Showing posts with label reviewing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviewing. Show all posts

Friday, 22 August 2014

Book Review: Time Storm by Julie Cross


  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books (30 Jan 2014)
  • Language: Unknown
  • ISBN-10: 0230758487
  • ISBN-13: 978-0230758483
  • Tempest Agent Jackson Meyer’s back. Just . . . he barely survived the time jump forward to the year 3200 and another jump will probably kill him. Imprisoned by Eyewall, an opposition organization determined to shape the future according to their will, regardless of the human cost, Jackson needs to decide once and for all what really matters to him. Trying to save the people he loves – including Holly, one-time love of his life and in this timeline at least an Eyewall recruit – or risking everything to try to prevent this horrific future from ever taking place. But things are not always as they seem. And as the truth unravels, Jackson is forced to realise just how much love costs.

Timestorm picks up right as Vortex leaves off, with Jackson and his friends in the year 3200. It is there that Jackson learns the most about his genes and how if he time jumps again it will most likely kill him. He learns more about Eyewall and their cruel experiments and he knows he has to stop them, whatever the price may be. Jackson is surrounded by the people he loves. Including his one time love, Holly who turned Eyewall agent. Even his sister, who died many years previously is with him. 

Timestorm, and the entire trilogy, is a masterpiece. It is easy to get lost in the science with books like this, but when the main character is constantly learning so is the reader. There are a few information dumps, but nothing too overwhelming. 

There isn’t a single thing I didn't like about this series. The characters leapt off the page and were so well developed. The plot moved like a current, ebbing and flowing as it needed. This is the kind of series you curl up with one weekend and devour all three books. 

Timestorm was a perfect conclusion to what is a fantastic series. It broke my heart and pieced me together again and I can’t to read it all over again. 


Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Books for the review copy.

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Tuesday, 19 August 2014

Book Review: Gloss: Summer Scandal by Marilyn Kaye


  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books (8 May 2014)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1447223993
  • ISBN-13: 978-1447223993
It's the summer of 1964 and the four Gloss interns are back in New York. Sherry is working at Gloss when she gets involved in the civil rights movement and finds herself falling in love with someone she never expected to, Donna is caught up in the world of high fashion and Upper East Side rich kids, Pamela is desperate to become an actress, no matter what it takes, and Allison is finding out that going steady with a teen heart-throb isn't all it's cracked up to be. The girls are discovering that following your heart sometimes means that you can't follow your dreams . . .

It’s the summer of 1964 and the four summer interns are back in New York. Sherry, Donna, Allison and Pamela are reunited and things couldn’t be more different for all of them. The four are all set with new challenges as they embark on new jobs and relationships. 

Allison is learning that dating a teen heartthrob isn’t all its cracked up to be…and you’re never really dating just him, but everything that comes with being famous. Pamela is desperate to break into fame and will do anything to get it, no matter who she stomps on to do it. Donna is living her dream job and has to put up with a nightmare boss to do, and possibly ignore some of her morals along the way. And Sherry is trying to make a name for herself in the magazine, but someone is determined to ruin the magazine itself. 

I absolutely adored this book. I have to admit I haven’t read the first in the series, but it didn’t ruin the second for me. The characters are introduced in a vivid way with just enough backstory to stop things from being confusing. The four girls could not be more different who, although they come together with this great bond, have four very different stories to tell. 

There is a very serious heartbeat to this book. Set in the middle of the sixties, there are many class and race issues that are raised. Sherry befriends William, a black man who is a student at Columbia University. Sherry is a southern girl and back home things aren't quite as liberal and forward thinking as the people in New York. She is a sympathiser and quite simply just wants equality for everyone, regardless of their sex, skin colour or social standing. Sherry is met with quite a bit of distrust when she tries to join a few groups who want equality and it is at one of these meetings that she is introduced to William. 

Donna mets Jack and there is instant attraction. It is later that she finds out his surname is Vanderwill and comes from one of the most wealthy families in the city. Neither of them care, but his mother isn’t pleased Donna doesn’t come from better stock.


