Solitaire Launch Party!

Tonight I went to Waterstones (Birmingham High Street) for the book launch of Alice Oseman’s debut novel Solitaire. This is the first time I’ve ever been to anything like this – and safe to say it won’t be the last!

The atmosphere in the room was lovely and relaxed and it was great to be surrounded by other people who loved books – and just surrounded by books. I can’t be the only one who feels completely at home in a good bookstore can I?

But anyway. Alice Oseman.

Alice started by reading an extract of the book (for those of you who have already read it/ reading it Alice read the second half of the fourth chapter). This was really good. I loved the characters just from that one little extract and Alice’s reading was full of expression and she didn’t falter once. Between the extract and her replies to questions about the book have me itching to get started on it!

She was then asked some questions both about her book, her experience writing and getting published. This was really interesting, especially when she mentioned about her age and was asked if she felt that was an issue for her (FYI she’s nineteen). I was surprised to hear that she didn’t feel that her age was an issue when she was looking for someone to publish her book, which personally I thought it would’ve been because in this day and age, age and experience seem to be what count rather than talent. She did say that some negative reviews (she admitted she shouldn’t have read them) that she read said stuff like “well she is only 19”, implying that she didn’t have enough experience of life to write about, which would annoy anyone. Add to that that the book is about teenagers so whoever wrote that review is a Class-A Tool.

There was food and drinks laid out for us including this epic cake, and then everyone started queuing to get their copies signed. It was great – everyone was talking to the people surrounding them even if they didn’t know them. This was especially awesome for loners like me who didn’t know anyone there. I didn’t speak to Alice much – the curse of the painfully shy! She is lovely though and we did talk about the colourful pens she had with her to sign all the books (I chose orange ‘cos its an awesome colour).

All in all it was an amazing evening. If you ever get the chance to go to something like it do it, don’t worry if you’re going alone, or if you’re too shy to talk to people, it’ll all work out and you may walk out of there with some new book loving friends!

Now I’m off to read Solitaire and devour a tub of Ben and Jerry’s! 

Night All!

Love Letters to the Dead - Ava Dellaira

“It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person. Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May did. Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to people like Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more; though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating new friendships, falling in love for the first time, learning to live with her splintering family. And, finally, about the abuse she suffered while May was supposed to be looking out for her. Only then, once Laurel has written down the truth about what happened to herself, can she truly begin to accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was; lovely and amazing and deeply flawed; can she begin to discover her own path”

This is a strange book. It’s a fantastic read. I couldn’t put it down but from the off I knew there was more to the story than meets the eye – especially more to May. I was eager to find out the details, the secrets, of Laurel’s and May’s childhood and the way it was written as a series of letters really appealed to me.

It left me with such a book hangover I couldn’t read another book for almost a week.

The inclusion of dead stars who all died young with something left behind was well thought out – as was the way they linked into Laurel’s story. At times I found the stories about the dead celebrities dreary and slow but I understood why they were there.

I found the story absolutely heart breaking, yet totally enjoyable (kinda contradicting but oh well!) The way Laurel  idolised her sister and aspired to be like her – as an attempt to gain confidence and pull her family together – was tragic. It as if the only way she felt she could survive High School was to try and turn into her sister – where all she really needed to do was be herself and accept the past.

The mystery surrounding her sister and how she died was a big pull for me in the book, and I love how it was kept hidden until near the very end where you kinda expect what is coming…

Lots of people compare this to “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, and while it has some similarities it’s an amazing book in its own right.

I can’t put this book into words, so seriously, go read it for yourself!

The Blood Guard - Carter Roy

“If they fall, the world as we know it will not survive.

Ronan Truelove has just discovered the existence of the Blood Guard, an ancient order of knights sworn to protect the thirty-six Pure.

It’s a lot for an ordinary kid to deal with. But maybe Ronan’s not so ordinary after all…”

It starts with Evelyn Ronan Truelove (do NOT call him Evelyn!) who discovers his mum is a badass ninja woman who can do awesome stuff with swords and run really fast. His mum is one of the Blood Guard – and the people chasing them are bad guys. She boots him out of the car near the train station so he can met up with a mysterious escort but not without having to escape baddies again. While on the train with the escort (Dawkins- who I’ve got to admit is pretty awesome) an old school mate of his appears and ends up joining their unlikely team. Greta seems to have an extremely unlikely skill set for an average school girl.

We follow them through various adventures intermingled with chats that slowly give us more information about the Blood Guard and the baddies (before the baddies show up for ANOTHER show down).

The first half of the book failed to draw me in – it was talks interspersed with the Bad Guys showing up, then running for their lives and the cycle repeated itself several times, though in varying circumstances. The fight scenes are interesting but I nearly gave up on the book then and there.

The second half is much more enjoyable. We find out about Dawkins and how he joined the Blood Guard and we find out more about the Pure Ronan’s mother was protecting. The story picks up brilliantly and I rather enjoyed it. The “shock twist that you’d never expect” was obvious though. Granted – one took me by slight surprise but I had my suspicions and the other was blatant.

My main problem with this book was that I did not believe for one second that these two kids could be that skilled by the age of 13. Yeah okay, Ronan’s mum has been training him for this since he was 5 but Greta? She would know a few neat tricks from having a cop as a dad but it all felt a bit too convenient for my liking. The lack of romance was refreshing (though they are 13 and it may develop later in the series...)

