Mini RSM

Surprise! Now, I did warn you that I might do this months ago that I might do another RSM so here I am, announcing that I am taking a week-ish off! Now, you are probably reacting like this:

Whereas most of you are probably really reacting like:

Now, the reason for this mini-break is because I'm going away with my other half. So, for the next few days, you guys won't have my hyper self for a while (feel sorry for my other half).

And because I'll be away, this might mean I won't be doing as much reading as normal. Which means, I will probably be like this for a good few hours:

But I won't be away long. Only a few days. You won't miss me. Much. I hope. And anyway:

And just to make the week away easier, here's a picture of a book-loving cat:

So, until we blog again...

Marcus Sedgwick Talks Music

I am thrilled that Marcus Sedgwick, author of Midwinterblood and his new novel She Is Not Invisible, has taken time out of his very busy schedule to write this quick post! Thank you Marcus (and thank you Nina at Indigo for setting this up!). So, with all the thank yous out of the way, let me hand it over to Marcus!

It was suggested that I write a post about the musical influences behind my new book, She Is Not Invisible, and this is a great suggestion, not only because I love music, but also because every book I’ve written has had music either hidden in it or proudly displayed in it. In my eleventh novel, White Crow, for example, I was even able to create a Spotify playlist of the songs that meant everything to Ferelith, the book’s anti-heroine.

But music doesn’t feature in She Is Not Invisible. Neither does sight. That’s because the heroine of the story is a 16-year-old blind girl, called Laureth.

There’s always a sense, when you’re writing a book, that you’re not doing it properly. One of my big hang ups is the sense that I am not describing new characters, places or scenes in general ‘fully’. It’s a kind of tyranny that we’re supposed to work to, to bring a scene ‘to life’ by our accurate description of what the characters are seeing.

Since Laureth has been blind since birth, this question simply never arose in She Is not Invisible. The whole book has to let the sense of sight go completely unused; and here’s the thing I found interesting: only when it was done did I realise that far from finding that limiting, I actually found it liberating. What a joy, for once, to be free to not talk about vision, and maybe dwell on other senses a bit more instead, sense like hearing.

And talking of hearing, music did inspire the book, though indirectly. I had been struggling to write anything for a couple of years; I simply did not know what to do any more, never mind how to do it, and during that time, I read a lot about creativity, and inspiration. I scared myself by reading about composers like Rossini who composed very little for the last thirty years of his life or Sibelius, who composed nothing for the last forty years of his. And then one day I was you tubing and came across this video of an interview and recording session by one of my favourite bands; The Mars Volta. I like this interview for two reasons, first because Cedric is so honest about having a really hard time trying to work out how to sing the song Cotopaxi (which to be fair, is in a really odd time signature), but most of all I like it for Omar describing what it is they do. They go into a recording studio, and they play. Not play as in ‘play music’, but play as in ‘have fun’, play as in ‘not work’.  That’s the key to creativity and hearing this was what finally helped me pick up my laptop again, and start writing a new book, by having fun with writing again.

So this one is for Cedric and Omar J

#re3 - Sabriel

I am trying to do a hell of a lot more rereads so this is coming back more sooner than I thought (see the answer for question 2 for the reason why) and, today, I am going to talk about my #re3 of Sabriel by Garth Nix. 

So, let's get to it! 

WHY DID YOU REREAD SABRIEL?
After my last read (the review for that should have gone up earlier in the week and I'm not linking that in this so...), I couldn't seem to settled into a book for several days and I feared that I was falling into a reading slump. Then, the lovely Laure Eve (author of Fearsome Dreamer) suggested that I reread a book that I love yet challenges me. And Sabriel was my first choice.

WHAT WAS YOUR HONEST OPINION OF THIS BOOK WHEN YOU FIRST READ IT?
I loved this book! This came in the gap between Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling (3 years according to Wikipedia) and this came perfectly. It was dark, gothic yet gripping. I couldn't stop turning to pages and, I loved it so much, I bought the audiobook (read by Tim Curry)!

WHAT IS YOUR HONEST OPINION NOW THAT YOU HAVE REREAD THIS BOOK?
I am actually surprised how much I remembered and how much I forgot about this book. I remember the basic of the plot and I would remember scenes and lines from the book very well. I remember large amounts (though the entire) of the prologue.

But I forgot details. While I vaguely remember what happened in Chapter 17, I read the whole chapter going "I don't remember this. Or this. Nor this!". Or the children moment in Belisaere - I'm pretty certain I blocked that from my mind.

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO US?
I LOVE MOGGET! Sorry, but I think he's one of my fave characters!

I'm also surprised over details. Or lack. We get very little detail about Clayr (I know we get loads more in the sequel, Lirael) nor do we get much info about the legendary Wallmakers (again, this is corrected in the third book in the series, Abhorsen [if I remember correctly]) and, when this book was first published, this was meant to be a standalone. But I'm not complaining - from when I read this the first time and now, there's enough information for us to connect the dots.