Gloss: Summer Scandal is awash with interesting characters and I loved the gritty story lines. Despite these hard-hitting topics, it is, for the most part, a light-hearted read. Best read outside on the grass wearing large vintage sunglasses with the sunshine beating down on you and a frosted glass of lemonade.


Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Books for the review copy.

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Friday, 15 August 2014

Book Review: Summer's Shadow by Anna Wilson


  • Paperback: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books; Unabridged edition (3 July 2014)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1447241819
  • ISBN-13: 978-1447241812

When Summer's mom died, her life is turned upside down

Summer's mother's will states that Summer's legal guardian is her uncle Tristan: a man Summer has never even heard of before. Forced to leave her life in London, Summer moves to Tristan's creepy, ancient house in Cornwall. There she is met with indifference from him, open hostility from her cousin, and an aunt who has chosen to leave rather than to tolerate her presence. Soon Summer comes to believe that the house may be haunted. But is it haunted by ghosts, or by the shadows of her family's past? Scared and lonely, Summer begins to spend more and more time in the beautiful sheltered cove she discovers nearby. But she's not alone. A local boy frequents it too. Can Summer find first love and the answers to the mysteries of her new home with this good-looking boy who appears to be too perfect to be true?


When Summer’s mother dies, her will states that Summer would live with family she has never met before in Cornwall. Her Uncle Tristan seems anxious and doesn’t know how to deal with Summer. Her cousin Kenan goes out of his way to be mean and her aunt has moved out of the house. 

As if losing her mother wasn’t bad enough, now Summer has to leave behind her home, friends and normal life. Nothing is the same in Cornwall. Her family behave so strangely and she can’t even get a signal on her mobile phone. But that’s not all. Summer is haunted by strange occurrences that started with a phone call at the exact minute her mother died. Now there is a white cat that appears to Summer alone. 

Summer begins exploring the nearby beach she has discovered, and stumbles upon a secret cove. It is in the cove she meets local boy Zach, who seems to be the only person capable of pulling Summer out of her grief.


Summer’s Shadow was a good read, but perhaps at the younger end of the YA spectrum. 


Many thanks to Macmillan Children's Books for the review copy.

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Tuesday, 5 November 2013

Book Review: Crash Into You by Katie McGarry


  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • Print Length: 352 pages
  • Publisher: MIRA Ink (26 Nov 2013)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00CMOXV0S
Rachel and Isaiah are two totally different people with two totally different lives. Rachel is the girl with the good school marks, designer clothes and on the surface, the perfect life. Isaiah is the boy with the sketchy past, the guy people cross the street to avoid. He’s a foster child he relies on person - himself...anyone else will just disappoint you.

But they share one thing - their love of cars. Rachel literally crashes into Isaiah’s life. After Beth, Isaiah never thought he would meet a girl who would catch his interest, but then he see’s Rachel who looks like an angel and knows he has to get her far away from his world before something happens to her. 

What he does is ensure they are thrown together for at least six weeks where they battle the odds to save their lives. Neither one thought they would fall so far into each other. How they would lose everything if only it meant the other would be saved.

Ok, let me just say one thing....holy smokin’ Isaiah, batman! I’ve loved all Katie McGarry’s previous books and hoped and prayed and crossed everything that Isaiah would get his own book. And it does not disappoint. Not in the least. He’s the quintessential bad boy with the heart of gold. On the outside he’s tatted up and pierced and so scary Chuck Norris better watch out. But on the inside, he’s just a boy. 

Rachel was one of the more interesting female leads of this series. I really felt for her and at times could feel just how restricting her family was and how they were choking the life right out of her. Rachel and Isaiah often appear two sides of the same coin - Isaiah, the boy no one wanted or watched out for, Rachel - the one who barely has a second that isn’t monitored or unaccounted for. They both crave freedom, Rachel from her brothers and Isaiah from the social work system. 

There is so much more to this book than you would ever think. My heart broke for these two characters and I have never rooted so hard than I did for this pair. From the outside looking in, it’s a bit of a YA version of Gone in Sixty Seconds (only, Rachel doesn’t have blonde dreds). But as soon as you scrape the surface you discover a great big beating heart of love and trust and friendship. 

