REVIEW: Crongton Knights by Alex Wheatle

Oh why did it take me so long to read Crongton Knights by Alex Wheatle?! I loved Liccle Bit, the first in this companion trilogy, and was really excited to read more ...and it was only recently that I picked this one up.  It won't be as long until I read the third book, Straight Outta Crongton because I love these boys and their friendship and the ways in which Alex Wheatle brings this neighbour hood to life. 

If you haven't read Liccle Bit, you needn't worry. Crongton Knights brings you up to speed with the events that occurred that are of importance before getting into this story.  This trilogy by Alex Wheatle looks at life in South Crongton on a council estate with gang warfare and rife with crime.  Crongton Knights, which obviously features the other boys, is McKay's story. 

I adored McKay and getting to know him a little bit better in this book.  His mum has died and he's living with his dad who is working all the hours to try to keep the bailiffs away and his older brother, Nesta.  Meanwhile, Bit persuades McKay and Jonah on this heroic (knightly!) crusade into another neighbourhood in order to protect the dignity of Venetia, Bit's crush. While reluctant at the danger of such a mission, everyone does go ahead and, of course, things go badly wrong.  I adore these types of ...heroic journey-type stories.  It really puts pressure on McKay and the others to define who they are as people and what their friendship means to each other.  It was really quite sweet.

I think what I love so much about these books is that it really combines some great things together.  McKay is a wonderful main character, he's very relateable and I love his complicated family life with his dad struggling with former gambling debts and his older brother, prone to getting in trouble but very much looking for McKay so that he doesn't follow him down the wrong path.  I also think McKay's friendship with the other boys is lovely and the setting of Crongton is so well described that I feel like I'm there with McKay as I'm reading.  I'd say my only (slight) criticism is that all of the characters sounded roughly the same, even when it doesn't make much sense that a boy from private school and a refugee from another country both sound like the others who have grown up on the estate. But other than that, I fell in love with this book and these characters and I cannot wait to read the rest in Straight Outta Crongton!

What I Write To by Rebecca Denton - This Beats Perfect Blog Tour

Today I'm really happy to be hosting this wonderful guest post by debut author, Rebecca Denton, for This Beats Perfect.  This Beats Perfect sounds really amazing. I'm loving books about music and fandom lately. Here is the summary for this book, then over to Rebecca...

Amelie Ayres has impeccable taste in music. Bowie. Bush. Bob. So when she finds herself backstage at The Keep’s only UK gig she expects to hate it; after all they are world’s most tragic band. In fact she feels a grudging respect – not (obviously) for their music, but for the work that goes in to making them megastars. And when lead singer, ‘Maxx’, is not dressed up as a cross between Elvis and a My Little Pony, he is actually rather normal, talented and has creative struggles not too dissimilar to her own.

But the next morning she wakes up rolls over and discovers a million new @’s on social media. Overnight a photo of her backstage has made her a subject of global speculation. Suddenly the world needs to know #Who’sThatGirl? – but for all the wrong reasons.

All Amelie wants is to play her music. She’s got the guitar, the songs, the soul and, in the safety of her bedroom, she’s got the voice. But when it comes to getting up on stage, she struggles with self-doubt.

Immaculate’s a concept. Flawless is fake. But just sometimes music – and hearts – can rock a perfect beat. 

Rebecca Denton ... Follow Rebecca on Twitter ... Rebecca Denton on Facebook ... Add This Beats Perfect to Goodreads

I’m one of those people that works well with a ton of distraction. The TV on, the radio on, music, whatever - for some reason I’m more comfortable working when there’s noise. There’s something nice about dipping out of the world you’re creating and having a constant atmosphere of inspiration to dip in and out of.

Last year, the Nobel’s caused great controversy by awarding the prize for literature to Bob Dylan.  There were lots of book folk angered by this for various reasons, the New York Times had a piece that simply argued by giving the award to him, a musician, a writer missed out.  And in these times of declining long form reading, that is a damn shame.

But when it comes to telling stories, in my opinion lyrics can be as potent as any poetry.  Here are a couple of the artists that inspired me when I was writing This Beats Perfect.

Regina Spektor

You might know her as the writer of the OISTNB theme song, but there’s so much more to her than that track. If there was ever an artist that made me want to start writing, Regina Spektor was the one. When I saw her play in a pokey little place off Tottenham Court Road over 10 years ago, she sat at a piano and sang/told these brilliant, eccentric stories that were just so mind-blowingly creative.  After a decade of guitar rock I felt like someone blew open a door to a whole new room.  I feel the recorded music sadly lacks that raw brilliance I saw live back then. But it’s still magic.

Tom Waits

Nothing makes me happier than songwriters who are theatrical and flamboyant storytellers and therefore I heart Tom Waits. As an artist, he is the *real deal* my friends – and there is no one I’d rather see live right now. Preferably in a dark, dingy wine bar in Berlin or Paris.  Prepare for heartbreak:

Get a taste of his theatrics; check out this classic interview with a perplexed Australian. This interview was apparently the inspiration for Heath Ledgers The Joker.

REVIEW: Consumed by Abbie Rushton

Consumed by Abbie Rushton was a really, easy readable book.   Right from the beginning I wanted to know more about the two main characters, Myla and Jamie and I wanted to know more about their individual situations. I liked that the story includes some aspects of mental health but at the heart of it, Consumed is a thriller and the identity of who did it kept me guessing!

The two main characters are Myla and Jamie and they're sort of thrown together in a well-meaning attempt at kindness between Myla's parents and Jamie's aunt.  Myla is suffering from panic attacks and agoraphobia after the murder of her sister two years ago, and Jamie is staying with his aunt for the summer following some troubles at home and a problem with eating. It is thought that perhaps the two could be good for each other and, after a rocky start, they seem to be!

