Family of Liars Soundboard

This is a little early, I know (this isn't out till May, I believe), but I had read this (a good chunk of it while I was in line for rides at Thorpe Park) and I thought rather than write up a review that I can't really go deep into as this book, I think, works best when you go in blind. But I wanted to do something that would be a little fun at the same time. 

And, of course, I went down my rabbit hole of music and thinking of songs that catch the vibe of the book without revealing anything. I remember Hot Key, the UK publishers, created a small playlist for when We Were Liars was first published (It took me ages to find it but I FOUND THE PLAYLIST). So I thought "Oh, a sound board would be fun and different. And I have songs that fit the mood of the book that aren't spoilers!"

And my music tastes are a little odd. Plus, this is a prequel to We Were Liars, so the songs I picked don't exactly fit the time when the book is set, but let's have some fun, shall we? Plus, how do I do this without spoilers... 

I hope you like these songs choices and, once the book is released, I will be super curious over your song choices...

re3 - We Were Liars

I don't reread books that often (though I always want to - I mean, my mental reread list is longer than I would like to admit), so it came as a surprise when, over the last few months, I had an itch to reread We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. 

Now, I first read this when the book came out back in 2014. I actually was very lucky and got a proof from the UK publisher, Hot Key Books, and I devoured it over the course of three or four days. It was an addictive read and so smart. 

But I don't often reread crime or mystery novels, for the main reason that once I know the twist, the story doesn't hold the same quality or that element of fun. There are exceptions to the rule (a good example is The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie), but once I knew the twist, I only really go back if I like the characters. 

But We Were Liars. I remember how obsessed I got with it when I first read this and, with news that a prequel (Family of Liars) is coming out in a few months, I wanted to reread this to refresh my memory, see if it still stood up and look at the clues for a new angle. 

So, shall we begin? 

Title and Author: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Gifted by UK publisher via NetGalley in exchange for honest review/reaction, but borrowed via Amazon's Prime Reading

The Sinclair family are rich. The Sinclair family are beautiful. The Sinclair family are liars.

Book Review - Terciel and Elinor

AT LAST! IT'S TIME FOR A NEW OLD KINGDOM BOOK! ANYONE ELSE EXCITED? ... no? Just me then.

Title And Author: Terciel and Elinor by Garth Nix
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Copy gifted by UK publisher in exchange of honest review/reaction. I, also, preordered the Forbidden Planet special edition 

If you have followed me for a little while, you know that I adore this series. I reread via audiobook the series in summer 2020 (Covid 19 lockdown burnout and a terrible case of reading slump) and it was a wonderful experience - even Clariel, a book I'm not the biggest fan of, I went "This is lovely. I missed this world." Plus, I think about the lead, Clariel, quite often. So, when it was announced that we were getting another instalment in this world, you can guess how excited I was? And the fact that it was a prequel to the first book in the series, Sabriel, looking at her parents made me more excited. 

Now, before I go further and explain the book, we get most of the information about Sabriel's parents in the prologue of Sabriel so we know where their story ends. But we don't know how they met and how the relationship evolved and that's what this book is about: her parents meeting.

Ok, I need to talk the story, don't I? In the Old Kingdom, where Charter Magic and Free Magic exists, 18 year old Terciel is the Abhorsen-In-Waiting. A necromancer to bind the Dead down and lay them to rest. Soon, he will be the Abhorsen and soon, he will have to face the Dead and, maybe, Greater Dead. But when he is sent south into the Ancelstierre, he doesn't realise the ploy he's walking into...

In Ancelstierre, where magic usually doesn't work (unless close to the Old Kingdom or the winds blowing from the north), 19 year old Elinor lives a seduced life. Her closest friends are her governess and a former circus performer. Her mother lies in bed, close to death. But in a space of a night, everything she knows is burnt, killed or ripped away from her as a ploy from an ancient enemy brings Terciel into her life and the truth of her connection to the Old Kingdom is revealed.

And still, the enemy is waiting, buying their time...

SpoOOoky Halloween 2021 - Redemptor

My first SpoOOoky Halloween post and this took some time as I audiobooked back in late August and early September while driving to and from my new job (I only listened to around 30/40 minutes per car trip, if I was in the mood and not too stressed/freaked out) and, because of how little time I listened, it took me so much longer than I normally would. Plus, at the time of writing this (back in early September, FYI), am having a bit of a head cold so... yeah... this might not be the best start of SpoOOoky Halloween, but we are going to take it and run with it! 

Title And Author: Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: eProof gifted by UK publisher in exchange for honest review/reaction while audiobook was borrowed from local library via BorrowBox app. 

After the shocking end of Raybearer, Tarisai now finds herself Empress Redemptor, sitting on Aritsar's throne, a Raybearer in her own right. But to appease the sinister spirits of the dead, she must anoint her own council, leaders from nations within the kingdom. Then, once done, she must descend into the Underworld, the final sacrifice to end all future atrocities. And she has only two years to do these impossible tasks in. 

Tarisai is determined to survive. To return from the Underworld. But her reign as empress is shaky, especially since the arrival of the mysterious rebel leader, the Crocodile, her council siblings and friends are becoming distant and she's started to see child spirits, all demanding that she must pay for the sins of the empire, that she must do more...

With the pressures growing and the ghosts refusing to leave her, how far can Tarisai go for justice and a better future? Is she willing to dine for it, or will she find the strength to live for it? And what if things have other plans?

#re3 - Mister Monday

Have you ever reread a book or audiobook that you really enjoyed in the past and yet, this time round, something feels off and you don't think it's the book but might be you? 