Noah and Isaiah’s brotherly bond was one of the most interesting aspects of the book. Though not blood, they care and would literally do anything for the other. 

Really, I could gush about this book all day long. It’s a fantastic read, beautiful romance and exhilarating adventure. Not to be missed.

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Friday, 25 October 2013

Book Review: Allegiant by Veronica Roth


What if your whole world was a lie?
The thrillingly dark conclusion to the No. 1 New York Times bestselling DIVERGENT trilogy.
What if a single revelation – like a single choice – changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered – fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she's known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.
But Tris's new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature – and of herself – while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice and love.
Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.


Faction-based society is over. A dictator stands in charge but an uprising is brewing. When Tris and her friends are offered a chance to escape, to go beyond the fence and see the outside world, she is ready to accept. 

They were told the outside world was in danger and they needed the Divergent to survive. But this proves to be just one more lie to influence decisions. The reality is far graver than Tris or Tobias could ever have imagined. All of them will have to face the bottom of human natures, and closely examine themselves. They must decide which is a lesser evil and if betrayal can ever truly be forgiven. 

There has been a lot of hype over Allegiant and I can honestly say this book did not disappoint me in the slightest. We have alternating view points from Tris and Tobias, and both are equally enjoyable to be shown the story through. 

It has been a pleasure to watch Tris grow during this trilogy. She has turned into a strong, resourceful and independent young woman. She is brave and truthful and loyal to the select few she lets in. By getting his POV, we learn a lot more about the inner workings of the stoic and mysterious ‘Four’. I have been a major fan (okay, embarrassingly eager) of his since the beginning and it was brilliant to get inside his head. Tobias takes a lot on himself and I think the hardest person he finds to forgive, or give a break to, is himself. He has leadership qualities and he feels responsible for everyone around him.

Tobias and Tris clash quite often, especially in this installment. Both are stubborn and headstrong which more often than not is a recipe for disaster. But together these hard, broken people come together into something beautiful and unyielding. 

We get quite a lot of new information in Allegiant. It has less action that the previous two books and it comes across quite political at a few points. Tris and her friends are essentially in the middle of civil war that is pulling the world as she knows it apart. So while there is a lot of details, it didn’t feel like an information dump. My mind whirled with every page as I tried to keep up with the characters and figure out what move they could possibly make next.

In a lot of ways, I feel so proud of the characters in this series. The road hasn’t been easy and a lot of mistakes have been made. But each of them have been shaped by the events, by their decisions, and mostly by each other. 

You could describe this series as a dystopian novel about a flawed government with a tender romance. And it is, but it is also a story about love and courage and bravery and betrayal and forgiveness and good versus evil. This series has a huge beating heart at its centre and I will truthfully mourn that it is over. 

I adored this series, and I adored this book. It always feels like the end of something special when a treasured series comes to an end and it is no different in this case. I will miss these characters and while I can always re-read it, you can only read a book for the first time once. 


And really, they were magnificent. 

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Tuesday, 28 May 2013

Book Review: Goddess by Josephine Angelini



  • Paperback: 464 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books; 1 edition (23 May 2013)
  • ISBN-10: 0330529765
  • ISBN-13: 978-0330529761

She must rise, or they will fall . . . Helen's powers are increasing—and so is the distance between her and her mortal friends. To make matters worse, the Oracle reveals that a dangerous traitor is lurking among them, and all fingers point to Orion. Still unsure whether she loves him or Lucas, Helen is forced to make a terrifying decision, or risk all-out war. The final book in this heart-stopping trilogy.

Helen has released the gods from Olympus. After being imprisoned for thousands of years, their thirst for revenge and retaliation knows no bounds. 

Now it is up to Helen to find a way to conquer them once again. War is coming to the Scions, and with a traitor in their midst the odds are working against them. 

Goddess was an absolute thrill to read. My heart pounded, I sat on the edge of my seat, I cried, I stayed up chanting one more chapter. It was THAT good.

