REVIEW: A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley

I was a fan after reading Graffiti Moon earlier in the year and on the strength of that book and after seeing a smattering of positive reviews for this book, I decided to buy A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley.  And straight away, I fell in love with the feel of this book and the beautiful way in which Cath Crowley unravels this story of friendship and wanting and romance for us. 

A Little Wanting Song is told in two narratives.  The first is Charlie Duskin, a musician who sings only for herself in darkened rooms.  She's dealing with the loss of both her mother and her gran and the consequences of these losses has made Charlie's father pull away from her entirely.  What Charlie really wants is for her father to talk to her, take some notice of her.  What makes things worse for Charlie, is that she doesn't really have anyone else is her life.  She wants love and a boyfriend, but she also wants friendship - an emotional connection with somebody, anybody. 

And then there's Rose.  She lives next door to Charlie's grandparents, but Charlie and Rose have never been friends.  Rose has her boyfriend Luke and another friend, Dave Robbie and a fairly good life in the country.  But Rose wants more.  She wants to live in the city and go to a private school and have more in her life than her mother has had.  She doesn't want to end up pregnant and be forced into a job that doesn't challenge her.  And Rose believes that the only way to do this is by befriending Charlie Duskin in the hopes that when Charlie's family leaves for the summer back to Melbourne, Rose will be with them. 

I really loved this story.  Both girls have such strong feelings of longing that it's hard not to become emotionally involved in both of their stories.  I found myself more connected to Charlie's story.  I could really relate to the way in which Charlie holds herself away from people and instead watches from afar. She seems to hide within her music and she holds onto her Gran and to her mother by continuing to speak to them long after they've been truly gone. I found it heartbreaking the way in which Charlie's father barely speaks to her or acknowledges her presence.  I really liked Charlie's relationship with her grandfather and also how she seemed to grow in confidence over the course of the novel.  Some of Charlie's insights into herself, her family and life around her are so beautiful. 

And Rose.  I really just wanted her to be a little more open with the truth when it came to befriending Charlie.  She's got a bit of an attitude and she's said some mean things about Charlie over the years, but it was still nice to see how much Rose changes too.  She has to be held a bit accountable for the 'Charlie Dorkin' song and there's plenty of ups and downs in her relationships Luke and Robbie.  I liked that she's a girl interested in science and can also see how lucky she is and how much she has by the end. 

This is such a beautiful book and I don't feel as though I can do it justice in this review!  I highly recommend that you pick up this book and discover its beauty for yourself.

REVIEW: Zom-B by Darren Shan

Zom-B by Darren Shan was a quick, surprising read for me.  Based on the cover and my very limited knowledge of the horror books that Darren Shan writes for teenagers, I really expected one thing from this book.  Really, several things: blood and gore and severed body parts.  And while I may have thought there'd be more of that in this book, I think Shan did a nice job of spreading the horror out in this book.  Giving us a good bit of gore at the beginning, several tantalising tastes of it in the middle and a great big whopping scene of zombies and death galore to round out the ending. 

And while I do enjoy a good dose of horror, in between all of what accompanies a zombie apocalypse, we have a very interesting novel that made me think.  I love how unexpected that is.  This book could easily have been nothing but mindless entertainment as the reader watches the main character's world fall apart by the living undead.  But there's more to this book than just that in the shape of B, our main character and narrator. 

I found B to be hugely unlikeable at the start.  I didn't like B's attitude, as B seems to be copying the thoughts and actions of B's very racist and abusive father.  B is a bit of a bully and I wasn't thrilled at the start.  But things begin to change.  When the character finally starts questioning the thoughts of those around and also begins to think of B's father critically instead of that of a emotionally-needy child, I really begin to cheer.  I love that Darren Shan included these thought-provoking topics on racism, bullying and people with power.  I would have enjoyed this book without it with just the zombies and the gore, but with it, I found myself loving it. 

The book I read from is an ARC version which didn't include the final illustrations included with the text and I'm quite curious now to see a finished copy to see how they work together with the text.  I loved the short chapters and how the pace never drops.  There was a dream sequence towards the beginning-middle which had me quite creeped out reading it in the dark at night!  This book contains plenty of death, so be warned.  There's also two very surprising twists that happen towards the end that make this a book you really need to check out! Zom-B is a  really fun zombie book with some hidden depths, a book that I recommend.

REVIEW: Revived by Cat Patrick

I absolutely loooooved Cat Patrick's previous book, Forgotten, and so I was always excited to read more from the same author.  And while I found the premise of Revived to be incredibly interesting, for me, it lacked the emotion that I was expecting.  While I found the book to be wonderfully readable and creepy in parts, I was hoping that I would connect better with the characters and with their relationships to the other people within the book. 

Our main character Daisy is a bit special.  Technically she died in a bus accident when she was five.  But a special and secret government agency brought Daisy back to life and has carried on bringing her back to life using a special drug.  Now, as a teenager, as she's forced to relocate and change her identity after the deaths she has been through, Daisy meets Matt and his sister, Audrey, and through knowing these two people begins to change the way Daisy views her life, her deaths and the morality of the Revive programme.

I thought Daisy was a great character.  She's been living with government agents her entire life.  And government agents who pretend to be her parents are not the same thing as actual, loving, caring and supportive parents.  Daisy is an incredibly lonely girl with only the online friendship of another bus accident survivor, to keep her going. The shared blog that Daisy and  her friend writes is one of my favourite aspects of the novel! It was fun and creative and made both characters instantly more likeable and personable to me.

The Revive programme itself, run by an unknown entity called 'God' was fairly creepy.  There isn't much information given about the programme itself or how and why it came to be, but what there is of it in the novel is enough to inject uneasiness into the tone of the story.  Obviously Daisy is under a lot of pressure to not give away the programme and her involvement in it, so I was very surprised that she tells Matt within a small amount of time. Though Matt and Daisy's relationship is sweet, I didn't find myself overly invested in it emotionally. 

I liked that this book is a standalone novel, because I think YA needs more of those.  I really liked the idea behind Revive but I felt like there could have been more said about this secret programme and I wanted more intensity and emotion between the characters and their relationships.  That aside, I still enjoyed this book and it was a pleasant way to spend a few hours!

REVIEW: Muddle and Win by John Dickinson

Review by Kulsuma from sunshine and stardust

In Muddle and Win by John Dickinson, all humans are assigned an angel and a demon that battle for control over their subject. Being Bad and Being Good depends entirely on who can persuade you to their side. Sally Jones has never done a bad deed in her life, much to the chagrin of the demon Corozin who has been sending agent after agent to turn her Bad.

When Corozin decides to let Muddlespot (an imp he created out of a wart) to be the next agent on the assignment, Muddlespot knows that whatever happens with Sally Jones will be the making or breaking of him-literally. It’s tough enough for Muddle to turn Sally because of the horde of angels guarding her, but when the angel Windleberry is hurriedly assigned to Sally, his job becomes all the more tough. Can he turn Sally Bad?

Muddle and Win is a fun, delightful and wacky story that’s very fast paced and full of vivid images. Dickinson has a wonderful imagination and the way he described the brain of Sally Jones and more importantly, the battle between good and evil, felt very unique. The narrative style is memorable as there was no waffle. I raced through this funny and adventurous short book. I enjoyed the way Dickinson included many points of view without it becoming confusing or convoluted.

