Author Archives: keithbwalters

New Books! #45

This is this week’s and last week’s book haul! I’m so excited about everything… but, seriously, I have no more room for my TBR. It’s a problem now. I doubt that’ll stop me from buying, though… ‘Scuse the blurry pictures (:

Split Second by Kasie West: I’ve been looking forward to reading this ever since I finished Pivot Point last year! Thank you so much, to Harper360 for being lovely and sending me a copy of this to review. I’m looking forward to it, and even though I have a big ARC pile at the moment, this may have to go near the top…

Various John Wyndham Books: Thanks to ze dad for spotting these in a library and taking them all out for me! I read the Day of the Triffids last year and loved it, and I read The Chrysalids earlier this year and I loved that even more. I’m really looking forward to reading more of John Wydnham’s books. I really want to try and read all of his titles this year and so maybe I’ll do a fortnight challenge, or something…

SHIFT by Jeff Povey: I’m really excited for this! It sounds really action packed and awesome. A huge thank you to Jenny @ Wondrous Reads- who I won the book from! Thanks :3

Writing in the Sand by Helen Brandom & Pivot Point by Kasie West: A huge thank you to Usborne and Harper360 for these titles! I’ve been looking forward to both of them for ages!

I also bought a lot of comics over the past fortnight, but haven’t had time to take photos and things- but from now on, hopefully, I’ll include any new ones I get in my hauls, too! (There should be a review of a comic I’ve recently discovered and loved up this week, too…) What’ve you bought of received this week? Leave a comment! (:

5 reasons to read say her name by james dawson

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Say Her Name is James Dawson’s latest spine-chilling horror novel, out soon from Hot Key Books! I decided to make a graphic about it. It looks relatively freaky so that’s cool. The idea behind it?

“In five days, she will come…”

Say her name five times in the mirror, and in five days Bloody Mary will come for you… so, here’s five reasons to read the book!

I hope you enjoyed that, as I enjoyed making it, and hope that you now feel like picking it up- it’s definitely worth it! (: When you’re tweeting about the book, or if you want to find more info on it, use the hashtag #SayHerName.

Waiting on Wednesday #2

Book Review: The End of the World as we Know it by Iva-Marie Palmer

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Published 6th March 2014 by Hot Key Books.

19208187 Goodreads Synopsis: They wanted to party like it was their last night on earth. They just might get their wish….

Meet the four most unlikely heroes ever:

Teena McAuley: Queen Bee, first-class problem solver, resident heartbreaker.
Leo Starnick: UFO conspirator, pizza delivery boy, all-around slacker.
Evan Brighton: Baseball all-star, Teena-worshipper.
Sarabeth Lewis: Straight-A student, weekend hermit, enemy of the colour pink.

When Teena locks Leo, Evan, and Sarabeth in the basement during her biggest party of the year, she doesn’t plan on getting trapped in the Loser Dungeon herself. She can barely imagine a night with these dweebs—let alone a lifetime. But when an alien invasion destroys their entire Midwestern suburb, it looks like these unlikely friends are the last people on earth. Now, it’s up to them to save the world…

My Review: The End of the World as we Know it is a book I’m pretty mixed on! It was a good read- I love funny books and I love books about aliens, and this did have both. I was excited to start it, but from a few pages in I wasn’t sure I was really going to get into it. I don’t think I fully did… The story was pretty hilarious but I just found it a bit… I don’t know… I just didn’t click with it entirely.

I think the main reason I didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped was because of the characters. They’re all very well developed, and they’re classic stereotypical characters of sorts- the slightly geeky one, the goody-goody son of the local Vicar, the rebellious slacking teenage guy, the popular girl who has a bit of a bumpy history with one and hates all of the others. They meet properly by all getting locked in a basement as the apocalypse happens, which I found pretty funny. But it really started annoying me later on in the book, how they all seemed much more focused on their relationships than saving the planet. Okay, it’s meant to be a funny read… but I guess I was in a Sci-Fi mood and wanted more alien action and things!

The plot was really enjoyable. It shouldn’t really be taken too seriously- it’s an epic adventure across a post-alien-invasion town and the weapons that overcome the aliens are stupidly brilliant. I liked Iva-Marie’s writing. It really drew me into the story, even when a character was annoying me a bit! Some parts are a bit silly, but it was definitely a fun read, that made me giggle quite a bit.

Overall, The End of the World as we Know it wasn’t what I was expecting, but fun to follow anyway. The story is a mix of Sci-Fi horror and humour that I found really unique. I liked the development of the characters over the course of the story, but at points they did kind of annoy me… I’d recommend this to fans of contemporary comedies, definitely. I’m really mixed. There were multiple things I disliked but in all, it was a really enjoyable read.

My Rating:

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I received a copy of The End of the World as we Know it from the publisher, in exchange for a review. In no way at all did this affect my thoughts.

Book Review: Bet Your Life by Jane Casey

comparing book covers!

