Wednesday, January 01, 2014

UKYA in January 2014

Hello! And Happy New Year! I hope that 2014 is a magical and life-changing year for you. I wasn't planning on carrying on these monthly UKYA posts into the New Year but an overwhelming number of people requested that I do on Twitter. Who am to argue with the masses? I'm still working on a pretty button that says 'UKYA in 2014' but for now, I hope this old Celebrating British Authors will do. I think January is an amazing month for UKYA! So much to look forward to. I'm really not sure how anyone can read the following post and not add at least ONE book to their wish lists. It's a challenge, folks!

I have When Mr Dog Bites, Shadowplay, Witchfinder, Salvage, Boys Don't Knit, The Visitors, and Tape on my TBR pile/Kindle to read very soon.  I think I might make When Mr Dog Bites or Salvage be my first read of 2014. How about you?

If you know of any UKYA titles I'm missing, do let me know. If you are the author of any of the following books and would like to be featured further on Fluttering Butterflies (guest post or interview!) do let me know in comments or via Twitter or email! I'd love to have you! On with the books...




The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson by Paige Toon (30th January, Simon and Schuster Children's Books) 

The first YA fiction novel, from the bestselling adult author Paige Toon.
Meet Jessie, the daughter of Johnny Jefferson, as featured in Johnny Be Good and Baby Be Mine…
My fifteenth birthday was the worst day of my life, and it's inconceivable to think that any single day in my future will ever be as bad. My mum was killed in a freak accident on her way to pick up my cake. Even when there was still no sign of her after two hours later, and my friends started to arrive at our house, it never occurred to me that she wouldn't be coming back.
That was six months ago. My mum died without telling me who my real dad was. And for a while I hated her for it. I thought she's taken the secret of my father's identity with her forever. But she didn't. Holy hell, she didn't. Because three weeks ago I found out the truth. And I'm still reeling from the shock of it. My dad is none other than Johnny Jefferson, mega famous rock star and one-time serial womaniser. And now I'm on my way to LA to meet him and his family.
My tiny little world has just got a whole lot bigger…


 
Soul Mates by LA Weatherly (15th January, Barrington Stoke)

Beautiful and intriguing paranormal romance about two teenagers whose love is so special that nothing can keep them apart - not even time. Iris and Nate have dreamed of each other all of their lives. When they meet by chance in an abandoned house, they discover that their dreams were more than fantasy - they are soul mates, destined to be together. But someone or something is watching them, determined to tear them apart. Will Iris and Nate's love be strong enough to survive the test of time? Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 12+

 
Running Girl by Simon Mason (2nd January, David Fickling Books)

Meet Garvie Smith. Highest IQ ever recorded at Marsh Academy. Lowest ever grades. What's the point, anyway? Life sucks. Nothing ever happens.

Until Chloe Dow's body is pulled from a pond.

DI Singh is already on the case. Ambitious, uptight, methodical - he's determined to solve the mystery and get promoted. He doesn't need any 'assistance' from notorious slacker, Smith.

Or does he?

Stella by Helen Eve (2nd January, Macmillan)

17-year-old Stella Hamilton is the star blazing at the heart of Temperley High. Leader of the maliciously exclusive elite, she is surrounded by adulation; envied and lusted after in equal measure. And she is in the final stage of a five-year campaign to achieve her destiny: love with her equally popular male equivalent, and triumph as Head Girl on election night. By contrast, new girl Caitlin Clarke has until now lived a quietly conformist life in New York. With the collapse of her parents’ marriage she has been sent across the Atlantic for an English boarding school education, only to discover that at Temperley, the only important rules are the unwritten ones. It's a world of the beautiful and the dangerous, and acceptance means staying on the right side of Stella Hamilton, the most beautiful and dangerous of them all. Not everyone is happy to be under the Hamilton rule. But fighting the system means treading the same dark path as Stella - and if Caitlin puts a foot wrong, it's a long way down . . .


 The One Safe Place by Tania Unsworth (2nd January, Orion)


Those who enter the Gabriel H. Penn Home for Childhood only get to leave one way...

In the near future the gap between rich and poor has become insurmountable. Life as a street child in the big city is only made bearable by who, and what, you know. And by the rumour circulating of a haven for children, a place of true safety. This rumour appears to be nothing more than a fairy-tale until Devin, and his new friend Kit, meet someone who promises to take them there. But when Devin and Kit arrive they begin to understand the real price of safety...

A disconcerting vision and a beautifully imagined novel of suspense and adventure from debut author, Tania Unsworth.



When Mr Dog Bites by Brian Conaghan (16th January, Bloomsbury) 


Dylan Mint has Tourette’s. For Dylan, life is a constant battle to keep the bad stuff in – the swearing, the tics, the howling dog that escapes whenever he gets stressed. And, as a sixteen-year-old virgin and pupil at Drumhill Special School, getting stressed is something of an occupational hazard.

