New Books! #40

Small book haul, but a really exciting one, this week!

Received in Post:

The Madness by Alison Rattle: I fell in love with The Quietness by Alison Rattle last year, and I’ve been looking forward to more historical fiction from her ever since! I was so excited when this arrived, because it was talked about at the Hot Key Books event I went to in October. I’ve already started it (I couldn’t wait! I abandoned the TBR…. *hangs head*) and I’m seriously enjoying it. Thank you, Hot Key!

The End of the World as we Know it by Iva-Marie Palmer: This was talked about at the Hot Key bloggy event, too! IT sounded really action-packed, but funny too…. A little similar to Vivian Versus The Apocalypse, which revolves around a party before the end of the world. I’m looking forward to starting this. Thanks again, Hot Key Books!

EMBEDDED IMUJ PERMALINK

I had to include this, too… for Valentines day, Indigo books (Part of Orion!) sent out Shadow and Bone postcards! Shadow and Bone’s an epic fantasy read, and these postcards were written with a Happy Mal-entine’s message…. you’ll understand it if you’ve read the books! 🙂 Thank you for the postcard, Indigo- I must reread Shadow and Bone, in prep for the trilogy finale- Ruin and Rising, which the cover’s just been revealed for!

So, ta-da! That was the little, but awesome, book haul for the week. Have you read either of the titles, if you’re a blogger? Or are you looking forward to them too?

Also, quick note- there’s going to be a bit of a different blog post up tomorrow, about my blog design. I’d really appreciate feedback on my random ideas, if you have some- make sure to look out for the post tomorrow- thank you! (:

Book Review: Far From You by Tess Sharpe

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Published by Indigo (Orion), 27th March 2014. (Also, admire the pretty GIF cover from fiercefiction.tumblr.com! ;D I had to borrow this for the post. It’s gorgeous.)

Goodreads Synopsis: Nine months. Two weeks. Six days. That’s how long recovering addict Sophie’s been drug-free. Four months ago her best friend, Mina, died in what everyone believes was a drug deal gone wrong – a deal they think Sophie set up. Only Sophie knows the truth. She and Mina shared a secret, but there was no drug deal. Mina was deliberately murdered. Forced into rehab for an addiction she’d already beaten, Sophie’s finally out and on the trail of the killer – but can she track them down before they come for her?

My Review: Far From You is a beautifully written, captivating novel, and as soon as I picked it up, I physically couldn’t put it down. It’s gripping, thrilling, and I think it’s going to be a seriously big debut! Far From You touches on drug and accident recoveries, whilst also being about a really beautiful but complicated love story. I loved it, and I’m pretty sure every body else who reads it will, too.

Sophie was an instantly loveable character; she was so strong and realistic, and jumped off of the pages. I think she’s the best developed character I’ve read about all year (and that’s out of almost 40 books!). She nearly dies at at a young age in a car crash, and the second time she has a close chance of dying, her best friend, Mina, is killed. After Sophie comes out of rehab, despite never needing to go in the first place, she’s determined to uncover the killer, and work out the mystery. I fell in love with her from the start, and Mina too- as she featured in most of the flashbacks. I grew so attached to the characters that I really didn’t want to finish reading about them at the end…

The plot was unpredictable, a real roller-coaster of a book. As soon as I opened the first page, I was completely sucked into the story, and as I already said- was left reluctant to leave everything behind after I finished! There was no way I could’ve guessed anything. I loved the themes, and it was just addictive… I have no other words to describe it!

The story is written in a breath-taking style. I think Tess Sharpe is definitely a write to keep an eye on! I loved the format of the novel- written in chapters that alternated between the present and key moments in Sophie’s past. It all unfolded in such a genius way, though I think at points I did get a little confused, mixing past events up in the present, but I did get it all in the end, and I loved it.

Overall, Far From You was a beautiful debut. I was so excited for it as soon as I first saw the cover- and it was definitely worth getting excited for! It’s a chilling, dark crime thriller, with hints of romance, and centered around a really strong relationship. Sophie and Mina were amazing characters, and I don’t think I could forget them. Although I struggled a couple of times with the format, I think Far From You was written really, really well. I’m looking forward to more from Tess Sharpe- this is set to win awards, and it definitely deserves to!

My Rating:

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

Book Review: RED by Alison Cherry

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Published by Quercus, January 2014.

18755824 Goodreads Synopsis: Top student. Beauty queen. Girlfriend of the hottest football jock: Felicity’s got everything. And it’s all down to her red, red hair.