Well, I had that near the end of my reread of Mister Monday, the first book in the Keys to the Kingdom series by Garth Nix. And, like I said a few weeks ago, I think the events of the real world and possible blogging burnout might be the reason. 

Ok, I feel I should explain this book and why I decided to reread this, even though I reread this back in ... let me check my notes ... 2016 (write-up for that is here). So, I have read the series since Mister Monday was first published in the UK in 2003. This was published by HarperCollins and, while selling well and having a solid fanbase internationally, it never hit the heights of Garth Nix's other beloved series, The Old Kingdom (which, you guys know, I adore). So, it's been a little quiet in the past few years, until Hot Key Books bought the rights to republish the series. You see, in the past few years, Hot Key Books and its sister imprint, Piccadilly Press, have been publishing and rebranding Garth Nix's children and teen titles (Gollancz are publishing his adult titles, Angel Mage and Left-Handed Booksellers of London, and will be republishing Garth's space opera, A Confusion of Princes later this spring/summer). 

So, new covers, new branding for Garth Nix and, with it, a new audience. 

So, of course, I was excited and I wanted to reread this to refresh my memory and see what new tricks Hot Key is going to throw at it. 

And yet...

I really enjoyed returning to this world and its characters at the start of this. So excited and happy. And yet, the more I reread, the more meh I felt over it. And that;'s not the book's fault. I want to stress this. Normally, I would reread a book and usually, I love it or find new elements that make me go "Ooooh! I see what you did there", but this time, those "oooh" moments weren't really there and I can't explain why fully. 

I'm putting it down due to the climate the world is in at the moment. For the UK, we have been in a COVID-19 bubble/lockdown for a year now and, though there is the beginning of light at the end of the tunnel, I think the fatigue and the burnout is beginning to effect us now. Also, while I do love reread books and discovering new fun reads, I think I'm ready to rediscover some stories with a tad of meat on their books. 

So maybe my plan to read Middle Grade this March isn't going to happen. But as for my reread, sometimes, it's the right book for the wrong time. When I started, it was a the right story, but for the last few days, it wasn't and am glad I have refreshed my memory of this title and decided that, maybe later this year, I'll reread a later book in the (I was thinking one of the latter four: Sir Thursday, Lady Friday, Superior Saturday or Lord Sunday. Am leaning towards Sir Thursday or Lady Friday as, barring Mister Monday, these are the strongest of the series [Sir Thursday has an edge over Lady Friday]). 

Don't Eat That Poisoned Apple!

Mirror mirror, on the wall, who is deadliest of them all...?

I am really excited to be involved in the Poisoned blog tour. And, as you can probably see for the cover (this is one of the many reasons I jumped at this tour!), Poisoned is a Snow White retelling, from Jennifer Donnelly, the author behind award winning A Gathering Light, These Shallows Graves, Revolution and her Cinderella reimagining, Stepsister...

Once upon a time, a girl called Sophie went into the forest with the Queen's huntsman. Her lips as red as blood, skin as white as snow, hair as black as night, Sophie is about to inherit her father's throne. Expect the Queen believes Sophie is unworthy, too weak and too foolish, to rule. And Sophie believes her, believing all the poisonous words that people say to keep girls, women, people like her in their place.

Then, the huntsman carries out his order to kill her and cut out her heart... and yet, she lives. And she wants to reclaim everything that has been taken from her...

I am so excited as I always like hearing/watching reimagining of Snow White so as soon as I got the email from Blue, asking if I wanted to be involved in this tour, I JUMPED at it! So, thank you Blue for asking me! And thank you, Jennifer, for find time to write this delicious guest post! 

Oh, before I go, if you want to say hi to Jennifer, you can visit her via her website (JenniferDonnelly.com) or tweet her at @JenWritesBooks. And curious over Poisoned, check out Hot Key Books!

Now, over to Jennifer for the post!

FOXES Blog Tour Alert!

BLOG TOUR TIME! (You're going to be see those three words a lot over the next few weeks. Sorry in advance!)

Anyway, I am thrilled to be one of today's stop in the F.O.X.E.S. tour (tour info above, in case you're curious)! But what, pray tell, is F.O.X.E.S? Well, this is the thirds instalment in the popular S.T.A.G.S series by M.A. Bennett and this series is getting darker and more twisted by the instalment.

Greer is trying to recover from her terrifying experience from the events of the STAGS play. Was she really put on trail by the sinister Dark Order of the Grand Stag? Or was it all her veractive imagination? The puzzling M imprint on her thumb - M for Murderder - isn't evidence either way...

But things are happening that Greer is more worried over. Ty is staying at Longcross Manor and Greer, New and Shafeen become increasingly worried for her safety. So when the three get a cryptic text from Ty, telling them to visit Cumberland Place, they decide against their better judgement to go. There, they meet the grieving parents of Henry de Warlencourt. Rollo is arrogant, entitled and not grieving whereas Caro, while charming, is clearly pushed to her limit by Henry's death, insisting that Henry isn't dead.

But that;'s not possible. Right? And what is Rollo plotting for his deadly Boxing Day Hunt? Is history going to repeat itself or is something more horrible on the cards?

I am thrilled that M.A. Bennett has found time to write a guest post for the tour, talking about keeping the tension up in thrillers (I love a good thriller book/TV show/movie and I've always wonder how they keep the tension up...)