Overall, I enjoyed the book and will continue reading the series but I won’t rave about it as I have with so many other books. It is ideal for younger YA readers and those who like a bit more action.  

Kalona's Fall ( A House of Night Novella) by P.C. and Kristin Cast

“From the Sun and from the Moon, two winged brothers are born: golden Erebus, playmate and friend, and mysterious Kalona, Warrior and lover, companions of the Goddess Nyx.

From the first, Nyx loves them both deeply, but differently. With Erebus, she can talk and laugh and dance, and take joy in the games he plays among the humans of the Earth. With Kalona, the fire in he4r body burns bright, and she can rest in the solace of his strength and protection. But for Kalona, Nyx’s nights are not enough. Every second he is not with her he is filled with doubt and longing, and every time he fails to please her, he cannot forgive himself. Ruled by anger and jealousy of his brother, and consumed by love for his Goddess, Kalona seeks the power to prove his worth, and to claim once and for all that Nyx eternally belongs to him.”

I have followed the House of Night books for years. The covers intrigued me as a young teen and I avidly followed Zoey and her friends adventures. Don’t get me wrong, I cannot WAIT for the series to conclude later this year – it has gone on forever!

The Novellas that have been written alongside the series have been really interesting for me. As I’ve mentioned before, extra background information on characters and world building pushes all my buttons! So these novellas just had me drooling from the mention – especially when it was revealed which characters were receiving this honour. I also loved how they slot perfectly into the timeline of the series – and this one is no different. Once you’ve read this (if you hadn’t figured it out already) its crystal clear why the last book is entitled “Redeemed”. Though I sense there will be more to the overall series than meets the eye…

Anyway! On to the actual book!

Firstly the illustrations at the start of every chapter are gorgeous! I would seriously have them framed around my house - especially a very beautiful one of Nyx in a pool of water!

I really enjoyed this novella, admittedly less than Dragon’s Oath and Lenobia’s Vow but much more than Neferet’s Curse. I adored the titles given to Erebus and Kalona (playmate and friend, Warrior and lover respectively) and how simple misunderstandings lead to big mistakes, but freedom of will and choice allows us to learn and change.

I also loved how P.C. and Kristin built the world from nothing. Literally. The creation story in the beginning is lovely and reminded me of “The Magician’s Nephew” where Aslan creates Narnia (I never realised that story existed until I bought a Narnia box set – that nearly sent my detail-loving fangirl self over the edge).

In the House of Night series Kalona and Nyx seem older and mature – in this it was nice to see them as young beings – headstrong and impatient, rushing into life.  I didn’t connect with Kalona greatly – at times I found him whiney and annoying but overall I thought the book was brilliant and an excellent addition to the House of Night series.

Waiting On Wednesday #1

I'll try to make this a regular feature but no promises!

Blue Lily, Lily Blue - Maggie Stiefvater

I  cannot wait for this book to come out! The 3rd book out of 4 in the Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater just looks so pretty!

I adore the first two books in the series - so much so that the moment I finished the first I rushed to my not-so-local Waterstones and bought the second (and a few others... I can't resist the temptation of new books!).

I'll get around to reviewing "The Raven Boys" and "The Dream Thieves" at some point - but if you haven't read them yet then I suggest getting hold of them before this October! 

Four A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth

“Two years before Beatrice Prior makes her choice, the sixteen-year-old son of Abnegation’s faction leader does the same. Tobias’s transfer to Dauntless is his chance to begin again. Newly renamed “Four” he discovers that initiation is only the beginning…

Four must claim his place in the Dauntless hierarchy. And his decisions will affect future initiates as well as uncover secrets that could threaten his own future – and the future of the entire faction system.

Two years later, Four is poised to act but the course is still unclear. The first new initiate who jumps into the net might change all that. With her, the way to righting their world might become clear. With her it might become possible to be Tobias once again.”

This was a collection of four short stories by Veronica Roth about the male lead in Divergent, Four. It follows his journey from Abnegation to Dauntless, highlighting his relationships with various members of Dauntless – both friendly and hostile. Included at the end of the book were 3 exclusive scenes that we have already lived from Tris’s perspective entitled “First Jumper – Tris!”, “Careful, Tris” and “You look good, Tris”.

I loved this book. I felt it gave us a much better understanding of Tobias and it redeemed him in my eyes – I rather disliked him by the end of Allegiant (you know you agree with me). It was nice to see him actually form friendships – the Four in the Divergent trilogy is a total lone wolf and distanced from everyone.

The short stories nicely tied up loose ends surrounding his character and events that you knew preceded the original trilogy and this was a huge pull for me as I love to know every little detail of a storyline. I especially enjoyed the last short story entitled “The Traitor” and the exclusive scenes as rereading key parts of Divergent from another perspective really appealed to me and showed more about Four’s personality than the other books did. Parts of this actually made me laugh out loud.

I still did not connect with Four/Tobias in the same way I did with Tris. Whether this was because he was a male (which hasn’t been a problem for me before) or because I already had an opinion on the character (which wasn’t a great one) I don’t know – however it is definitely worth a read for fans of Veronica Roth and Divergent.