Felicity lives in Scarletville, the world’s only redhead sanctuary, where red hair is celebrated, protected – and the key to sucess.

But Felicity has a secret. A red hot secret. And if anyone finds out, she’s finished.

Because Felicity’s actually a natural blonde.

And in Scarletville, blondes need not apply.

My Review: RED isn’t the kind of book I’d normally read. I often read contemporary books, but none that are about beauty pageants and hair and… well, not exactly my thing! But, I requested this after some great reviews… though I read a few bad ones too… I did enjoy quite a few parts of this, though! I’m really mixed, overall.

The world is one thing that really bugged me! Felicity, the main character, has naturally strawberry blonde hair, and living in Scarletville, the world’s redhead sanctuary, you’re destined for a life of discrimination. I kind of didn’t get that at first- I’m strawberry blonde, and I’m mistaken for being a redhead. Yet Felicity would get harassed for being one… But, I pushed that aside and then thought, as I know Debbie did, why didn’t Felicity just move? Surely that would be an easier option…

I did really enjoy the plot, on the other hand. Its main focus was on bullying and blackmailing, with a really nasty non-redhead girl controlling Felicity to get her way. I enjoyed watching everything unfold, and there were a lot of great plot twists that did keep me reading. The relationship between Felicity and one other character I won’t mention here was really well written, I loved that aspect. Also, it has a bit of an undercover agent feel, what with Felicity sneaking down to a hidden underground place to dye her hair… though I found that a bit funny at first!

Felicity was really hard to like for a large part of the book, to me. She just let herself get blackmailed by someone. If I were her, I would’ve done something back… Yet, Felicity just seemed to let it happen for the most part, and get really stressed about it. I was hoping for her to fight back more. I’ll admit, though, that I did grow to like Felicity a lot towards the ending, where there’s a certain rebellious act involved that puts everything in the line. I did love her for that!

Overall, RED is a book I’m really mixed on! Despite being largely about beauty pageants and dresses and things I generally dislike, it was an enjoyable read, and quite fun to follow. I liked the plot, though I couldn’t really get my head around the fact that Felicity had never considered moving, seemingly. Felicity was hard to like at points, not always standing up for herself, but she did definitely become more likeable as the story progressed. The unfolding love story was cute. Recommended to fans of contemporaries revolving around high school events, though I’m not sure it’s exactly for everybody!

My Rating:

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

Book Review: The Humans by Matt Haig

New Books! #39 & A quick event recap!

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I’m super excited about all of the books I bought and received in the post this week! (:

Bought:

The Hundred Year Old Man who climbed out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson: One of my school teachers talked to me about this book a while ago, and it sounded crazy, but like something I’d enjoy reading, for some reason! I spotted it in a bookstore and decided I’d pick it up, along with The Great Gatsby- because that’s something I’ve been meaning to read for ages, too. I’m not sure how the title of Jonas Jonasson’s book is going to fit in a future blog post review title! ;D

Secret Avengers- REVERIE (Collecting issues 1-5) from Marvel, Spencer and Ross: This looks really, really awesome. I ordered it and it arrived yesterday, and I’m so excited to be starting the series! I wanted to buy the issues individually when they first came out, but I never did. I love Hawkeye and Black Widow, so I’m pretty sure I’ll enjoy this, and the future volumes, which I’ll probably buy soon if I like it!

Received:

Mutant City by Steve Feasey: I’ll admit I’ve never read Changeling, which is Steve Feasey’s famous werewolf novel, but I’m really excited about his new title, here! I wasn’t expecting this at all; actually, I had no idea he had written a new book. The proof arrived this week, with the coolest ARC cover ever. It’s been compared to the X Men and Darren Shan’s horror books… so I’m definitely looking forward to it. (: Thanks, Bloomsbury!

The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler: This was talked about at the RHCP blogger’s event that I went to in January! It sounds awesome, like a really fun adventure to get lost in. Thank you, Random House!

INCINERATOR by Niall Leonard: I finished CRUSHER, which is the first book in this sequence, a couple of weeks ago. I really enjoyed it, and I’m looking forward to seeing what else is in store for the protagonist. Niall, author, gave a reading of one of the scenes at the RHCP crime showcase that I went to, and it was terrifying… and brilliant. I’m hoping to start this tomorrow! Thank you again, Random House.

…And an author event!

Yesterday, (Saturday) my local library had Gina Blaxill, YA crime author, for a talk about her books. I went along to it, because I really loved all three of Gina’s books (below!) and really wanted to meet her, after getting the chance to interview Gina on my blog a while ago.