Now, before I hand it over to MA, I want to thank her for writing this post (I know how busy you are!) & I want to thank Faye for asking if I wanted to be involved in the tour! Now, if after reading this post, you're curious over F.O.X.E.S or the series in general, you can pop over to Hot Key Books for more info. Or, you can say hi to MA on her Twitter (@MABennettAuthor) or on Instagram (@MABennettAuthor)

Now, ONTO THE TENSION!!!

Revisiting the Old Kingdom

During COVID-19 lockdown/self-isolation, I read and audiobook a lot! And, as you probably see from a month or so back, I hit a reading wall and was on verge of reading slump and blogging slump. So, I decided to reread Sabriel, the first book in the Old Kingdom series by Garth Nix. This is usually my Go-To book when I'm on the verge of or in a reading slump as I adore this book!

Plus, me rereading this series is a long time coming as, for the past 18 months, I have openly said that I would reread Lirael, the second book in the series. I've been wanting to reread this for such a long time as, while I adore Sabriel, Lirael has a soft spot in my heart as does Goldenhand (I will explain why a little further down).

So, the past few months, I finally sucked it up and reread the whole series. Expect, I've not reread them. I have audiobooked them, and while I've only ever audiobook Sabriel, so this is a new experience for me, and yet, not quite at the time same.

So, what do I class this? A Reread Post (aka re3 post) or a new post? A mix of both? An experience post?

Not sure where to start, so let's talk about rereading these books and me falling back in love with this world.

I suppose I should explain what the series is about, though that is a little of a hard one to explain. The Old Kingdom series is a high fantasy series which, primary, is set in the Old Kingdom, a kingdom where magic exist (well, two types. Charter Magic and Free Magic) and the Dead can walk, pulled back into Life by nercomancers or Free Magic adapts. Only the Abhorsen can lay the Dead to rest and force them into the cold river of Death and, hopefully, through the Nine Gates.

I suppose I should, also, explain reading order and history as, even as a fan, this is a weird one. Sabriel is the first, published in the UK in 2002 but published in Nix's homeland of Australia in 1995. This was, originally, a standalone so you can easily read this and you would be perfectly fine. Lirael and Abhorsen was published in 2003 and 2004. Set around 20 years after the events of Sabriel, this is one story told over two books, so you have to read this duology together. Clariel is a tricky one - almost the black sheep of the family - as it's a prequel, set around 300 years before the events of Sabriel and things happen in there that have an effect on the series. And Goldenhand takes place six months after the events of Abhorsen.

Which leads to reading order. There are, to my knowledge, three ways you can read this series, if you wish. You can read it in publication order (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen, Clariel and Goldenhand with the two novellas, Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case and To Hold A Bridge before Goldenhand - yes, there are short stories set in this world, but not gonna touch on them in this post!), you can read in timeline order (Clariel, Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen and Goldenhand) or you do publication order but flip Clariel and Goldenhand about so the order would be Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen, Goldenhand then Clariel.

I know, that last order sounds weird, but it does work and make sense. Because Clariel is a prequel and hints at one or two things to come, you can either read it before or after Goldenhand. You can read it before and go "Oh, that's what happened" or you can read it after and go "Oh, that's what happened!"

But, in either way, I do say read Sabriel first as it sets up the world and magic system and Lirael and Abhorsen is one story told over two books and, if possible, read Clariel and Goldehand as close together if possible, though this isn't essential.

So, my reread and thoughts. Well, to no one's surprise, Sabriel and Lirael are wonderful books. I will happily push these two onto people. They are wonderful and am shocked that it's taken me so long to reread these. The same goes Wirth Abhorsen, though I don't have as much affection to it compared to Sabriel or Lirael. I feared at one point that this would be four stars, but Garth pulls it back right at the end!

Clariel and Goldenhand are odd balls. I've not read these as much compared to the others (only once or twice) and I have read affection for these. I read Goldenhand while in New York City on holiday with my partner who proposed on that trip, hence my soft spot. And with Clariel, I've been waiting for this book for such a long time and, while not my fave in the series, I do keep thinking about the main character, Clariel, quite often as she is quite a complex character.

But this reread was different. And I have two reasons for this. The first is I was audiobooking this time round and, because of that, I had three different narrators. Tim Curry, Graeme Malcolm and Heather Wilds. Now, I have listened to the audiobook of Sabriel many years ago so I have heard Tim Curry reading and I adore his voice. It just fits (plus, how he does Mogget is wonderful) so, I knew I would love his reading of Lirael and Abhorsen. And I did. Hugely.

But, as we all know, he suffered a stroke several years ago, meaning he was unable to continue acting and reading the series. Hence, Graeme and Heather stepping in to read Clariel and Goldenhand. And this is a bit jarring when you are doing one audiobook after another. I am going to be honest here, I see why Graeme was chosen to do Clariel, but I never warmed to his voice. The same goes, up to a point, with Heather. I see why she was chosen and I did like her reading, but some of the choices she made with character's voices were puzzling.

Plus, I did audiobook Goldenhand at the worst possible time in my life (I will explain in further but not now. At the time of writing, it'a too soon and too raw).

But I am, overall, really glad I revisited the Old Kingdom. And with the sixth book in the series coming out the end of next year (it will either be called Terciel and Elinor or Terciel [not sure as getting conflicting info on that front), I can;'t wait to come back into this world. Or maybe reread a book or two before diving straight back!

Midnight's Twins Blog Tour - Not At Midnight...

BLOG TOUR TIME! Two in one month! You guys must be in shock!

I am thrilled to be today's stop in the Midnight Twins tour, the first book in a new urban fantasy trilogy written by debut author, Holly Race!