I liked that the two main characters are both dealing with mental illnesses.  While I feel like Rushton's portrayal of Myla's agoraphobia and panic attacks didn't feel quite like it hit the spot for me and that perhaps other authors have done this better, I did appreciate the addition of a male teenager with an eating disorder.  I'd very much like to see more of this in YA. Jamie is really struggling throughout this story about eating and control and I really liked that his aunt in particular was quite supportive of Jamie's route towards recovery.

Aside from the thriller aspects, which I'll get to in a minute, and the mental health issues, my favourite part of the book is that Myla is a food blogger and spends a great deal of her time indoors cooking food and writing blog posts about food.  I'd love to read some of her blog posts! I loved the variety from the origins of carrot cake, Mauritian food, and her attempts at the perfect recipe for chilli brownies, I think it'd make for fascinating reading.

In fact, Myla spends a lot of her time online. From updating her blog, her online friendship with a girl called Eve ... but she's also interested in setting up a website that exonerates the man who has been convicted of her sister's murder.  This is obviously a contention between Myla and her family and is the basis of the thriller-ness of Consumed. I think the small-town setting helped this story along, as well as the different characters and how Abbie Rushton weaved everything together. I was definitely doubting many characters throughout the story unfolding and I love to be kept guessing like that!

So while there were some faults with Consumed it was definitely an interesting and pleasurable book to read and spend several hours with!

This book counts towards my British Books Challenge 2017!

Interview with Keren David #YAShot

You guys, YA Shot is almost here and I am super, super excited. It really is going to be the most epic day ever. 71 UKYA and UKMG authors all in one space, doing workshops and panels and signings and imagine all the flailing and the bookish conversations that will be had. YA Shot is a celebration of libraries and a year-long literacy programme that will include author visits and support for teenagers and young people who most need a little extra help. And for that reason, I'm more than happy to be involved with YA Shot, both on the day and with the Blog and Vlog tour.  I also have to give a big shout-out to Alexia Casale for doing an amazing job organising this whole thing. She's a superstar.

Today, on the YA Shot blog tour I am here with one of my favourite UKYA authors, Keren David. She's no stranger to Fluttering Butterflies and I've read and loved all of her books. Here is my review of her debut, When I Was Joe, and here is my review of her latest, This Is Not A Love Story. Check out my interview in which we talk writing essentials, fangirl-ing over authors, book recommendations and more.

To find out more about Keren David, do visit the following webites:

Keren David ... Follow Keren David on Twitter ... Add Keren David's books on Goodreads

To find out more about YA Shot, check out yashot.co.uk

Hello and welcome to Fluttering Butterflies, could you please introduce yourself and your books? 

Hello, thank you for hosting me on your lovely blog.  I took up writing YA books in 2008, after a long career in journalism, and my first book When I Was Joe, about a boy in witness protection, was published in 2010. That book became the first in a trilogy and I've also written three standalone books -  Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery, which I'm currently adapting into a musical, Salvage, about two siblings reunited after 12 years apart and my latest, This is Not a Love Story. 

At YA Shot, you'll be taking part in a panel entitled 'Crime and Punishment: Fictional wrongdoing and human rights' What can we expect from this panel and who do you think might be interested?

I am so intrigued by this panel, because I have absolutely no idea what it's going to be about, it'll all depend how our chair, Laura Jarratt decides to steer it. The other two writers on the panel are the awesomely talented Cat Clarke and Emma Haughton, and they both have crime novels out, but my latest book is more about the rules -  social, religious, cultural, legal - of love and relationships.  But then I have written a lot about crime in the past. So, it could be about anything, but most probably sex and violence, and I think that might interest just about anyone. 

Who are you most excited to meet at YAShot or are there any authors you'd fangirl over?

I am so excited about YAShot because so many author friends will be there, and usually we only meet on  Twitter or Facebook. I'll be fan-girling Tim Bowler, who I have wanted to meet forever,and also the amazing Alexia Casale for taking on the enormous task of organising YAShot, and creating such a brilliant event. 

What are your earliest or fondest reading or library memories?

My dad used to take me to the library at Campus West in Welwyn Garden City every week and I have very fond memories of browsing the shelves there -  often taking out books that were old favourites. Then at secondary school I managed to skip a lot of assemblies and RE lessons, because I was Jewish, so the library was a calm, quiet oasis in the school day. I'd read the newspaper while the rest of my class were singing hymns. 

What would you say you've learnt during or after the publication of each of your novels? (about any research done, the publishing industry, your writing process etc)

Book 1 (When I was Joe): I can write a book. It doesn't have to be autobiographical. 

Book 2 (Almost True): I can write another book. I can't do news editing at the same time though. 

Book 3 (Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery): Sometimes you can do too much research. 

Book 4 (Another Life): You can write a trilogy without having planned it as a trilogy. 

Book 5 (Salvage): Don't forget to put dialogue in your book.

Book 6 (This is Not a Love Story): Sometimes writing about your own world is more difficult that imaging yourself into someone else's.

What are some of your writing essentials?

A power point -  my laptop battery has died. And the laptop is about to die too. 

Tea. Sometimes chocolate.

Silence. 

Ideally I need somewhere with no internet, or where I don't know the internet password.

I love that YAShot is filled with such an amazing array of UKYA/UKMG authors. Who are some of your favourite authors recently or what are some of your favourite books?

One by Sarah Crossan is extraordinarily good.  I'd never read a book in verse before, and I was blown away by it. 

When I Was Me by Hilary Freeman is a book which keeps you thinking long after you turn the last page.

I adored Susie Day's Pea books, and I was so happy to see the linked follow-up The Secrets of Sam and Sam. 

Helen Grant's Forbidden Spaces trilogy is fabulous, and I loved the final book, Urban Spaces, which came out earlier this year.

