we get a glimpse of what happened next, how April current foster mother, Marion, reacted to her disappearance and them working things out. In the book however it just seems to cut off when you want to read more.

I believe (correct me if I'm wrong) that Tanya, from Bad Girls makes a cameo appearance in this book and she also mentions Mandy, the main character in the book. I love books that have links to other books in them, although I admit that I would have loved to have seen Tracy Beaker in this!

It's not the most thought provoking of JW's books but then again, the ones I'm thinking of (Love Lessons, Kiss) would probably appeal to older readers. For the younger YA set, I think it's a perfectly enjoyable quick read for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

4/5 

Review of Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys

Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously-and at great risk-documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives.

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Despite it's high rating on Goodreads, the pretty cover and the ad on the back of the book 'Discover more about this unforgettable book...' I just didn't find it all that unforgettable. For me, it didn't feel particularly unique and I felt as if I'd read it before. Although Lina was deported by Stalin and not Hitler, the situation she found herself in was rather similar. The problem with these sort of books is that once you've read one, you've read them all. There are a couple that stand out from the crowd (Annexed by Sharon Dogar and I Have Lived a Thousand Years by Livia Bitton Jackson in particular) but the stories are always the same - usually a girl around age 15, trying to stay with her family. They work like crazy, most of her friends and family die, it's all very sad.

One character that was particularly interesting for me was Nikolai Kretzsky, one of the soldiers in the camp. He was different from the rest and helped Lina on many occasions. I would have loved to her read his story rather than hers.

As I was expecting, the story has a nice ending for our heroine and you know she survives - it says it in the description above. What I was expecting was the story to just sort of cut of and then go 'and 50 years later, Lina's fine!' I was hoping to read about her leaving the camp.

3/5

Review of Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.
Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization. 

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I started this book with the same thoughts as everyone else - 'Jeez, this is nearly 500 pages!', 'The writing style is driving me bonkers!' and 'Why on earth are there crosses instead of numbers at the beginning of the chapters?' After a while though, I got used to everything and found that it read very quickly - I was able to read 20 pages in 5 minutes without any problems.

I didn't really connect with Saba when I first met her. Even though she's supposed to be 18, she seemed younger than that. However I grew to understand her more as the story progressed and she became tougher from what her world was throwing at her. At times she reminded me quite strongly of Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games because of her sheer determination and courage.

Saba and Jack's relationship is quite easily one of my favourites. I loved that she showed no interest in him whatsoever, not wanting to admit to herself that she liked him and that she continued this throughout most of the  book, rather than jumping his bones the second she got, like most YA heroines.

I loved Saba's younger sister, Emmi. She doesn't get a mention on the blurb, which is a shame as she's one of the strongest characters. She chases after Saba, not wanting to be left behind and puts up with Saba's hostility, not to mention countless beatings (not from Saba). For a nine year old, she's pretty brave.

I also just realised that the guy I've been picturing as the King is Freddie Mercury.

5/5

Review of Rumours by Anna Godbersen

After bidding good-bye to New York's brightest star, Elizabeth Holland, rumors continue to fly about her untimely demise.
All eyes are on those closest to the dearly departed: her mischievous sister, Diana, now the family's only hope for redemption; New York's most notorious cad, Henry Schoon-maker, the flame Elizabeth never extinguished; the seductive Penelope Hayes, poised to claim all that her best friend left behind--including Henry; even Elizabeth's scheming former maid, Lina Broud, who discovers that while money matters and breeding counts, gossip is the new currency.
As old friends become rivals, Manhattan's most dazzling socialites find their futures threatened by whispers from the past. In this delicious sequel to "The Luxe," nothing is more dangerous than a scandal . . . or more precious than a secret.

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Something I've just noticed was that the English edition has an extra letter - the American spelling is Rumors, I believe. I prefer the English edition because of the pretty decorations, all the flowers and swirlys are rather appealing!

I did enjoy this book but found The Luxe to be more exciting and readable. This is a great read if you loved the Luxe and want to know more about the characters lives (which I did) but the pace slows down quite a lot. The main thing I felt throughout this book was frustration. I was frustrated with Lina the most, who's still pining after Will, thinking if she makes herself look more like Elizabeth she'll win him. In doing so she becomes more in love with herself throughout the book. I definitely disliked her character the most.
I was also annoyed with the ending. Really annoyed. I did not want it to end the way it did, which was quite shocking after keeping with a steady (albeit slightly boring) pace throughout.

The story starts off the same way as Luxe - with an unknown narrator, telling you of an event that will happen in future, before dragging you a few weeks back into the past, so you can read about the events that led up to the event.

For the series to pick up pace again, some pretty awesome stuff better happen in the next book, I want fairytale weddings and rainbows next time, Miss Godberson, you hear?

3/5