Fern has uncovered a mirror world of ours, where Dreamers can walk in this enchanted, mysterious world know as Annwn. But Annwn is full with as much danger as it does with wonders. For this, Annwn and its Dreamers are protected by an ancient order known as the Knights.

But when Fern's twin, Ollie, is chosen to join the Knight, Fern will do whatever it takes to prove herself worth to join.

But as Fern tries, she does that Annwn, in this dream mirror of her London, is fragile. It's threatened by terrifying and vicious nightmares. Nightmares that are getting harder to defeat. Something dark is happening, and Fern slowly realises that something dark and insidious is lurking in our sleep. Because if you can influence someone's dreams, you can control their thoughts...

This sounds nuts, and so up my street! So, as soon as I was asked to be involved in this tour, I had to get involved! And I am thrilled that Holly found time to write a small guest post for this tour! I know she must be writing the second book in this trilogy so to have this is wonderful!

Before I hand it over to the guest post, I want to thank Holly for finding time to write this post and for Faye & Hot Key Books for asking me to be involved in this tour. If you want more info on Midnight Twins, check out Hot Key Books! Or, if you wanna say hi to Holly, she's on Twitter as @Ecarylloh!

Now, over to Holly!

Again Again Again Again

BLOG TOUR ALERT! And I am thrilled to be taking part in the tour for the newest book written by the author of We Were Liars and Genuine Fraud, E Lockhart!

Again, Again is a little different from Lockhart's other novels as this isn't a thriller. It's a book that looks into that messy problem of loving other people and forgiveness.

When Adelaide discovers her younger brother succumbs to a drug overdose, she saves his life. But in the aftermath, she is looking for something, anything to distract her. She turns herself into a stylish charmer who falls in and out of love a thousand times even though her heart is shattered and she is is beyond repair.

Over the course of one wild summer, Adelaide will continue to fall in and out of love, finally confronting her brother and their complex history, and maybe finding her own strength along the way...

I am so thrilled that, on this stop, E Lockhart has found the time to write a small guest post!

And before I hand you over, I just want to thank E Lockhart for finding time to write this post and Faye & Hot Key Books for asking if I wanted to be involved in this tour!

Oh, links! If you want to check out Lockhart's online home, pop over to emilylockhart.com or pop her a tweet at @elockhart! Plus, if you want more info on Again, Again, check out Hot Key Books's website!

Now, over to you E!

Book Review - A Throne of Swans

• Title And Author: A Throne of Swans by Elizabeth and Katherine Corr
• Publisher: Hot Key Books
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Physical
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Gifted by the publisher in exchange for an honest review/reaction
• Length: 352 Pages

SURPRISE! Ok, am meant to be back properly for book blogging duties next week (I just want a little time longer to read and get my back into my real life job before I got back into her), but when I was asked to be involved in the Throne of Swans tour, I jumped at it. Plus, I had (for once) read and wrote up my review several weeks before so, TECHNICALLY, this was one of my last reads of 2019, but this is going to be my write-ups of 2020! 

This took me a while to read. I feel like I should explain this right now before we go any further into the post. I started reading this early in December, the same day some bloggers went to Hot Key HQ to chat to both authors and launch the book at a bloggers’s event. Normally, I would write these events up but this event (as well as a Walker Books Blogger Event that happened several days later) but I didn’t write as I didn’t have time! Sorry, December was a mad month. I think we all can agree to that! 

And it took me a while to read and review. Why, I hear you ask. December is a mad, busy month. I just couldn’t seem to find the time to read and then write this! Plus, I kept putting it off (I liked the Witch's Kiss trilogy, so what if I hated this?). All of which explains why I wrote this post up now, literally days before Christmas (when I am on blogging holiday and as far away from my laptop as possible, FYI!) and posting it now.

Inspired by Swan Lake, Throne of Swans follows Aderyn who inherits the role of Protector to Atratys after her father dies. Atratys is a dominion in a kingdom where nobles can transform into birds that represent their family bloodline. Aderyn’s is a swan. But she hasn’t transformed for years after witnessing the brutal murder of her mother, ripped apart by hawks who are supposedly extinct sing the great War of the Raptors. 

Aderyn wants revenge, she must venture into the heart of the royal court, ruled by her cruel uncle, the King, to seek the truth. But how far is she willing to go…?

Audiobook Review - The Twisted Tree

• Title And Author: The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge
• Publisher: Hot Key Books
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Audiobook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Borrowed from local library via BorrowBox
• Length: 256 Pages or 6 Hours 41 Minutes

This might be my last review/write-up of 2019! It depends how fast I can finish my current read (unless I finish it prior to this weekend). Anyway, back story. I went the to the Hot Key Blogger Launch to The Twisted Tree earlier this year at the publisher and we were all intrigued by this. A ghost story with hints of Norse mythology? Sign me up!

But I kept putting this off. So, in the end, when I saw the audiobook version on the BorrowBox app (in connection with Essex Libraries), I requested it and listened to this over the course of several days at work.

Ever since the accident, Martha can sense things. She can tell things about a person by touching their clothes. Their emotions, memories, regrets, all soaked into the fabric. Trying to come to terms with this new, unsettling gift and how the accident left her blind in one eye, Martha goes to her grandmother - Mormor - house in Norway. But when she gets there, she finds that her Mormor is dead and a runaway is living in her cabin. Not only that but something is outside the cabin, waiting… and all the while, the Twisted Tree is watching. Watching and waiting…

Twisted Tree "All Hallow Eve's" Launch Party

Last week, I was very lucky to be involved to the launch party of The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge at Hot Key Books HQ. Now, it’s been a while since I’ve been to a Hot Key event (they’ve moved since I visited them last so off to a new building in a different side of London!) so off to London I go to celebrate this book with other bookish people. 