I could go on and on.....

And finally, can you tell us anything about your upcoming book, Cuckoo?! 

Cuckoo is due to come out August 2016, and it's about a boy called Jake who has a career as a  child actor, a brother who doesn't speak and a father who suffers from stress.  

Thank you so much, Keren! Hugely looking forward to your panel at YAShot AND reading your new book!  

REVIEW: This Is Not A Love Story by Keren David

This Is Not A Love Story by Keren David was a really amazing read. I knew it would be. I've previously read and loved every book by Keren David and she has quickly become a favourite author.

Briefly, This Is Not A Love Story, is about three main characters. Kitty and Theo are both Londoners who have recently moved to Amsterdam and meet each other at school and meet each other and also, Ethan, this rather moody boy. This is a story about finding that place to belong about friendship and family and about falling in love.

Instead of doing a more traditional review for this book, I thought instead I might give you this list.


5 Reasons I Love and Recommend This Is Not A Love Story by Keren David


1. Keren's writing style

As I said, I'm a huge fan of Keren David's stories. I've read every book she's published and I've loved each of them for very different reasons. The thing that ties all of the stories together is Keren's unique writing style that pulls strands of everything together to form this wonderful story. This is a great story about friendship and family and religion and sexuality with a great setting but woven together with all of these different things is emotion and honesty and there's just something about the way the author tells this story that makes me believe every word and makes me feel strongly about the characters and their relationships to each other.


2. Jewishness

I absolutely adored the mention of the Jewish religion in this book. I don't come across many references to Jewish people or Jewish customs and holidays in a lot of the YA that I read so it was absolutely refreshing to have religion play a significant part of the story, especially one that I know very little about. I specifically loved focus on the experiences of North London Jewish people and how this community is so significant. I loved how each of the characters has her/his own take on the Jewish religion: Kitty wants to escape the fishbowl effect of being part of this community, Theo embraces it and Ethan feels on the outside of it all.


3. Sexuality

While I think there is a great deal of falling in love in this story, it's worth bearing in mind that as the title suggests, this is not a love story! The way in which sexuality is explored is included as one of my reasons for loving this book so much is because I really did enjoy the twist given to the love triangle trope. I also just loved the way in which new relationships are described just in general. Kitty in particular is very open to speculating on how she should be feeling as she begins a new relationship with Theo and exploring her own thoughts and feelings about previous expectations compared to how she is feeling.  And the same goes for Theo as he questions his own changing ideas of his sexuality and how he feels about Ethan.


4. Social media

I feel like sometimes authors have this fear of including popular culture into their stories. There is, I'm assuming, the fear that inclusion of such things in stories will date a novel far quicker than omitting such things entirely. Personally, I find that including such things as YouTube and Instagram, the way in which Keren David did in This Is Not A Love Story, causes me, as a social media addict, to enjoy the story on another level. And at the same time as being very on point with the times, I loved the way in which Kitty begins to examine her social media presence and the way in which she feels it necessary to always put her best face forward and always portray herself and her life in the best possible way. I think this goes back to expectations that I brought up previously and I think it's a very clever way of exploring the idea of identity and how things like social media have an impact on one's idea of self.


5. Amsterdam

Most of all, more than any other reason in this list, one of the biggest reasons I love and recommend This Is Not A Love Story is that it feels so much like a love letter to Amsterdam. I've been to Amsterdam, and recently, and after reading the descriptions of Amsterdam in this book I felt like I could close my eyes and be transported right back to Amsterdam. Keren David really brought the atmosphere of Amsterdam to life in this story. And it is very clear from the way she writes about the place that Amsterdam must hold a special place for Keren David. It really shines through and makes me want to immediately book a ticket to return!

REVIEW: Deception by CJ Redwine

Deception by CJ Redwine is the second book in the Courier Daughter's trilogy. The first book, Defiance, was a book that I absolutely LOVED when I read it maybe two years ago? And I was always going to be excited to carry on the trilogy. ...It's just taken me a little longer than I expected to do so.

Despite the length of time between reading the first book in the trilogy and the sequel, I didn't find that I'd forgotten that much when I started reading Deception.  I felt like CJ Redwine did a great job of creating a memorable world, memorable characters and definitely a memorable scenario that we find ourselves reading about.  And right from the first page of Deception, I found it very easy to fall back into this world. And it felt exciting and emotional right from the start.

This book will contain spoilers for the first book in the trilogy, Defiance, but will not contain any spoilers for Deception. If you haven't yet read Defiance but are interested in reading this trilogy at some point, I suggest that you stop reading now.

Deception takes place right after the ending of Defiance. Rachel and Logan are in the battered remains of Baalboden and it's up to Logan to organise everyone and shift all of the survivors of Baalboden out into the Wasteland and kept safely away from the Commander's army that is chasing them down.  He has a plan to ally himself with one of the other city-states but must face new challenges, the pressures of leadership as well as a mole within his straggling band of survivors.

At the same time, Rachel is really dealing with the grief over her father and Oliver and also her conflicted feelings over killing a man. These losses weigh heavily on her and at the same time she feels so much rage against the Commander and wants him to pay for what he's done and what he's taken from her and everyone around her.

Most of this book is like a road trip story as Rachel and Logan and the others are trying to get from one place to another but with Cursed Ones ready to pop up and destroy everything in sight, an army chasing them from one side, a tracker picking people off from another, dissension in the ranks as well as some hot tempers.

What I really loved about this second book in the trilogy is that we see more development of all the main characters, the action is moved along without that much unnecessary drama and we get a bunch more information about the world, the Commander, our main characters and the Cursed Ones.  I especially love the elements of technology and of fighting and the ways in which the community of Baalboden change their opinions of both gender and outsiders.

