Fluttering Butterflies Awesome Women

Michelle at Fluttering Butterflies runs a wonderful feature every saturday highlighting awesome women across literature, the world and the blogsphere.
I was very honoured to share my thoughts on some of the awesome, and some not so awesome, women who have helped shape my life today so please visit Fluttering Butterflies here and learn a little about me!

Ultraviolet - RJ Anderson

“Once upon a time there was a girl who was special. Her hair flowed like honey and her eyes were blue as music. She grew up bright and beautiful, with deft fingers, a quick mind and a charm that impressed everyone she met. Her parents adored her, her teachers praised her, and her schoolmates admired her many talents. Even the oddly shaped birthmark on her upper arm seemed like a sign of some great destiny.

This is not her story.

Unless you count the part where I killed her.”

Alison is a loner, she keeps herself to herself; confiding only in her best friend Mel. After an odd childhood under the rules of her strict mother she has learnt to keep quiet about what she sees when spoons clash together, or what she tastes when people are lying. Convinced at a young age that these were not the properties of a normal, sane, girl she says nothing and tells no one about them.

But the buzzing she hears whenever Tori Beaugrand is around drives her crazy. It’s bad enough that Tori hates her and acts like she’s a freak, but that buzzing is enough to push anyone over the edge and suddenly Tori disappears and Alison wakes up two weeks later in a mental institute. Alison can’t explain, without telling people about her abilities, what happened to Tori, not even to herself. But she also wants to get out of that hospital, and quickly.

***

Ultraviolet is powerful. Very powerful. You can tell from the extract above. You’re really getting into a bit of it then all of a sudden BOOM! You’re hit with something you didn’t expect. And let’s face it, that’s exactly what I want from my books so it’s obviously why I fell in love with this book!

Without giving too much away the story follows Alison after she wakes up in the psychiatric unit of St Luke’s hospital, where she is transferred to Pine Hills. She can’t remember herself why she’s there so when you’re reading you’re picking everything up at the same time as she is. You expect from the summary to be presented with a crazy person, I mean, why else would she be in an institute? But no, she actually really doesn’t come across as crazy. Alison is an amazingly complex character due to her ability to see and taste more things than your average person can. But she doesn’t know why or how or anything and she doesn’t have anyone to confide in. You really get to know her as a character and you get to understand her, and for a while you’re the only person who does. Until Faraday comes along.

I loved the character of Faraday; he was dreamy and smart, and lovely. He was the perfect man. You keep thinking that he shouldn’t  be the way he is because he’s a doctor and for  quite a way through the book I was going “noooo don’t fall for him, that will result in trouble!!” but it plays out brilliantly!

The story was totally not what I expected. I kinda thought it would be a murder mystery with a twist of psychological thriller, but I didn’t expect the bit of sci-fi that’s thrown in there too! I don’t do sci-fi to be honest with you. I can’t stand stuff like that usually but in Ultraviolet… it works! Big time!

I can’t gush over this book enough. I love books which delve into the psychological and this book took that, developed a whole new way of looking at things and really brought my attention to amazing things that I didn’t actually know existed! I really would recommend this to anyone and everyone because it blew me away. I am now gunna go and find myself a copy of Knife because I can’t wait to read more RJ Anderson.

Ultraviolet is due out for UK release in June by Orchard Books, it is available to preorder here.

55 Book Questions

I saw this on Sarah's Blog Sarah Says a couple of weeks ago and thought I'd steal it (she said it was ok! lol) I hope you like it, and please feel free to take it too!

1. Favorite childhood book? 

I honestly Have no idea... the book I remember and loved the most when I was a child was The Poetry Collection chosen by Neil Philip. I can remember grabbing it down from the shelf at every chance and getting my sister to read the Jumblies to me. I still have the book and cant wait to read the poems to my children!

2. What are you reading right now?
The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney. I've only just started, I have heard so many good things so I really hope it lives up to its reputation

3. What books do you have on request at the library?
none at the minute! I am going down there on Saturday though and I think I may ask them to get me a copy of Zoe Marriott’s The Swan Kingdom, because I can’t wait til July (when the new cover is released) for it!

4. Bad book habit?
Dog-earring books, I know I shouldn’t. but tbh it doesn’t bother me! If I'm borrowing a book though I will use a bookmark. But I lose them so easily!

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Sisters Red – Jackson Pearce, The Bride’s Farewell – Meg Rosoff and The 13 Curses – Michelle Harrison  

6. Do you have an e-reader?
I don’t, I actually use my phone to read books I get off Netgalley and it is driving me crazy! I may have to get one for Christmas! lol

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
One, I can’t concentrate on more than one at a time, I always end up favouring one over the other so it’s pointless starting two!

8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
Yes, I read SOOOOO much more! Which you can imagine really, I started this year thinking my goal would be 50 for the year; I’m already over 40 and its still April! Also I really think about what I’m reading, I don’t skim read as much!

9. Least favorite book you read this year (so far?)
quite possibly Tithe by Holly Black I really couldn’t get into it at all, or Matched by Ally Condie...

10. Favorite book you’ve read this year?
Die For Me – Amy Plum. I really couldn’t wait to read this book as its not out til May. I HAD to get a copy and my mentioning of this fact on twitter meant that I actually got a review copy from another blogger who didn’t think it would be her type of thing… however since I’ve read it, and posted my review of it, she has 
changed her mind, based on my review (Woop!) and wants to read it! :D

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
not as often as I should. I want to read more but it’s hard! I know what I like!