I’ve been a fan of the Starcrossed trilogy since the very first book. After meeting Lucas and Helen and being shown their world, I knew I was in for an epic book series. Not one instalment disappointed, and with Goddess, the pressure was really on not just to deliver a satisfying ending to this amazing series, but to produce a brilliant book on its own. 

It feels like I travelled a journey with these characters, and with a story as big as the Trojan war itself, what a journey it has been. 

Helen is the ultimate Goddess in this book and she carries the story heroically. We get more viewpoints in this book, and while it is refreshing to see inside Lucas’s head (and a few others that I won’t mention here...) it really feels like it belongs to Helen. I rooted for her throughout this entire series and it has been a joy to see her grow. Gone is the awkward, shy Helen Hamilton. In her place is a young woman who is finally embracing her destiny. 

Lucas and Helen’s romance is achingly heartbreaking. At times it was very reminiscent of Clary and Jace and their similar predicament, but it remained very true to itself. I adored Orion and as a character I couldn’t ask for more. As Helen starts to lose her mortal friends, it was beautiful to see Orion step up and be exactly what she needed. 

As for the gods...wow. While Greek mythology has been done a few times now in YA, thankfully  the Starcrossed series is totally unique when it came to their interpretation of the myths. I absolutely adored the mirroring of the major players in the Trojan war with our very own Scions. 

This is the ending we have been waiting for. 

Many thanks to MacMillan Children's Books for the review copy.

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Friday, 24 May 2013

Book Review: Rush Me by Alison Parr


  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 467 KB
  • Print Length: 246 pages
  • Publisher: Carina Press (8 April 2013)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00APEXMJM

When post-grad Rachael Hamilton accidentally gate-crashes a pro-athlete party, she ends up face-to-face with Ryan Carter, the NFL's most beloved quarterback.
While most girls would be thrilled to meet the attractive young millionaire, Rachael would rather spend time with books than at sporting events, and she has more important things to worry about than romance. Like her parents pressuring her to leave her unpaid publishing internship for law school.
But when Ryan's rookie teammate attaches himself to Rachael, she ends up cohosting Friday-night dinners for half a dozen football players.
Over pancake brunches, charity galas and Alexander the Great, Rachael realizes all the judgments she'd made about Ryan are wrong. But how can a Midwestern Irish-Catholic jock with commitment problems and an artsy, gun-shy Jewish New Englander ever forge a partnership? Rachael must let down her barriers if she wants real love—even if that opens her up to pain that could send her back into her emotional shell forever.



When Rachael accidentally gatecrashes the wrong party, she ends up face to face with Ryan Carter. She has no idea who he is, and he is unwilling to believe her stumbling on the party is a harmless accident. 

Chance brings them back together and before she knows it, Rachael has befriended half a dozen famous football players. For the most part, Rachael knows and adores them all. Except Ryan, who pushes all of her buttons yet is there whenever she turns around. 

Pretty soon Rachael and Ryan realise their bickering is mutual attraction and flirty banter. Both have big, strong personalities that do clash. Jealousy and passion  keep things lively with doubt and uncertainty clouding their potential happiness.

Rush Me is both a hit and a miss for me. In a lot of ways I loved it - loved how the football players were like a big, dysfunctional family who are loyal and fierce. I loved Rachael and Ryan’s bickering and their gradual attraction. But, there were far too many cliches and fakeness that just made the story fall flat at times. 

It’s a good, easy read that fills the time but doesn’t really satisfy in the way I wish it could. 

Many thanks to Netgalley and Carina Press for the review copy.

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Friday, 17 May 2013

Book Review: Kite Spirit by Sita Brahmachari




  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books; 1 edition (9 May 2013)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0330517929
  • ISBN-13: 978-0330517928


During the summer of her GCSEs Kite's world falls apart. Her best friend, Dawn, commits suicide after a long struggle with feeling under pressure to achieve. Kite's dad takes her to the Lake District, to give her time and space to grieve. In London Kite is a confident girl, at home in the noisy, bustling city, but in the countryside she feels vulnerable and disorientated. Kite senses Dawn's spirit around her and is consumed by powerful, confusing emotions - anger, guilt, sadness and frustration, all of which are locked inside. It's not until she meets local boy, Garth, that Kite begins to open up - talking to a stranger is easier somehow. Kite deeply misses her friend and would do anything to speak to Dawn just once more, to understand why . . . Otherwise how can she ever say goodbye? A potent story about grief, friendship, acceptance and making your heart whole again.