Willow and Quinn, the two Tree People that we meet in the first book play a huge part in Deception.  Quinn faces a lot of criticism and name-calling from some of the Baalbodens and I loved the way in which she went out about winning them over. And I loved the way in which Quinn's relationship with Rachel unfolded and hearing more about his upbringing and why he has the no weapon policy.  I found it all very interesting and I wanted more. This entire book is filled with fascinating people and relationships and I read this whole book wanting more of everything!

At the heart of this book, though, is Rachel and Logan.  And I thought they were both adorable in this book.  Obviously dealing with a lot, but they end up dealing with things together. I love how they both let each other stand on their own and they fight all of the co-dependency issues that most couples in YA succumb to.

I absolutely loved this book and this trilogy so far! If you haven't yet discovered this trilogy I really highly recommend them.

REVIEW: Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi is the second book in the trilogy which started with Under the Never Sky.  That book introduced us to this world and these characters.  I remember absolutely loving Under the Never Sky when I read it several years ago. It felt addictive and emotional and incredibly exciting.

Unfortunately for me, that same level of emotion and excitement wasn't quite there when I was reading this sequel.  I could see that there were lots of several very tense scenes, lots of people being reunited and being separated but I couldn't quite bring myself to feel very much about these comings and goings. And I can't quite put my finger on if it's the writing style that let me down or if it's just the huge gap in time between reading the first book in the series and this book?

The following review will have minor spoilers for the first book in the series, Under the Never Sky, but will not contain any spoilers for Through the Ever Night. If you have not yet read Under the Never Sky and would like to, I would suggest not reading any further!

Through the Ever Night takes place directly after the ending of Under the Never Sky and Perry and Aria are reunited after the explosive events of Under the Never Sky.  Perry is now the Blood Lord of The Tides and Aria is being blackmailed by Hess to find the location of the Still Blue with Talon, Perry's nephew, being used as leverage. Perry and Aria are determined to stay together and work with each other to find the Still Blue in order to save Talon but also to save The Tides.

But what neither of them realise is how much things have changed. Especially for Perry who now have hundreds of people depending on him to lead them into safety. Because things aren't great for them right now. They're facing starvation and uncertainty with the Aether throwing down storms that threaten their very existence. And while Perry might have thought the hard work was done when he became Blood Lord, it's actually a lot more complicated as he must earn the respect of those he's leading. And none of them are all that keen to accept Aria as one of them.

What I found interesting about this book is that the challenges that are placed upon Perry and Aria help each of them to see that it might be better to be with other people - other people who share their special gift, or other people who would be more acceptable to their families and communities. These things, I thought, helped them both to see that love is hard and that it's going to be difficult but that they what's important is the choosing to be with someone during the good times and the bad.

A lot happens during Through the Ever Night.  There are lots of new twists and alliances made and I thought it was an interesting second book in this trilogy. I'm hoping to read the third book very soon as I'd love to know how this story will end and I hope the best for these very intriguing characters!

REVIEW: Unspeakable by Abbie Rushton

I quite enjoyed Unspeakable by Abbie Rushton.  It's a debut book by a UK author and that always excites me.  It also includes a LGBT relationship which I thought was quite sweet and cute.  And the majority of the story revolves around friendship and this sort of mystery that surrounds why Megan doesn't speak.

The main character of Unspeakable, Megan, hasn't spoken in months after an unnamed, traumatic event. And while there are some hints at Megan's guilt and about what has happened and the reason behind Megan's inability to speak, we don't find out until quite a ways through the book.  The first half in particular, you can see that while Megan quite clearly does not want to speak or confront what has happened in the part, she does also find it difficult to not speak in other situations.

Instead of learning about what has gone on in the past, we learn more about Megan, who lives at home with her flaky single-parent mum and she goes to school and has just the one friend, Luke, and is further surrounded by bullies and mean girls that are led by top mean girl, Sadie. I quite liked Megan's mum who can be a bit useless at times, but you can see that at other times she's trying her best even if she doesn't always succeed.

The only real bright spot in Megan's life is the arrival of new girl, Jasmine, who is bright and bubbly and who makes Megan want to speak again.  I really loved Megan and Jasmine's friendship and seeing how this friendship evolves into something more throughout the story.

While I did enjoy the characters and story line and the friendships, the only thing that I really felt let down by is the ending.  When we find out who is behind the threatening behaviour and the reason for it, it didn't quite fit in with how I viewed this cast of characters and I just didn't quite believe in the justification of it being this particular character.

Still.  On the whole, this is a really interesting story of friendship and about grief and moving on from loss.

#NightSchoolWebSeries + GIVEAWAY!

Have you guys been watching the Night School web series?  It's the first time a British book series has been turned into a web series and I think it's all kinds of crazy exciting.  There's six episodes that they've filmed and have been uploading to the YouTube channel one episode a week every Friday since December.  Each of the episodes are between 3 and 10 minutes long and each episode has really delved into a character's head or back story in these really intriguing ways.  

Here's the official blurb on the whole project...

Night School the Web Series tells the story of Allie Sheridan, a school girl at Cimmeria Academy, an exclusive British private school that hides a dark secret. At the heart of Cimmeria is Night School, a Bullingdon Club style secret society whose members are both destined to run the country and mentored by the world’s most powerful people. When Night School members become involved with a series of student murders, the secret society implodes and Cimmeria Academy becomes the scene of a civil war between teachers, students and Night School members. With no-one to trust and friends getting murdered all around her, Allie finds herself caught up in a love triangle between two of Night School’s most powerful members; Sylvan and Carter.

This Friday, the 16th of January, sees the final episode being aired and to celebrate I will be providing this recap of all the webisodes in the series so far AND you will have the chance to win a giveaway of all four of the books in the Night School series by CJ Daugherty published thanks to the lovely people at Midas! 