All the characters were fantastic. I particularly liked Muddle as he grew as a character. Ismael and Scattle, the angel and demon assigned to Sally’s sister Billie, were very funny. The tension between Sally and Billie was written well. Sally’s cat Shades was so much smarter than everyone gave him credit for. If you’re looking for a wild ride, Muddle and Win is the one to read. This book is perfect for middle grade readers.

Thanks for that Kulsuma!

The problem with e-books

I have a very pretty Kindle.  It was given to me as a present for my birthday and it has this nice brown leather case around it.  It fits very nicely into my handbag and the storage is seemingly endless on it.  I do really love my Kindle. 

The only problem is that I have maybe 30 titles on my Kindle that I've bought myself or downloaded from NetGalley that I haven't yet gotten around to because e-books just do not compete for my attention in the same way as physical books. 

As much as I really should be reading some of these titles, especially as some are VERY exciting to me (The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa, Department 19 by Will Hill, Speechless by Hannah Harrington, Daughter of the Flames by Zoe Marriott to name just a few!), I just don't think to read a book from my Kindle.  It's very rare that I will choose an e-book over a book that is taking up space on my book shelves or is part of a towering pile of books on my bedside table.


I did go through a very brief phase last year in which I just blitzed through a bunch of NetGalley books, but I'm fairly sure that was down to a reading slump.  In order to work my way out of it, I found that reading in a different format seemed to help. 

So what to do?  How do I keep these e-books in mind when choosing my next read?  How do the rest of you manage it?  

Contemporary mini-reviews (Catching Jordan, Chain Reaction, Falling Fast, Taken by Storm)

One of my favourite types of books to read are contemporary YA.  I love stories based in real life.  Especially love stories, which the following books are.  I wish I had more time to share more thoughts about these books with you, but I'm desperately trying to catch up!

 Catching Jordan by Miranda Keneally

I was really excited to read Catching Jordan!  I love the idea of more stories which feature female athletes.  Especially female athletes that compete in a sport in which men usually dominate, such as American football.  I'm not the biggest fan in the world of American football, but I've been exposed to it quite a bit over the years through TV and films.  I did sort of go into Catching Jordan hoping that it was similar to Friday Night Lights but with a female quarterback.  ...but it isn't.  That isn't to say that it isn't enjoyable and that it doesn't provide a thought-provoking story about women in sports. It does.

But something about it also grated on me slightly.  There's no way the main character of this book, Jordan, would ever wear a mini-skirt and tank top like the girl on the cover.  Because Jordan is all about what other people think of her, especially her team mates.  She doesn't like to show too much skin, she has rules about not dating any of her teammates.  Because what she really wants is some proper respect - from her teammates, her father, and from universities that she's hoping to go to soon and play some college ball.  I think what I didn't like about this book is Jordan herself.  I wasn't too keen on her as a character, I didn't quite agree with a lot of the decisions that she made.  My favourite aspect of the novel is the friendship and cameraderie that Jordan has with her friends and the other football players on her team.  I liked that dynamic much more than Jordan's struggles with her family and university prospects or the way in which she's undecided about her feelings for new boy Ty.  Interesting and enjoyable, but not my favourite.


Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

I've enjoyed the previous two book by Simone Elkeles about the Fuentes brothers, but I'm not their biggest fan.  I like them, but they wouldn't make my top ten list of swoonworthy love interests, or my list of favourite contemporary romances.  So with that in mind, I thought Chain Reaction to be very similar in tone to the two previous books.  It was highly readable and I flew through the pages quite quickly.  I preferred Luis, the youngest Fuentes brother, to Alex, by far, but I think Carlos still wins out overall. 

I was kind of expecting this book to be vastly different from two Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction.  Nikki is meant to be the 'bad' one as opposed to Luis.  But it didn't feel that way at all, as Luis still ends up involved in the politics and difficulties that go along with the gang culture.  I didn't feel as though as anything new was brought to this series.  That isn't to say that I didn't enjoy reading this book or the series, but for me, nothing about this book or the other two stood out.  (Plus it goes without saying that I hated the epilogue with a passion.)


Falling Fast by Sophie McKenzie

Sophie McKenzie is an author that I've discovered fairly recently.  In fact, I read several of her books within a short period of time - Girl, Missing, the first Medusa book and Falling Fast.  All three of them are very short, quick books to read.  They're all very interesting books to read and I've become quite excited to read more books by the same author.

I wasn't quite sure what to make of Falling Fast at first.  It's a pretty straight forward love story between two teenagers, River and Flynn.  And that seems very different from The Medusa Project or Sophie McKenzie's other books for teenagers.  I really liked it.  There are times when only a good contemporary love story will do the trick, and for me, Falling Fast came to me at the perfect timing.  I spent my few hours with it and finished the book with a smile on my face.

I really loved two things about this book in particular. The first is the addition of Romeo and Juliet into the story.  I'm a big fan of the play and certainly was at a similar age to River's, so for me, reading about the play brought back happy memories of me as a naive, lovesick teenager.  The second thing I loved about this book is how River wants to be in love. She wants to be in this huge, over the top, cinematic type of love and instead she faces love in a more realistic setting.  There's plenty of ups and downs with this type of love, as witnessed with her first foray into a relationship with Flynn, who is far from perfect.  I shall be eagerly looking out for the sequel to read more of River and Flynn's relationship!

Taken by Storm by Angela Morrison

Taken By Storm really took me by surprise.  I hadn't heard a great deal about this book before I read it (I especially had no idea that it is the first book in a series of books about the same characters!) and possibly if I had known that this isn't a standalone novel, I might not have picked it up.  It's an interesting story, one in which I fel emotionally connected, I just have issues with a story being drawn out over 3 books where I felt like everything that needed to be said could be said in the space of one book.

This is a love story involving two completely different people.  Leesie Hunt has everything under control.  She has rules against kissing and sex and dating boys outside of her Mormon faith.  Her ultimate dream is to go to a major Mormon university and spend time

30 Day Shred, an update

Do you remember when I said that I was going to start Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred?  I'm writing this in advance, but as of today, I will have completed it!  Woohoo me.  How did it go? Let me tell you.

I am absolutely shocked and surprised (and ecstatic!) by the results of the 30 Day Shred.  It was tough going at times, but not once did I ever consider giving it up.  The one day that I wasn't able to do my workout (because we spent the ENTIRE day at the Olympic Village for the Paralympics) I was incredibly disappointed that I wasn't able to squeeze it in somewhere.  And that's all down to how this exercise programme made me feel.

Level 1 started off as pure torture.  I finished Day 1 and every pore on my body was sweating.  I was huffing and puffing and thinking to myself, 'there's no way that I will be able to do this!'  But by Day 5, things were getting easier, I was starting to do the harder version of the exercises.  I hadn't properly weighed myself before starting, but I had measured myself.  By Day 5 my jeans were feeling looser.  I measured again and it turned out that I'd already lost 2 inches off my hips.  In only 5 days.  It's incredible. 

I happily continued onto Level 2, which took the exercises up to another notch in difficulty.  Gone were so many circuits of jumping jacks and in its place were planks.  PLANKS. If you've ever done a plank in your life you will be commiserating with me right now on their level of unpleasantness.  But I enjoyed jumping about with some different cardio exercises.  And the results just kept appearing!