Pretty Twisted Forget Me Never Saving Silence

Gina talked about her titles, and her inspirations behind them, and why she decided to write them. She’d always wanted to be an author- writing a fantasy series with a friend at a young age featuring literally thousands of characters! Fantasy had always been a favourite genre, but so had crime, and that’s what Gina has been writing ever since her first publication.

It was really interesting to hear her give writing tips and more- there was a Q & A too but I’m too quiet when I’m at events and things (I know, it totally doesn’t go with my loud fangirly Twitter/Bloggy alter-ego D: )so I didn’t actually ask a question, though everybody else asked some really good ones. I’m looking forward to reading more of Gina’s books, after she shared some info on future ideas she’s planning! Thanks to Ashburton Library’s Liz for organising the event, and to Gina for giving the great talk and for singing my books!

Mini Reviews: Looking for JJ and The Naturals

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More mini reviews… as I’ve not yet actually written any proper, long reviews for recent ARCs yet! *hangs head* I decided to do these two as mini reviews for now, though I may do discussion posts on them later, because both were really, really interesting. Looking for JJ and The Naturals are both chilling, crime-based books- I enjoyed both of them. They’re pretty dark YA novels… (:

Looking for JJ by Anne Cassidy

Published by Scholastic, August 2013 (10th Anniversary edition). Click here for the Goodreads synopsis and profile!

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Looking for JJ is a really unpredictable book. I’ve heard a lot about it in the past, but I’ve never picked up a copy before! Hot Key Books were kind enough to send me a copy, because they’re going to be publishing the sequel, Finding Jennifer Jones, very soon. I’m really looking forward to seeing what the sequel has in store now. The main character here is under witness protection, after a traumatic experience in her childhood, which the media became obsessed with. The pot unwound in a way I would never have expected, and I was hooked right from the beginning until the very end. The main character, Jennifer Jones, is very relatable and understandable; even after I learned the truth about what happened in the woods that day…. *shiver* I think the only part that I couldn’t get used to was the format… I wasn’t expecting it to be set like that; starting with the present, then going to the past, then back to the present at the ending. It confused me, because JJ also had the flashbacks in the present… I just got a bit muddled at points! However, highly recommended- and I’m sure the sequel will be just as break-taking.

My Rating:

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I received a copy of Looking for JJ from Hot Key Books, the publishers of book two, in exchange for an honest review. In no way at all did this affect my thoughts.

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Published by Quercus, November 2013. Click here for the Goodreads synopsis and profile!

18769818 The Naturals was… wow. It blew my mind. The story was so original and clever, fast paced and action packed. The plot focuses around Cassie Hobbes, whose mum went missing, supposedly murdered, due to the terrifying evidence Cassie found years ago in her dressing room. Now, Cassie has been recruited to work in a secret branch of the FBI, solving mysteries with her talents.Cassie’s talent reminded me a lot of Sherlock Holmes. She’s amazing at breaking things down and solving mysteries. It was easy to connect with her, and I really enjoyed seeing her character develop a lot. As she’s solving a mystery, she realises it’s more dangerous than she ever could have imagined. I enjoyed it so much! The plot was really fast paced and addictive; I was left completely stunned. I think some parts seemed a little too… freaky? I know Liz, who let me read her copy, definitely saw this too! It’s a seriously chilling book, and definitely not for the faint hearted… there’s something about the murders that sends a shiver up your spine, stronger than a lot of other mysteries I’ve read.

My Rating:

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I was given a copy of The Naturals from Liz, who told me I’d probably like it. Thank you so much!! 😀

I hope you enjoyed those reviews! both are spine-chilling books that you probably won’t want to read in the dark for the most part… Definitely recommended! (:

Book Review: BURN by Monica Hesse

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Published by Hot Key Books, 6th February 2014. You can read my review of the first book, STRAY, here!

18682748 Goodreads Synopsis: Lona Sixteen Always is about to become Lona Seventeen Always, but she isn’t feeling much older or wiser. Unlike Fenn and the rest of the Path strays, she is struggling to move on with her life. How can she look to the future when she knows almost nothing about her past? Lona feels like everyone’s pressuring her to become ‘normal’ – even her beloved Fenn – and on top of this, she’s been having strange, violent dreams. It almost feels like someone’s trying to send her a message…

Lona’s dreams turn out to be memories – clues hidden inside Lona by her mother, who Lona always assumed was lost to her forever. But she isn’t lost at all: she’s being held captive by Harm – emotionless, psychotic, murderous Harm – and she’s desperate for Lona to find her. But can Lona work it all out in time? And why does Harm need Lona’s mother? In the bid to find out who she really is, Lona will fall headlong into a trap far more dangerous and cunning than she could ever have imagined. The Path was just the beginning.