Episode 1: Flashback

This first episode flashes back to a time before Allie Sheridan was a kick-ass member of the Night School at Cimmeria Academy and has a really fun look at out-of-control Allie. The one breaks and enters and destroys property and apparently just doesn't care.  Only it looks like she really does care much more than she's letting on. Especially when she reads her school record in the head teacher's office.

Episode 2: The Other One

I've heard a lot of people say that episode 5 is their favourite.  Me? I quite like episode 2.  And erm. Not because Carter is wet and half naked for most of this episode. Of course not.

The Other One is Carter's story.  Talking about his own background, and Night School and Nathaniel but also about how Carter messed things up and how difficult it is to see Allie move on.  It's quite an emotional episode.  But then there is a shower scene AND an emerging-froom-the-lake-Mr-Darcy-style. So there is that.

Episode 3: Power

The third episode is all about Nathaniel and the power he has as well as craves.  This is shown through a rare interview that was filmed but never broadcast.   You get a great sense here of Nathaniel's sinister character and also his connection with Lucinda.

Episode 4: The Gilmore Girl

And then there's episode 4, all about the 'mean girl' of Cimmera, Katie Gilmore. My favourite thing about this episode is that it is incredibly fun.  There's upbeat music and a montage of Katie having a facial and a manicure and shopping and having her make-up done as she talks about serious things happening in Cimmeria and how she decided which side to join.  'Thank God for this face' I love you, Katie.

Episode 5: All the Pretty Killers 

Just to warn you, episode 5 will totally spoil things for you if you haven't at least read the second Night School book, Legacy. Be warned.

In this episode, we see Allie dreaming about talking with and spending time with her best friend, Jo, who is dead.  This is quite the emotional episode and I really felt like the strength of friendship between Allie and Jo is shown really well.

Episode 6 is called Bang and will appear on the Night School web series YouTube page Friday morning.  I, for one, will definitely be watching!

Now you've seen all the episodes in the Night School web series, you might want to read the books, yes?  If I hadn't already read the series (which I love!) this web series would definitely whet my appetite for more.  But lucky for you, if you are in that position, you now have the chance to win the first four books in the Night School series by CJ Daugherty.

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REVIEW: Huntress by Malinda Lo

I've had a copy of Huntress by Malinda Lo on my TBR pile for such a long time.  I can't think now why I waited so long before tackling this wonderful novel?  Huntress is set in the same world as Ash but many centuries before it and is filled with great characters, an exciting adventure and a world filled with the detail and influences of Chinese traditions.  I found it very easy to relate with these characters and with this interesting fantasy world. 

Huntress is the story of a band of travellers who are on a quest to visit the mythical Fairy Queen who might have answers to why the crops are failing, why the seasons have stopped changing and why strange things are happening and why dangerous creatures have started appearing in their lands.

On this journey are Taisin, who is studying to become a Sage. She is inexperienced in dealing with the otherworldly but is also someone who holds great promise and skill who is able to see visions of what the future holds. With her is Kaede, the daughter of the King's chancellor and who is somebody who has no skill in becoming a sage but who is competent in other things. She goes on this journey in order to escape her father's expectations of her and the prospective marriage for political gain.  With them is the Prince and three guards. 

I really loved the adventure that this band of people go through during the course of the novel. Things don't run very smoothly but it is the way in which these events shape the characters and how they react to them that made everything much more interesting.  I really enjoyed reading the way in which Taisin was trying to gather more information and evidences about the weird occurrences on their trip and also the way in which Kaede began learning to protect herself and the others from the guards. Their goal of meeting the fey queen and solving the issues that have affected the world they live in was always the number one priority for Taisin, Kaede, and the others and the feelings that crop up between the two girls becomes and secondary story line.  I liked that about this book. That this lovely, slowly built-up romance appears in the book but that character development and the main plot always continue as the main focus. 

Having said that, Kaede and Taisin's relationship is utterly sweet and I was really rooting for them throughout. A lot of barriers to their relationship are brought up initially - rules of becoming a Sage and also the pressures of making political alliances - but I really was hoping for the best for them both! 

Huntress was a wonderful and adventurous fantasy novel filled with the great characters and relationships. I found it quite easy to believe in the world-building and the situations and problems they had to face. I will continue to look forward to reading anything else by Malinda Lo...

Night School Fracture by CJ Daugherty Blog Tour

AHHHH! It's finally here, the *final* section of the exclusive story from Carter's POV.  How excited are you?!  Let's get right to it:


‘Listen, Jules …’ He faltered and she looked at him with concern.

‘What’s the matter? Did something happen?’

‘I just think …’ He reached for her hand, threading his fingers through hers. ‘We need to be careful. You matter to me. And I couldn’t bear to lose you. After Allie, I’m afraid that …’ He shook his head then and just said it simply. ‘I’m afraid.’

‘Shhh.’

Reaching up, she rested her palm gently against his face. His eyes drifted shut as he leaned in to her touch.

He’d been so lonely for so long it hurt not to be alone.

‘Listen to me, Carter West,’ she said with soft determination. ‘You will never lose me. Whatever happens tonight or tomorrow night or all the tomorrows after, I will always be there for you. Do you understand me? Always.’

As she said the words he’d always wanted Allie to say his eyes flew open. He saw nothing in her dark blue gaze but love and honesty.

He so wanted to believe she was right. Maybe, all this time, he’d been looking

in the wrong place. Trying to make something happen with Allie when Jules was right here. Waiting for him.

‘Jules …’ With a sigh of surrender he lowered his lips to hers.

##

Twenty minutes later Carter and Jules walked down a side staircase to the ground floor, hand-in-hand. He could still feel the touch of her lips against his. Smell her scent on his clothes. They moved with easy synchronisation.