I have to admit from the get go that I haven’t read the yet. In fact, I know very little about this as I wanted to go into this blind. All I knew was it’s a ghost story so it will have the chill factor. I like a good chiller read (but not horror. I hate horror!) and when I got to Hot Key, I was very much “Oh, am I the only one who hasn’t read this yet?” 

Plus, all those lovely book bloggers pals of mine who have were going “Oh, Andrew, there’s a moment that will freak you out. The doll. The crows. The thuds!” and now I have no idea what to believe or to do a Joey from Friends and be near my freezer when I read this (which might be a mistake as I’ll be reading this on my Kindle and I am not sure it can handle the cold). 

eBook Review - The Cruel Prince

I read this on the last few days of my Cyprus holiday, on my plane ride back and the day after. Yes, this was read in April and we are now in May but I pushed this back a few weeks (though if you look at my Goodreads and NetGalley, I have put the review up) because I didn't want to overwhelm you guys with reviews/write-ups and I don't like posting things up on the weekend (I know, I am weird book blogger) so it's now here, in May. 

And before I go any further, I'm not much of a fairy fan. I don't mind reading them - I read Cassandra Clare and her books have fairies in them, have read the first two books in Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series many years ago (here are the reviews for Iron King and Iron Daughter) and a year or two back, I did read Holly Black's Darkest Part of the Forest, which was ok - I can't honest remember much from it barring it having a dark fairy tale quality to it and having an gay romance at its twisted heart, which I liked. 

But everyone has been excited and raving over Cruel Prince! Even I got catch up with the buzz and requested an eProof of this, but due to my fantasy reading slump, I haven't gone near it. But, before I went on holiday to Cyprus, I was chatting to Olivia from That Fiction Life on instagram about Taken Moon candles and Cruel Prince was mentioned. When I was on holiday, and was finishing Long Way To A Small Angry Planet, I wondered what to read next when, out of nowhere, my brain started chanting "Cruel Prince!" 

So, I read it. And here we go! 

Cruel Prince is the first book in a new series set in the world of the Fey, which sits close to ours but not quite. In it, we follow Jude who, at the age of seven, saw a fairy kill both her parents and steal her, and her two sisters into the High Court of Faerie. They are now teenagers and Jude wants to fit in desperate. Shame the fey won't let her forget her mortality and the worse is Prince Cardan. But to win a place in Court, Jude has to defy him and her "father" and face the consequences...

But Court is full of backstabbing and political twistings of truth (fairies can not lie, but they are experts in telling the truth that reveals everything and nothing), and Jude will have to do unthinkable things to protect her sisters and Faerie. 

Where do I start with this? This book is crazy. I kinda expected this as I was reading a fairy book and in most books that contain fairies, they are dark and tricksters. But these fairies are violent and terrifying at times, while hugely political and the twists/betrayals kept the book moving fast and I never felt settled on anything the characters said or did. 

The characters themselves are intriguing. The fairies, like I said, are dark, blood-thirsty and manipulative. But so are the humans. Jude, our main character who's telling the story, is hugely flawed and manipulative herself. She's more of an anti-hero than I expected (no one warned me out that!), but she is so flawed and damaged that she does things then changes her mind with no real thought, she made reading this novel unpredictable and in an unpredictable world of the fey, this makes this a gripping, terrifying and compelling read. 

Most twists, I saw or suspected coming, but there was a few near the end that made my jaw drop and I have to give Holly Black a huge applaud as I was so blindsided by them, I knew I had to read the sequel, The Wicked King, just to see how on earth the characters were going to recover from them! 

Most things worked for me and made me click through my kindle over a course of four/five days. However, there were one or two things that did grate on me slightly. 

The first was names. For the first 15-20%, I found it really hard to connect with the characters. It was because it was dark and I had to find my "in" with Jude, but the main thing was the names. There are so many names to get in your head and to keep straight in your head. I imagine the Court to be small so everyone knows everyone, but it took a good while for the names to sink in my head and them to stick. Once they did, I was flying! 

The second was the romance. Yes, there is a bit of romance in here. And it's hard to describe how I feel about them. One made me go "Yuck" over it and the second was so complicated that I am weirdly intrigued to see what Holly is going to do with the characters. It can go one of two or three ways. None of them are good. 

But even with the flaws that Cruel Prince have, I couldn't put this down and I know that I will be desperate to read Wicked King when it comes out at the beginning of next year (so I might need to reread Cruel Prince before the year is out - just to keep it fresh in my head)

The Red Ribbon Contest

I have a contest for you guys!

Today, I managed (via some lovely people at Midas PR) to get my hands on a copy of The Red Ribbon by Lucy Adlington.

The Red Ribbon follows fourteen year old Ella as she starts her first day at work. She enters the world of silks, fashion and fabric. She's a dressmaker, but the place she's working isn't a normal sewing workshop. Her clients aren't normal clients. She has joined the seamstresses of Birkenau-Austchwitz, and every dress she makes is the difference between life and death...

And if you want to enter to win this book, all you have to do is fill in the GoogleForm below! And that's it. Nothing else.

Like I said before, I have only one copy of The Red Ribbon to give away! YEAH!!! This is a UK only contest (I'm sorry! I swear, I am trying to plot something more international soon!!!) and this contest is opened till 5pm-ish this coming Sunday (1st October). There can be only one winner (due to me only giving away one copy) and the winner will be chosen at random via random.org and will be emailed later in the day or the following day to get contact details.