12. What is your reading comfort zone?
Contemporary and paranormal young adult.

13. Can you read on the bus?
I can, though I ddrive so I rarely get the chance.

14. Favourite place to read?
I don’t think I’ve found it yet. I reckon it would be a garden if I had one. But my most used place is curled up in a ball on the sofa, with T next to me playing on the ps3!

15. What is your policy on book lending?
I will always lend a book to a friend, including my fellow blogger friends, providing I know that they will look after it, and I can afford the postage! I ALWAYS lend books to my sister… if it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t read at all so it’s the least I can do!

16. Do you ever dog-ear books?
yup, as you can see above!

17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
nope, I used to for uni but not anymore

18. Not even with text books?
yeah, back when I used em

19. What is your favorite language to read in?
The only one I know! English

20. What makes you love a book?
The ability to lose myself within the words

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
my enjoyment of it… or if its my sister, I know her so well that if I didn’t like a book but I know it’s her type of thing I will recommend… for example Between the shades of grey, so not my type of book! But it is hers so Ive recommended it to her already!

22. Favorite genre?
paranormal, dystopian, contemporary…

23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
more non-fiction or sci-fi because I think I would enjoy it…

24. Favorite biography?
Tim Burtons autobiography. I love that man.

25. Have you ever read a self-help book?
nope

26. Favorite cookbook?
erm… A student one I have, its cheap and easy! .

27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
Jessie <3’s NYC by Keris Stainton, its inspired me to just go to New York and be done with it (I probably wont though… I’m too scared!)

28. Favorite reading snack?
chocolate chip cookies….. oranges are THE worst thing to eat whilst reading, trust me!

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.
The Hunger Games….

30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?
I don’t know, it depends what you mean by critics…

31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I don’t like it too much… but it’s my opinion, I try to push that fact in my reviews, to get people to maybe read the books themselves to form their opinion!  

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose?
Japanese, because I’m hoping to go there one day and I’d like to be able to understand the language

33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
erm… I don’t know to be honest… Probably some classic like Jane Austin or something… 

34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, Its huge, it’s out of my comfort zone and its sat on my shelf waiting to be read… 

35. Favorite poet?
John Cooper Clarke

36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Anywhere from 1-5

37. How often have you returned book to the library unread?
never. I always read them

38. Favorite fictional character?
oh man. Just one?!  I don’t know! Daisy from Sarra Manning’s Pretty things? Sephy from Noughts and Crosses? Luna from Harry Potter, Frank from The Wasp Factory (yes I know he’s messed up but hes an amazing character!)

39. Favorite fictional villain?
Voldemort! Obviously!

40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
depends where I’m going… Once when I went to see my parents for 3 weeks I took 15 books of varying genres and sizes and read them all (theres nothing else to do in the Bulgarian countryside honest!) but if im going away with friends to a beach or something… it’d be something short and sweet, contemporary romance type things probably.

41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.
probably about a month… I had bad periods of time during my years at uni but I had to read because I did an English Lit course! Longest time not reading for pleasure? Id say about 9 months! (term-time)

42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
Bleak House – Dickens. I can’t, I can’t even get past the first two pages!

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
too many things going on at once… usually T playing music/games or watching videos whilst L is playing something else and constantly talking… it does my head it with too much sound going on all around me at once!

44. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
Charlie and the Chocolate factory… both the Gene Wilder and the Jonny Depp ones… I love them almost as much as I love the book!

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?
Twilight… but then what else can I expect!

46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
erm… probably around £50, on textbooks more than likely!

47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?
I’ll read the first couple of pages, that’s it!

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
boring plot…

49. Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes a bit but I’m not like totally OCD

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
It depends… a lot of my books atm are coming from the library as I have no money. I either keep them, or if I don’t think I’ll read them again I’ll take them to the library for a loan.

51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
Vampire books that I think are obviously cashing in on the whole twilight thing? I don’t know why but The PC Cast “House Of Night” series… really avoiding that one even though Ive heard ok things about it 


52. Name a book that made you angry.
One Day by David Nicholls… I loved it but GRRRR

53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
hmmm… I don’t know… The Story Sisters I didn’t expect to like as much as I did… It turned out to be one of my favourite books of 2010 

54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
The Hunger Games by Suzzanne Collins… It’s not so much that I didn’t like it, it just didn’t grab me!

55. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?

I don’t feel guilty about any book that I read.

Tithe - Holly Black

“Kaye took another drag on her cigarette and dropped it into her mother’s beer bottle. She figured that would be a good test for how drunk Ellen was – see if she would swallow a butt whole.”

Kaye has been following her mother’s, Ellen’s, band around Philadelphia or years. Knowing it doesn't pay much and not enjoying school she dropped out at 14 and worked full time in a Chinese restaurant. Then one evening, after a gig, her mother’s boyfriend tries to stab her. Ellen decides they are going home, to the place where Kaye can see faeries. Kaye can’t wait to see her old fay friends again but what’s waiting for her when she goes back to her hometown is far from friendly.

The solitary fay are in need of a tithe, a sacrifice, to maintain their freedom, they hatch a plan for Kaye to act as their sacrifice but agree that they will free her before it can be fully conducted. Kaye trusts her friends and goes along with it, not knowing that the court faeries may be harder to trick than she believes.