He felt happy for the first time in weeks. His thoughts were clear of the haze that had hung over them since he and Allie broke up. He felt focussed. Alive.

As they neared the great hall, Carter noticed the crowds seemed to have thinned. Jules looked around with a puzzled frown.

‘I hope we haven’t missed the speeches.’ She dropped his hand and hurried her pace. ‘Isabelle will kill me.’

Before he could reply they both heard the pounding of footsteps. A Night School student shot by them, loosening his tie as he ran. He was heading for the basement staircase.

Someone called their names.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as they turned in unison. Zelazny was sprinting down the wide hallway towards them.

 ‘Training Room One,’ the instructor said without breaking stride. ‘Now.’

Carter and Jules exchanged a tense look.

‘I guess the party’s over,’ she said.

Then they ran.

REVIEW: Fracture (Night School 3) by CJ Daugherty

I love the Night School series so much. It really is my favourite recent series and I really loved Fracture, the third book in the Night School series.  In this, Allie is grieving and angry over the events of the previous book, she's trying to work out who she can trust and she's a bit frustrated with the lack of options when it comes to working out who the traitor in the midst and how to proceed after the loss of her friend. 

I do love a girl with anger issues and that is exactly who Allie is at the start of Fracture. Thankfully, over time she is able to see that she wasn't the only person affected by Jo's death and everyone at the Academy and within Night School is working towards the same goals. Throughout, I've loved Allie for her humour and wit, her big heart, her braveness and her strength and determination.

The other students at Cimmeria are also wonderful, I loved the ongoing friendships between Allie and Rachel and Zoe.  Lucinda and Isabelle are both fascinating characters that bring interesting things to the story.  But of course, it is the relationships between Allie and both Carter and Sylvain that makes my heart beat faster.  I loved the realisations that Allie makes in this book in terms of her romantic dealings and how she was able to talk through her confusion and make some decisions.  I'm sure not everyone will be happy with the outcome, but I definitely am!

I love the fast pace of both this novel and the entire series. Everything felt like it was on full-throttle and there's never a dull moment at Cimmeria Academy!  While there are many things revealed to Allie and to us the readers about Night School history and their importance globally as well as what part Nathaniel and Isabelle play into Night School, there are still many questions left unanswered... which can feel slightly frustrating as the next book will not be published until next year!

Fracture was a wonderful blend of mystery, action, romance and friendship. I'm dying to return to these characters and story, the fabulously creepy boarding school and to see where this series will go next!

Night School Fracture by CJ Daugherty Blog Tour coming soon!

I really love the Night School series by CJ Daugherty and am very happy to be taking part in this blog tour, coming soon. Here are some details and the book trailer to whet your appetites...

We are super excited about CJ Daugherty’s latest novel Fracture coming out this month! As part of the celebrations around the launch of the book, CJ  has written an exclusive short story which is set during the ball at the end of her first term at Cimmeria, which ties in with  the end of book one in the series. Think you know everything that happened between Allie and Carter in book one, well think again. CJ’s exclusive story reveals that fateful night from the point of view of everyone’s favourite hottie Carter! Find out exactly what he thinks about Allie and where things started to go wrong.

In order to read this story all you have to do is visit six blogs over the course of one week, each blog will reveal a little bit more of the story in chronological order (see blog tour banner). Starting on Thursday 15^th August and finishing on 20^th August when Fracture is available to buy (we’ve already pre-ordered ours)! So what are you waiting for, make sure you head over to the I Want To Read That blog on Thursday 15^th.

Blog Tour: Night School Legacy by CJ Daugherty

Night School Legacy is the second book in the amazing Night School series by CJ Daugherty! It has become one of my favourite recent series and I urge you all to pick up both Night School and Night School Legacy.

I'm hugely excited to take part in the blog tour for this book! Not only am I supporting an adopted British author and a very cool book, but there's also some really great prizes up for grabs throughout this blog tour.

To find out more about CJ Daugherty or the Night School series, please visit the following websites:

CJ Daugherty ... CJ on Twitter ... CJ on Facebook ... Atom

Here is the summary for Night School Legacy, and then I'll pass you over to CJ...

In the last year, Allie's survived three arrests, two breakups and one family breakdown. The only bright point has been her new life at Cimmeria Academy. It's the one place she's felt she belongs. And the fact that it's brought the dreamy Carter West into her life hasn't hurt...But far from being a safe haven, the cloistered walls of Cimmeria are proving more dangerous than Allie could've imagined. The students, and faculty, are under threat and Allie's family - from her mysterious grandma to her runaway brother - are at the centre of the storm. Allie is going to have to choose between protecting her family and trusting her friends. But secrets have a way of ripping even the strongest relationships apart...

Awesome Women

by CJ Daugherty

Most of the women who inspired me when I was young were fictional: Lucy and Susan in The Narnia Chronicles, who were both so STRONG and brave; Sara Crewe in The Little Princess, who never stopped being kind, no matter how bad things became.

But I always knew they weren’t real. And for me, true inspiration came from life.

The real woman who inspired me every day was Juanita Robbins, my grandmother.

She was beautiful, with waves of white-grey hair tumbling down to her waist. Her Native American blood showed in her high cheekbones and her dark, piercing eyes.

I’m convinced my love of reading came from her – my parents weren’t readers and there were no books in my childhood home but her home was filled with them, and she nurtured my love of learning and encouraged my desire to write.

When she died at the age of 86 I inherited her journals, each one filled with an impatient scrawl so like my own. It was then I discovered the truth about her life.

As a young woman she’d longed to be a writer but in her conservative southern family in the 1930s that wasn’t considered a suitable job for a woman. She couldn’t bring herself to hurt her parents so she abandoned her dreams and married a man who worked as a printer at the local newspaper – that was as close as she got to a career in letters.