All that is left to say after that is good luck to those of you entering and may the odds ever be in your favour!

Book Review - Goldenhand

As you guys know, I adore this series. It's one of my favourite fantasy series. So, of course I was going to buy this and read this. How could I not?! While I wanted to start and finish this before New York (I planned to have a "Only Take My Kindle to New York" Rule), that went flying out the window. I forgot I need to take my time with this series.

Set after the events of Abhorsen and running (up to a point) parallel with Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case (if you haven't read this, go get a copy of Across the Wall and it's in there), Lirael is no longer the shy Second Assistant Librarian in the Clayr, but the Abhorsen-In-Waiting. She has a half-sister in Sabriel, is an aunt and is grieving for the loss of her closest friend, Dog. But when an urgent message from her nephew's friend, Nicholas, begs for help, she rushes to his aid. Not only does she find him unconscious by an attack of a Free Magic creature, she finds deep taints of Free Magic within him. Unsure of what to do with this (and her muddle feelings for him), Lirael has to do something she's been trying to avoid - return to the Clayr and ask for help. 

Meanwhile, a messenger from the deep north, Ferin, is trying to get into the Old Kingdom. She has an urgent message that must be delivered at all costs. But the Witch With No Face doesn't want this to happen. Being ruthless pursuit, Ferin must get to the Clayr and deliver the message from a mother to her daughter. That daughter being Lirael... 

For everyone and everything, there is a time to die. But will anyone survive the watery embrace of Death...?

Where do I start? Well, after having such high hope with Clariel and getting a little upset over it (I put too much pressure on it, but thinking it over, it was very good.), I went into Goldenhand with little to no information. I knew Lirael would be in it, but that's it. And it was wonderful going into this world - a world I adore - with little to no information as I watched Garth build the world and characters. 

Garth Nix does something very interesting. I know other fantasy authors do this as well, but Garth is one of the only few who I think does it right, is that he builds the world. He doesn't throw things at you for the sake of it. He adds layers and layers. The Old Kingdom in Sabriel isn't the same Old Kingdom we read about in Goldenhand. But it is. He's just added more to our knowledge. It's like the real world and I adore how he does it. 

The story and characters were welcomed with open arms. I must admit, it's been a very long time since I have read Lirael or Abhorsen, but I didn't realise how much I missed these characters till I started this book. I was going "LIRAEL!!! SAM!!! NICK!!! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!!!" and making these characters grow into strong characters I could read again and again. 

New characters and cultures intrigued me hugely and I like how Garth introduced them in. I think there is a lot more going on in this world and I do hope Garth explores beyond the Old Kingdom - say further north or beyond the sea/oceans to the east and west... 

Ferin, a new character who we spend around half of the book with, I found fascinating. She is a strong female character, very different from Sabriel and Lirael. Even Lirael niece, Ellimere, who we spend very little time with in any of the books (again, another character who I would like to know more about as strong doesn't always mean strong physically). While it took me a chapter or two to warm to her ("No! Go back to Lirael!"), I liked her hugely! 

Lirael and Nick's relationship made me happy. I love these two characters and have hoped there might be romantic feelings there since the end of Abhorsen but very much from Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case (whether or not on both sides I am not going to say), but I loved watching it play out. 

There are problems - of course I find these. Some people will say certain situations were resolved far too easily (but I disagree up to a point). Yes, one or two things were a little easy, but other situations made sense to have it done this certain way because it moved the story forward. If not, we would be stuck for another few chapters. While this is ok in some books, it's not ok here. There is a sense of urgency so we need to keep the story moving. 

My biggest thing which I must point out is that you can't read this book without reading the other books in the Old Kingdom series. You must have read all of them and, though not essential, the two novellas (Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case and To Hold The Bridge). If you haven't read the series, I would strongly advise you to start with Sabriel or Clariel. While I think Sabriel is the better starting point (as there are events in Clariel that kinda effect Lirael, Abhorsen and Goldenhand), both of these are standalones and it's easier to enter this world via these two rather than the other three. 

Another thing here is that, while reading this, I couldn't help but feel that this could be the last book we get from Garth set in Old Kingdom. While this is sad (Garth nor any of his publishers say this is the last book in the series, let me make that clear!), I am kinda ok with Garth leaving the world at this novel. Yes, if this is true, I will be sad and thinking "Just one more story. Even if it's a novella or a tweet-a-long, I will take it", I think Goldenhand is the perfect place for us to say goodbye. 

I adore this novel. I adore this world, these characters (good and evil) and I adore the series as a whole. Like I said before (and I will say again), this series is one of my favourite fantasy series out there and, barring a select few, I haven't found anyone who can write a complex fantasy world the way Garth Nix does. I can't wait to reread Goldenhand and the other books in the series next year! Oh, I am making plans. I won't announce it just yet (look towards end of December 2016/early January 2017).... be afraid, Internet. 

Book Review - London Belongs to Us

Because we're back to our normal schedule (no surprise themed month, dear readers... well, not yet, anyway...), here is a non-Murder Month read to get us back into the swing of things.

Expect, I did read this in Murder Month. I kinda hit a wall, murder wise. I discovered that there is only so much brutally murdered bodies in books I can take before I go "That's it! I need something light, something fun, something where I don't need to think 'Is it you?'." So, when London Belongs to Us came through the door via Hot Key Books (I love random surprise book post!), it just sounded irresistibly fun. And "Fun" is the word I was going for.

