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

Review: Banished by Liz De Jager

Banished by Liz De Jager

Author: Liz De Jager Website|Twitter
Published: 27 February 2014 (Tor)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 400
Buy the book: Amazon|Hive|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Received free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Sworn to protect, honour and slay. Because chaos won’t banish itself…

Kit is proud to be a Blackhart, now she’s encountered her unorthodox cousins and their strange lives. And her home-schooling now includes spells, fighting enemy fae and using ancient weapons. But it’s not until she rescues a rather handsome fae prince, fighting for his life on the edge of Blackhart Manor, that her training really kicks in. With her family away on various missions, Kit must protect Prince Thorn, rely on new friends and use her own unfamiliar magic to stay ahead of Thorn’s enemies. As things go from bad to apocalyptic, fae battle fae in a war that threatens to spill into the human world. Then Kit pits herself against the Elder Gods themselves – it’s that or lose everyone she’s learnt to love.

My Review:
Banished was one of my most anticipated releases of 2014 so I was super happy when a copy popped through my letterbox! The book follows Kit Blackhart who is just getting used to her new supernatural life when her abilities are called upon to save her family.

I really enjoyed the beginning of the book as we're introduced to Kit and her family. The real world, teenage life feel which made me instantly relate to Kit and provided a great balance to the fantasy side. I thought the magical side of the story and the world building was done really well. You were never overwhelmed with terminology, and at the start of each chapter were little exerpts from archives or history books etc. which provided you the history of Kit's world in nice bite-size chunks, without the need for exposition, which was incredibly smart and well done.

One of the real highlights of the book for me was the characters, particularly Kit and Thorn, and the developing relationship between them. The author has managed to carve out distinctive voices and personalities. There is a brilliant sense of humour weaved throughout the book that provided some really funny moments between all the characters. I thought Kit herself was particularly sharp and witty which drew me to her even more!

In terms of the fantasy side of the book, I loved the Banished had a little bit of everything. There were faeries, trolls and even dragons! (I was really, really excited when a dragon showed up.) It was just such a great mix of creatures and magic, all cleverly weaved into our own world. Even though there were a wide range of characters who come from different realms (the book takes place in two worlds; the Frontier which is the human world, and the Otherwhere) everything really flowed. Every character from every race fitted in perfectly with the story and everything was linked together really well.

I felt the first half of the book was a lot more focused on the characters, and on how Kit adapted to her situation. There was definitely that element of her going on a quest or journey to prove herself, and I love how she overcame the insecurities we see at the beginning of the book. The second half of the story is definitely more action packed, and although I probably enjoyed that first part more, it made for a well paced, exciting read throughout.

Banished will definitely appeal to a lot of readers. Fans of books such as Artemis Fowl and City of Bones will fall in love with the fantastic world Liz De Jager has created. The ending had me dying to read the next book and gave a good old tug at the heartstrings! I'm excited to see where things go from here.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: This is the first book in the Blackhart Legacy series
Books like this: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

Review: Teardrop by Lauren Kate

Teardrop by Lauren Kate

Author: Lauren Kate Website|Twitter
Published: 24 October 2013 (DoubleDay Children's)
Format: Hardback
Pages: 464
Buy the book: Amazon|Hive|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Bought

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Never, ever cry... Seventeen-year-old Eureka won't let anyone close enough to feel her pain. After her mother was killed in a freak accident, the things she used to love hold no meaning. She wants to escape, but one thing holds her back: Ander, the boy who is everywhere she goes, whose turquoise eyes are like the ocean. And then Eureka uncovers an ancient tale of romance and heartbreak, about a girl who cried an entire continent into the sea. Suddenly her mother's death and Ander's appearance seem connected, and her life takes on dark undercurrents that don't make sense. Can everything you love be washed away?

My Review:
I took a bit of a chance on this book. I've read two books by Lauren Kate, one which I loved (The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove) and one which I loathed (Fallen), but it was half price in Waterstones and that cover drew me in! Teardrop tells the story of Eureka who loses her mother in a freak tidal wave. With the help of the mysterious Ander, who seems to appear wherever she goes, she starts to unravel secrets about herself and her mother.

I fell in love with this book pretty quickly. In fact, I brought it straight home from the shop, read the first couple of pages to see what it was like and then couldn't put it down! The book opens with a prologue from Ander's point of view which gives you a glimpse into his world as a Seedbearer, a race of people with control over water. Straight away this insight gives you the bigger picture to the story, which Eureka herself won't discover til much later. I loved the way it teased you with a glimpse of what's to come.

Because as a reader you know there are secrets to came out, it made for an addictive read. The pacing was brilliant and I was constantly turning the pages, rooting Eureka to discover more. At the same time there was enough mystery that as a reader you didn't know much about to keep you guessing and maintain that intrigue. I thought the world building was fantastic and I was hooked into all the ideas and the history of Eureka's world. I loved all the action sequences which were written so well - the book felt very visual! And my heart was constantly in my mouth with all the times the characters were in danger.

I could really sympathise with Eureka at the beginning of the book. She's in therapy after her mother's death and is living with the stepmother from hell. There are several traumatic moments in her past which have affected how she is, for example she doesn't cry. I liked the friendship between her and her male friend Brooks because the two of them are so natural around each other. I was kind of rooting for them to be something more at the beginning, but the relationship between them becomes a lot more complicated than that as the story goes on. I also adored Eureka's friend Cat who is a complete flirt but also has brains. It was just so nice to see a character who isn't just a bimbo!

As well as the friendship with Brooks, Eureka also has a developing relationship with Ander. This was the only downside for me really as it had a touch of instalove about it. Because Ander holds all of the knowledge about Eureka and her past it sometimes felt like he abused that power. There is some back story between them but because Eureka is unaware of it, her attraction to him comes pretty out of the blue which is where the idea of the romantic bit sort of lost me. The plot was pretty solid when you take away the romance side of things so I could put that to one side and it didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book.

Overall I was really impressed with Teardrop. The ideas behind the story like the link to mythology were really interesting, and the plot was gripping. I loved Eureka and how she develops over the book and really comes into her own. I'm definitely excited to continue with the series.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: Waterfall by Lauren Kate, the sequel to Teardrop, is set for publication this year
Books like this: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Review: Relic by Heather Terrell

Relic by Heather Terrell

Author: Heather Terrell Website|Facebook
Published: 29 October 2013 (Soho Teen)
Format: Kindle e-book (ARC)
Pages: 288
Buy the paperback: Amazon|Hive|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Received free copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks Soho Teen!