But then a routine visit to the hospital changes everything. Overhearing a hushed conversation between the doctor and his mother, Dylan discovers that he's going to die next March.

So he grants himself three parting wishes: three ‘Cool Things To Do Before I Cack It’.

It isn’t a long list, but it is ambitious, and he doesn't have much time. But as Dylan sets out to make his wishes come true, he discovers that nothing – and no-one – is quite as he had previously supposed.

A story about life, death, love, sex and swearing, When Mr Dog Bites will take you on one *#@! of a journey . . .



Defy the Stars by Sophie McKenzie (2nd January, Simon and Schuster Children's Books)

After months apart, everyone thinks that River is successfully building a future without Flynn. Indeed, she has almost convinced herself that she is moving on. And then, one day, Flynn is back, bringing with him tales of his glamorous new life. River suspects his lucrative new work involves some form of criminal activity, but will she let herself be drawn back into Flynn's world? Or is this, finally, the end of the line for them both?


Ironheart by Allan Boroughs (2nd January, Macmillan)

‘First comes the iron and then comes the snow, and then comes the winter when nothing will grow.’ Since her father went missing while prospecting for oil in Siberia, life has been tougher than ever for India Bentley. Little does she know that he was actually searching for Ironheart, a legendary fortress containing the secrets of the old world. A place some say could save humanity . . . or destroy the world. Along with tech-hunter Verity Brown and her android, Calculus, a killer from the old world turned protector in the new, India must make the journey to remote Siberia to try to find her father and finish his work. But there are others fighting to find Ironheart too – and they have very different goals in mind. If India fails, it won’t just be her father who pays the price. It will cost her the Earth.


Shadowplay by Laura Lam (published in December, Strange Chemistry)

The circus lies behind Micah Grey in dust and ashes. He and the white clown, Drystan, take refuge with the once-great magician, Jasper Maske. When Maske agrees to teach them his trade, his embittered rival challenges them to a duel which could decide all of their fates. People also hunt both Micah and the person he was before the circus - the runaway daughter of a noble family. And Micah discovers there is magic and power in the world, far beyond the card tricks and illusions he's perfecting - A tale of phantom wings, a clockwork hand, and the delicate unfurling of new love, Shadowplay continues Micah Grey's extraordinary journey.


Witchfinder by Ruth Warburton (2nd January, Hodder Children's Books)

London, 1880, and eighteen-year-old Luke Lexton is about to endure his initiation into the Malleus Maleficorum - the secretive brotherhood devoted to hunting witches, and the organisation that will help Luke take revenge on the witch who murdered his parents. His final test is to pick a name at random from the Book of Witches, a name he must track down and kill within a month, or face death himself.

Luke picks out sixteen-year-old Rosa Greenwood, a witch-girl living in rapidly fading grandeur on the west side of town. She's the last bargaining chip in her family's struggle to avoid bankruptcy and is about to be married off to the handsome, cruel, grotesquely rich Sebastian Knyvet - a powerful member of the Ealdwitan.

As Rosa and Luke get to know each other, Luke realises it will be impossible for him to kill Rosa, just as Rosa knows she will bring disgrace on her family if she does not marry Knyvet. But Knyvet is hiding dark secrets - including the key which will unlock the mystery of Luke's murdered parents. Torn between appeasing their elders and their love for each other, Rosa and Luke must each make their choice between life and death.


Diamonds and Deceits by Leila Rasheed (2nd January, Hot Key Books)

The London Season of 1913 is in full swing, and Rose has never felt more out of place. She can't help but feel like a servant dressed up in diamonds and silk. Then she meets Alexander Ross, a young Scottish duke. Rose has heard all sorts of gossip about Alexander, but he alone treats her as a friend. Rose should know better than to give her heart to a man with a reputation, but it may already be too late. Meanwhile, Ada's also feeling miserable. She should be happy - she's engaged to a handsome man who shares her political passions and has promised to support her education. So why does she feel hollow inside? She knows that without this marriage, her family will be ruined, but it seems that in matters of love, the Averley's can only follow their hearts...


Salvage by Keren David (16 January, Atom)

Aidan Jones was my brother. But I couldn't really remember his face. I couldn't remember talking to him or playing with him. He was just a gap, an absence, a missing person.

Before she was adopted by a loving family and raised in a leafy Home Counties town, Cass Montgomery was Cass Jones. Her memories of her birth family disappeared with her name. But when her adopted family starts to break down, a way out comes in the form of a message from her lost brother, Aidan. Having Aidan back in her life is both everything she needs and nothing she expected. Who is this boy who calls himself her brother? And why is he so haunted?

I glance at the paper. There's a big picture on the front page. A girl with dark red hair. A girl with eyes that might have been green or they might have been grey. I sit down and stare at Cass, and it is her, it is. My stolen sister.