Level 3 was very difficult.  Jillian Michaels really combined resistance to a lot of her exercises, plenty of weight work.  I really struggled out of continually doing the modified versions.  There's a lot of jump training that felt killer on my knees.  But I was determined to finish.  And I'm so glad that I did. 

In total, I lost 4 inches off my hips.  I lost 4 inches off my waist.  I lost 3 inches off my bust.  I lost 2 inches off each of my thighs.  I lost more than an inch off both of my upper arms.  I feel stronger, leaner and more fit.  My stomach is flatter than I ever remember it being.  There is the very slightest hint of the possibility of a six pack.  I've had so many compliments from other people about how well I'm looking.  I feel more confident in myself and my body and I stand straighter because of it.  I've decided to take on more healthy eating so that I don't lose all the progress that I've made so far. 

The 30 Day Shred feels like step one and I'm going to carry on with the exercising and with the Jillian Michaels exercise DVDs.  I've since ordered Ripped in 30 and Killer Buns and Thighs.  I'm hoping to start up a kickboxing class in the near future, will be buying a bicycle to go on cycle rides with the kids and I'd like to go back to doing a 5k run 2-3 times a week.  Soon enough, I hope you won't be able to recognise me :)

REVIEW: Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George

The Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George was quite interesting with characters I cared about and wanted to get to know more about.  Despite a thrilling prologue, it was a bit of a slow start.  This is Elizabeth George's (I believe) first foray into writing for teens after writing many mystery novels for adults.  While the characterisation is interesting and through Becca's gift, we are able to see into the heads of other characters, I found the writing style to be slightly more distant than I'm used to.  It took awhile for me to adjust to this distance, but once I did, I found myself really enjoying this journey alongside Becca King, our main narrator.

Becca King and her mother are on the run from Becca's stepfather who has done some pretty bad things.  Becca knows about these things because she can hear the whispers of other people's thoughts.   In order to protect themselves, Becca and her mother have changed their names and appearances and have travelled up north to Washington.  Becca's mother needs time in order to get everything sorted for their protection, so she sends 14 year old Becca to live on this island with an old friend of hers.  But things do not go to plan as this friend that Becca is meant to be staying with dies before Becca arrives and Becca can no longer reach her mother on her mobile phone.  But with the help of a local boy, Seth, Becca is taken in by Debbie Grieder and with Becca's arrival onto this small island and her interactions with this small group of people, the mystery begins. 

There are some really great characters that populate The Edge of Nowhere.  There's Becca who is doing the best she can with a difficult ability and without the security of her mother nearby.  She struggles with knowing whom to trust and also in a lack of confidence in her appearance.  There's also Debbie Grieder, the recovering alcoholic with demons of her own who takes in Becca.  She has her own problems to face and having Becca around seems to bring all of those issues to the surface.  There's Seth Darrow, who has to face the island's judgement because he dropped out of high school and for the company he's kept in the past.  He's in love with a girl and they constantly bicker but Seth seems only to be concerned with his own involvement and can't see that there's more at stake in their relationship.  There's also mysterious Diana, who pops up when Becca needs her the most and is the only person who seems immune from Becca's thought-reading ability.  And lovely Derric, the Ugandan boy who has been adopted by a family on the island.  Becca is immediately drawn to Derric and when things go wrong for him, Becca seems to be the one person who can save Derric. 

I really did love the characters in the book.  I love how they're all connected and their stories and friendships overlap in this messy, realistic way.  I really liked seeing how Becca's extra ability seems to wreak havoc in her life and doesn't seem able to steer her out of trouble but seems to land her into it even more.  I did love how Becca tries her best at mystery-solving in order to answer those questions of what happened that day in Saratoga Woods that leaves someone she cares about in a coma.  But most of all, I loved that bits about trust and love and living life and about guilt and blame and moving on that come to Becca through her interactions with the people in this small community.  I will be looking forward to reading more of this story as this series continues!

Blog of the month over at Sunshine Smile Publications

I'm absolutely thrilled to bits that Fluttering Butterflies is the Blog of the Month over at Sunshine Smile Publications!  Their website is filled with lots of great news, resources and content about children's and teen books.  The fact that they've chosen my blog to feature on their page is really wonderful and I can't think them enough! 

Please do visit them in the following ways:

Sunshine Smile Publications ... Sunshine Smile Publications on Twitter ... Sunshine Smile Publications on FaceBook

REVIEW: Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz

I remember enjoying Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz as I was reading it ... but once I'd finished it and had started a new book to read I found myself remembering the events of Spellbound less and less.  In order to jog my memory a fair bit, I've had to go onto Goodreads and read some other people's reviews in order to remain character's names and also the plot of the book.  I'm guessing that's a pretty good indication of how I felt about Spellbound.

While not outstanding, Spellbound is a perfectly okay way to spend a few hours.  I quite liked the main character, Emma.  While she did experience some horrific things in her short life, she isn't the sort of person who is held back by these things.  They are what they are and she is determined to move forward with her life and to be happy.  Which is how Emma finds herself living with her wealthy aunt and attending a private school in New York City. 

So as the new girl in a private school, Emma does face the usual - the mean girls who pick on her and her huge crush on a very popular boy.  Luckily, Emma has a bit of life to her and does stick up for herself.  And as for the love interest, I didn't have particularly strong feelings either way about Brendan.  I don't much care for boys who are all a bit hot and cold, but, I felt like Brendan's unreliable emotions and behavious was at least explained.  I'm not the biggest fan of reincarnated souls, but I read this book straight through without any issues or cringiness. 

I thought Emma's relationship with her cousin to be quite cute and I was suitably mystified as to the supernatural goings-on that occurred.  There's nothing like a bit of lights exploding and some hauntings to get quite creeped out.  I thought Spellbound was fun and entertaining and a good, light escapist read!

REVIEW: I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle

Review by Carrie from teabelly

I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle is a very funny, at times even sweet, novel set in one night at the end of high school. On the day of his graduation, Denis Cooverman (uber nerd) uses his valedictorian speech to confess his love to Beth Cooper (cheerleader, pretty, insanely popular girl). Denis has never really spoken to Beth, but he’s sat behind her in class and stared longingly at the back of her head for years. After the graduation, Beth tells him it was a sweet thing to do, and Denis bites the bullet and asks her to a (non existent) party at his house later that night. Little does he know that this invitation is going to set in motion a night that will be the best time he ever had in high school. And give him some major injuries.

Beth’s boyfriend also happens so be at the graduation, and he’s on leave from the army. And he’s very territorial when it comes to Beth. He and his three friends make up some of the characters in the book, which also includes Denis’ best friend, Rich Munsch, a boy who can’t stop quoting films, along with their year of release and director. Together he and Denis are known as Dick Muncher and The Penis. And then there’s the Trinity, with Beth’s friends Cammy and Treece making up the trio.

The main thing that has stayed with me about this book is the characters and their dialogue. It is an incredibly funny book, but mostly thanks to what is said and how it is said, than the shenanigans that go on. It’s quite the night for Denis, and a lot happens, but the situations alone aren’t enough to keep you reading. The one liners and quick comebacks had me laughing out loud, however. And Doyle is a skilled writer, as he builds characters throughout the book that are believable even when doing or saying crazy things. Nothing seemed too crazy coming from these guys. And he doesn’t go the safe route of making Beth too nice. She’s actually not all that nice, for the most part, but I still liked her. She was a much more interesting character than a lot of the bland girls you usually get in books like this.