She grew up poor in rural Texas, an only child. During the Depression, her father lost his job and her parents couldn’t afford to feed her, so they sent her to an orphanage in Oklahoma. She was 12 at the time.

In the end, it was less than two years before her father was working again and they brought her home, but she never got over it. It broke her heart.

In pictures from that time, she looks like a movie star, all huge eyes and rosy cheeks, standing slim and straight, wild as a sparrow.

My Great Aunt Mildred was her best friend – they are together in almost all her childhood photos. She told me Grandmother was regularly spotted by modelling agencies on the streets of Dallas but turned them all down. Like writing, modelling wasn’t something good girls did.

My memories of her are more prosaic. Chasing a tarantula out of the kitchen with a broom as I stand on a chair and scream. Pulling on white “driving gloves” to protect her hands from the sun when she drove to the supermarket.

Each time I saw her she’d slip books into my bag. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Secret Garden, The Little Princess, The Borrowers… I filled an entire bookcase with my grandmother’s books.

Many of them were antiques – books she or her parents read as children. To this day my bookcases are filled with old books, and there is no smell I like better than that of old paper and 19th-century ink.

Later, she was the one who told me I could become a writer if I wanted to– something that, until then, I’d never even considered. Because how could a girl from a house without books write?

My parents wanted me to go into banking.

Thank God for grandparents who understand their grandchildren better than their parents ever could. And thank God in particular for Juanita Robbins. My hero.

REVIEW: Night School Legacy by CJ Daugherty

Ooh, I was really looking forward to reading this second book in the Night School series by CJ Daugherty.  I really loved Night School, with its secrets and creepy boarding school setting and with Legacy, everything just felt more.  The risk of danger felt greater, the excitement was at a higher level, and because I knew these characters, I felt myself growing that much more emotionally invested.  Legacy is a fantastic sequel and this series has quickly become one of my favourites!

I really love Allie as a main character.  She's funny and feisty and in this book she's really doing her best to be able to protect herself and to find out the answers to those burning questions she has about Night School and her family.  But she's also got it a bit tough, with friendships, relationships and knowing who to trust. 

The first scene in Night School Legacy was really intense, as Allie is being tracked and hunted by these unknown men in suits.  It got my heartrate beating fast and was a brilliant way to start this rollercoaster ride of a book.  I do very much love Cimmeria Academy.  I love the idea of boarding schools and this one in particular with its shady secret society is wonderful.  Because of the events in the previous book and the fact that Allie was targeted at the start of the book, the whole book is set up with Allie and the reader questioning who to trust? And to make matters worse, Allie is forced to interrogate the person she is closest to.

Which leads me to mention something about Allie's confused relationship status.  I really loved Carter in the first book. He's the bad boy who sneaks out and breaks the rules.  He sticks up for Allie when Sylvain's brain takes a vacation at the formal ball in the previous book.  But can Allie really trust Carter? Can she see past his protectiveness and rely on him to be there still? And despite the way in which Sylvain acted that one time, Allie can see how much Sylvain has done since then to make up for his terrible behaviour.  I really enjoyed how much my feelings about both Carter and Sylvain change throughout reading this book.  I know some people are weary of love triangles, but for me, I'm still for them when they are written this well.  I've read both books in this series so far and while I had periods of knowing definitely that one boy was better suited to Allie than the other, now I'm not so sure. It could go either way and I'm on the edge of my seat to find out...

But this book is definitely more than just romantic involvements.  There's lots to be learned about Night School and who Allie's grandmother is.  There's the return of some dubious characters, a death, some heart-stopping action scenes and plenty of rule-breaking going on.  Night School Legacy is an exciting, action-packed sequel and I urge you all to pick this series up!

Book Trailer: Night School Legacy by CJ Daugherty

I have an exciting treat to share with you today! Earlier this year, I read and absolutely LOVED Night School by CJ Daugherty.  I love the boarding school setting, the feisty main character, the story which hints at paranormal activity but is in fact contemporary and is filled with twists and secrets and excitement and a bit of swoon.  

Well, early next year, the sequel, Night School Legacy is published. I have already read it and I assure you, it is even more exciting and emotional. It's definitely a series that you need to read! This time around Allie must face betrayal amongst her friends, she learns some shocking secrets about her family and has very confusing feelings about two boys in her life. It's wonderful. 

And today, as I will be taking part in the Night School Legacy blog tour in January, before you go off to enjoy your New Years Eve celebrations, here to whet your appetites is the very cool-looking trailer.  What do you think?

Also, stay tuned in the next few days for the official blog tour, which will include some very exciting things. Will you take part in the Night School challenge?! Read all about it below. And have a very safe and relaxing New Year's eve!

Do you have what it takes to face the Night School challenge?

To celebrate the publication of CJ Daugherty’s new book Legacy, she is offering fans of Night School the chance to join Allie and her friends in becoming members of the secret student group Night School. In order to prove you’ve got what it takes to join the highly competitive Night School you will have to distinguish the 14 skills every Night School member should have which will be hidden across the 14 blogs taking part in the tour.

Everyone who successfully completes the challenge will become a Night School member for life and will receive the Night School membership charter and Night School members’ badge as proof of membership, but, because intelligence and speed are two of the most important Night School skills, we will be rewarding those of you who are able to collect and enter the 14 skills in the fastest time. The first ten entrants to correctly enter the 14 skills will win an exclusive members only goodie bag, including: personalised copies of both Legacy and Night School as well as a Night School members material badge which can be sewn onto a book bag or school blazer and a place on an exclusive Google Hangouts chat with CJ Daugherty herself!

