Review: Unwoven (Tethers, #2) by Jack Croxall

Spoiler warning! This is the 2nd book in the Tethers trilogy and this book may contain spoilers from the previous book. You can read my review of Tethers here instead. 

Unwoven by Jack Croxall

Author: Jack Croxall Website|Twitter
Published: 24 February 2014
Format: Kindle e-book (review copy)
Pages: 115
Buy the e-book: Kindle

Source: Received free copy of the author in exchange for an honest review.

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Almost eighteen months on from the terrible events of Halholham and so much has changed.

Karl and Esther no longer speak to one another and Mr Cauldwell has been ostracised by Shraye and its fickle residents. But the trio will not be parted for much longer because a shadow is growing in the west, a shadow which will reunite them in the name of all they have lost.

Unwoven is the sequel to the best-selling adventure novel, Tethers, and is the second book of The Tethers Trilogy.

My Review:
I really enjoyed Tethers and so I was excited to be offered the opportunity to read the sequel. Unwoven follows Karl and Esther as they must rebuild their relationship to get to the bottom of mysterious events happening around them.

It's been a while since I read Tethers, so I was a little nervous about going into this book without having had chance to re-read. What was great about Unwoven was that it flies into the action straight away, which stopped me worrying and had me absorbed in the story instantly. I was soon able to piece together what had happened previously. There was no lengthy recap, but more the characters were able to reflect on previous events within the story and through talking to each other about what happened which worked really well.

With a mysterious death early on in the book, it hooked me in at once. Both Karl and Esther are personally caught up the event which gives them that drive to get to the bottom of it. I loved that the author has set them out on a journey again, as I could get lost with them on their adventure. Reading it I had that sense of journeying with them on a sort of quest to find out what was going on.

I liked that the book has its own mysteries that help it stand alone, but that you can tell the series is building to something bigger. I think it helps that like with Tethers, this book has an epilogue and prologue which help give you a bigger picture of what is going on as well as teasing the action. The world the author has created has so much potential to explore, with its own legends and villains that really capture you as a reader.

Once again I loved the balance of their personalities. Esther is quite fiery whereas are Karl seems to consider things a bit more. I thought it made for an interesting relationship this time as they start the book not speaking to each other. I really felt for Karl throughout those opening few chapters as he battles with Esther. And as for Esther herself, I could sympathise with her as the author has done a great job at showing how the traumas she goes through have affected her. She has an awful lot to deal with.

As with the first book, I was impressed with the writing. Unwoven is quite a short book at just over one hundred pages, which meant I finished it within a morning, but it still felt jam packed with action. Everything flowed really well and despite its short length, I never had any issues with the pacing.

I'm left wanting to know more which means I'll be very keen to read the next instalment! I've become so wrapped up with the characters that I need to know their fates, and I can't wait to discover answers to the questions left over.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: The 3rd book in the trilogy, Torn, is planned for 2015.
Books like this: Sky Song by Sharon Sant, The Last Falcon by Colleen Ruttan

News Round Up! 24th August

News Round Up!

  This is my first news post for a few weeks as I've been away at Leakycon and catching up with life. I'm sure I've missed a tonne of news over the past few weeks, but here's what's caught my attention this week. I hope you enjoy!

The first official teaser featuring Divergent footage was released this week. Watch the clip below! More footage will be revealed at the upcoming VMA awards.




City of Bones was released in cinemas this week The film based on the first book in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series stars Lily Collins as Clary Fray opposite Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace. According to TMISource the film opened at number one on the US box office on Wednesday, taking $3,006,254 .

John Green has been talking about the film adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars with People Magazine this week. You can catch up with the chat at this link.

The trailer for the film adaptation of The Book Thief was also released this week. You can watch it below.




And in yet more film news, the lead roles for the adaptation of Fallen by Lauren Kate were also revealed. lead roles cast. Addison Timlin will play Luce, and Jeremy Irvine will play Daniel. Read more at Hypable.

The UK cover for Unbreakable by Kami Garcia was released this week. See the cover below and read more over on FangirlDaily.

Jack Croxall has unveiled the title for the second book in the Tethers series. Book two will be titled Unwoven. You can read more on Jack's website at this link, or read my review of Tethers right here!

New UK editions of The Hunger Games trilogy were revealed by Scholastic this week. You can see the new covers over on Hypable.

And in more Hunger Games news, the role of Cressida in Mockingjay has been cast. Natalie Dormer, known to Game of Thrones fans as Margaery Tyrell, will play the role. Read more on Huffington Post.

This week also saw the release of the highly anticipated debut novel The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. You can read my review of that here! And Samantha took part in a webchat with Stylist magazine. You can see the Q & A at this link.