London is filled with lives, filled with untold stories. And here is one story. In it, we follow Sunny who, after she's sent a picture of her boyfriend kissing another girl, goes across London to find him and figure out what happened. What happens is a mad 12 hours through London's nightlife where Sunny meets a mix cast of characters that reflects London vibrant life, all willing to help with one girl's romantic retribution.

But will the Sunny who started this mad journey at 8pm at Crystal Palace be the same girl 12 hours later at Alexandra Palace?

This book, in a very odd way, reminds me of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. Not because they are very similar - they aren't. Believe me - they are nothing alike. Expect both books are love letters. While Fangirl is a love letter to fandom, London Belongs to Us is a love letter to the city of London. You can tell that the author care deeply and passionately about these subjects.

Ok, let me get back to London Belongs to Us.

This is a fun, summery book. I can imagine some of you guys reading this on a beach over the summer. Or maybe over the weekend before the Notting Hill Carnival. It has that sunny (pardon the pun) feel that will make you smile while you read, even though this book is dealing with first love and possible first heartbreak.

But, saying that though, this book isn't a straightforward "first love" and "boy/friend issues". While these elements are important to the story (and, on my copy, this is what the book's focus is), I believe this book is more a "Find Yourself" story. Or, in the words of Chistina Yang and Meredith Grey from Grey's Anatomy:

This is mainly a story of a girl finding herself and claiming herself to be the young woman she should be. An individual, rather than X's girlfriend or Y's best friend... It's about about standing in your truth and embracing who you are, I feel.

Another thing I really enjoy about this book is how diverse this book is. Some of you will say "Well, this is a book about London, of course it's going to be diverse". But it never felt false. There wasn't a moment I felt like the diversity of characters was the author going "Ok, I need to tick this box to reflect London's mixed culture". It felt very natural to me.

There is one or two things that did annoy me a little. The main thing that might annoy you guys, I feel, is that, at times, things happened and it felt very coincidental. Very "She was in the right place and the right moment and this happened!". But over the course of 12 hours, at times, this felt a tiny bit far-fetched. Not that I'm complaining but I sense a few of you will go "Really? Really?!"

But this is a fun, summer read that you can speed through over a sunny bank holiday weekend.

Book Review - Spot The Difference

HAPPY WORLD BOOK DAY EVERYONE!!! *hugs those pretty books of yours! HUG THEM!*

Today, am going to chat about another World Book Day story, Spot The Difference by Juno Dawson.

Avery knows what it's like to be bullied. They call her Pizza-face because of her acne. But when her doctor puts her on a trail for a clinical trail and her skin clears up, people see her. Including the "A List" - the very people who call her Pizza-face. But soon, Avery doesn't like the person she becoming...

Out of Rainbow Rowell's Kindred Spirits (review for this went up yesterday) and this, Spot the Difference is the gritty one out of the two. Juno just gets what it's like to be a teen and the struggles teenagers face every day at schools. I liked how Juno tackled the issues raised in this and try to explain (in one character's case) why they do it. I also like how one character pointed our flaws, not only in the people around her, but in the schooling system - something that is rarely highlighted and should be more often.

This has a poignant message (both this and Kindred Spirits do, now I come to think about it) but if this story makes one reader feel less alone, then this has done its job.

UKYA Extravaganza 2015 - Alex Campbell

Hello everyone, and welcome to this stop on the UKYA Extravaganza 2015! I am here today to welcome author of Land and Cloud 9 to the blog, Alex Campbell! Now, I do have a copy of Cloud 9 on my TBR and am quite intrigued over where the book is going to go as it's handles bloggers - and as a blogger, am a mix of excited/scared over it!

But before I hand it over to Alex, I just want to say thank you to Alex for writing this piece for the tour and thank you to Kerry for organising this tour - and thank you for including me! Am quite honoured to be involved.

Now, without any more delay, here's Alex...

Thanks for having me Andrew! I’m made up to be a part of Nottingham’s UKYA Extravaganza – it’s incredibly exciting, and all possible because of two brilliant writers and all-round life-givers, Emma Pass and Kerry Drewery. Gushing and glowing over, now onto me, me, me (I can only apologise). So you asked me about why I like to write about big issues in my novels LAND and CLOUD 9. 

In truth they often don’t start off that way. LAND and CLOUD 9 both emerged from what I think of as Big Questions – a personal choice I will probably never get tested on – the larger of the what-would-I-do-ifs . . . 

The question that sparked Land was: would I risk my life to save strangers, if it put my loved ones at risk? It’s a question I’ve liked to torture myself with for years (masochist). It always bothers me there’s a huge part of me I might never know. I mean, I can think myself a good person, I might do every day good acts, but really, when pushed, if the lives of strangers were at risk, would I stand up? Would I sacrifice my own safety and that of my family for the lives of others? I’ve always wanted to know the answer. Just like I want to know what I’d have done had I been on the Titantic (would I have stayed behind with my man or leapt double-quick onto the first lifeboat?) Or whether I would eat human flesh to survive? Or if I stumbled across an unpublished manuscript that was blummin’ brilliant, would I nick it and claim it as my own?! Or try this one:

You find a suitcase filled with millions of pounds . . . 

Do you take it? No?

What if you’re in dire need of money – then?

Or your brother needs an expensive life-saving treatment – then?

What if I can tell you – you will never ever be found out. Now do you take it? Yes?

But then what if you find out it belonged to someone who needs it more? And you’ve already spent it?

Or what if some criminal faces death because they lost their drugs warlord’s money? Do you seek them out? Or stay quiet?

And we haven’t even got started on how the money might affect you, your life. For better, for worse?