BECAUSE OF THIS BOOK, WILL YOU REREAD ANY BOOKS WITHIN THIS SERIES?
Yes, I will. To my knowledge, the fourth book in this series - Clariel: The Lost Abhorsen - should be out late next year and I want to reread books 2 and 3 of the series - Lirael and Abhorsen - before then so I have a year to return to these. Which is good as I have completely forgotten what these two books are about!

GoodRead - Lake Thirteen

I'm not sure what made me request this from NetGalley. I can't honestly remember. I think I read the synopsis and it either made me laugh or I went "we have a gay lead" (something rare, I feel, in YA). So when I was accepted, I knew I wanted to read this near Halloween.

So, now we're in the month of October, it's safe to take about this. So, here we go:

Scotty is dreading this holiday. Every year, his family go on holiday with two other families (friends of his parents). Scotty, who has just come out, is scared of how his friends will react and is worried about leaving his boyfriend behind. So when the five teens decide to make a late night visit to a graveyard close to their cabins, they don't realise that something might awaken and takes an interest in Scotty...

*takes deep breath* I am in going to write the pros to this book first before I go onto the negatives as I have a few and I think you should read the pros first.  It was a fast read (just checked on Amazon, is over 160 pages long) and there were moments in the book that was tense and spooky. And seeing as it is Halloween, spooky is the name of the game.

However, I have faults. There are several faults I have with this book, but it really comes under one umbrella: execution. While the story had interesting potential, the execution wasn't up to scratch. Some of the language used felt "off" and it would grate on me and, because of that, it would throw me out of the story. We, also, have information overload problems.  For example, we spend several pages in chapter one getting to know a character - his name, he's doing an internship with a TV ghost hunting show, his dad runs a TV company, the fact his parents have given him a personal trainer [for reasons Scotty's mom guesses] - and yet, most of this information ISN'T NEEDED! And all this information is in the FIRST CHAPTER! This isn't needed, if it was, then spread it out throughout the entire story. Us readers prefer this rather than one huge info-dump.

And now I come to think of it, I wanna talk quickly about Scotty and him being gay. I want to read more books with gay characters being the main character, being the lead. I think this is needed in YA and in New Adult. But I feel like I never knew Scotty that well, and when I did, all I know about him is that Scotty is gay. That's it. His family and friends tell him throughout the book that him being gay isn't a big deal - but it feels like it does as we're constantly being told that Scotty is gay and it's not a big deal. And with the ghost story, I was reading it as "Scotty is being haunted by a ghost", so why do I get the feeling that it was meant to be "Scotty, the gay teen, is being haunted by a gay ghost"? YOUR SEXUALITY DOESN'T DEFINE YOU AS A PERSON! So why do I feel like the lead in this book was being defined by his sexuality?

Maybe I'm reading too much into this.

Because of all the faults, I feel that if the book was longer, it might not have been a problem. I mean, it's a 160-odd pages long. If there was an extra hundred pages, I could have got character development. I could have got to know the characters and the situation better. Issues that were bought up could have been addressed.

Because of all the faults, I can't enjoy or like this book as much as I want to. Which is a shame as there was potential here.

SMILE - Crookshanks Realises...

I discovered this while trying to Google a good image of Crookshanks. But my thanks goes Cheezburger.com! You guys rocks! 

GoodRead - Tainted

I have been holding out writing this review. I know most book blogger pals have been getting ARCs and NetGalley editions a few weeks ago. But I read Tainted before then. You see, I was one of Tainted's beta-readers. Which, basically means, I read it with some other people and we, not only read the story, but see if we can see any mistakes. And I think/fear, out of all the beta-readers, I was probably the worst. When I read a chapter and sent it back to AE Rought, I would ALWAYS have something in red. Whether that was a grammar, a question, a comment of "I like this paragraph" or basically stating "If you kill this character off, I will never forgive you".

So, why am I telling you this: Well, I am reviewing this book from what I read while beta-reading earlier in the year. So, while I am pretty certain the big events in the book have stayed the same, you will have to forgive me if I make a mistake. (Plus, I want a real book version of Tainted so it goes with Broken.)

Alex Franks believe that the madness and horror he and his girlfriend, Emma, faced in Broken is over. He hopes that he could try and live a normal life. Have a girlfriend, have friends, have a life, have the dark secrets of what his father did to him and countless others. Shame he's ex, the criminally brilliant (yet criminally unhinged) Hailey Westmore, doesn't want to let Alex go and is determined to get him back. 

And then something shocking happens that changes everything... 

Ok, I really enjoyed this book. If I didn't, I don't think AE Rought would have asked me to beta-read this. But I enjoyed the changes AE Rought made with this book. While Broken was told from Emma's point of her, Tainted is told from Alex's point of view. While Emma was trying to find out what was going on with Alex in Broken, Alex knew most of the dark secrets in Tainted and, because of this, the reader instantly knows that something's not quite right with this book and when things really hit the fan, Alex and the readers were on the same level with "What the heck!"