Which news stories are you most excited about this week? Let me know in the comments!

News Round Up! 15th June

It's Saturday which means it must be time for another news post! Here's my latest recap of YA related stories that caught my eye this week.

Paramount have acquired the film rights to The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau. The book is published in the UK in August by Templar, and having just finished it I can guarantee it's one not to miss if you're a fan of dystopia! You can read more about the book and the acquisition on Deadline.

The paperback edition of Tethers by Jack Croxall is now available. Half of the royalties made from the sales of the paperback edition will be going to M.E Research UK. You can read more about the decision to raise money for an M.E charity over on Jack Croxall's website. As an M.E sufferer myself I'm really excited to see an author supporting such a worthy cause! You can check out my review of Tethers right here.

The schedule for Leakycon Portland was revealed this week! The Harry Potter conference takes place at the end of June and will feature several YA authors contributing to panels and signings as part of Leakycon Lit. You can check out the schedule at this link.

A character poster featuring Percy from the upcoming adaptation of Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters has been released. Check out the poster over on Fandomsnews.com.

The trailer from the second part of The Hobbit film adaptiation - The Desolation of Smaug - was revealed this week. Watch the trailer below!

British Mortal Instruments fans will be happy to learn that the release date of City of Bones has been moved forwards to the 21st August, which matches the new U.S release date.

And the cover of the third installment in the Bane Chronicles has been unveiled. See the cover for Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Herondale over on EW.com.


Which of these news stories has got you excited? Let me know in the comments!

Review: Tethers by Jack Croxall

Tethers by Jack Croxall

Author: Jack Croxall Website|Twitter
Published: 5 Feburary 2013 (Amazon)
Format: Kindle e-book
Pages: 228
Amazon: Kindle

Source: Kindle freebie

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Karl and Esther have spent almost every day of their thirteen years in the quiet market town of Shraye. Stifled by their rural surroundings and frustrated by their unfulfilled ambitions, they find the allure of the journal’s mysterious pages impossible to ignore. The book seems to be beckoning them away from Shraye, away from their homes and towards the coast where an unsolved disappearance has set in motion a dark chain of events.

The voyage the teenagers soon find themselves undertaking is one of desperate importance and true peril; it will change the way they see the world, and each other, forever.

My Review:
I grabbed Tethers as a free Kindle download a few weeks ago because it looked like something a bit different! The book tells the story of Karl and Esther, who come across a mysterious notebook. When they discover their names appear in the book, they end up swept up in an adventure to discover what it all means.

I can honestly say after finishing it that Tethers was such a breath of fresh air! It was such a fun, likable story yet it had so much going for it. I'll start with the characters who were pretty awesome. I adored Esther and Karl. The book is told in third person from Karl's point of view and I really liked that, because he was the perfect person character to carry the story. He's clearly bright and has a great future ahead of him with an almost guaranteed spot to train as a teacher when he finishes school, but his longing for adventure and exploring the world overtakes him. I think so many of us can relate to his wish to want to get out there amongst the action. Esther was really interesting as well and was the perfect character to balance out Karl. They made a really great team and she was so feisty!

I liked that they were slightly younger characters, too. Karl and Esther are thirteen and they still have that childlike innocence about them. There was also a brilliant relationship between the adult characters and the two kids. They were treated like equals throughout the whole adventure, something which really endeared me to those older characters.

I really enjoyed the writing style of Tethers. Everything was so beautifully described that from the beginning I could really envisage everything that the characters were seeing. I particularly liked how the characters spoke and the fact that they're local accent was reflected in their speech. I'm such a stickler for accurate sounding dialogue and in this book it was spot on! I could really hear the characters voices as I read.

Tethers is really a fantastic adventure tale and anyone looking for a bit of escapism should definitely check it out. I really got carried away with Karl and Esther as they travel across the country to try and get to the bottom of what's written in the notebook. That mystery element was really impressive as well. I loved all the twists and turns and revelations. There was so much attention to detail as well, and things I didn't think were that relevant at the time suddenly become linked to the plot in such a clever way!

I think the only thing that took a bit of getting used to with this book was how a lot of the details about what's happening have to be relayed from the older characters, who hold the answers, to Karl and Esther. There would sometimes be quite long conversations where I just couldn't wait to get back to the action! But there was plenty of action to make up for it, especially at the climax of the story.

Tethers hooked me in with a great prologue and left me hanging with an teaser of an epilogue! This is the first book in a planned trilogy and needless to say I can't wait to find out what happens. I think there's huge potential for this story and I can't wait to be reunited with those characters and set off on another adventure!

Rating: 4*
What to read next: Tethers is the first book in a planned trilogy
Books like this: Sky Song by Sharon Sant