Aidan's a survivor. He's survived an abusive stepfather and an uncaring mother. He's survived crowded foster homes and empty bedsits.He's survived to find Cass. If only he can make her understand what it means to be part of his family. . .


The Dark Inside by Rupert Wallis (30 January, Simon and Schuster)

The House on the Hill has been abandoned for as long as James can remember. So when he discovers Webster, a drifter, hiding there, he's instantly curious about the story behind the homeless man. What is he running from? Afflicted by a dark curse, Webster is no longer who he used to be. But there is said to be a cure and it might just be that by helping Webster, James will find some solace of his own. Together they embark on a journey, not knowing that what they discover will impact them both in ways they never imagined...A gripping and haunting story about loss and hope, perfect for fans of Patrick Ness and David Almond.


Boys Don't Knit by TS Easton (2nd January, Hot Key Books)

Ben Fletcher must get to grips with his more 'feminine' side following an unfortunate incident with a lollipop lady and a stolen bottle of Martini Rosso from Waitrose. All a big misunderstanding of course. To avoid the Young Offenders unit, Ben is ordered to give something back to the community and develop his sense of social alignment. Take up a hobby and keep on the straight and narrow. The hot teacher he likes runs a knitting group so Ben, reluctantly at first, gets 'stuck in'. Not easy when your dad is a sports fan and thinks Jeremy Clarkson is God. To his surprise, Ben finds that he likes knitting and that he has a mean competitive streak. If he can just keep it all a secret from his mates...and notice that the girl of his dreams, girl-next-door Megan Hooper has a bit of a thing for him...Laugh-out-loud, often ridiculous, sometimes quite touching, and revelatory about the knitting world, Boys Don't Knit is a must for boys and girls...


The Visitors by Rebecca Mascull (2nd January, Hodder Children's Books)

Imagine if you couldn't see couldn't hear couldn't speak...Then one day somebody took your hand and opened up the world to you. Adeliza Golding is a deafblind girl, born in late Victorian England on her father's hop farm. Unable to interact with her loving family, she exists in a world of darkness and confusion; her only communication is with the ghosts she speaks to in her head, who she has christened the Visitors. One day she runs out into the fields and a young hop-picker, Lottie, grabs her hand and starts drawing shapes in it. Finally Liza can communicate. Her friendship with her teacher and with Lottie's beloved brother Caleb leads her from the hop gardens and oyster beds of Kent to the dusty veldt of South Africa and the Boer War, and ultimately to the truth about the Visitors. Rebecca Mascull's first novel is the tale of a wonderful friendship, but it is also a thrilling adventure, a heartbreaking love story and a compelling ghost story.



Old Dog, New Tricks by Bali Rai (15 January, Barrington Stoke)

When the Singh family move into a new house, their neighbour Mick is far from welcoming. He's mean to everyone and his racist beliefs make living next door to him hard for the Singhs. But Harvey is convinced that Mick just needs help and that he's the one to do it - he just needs to work out how! A charming and heart-warming story about the importance of family and friends. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 12+


 Tape by Steven Camden (30 January, HarperCollins Children's Books)

Record a voice and it lasts forever…

In 1993, Ryan records a diary on an old tape. He talks about his mother’s death, about his dreams, about his love for a new girl at school who doesn’t even know he exists.

In 2013, Ameliah moves in with her grandmother after her parents die. There, she finds a tape in the spare room. A tape with a boy’s voice on it – a voice she can’t quite hear, but which seems to be speaking to her.

Ryan and Ameliah are connected by more than just a tape.

This is their story.



Which books are you most excited to read in January?

10 comments:

  1. Ooh, there's a few here I didn't know about! The Visitors and The Dark Inside sound really good, but the two I'm most looking forward to reading are Shadowplay and Salvage. I have a copy of Boys Don't Knit and I've heard it's really funny so I'll definitely be reading that soon ;)

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    1. I hope you enjoy all of those, Maya! I just finished Salvage today and it was AMAZING! I'm reading When Mr Dog Bites now which I'm really enjoying :)

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    2. I've heard so many good things about Salvage so glad you loved it too! Not long until it comes out now - I can't wait!

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  2. There's too many on this list I want to read - When Mr Dog Bites sounds brilliant as does The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson and Boys Don't Knit. Not forgetting Salvage or Soul Mates.

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    1. Soul Mates is a Barrington Stoke book and I've only read 1 or 2 of them so far. I'm quite intrigued to read more...

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  3. God so much goodness! UKYA is going to be amazing this year. I'm very excited to read Tape and Salvage. Really enjoyed Boys Dont Knit! Also released today is Metawars 4 by Jeff Norton :-)

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    1. I said it last year and I'll say it again this year - 2014 is going to be an amazing year for #UKYA!

      Thanks for that, I also missed out on the Suzy P #2 book! Whoops :(

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  4. Great post. I've not heard of some of these, but I have now added some of them to my goodreads list ;)

    Thanks for aiding my book buying habit ;) :*

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