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I’ve actually been wanting to write this post for quite a while! I mentioned in this earlier post about bookish careers that I’m quite interested in designing covers for books and things, so this links in to that, sort of! If it’s hard to read the text on this image (I’m awkward like that, making graphic-y things instead of just writing), click on it to bring yourself to a bigger version. (:

Book Review: The Madness by Alison Rattle

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Published March 2014 by Hot Key Books.

18482292 Goodreads Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Marnie lives in the idyllic coastal village of Clevedon. Despite being crippled by a childhood exposure to polio, she seems set to follow in her mother’s footsteps, and become a ‘dipper’, escorting fragile female bathers into the sea. Her life is simple and safe. But then she meets Noah. Charming, handsome, son-of-the-local-Lord, Noah. She quickly develops a passion for him – a passion which consumes her.

As Marnie’s infatuation turns to fixation she starts to lose her grip on reality, and a harrowing and dangerous obsession develops that seems certain to end in tragedy. Set in the early Victorian era when propriety, modesty and repression were the rule, this is a taut psychological drama in which the breakdown of a young woman’s emotional state will have a devastating impact on all those around her.

My Review: The Madness was a really haunting, fascinating read. From page one, I was transported to Marnie’s world, and I really loved it. I enjoyed Alison Rattle’s The Quietness last year, so I was really looking forward to her next YA book. I’m really happy it didn’t disappoint!

At first, The Madness seemed just like a historical romance novel (which it is, but, well, it’s much darker as well!). The love story develops well throughout the book, and it all seems quite sweet, until you get to certain points from Noah’s perspective that make you rethink everything you assumed about his feelings for Marnie. The last part of the book was pretty terrifying! Marnie begins to go mad, her thoughts entirely about Noah, and the ending was completely gripping.

Marnie is loveable. She lives by the sea with her Ma and Smoaker, and her Ma runs the famed Sea Cure- which consists of dipping ill women into the water to cure them. She’s disliked by all of the town, because of a certain (scary!) incident that happened and because of her leg, meaning she has to limp. I found it really easy to understand her. Alison Rattle is talented at crafting characters that are really easy to love and that stay in your head long after you finish the book- as also shown in her YA debut.

Told from different perspectives- through third person and Noah’s diary entries, I got a really good insight into both of their personalities. The story seemed very tense all of the way through, and I was completely absorbed! One thing that did confuse me quite a lot, though, is that in the first part of the book, the story is in one person, then that switches to another for the second and final part. I think I understand why that was done, because it really gets inside Marnie’s head as her obsession takes over, but it did take me quite a while to get used to as the language is very different compared to the more formal third person that part one of the book is told in.

Overall, The Madness is a really memorable, haunting but also powerful read. I thought that Alison Rattle’s debut YA novel was pretty dark… but this one is darker in quite a few ways! I think it’ll be big for adult readers as well as YA ones. The characters were so well developed, and so was the setting- I could visualise everything really well and I was left thinking about that ending long after the last page. The only reason that I disliked the book a little is because of the writing style change. It was a good idea, but at the same time, it does take a lot of getting used to and confused me a bit. Really recommended, though, to fans of historical fiction and romance!

My Rating:

bibliomaniacheart

I received a copy of The Madness from the publisher, in exchange for a review. In no way at all did this affect my thoughts.

New Books! #44

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Yay for this week’s haul! A huge thank you to Andersen Press for three of the titles (:

Seven Second Delay by Tom Easton: I’m so excited about this book! I really loved Easton’s Boy’s Don’t Knit but this is in a very different genre, and it looks great. Thank you to Andersen Press for offering me a copy of this, and sending me two extra books with it, from the Sorrowline series! They look just as awesome, too.

Fevre Dream by George R R Martin: This looks so good! R R Martin is probably more well known for his Game of Thrones series, but I spotted this on dad’s bookshelf last night. And totally ~~stole~~ borrowed it. If I like this I think I’ll definitely hunt down George R R Martin’s other books.

Mr Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookshop: I saw Ruby from Feed Me Books Now! talking about this on Twitter a lot, and I ordered it, because it sounds amazing and I’ve been wanting to read it for a while. A book about books…. Just yes 😀 Ruby’s review of the book was a glowing one, so I’m hoping I’ll enjoy it as much as she did!

Have you read any of these books, or what ones are on your wishlist? Leave a comment! (:

Mini Reviews: CRUSHER and INCINERATOR by Niall Leonard

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I read Crusher a while ago, in January, though I didn’t get to write a review of it! I was sent a copy of the sequel which was released really recently (Thank you, Random House!) and I thought it would be nice to do a joint-mini-review post, reviewing the series so far- Book three, Shredder, will be out soon. Enjoy!

Crusher: By Niall Leonard, published by Corgi in September 2012.