I have only heard good things about Holly Black and Tithe was my first delve into her amazing imagination. The world which is created in Tithe is amazing, and very dark. Even before you come across the Faerie world, Kaye’s life doesn’t exactly sound easy, her mother is practically an alcohol, she’s a high school dropout, working full time to look after her mother and all she sees herself as is an outsider.

The Faerie world makes the book become even darker, almost frightening. The enchantments that the faeries cast, and how they have ultimate power, could be terrifying! I loved the world but at the same time hope like hell that I never come across any beings like them!

The storyline of Tithe was amazing, everything was there to make it a brilliant book, but I don’t think I could personally class it as a favourite. I think parts of the book were very confusing and I couldn’t quite get a grasp on what the faeries were meant to look like sometimes. Occasionally I’d believe that they were glamoured when something happened to make it sound like they weren’t. It was very confusing. I also found the enchantments a bit confusing, I wasn’t fully aware when characters were enchanted or not. I don’t know if it was me skim reading but I just got thrown out whilst reading it a few times.

I loved the characters in this book, Kaye was very kick-ass and she obviously took no shit, along with Janet. Cordy was awesome, especially when you find out about his revelation, that was the funniest part of the book! And a for the faeries,  it took a while to realise some of their characteristics and why they were the way they were but I loved them, obviously Roiben and Lottie-lou!

I really wished I enjoyed Tithe more as everything was there to make it an amazing book but I just found parts of it a bit confusing and I couldn’t lose myself in it like I usually can with books I love!

Tithe was published in the UK by Simon and Schuster in 2004. Holly Black is also known for her “Curse Workers” series and for being the co-writer of The Spiderwick Chronicles.

Dear Mr Potter update and The Royal Wedding

You may recall me telling you about a book a few months back that I am helping out on called Dear Mr Potter. If so I have exciting news about it here:

‘“Dear Mr. Potter: Letters of Love, Loss, and Magic,” at nearly 200 pages in length, features hundreds of letters and pictures from Harry Potter fans. Individually, these letters and pictures tell stories of how fans have been impacted and inspired by Harry Potter. Together they serve as proof of what all Potter fans know so well: the Harry Potter series changes lives.

Along with fans from around the world, “Dear Mr. Potter” also features letters from Harry Potter actress Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), New York Times-bestselling author John Green, Leaky Cauldron webmistress and author of New York Times-bestseller “Harry, A History” Melissa Anelli, Andrew Slack of the Harry Potter Alliance, Paul DeGeorge of Harry and the Potters, Andrew Sims and Eric Scull of MuggleNet, and Esther Earl’s mom, Lori.

All proceeds from “Dear Mr. Potter” will directly benefit the Harry Potter Alliance and its efforts to improve literacy worldwide. Those who pre-order the book will purchase it at a discounted rate. “Dear Mr. Potter” will officially go on sale on July 1, 2011 but we strongly encourage pre-ordering.

As always, we appreciate your continued support. Although only a select number were chosen for publication, you can find hundreds of more inspiring stories at dearmrpotter.org. It’s thanks to you, the Harry Potter fans, that we’ve been able to make this remarkable project happen.’

As you can see, this incredible book finally has its release date and let me tell you, with all proceeds going to charity, a lot of time, love and effort behind it and its starting point as an Idea formed by a 15 year old girl, its totally worth it! The letters are beautiful and it would mean so much to me if you could spread the world and, if you’re a Potterhead like me, buy the book too! It is now available to pre-order through The Harry Potter Alliance here.

The Royal Wedding 

So as you will know (unless of course you actually live under a rock, in which case, thanks for choosing my blog to view upon exiting your rock!) the Royal wedding is on Friday. I wont be watching, I can assure you of that. I think the whole thing is over exaggerated and I actually feel sorry for the pair of them as they have to think of the rest of the world more than themselves in what should be their most important day.

I am a huge believer in the fact that we no longer need a royal family. I know it’s a part of our history and if this was my belief a hundred and a bit years ago then I would have been hung for it but never mind. I think that my taxes can be spent on better things than powering their family, and it really makes me laugh that Prince Charles said that he is paying for the wedding not the state… hang on a minute mate, where do you get that money from? Oh yeah, us! To be honest I am sick to death of seeing Prince William and Kate Middleton’s faces everywhere I look and although I am not gunna say no to a day off on Friday, I am sick of being asked if it will be spent watching the wedding.

Instead of watching I will be partaking in #royalreading, This is a brilliant idea, founded by Scott Pack of Me and My Big Mouth. Basically the idea is to begin reading a book on the morning of the royal wedding and have it finished that day. (Though I love the way Scott put it on his blog “aim to finish it by the time Kate and Wills are at it like rabbits in their honeymoon suite.” Lol!)

I’m hoping to get The Sky Is Everywhereby Jandy Nelson read on Friday, I will let you know how it goes on twitter (@raimy_rawr)

Break time.

Hey guys.
I hope you have a wonderful Easter break for those of you who celebrate it. I don't, however I understand that this time of year is spent with families and friends so I'm not going to be posting anything over the weekend. I hope you don't mind but I'm gunna try and get my posts scheduled in advance and right now I cant seem to do that whilst blogging so I'm going to be spending my long weekend reading and writing so hopefully I can get my posts done in advance!