My Review: Contains small spoilers only in the first paragraph if you haven’t yet read Stray! Whoa. I’ve been really eager to read this since I finished Stray a year ago: If you’re on Twitter you might have seen multiple fangirly tweets. As soon as I received it, I re-read book one so I had everything fresh in my head! This sequel definitely lived up to my expectations. Wow.

Burn focuses largely on Lona’s hunt for any possible family. After the events of Stray, Lona is trying to adjust to life outside of Path, the virtual reality experiment that lets foster children live a ‘perfect’ life. Turning seventeen, she realises there must be a mother still alive, and she’s desperate to find her, but Harm makes an appearance in the story and everything turns really dark and sinister. I was completely blown away, on the edge of my seat for every page. The plot was really thrilling! It captures the broken bond between a mother and a long lost daughter so, so well. I felt tears welling up. A lot.

I fell in love with the story all over again, but there was one thing I couldn’t quite get on with: There’s a death in the first book, right at the ending, and I thought that would really shake all of the other protagonists up. They seemed fine, though… It bugged me for some reason.

Lona was still a kick-butt, loveable character. She develops a lot throughout this book, and I really felt for her as she begins to adjust to a life with no more danger (Or, so she thought…). With a lot of books I’ve read recently, I haven’t been able to connect with characters when the book’s in third person, but Lona’s a character I can instantly connect with and follow easily. Fenn, of course, totally beats Jace Wayland any day ;D Forget Jace and Clary or Tobias and Tris. It’s LONA AND FENN:3. One character I was truly terrified of was Harm… He seriously scared me in the first book, and this one was no different!

Overall, Burn was a brilliant sequel, and it was definitely worth the wait. The plot was pacy and exciting, and much more than what I was expecting. Monica Hesse’s writing is amazing, and more people need to read these books! Strong sequel? Yep. Awesome main protagonist? Yep. Clever and imaginative Sci-Fi themes? Yep. It ticks all the boxes! I can’t recommend this more; It’s definitely worth starting if you’ve read the first book, and if you haven’t, well… Read the first book!! (: I’m super sad now. There will be no more from the world of Stray, according to the author. But, I’m hoping there will be more books from her soon!

My Rating:

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

Book Review: Looking at the Stars by Jo Cotterill

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Published by Bodley Head, 31st January 2014.

18041951 Goodreads Synopsis: Amina’s homeland has been ravaged by war for many months, but so far she and her family are safe, together.

When a so-called liberating force arrives in the country, the family think their prayers for peace will soon be answered, but they are horribly wrong . . . The country is thrown into yet further turmoil and Amina’s family is devastated . . .

Through it all, Amina has her imagination to fall back on – of a better place and time. But can her stories get her through this?

My Review: I’ve never read a book by Jo Cotterill before, but I’ll definitely be reading more from her! Looking at the Stars was beautifully written, uplifting and hopeful and influenced by recent wars and disasters. Looking at the Stars is set in an un-named country and revolves around a controlling, violent group, making it really relevant to recent events. It’s eye-opening, memorable, and a beautiful read.

The story begins with Amina, a girl living in her tense home country as foreign soldiers ride in, to hopefully help everybody out of the situation. Right away, I clicked with Amina; I really felt for her and her family as she went through devastating events, and some hopeful ones.

She’s a really relatable character, held back from letting her imagination out because she’s not allowed to go to school because she’s a girl. The things she went through completely broke my heart! However, Amina’s the brave, memorable, inspiring character I was hoping for and more. She develops so much throughout the story, and I found myself wanting to read more books about her after I closed the book.

The story is so easy to get lost in. From the first page, with that first line that hooked me in, I couldn’t tear myself away! I It’s gritty, sad and violent, not as I’d thought it would be, but it’s also a beautiful story of how hope can turn things around. Amina’s adventure is full of ups and downs as she loses people and finds friends. The story, especially in the last half, focuses largely around storytelling, and I really, really loved that. The imagery was so vivid and beautiful, especially in Amina’s fantastical stories! Jo’s writing is gorgeous.

Overall, Looking at the Stars was a moving read, full of heartbreak and friendship. It’s unpredictable; dark at some parts but really beautifully written. It focuses on current world topics that I don’t think I’ve ever read books about before- so I really recommend it! Amina and her sisters were so loveable, as were the rest of her family and the friends that they make along their journey. I can’t recommend Looking at the Stars enough; it’s definitely one of the most emotional, but the most eye-opening books I’ve read this year.