Night School Challenge Rules:

1. Visit 14 book blogs between 3^rd – 10^th January
2. Locate and collect 14 Night School Skill words
3. Return to the Night School Members page to enter your collected skills by 13^th January
4. The entry form will be live from January 10^th and will close at mid night on January 13^th
5. If you successfully complete the challenge you will become a Night School member for life – when this happens you will receive a membership charter and Night School members badge to download
6. The first ten people to receive Night School membership will be rewarded for their speed with an exclusive Night School goodie bag and a place on a Google hangouts chat with CJ Daugherty!

For more information, visit the members page on CJ Daugherty’s website here

Keren David (Celebrating British Authors)

I really love highlighting British books and authors and I would like to do more of that on this blog. So I thought one way to do this is by spotlighting an individual UK YA author once a month. (What do you think?)

To kick things off, Keren David... 

I really love Keren David's books. I was very excited to read Keren's debut book - When I Was Joe.  I loved that original cover of Ty/Joe with all the blue and the blood splatters and I am usually quite drawn to YA stories with a male narrator.  A further two books about Ty have been published, Almost True and Another Life and having just finished the third book in that series I can now say with certainty that the When I Was Joe series is one of my favourite series of recent times.  They are just so good. 

Keren David has also written a standalone novel, Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery.  I read the book last year and while I absolutely loved it, for reasons unconnected to the book entirely, I haven't yet reviewed it.  I was excited and intrigued to read the news that Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery would be adapted into a musical!

After reading When I Was Joe and Almost True, I started following Keren's blog.  Keren has a background in journalism, and I find her blog posts to be very thought-provoking and intelligent.  If you don't already read her blog or follow her on Twitter, I suggest that you do so. 

When I Was Joe ... Keren on Twitter ... When I Was Joe on FB ... Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery on FB

When I Was Joe 

I really fell in love with this book and with Ty's story right from the beginning. Knife crime is something that is becoming more common over the past few years and that's a real concern.  But for me, what I loved so much about  When I Was Joe is how much identity places into the story.  After witnessing a stabbing, Ty and his mother are placed into the witness protection programme. They are forced to change their names and start life over in another city.  Ty becomes Joe and is left wondering if with a new name and a different hair and eye colour, is he still the same person?  There's still so much humour in this book despite the grim topics of self-harm, knife crime and depression.  This book is an amazing debut novel and the start of an incredible series. 

This is the original cover of the book, which I still love, as well as the new simplistic covers. 

Almost True

I didn't think it was possible to love a book more than I loved When I Was Joe, but I did with Almost True.  I loved coming back to this story.  Ty is just a great main character, funny and interesting but somebody who makes seemingly endless mistakes and bad judgement calls.  This book is very much about being honest and telling the truth but also about taking responsibility for your actions and realising that people do stupid things bit still things can turn out okay. 

The tone of this book feels less light-hearted than When I Was Joe - there was a big shift in seriousness as Ty begins to realise how much the crime that he committed and the results of that are affecting his life and his family.  A really great sequel and another fantastic book!

Another Life 

I've recently reviewed Another Life, the third and final book in the When I Was Joe series.  I was a bit wary of a narrator change in this third book, but it turns out that as well as loving Ty, I still have room in my heart for Archie, his priviledged babe-magnet cousin. 

I really loved knowing once and for all what happens to Ty the good along with the bad.  I think it's interesting to see the consequences that Ty does face for his honesty regarding carrying a knife. I loved seeing these characters from a new perspective as Archie tries to find out more about Ty and his situation which leads down a very dangerous path...

Love this series so much and this is an excellent concluding novel!  What a journey.

Lia's Guide to Winning the Lottery

I've always thought it would be amazing to win the lottery.  But things don't all go smoothly for Lia Latimer when she wins £8million one day.  But then, things weren't great to start with... I found Lia's Guide to be utterly different from the Ty/Joe series, but at the same time it's just as well-written and interesting in the things it makes you as the reader think about. 

At the start, I really didn't like Lia's character. She's very self-centred and irritating and I found myself having very little sympathy for her when she gets kicked out of her house.  But Lia's character really grows on me throughout the novel.  After winning the lottery she does her best to work things out with her mother and her sister and her friends Jack and Shazia, but no one's perfect and Lia does a lot of things wrong.  But what I kind of loved about her in the end is that there is so much development in her character. 

I found it really interesting how Shazia's religious beliefs played a part in her friendship with Lia and the money that she has won.  I loved the beginnings of a relationship between Lia and Rafe, even though Lia suspects that he may be a paranormal creature.  What would you do if you won 8 million pounds in the lottery at the age of 16? 

**AND! Here is the press release concerning what's coming next for Keren David...**

Atom Editorial Director Samantha Smith has acquired two new "home-grown contemporary YA" novels by multi-award-winning author Keren David, buying UK and Commonwealth rights from Jenny Savill of Andrew Nurnberg Associates International Ltd.

The first of the two stand-alone novels, Salvage tells the story of two siblings from a neglectful home, who were separated as young children when one was adopted by a middle-class family. Now aged 16 and 18 they are reunited through Facebook, with none of the preparation and support that social workers advise.

"Keren David treads that immensely difficult line between being compulsively readable but not shying away from many of the real, and heart-breaking, issues that teens face," says Smith. "We’re thrilled to be bringing such a strong, British author onto the list and have big plans for Keren in the future."

A former journalist, David made the transition to writing teen fiction with the publication of When I Was Joe in 2010. Her latest novel, Lia’s Guide to Winning the Lottery, was published in summer 2011 and is currently being made into a musical.

"I am thrilled to be working with Atom," says David. "I think there's a growing audience in the UK for home-grown contemporary YA, and it's great to get a vote of confidence from a leading publisher."

Atom - the Little, Brown Book Group’s children’s and young adult imprint - will publish Salvage in early 2014.    

Have you read anything by Keren David? What did you think?