It’s a solidly entertaining book. It borrows a lot from teen movies, and I enjoyed trying to place the epigraphs in each chapter. It slows down a little in the middle and becomes a bit repetitive, with an unnecessary trip to the school thrown in, but I guess there’s only so much a group of kids can get up to in one night. And that’s a minor quibble really. All in all, a fun read. It’s not likely to make you think profound thoughts, but it should at least make you laugh quite a bit. And sometimes that’s all you really need from a book.

Great review! Thanks Carrie :)

Let's talk about book trailers

The book trailer for The Diviners by Libba Bray 

The creepy nursery rhyme being sung. The Ouija board. Those eyes at the end. Everything about this trailer makes me shudder. ...and also makes me quite desperate to read The Diviners by Libba Bray. Not that I really needed more of a reason, it's Libba Bray after all.

But how effective are book trailers in general for you? Do they make you want to read a book? Do they put you off it? Do you notice them at all?

 I have to be the first to admit, I don't notice book trailers unless they are very well produced. With stunning visuals or music. There has to be something extra for me to take notice.  But then, I also don't watch very many book trailers.  I clicked on the link for The Diviners because it is a book I'm truly excited to read about already.  What about those books that aren't as well hyped? Or debut books?  Do you still watch and get excited about these books from the book trailers? 

And I don't think book trailers go well for every single book.  Is that just me?

Do you have any thoughts on book trailers?  Do you have a favourite book trailer/s?  Let me know.

Yet more paranormal mini-reviews (Everneath, Immortal Rules, Seeking Crystal and The Last Echo)

This post will include mini-reviews for the following books: Everneath by Brodi Ashton, Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa, Seeking Crystal by Joss Stirling and The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting.

Whenever I go through a prologed book slump, it is usually the fault of a decline in my mental health.  I sink into a depression and I don't feel like reading.  It's pretty simple.  And I've found that when I'm in a depression, the books I really like to read are those that are very emotional or dramatic.  And what's more emotional and over-the-top in its dramatics than a good paranormal romance, right?  I find myself drawn to the overly passionate paranormal romances in order to stir some emotion in myself.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, as the following reviews will prove.

 Everneath by Brodi Ashton

Everneath is a book that really pulled me out of a bad reading slump, and it appeared to pull me out effortlessly.  It was the absolute perfect timing for me to have picked up Everneath, and I'm so glad that I gave this book a chance.  I wanted something really romantic and emotional, a book that I could be absorbed in entirely for as long as I was reading it and forget about everything else - and Everneath was exactly that for me!

I'll admit that I didn't fully understand Nikki's choice to go underground and have her emotions fed on by some creepy immortals, but I chose to suspend my disbelief and just go with it.  Especially as it made for some wonderfully angsty reading material.  And while I've seen other reviewers say they'd fallen for Cole, the immortal who has targeted Nikki and to whom she'll go back to in 6 months time, I have to say - I found him creepy.  Jack, Nikki's ex-boyfriend is more my thing.  I loved the tension between Nikki and Jack.  They both obviously still care about each other, but just couldn't admit it to each other for ages.  I love them together.  And I can't wait to get back to this story in the sequel, Everbound.


Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Initially I wasn't going to read Immortal Rules.  I thought to myself, 'I'm bored of vampires, I can't take anymore' but a chance to read this book came up, and I figured that it's Julie Kagawa, why not?  She completely changed my opinion of fairies with her Iron Fey series, I thought maybe I should give her a chance to make me see vampires in a new, refreshing light.  And, really, how could I have doubted her?  I thought she did an incredible job with this book and I cannot wait to read absolutely anything else by Julie.

I loved in Immortal Rules how the story feels almost as if there are three distinct parts, each part as intriguing and fascinating as the others.  When one ended, I was at once sad to see the story go in a different direction and also excited by what is to come.  As this is the first book in the series, I'm really looking forward to seeing how things work out in this world and with the array of characters we meet.  The beginning, which introduces us to our main character, Allison, and also to this dark and dangerous world in which vampires are in control, was exciting and gory and perfect.  And each and every page had me desperate to know what would come next, what would happen?  It's been a long time since I've been so enthralled by a book!

 Seeking Crystal by Joss Stirling

Oh lordy, do I absolutely LOVE the Benedict brothers.  Really and truly, I love them.  And I loved this latest installment, which pairs up two of the Benedict brothers with sisters Diamond and Crystal.

I really felt for Crystal, the main character of this story.  She's always been treated a bit badly by her family for being a dud savant.  She has no powers, she's not great with schooling.  She really figures herself to have no real future, and that of course, is a feeling that is one that many including myself has felt before.  But things begin to change for Crystal, when her older sister, Diamond meets her soul-finder amongst the famous Benedict family of crime-fighters.  While happy for her sister, Crystal finds herself hugely annoyed by Diamond's new family, especially Xav.  But in the process of planning Diamond's wedding, things go very, very wrong and Crystal and Xav will have to get over their issues to help each other out. 

I really loved the setting of Venice.  It just seems a very romantic and magical place to fight against evil and to fall in love.  I also loved the transformation of Crystal from kicked-puppy at the beginning of the book to getting used to the very different turns her life has taken.  It was fun to see some familiar faces from the previous books and also to witness some different abilities and means of attack. 

I really hope this series continues!  I know all we have left are some of the older brothers which could possibly stray out of the YA market, but I still want to know what will happen, especially after the brief sneak peek we get at the end of this book!

 The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting

The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting is one of my favourite YA series of recent years.  I really just love the mixture of crime solving and romance, especially as we are usually given brief insights into the mind of the killer which are interspersed into the narrative.  I really do love Violet and her relationship with her family and especially her newly formed relationship with best friend, Jay.

I thought this move towards working with the FBI would add an interesting twist into the series, and it has.  The series has introduced us to some very interesting new characters with different abilities, though I felt like this book focused a bit more than I'd like on Rafe, who clearly has feelings for Violet.  Together with Jay being significantly less of a presence in The Last Echo, I found myself enjoying the book just a teensy bit less.

Even so, The Last Echo is a wonderful read.  Violet is trying her best to solve this latest crime involving a serial killer in the area, and Violet must just be his latest target.  I thought this book was deliciously creepy with a great mystery to solve.  I still Violet as a character, the weight of her ability is a fair bit heavier in this book, and my heart went out to her. 

REVIEW: What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang

Wow, I really loved What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang.  It felt like a very different reading experience as I was reading this and once I'd started I was so loathe to put it down for anything. 

Kat Zhang, in this first book in a new series called The Hybrid Chronicles, brings us this totally new and different world in which two souls share a body.  I love that premise entirely.  It took awhile to wrap my head around what that would feel like and how life would change for everybody sharing a body with another soul.  We are introduced to both Eva and Addie who are such people. 

But things quickly become a little dark and sinister in What's Left of Me, as we realise that while everyone is born in this way, they are encourage to let one soul 'fade away' by the time they are ten.  After the age of 10, things become quite a bit different as hospital and agencies check up on these things and make sure that no 'hybrids' are left, for they are dangerous and pose a serious threat to themselves and to others. 