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
When Eva’s twin brother, Eamon, falls to his death just a few months before he is due to participate in The Testing, no one expects Eva to take his place. She’s a Maiden, slated for embroidery classes, curtseys, and soon a prestigious marriage befitting the daughter of an Aerie ruler. But Eva insists on honoring her brother by becoming a Testor. After all, she wouldn’t be the first Maiden to Test, just the first in 150 years.

Eva knows the Testing is no dance class. Gallant Testors train for their entire lives to search icy wastelands for Relics: artifacts of the corrupt civilization that existed before The Healing drowned the world. Out in the Boundary Lands, Eva must rely on every moment of the lightning-quick training she received from Lukas—her servant, a Boundary native, and her closest friend now that Eamon is gone.

But there are threats in The Testing beyond what Lukas could have prepared her for. And no one could have imagined the danger Eva unleashes when she discovers a Relic that shakes the Aerie to its core.

My Review:
I was drawn to this book because it was being compared to Game of Thrones and The Hunger Games, both series I love, and so I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to grab a review copy! Relic follows Eva as she takes part in the gruelling challenge of the Testing, where participants must enter the harsh arctic conditions to discover hidden relics from the past.

Now I can completely understand the comparisons to Game of Thrones. The book takes place in the New North, a habitat created after most of the world's population was wiped out by what Eva's people call The Healing. The frozen landscape will be familiar to anyone who's read or watched Game of Thrones. Relic also has religious themes, as do the Song of Ice and Fire books. In Relic's case, Eva's people worship with Mother Sun and Father Earth and take guidance from their religious text - The Lex. The comparison to The Hunger Games is less obvious as the two books are quite different, but Relic is a post-apocalyptic novel and there is that survival element to the story. I did find myself comparing it a lot to Joelle Charbonneau's The Testing, seeing as the main competition in the story has the same name. That similarity was a little distracting at first.

When it comes down to it, Relic definitely has enough substance about it to stand on its own. The ideas in the book and the world building really won me over. I liked learning about the history of the New North. Throughout the book, Eva herself is constantly learning and reminiscing about her life and the society they live in now. We learn about the rules they Aerie people abide by excerpts from the Lex, and there are several rituals that take place in those early chapters that give a glimpse into how Eva's society works. I thought it was a nice twist to see a futuristic society that has shunned technology and sees it as the cause of the problems in centuries before. It was quite funny seeing references to tablet computers and credit cards as something so the characters think of as so horrific and shocking - I think because the author has used brand names we're all familiar with. I liked the mix of cultures Eva's people have evolved from. At points the book seems very Americanised but there are plenty of references to European cultures and places which I enjoyed. I sometimes find the world building in fantasy novels to be quite hard to keep up with, but I thought it was something really well done in Relic.The writing was sharp and exciting, and I could really visualise myself in Eva's surroundings.

Relic opens with a scene showing Eamon's death. Then we jump to the present where we meet Eamon's twin sister Eva who is our main character throughout the story. Eva herself carried the story really well. She comes from a powerful family, and is kind of oppressed in the society she lives in. Because she's a Maiden, she's expected to behave in a certain way (one passage mentions being pleasing to the eye and ear), always abiding by the rules of the Lex. She puts herself forward for The Testing, the only woman to have done so, which is a real way of proving herself. She's at an instant disadvantage because her sex has denied her the chance to prepare herself for The Testing in the same way the men have. Women in her world grow up learning different skills. Despite this she makes a real effort to prepare herself. I liked that we got to see her compete against an all male team. Eva is smart and resourceful throughout the tests she faces. My favourite parts were when she starts to write her Chronicle, a documentation of her Testing experience. It really showed her passion and potential.

There are two male characters in the story who are both potential love interests for Eva. Jasper also comes from a powerful family and is introduced as a potential suitor, approved by her family. Lukas is a Boundary Companion, a lesser role in society and his and Eva's relationship crosses a divide in terms of social standing. I definitely preferred Lukas, as he seemed to have a lot more about him. I think their relationship is more genuine, having stood for years, although Jasper seems a nice enough guy and I liked that he looks out for Eva during The Testing. It may come across a bit love-triangle-ish, but the romance isn't the main focus of the story. I got the feeling that it's something that might take more of the spotlight in future books.

Relic really won me over towards the ending of the story where all the pieces start to fit into place and provide a wider picture. I liked how the beginning, middle and end of the story all had different feels to them. I enjoyed the middle section where Eva is out there battling the elements and fighting to survive, but I think my favourite parts were back in the New North where we get to sink into this fantastic world that Terrell has created. There is huge scope for more. I feel like both the history of the Aerie people and the present situation in the New North has only been touched upon. The revelations at the end of the book had me hungry to find out more. I'm excited to carry on with this series.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: Relic is the first book in a planned series.
Books like this: The Testing by Joelle Charboennau, Divergent by Veronica Roth, Matched by Ally Condie

Review: Fearsome Dreamer by Laure Eve

 Fearsome Dreamer by Laure Eve

Author: Laure Eve Website|Twitter
Published: 3 October 2013 (Hot Key Books)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 377
Buy the hardback: Amazon|BookDepository

Source: Bought

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
There is a world where gods you’ve never heard of have wound themselves into hearts, and choice has led its history down a different path.

This is a world where France made a small, downtrodden island called England part of its vast and bloated empire.

There are people here who can cross a thousand miles with their minds. There are rarer people still who can move between continents in the blink of an eye.

These people are dangerous.

And wanted. Desperately wanted. 
 
Apprentice hedgewitch Vela Rue knows that she is destined for more. She knows being whisked off from a dull country life to a city full of mystery and intrigue is meant to be. She knows she has something her government wants, a talent so rare and precious and new that they will do anything to train her in it.

My Review:
Fearsome Dreamer was a book I was really excited about, and when I got the chance to buy a copy early and meet Laure Eve at Leakycon I was super happy! The book follows Rue, a hedgewitch who has powerful dreams that transport her to new places. White also has these dreams, and is punished for them. Meanwhile in the capital city, people with the Talent are rounded up and taught to use their abilities.