Writing a story can help you delve deeper and darker into the what ifs of your subconscious, but to truly answer them I believe you need to broaden your questions out into the big bad world – because let’s face it, that’s what’s made you . . .and so I suppose that’s when the bigger issues in society come into my stories like they have in CLOUD 9 and LAND.

In CLOUD 9 my personal big question was: if there was a harmless happy pill that everyone was taking – would I? To properly test my personal choice, I had to journey into the environment I live in. I needed to take a good look at society and its influences, our culture, our beliefs, all of which have a bearing on my life and the lives of others. 

I soon found myself digging away at this emerging culture towards instant happiness and positivity – from celebrity vloggers preaching about being positive and ways to banish ‘bad thoughts’, to Big Pharma and the millions they make from pills that adjust people’s moods, including children’s.

I started examining the ‘what ifs’ of society. Questions grew. What if we do turn increasingly to pills to get us through any painful moment, to banish hard memories, to stay appearing ‘normal’, happy, positive? What happens to the spectrum of human emotion – if melancholy is kicked out? What happens to poetry, to stories that are dark, to music that can tap into human pain? 

If we start to self-censor negativity by ‘banishing bad thoughts’, how soon will society start to censor material that incites bad thoughts? And what about those who can never forget or bury pain no matter what? Do they get pushed to the periphery of society?

Questions grow branch-like, before you journey back down to the roots again, to the something simple that knits your story together: What’s so wrong about being sad? 

Whether it’s personal issues or public ones, delving deeper and writing a story always helps to remind me that at the end of the day it’s just so important to question – yourself, others, society . . . and never stop questioning, even if the answers allude you. What if, what if, what if.

Music to Murder: The Black Cairn Point Playlist

I am thrilled to welcome Claire McFall to the blog today. Claire has published two books - Ferryman and Bombmaker - and her latest, Black Cairn Point, has just come out! To celebrate this release, Claire has written this lovely post about the music she listened to while writing Black Cairn Point.

I want to thank Claire for taking time out for writing this post and thank you for introducing new music to me. I'm always on the hunt for new music. Anyway, now, am handing it over to Claire!

I don’t know what it is about music, but it seems to be hard-wired straight into our emotional core. Without the soundtrack I reckon I could get all the way through Titanic without crying, but as it is, every single time Rose goes down in the boat and she’s looking up at Jack, knowing she’ll never see him again… and the strings cut in and BAM.  I’m greetin’. [greetin’ (Scots): wailing like a big pansy).  And then there’s that bit in Star Trek (the first film of the new series) where Spock tells the stuffy old fogies at the Vulcan Science Academy to “live long and prosper” (i.e eff off) and then the funky riff starts – I tried to find the exact song but apparently JJ Abrams made it specially for the movie – and it just makes the moment so AWESOME. 

OK, so there’s no music in books, but authors use music to get them in the right mood… and hopefully that emotion gets woven into the descriptions and the dialogue. At least, that’s the idea. So here’s my “soundtrack” for Black Cairn Point.

Itchycoo Park by The Small Faces

I had no idea that’s what this song was called – I thought it was called It’s all too Beautiful but Google tells me I’m wrong. This is the song that Heather and her friends are listening to on their road trip down to Black Cairn Point. Initially the lyrics of the song started off chapter too… but then my publisher told me how much song lyric rights cost (and that I’d have to pay them) and, yeah, they got dropped. But it’s a cool song. It’s catchy and easy to sing along too. And it’s one of those songs that everyone can belt out the chorus to but as soon as the verse starts, suddenly there’s a lot of mumbling along with the tune. It’s a proper oldie (1967!!!) but it’s good.

I’m Not Okay (I Promise) by My Chemical Romance

This is one of my FAVOURITE songs anyway. I listened to it a lot when I was writing the Dr Petersen sessions in the book. He’s the psychologist who’s responsible for locking Heather up and she has to pretend to be all sane and calm and not psycho when inside she’s screaming and she wants to pound his stupid head off the shiny mahogany desk. Not that I’ve ever had that feeling or anything…

Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer

I’ve never really thought of myself as a romance writer, and Black Cairn Point is a horror, but, as my agent pointed out, I always manage to work a little bit of smoochiness in there somewhere.  But the little romance between Heather and Dougie is a shy thing.  I think it’s because I was shy and timid at school and the thought of brazenly flirting with a guy I liked…. Gah! I’d have to find a place to hide and then die.  Kiss Me is a really sweet little love song and it just seemed to fit the mood of Heather’s feelings for Dougie. 

By the way, the book really is a horror-thriller.  I promise.  

All Alone by Fun.

This is a sad song.  It’s about (I think) the singer’s mum dying and him feeling abandoned and, well, alone.  Unable to cope without her strength to lean on. I listened to it a lot towards the end of the book, when people are a) missing b) going loco AND c) getting sick… and Heather’s pretty much the only one left standing.  The one who’s left to make all the decisions.  It’s a cool song – on a cool album.  If you’ve never listened to the Some Nights album I’d recommend giving it a go.

Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing by Chris Isaak

This song goes with the ending… but I’m saying no more. You’ll have to read it for yourself!

So there you have it.  It’s kind of an eclectic mix… but these are the songs that helped me get in the “zone” for Black Cairn Point.  I’m ALWAYS on the hunt for new music, so if there are songs that you think go well with the book, I’d love to hear about them! And thank-you thank-you to the fabulous Pewter Wolf for having me on his blog and tasking me with such an awesome topic.

It’s been emotional ;)

Claire xxx