But Eva and Addie have managed to keep their secret safe.  With Addie as the dominant soul, she is in control and Eva is hidden away to one corner of Addie's mind.  For years, Eva has slowly lost any ability she once had to move or to speak aloud.  Yet she can't just fade away.  She clings to what little life she can with only Addie to hear her thoughts occasionally.  Until Addie and Eva meet other such hybrids and realise that there might be a chance for Eva to regain some of what she's lost.  But at what cost? 

I found this book to be quite creepy and emotional and moving all at the same time.  I really felt for Eva, and the way that she has been treated for years.  I found it really touching that this story is told from Eva's point of view.  Hers is a voice that isn't heard aloud anymore, but she is the one telling this story.  And witnessing her small attempts at being an individual again without Addie's dominant soul really took my breath away at times.  Hearing someone else say her name for the first time in three years, the way she felt the first time she smiled on her own or said something to another human being really showed how trapped and lonely she has felt for so long.

Eva's relationships with her sister Addie were nicely done, I loved that these two knew each other better than anyone else ever and that their relationship showed both the good and the bad of being that close to one another.  The two of them really struggle to provide the other with what they want and need but at great cost to each other at the same time.  There's also a really sweet beginning of a relationship that I hope is explored more in future books in the series. 

What's more, I loved how much this book is about humanity and doing what's right, even when things are difficult.  I loved that emphasis and that both Eva and Addie get there eventually.  I can't wait to see where this story goes and I'm excited to read more by Kat Zhang!

Video/computer games and me

I was reading a book recently (Shift by Kim Curran) which the story opened with a character playing a video game. The thought suddenly occurred to me about how video and computer games have shaped certain periods of my life. I thought today, I might share with you some of the highlights. I wouldn't normally consider myself gaming nerd, but apparently I have been one in the past!

The Oregon Trail

When I was still in elementary school, I went to special Talented and Gifted classes once a week at another school.  Only a small handful of students (sometimes just the two of us) came from my school, so it was a fairly big deal.  We'd go and spend time with a special teacher who would give us work in different subject areas that was more challenging than the normal schoolwork we'd get.  I have very fond memories of these get-togethers.  Mostly because the problems we were given to solve were done in such a way that it was really fun.  It was nice pushing each other and ourselves to learn more and do more and put different bits of knowledge together to learn something new.  But it wasn't all work without any play.  There was also a corner of the room dedicated to a very primitive looking computer and a small bunch of computer games.  One of which was The Oregon Trail.  I don't remember much about it, other than the basic graphics and some horrifying facts about the harshness of the trail.  But it was good fun as well as being educational.

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

At home, we also had our fair share of computer games and video games.  My older brother was quite into them.  But Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? was definitely MY game.  I LOVED playing this game. I remember sitting in the living room of our house playing this game for absolutely hours.  Who knew learning geography could be so much fun?  I still remember little facts because of this game.  (I just hope they're still accurate!?)  I loved being a detective, flying around the world, collecting clues and then arresting the villians.  Having a quick search of it for this post, and I see there's an updated version of the game still available.  I could be up for some more sleuthing while the boys are at school!

Mario Bros and Legend of Zelda

My brother had an original Nintendo gaming system thing.  I didn't get heavily into any of the games apart from these two.  I absolutely loved Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda.  I don't know what it is about these two games but I could get quite easily addicted to playing them.  Mario Bros is such a classic.  We have an app (or whatever) on our Wii that allows us to play the original game, and just hearing the music the other day was enough to bring back memories spent sat in front of the TV playing this game. 

It was a bit different with Zelda.  It's the only video game that I've enjoyed watching instead of playing.  And luckily my brother would quite happily play for ages and I would quite happily watch.  Because these were both on the original Nintendo, I remembered we'd have to blow into the machine and into the cartridges to get all the dust out so that the thing wouldn't crash.  Ha, how technology has changed over time!


We do have an Xbox and a Wii and all kinds of other games consoles and things.  I'm not really into playing any of them.  But there is just the one computer game that interests me...

Rollercoaster Tycoon

I had a different type of game similar to this previously, but I don't know what happened to it.  When the SIMS were big, I never got into it.  I've still never once played any of the many versions of SIMS at all.  But Rollercoaster Tycoon?  I love it.  Perhaps it's all the time that I've spent at Legoland over the years? I don't know.  But I told N not to install this game onto my laptop recently until I'd finished an important uni assignment.  Because I know what I'm like.  Once I get started trying to make the ultimate theme park, I really just won't stop.  There's something really addictive about it that speaks to my competitive side that makes me want to do bigger and better with this game! 

What are some of your favourite computer/video games?

REVIEW: Spirit Bound and Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

This post will contain reviews of both Spirit Bound and Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead and may contain spoilers.

Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead

Spirit Bound is the fifth and penultimate book in the fantastic and addictive Vampire Academy series.  I put off reading this book for a long time, I'm not quite sure why.  I thought that Blood Promise, the fourth book in the series hit a real high and for me, these following two books in the series didn't quite live up to the emotional roller coaster that was Blood Promise.

But I did still love it.  I love the world that Richelle Mead has created, I love the characters and they way in which they interact with each other. I love how very kick-ass Rose Hathaway can be, even when she is still pining away for turned-Strigoi Dimitri.  In this book, Rose is a girl on a mission.  She's learned a few things during her time in Siberia and she's latched onto this rumour that there is this possibility of restoring a Strigoi's soul.  Now that she's graduated and become a fully-fledged Guardian, she takes massive risks in order to gain the information that she needs. 

Throughout this all, there is this ongoing drama between Lissa and Christian, there's the brief snippet here and there of Rose's father (which I loved!) and the ever-suffering Adrian and his feelings for Rose which are clearly not returned.  I really feel bad for Adrian and I desperately want more for him. 

Reading a Vampire Academy book will always be filled with action, romance, emotion and more than anything else, surprises.  I was not expecting the turns of events that occurred, but I do so love and admire Richelle Mead for keeping us all on our toes!

Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

If I'm honest, I don't have that much to write about Last Sacrifice.  It's a book that I was so desperate to read that I read it probably too quickly intent on getting to that all-important last chapter in which I  finally know, for sure, if these beloved characters of mine would get their happily-ever-after. 

I wish now that I'd read this book a little slower, took in more of the details, but it really isn't that type of book.  Reading this book felt like a mixture of desperation, excitement and anxiety all at once.  And I am very happy with the ending.  I finished this book with a content smile on my face and with the lovely thought of a spin-off involving Sydney, the alchemist.  I really couldn't be happier.  I'm excited to read more books set in this same world but nervous about the change in perspective.  Will I love another character as much as I loved Rose Hathaway?  We shall see.  A wonderful conclusion to one of my favourite ever series of books! 

REVIEW: Girl Meets Boy edited by Kelly Milner Halls

Review by Kulsuma fron sunshine and stardust

Girl Meets Boy interested me as it offered two sides to the same story- the boy’s side and the girl’s side. This was an exciting concept as everyone loves to know what both parties think and where miscommunication really occurs in a relationship. I was expecting light-hearted, funny stories but instead got a diverse range of stories about a striking group of characters. Girl Meets Boy is made up stories that challenge the reader’s expectations.