Have a wonderful long weekend and look out for reviews on Tithe by Holly Black, Ultraviolet by RJ Anderson and Jessie <3's NYC by Keris Stainton amongst others next week! x

Made For Each Other - Paul D Storrie

Just after three senior cheerleaders die in a car crash there’s a new undertaker in town. Maria walks straight into the mysterious Tom during school. Realising that he’s the undertaker’s son she tries to be welcoming and can’t help but notice that he is seriously hot. Crushing on Tom she finds an excuse to go and see him, but taking a trip up to the funeral parlour she find she’s faced with something a bit more serious than the usual “does he like me” scenario.

With bodies piling up all over town and Tom's 'friend' Hedy making plans to know everyone its a bit of a whirlwind ride for Maria. 

I’m on a bit of a graphic novel kick at the minute and as I received Made for Each Other over a month ago from Netgalley I thought it was the right time to have a read.

Made For Each Other is the second in the My Boyfriend is a Monster series. I stupidly overlooked this when I requested it but to be honest I don’t think I missed much by not reading the first in the series.

I loved the drawings; I think maybe something was lost by reading this on my phone though. I would rather have seen the picture for real in the book but they were still pretty cool! I loved Hedys character the best, I think I have a thing for gothy bad attitude types! They are always the ones that look best in graphic novels!

The story was pretty good, In graphic novels you don’t often get that much of a back story, you’re in the action straight off but this one was really well paced, nothing felt rushed or anything. And I love the re-telling of the Frankenstein story! As Frankenstein is one of my favourite classics I was really impressed!

I liked the characters but I think the drawings did make Maria look a bit too fragile at times I think. She’s a really strong character so I didn’t like that too much. Toms drawings were really cool too, but not a patch on his dads! Wow, talk about old man hot!

Made for Each Other is pretty girly when it comes to graphic novels. I like a bit more action but I think there was enough flame throwing to get over the overly romantic bits! Made for Each Other is a great take on gothic graphic novels and I would really love to see more like it! 

Clubbing - Andi Watson and Josh Howard

Lottie is fun loving, laid back kinda girl. She doesn't understand why her parents freak out when she gets taken home in the back of a police car after trying to use a fake ID to get into a top Goth club in central London. They send her away to live with her grandparents for the whole of summer; she cant possibly get into trouble on a golf course in the middle of the boring, rainy, Lake District.

I didn’t actually realise Clubbing was a graphic novel when I picked it up in the library. Not even until I got it home and looked it up online. I should of known really cos it does have a picture of Lottie on the front but it also has a picture of real people dancing in a club. Its' just as well I like graphic novels really though isn't it?

I loved the drawings in this book, they are really the style that I like to see in my graphic novels, they were eye catching and I really loved Lottie's kick ass Goth chic look! You could tell she walked with attitude.

Overall Clubbing was a quick quirky read. I loved the characters, they were, well, fun. It took me about 45 minutes from start to finish but it was lacking in the storyline department. You got thrown into Lottie's life when she was nearly at the train station in the Lakes and then not a lot happened. Then something big happened but was brushed aside then something weird happened. It was all very rushed and I didn't really like it. I was half expecting to turn the page and see Lottie saying “and then I woke up” cos that’s what the story sounded like to me!

Clubbing is a part of a series of graphic novels called Minx. I believe these were created to get girls into reading graphic novels *rolls eyes* and because of this I think the story was really watered down. I am gunna keep an eye out for any more of these Minx graphic novels and see if the others lack in story as much as this one did, as I say the drawings were made of awesome but if you cant back that up with a good story I ain't so interested! 

Really Random Tuesday; My tattoo stories

Really Random Tuesday is a weekly meme run by Suko at Suko's notebook. It was brought to my atention by awesome fellow blogger Serendipity and although I doubt I have enough randomness to do it every week I thought it would be a good place to post about personal stuff. I hope you dont mind.

When talking on twitter to the lovely Cicely at Ciclovesbooks about dinosaurs and other animals I mentioned my ladybug tattoo and that it had a story behind it. The story is too long to tell on twitter and I thought I might share it with my wonderful blog followers; I’ll try not to bore you!

This is my ladybug tattoo. It’s on my left wrist and has two spots. I got it in April 2007 when I was 18 and I was living with my sister, going to college but having lots of fun. I thought long and hard about what I wanted. My parents had left the country a few months earlier, just before Christmas 2006 and I missed them but I was also loving my new found freedom; so I decided that was what I wanted my tattoo to represent. I thought of everything that represented freedom and it made me think of flying, however my mum is terrified of birds, which would have been the first obvious choice and I am terrified of butterflies; the second obvious choice. That’s where the ladybug came in; ladybugs fly and they are pretty and most of all they have spots. The fact that my ladybug has two spots is no co-incidence. They are for my parents, one for my dad and one for my mum; I was free but it didn't mean I wanted to forget them!

When I have my own children I will be getting more ladybugs. I am hoping to have two in my future and if it happens I will add to my tattoo by getting tiny, spotless, baby ladybugs going across my wrist.

My second tattoo was done on a bit of a whim, in July of 2008, but it still means something. It is a tiny heart, smaller than a 5p piece on my left hip area. I don't really wish to go into exactly what it means here. I love it though and I am glad I got it because every time I see it in the mirror or anything I am reminded of a time when things weren't so good, but were definitely about to get a lot better.

My third and final (for now!) tattoo is on the top of my right foot, I got this one in September of 2009, with some money from my student loan (shush don't tell my dad!). As you can see it is a music note with hearts. I am a huge music nerd; more so in the past than now I'm afraid but I still LOVE my music. It bugs me that I can’t really play any instruments but music has been a huge part of my life for many years now and I wanted something on me to represent that; so that when I'm old and wrinkly I can look down and remember all the crazy things I did at gigs and how much music meant to me while I was in college and uni. I honestly believe music made some of my life decisions for me; that is how important it is!

I am currently thinking about my next tattoo. I want to get something which relates to the books that I have loved in the past. I currently have two ideas. They are both in the same place; along my right rib, curving across my chest. (the tat shown is one I found online, not my own!) I love tattoos that are there, it looks so pretty! The first idea is for “nomi, gigi” Which if you have read The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman you will understand. It means “sister rescue me” in the sisters’ secret language and I think it’s beautiful, I love the idea because it would link my love of reading to my sister, who is my main cause for loving reading in the first place! However I also think “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good” would make a brilliant tattoo, especially there! ;) and when I’m like 80 I could get “mischief managed” on the other side! Haha (if you don’t know those references then I’m sorry but SHAME ON YOU!!)

I would love your input guys, as I am yet to decide and its gunna be about 4 months before I get it!

Do you have any tattoos? Have they got stories behind them? 

Die For Me - Amy Plum

“My parents had died in a car accident just ten days after I got my driver’s license. A week later, on Christmas day, my sister, Georgia, decided that the two of us would leave America to live with our father’s parents in France. I was still too shell shocked to put up a fight.

We moved in January. No one expected us to go back to school right away. So we just passed the days trying to cope in our own desperate ways. My sister frantically blocked her sorrow by going out every night with the friends she had made during our summer visits. I turned into an agoraphobic mess.”

Kate is devastated by the loss of her parents. She spends her time cooped up inside with her head in a book until one day her sister finally tells her she has to get out of the house, even if it’s to read outside in one of Paris’ artsy cafes. Kate agrees and starts frequenting a local café, getting to know the owner and other frequent visitors. One day a group of boys catches her eye, a group of very handsome boys, and from that moment on Kate seems to bump into them more often than she’d like at first. Vincent, one of the handsome boys, talks to her on a couple of their chance meetings and Kate just can’t help herself get drawn to him. She ends up spending more time with him, and soon realises that not everything is what it seems, including Vincent himself.

Let me begin by saying that Die For Me was one of my most anticipated books of 2011. I have been longing to get my hands on a copy since I first heard about it because it sounded so magical and let me tell you, it does not disappoint!

Kate is obviously going through a tough time. Having just lost her parents it’s not hard to understand why she just wants to curl up and pretty much disappear. But Vincent will not let her do that, from their very first meeting he knows that she is special, he knows that he has to get to know her.

Die For Me is totally action packed. Without giving away too much of the story you get sword fighting, knife throwing, kick ass action scenes. With quite a bit of half-naked boy thrown in there too; which obviously isn’t something to complain about!

I am not a fast reader and a book of this size, 345 pages, would usually take me a few days if I’m at work. However because of the writing and the amazing descriptive scenes within Die For Me I lost myself completely in this book. I had 155 pages left when I got home from work on Monday night and read them in about an hour and a half, which is ridiculously fast for me. I just couldn’t put it down! I found myself totally inside the narrative! It was brilliant!

I loved Kate’s character, she had a lot going for her and she really did need something or someone to get her out of the pain of losing her parents. I also loved Kate’s Papy… even though you barely saw much of him I hope he will be around a lot more in the next couple of books cos I think he is cool! And her Mamie was awesome too. They really were a rock for her to anchor herself with following her parents’ death.

I can’t go into much detail of the plot without giving a lot away. So basically I’ll say this: Die For Me is a fantastically written, action packed, paranormal romance and you will love this book even if paranormal fiction isn’t your thing. I will be urging EVERYONE to read it!

Die for Me is Amy Plum’s first novel. It will be released in the UK on May 5^th by Atom books. It is the first part in the Revenants series, of which book two is due to follow during May of 2012. I also have to say a huge thank you to the wonderful Keris Stainton for sending me her copy to read and review! :D

In My Mailbox (#5)

In my mailbox hosted by The Story Siren. IMM is a way of letting people know what books you picked up this week. You can find more out about it here.

As you know I like to show off my dinosaurs when I do my IMM, however because this week's is a little smaller than that past few weeks I have decided to use my teeny dino, can you see her? She's so small she doesn't have a name... if you wish to give her one then please do!

Anyway! This week was a quite week, I only got two books from the library. Meg Rosoff's The Bride's Farewell and 13 Curses by Michelle Harrison.
I have heard great things about Meg Rosoff so I can't wait to read this one, my sister is kindly going to send me How I live now too so my Meg Rosoff experience is due to drastically grow! That's always a good thing!
13 curses is one that I have been after since I read the first in the series. The Library catalogue said it was there but I couldn't find it. Amazingly I managed to find it over in the children's section! I was so annoyed that I didn't think of looking over there but I seriously thought it would be in the teen bit, where its predecessor was!
The bookmark you can see is highlighting the short-listed books for the Lancashire Book Of the Year awards. I got very excited when I saw it and tweeted it through to one of the wonderful authors who has a book on there! Its very pretty and on the other side features the words "reading is precious" which we all know is true!


I was also accepted for review of two awesome sounding books on Netgalley this week! Ultraviolet by RJ Anderson and In Trouble by Ellen Levine. Unfortunately my phone seems to have freaked out when using it to read ebooks lately but hopefully it'll fix itself because these sound really really good!