Goodreads Synopsis: The day Finn Maguire discovers his father bludgeoned to death in a pool of blood, his dreary life is turned upside down. Prime suspect in the murder, Finn must race against time to clear his name and find out who hated his dad enough to kill him.
Trawling the sordid, brutal London underworld for answers, Finn exposes dark family secrets and faces danger at every turn. But he’s about to learn that it’s the people you trust who can hit you the hardest…

My Review: Crusher was a really, really exhilarating read! I really enjoyed it, for the most part. It’s really shocking, and packed with some brilliant plot twists that keeps the reader completely engrossed. The plot’s very unique, but at the same time, a very gritty urban murder mystery- who killed Finn’s dad with his own award? Though I did enjoy most of the plot, there were a few parts I couldn’t really agree with… I couldn’t really understand Finn’s choices a lot of the time, and I felt some points were a bit rushed. It is a fast paced novel, but I did feel like a lot happened at once, and some bits were… too freaky!

At first, I really liked the main protagonist. Finn was so determined and prepared to tackle his father’s killer. He’s a very realistic teenager- one I think a lot of YA readers will definitely be able to relate to. Then, when he meets the first love interest of sorts in Crusher, I really started to dislike his new attitude- he was so obsessed with her and I hated him for seeming to completely forget about the whole mystery behind his dad…

17612844 Incinerator: (Newest release- just published!) By Niall Leonard, published by Corgi in January 2014.

Goodreads Synopsis: London gang-lord The Guvnor is in hiding, and Finn Maguire has begun a new life running a boxing gym with his old friend and coach Delroy. But when Finn’s lawyer Nicky Hale vanishes overnight with all his money, Finn finds himself in hock to a loan shark with a vicious gang of enforcers. Desperate to track down Nicky and repay his debts, Finn investigates her other clients and soon finds himself engulfed in a web of lies, betrayal, malice and madness, with only his wits and his fists to keep him alive.

My Review: Incinerator was probably my favourite of the two books in the Crusher trilogy so far! I felt that it was very fast paced too, but definitely enjoyed the themes a lot more. It shows that Finn’s developed so much- now trying to get out of the violence, and into business- though that doesn’t work for very long. I really enjoyed the plot of Incinerator- it had me even more hooked than Crusher. Niall Leonard’s writing is really great, and captures the urban setting so well.

I really liked Leonard’s writing, as it’s edgy and gritty, going with the setting and the themes really well. I definitely grew to like Finn Maguire a lot more in this installment as well. Beforehand, in book one, I couldn’t get on with him for a portion of the book. Though, I really liked seeing his character develop a lot in Incinerator. He was even more determined than ever and I’m looking forward to hearing what awaits him in Shredder!

My Ratings:

I received Crusher from my dad.

I received Incinerator from the publisher, in exchange for a review. In no way at all did this affect my thoughts.

Book Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

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This review does not have any spoilers!

I have a lot to review. I have a really big list of books I’ve read this month and last month, and normally I go through them systematically, meaning this review shouldn’t be written until the beginning of April at least, because I only read We Were Liars this weekend. But I could not put off writing this review any longer… We Were Liars just blew me away and I need to talk about it!

Published by Hot Key Books, May 2014.

20935171 Goodreads Synopsis: We are the Liars.

We are beautiful, privileged and live a life of carefree luxury.

We are cracked and broken.

A story of love and romance.

A tale of tragedy.

Which are lies?

Which is truth?

My Review: We Were Liars is one of those rare few books where you literally cannot get it out of your head for days. I’m still trying to process the ending. It’s unbelievable. I went through the last 30 pages or so whispering “no” over and over and over, and then I actually dropped the book when I got to that last page. As soon as I could, I turned back to the beginning and started rereading chapters of it. I couldn’t get over this. I was in shock and… I literally can’t even begin to describe everything!

This is going to be a bit of a strange review, because I can hardly comment on anything… It’s so hard not to spoil anything! It took me a few of the opening pages to actually get into it properly, but then, I couldn’t stop. The story revolves around, and this is putting it very vaguely, a family and most importantly a group of friends, the Liars, and it’s about the effects of one particular thing that breaks everything. It’s really hard to describe the plot! All I can say is that it’s riveting.

E. Lockhart is talented at weaving suspense and suspicion around her words. I was always deep in thought about what could’ve happened (It’s a mystery, one thing is kept secret until close to the end) right up until the reveal. And, when I thought everything was over and I knew everything… THAT happened. The most heart-breaking, shocking, horrific, terrifying plot twist I have ever come across. It’s impossible to talk about it any more, but I will say that you will not see anything like it coming. As the quote on the front of my copy says, you will end up going back to the beginning and starting again, wondering how you’d missed it!

I’m just going to stop myself and wrap up this review now, because I will end up crying. Again. Honestly, I think E Lockhart and the publishers need to supply tissues with this. I can’t even. It was simply amazing. There were a couple of little things… but overall, I’m in total awe- there’s been a lot of excitement around We Were Lairs, and now I see why. Definitely recommended to anybody and everybody. This book’s one of the most original and thought-provoking books I’ve read, the ending will play with your emotions and keep you thinking about it for days (probably weeks…).

My Rating:

I received a copy of We Were Liars from the publisher, in exchange for a review. In no way at all did this affect my thoughts.