In Love Or Something Like It and Some Things Never Change, John and Wanda respectively tell their sides of the story. John wants to stop attracting the wrong type of girls- the needy type, that is and Wanda offers to ask her psychologist for advice on his behalf. Inevitably, the two fall into a whirlwind romance that starts off wonderfully but soon has John questioning whether he’s fallen for the wrong girl. These stories really surprised me as it was very unconventional and had surprising twists.

Falling Down To See The Moon and Mooning Over Broken Stars were about realising that you’re crushing on someone you’d never expected to like. The stories were very cute and I enjoyed reading them.

Want to Meet and Meeting For Real were very surprising stories. Max is a gay boy trying to find love online but when he meets the object of his affections, it’s totally not what he expects. These two stories were about being brave enough to take the next step. Alex was an interesting character who could have been explored more. The story ended rapidly with all the loose ends tied up pretty nicely.

No Clue, AKA Sean and Sean + Raffina were sweet stories. If Sean and Raffina want to be together, they will have to cross racial boundaries to do so. Sean worries that his family will be opposed to him dating a black girl and Raffina is getting impatient with waiting and decides to make the first move.

There are six lots of short stories from the girl’s and boy’s point of view in Girl Meets Boy. Some of the stories were sweet, some were shocking and surprising, with twists I could not see coming whilst others fell short of my expectations. Overall, while Girl Meets Boy had twists in many of the stories, it’s not one I’ll remember. I prefer longer stories where characters are more fleshed out than it is possible to be in collections of short stories such as Girl Meets Boy. However, if you’re looking to be surprised, Girl Meets Boy is the book for you.

Thank you for that Kulsuma!

Tackling my TBR pile

Have you set yourself a reading goal on GoodReads? Do you check your progress as obsessively as I check mine? Currently (and as I schedule most posts in advance, this number will have changed!), I am a whopping 12 books behind my target of 225 books read this year.  And what's worse, I have eleventy billion books waiting patiently to be read on my shelves.  My bookcases are absolutely teeming with wonderful books. 

As for my reading goal, I was on target until the beginning of the summer where everything went a bit downhill with a university assignment, my birthday, a holiday, Olympics madness, etc.  My lowest point was being 16 books behind target, but I have managed to slowly ease my way out of that over the last week or so. While sometimes I enjoy reading a longer book over the summer holidays where I have more time to sink into a story and really appreciate a longer story, other summers, like this one, my concentration levels are at zero.  My mind wanders, I pick up a book, read a few pages and then feel restless and wonder what else I could be reading instead. 

So what I've done to tackle both issues is that I've picked this massive pile of books, all of which I'm quite interested in reading.  And as a bonus, they are all around about 250 pages or a book that I think I will get through get quickly. 

Fly on the Wall by E Lockhart
Mockingbird by Kathyn Erskine
Silenced by Simon Packham
Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
Paparazzi Princess by Cathy Hopkins
Shooting Stars by Allison Rushby
Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
The Alchemy of Forever by Avery Williams
A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley
Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz
Shut Out by Kody Keplinger
The Swan Kingdom by Zoe Marriott

Blackwatch by Jenna Burtenshaw
Scars by Cheryl Rainfield
The Hostage by Sophie McKenzie
Airhead: Runaway by Meg Cabot
There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
Lottie Biggs Is Not Tragic by Hayley Long
Prom and Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg
My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher
Saving Zoe by Alyson Noel
The Lone-Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
Love and other Drama-ramas by Sarah Webb

Do you have this same problem?  Have you read any of these books? Where should I start?

More paranormal mini-reviews (Trial By Fire, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Carrier of the Mark)

The following post contains mini-reviews for the following books: Trial by Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin and Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon.

Whenever I go through a prologed book slump, it is usually the fault of a decline in my mental health.  I sink into a depression and I don't feel like reading.  It's pretty simple.  And I've found that when I'm in a depression, the books I really like to read are those that are very emotional or dramatic.  And what's more emotional and over-the-top in its dramatics than a good paranormal romance, right?  I find myself drawn to the overly passionate paranormal romances in order to stir some emotion in myself.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, as the following reviews will prove.

Trial by Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Did I ever tell you how much I love werewolves?  I do. They are my favourite paranormal creatures.  Mostly because I love the idea of belonging to a pack.  The idea of this extended family that's always there for you makes me feel a bit teary if I'm honest.  And I think I love Jennifer Lynn Barnes' version of werewolves the best.  Her books feel very emotional and intelligent, with the mix of politics and gender and equality into the narrative.

I adored the first book in this series, Raised By Wolves, just as I adored this, its sequel.  I love that Bryn is quite a fragile human girl, but still, it is her that is in charge of a large and valuable pack of wolves.  She has very loyal friends and boyfriend and while her father-figure is no longer in charge of her, he is still partially present in her life, offering his advice.  And while there is less of the strong first emotions of love in this book with the emphasis more on protecting the women and girls of her fledgling pack as well as negotiating the difficult werewolf politics of the other wolf packs in the area, there is still enough romance and high emotions.  Reading this book was a wonderful escape from my own thoughts and I zipped right through it.  Wonderful sequel, I'm very much looking forward to more!

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Here is a book that I loved wholly and entirely.  I had no idea what I was getting into when I started it, I had just heard a bunch of wonderful things from it from mostly American book bloggers.  I wanted in on this amazing story, and I loved every page of it.  I'm usually a little bit intimidated by chunky books like this one, but in Mara Dyer's case, I felt the bigger and longer it is, the better!

I really loved unravelling the mystery is this book.  I wanted any scrap of detail or information that Michelle Hodkin throws to the reader.  I found myself hugely addicted by this book, even though in parts it can be quite creepy and felt a bit dark.  I loved that our narrator, Mara, tells us this story without really having a full grasp on all of the events, even those that she experienced herself.  I do love an unreliable narrator especially witnessing the confusion.  And how have I not written about the love interest yet?!  I fell for Noah Shaw right alongside Mara.  Their relationship is tension-filled and swoonworthy.  I want more already.  This book is incredible, very romantic and suspensful and addictive.  I am no waiting impatiently for the sequel!



 Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

This book arrived for me around the same time the Internet drama involving the author was occurring and while it did leave a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, I figured it was only fair to judge the book by its own merits rather than the actions of the author.

I have to say, I wasn't impressed.  What attracted me to this book is the addition of Irish mythology into a paranormal romance.  Ireland isn't a setting that I read of very often, and I wanted more from it.  Same with this romance between Megan and Adam which promised to be of epic proportions.  And while I did finish the book, I finished it without caring very much about the world created, the characters or the romance.  For me, it didn't engage me emotionally at all, and that was very disappointing.  I really wanted to enjoy this one. I still think the cover is quite pretty.

WWYD? A summer do-over

What Would You Do? is a semi-regular feature in which a question will be posed based on a character or story line in a book I've recently read.  I'd love if you would take part and share in comments just what YOU would do in a similar situation! 

I hope that I've made it pretty clear so far, that I absolutely adored The Twice-Lived Summer of Bluebell Jones by Susie Day already!  (See my review here and Susie Day's guest post about writing the book twice) I really do adore it.  It's quite the slim book, but it really pulled on my heartstrings as I was reading it. 

But what's more, I keep thinking of this book and its characters when I'm in situations where I'd normally feel a little anxious.  I've never had an amazing bunch of confidence but I've always wanted to. 