The Midnighters: Touching Darkness - Scott Westerfeld

**whilst I usually take the upmost care not to spoil any books for my dear readers I am afraid that this book is the second in the series and it is very difficult not to write about it without giving away the stoy of the previous book; The Secret Hour. If you wish to read the series and want to know what I thought of it please read my review of the first book here. DO NOT READ ON if you don't want to know what happened.**

"Jessica Day wondered if she'd really changed that much since packing the box in Chicago. Maybe it was getting arrested that had suddenly made her feel older. (Okay, officially she'd been 'detained and transported to parental custody.' Whatever.) Or maybe it was having a boyfriend. (although that wasn't official yet either, come to think of it.) Or maybe it was the secret world that had opened up around her here in Bixby and then had tried so hard to kill her."

After finding out what Jessica's powers are and scaring the Darkling’s off for a while the five midnighters hope to carry on their lives pretty much as normal. However after a trip out with Jonathan during the blue hour Jessica and her companion notice a strange figure frozen in the bushes opposite her bedroom window with his camera poised to take multiple images at bang on midnight.

Jessica and Jonathan know in that instance that there must be daylighters who know about the blue hour and with Rex delving into the history of the lore it would appear that the nest few weeks are going to be a struggle for all the midnighters to keep safe.

I loved the first of this series. I couldn't get enough of it, I even returned it to the library and asked them to get the second one in for me (costing me a whole 60p! lol) and I’m so glad I did. Touching Darkness is a brilliant follow on!

I loved the action in the first book and the second really got my heart beating too. There were scary bits, there were amusing bits and there were definitely sad bits! As with the first the perspective in Touching Darkness is mixed, you get some of the story from Jessica, then Jonathan, Dess, Rex and Melissa.

I liked that this book had more of a focus on the other characters than the first; you get more of a feel for Dess and Melissa, which is good because I really wanted to know more about these two.

In this follow on you also learn more about each of the midnighter’s abilities, which was really cool. I love the idea that the guys have special powers in the blue hour and learning more about them fascinated me. You also get to know Beth, Jessica’s sister, more which I liked. She isn’t a midnighter and I was convinced that something was gunna happen to her throughout a lot of this book, but as I always find with Scott Westerfeld; it wasn’t as predictable as I expected!

You also get a feel for the history of the “lore” as Rex calls it, and you get to learn more about how special Bixby is. That was something I really enjoyed cos the whole way through the first book I was questioning why Bixby was the only place the blue hour happened. I’m glad my questions were answered, but Touching Darkness also let other questions unanswered so I can’t wait to get my hands on the third to answer those!

I didn’t get into the book as much as I’d hoped to be honest, I loved it but I think there was something amiss, I don’t quite know what it is but I think it might have something to do with the change of character in Melissa and maybe her and Dess’ relationship. In the first of the series you got a bit of how Dess felt about the other midnighters and this is built on in Touching Darkness and I don’t think I liked how it was handled. But I am hoping that the third, Blue Moon, will fix that for me, as I am going to the library at the weekend to get them to order that on in for me too!! 

Touching Darkness is the second in The Midnighters series. It was published in 2006 by Atom. 

Discussion: Swearing in YA

So a couple of weeks back I signed on to twitter, to find the wonderful Keris Stainton, author of Della Says: OMG! (review here) saying that she was going through her book, trying to make changes suggested by her editor. These changes were to do with the swear words in her upcoming Jessie <3’s NYC. After a brief chat with Keris I couldn’t believe that her editor was asking her to change these swear words; why change “pissed” (meaning pissed off, not drunk!) to something else when it wouldn’t sound right for that character, not to me anyway!

**this discussion does contain occasional swear words, just thought I'd warn you!**

Swearing in YA is something I’ve briefly mentioned within reviews on this blog and it’s something I feel strongly about. My ONE flaw in Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins (review) was that the character didn’t swear, and that it was actually noted that she didn’t.  In this example I was really annoyed; the character Sophie said “screw them” and then in the narration actually told the reader that “screw” wasn’t the actual term used, she had used something stronger. I really didn’t like that; why bother putting the different dialogue in there? The reader knew exactly what was said and to me, Sophie’s bad attitude faltered slightly, almost as if she was actually a good girl just trying to look bad-ass.

When I am reading YA I place myself into the shoes of the narrator or main character, just as many people do. I go through what they are going through and sometimes the situation they are in deserves an “OH SHIT!!” That is why I am for swearing in YA. I know for a fact that between the ages of 16-19 every other word out of my mouth was a swear word, and although I’m not saying this should be the case in YA, I am saying that swearing shouldn’t be something that is purposely removed from a situation which it is obviously right for.

I understand that people don’t like swearing, they are perfectly within their right not to swear themselves. Also if you are a parent and you would prefer for your children not to read books with swearing in them, then that is something you need to discuss with them. I was brought up in around swearing; my dad’s favourite saying when he didn’t want to do something was “fuck that for a game of soldiers!” But that didn’t mean I was disrespectful, I knew exactly what the correct situation was for swearing and I would NEVER have sworn at either of my parents or someone with authority.

I believe that in the right context and with the right character swearing is integral to YA literature. It creates a real setting and many kids reading will relate to the book even more because of it. However a book without swearing in it can also be perfectly realistic, but only if the characters are right! If a book doesn’t have any swearing in it at all it doesn’t make it less valid. I don’t believe there is any in 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson (though there is a little in its sequel) but it was still a very good read! Like I say, it all depends on the characters, 13 LBE probably doesn’t have any swearing because it would be out of character for Ginny to swear but if the characters in, Numbers by Rachel Ward, or Rockoholic by CJ Skuse for example didn't swear I don’t believe I would relate to them as much; they’d come across as fakes.