I wanna talk one big thing. Very early on within the book, there is about 5 chapters that I read with me going "No. No! NoNoNoNo! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!". It really shocked me as I didn't see these chapters coming so I have to praise AE Rought for not only pulling the twist off but suddenly making the book unpredictable, unsafe and addictive. I had to know what happened next once I got over the shock of these chapters. 

I have only two small negatives and they both come from the ending. AE Rought knows this and has explained why both of these happen. Both of which I get, I do. But one of these negatives is the fate of a character that I loved and the other... well... I can sense some of you guys getting really angry over it. If you've read Cassandra Clare's City of Glass, it's very similar to something that happens in that (and that's all I'm going to say). 

I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the fact that this was an re-imagining of two classics (one I was told as The Mysterious Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and the other is a guess on my part) and I kinda want a sequel, even though I am pretty certain this is a duology (don't hold me to this), and me sending little hints that I want a re-imagining of Phantom of the Opera isn't gonna happen (if it is, that would rock!). But I really enjoy AE Rought's writing and I can't wait to see what she writes next. 

Laure Eve Talks Fearsome Dreamer!

I am thrilled that Laure Eve, author of the debut novel, Fearsome Dreamer, is taking over the blog and is chatting about the inspiration behind this new series. The book is out tomorrow in the UK so if this post excites you, please go out and buy it! Now, am going to hand it over to Laure!

The idea for Fearsome Dreamer came out of those dreams you sometimes have that are so vivid when you wake up, there’s a moment, an uncomfortably long moment, where all your senses ferociously believe that the dream is real. Until reality clicks back into place, and your dislocation fades.

Well what if, for some people, that dislocation never goes away? And what if what they dream is real?

The world of Fearsome Dreamer is rooted in alternative history and posits the idea that England, at some point in its history, lost against France and subsequently became part of its empire. War after war took its toll, and after suffering through near genocidal attacks and the dissolution of the French empire, England turned its back on the rest of the world.

The rest of the world moves on, conglomerating into larger and larger cultures, and England is left behind, a tiny island of no importance with something akin to Victorian levels of technology.

From these two very opposite cultures come the main characters, Rue and White. Rue is a very natural creature, attuned to the rhythms of the countryside, drenched in emotion and life. White has grown up surrounded by endless virtual realities and a colourless, pristine environment. He is all control and distance, keeping his feelings locked up and hidden away. Rue has no idea how to lie or to conceal. Everything she is shows on her face and in her body. They are fundamentally very different from each other, and yet share a bond through this strange ability they both have with their dreams, which is known as Talent.

By now you might just begin to notice how I like opposites - opposite cultures, opposite people. Opposite religious beliefs, technology, the natural versus the manufactured. But running through it all, the very human aspects that unite us, no matter what background we come from – ambition and desire, loneliness, obsession, and the need to understand why we are what we are, and what our place in the world is.

One of any writer’s ambitions is to create a story that pulls you in so much it’s like being underwater, the real world muffled and far away. You surface as you finish the last page, and everything comes back in a rush. 

Those are the best stories. If you read Fearsome Dreamer, I sincerely hope you enjoy it. And if you feel like that while you’re reading it, you and I share the same kind of story love, and that is very, very cool.

October And November Plans

Pinch punch, first day of the month!

I have been thinking about if I should write this post down or not over what I'm thinking of doing in the next 2 months as I do change my mind or push an idea back a month or two. But I hope that, if I actually write it down and tell you guys about my plans, I might actually stick to it! 

So, here we go. 

This October, I was planning to stories that have a scare/creepy factor. Yeah, see the word WAS. Well, last week, after reading a NetGalley book that fitted this theme well, I hit a wall. I felt on the edge of a reading slump. I still think I'm on the verge of one so this themed idea has gone flying out of the window. It just makes it easier for me. So, I decided to just scrap this themed month and just read or try to read books and stories that excited me. If that means all I read are #re3 books, so be it. If this means I scare my NetGalley, so be it. I'm just going to try and NOT READ DULL!

Also, I am taking a week break (which I now think is perfectly timed!) so you have a week long RSM. I'll warn you guys a day before I go away I won't suddenly go silent. I'll warn you. 

And now, November's plans. I planned this idea earlier in the year but then pushed it back to September. But then I pushed it back to now as... well, all the yummy books that I got my hands on (with the aid of the lovely and awesome UK publishers/The Works stores/charity shops/competitions). So, this November, I am planning to hold a Read Your Own Month. Which, is basically me reading books that I have bought (or won/given by friends & family) as... well... I have a book buying addiction and I don't read nearly enough of these books. So, I just want to attack a few books I've bought/won/etc. So, November will probably have books that you guys read YEARS ago and I'm playing catch up! Hope you don't mind! 

So, basically, I am still going to be reading or trying to. You guys don't have to worry! I thought I would give you guys a heads-up, just in case you fancy knowing. So I will still be reacting like one of the following gifs:

You have been warned. Have fun reading, you guys!