The story of The Twice-Lived Summer of Bluebell Jones is about a girl who makes a wish on her birthday for a little help.  Blue really wants someone to help her though this summer she's facing and when she blows out the candles of her birthday cake a future version of herself appears who calls herself 'Red.'

Isn't that a wonderful premise for a story?  I've thought about it a few times lately before I go out or if I'm wondering if I could pull off a certain look or whatever - what would my super-confident future self advise me?  I love that.  I love that I have that idea present in my head. 

But that isn't what this post is about.  I was thinking that since the schools have started up again and the end of summer is looming over us, what sort of advice would you give to your past self?  If you could do your summer over again to make it perfect and just right, what would you have changed?

It's a tough one for me, because I had an amazing summer.  We went on the Harry Potter studio tour, a weekend away to the Isle of Wight. We went to the Olympics and the Paralympics, we went on a family holiday to Denmark.  Time between all of that was spent playing board games and laughing with my two crazy and hilarious boys.  So there's isn't a lot that I would change for the things we've done... but there's always things I'd like to change about how I feel. 

That said, I did come up with a list, and here it is:

-Don't let myself take my iPhone onto that scary ride at Tivoli Gardens - that feeling of dread as it flew out of my pocket and crashed onto pavement nearby does not need to be relived

-Remind myself to bring more than 3 books on a week long holiday - I have no idea what past-version-of-myself was thinking


-Convince myself to start the 30 Day Shred earlier so I could feel amazing sooner rather than later

-Maybe with some extra confidence I may have PUT ON my bathing suit at least once this summer instead of feeling too self-conscious about it

-Don't be so bloody shy about arranging to meet up with friends

-Same goes for meeting authors at the UKYA meet-up, I'm sure those authors you were too shy to introduce yourself to would have loved chatting

Enough about me, what would you do? If you had the change to relive this past summer, what would you change?

REVIEW: Crusher by Niall Leonard

I really loved Crusher by Niall Leonard!  I was recently at a Random House event in which we heard of some of the processes in which the designers used in order to create this cover, which was fascinating, especially as it was done in two weeks as they were rushing the publication. I was given an advance copy of the book then and told that there'd be a special announcement about this book because of Niall Leonard's very famous wife (EL James of 50 Shades fame). 

I wouldn't normally say that a crime/thriller book would be my sort of thing but  my mind has been changed after reading this book and books similar to it in the past year or so.  I actually really love like this which are very action-packed with a twisty-turny plotline. 

And Crusher was immediately addictive and exciting to read.  I felt for our main character, Finn, straight away.  He's dropped out of school, he's working at a greasy fast food place, he has no real prospects for the future, especially with a past involving a drugs rap and having difficulties reading with his dyslexia.  But things are set to get even worse for poor Finn, as he comes home to find his father bludgeoned to death and the police peg Finn as the prime subject.

In order to clear his name and get the answers that Finn desperately needs, he sets off on this crazy journey into organised crime ring in London.  Finn feels as though he has nothing to lose and he doesn't believe that the cops are doing much to follow up on any leads.  What follows was entertaining, edge of my seat reading.  I loved how everything seems disconnected but does eventually tie together in the end in the way that I'd never considered. 

I do love a good mystery but discovering whodunnit is only half of what's great about Crusher.  I do so love Finn.  On the outside he doesn't appear to be grieving that much for his father, but we still see enough of his thoughts and behaviour to know otherwise.  That's part of Niall Leonard's charm - writing dialogue and scenes in the book in such a way that the reader is able to grasp more by what is left unsaid or undone.  This is especially true for Finn's relationships - both with a rather strange love interest, Zoe, and with another a person from Finn's past who shows up unexpectedly. 

I thought Crusher was a great debut effort from Niall Leonard!  There's plenty of gritty action and mystery with a relateable main character that you will root for right from the start.

REVIEW: Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

This post contains reviews of both Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare and may contain spoilers!

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

I was a bit on the fence about starting a new series by Cassandra Clare.  I wasn't entirely convinced that I would like to read a book set in Victorian London, as I am not usually keen on very many historical books.  Other reviews and the excitement of other bloggers is what pushed me over the edge and forced my hand into acquiring copies of these books. 

And oh, why was I doubting?  I'm sure that I love this series, this story and these characters more than I loved those of the Mortal Instruments, which I didn't think possible.  Cassandra Clare has an amazing ability to write fascinating and addictive stories that demand to be read in as few sittings as possible and in such a way that reading these books took over my life. 

Despite my misgivings about the era of these books, I really loved Victorian London as a setting.  Together with the addition of descendents from angels battling against demons and other cool characters, these books have a wonderful tone and atmosphere to them.  Once I started, I really couldn't put this book down.  I wanted to know more about Tessa Gray, our main character, with her unusual gift of transforming into others.  And while this book isn't as fast-paced or as action-packed as the Mortal Instruments, I preferred it.  I loved the descriptions and the gathering of knowledge as well as a great foundation for the different characters that we encounter.

Kidnapped by two evil sisters on her way to meet up with her brother, Tessa is thrown into a world she has no idea of.  When Tessa is rescued by two Shadowhunters, Will and Jem, she faces the truth of her own identity, and begins to dig deeper into the dealings of The Pandemonium Club, which seems to hold the answers to her kidnapping, several murders about town and also the disappearance of her brother.

The only criticism of this book that I have isn't down to the book at all but to the way in which it is marketed.  I was under the impression that there would be this huge tension and struggle early on in this book as Tessa contemplates her feelings for these two best friends, Will and Jem.  For that sort of love triangle angst, I didn't think it really properly began until Clockwork Prince. Still, I was fabulously excited to carry on with this series and I dove straight into the sequel, Clockwork Prince...

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

While I really liked Clockwork Angel and really enjoyed the story, I absolutely LOVED Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare.  It took the beautiful writing and the addictive quality from the first book and exploded into the sequel.  I couldn't bear to be parted with this book and I read it as quickly as humanly possible.

I really liked the continuation and the development of both the story and the characters in this book.  Having that greater knowledge in backstory for everyone, including the villian of the series, the Magister, but also that of Will and Jem ramped up the emotional impact of this book. 

I found myself fascinated by every single detail that Clare through my way and still I want more.  The love triangle that is hinted at in Clockwork Angel is put into full-force within this book.  And while I finished the previous book with a pretty clear favourite in mind, Clockwork Prince had me veering wildly between both Will and Jem.  I've always loved the self-destructive and aloof nature of Will and I've found myself being very attracted to Will as a character, so I loved hearing more of his past and of his reasons to keep those that he cares about at arm's length.  But Jem was a huge surprise for me.  In the first book, I really thought of him as just 'the nice guy' without much more substance to him.  I loved seeing him in a new light in this book and at the end, I am genuinely torn between the two. 

What made these relationships that much more emotional for me, is seeing the power and the strength of the relationship between Will and Jem.  There is so much history there and I loved learning the true meaning of them two being parabatai.  It makes it heartbreaking that one of them will suffer to see the other happy. 

Of course it isn't all love interest conflicts in this book! Someone close to them is a spy and the leader of their Shadowhunter gang is under threat of being dismissed!  Tessa is still dealing with the treachery of her brother from the previous book, there are still creeptastic clockwork things to battle! Honestly? I can't even put into words how much I love this series.  I need Clockwork Princess, and I need it now!