I started this book whilst I was at Leaky and devoured it on the train home. It was utterly addictive and completely unique and my head is still all in a spin! Fearsome Dreamer is a fantastic mixture of genres and ideas. We meet Rue who's a hedgewitch and the book feels very much like a fantasy novel. Then we jump to White who is living in a futuristic, dystopian style city and you're whisked away to his world. As everything comes together there is just so much to sink your teeth into. Controlling governments, magic, conspiracies and terrorists. It had everything.

Fearsome Dreamer is told from three main characters' POV in alternating third person chapters. I loved Rue, White and Frith and they were all incredibly interesting people to get to know. They start out as very much separate stories, and as the book moves on they suddenly start to interconnect. At the beginning I loved being part of all the different worlds and places and I barely noticed them come together because it was so seamless!

White was the character I was most drawn to with his ability with his Talent and that sense of mystery about him. You get to see him from Rue's point of view where he's this mysterious figure who's a bit rude, but when you read the chapters from his perspective it opens your eyes to his more vulnerable side. The rest of the ensemble were great too. I loved Frith's backstory, the relationship between Rue and her woman she apprentices for - Fernie, and I also found the plotlines with Wren to be really exciting.

The plot revolves around the characters who have the ability to travel to places in their dreams. I thought it was such a brilliant concept, because it really plays on the idea of being able to escape somewhere in our sleep. I love the idea of dreams being able to transport you somewhere. I'm sure we've all dreamed of different places and people and wished for that escape, yet this book takes all of that and makes it into some real and terrifying. The characters with the ability are often vilified, and in White's case imprisoned, for what they can do. There's a real sense of fear from people who don't understand the Talent, and it really helped ramp up the suspense. All the time there's that build up of a resistance movement which is where Frith comes in. I really liked the exploration of his character and his motives for doing what he does.

The writing in Fearsome Dreamer was absolutely stunning. I adored the dialogue and how each character had such a distinctive voice. I could hear them in my head as I was reading and they really came alive. I loved the play on language with the combination of English and French, and how effective the use of simple words was at creating the world, for example the wider world outside the city of Angle Tar is just simply called "World", the virtual reality systems used in World is called "Life" and the ability of Rue and White is called "Talent".

The world building in Fearsome Dreamer was incredible and I loved learning about Angle Tar, a country isolated from the rest of World, and its history. There was a fantastic range of social issues touched upon throughout the story, where characters come from different places, backgrounds, classes and religions. I loved the mix of ideas and the way the world was so richly detailed and layered. Some of my favourite scenes were at the university where the Talents are trained, because it's where you get that mix of characters all thrown together.

The pacing was also completely spot on. You didn't get endless chapters where you were waiting around for something to happen. The book would just jump straight to the good stuff! I think the way it was broken up into chapters with different characters helped that pacing as well.

The ending of Fearsome Dreamer has me jumping up and down for the next book. I can just see so much potential in the world and the characters that I can't wait to dive right back in and explore some more! There's a sneak peak of the sequel in the back which was torture to read because I didn't want it to stop! I think it's one of those books you have to read to really appreciate. Writing this review was so hard because it's just so difficult to do the thing justice. The writing was beautiful, the idea was unique and the plot exciting. Laure Eve is one to watch and this is a book you do not want to miss!

Rating: 5*
What to read next: Fearsome Dreamer is the first book in a planned series.
Books like this: Crewel by Gennifer Albin, Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Review: Briar Rose by Jana Oliver

 Briar Rose by Jana Oliver

Author: Jana Oliver Website|Twitter
Published: 12 September 2013 (Macmillan Children's Books)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 480
Buy the paperback: Amazon|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Won: Goodreads first-reads review programme

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
For Briar Rose, life is anything but a fairy tale. She's stuck in a small town in deepest Georgia with parents who won't let her out of their sight, a bunch of small-minded, gossiping neighbours and an evil ex who's spreading nasty rumours about what she may or may not have done in the back of his car. She's tired of it all, so when, on her sixteenth birthday, her parents tell her that she is cursed and will go to sleep for a hundred years when the clock strikes midnight, she's actually kind of glad to leave it all behind. She says her goodbyes, lies down, and closes her eyes . . . And then she wakes up. Cold, alone and in the middle of the darkest, most twisted fairy tale she could ever have dreamed of. Now Briar must fight her way out of the story that has been created for her, but she can't do it alone. She never believed in handsome princes, but now she's met one her only chance is to put her life in his hands, or there will be no happy ever after and no waking up.

My Review:
When I saw I'd won a copy of Briar Rose I was really excited. I love the idea of fairy tale retellings and I was won over by that gorgeous cover. Briar Rose is a twist on sleeping beauty, and tells the story of Briar who is cursed to die on her sixteenth birthday. When she falls into a deep sleep she ends up in a different world, whilst her friends on the outside must help save her.

I struggled from the beginning of this book. I found the writing a bit hard to get into. It was kind of over-descriptive and didn't flow too well for me. There was lots of exposition about unimportant stuff like the history of the town and Briar's classmates, but when it came to the world building and the establishing of the plot stuff was just thrown in. Like for example the curse Briar discovers is placed on her. She finds out about it and within a few short hours has accepted it completely. As a reader, I was still struggling to get my head around the ridiculousness of the situation. It just felt like Briar should have questioned things a bit more. I ploughed on through the first one hundred pages and that was when I had to stop and put it down for a while. It wasn't the writing that had put me off, but I just wasn't connecting with the book and couldn't lose myself in the story.

There were a few problems in those first hundred pages. Firstly, I found the number of male love interest characters off-putting. We're introduced to Pat, who's the good looking one Briar has a crush on, as well as Joshua who is the nice kind boy but who Briar is forbidden from seeing because their parents don't get on. Then Briar's ex-boyfriend Mike thrown into the mix and I had some serious problems with scenes surrounding him. Briar spots him at a party where the following is written:

"The laugh belonged to her ex-boyfriend and it took her only a few seconds to find him near the bonfire, his arm round a tall red headed girl clad in a micro-bikini." - page 42

 

"Briar checked the girl out and found that she wasn't that special: her legs were short, her neck too long and her hair needed serious help." - page 42

"Mike had accused her of being a stupid kid, which in guy speak meant that she hadn't put out. From what she'd heard, his new girlfriend didn't have that problem." - page 43

These few quotes made me absolutely rage. Not only is briar being a complete b****, but it's the first time I've really understood the term "slut shaming". Why is this girl being judged because she dares to wear a bikini and have sex? Does that make her a horrible person?!