My Rating:

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

If you’re interested about Looking at the Stars and want to read more about the book, the blog tour is continuing today over at Readaraptor! Make sure to check out the blog tour post, and the finale tomorrow. If you’d like to catch up on the blog tour, here’s the schedule! Clicking on the image will bring you to my post from the blog tour.

#RandomYACrime!

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A huge thank you to Random House and Dead Good Books for inviting me!

The #RandomYACrime fiction showcase was hosted on Thursday at Random House’s building. I was really excited for it, because Jane Casey, probably my favourite crime author was going to be there amongst three other great writers.Also, crime fiction is one of my favourite genres, so I was looking forward to hearing about upcoming titles. The place looked really cool, especially thanks to the crime scene tape. I really enjoyed the evening! Here’s a recap:

Left to right: Jane Casey, Simon Mason, Helen Grant and Niall Leonard. Thanks to Harriet for the photo!(:

Above are all of the books from the authors who were at the event. There were a few more mentioned, though! I’d already read How to Fall and Running Girl, and I was halfway through Crusher. Two publicists talked about the other titles coming later in the year, including one I’m really excited about: Web of Darkness by Bali Rai.

Then, they passed over to Niall Leonard, who wrote Crusher which has been out for a while, and Incinerator, which is the sequel out this year. He gave a really great talk about what his books were themed on, and also read an extract from Incinerator. It was creepy and chilling- I loved it! 😀 I finished Crusher on Friday and I mostly enjoyed it, so I’m eager to hear more about book two.

Helen Grant also gave a talk about her books, but she showed a presentation about them too. It was really interesting to hear about the settings, where Helen had been herself and she showed up some beautiful pictures of the places. Her titles are about a girl who stumbles upon adventures through Urban Exploration, which is basically exploring the town… not always legally. The books sound really clever, so I’m excited!

After, Jane Casey and Simon Mason held a discussion about their books with Lauren Buckland, Jane’s editor. It was really fun, because I didn’t realise that Simon was a previous editor as well as Jane. They discussed how it felt to be the other side of a novel, this time being the authors edited, instead of being the editors. Simon Mason and Jane Casey also talked about their main characters, Garvie Smith and Jess Tennant.

Afterward I was lucky enough to get copies of my books signed, and to have quick chats with the authors too. I spoke for a while to Simon Mason before the main talk, and he was awesome. It was really great to meet Niall, Helen and Jane too, as well as lovely publicist Jasmine (: I didn’t get the chance to speak to many other bloggers and people, but I was really happy to see Stevie Finegan at the event. I love her Book-tube videos, so it was great to meet her and talk! You can view her channel here.

A really big thank you again to Harriet, Jasmine and the rest of Random House for inviting me. I really enjoyed it, so I’m looking forward to reading upcoming crime titles!

New Books! #38

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This week’s book haul was awesome! (: On Thursday I was invited to Random House’s YA Crime Fiction Showcase evening, hopefully I’ll have a post up about that tomorrow. I also picked up pretty books out and about today, and one of my Amazon pre-orders arrived this week. 😀

Purchased:

FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell: There’s no need to explain why I wanted this so badly. It’s been huge around the blogosphere, and it’s about a fangirl!

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children: I saw a copy of this in Waterstone’s today and had a flick through. It’s such a bizarre, unique looking book; creepy and haunting with mysterious photographs. I’m looking forward to it!

King Rat by China Mieville: I loved UN LUN DUN by China Mieville and really want to read his other titles. I spotted this today and picked it up, interested by the blurb!

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor: I’ve read so many good reviews, I love the cover, and the synopsis has had m,e wanting to read it for ages. I spotted this in Waterstone’s too and decided I’d finally buy it! I’m hoping to get around to it soon.

RHCP Crime Showcase:

Silent Saturday by Helen Grant: I’ve seen a lot about this book, but actually thought it was an adult title by the cover, I’m not sure why. I received a copy to read as the sequel, Demons of Ghent, is out soon. It sounds really, really great so I’m so excited for this!

How to Fall by Jane Casey: I have actually already read this title, I think I read it in April last year. I absolutely loved it. The sequel to this, too, is out soon, which I’m so eager to read! This deserves a re-read before I buy book two. (:

Helen and Jane were both at the event along with two other authors, but I’ll talk about the event in more detail on tomorrow’s post! Thanks to Helen Grant and Jane Casey for signing my books- as well as Niall Leonard and Simon Mason, who were also there, but I already had their books from previous events(: