Tag: book review

Review: The Witch Hunter and The King Slayer by Virginia Boecker

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24886378cover87575-mediumThe Witch Hunter and King Slayer by Virginia Boecker
Genre: Fantasy (Historical)
Published by: Orchard Books
Pages: 409, 400
Format: e-book, ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★

Not quite Holly Black, not quite Sarah J. Maas, not quite Robin LaFevers, and not quite Kristin Cashore but somehow all those ‘not quite’s add up into something pretty special. I was really excited to read The Witch Hunter because I think it was one of the book that came out at BEA last year, an my friend Lea really loves it. It sounded like something I’d enjoy and I did! Then I received the second book King Slayer from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Naturals and Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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The Naturals and Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Genre: Mystery/ Thriller, Secret Agent
Published by: Quercus Books
Pages: 308 | 376
Format: Library book
Rating: ★★★★★

Both of these books have been sat, unassuming, on our local library’s shelves for a while now, and never before had we picked them up. The last visit we had, it was about time we gave them a chance. They’re blurbed by Ally Carter, after all, and I love a good spy story. From books I picked up on a whim, to the best books I’ve read so far this year, I loved reading them back to back. There’s nothing better than discovering a new favourite book, especially if it’s one you haven’t heard anyone else talk about. So, let’s talk about all the reasons to love The Naturals series, and why it had my heart racing from beginning to end. Fangirl mode: activated! Continue reading “Review: The Naturals and Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes” →

Review: You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina Lacour

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29848950You Know Me Well  by David Leviathan and Nina Lacour
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Published by: Macmillan’s Children’s Books
Pages: 256
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★

I have come to expect a certain reading experience from David Levithan’s co-authored books, and I have to say that this was no exception. Whether that’s a good or a bad thing depends on how much you like to be surprised. I personally like it when an author’s books can be distinguished between one another by using different character types or different settings or ways to create plot/tension. So, although You Know Me Well fits perfectly into the David Levithan canon, maybe that’s not a good thing. Nina Lacour, on the other hand, had a jaunty style that was very similar to Levithan’s but they had their differences. I’m still not sure how I feel about her writing, but my previous experience of her work is limited to the short story she submitted to the Summer Days and Summer Nights anthology, so we shall see…

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Review: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

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17838528The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Published by: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 519
Format: Hardback
Rating: ★★★★.5

I really wasn’t sure while reading this if I could give it five stars, but the longer I left it to write this review, I realised how much I adored it! Morgan Matson can seriously do no wrong, she’s my favourite author of all time, and if you’ve been following my reviews for a long time you’ll know that Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour is my favourite book of all time too. So, obviously, I went into The Unexpected Everything with ridiculously high expectations. I should also mention that I paid extra for the hardback US edition from The Book Depository so I could own this BEAUTIFUL cover! But I am really happy to announce that I loved it!

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Review: The Boy Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick

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28756053The Boy Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Genre: Contemporary
Published by: Electric Monkey
Pages: 496
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★.5

If Non Pratt was my author of the year in 2015, then Huntley Fitzpatrick is definitely in the running for my favourite of 2016. Although I haven’t given any of her books a full 5 star rating, I’ve enjoyed every minute I’ve spent reading them. There’s something about her style that’s so easy to read and puts me in a pleasant mood. I’m actually sad to have read all of her books before the summer, but it just meant the summer came to me a little sooner!

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Review: London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning

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26177619London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning
Genre: Contemporary
Published by: Hot Key Books
Pages: 272
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★
Note: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

I was first drawn to this book because of it’s short timeline. It takes place over one night, and that would probably mean it would be a quick, fun read that could entertain me for a few hours. And I was right! London Belongs to Us is snappy and fast paced, the perfect read to start a summer of reading contemporary books. Continue reading “Review: London Belongs to Us by Sarra Manning” →

Review: Revolution 19 by Gregg Rosenblum

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13667361Revolution 19 by Gregg Rosenbaum
Genre: Sci-fi, Dystopia
Published by: HarperTeen
Pages: 265
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★

I picked up this book on a whim. I thought I’d heard someone talk about in on booktube maybe a year and a half ago. Now, I realise why there probably hasn’t been any discussions about it since. The main premise is robot apocalypse, right? Sounding pretty awesome so far? What it’s missing is character depth, an non circular plot, characters who learn from their mistakes and – not to mention – actual world building. So, welcome everyone to, what I believe to be, my first one star review of 2016.

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Review: The Strange and Beautiful Sorrow of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

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18166936The Strange and Beautiful Sorrow of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton
Genre: Fairytale (?), Historical (?) Fantasy (?) How the heck do you classify this??
Published by: Walker Books
Pages: 306
Format: Library Book
Rating: ★★★★

I’ve had my eye on this book for a while for two reasons:
a.) the beautiful cover, and
b.) the beautiful (and intriguing) title.
After seeing the reviews on Goodreads, the decision was made. I would read this book immediately. When I started reading, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The book is like an odd mixture of Chocolat by Joanne Harris (for all the generations of women and mother-daughter relationships) and Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (for the creepy, I-don’t-know-if-I-like-it vibe!) It’s also got some fairytale elements to it, but all together, it’s a hard one to pin down and I loved it…I think. Continue reading “Review: The Strange and Beautiful Sorrow of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton” →

Review: Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

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20453480Two Boys Kissing by David Leviathan
Genre: Contemporary, LGBTQ
Published by: Electric Monkey (Egmont)
Pages: 239
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★

This book was in my sixth form’s library, and I just never got round to reading it while I was there, which I obviously regretted because as soon as I spotted it in my local library I was checking it out without a second thought. All I knew about it was that it’s pretty much a staple in any list about LGBTQ YA and that was reason enough for me to want to read it. I’ve read a lot of David Levithan so far, and have found that I’ve enjoyed his co-written works with Rachel Cohn more than his own stuff, but I thought I’d see how it went.

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Review: The Rose Society by Marie Lu

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rosesocietyThe Rose Society by Marie Lu
Genre: Fantasy
Published by: Penguin
Pages: 448
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Series: The Young Elites (#1)

Wow. Just wow. I read The Young Elites earlier on in the year and wasn’t completely sold on it, but I was still pumped to see how the story progressed. Can I just say I loved it? Is that enough? Of course not! So let’s go into some of the more finer details as to why I thought The Rose Society was better than The Young Elites. That’s right, no second book syndrome here, folks.

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