I like swearing in YA, I think it adds to getting to know the character; you can gauge what they are like, make them more real in your head and get closer to them by their attitude and if they swear or not! I don’t think Keris should have to take all of the swears out of her book, especially since I have read it and I can only place about two of them off the top of my head!

I believe swears should (to quote a friend when chatting about this discussion post) "absofuckinlutely" be allowed in YA. This post is my opinion, and I am very happy to read others. A lovely fellow blogger, Jo at Once Upon a Bookcase, voiced her opinion of swearing in YA earlier this week and my opinion of her has not changed just because we don’t agree, she is still pretty awesome! Also Keris has had her say here, so dont miss that!

What do you think about swearing in YA?!

The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and other stories - Tim Burton

“One Day in the park

I had quite a surprise

I met a girl

Who had many eyes.”

Tim Burtons collection of short poems and stories brings us into the world of some fantastical “freaks”. With Oyster boy, the boy who was born part oyster, to Match Girl, who gets too close to stick boy and Anchor baby who drags his mum down back to the bottom of the sea after her life of misery on shore.

I love Tim Burton, his movies are in my opinion, some of the best movies ever made, with some of the best imaginative input ever, and so it’s no surprise that this collection of stories makes me giddy every time I think about them! I love the weirdness of the characters, I just can’t help it!

The collection is not very long, with some of the stories being told in two lines! But all the same they are brilliant; you see how people handle things that are different. Oyster boy’s parents even try and dump him somewhere because of how different he is! But that’s nothing compared to what actually happens to him! The collection definitely says something about humanity and people’s reactions.

Death is a theme which runs through a lot of these little stories and obviously I would not recommend you tell many of them to smaller children. As you may know Tim Burton’s movies are often pretty surreal and these stories aren’t much different! I think my favourite is Melonhead; which tells a little story about a boy with a melon for head, over only 6 lines!

The collection is a fun quick read, accompanied by awesome pictures of the strange little characters. I don’t often read poetry but if I do it has to be fun and not full of “other meanings” which are difficult to get. These have got underlying meanings but you can understand them pretty easily! Many of them are about not belonging, or being treated badly if you are different in any way.  If you like Tim Burton’s movies you should have a quick read of these stories, they really are fun, even if they are slightly disturbing! 

Eighth Grade Bites, The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod - Heather Brewer

“’Where’s the boy? Where’s Vlad?’

John wriggled. The man’s face was near his. Cold breath beat down on the back of his neck and something sharp grazed against his skin.

‘Tell me or die.’

John opened his mouth to speak, but it was too late for lies. The man bit down. Fangs popped though john’s skin, cutting deep into his neck.”

Vladimir Tod is a 13 year old vampire. He lives with his Aunt Nelly since his parents died three years earlier. He doesn’t know how the accident happened but he escaped unscathed from the fire in his home. He has survived on packets of blood smuggled out of the hospital and uncooked steaks. Having only “fed” once.

Other than his Vampire tendencies he leads a perfectly normal life, he goes to school, has a laugh with his best friend Henry, gets bullied by the bigger lads and has a crush on one of the prettiest girls in school. The only thing he really has to worry about is his secret getting out to the rest of the school; until his teacher goes missing and the substitute gives Vlad a strange, knowing feeling.

I had heard good things about The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod and even though it’s not something I would usually pick up I thought I’d give the first book a go anyway. I’m really glad I did though as it gave me a light-hearted, quick, fun read.

Eighth Grade Bites is really funny, the friendship between Vlad and Henry is a brilliant reflection of boys this age, how they wind each other up and Henry always has a witty come back, but would still be there for Vlad no matter what. I loved their friendship so much cos even though Henry knows Vlad’s secret you can tell that he would never give it up. It was a great representation.

Unfortunately I couldn’t properly loose myself within the story, I kept forgetting that the book was for younger readers and the characters are a bit younger than you find in YA books so this threw me a little. The boys are only 13/14 and I’m used to 16/17 year olds. I am a bit annoyed that I’ve get this book out the library though, I think I may have to buy it for my boyfriend’s son, as a (just turned) 11 year old I really think he’d enjoy this book a lot.

I liked the story a lot, it was light-hearted and even though Vlad had his hunches about Otis there wasn’t a lot of action. This was a bit disappointing as the first chapter was very action packed but I liked it all the same. It was a story about growing up and dealing with changes whilst introducing the beginning of a series. I think the action will probably come in the sequels.

I would very much recommend this book to anyone who has kids, especially boys, in the MG age. It is a brilliant example of great writing for this age group and I’d happily give it to my (kinda) stepson. I think it’s very much targeted at boys though, or girls who are tomboys (like I was at 11!)

Eighth Grade Bitesin the first in the Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, it was released in the UK this year along with the second in the series Ninth Grade Slays
The third and fourth books in the series, Tenth Grade Bleeds and Eleventh Grade Burns are due for release within the first halve of 2011, please see penguin UK's website for details. 

30 Day Book Challenge: Week 4

Day 23: Book you tell people you’ve read, but haven’t (or haven’t actually finished) -The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - JRR Tolkien

Goodreads Summary:

"Having vanquished Sauron's troops and killed the Lord of the Dark Riders, heroic hobbit Frodo Baggins and his band of soldiers now face another, bloodier battle outside Mordor's Black Gate. The concluding volume of Tolkien's masterful trilogy."