The guy drama doesn't end there. When Briar enters the fantasy world a bit later on we're introduced to Ruric, the male character who shows her around. I just didn't like any of the guys enough to become invested in what happened. Joshua seemed like the nicest but I just could not get my head around the whole forbidden friendship thing. It wasn't actually cleared up until very late on the book by which point I had given up caring.

I waited a few weeks before picking up the book and powering through so I could finish it. I think if I was the kind of person who could DNF books (did not finish) then I would have. My problem was that I just didn't enjoy it. The story didn't capture my attention at all and I found myself growing bored. I didn't really like the fantasy world the majority of the book takes place in. It's all set around one town which felt very restricted, and I didn't really get enough world building to be able to understand what was happening and why.

Back to the writing, and the book is written in third person, mostly from Briar's perspective. When she falls into the sleep we get to see chunks from Joshua's point of view. There are also a few chapters written from Ruric's perspective as well. Whilst the book was written in third person, you would get the occasional  sentence in italics which was a first-person thought from a character as a sort of glimpse into their head and what they're thinking. I don't really think they added anything and by the end of the book they were starting to bug me a little bit.

I think the main disappointment for me was just that the book couldn't hold my attention. I would find myself skimming over paragraphs and by the end I just wasn't really fussed about what would happen. The only time I really felt anything was during that scene with Briar's ex-boyfriend and all that did was make me angry. I didn't care about the story or the characters beyond that.

It's possible that people with a more detailed knowledge of fairy tales might be able to pick up on more of the references than I did and be able to enjoy the fantasy elements. I've heard the author's other series is really good and so although I didn't enjoy Briar Rose, I'd still considering seeking out books in her Demon Trappers series. This book just wasn't for me in the end.

Rating: 1*
What to read next: Forsaken by Jana Oliver
Books like this: Cinder by Marissa Meyer, Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Review: Skulk by Rosie Best

Skulk by Rosie Best

Author: Rosie Best Website|Twitter
Published: 1 October 2013 (Strange Chemistry)
Format: Kindle e-book (ARC)
Pages: 400
Buy the paperback: Amazon|BookDepository

Source: Received free copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks Angry Robot/Strange Chemistry!

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
When Meg witnesses the dying moments of a shapeshifting fox and is given a beautiful and powerful stone, her life changes forever. She is plunged into the dark world of the Skulk, a group of shapeshifting foxes.

As she learns about the other groups of shapeshifters that lurk around London – the Rabble, the Horde, the Cluster and the Conspiracy – she becomes aware of a deadly threat against all the shapeshifters. They must put aside all their enmity and hostility and fight together to defeat it.

My Review:
I'd seen Skulk mentioned on a couple of blogs so when I saw it was available to request on NetGalley I couldn't resist, and kept my fingers crossed! Skulk tells the story of graffiti artist Meg, who stumbles across a fox one evening who shifts into a man before her eyes. Soon she is drawn into the hidden world of the Skulk, a group of shape-shifting foxes.

I've read a lot of shape-shifting novels, usually surrounding wolves or cats, so I was intrigued to see a different take on it! This book not only deals with foxes but with rats, ravens, spiders and butterflies. What was interesting was how the book starts out as this gritty urban fantasy. It's set in London and I loved that location. It provided so much scope to explore the city and I could really get a picture in my head for the locations. Then towards the second half of the book, the book delves into a more magical side of it which sort of shifted the tone. I loved the history of the Skulk and the other groups, and how there's lots of tradition and magic at play.

The most instantly likable thing about this book was definitely Meg. She's artistic and expresses herself through graffiti, and I love how the book has chosen to use that as an art form rather than something frowned upon. The descriptions of the artwork that Meg has come to admire and look up to, such as that of her favourite graffiti artist E3 really shows how passionate these people are and what talent they have. And you could feel that passion coming from Meg.

What also really endeared me to her was that she is completely grounded and kind, despite the fact she is surrounded by pretty horrible people. Her mother is an MP who is determined her daughter should act and look a certain way, and the way she treats Meg is just plain cruel. Seeing Meg trying to battle against that whilst all the time remaining the same likable self just left me really rooting for her. Then there's her friends at school who are the sort of typical popular types. Meg is from a wealthy background yet she's nothing like the snobby girls she has to go to school with. She has to deal with a lot of peer pressure from her friends as well, for example when it comes to the pressure to have a boyfriend or sleep with a guy. I liked that she was different. I love it when you can see yourself being friends with a character, and that's how I felt about Meg.

Once Meg breaks away from her old life and integrates herself with the Skulk, we meet some great new characters. I really liked Addie and Blackwell who sort of take Meg under their wings, plus Mo who appears slightly later in the book. At times there were maybe a few too many characters to get my head around and by the end I was struggling a bit with who was who. I'm not good with lots of characters!

There were plenty of fast paced action scenes and a great underlying mystery surrounding a magical stone that kept he pace moving and stopped my attention from wavering. The writing was snappy and vivid and had me really wrapped up in the setting. I loved the unique feel to Skulk. It didn't feel like any other book I'd read, and I adored just how British it was. I think the first half was slightly more enjoyable than the second half for me, as I preferred the gritty urban fantasy side of the story, and later on in the book it became more complex. The ending of the book certainly suggests that there's more to the story and I hope it's continued into a series. I think there's so much potential for the world Best has created and those brilliant characters.

Rating: 4*
Books like this: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Review: The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner

 The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner

Author: Sally Gardner Website|Twitter

Published: 4 October 2007 (Orion)
Format: Hardback
Pages: 371
Buy the paperback: Amazon|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Borrowed from library

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
The story of a remarkable boy called Yann Margoza; Tetu the dwarf, his friend and mentor; Sido, unloved daughter of a foolish Marquis; and Count Kalliovski, Grand Master of a secret society, who has half the aristocracy in thrall to him, and wants Yann dead. Yann is spirited away to London but three years later, when Paris is gripped by the bloody horrors of the Revolution, he returns, charged with two missions: to find out Kalliovski's darkest deeds and to save Sido from the guillotine. With a tangle of secrets, a thread of magic and a touch of humour, the follies of the aristocracy and the sufferings of ordinary people are unfolded as their lives move relentlessly towards the tragic and horrific days of the Terror.

My Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner, and when I spotted this book on the library shelf I grabbed it on the name alone. The Red Necklace follows several characters during the French Revolution. Yann and Sido come from opposite ends of the social spectrum yet find their lives woven together as the uprising begins.

If this book hadn't been written by Gardner, I'll admit it would probably never even have popped up on my radar. Historical fiction isn't usually my thing, and my knowledge of the French Revolution is entirely based on the film adaptation of Les Miserables. Having finished the book I am delighted I took the plunge and took myself out of that comfort zone, because The Red Necklace was a fantastic read and an extremely pleasant surprise.

The book follows Yann, a performer who has the ability to read minds and control automatons. When he performs at a party for the Marquis, he finds himself wrapped up in a suspicious death, one of many to come. Whilst the book is historical and set in a very interesting period of history, it also has touches of mystery and fantasy about it which really drew me in. The Red Necklace itself is something that appears on the bodies of those who have been killed - sort of a trademark of the killer. I loved this mix of themes and ideas running through the book, but it was the mystery that really kept me invested in the story and characters.

Yann and Sido were my favourite characters. I really felt for Sido who is neglected by her father. She spends most of her time away at a convent and when she returns is abused and mocked because of her limp. Her father being wealthy also lands her on the side of the rich during the revolution, something she gets no say in. Some of the things she goes through during the story because of her background were so horrifying. I loved the relationship between the two of them and how they look out for each other and help the other one despite their differences.

The historical element of the story was what made me nervous before reading it, but it made for a brilliant backdrop to Yann's story. That sense of something building and the unease between the characters was really well done. I could feel it all bubbling under and was just waiting for things to really come to a head. It's a period of history I found completely fascinating and would definitely go and read more about in the future.

There were some real twists and turns throughout the book, and I loved the mystery element and the villainous characters. I loved that the plot was really strong and that it was interwoven with the historical timeline.

Overall I enjoyed this book and it was a nice quick read. I really came to feel for the characters and the ending made me want to carry on reading and fall back into that world.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: The Silver Blade by Sally Gardner, the sequel to The Red Necklace
Books like this: Fire Spell by Laura Amy Schlitz

Review: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Author: Samantha Shannon Website|Twitter
Published: 20 August 2013 (Bloomsbury)
Format: Hardback
Pages: 480
Buy the hardback: Amazon|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Bought

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
It is the year 2059. Several major world cities are under the control of a security force called Scion. Paige Mahoney works in the criminal underworld of Scion London, part of a secret cell known as the Seven Seals. The work she does is unusual: scouting for information by breaking into others’ minds. Paige is a dreamwalker, a rare kind of clairvoyant, and in this world, the voyants commit treason simply by breathing.

But when Paige is captured and arrested, she encounters a power more sinister even than Scion. The voyant prison is a separate city—Oxford, erased from the map two centuries ago and now controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. These creatures, the Rephaim, value the voyants highly—as soldiers in their army.

Paige is assigned to a Rephaite keeper, Warden, who will be in charge of her care and training. He is her master. Her natural enemy. But if she wants to regain her freedom, Paige will have to learn something of his mind and his own mysterious motives.

My Review:
I've been hearing buzz about The Bone Season for a while, long before it was released. When the author was announced as a guest at Leakycon I was ecstatic, and even happier when they had copies available to buy at the con! The Bone Season tells the story of Paige Mahoney, a clairvoyant living in a world where people with her abilities are deemed "unnatural". Suddenly she is whisked from the criminal underworld of London to the lost city of Oxford, where she must live amongst a her fellow clairvoyants and the race of the Rephaim, and do her best to survive.

This is a pretty intense read. The opening fifty pages bring a wealth of information and terminology to gets to grips with. The book is set in an alternative version of London controlled by Scion - a republic built to quash clairvoyance - and features a whole load of clairvoyants like Paige with different abilities. In the front of the book is a sort of overview of the different types and their categories and I found that really helpful to refer back to. It took me a while to get my head around all these new words and phrases involved with the world. Suddenly there's all these words like aether and dreamscape, and all these districts of London with coded names. But I can understand why it is crammed into such a short space, because after about fifty pages the plot really steps up a gear and it's all action from then on in. I appreciated that set up, even if it was a lot to take in, because it meant you got to the plot quickly.

The book is told from Paige's perspective, and I found her really fascinating as a character. She's had to accept her place in life and thrives on her work in the criminal syndicate. It was interesting to see the moral dilemmas she faces when she does things she doesn't think herself capable of. Her clairvoyant abilities gives her the power to separate her spirit from her body, a power which is feared and admired in equal measure. I loved how much detail has gone into the way her abilities work and that you get to see the fear and danger associated with such power.

I adored the way you get to learn Paige's story through the things happening in the present, and the memories from her past which are included throughout the story. Everything flowed together so well, and it felt like the book was layered up with all these brilliant little pieces of information that all come together to build this incredible world.

The writing in The Bone Season is stunning, and it's honestly one of those novels where you just can't fathom how somebody has dreamt it all up. The attention to detail is incredible, and the world is so rich and wonderful. I loved losing myself in the futuristic city of London (the book is set in 2059 in an alternative universe - the course of history differing from our own) as well as the setting for the majority of the book, Sheol I. The descriptions of the places and spiritual elements were so vivid and visual. I can't wait to see this book on screen one day, because I can see it lending itself to that medium so well.

The characters were some of my absolute highlights of The Bone Season. From the tricksy Jaxon, to the lovable Nick, vulnerable Seb and the intriguing Warden - I loved the range and variety of characters Shannon has conjured up. Seeing Paige's relationships with all these people was what really drew me in to the story. The history between her and Nick was one of my favourite things and I loved discovering more about their past throughout the story. The connection between her and Warden and that growing intensity had me hooked. I was so invested in that relationship. I also loved seeing her interact with other people in her new home of Sheol I, like when she meets Liss and Julian. She comes across as so caring and really looks out for other people.