The morning of their first day of exams, Kite’s world falls apart. Her best friend, Dawn commits suicide. Plagued with questions and a sense of suffocations, Kite’s dad takes her out of the city to the Lake District, to give her time and space to grieve.

Kite feels as though Dawn’s spirit is around her. She envisions her as an owl, soaring in the sky and leaving her mark on Kite’s window. Kite feels so many emotions she can barely process them, and can’t even cry. It is when she meets Garth, a local boy who helps her in more ways than she could ever expect. 

Kite Spirit was raw and beautiful, a truly haunting yet uplifting story. Kite’s grief radiated off the page and swirled in the air around me, much like Dawn’s presence did for Kite. 

With the rolling hills of the Lake District as the backdrop of this story, it really set the scene for Kite and her bleak mood. But as anyone who knows this area, when the sun breaks through, it is outstanding. 

Kite and Dawn’s history is cleverly revisited by the author in well timed flashbacks. We get a glimpse of the girl Dawn was, and also of the girl Kite was around her. Though totally different and from totally different methods of upbringing, the girls were inseperable. Kite wanted to swing in the circus, Dawn to play her oboe. Through these flashbacks we also begin to understand why Dawn may have taken her own life. 

It was at times hard to read, the story is very raw. But it was a pleasure to watch as Kite overcame her grief, and learned how to say goodbye and let go of Dawn and look into the future of her own life.

The other intriguing part of this book was Kite’s dad’s back story. As Kite is trying to imagine her future, her dad is trying to discover his past. A very well done secondary plot line.

I am sure first time readers of this author will be racing out to get her other books. 

Many thanks to MacMillan Children's Books for the review copy.

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Monday, 9 January 2012

Book Review: The Lifeguard by Deborah Blumenthal


  • Hardcover: 268 pages
  • Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company (Mar 2012)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 080754535X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0807545355
It's an unsettled summer for Sirena. Back in Texas, her family's splitting apart, but here in Rhode Island, at the cottage of her free-spirited aunt, it's a different world. There are long days at the beach and intriguing encounters with him. Pilot. He's the lifeguard with shamanic skills. He both saves her and makes her feel lost at sea. Sirena explores her obsession with Pilot and discovers his mysterious--almost magical--gifts.



Lifeguard was a warm, romantic read that felt sun-kissed and as tumultuous as the ocean.

Sirena’s parents thought it would be a good idea for her to spend the summer with her aunt at the beach…so she wouldn’t have to deal with their impending divorce. Sirena takes the news badly, blaming herself and feeling lost and alone. Until she meets him. The lifeguard. Beautiful, mysterious and deep.

Pilot is not just a lifeguard, he has been taught shamanic healing by his grandfather. Sirena is not the only one with dark and agonising thoughts rumbling around inside her. Pilot also has his demons, and reasons for his unbreakable commitment to his job.

Together, Pilot and Sirena learn how to let go of things out of their control, and fall into the beginning warmth of love.

A perfect read to cast aside the dreary winter chill, and warm you from the inside out. A lovely light holiday read.

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Monday, 11 July 2011

July is NetGalley Month!

Over on Red House Books, Emily a.k.a WilowRaven is sharing the NetGalley love!

The goal is simple: read as many NetGalley books as you can in the month of July!

All you have to do is "declare yourself". Preferably, post on your book, Facebook wall, Tumblr - anywhere on the interwebs and link back to the original Red House Books post. Tell all your friends and followers about NetGalley July.

*OR*

Tweet about the event using the hashtag #NetGalleyMonth

But you MUST comment on the original post.

And then the best bit...read as many NetGalley as you can!

There will be prizes - two winners will receive $15 worth of books from The Book Depository :)

Happy reading!

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