OK so, own up time... I haven't actually finished the entire trilogy. I have read the Hobbit and The Fellowshp of the Ring in their entirity, however I only got halfway through The Two Towers and I didnt even start The Return of the King... Here's the shocking part; I even did a Tolkein module at university AND wrote an essay comparing aspects of the films and books... I even passed that module (just)... I'm ashamed! 

Day 24: Book that contains your favourite scene - Thirteen Treasures - Michelle Harrison

Goodreads Summary:

"No one else can see the evil fairies that rouse Tanya from her sleep, torturing her at the slightest mention of their existence, but they are as real to the 13-year-old as anything she's ever known. She cannot rid herself of them, nor can she ignore them. But it is her insistence on responding to them that has her banished to her grandmother's secluded countryside manor. 

There is much to explore and even more to fear in the woods surrounding the estate. But, the forest isn't the only source of dark secrets, and Tanya soon finds herself entangled in a mystery that could trap her in the fairy realm forever"

Do I only have one scene to pick?! awww man! I loved this book... I think my favourite scene has to be one of the ones with the goblins... I cant choose which though. But I did love most of the scenes! So dont make me choose! 

Day 25: Favourite book you read in school - Taming of the Shrew - William Shakespeare

Goodreads Summary:

"The Taming of the Shrew is the tale of two young men, the hopeful Lucentio and the worldly Petruchio, and the two sisters they meet in Padua.

Lucentio falls in love with Bianca, the apparently ideal younger daughter of the wealthy Baptista Minola. But before they can marry, Bianca's formidable elder sister, Katherine, must be wed. Petruchio, interested only in the huge dowry, arranges to marry Katherine -against her will- and enters into a battle of the sexes that has endured as one of Shakespeare's most enjoyable works."

Really this was in college... I can barely remember any of the books I read in school other than Of Mice and Men which was awful. But college counts right?! I love this play... It is bloody awsome! It is and will always be my favourite Shakespeare play! And also, Ten Things I Hate About You is SO my favourite movie of all time too! ;)

Day 26: Favourite nonfiction book - Mother Tongue - Bill Bryson

Goodreads Summary: 

"The author of the acclaimed The Lost Continent now steers us through the quirks and byways of the English language. We learn why island, freight, and colonel are spelled in such unphonetic ways, why four has a u in it but forty doesn't, plus bizarre and enlightening facts about some of the patriarchs of this peculiar language."

I loved this book so much when I first read it. I always went back to it during uni... and I really want to read more from Bill Bryson.... when I get round to it! 

Day 27: Favourite Poem - The Jumblies by Edward Leer 

I believe the actual question was your favourite fiction book but as this question has already been asked (silly list!) I've changed it to my favourite poem! 


A brilliant poem of little men who have green heads and blue hands who went to sea in a sieve! I LOVED this poem when I was little. I used to make my sister read it to me all the time! I cant wait to read it to my children - using the same book of poems of course! :D 

Day 28: Last book you read - Jessie <3's NYC by Keris Stainton

Goodreads Summary: 

"Jessie's just arrived in New York, hoping to forget about her awful ex. 

New Yorker Finn is in love with his best friend's girlfriend. 

They might be perfect together, but in a city of eight million people, will they ever find each other?"

I'm treating this one as Mondays day cos it's too hard to know what I'll be reading in the future! So my last book was the amazingly wonderful Keris Stainton's Jessie <3's NYC! I am so lucky to have had Keris surprise me with this book. I loved Della Says! :D look out for my review coming soon ;)

Day 29: Book you’re currently reading - Die For Me - Amy Plum 

Goodreads Summary: 

"My life had always been blissfully, wonderfully normal. But it only took one moment to change everything.

Suddenly, my sister, Georgia, and I were orphans. We put our lives into storage and moved to Paris to live with my grandparents. And I knew my shattered heart, my shattered life, would never feel normal again. Then I met Vincent.

Mysterious, sexy, and unnervingly charming, Vincent Delacroix appeared out of nowhere and swept me off my feet. Just like that, I was in danger of losing my heart all over again. But I was ready to let it happen.

Of course, nothing is ever that easy. Because Vincent is no normal human. He has a terrifying destiny, one that puts his life at risk every day. He also has enemies . . . immortal, murderous enemies who are determined to destroy him and all of his kind.

While I'm fighting to piece together the remnants of my life, can I risk putting my heart—as well as my life and my family's—in jeopardy for a chance at love?"

Again I'm treating this as Monday. I am currently reading Die For Me, which was sent to me by the wonderful Keris Stainton. I have been lusting after this book since like January. Don't miss it, it comes out next month as you can see from the countdown  there. ---> 

Day 30: Favorite coffee table book - How to do Just About Everything - Ehow

Goodreads Summary: 

"Whatever you need to do, you'll now know where to look for complete, authoritative instructions. How to Do (Just About) Everything is packed with easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions, plus helpful checklists and calendars. A thorough keyword index makes it simple to find what you need. Keep this essential reference volume around the house and soon you'll wonder how you ever got anything done without it."

I'm unsure of what a coffee table book is.. *googles* Oh ok, According to wikipedia its a boredom buster book... the only thing like this I really have its How to do Just About Everything by ehow.  It's a great book, and totally useful!