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Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2)

Just when you think you’re safe, the opposite is true. Katniss has been threatened by President Snow that if she cannot prevent the uprisings happening in the districts, her friends and family will pay. But that’s not all. The Capitol is planning a thrilling 75th Hunger Game and to mark the momentous occasion of another quarter century gone by, the Games will be particularly bloody. Katniss is a lot less safe than she thinks she is… The second book in a trilogy is always notoriously hard to get right; few second books are better than their original counterparts or the concluding novel. Catching Fire is no different. Its fatal flaw is that it is far too similar to The Hunger Games. I believe the reason a series exists is not Continue reading →

Trapped

You know things are bad when it starts to snow heavily and doesn’t stop, the power goes out and the heating dies, and the roof groans under the weight of the snow. You know things are even worse when you’re stuck in a high school, nobody knows you’re there, and nobody can save you… The nature of survival novels such as Trapped is that often they’re a better idea in theory rather than in practice. There just isn’t space for originality. The only way a Day-After-Tomorrow-esque story like Trapped can progress is from bad to worse, from problem to conflict and salvation. Due to these limits, Michael Northrop doesn’t have much leverage when it comes to defying expectations. The basis of all good novels is conflict- between characters, in the Continue reading →

Philip Reeve and Steampunk Event

There are many of you who are perhaps unaware of my addiction to Philip Reeve’s awesome novels, which include the superb Mortal Engines quartet, fantastic Fever Crumb series and the delightful Here Lies Arthur. So when the chance to arose to actually meet and talk (and get my books signed) by Philip, I was uver-thrilled. Few things are more exciting than being able to talk to an author whose work you hold as some of your favourite, ever. So thus it came about that I trekked to London after school on a windy, dark and rainy day, and traversed the mayhem of the rush-hour Tube to finally arrive at Foyles bookshop, where the signing would take place. I nearly got lost in the bookshop. It’s so big, and has nooks Continue reading →

Inheritance (Inheritance Cycle #4)

The time has come for the final battle. The Varden are marching on Uru’baen, the elves are on their way and slowly, Eragon’s power is building. He is no longer the boy he was- he has becoome a master rider. But only the fates will tell who is to win in the epic clash between Eragon and Galbatoric… After nearly a decade, the conclusive novel of the Inheritance Cycle (formerly the Inheritance Trilogy) has finally been published. And what a journey- over two thousand pages of epic battles, stange creatures, and magical abilities. Regardless of whether you think the Inheritance Cycle is derivative garbage or inspirationally original, you can’t deny that Christopher Paolini has, since Eragon, richened the land of Alagaesia to such an extent that it now truly has Continue reading →

News Roundup #9

The time has come again for the latest whenever-I-feel-like-it irregular posting of News Roundup where we summarise the latest YA book news (minus the paranormal romance!) This time round we have a couple of extracts from some of next year’s big as well as some cover reveals and film adaptation news! First off, you can read a (relatively large) extract of Dan Wells’ latest project- the post-apocalyptic/dystopian Partials which is on sale in February next year. Dan Wells is the author of the fantastic I Am Not A Serial Killer trilogy and he’s a name to look out for on the burgeoning YA market. To read the extract, simply “like” the Partials page on Facebook. Curtis Jobling, who is the author of Wereworld: Rise of the Wolf and Rage of Continue reading →

The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1)

After the rebellions, the Capitol decided to host an annual gladitorial fest to show the people of the twelve Districts who’s in charge. Every year a girl and a boy are drawn into the Hunger Games, and every year there are exactly twenty-three casualties. The seventy-fourth games are just about to begin and Katniss is in for the running. The question is, will she be good enough to win? Her luck in life seems to suggest no… Somewhat guiltily I must admit that I haven’t read The Hunger Games. That’s awful of me, I know, but it now puts me in a (somewhat) unique position of being able to review it in the hindsight of what a hit series it has become. There is no doubt that my expectations for Continue reading →

Midwinterblood

Eric Seven arrives on the Blessed Island as a journalist trying to uncover its secrets in the year 2073. It all feels a little deja vu- the people, the culture, the odd, dragon-orchid flowers. And that it would be- because Eric’s story starts long, long before 2073: ten centuries previously, when Eirek bound himself to a Woman… Midwinterblood is an odd little novel. Within its 240 odd pages lurk several stories of love, sacrifice, and curiousity, each a short story with relations to the others that slowly reveal themselves as the book progresses. Initially you may be wondering why there isn’t a single story thread, but the puzzle of the Island of Blessed soon unravels itself into an intruiging tale that is more in line with the oral traditions of Continue reading →

A Sneak Peak of Michael Grant’s latest project: BZRK

Michael Grant is the author of the acclaimed Gone series, and next year he’s launching a new trilogy with BZRK. I was able to read BZRK a month ago, and it was amazing. My review won’t come until publication, but until then, you can watch me talk about it and read a short extract in the video below… BZRK is out on the 28th February and is published by Egmont. Preorder it: Amazon UK | Amazon US Please excuse the umms and errs! http://nexushumanus.com/ http://gobzrk.com/ http://deathormadness.com/ http://societytwins.com/