The Bone Season ticks so many boxes and hits so many spots. It has that perfect blend of fantasy, sci-fi, paranormal and dystopia, with an action-packed plot, yet manages to feel completely unique and stand out from the crowd. The main character, Paige, is nineteen, so whilst it does fall outside of the YA category, it will definitely appeal to YA fans. I think this is the perfect crossover book that will appeal to all ages, much like Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. In fact genre wise, too, if you liked that book then I think you will adore The Bone Season too!

It's not a light read, and it takes a while to get your head around everything. I think you probably have to be in the right frame of mind to read this kind of intense fantasy and I hope people won't be put off by the opening few chapters where everything seems quite daunting. Trust me, the pay off is definitely worth it in the end. I was utterly captivated by the world and hooked to the pages of the story. I didn't want to put it down. I wanted to completely lose myself in that world. The climax was incredible and I can't wait to read to return to Paige's story!

Rating: 4*
What to read next: This is the first book in The Bone Season series.
Books like this: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman

Review: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

 The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making 

by Catherynne M. Valente

Author: Catherynne M. Valente Website|Twitter
Published: 7 June 2012 (Corsair)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 328
Buy the paperback: Amazon|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Borrowed

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Gather up your courage and your wishes; grab a little pinch of luck - and prepare to be swept away, in a ship of your own making, to a land unlike any other. September is a twelve-year-old girl, Somewhat Grown and Somewhat Heartless, and she longs for adventure. So when a Green Wind and a Leopard of Little Breezes invite her to Fairyland - well, of course, she accepts (mightn't you?).

When she gets there, she finds a land in crisis and confusion - crushed by the iron rule of a villainous Marquess - she soon discovers that she alone holds the key to restoring order. Having read enough books to know what a girl with a quest must do, September sets out to Fix Things.

As September forges her way through Fairyland, with a book-loving dragon and a partly human boy named Saturday by her side, she makes many friends and mistakes; loses her shadow, her shoes and her way. But she finds adventure, courage, a rather special Spoon, and a lot more besides . . .

My Review:
A friend lent me this book after she read and loved it, and with that title how could I resist? The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland (which is what I shall abbreviate it to to save writing the full title each time!) follows September as she is swept away to the mysterious Fairyland where she encounters all manner of magical creatures.

Starting this book was like being thrown into the deep end of a swimming pool. It's one of those books that is so incredibly bonkers that it takes a little while to get used to the writing style and the craziness. It didn't take me to long to settle in and start going with the flow and soon I was just having so much fun reading about September and her adventures.

The story has an omnipresent narrator and it feels very much like the story is being read to you. I think it's one of those books that would be fantastic on audiobook. It mainly follows September's story but every so often you get these little intermissions where it breaks away and addresses the reader directly, which is something I really loved. It just brought out that feeling of being a child and having someone read you a magical story. Each chapter starts with a cute little picture and a sentence summing up what happens in the upcoming chapter. I loved those little touches and they aided my enjoyment of what was to come. I loved being teased about what was coming up and being curious about what the picture was!

The story sees September taken on the back of a flying leopard to the outer reaches of Fairyland. I loved all the characters she meets along the way, but my favourite had to be the Wyverary A-Through-L, also known as Ell. He's half Wyvern (like a dragon with no forepaws) and half library. Yes, you read that right. Half library. The name comes from the fact he knows everything there is to know about anything that starts with an A through to an L. I was just blown away by the imagination throughout the story because the ideas were so wonderfully bizarre!

The main plot revolves around September trying to make it to the capital of Fairyland, Pandemonium, to track down a Spoon on behalf of some witches who want to use to brew up the future. I was worried the plot would get lost in all the craziness but there was enough solid storyline throughout the book to keep my attention. The book does go off on little tangents and I think the best way to describe it is that each paragraph is like its own mini-adventure. I make notes as I read and I just couldn't keep up with making notes on everything that happened in The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland because there are just so many little wonderful moments that I'd have been stopping every few seconds!

I liked the contrast between September's life in Nebraska which she seems to feel is very boring and the complete wackiness of Fairyland. There were also lots of moments where what goes on in Fairyland is completely in contrast to what you'd expect, like when September expects the witches to be horrible and the scary creatures to eat her. I also liked the time we meet a Wairwulf who is wolf for most of the month and then turns human around full moon. It just defied so many preconceptions.

I loved that the book focused a lot on courage and September being brave. She's only twelve and suddenly finds herself in some pretty intimating situations where she has to overcome her fears and be brave. September's back story was really well done and endeared me to her as a character. Her parents are busy in the war so her mum is often guilty of neglecting her and her father is away fighting. I thought the historical setting in the real world was a nice touch too. It added to the mystery and magic of fairyland because September has only basic things to compare it to.

I was completely captivated by this book and the writing was fantastical and magical. It was one of those books where you could taste and smell and see everything that was being described. It's a real adventure tale where the main character goes on a quest, so if that's your thing then I think you'll love it. It took a little while to get into the story because of the craziness of it, but once I let my guard down and just lost myself in the story I had a great time reading it. Fans of Alice in Wonderland should eat this up because I think September the brand new Alice in town.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente

Books like this: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, Rory by Ciye Cho

Review: Rory by Ciye Cho

Rory by Ciye Cho

Author: Ciye Cho Website|Twitter
Published: 10 August 2013
Format: Kindle e-book
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

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

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Far beyond heaven, earth and hell is a city known as Palladino, a place ruled by ghosts and filled with demons, magic, and all sorts of darkly beautiful things. A city where no one can ever escape.

Eighteen-year-old Rory is a cake decorator who makes stunning confections. But no amount of frosting or miracles can save her when a demon kidnaps her—and carries her to Palladino. Here, Rory ends up in a deadly charm school where young women are forced to become companions for the Ghost Lords. And for her to survive, Rory must become everything that she isn’t: graceful, elegant... and perfect.

My Review:
I really enjoyed the two other books I've read by Ciye Cho, so when I was approached to read and review this one I couldn't resist! Rory follows the title character as she discovers the secret world of Palladino, a land where ghosts train girls to be auctioned off to the Ruling Lords.