REVIEW: The Double Shadow by Sally Gardner

Review by Kulsuma from sunshine and stardust

The Double Shadow by Sally Gardner is the perfect mix of magic, mystery and adventure against the backdrop of World War II. Amaryllis Ruben is a troubled seventeen year old who has been expelled from one too many boarding schools. Though she hates it, Amaryllis has no choice but to return home to her distant father. Amaryllis can’t remember much of her childhood and her father with whom she was supposedly once very close with which leads to her anger and frustration.

Her father, Arnold Ruben, has created a memory machine; a utopia where Amaryllis can relive her good memories for eternity, even ones her father has lovingly edited, safe from the bad memories of her childhood. However, it is not that simple. There are other people who would go to any lengths for such a weapon, especially in wartime, and Arnold has inadvertently led his daughter into danger he could never have fathomed. Can Amaryllis be saved?

Following multiple characters, The Double Shadow is a wonderfully imaginative piece of fiction which is both dark and constantly enlightening. Gardner’s writing style is lyrical and engaging. I felt involved with all the characters, especially Ezra, Amaryllis’ adversary and then reluctant friend. At first, Amaryllis is hard to like, but once you learn about her forgotten memories, it is easy to see how she turns out the way she does.

Other memorable characters were Vervaine Fox, who wanted to keep her good looks from fading (much like her career) and Tommy Treacle, who was smarter than anyone gave him credit for. The Double Shadow is a complex web of mystery (worthy of Sherlock Holmes) that is slowly untangled as the story goes on. I found it very suspenseful and read the book in a matter of days.

Overall, The Double Shadow is a brilliantly imagined world with a fantastic cast of characters, vivid writing and original ideas. I loved the history, the mystery and the science. There was a dramatic climax and a great ending. This was my first foray into Sally Gardner’s writing, but it won’t be the last. There is a little bit of everything in The Double Shadow and it is one not to be missed.

It sounds excellent, thanks Kulsuma!

Letterbox Love (sort of!)

Hello! I just wanted to write very quickly about something I've been thinking about lately.  And that is In My Mailbox type posts.  I used to write them regularly, but they took up a lot of my time.  I dropped them to every other week and then stopped doing them altogether. 

But! I do still enjoy sharing the books that I acquire via whatever reason.  And for that, if you are so interested, you can 'LIKE' the Fluttering Butterflies Facebook page, and I shall be uploading photos of all the shiny new books that come into my possession.  A bit like these... This is the last time (maybe) that I'll be sharing these here on the blog. Everything else will go to FB page!

Lovely finished hardback copies of The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver, The Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George (the book I'm reading at the moment!), and The Diviners by Libba Bray.

The left pile was an Amazon order: Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols, Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma, Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown, Shine by Lauren Myracle, Sometimes It Happens by Lauren Barnholdt, Shine by Jeri Smith-Ready, and So Much Closer by Susane Colasanti (already read!). 

The right pile is a combination of books sent via publishers and also a giveaway win, sent by Keris Stainton, plus a book gifted by Jim from YaYeahYeah.  Wolf Pact by Melissa de la Cruz, Defiance by CJ Redwine, The Alchemy of Forever by Avery Williams, He's After Me by Chris Higgins, The Haunting Ground by Cliff McNish, 0.4 by Mike Lancaster, Shadows on the Moon by Zoe Marriott, and Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs (already read!).  Four of those books are signed by the author!

These books also arrived! Wolf Princess by Cathryn Constable and Zombies Don't Cry by Rusty Fischer.  An exciting bunch of books, all of them!

Paranormal mini-review roundup (Fateful, Firelight and Pulse)

Below are mini-reviews for the following books: Fateful by Claudia Gray, Firelight by Sophie Jordan, and Pulse by Tricia Rayburn. 

Whenever I go through a prologed book slump, it is usually the fault of a decline in my mental health.  I sink into a depression and I don't feel like reading.  It's pretty simple.  And I've found that when I'm in a depression, the books I really like to read are those that are very emotional or dramatic.  And what's more emotional and over-the-top in its dramatics than a good paranormal romance, right?  I find myself drawn to the overly passionate paranormal romances in order to stir some emotion in myself.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, as the following reviews will prove.

Fateful by Claudia Gray

Fateful by Claudia Gray is quite a strange book, in my opinion.  I couldn't help but be intrigued at the thought of werewolves on board the doomed Titanic.  What an absolutely fun thought that is!  And as long as you're able to ignore the silliness of the premise and just go with it, Fateful is quite a fun book to read.

I really loved the detail in the beginning as the Titanic and its passengers are being described.  It just seems like a lovely time period and I began thinking that this would have been a great historical book on its own, let's not get into the werewolves at all.  But there are werewolves in this book.  And once they make their appearance, Fateful is split into two clear halves.  The first is the beginning with the lush descriptions and lively atmosphere of being on board a luxury liner like the Titanic.  And then there is the story of the werewolves.  And while werewolves are definitely my favourite of the paranormal creatures, I felt like this second half was a tiny bit of a letdown compared to the first half.  While I do remember thinking the male lead was a bit of all right, I don't remember connecting very well to either him or to the main character Tessa, and found something a bit lacking in their relationship.  I don't know. Another book I enjoyed for the most part, but definitely wasn't blown away by. 

Firelight by Sophie Jordan

I really wanted to read about dragons and Firelight by Sophie Jordan seemed to be quite an interesting look the subject.  I especially dug the idea of in a paranormal romance like this is, that the girl is the supernatural creature (in this case, Draki which are descendants from dragons) and that the boy love interest is human (though aware of draki and is in fact a dragon-hunter).  So often it is the other way around.

Unfortunately, I don't quite recall very much about this book after reading it a few months ago.  Part of the summary that I'd read somewhere mentioned mortal enemies and a doomed love affair.  I don't recall anything quite so passionate!  I remember enjoying the book as I was reading it, but not enough of the book made any impact for it to leave a lasting impression.  I don't think I'll be hurrying out to acquire the sequel.

Pulse by Tricia Rayburn

I really, really enjoyed the first book in the series, Siren.  But I remember being slightly confused at the end that book and some of that confusion was carried over into this book.  Still, I really enjoyed it.  I quite love a series on a supernatural creature (sirens) that I haven't come across often or at all.  But what I really wanted in this story, the reason I picked up Pulse to read is that I wanted to see more of the relationship between Vanessa and Simon.  This was not to be.  And looking back at it now, I guess it's understandable that this isn't the case.

Vanessa is going through such a lot in this book, her transformation into siren is complete.  She's attracting the attention of men very noticeably now, she's still torn up about the loss of her sister from book one, she's struggling with the fact that she has been lied to her entire life.  She's facing urges to bathe in saltwater and she gains power from the attentions of Parker which she finds she likes and needs.  But Simon! I wanted things to be better with Vanessa and Simon, but I don't think they could be with Vanessa questioning their relationship and constantly wondering if Simon has ever really liked her, or if it is all down to her siren allure.  Tough situation to be in.  I thought this book was incredibly interesting and I loved spending time with Vanessa as she made mistakes and worked on her insecurities and found out more about sirens.  It is quite a bit angsty with sort-of triangle going on, but I still missed the presense of the Simon from book one!