Between

Liz can hear something banging against the hull of her father’s houseboat. It’s been rhythmically pounding for the last forty-five minutes and Liz has had enough. What she sees as she creeps away from the wreckage of her eighteenth birthday party though is quite different from what she is expecting, and will change her life. In fact, it will be the end of her life because she’s dead, floating in the water, her boot the source of the noise. But she’s not gone- not yet. There’s still something she needs to find out, just one thing. How did she die? You might be wondering, “Is he really reading a romantic thriller?” And you’d be right- Between is certainly not a novel you’d normally find me reading. But sometimes it’s good Continue reading →

Chronosphere: Malfunction (Chronosphere #2)

Things are changing in the Chronosphere; a general unrest has taken to the population. Slowly, things start to go wrong. First, the food deteriorates, then temperatures soar, followed quickly by the malfunction of the MAIDs, robotic servants. It’s only when the exits are blocked that things really get critical, and a civil war breaks out. But what if there’s more to the Chronosphere than they originally thought? What is its original purpose? Is there something darker lurking at the heart of it? Chronosphere: Malfunction digs deeper into the true reason for the Chronosphere’s existence- something that was hinted at in Time Out of Time but never truly revealed. The argumentation isn’t particularly new or original, but the time-bending twist is entertaining enough to make Malfunction an interesting read. Alex Woolf Continue reading →

An Interview with Ruta Sepetys + Giveaway!

To coincide with Ruta Sepety’s quick stop in the UK for the publication of the paperback version of Between Shades of Gray, Ruta kindly dropped by for an interview and giveaway of some tasy prizes (see below)! I absolutely loved Between Shades of Gray (though I’m not sure “loved” is quite the correct term; it’s very sad and haunting) when I read it earlier this year, and it’s taken most people by storm. ThirstforFiction: Between Shades of Gray deals with some frankly abhorrent material- why did you want to write this for Young Adults, if it could have so easily been an adult novel? Ruta Sepetys: Many of the survivors I met were young when they were deported and I was very affected by the things they told me they Continue reading →

Shelter (Mickey Bolitar #1)

Just when Mickey’s parents decide to return to the US, a tragedy happens. His father is separated from him by an uncrossable barrier- death. His mum falls to drugs, and Mickey is left to live with his uncle whilst his mum completes rehab. Things aren’t going easy. But the new school sounds promising; here he can make friends for longer than the few months he always had travelling the world. Settling down sounds like a good plan. But when Ashley, his girlfriend, disappears without a trace, Mickey knows things are up… Harlal Coben’s books are published in “over forty languages, and there are more than 47 million of his novels in print worldwide”- at least, that’s what the author infomation claims. And I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s true; Shelter Continue reading →

News Roundup #8

So, it’s been about a month or so since the last YA book news roundup, but there are a few gems today! First off, if you live in the US, you can download an eBook of the first Skulduggery Pleasant novel (titled The Sceptre of the Ancients) for FREE! However, the offer only lasts until Hallowe’en, so I suggest you get downloading quick! Click here for the full details. The title of the next Lorien Legacies novel has also been released: The Rise of Nine, which will be the second sequel to I Am Number Four, after The Power ofSix. The Rise of Nine will be publishing on the 30th August 2012, so it’s still a long wait! And then, some rather large news for John Green fans: the cover Continue reading →

The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus #2)

How many demigods does it take to ruin Gaia’s plans of world domination? Well three, for now at least. Percy has been gone for eight months now. He’s lost all recollections of his past and is being chased by two gorgons across America. That is, until he bumps into godess Juno and finds the Roman camp, Camp Jupiter. In next to no time he’s sent on a quest with demigods Frank and Hazel to Alaska, to try and stop Gaia’s servant giant Alcyoneus, who’s out to destroy the gods. Only the demigods can save Olympus. And if they don’t? All human kind will be wiped from the face of the earth… After the critical success of The Lost Hero, the flagship novel of the sequel series to Percy Jackson, Rick Continue reading →

This Dark Endeavour (The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein #1)

Every hero (or villain!) has a story. A story of how they came to be, and how their potential was realised. The story of Dr. Frankenstein is no different. It all starts in 19th Century Geneva with twins Victor and Konrad and their fair cousin Elizabeth, and when Konrad suddenly becomes ill with a potentially life-threatening fever. When the doctors are helpless, Victor and Elizabeth take matters into their own hands and decide to follow the route of alchemy… There have been numerous attempts at creating pre- and sequels to Mary Shelley’s beloved Frankenstein, and I myself have not read any of them- or the original, for that matter (terrible of me, I know! But I have studied parts of it in English, so I’m not all foreign to its Continue reading →