This may be a book about ghosts but it was like no other ghost story I've ever read! And I loved that about it. The book starts off in quite a dark place as we're introduced to Rory. We learn her mother is in a psychiatric unit because of the hallucinations she has. Only Rory knows they're read. The opening few chapters definitely had me gripped and there was a lot of suspense. I really loved seeing Rory's worries and fears about her mother.

Soon the story takes a huge twist and we land in Palladino, a heaven-like universe filled with ghosts and magic. This is where the book truly becomes something unique. I adored the world building because you get to see all this crazy, magical stuff and this beautiful landscape filled with castles and hot air balloons. It's very fantastical and whimsical and just carries you away!  It felt very Alice in Wonderland-esque and Lewis Carroll's story is actually referenced several times. There was a great focus on dreams and imagination as well which I loved. If you like that kind of wonderful, imaginative setting for a book then I think you'll love Rory.

Rory as a character was very likable, and I loved her development through the book. She's landed in Palladino not by choice so when she gets there she's pretty feisty and I loved that! She has a sharp tongue and a great answer to everyone. It was interesting seeing her relationship with the other girls who have been brought to Palladino. Rory has had a very isolated life due to her mother home-schooling her with little interaction with others. Suddenly she finds herself surrounded by other girls her age and she's a bit of an outcast. I also like her relationship with the skine (a winged demon type creature) Manny and the talking cat Cookie (yes this book has talking cats!).

A lot of Rory's previous life is told through flashbacks which I thought was a really effective technique. I think there were some things just touched upon that I would like to know more about, hopefully in the next book, particularly Rory's neighbour Jai who is mentioned quite often but who you learn very little about. I'd also love to know more of Rory's mother's backstory.

The plot itself had several parts to it. I probably enjoyed the first half the most as Rory adjusts to life in Palladino and prepared for the "unveiling". Some of my favourite scenes were the lessons she's put through by the ghost mistresses where she has to learn to walk elegantly and make magical dust tea that stirs up your emotions. The second half becomes a lot more about the characters she meets there. I really enjoyed getting to know more about Martin, as he seemed to be a character with a lot of depth, and the relationship between him and Rory was fascinating to watch develop. It took a little while to get to the mystery that really drove that second half of the book but once you get there it was worth it, and there was a good sense that something bigger was going on.

I absolutely love Cho's writing which has the ability to suck you in and bring these magical places to life. Rory has a talent for decorating cakes and I can't tell you how many times I got hungry whilst reading about it! I could practically taste the icing. The writing really added to that atmosphere when it came to Palladino as well because the descriptions were so vivid.

This was a truly unique and enjoyable read and a universe I'm looking forward to get back to. The climax to the story was very exciting and left me dying to find out what happens. If you don't like ghost stories then you have to give this a try because it's a ghost story with a difference! And if you like your fantasy whimsical and a little bit mad then don't miss this one.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: This is the first book in the Ghosts of Palladino series. Book two is unreleased.
Books like this: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, Crewel by Gennifer Albin

Review: Fire Spell by Laura Amy Schlitz

Fire Spell by Laura Amy Schlitz

Author: Laura Amy Schlitz Website
Published: 13 September 2012 (Bloomsbury)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 400
Buy the paperback: Amazon|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo

Source: Borrowed

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Clara disappears on her birthday. Exceptionally wealthy and exceptionally lonely, she requested that a puppeteer and his two orphan helpers stage a spellbinding show for her in the vast empty house. But then the curtains close and darkness falls ...

My Review:
Fire Spell was one of those rare things in that it was a book I hadn't heard of before I came across it. The story follows Clara who becomes fascinated by the puppeteer Grisini and the children who help run his shows. Suddenly she becomes more wrapped up in their world in ways she couldn't possibly have imagined.

I quickly fell in love with Fire Spell. It's told in third person and the opening chapters give us a little bit of history about each of the main characters by focusing on each one of them. I adored the characters in this book. We start off with Clara who upon first impressions seems like a spoilt rich kid, but I always felt there was more to her character and I was proved right. She has things pretty tough since losing all of her siblings to illness and her parents don't treat her very nicely at all.

My favourite character, though, was Lizzie Rose - Grisini's assistant. She's so caring and always wants to do the right thing. I really liked the relationship between her and Parsefall who she's come to see as a brother. Grisini himself is completely horrible and I was really curious to see what schemes he was up to!

As well as those main characters, there are also occasional chapters about the witch Cassandra, who has fallen under the curse of an old necklace. This, and a few other elements of the story, add to the magical side of the tale. It reminded me very much of Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus with that feeling of there being something bigger going on that you're never quite sure what it is.

The pace is quite gentle, and because there's a lot of time dedicated to getting to know each character it took a while for things to get going. However as soon as there was a bit of a revelation about what happened to Clara I was hooked. There was plenty of mystery and I could feel the story building towards something.

Fire Spell is set in Victorian London and the setting was one of my favourite things about the book. I could completely immerse myself in that atmosphere and see the settings and locations so vividly in my head. The writing was so beautiful and helped me escape into the story. I also loved how Fire Spell addressed things like poverty in London and how it affects Lizzie Rose and Parsefall.

The climax to Fire Spell was full of action but most importantly it places a great focus on the characters. I loved how everything was rounded up. I'll definitely be recommending this one because it was so unique. It had the perfect blend of mystery and magic to keep me intrigued the whole way through, and delivered characters I really grew to care about. A truly unique story.

Rating: 4*
What to read next: The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz
Books like this: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Review: Arch Enemy (Looking Glass Wars, #3) by Frank Beddor

Spoiler warning! This is the 3rd and final book in The Looking Glass Wars series and will contain spoilers from the first two books. You can read my review of the 1st book, The Looking Glass Wars, here, and the 2nd book, Seeing Redd, right here.

Arch Enemy by Frank Beddor

Author: Frank Beddor Website|Twitter
Published: 1 March 2010 (Egmont)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 413
Buy the paperback: Amazon|Waterstone's

Source: Borrowed

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Imagine this...
The power of imagination has been lost!

Now it's all about the artillery as AD52s, crystal shooters, spikejack tumblers, and orb cannons are unleashed in a war of weapons and brute force.

As Alyss searches wildly for the solution to the disaster that has engulfed her queendom, Arch declares himself King of Wonderland. The moment is desperate enough for Alyss to travel back to London for answers, where Arch's assassins are threatening Alice Liddell and her family.

My Review:
Arch Enemy is the third and final book in the Looking Glass Wars trilogy and follows Alyss and Redd as the two race to regain the power of imagination and conquer Wonderland once and for all.

I definitely found this book easier to get into than the previous books in the series,  which I think is down to the fact I was familiar with the characters and the settings. Straight away I was lost in the story and it felt like a lighter read overall.

At the end of Seeing Redd I adored the twist of imagination being lost and it made for a really gripping plot as the characters try to get around this problem in Arch Enemy. What Beddor has done so well with this trilogy, and in particular this book, is create some great political and social issues for his characters to face. In this book there was this big moral question about whether Wonderland was better off without imagination, because the lack of it removes the social divide between those who had it in the first place and those who didn't. As I read about that idea it just struck me as so clever and something I hadn't even considered!

I was really happy that the characters I've grown to love and care about got a real chance to shine in Arch Enemy. People like Dodge and Molly who I've always been drawn to and who are probably my two favourite characters really got a chance to develop even more. I liked the conclusions to both of their story and that Molly got a chance to show her potential. I'm glad even the smaller characters and their stories were done justice.

Again the book is split between Wonderland and the human world and I enjoyed the inclusion of characters and settings from the human world and the key roles they played in the story, particularly Reverend Dodgson's role in the plot.

The pace definitely picked up in the second half of the book as the story starts to reach its conclusion. There were some great twists which threw obstacles in Alyss' way and made everything a bit more tense. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen! The climax was a whirwind of action and excitement. ocassionally I had to stop and reread sections just to process exactly what was happening and the climax was a little confusing at first, but overall I was really happy with the ending to the story.

This was such an enjoyable, unique trilogy to read full of wonderfully imaginative scenes, plenty of action and brilliant characters. Arch Enemy was a great ending to the trilogy and I'll be recommending these books to people in future.

Rating: 4*
Books like this: Splintered by A. G. Howard

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

Review: Amored by M. A. Wilder

Amored by M. A. Wilder

Author: M. A. Wilder Website|Twitter
Published: 14 March 2013
Format: Kindle e-book
Pages: 213

Amazon: Kindle

 
Source: Received free copy from author in exchange for an honest review

Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
When seventeen-year-old Beckit Wright joins Aaron, a mesmerizing and mysterious knight, on a dangerous adventure to a world that she is destined to save, things get complicated when her safety and heart wind up in jeopardy. As the two struggle to keep their professional relationship from turning personal, Beckit and Aaron begin to wonder how long will they be able to fight both their enemies and their fierce attraction for one another before one of them ends up hurt or worse...

My Review:
I was sent this copy by the author to review and thought the premise sounded interesting. Amored follows Beckit who discovers the mystery guy who has appeared throughout her life is actually a knight assigned to protect her who then sweeps her off to his homeland.

I'll start of by warning you that I didn't like this book, which is going to be reflected in this review. I'm always sad to say that, but this just wasn't an enjoyable read for me. Firstly, there seems to be an awful lot going on. The book is set in a world with knights from another planet, vampires, banshees, werewolves, magic and fairy dust. I never quite settled into that world and it seemed like there was just too much to get my head around. Secondly, I was never quite sure why things were happening, and Beckit just seemed happy enough to go along with it all. I just didn't get that sense of purpose to really let me get invested in the story. 

I thought Beckit had some potential as a character. She doesn't feel like she fits in because of her shape and size, and has a great realtionship with her best friend Meka with the two of them obsessing over their favourite werewolf  TV show. I thought that was something a lot of people would relate to (I make TV show references with my friends all the time). But even those little references weren't enough to win me round in the end.

One of the main things that let the story down for me was Aaron. He's introduced as this sort of stalker figure who constantly pops up in Beckit's life, and yet this doesn't seem to put her off in any way which was just weird. It would totally creep me out having a weird guy show up everywhere I went, and the fact she didn't seem in the slightest bit unnerved put me off. Then there was the fact that throughout the book I felt I knew absolutely nothing about him, other than the fact he was assigned to protect Beckit. If I was going to form any kind of connection with him as a character, I needed to actually get to know him and I didn't.

Then there's the romance element Amored which didn't win me over at all. Like I said, I felt nothing for Aaron and then there was the fact that I felt zero chemistry between him and Beckit. Yet Beckit has this major crush on him and then they start snogging each other's faces off when they barely know each other. It was all just a bit strange to me. Only it got worse when we got to the sex scene. I don't want to spoil it but I always mention if there's explicit content anyway and there was in this book. And it was so, so awkward to read. It felt like a public service announcement for teenage sex (quote from the book: "Is sex really this amazing? Of course it is, her brain whispered. When it's with the right person!").

That moves me on to the writing which was probably one of the things that made it difficult to get through this book. It was just a bit clunky for me and I would find myself having to skim over bits that didn't fit or correct them in my head. In the story Aaron is an "erone" and Beckit is his "poh iverstant" which lead to sentences such as: "The poh iverstant and the erone hurried to their next destination...". I just found it so frustrating when they were referred to with these titles instead of their names. If they were characters we hadn't yet been introduced to then I would maybe understand that formality, but when you knew who they were it was just off-putting. It felt very strange seeing Beckit constantly referred to as "the human" as well. Amored is written in third person and occasionally the perspective would switch around a bit. I much preferred it when it was written from Beckit's POV.

There were also cases of strange phrasing being used, for example when H2O was used in place of the word water. I think I actually groaned at that one, considering the context was somebody having a shower. My final problem was the youth speak and pop culture references that were crammed in. "OMG" was used far too often for my liking and I couldn't help but cringe at "homegirl" and "FML" being used.

I always try and explain why I didn't like a book because it can be a very personal thing, and the things that bothered me may not bother other people at all. In the end I just found it very difficult to get through. I think if I was the kind of person who could just stop and not finish a book then this would've been one I would have moved on from, because I knew about halfway through that it just wasn't for me. But I have to finish things! And so I ploughed on to the end and sadly it didn't get any better.

Rating: 1*

What to read next: This book is the first in the Te-Trad Tale series. Book 2 is unreleased.

Books like this: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa, Sabriel by Garth Nix