Letterbox Love no.2 - Sun 20th May 2012

Here are all the cool beans I've received over the course of the past week...

Deadly Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock

MacKenzie and Amy were best friends.

Until Amy was brutally murdered.

But Amy wasn't killed by a human...

she was killed by a werewolf.

Lupin Syndrome - the werewolf virus - is spreading and werewolf attacks are increasing as those infected struggle to control their bloodlust. Amy's death has turned Mac's life upset down: her dreams are haunted by Amy, and the Trackers, an extremist group determined to stop those with Lupine Syndrome, have come to her hometown of Hemlock to promote their cause by hunting down Amy's killer.

Unwilling to work with the brutal Trackers, but desperate to put an end to her nightmares, Mac decides to investigate the murder herself. But the deeper she delves into the mystery of Amy's death, the more secrets she discovers lurking in the shadows of Hemlock. Secrets that should have been left untold. Secrets that will change her life forever.

Publishes: July 2012

One or Two Things I Learned About Love by Dyan Sheldon

I'd only ever had tow and a half dates in my whole life. (and I didn't count the half.)

But even though I was girl-most-likely-to-graduate-high-school-without-being-kissed, I thought thought I knew a lot about love. 

That was before I met Connor Bowden - and found out how wrong I was.

Publishes: OUT NOW

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

Everyone knows how to live... be who they are... find their place. But I'm still waiting.

Jill's life lost all meaning when her dad died. Friends, boyfriend, college - nothing matters any more. Then her mom drops a bombshell. She's going to adopt a baby.

Mandy is desperate for her life to change. Seventeen, pregnant and leaving home, she is sure of only one thing - her baby must never have a life like hers, whatever it takes.

Publishes: September 2012 

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

When Harold Fry nips out one morning to post a letter, leaving his wife hoovering upstairs, he has no idea that he is about to walk from one end of the country to the other.

He has no hiking boots or map, let alone a compass, waterproof or mobile phone.

All he knows is that he must keep walking.

To save someone else's life.

Publishes: OUT NOW

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Young, beautiful and deadly.

Trained as an assassin by the god of death, Ismae is sent to the court of Brittany, where she finds herself underprepared - not only for the games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death's vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

A dangerous romance full of intrigue, poison and ultimately finding one's way. 

Publishes: June 2012

So what are you most looking forward to me reading/reviewing??? 

Hugs and high fives,

Nicole

x 

Contempo-May Reading list: Let's Hear it for the Boys!

So much of Contemporary YA focuses on the girlie stuff - admittedly it’s what I tend to read more of. But after recently reading Geekhood by Andy Robb and Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli I thought I’d highlight the guys that are doing it for the genre. And you know what? It’s not all stereotypically staring at tits, smoking and drinking. Teenage guys have feelings too - who would have thought?! To get on this list, not only do the narrators have to be male, but the writers too. This time it’s all about the boys. 

In the interest of transparency I’m going to admit that I haven’t read most of what’s on this list, but they are all titles on my wish list, and titles I have been personally recommended by friends, booksellers and bloggers. And so I am passing on the recommends to you, testosterone and all! 

Please note that this is not a reading list 'for boys', just one highlighting the great blokey blokes doing it for YA in a genre that often seems saturated by the ladies. I encourage anyone of any gender to read absolutely everything!

1. Swim the Fly by Don Calame

This is great comic fun; a little bit American Pie, a little bit Inbetweeners. Filled with moments of excrutiating agony and surprising charm, this is a perfect Summer read for those of you looking for some light relief. 

2. Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Here I’m giving you two awesome blokey narrators for the price of one! Written in alternate chapters, this is a stunning story about two boys who have the same name, and whose lives change forever once they accidentally meet. This book also features the greatest gay YA character of all time, the magnificent Tiny Cooper.

3. The Absolutely True Story of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

One I’ll admit that I haven’t read yet, but from what I’ve heard, a story about being an outsider and learning how to fit in when you might be out of your depth. Plus it has cartoons. 

4. Last Summer of the Death Warriors by Francisco X Stork

This one has been recommended at me countless times, but I haven’t read it yet! Personally I think you should read it for the title and the name of the author alone. The premise is bizarre, but it could be one of those novels that changes the course of your life.

5. One Seriously Messed Up Week in the Otherwise Uneventful Life of Jack Samsonite by Tom Clempson

Well this book definitely wins in the longest title stakes... definitely one for fans of the comedy-geek novel, exemplified by Andy Robb in Geekhood, or maybe one for people who have grown up and grown out of the Wimpy Kid novels. 

6. Candy by Kevin Brooks

A book that draws you in slowly, then hits you with dark pow! I adore Kevin Brooks, and all his books come with an awesome level of grit. Prepare to be haunted. 

7. Doing It by Melvin Burgess 

Well hello there super-provocative cover! This book looks at the ins and outs of sexytimes for boys, featuring three characters in very different situations. Frank and honest, this is a book you won’t forget about in a hurry!

8. Being Billy by Phil Earle

New on the scene and one to watch, Mr Earle grabs the first person point of view and runs away over the hills with it. A compelling and thrilling read, and partly based on Phil’s own experiences working with young people. 

9. Tamar by Mal Peet

Mal Peet is an achingly underated writer - I wish that more people would read his books. This one won the Carnegie medal in 2005, and the scope of it will absolutely blow you away. 

10. Killing Honour by Bali Rai

Bali Rai is another writer I’ve heard loads and loads about but have never got around to reading. In deciding which of his books to feature on this list, it was this one that really stood out because it’s the one I most want to read. So you should read it too. 

I'd love to hear what you think of my choices, plus your suggestions and recommendations! Let me have them in the doobree below. 

Hugs and high fives,

Nicole

x

Contempo-May Review: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

In One Line:  who is Stargirl?

Genre: High school heart ache with added magical mystery 

The Gist:

Leo’s life is pretty mundane. He lives in a mundane part of America, and goes to a mundane school where pretty much nothing happens. Reflecting on his teenagehood from fifteen years in the future, Leo remembers his first love, a wild and mysterious thing who went by the name ‘Stargirl’. 

The Cover:

This. This, is a cover. People stared at me on the tube whilst I was reading it, and I knew what they were thinking: “that book looks awesome”. The picture above doesn’t even do it justice, because it is SO SHINY in real life. And pink in an ironic way, because the book is written/narrated by a boy. Oh this cover. *strokes cover* I wish all covers were this brilliant and iconic. 

Why You’ll Love This Book

• This is one of the classics of contemporary YA, and one that totally passed me by when I was younger, so I just had to read/review it for Contempo-May. It sets a standard of writing, and although it’s a tiny, slim book, the quality is exemplary. We’re sitting on the boundaries of literary here, and yet this is also a book which has a mass, commercial appeal. I’m in awe of any book that manages to do this. 
• There’s something so real and unreal about this book. It depicts an Americana that I can just about imagine from my comfy seat in Edgware Starbucks. It’s the America that I’d love to actually exist, and yet I suspect that it’s an idealised America, one that has been sentimentalised and romanticised. 
• Stargirl is amazing. She is who we should all want to be. Sure, she’s a little deluded and out of touch, and she doesn’t ‘get’ quite a lot about modern life, but reading her makes me wish we lived in a world where Stargirl’s crazy, heart-warming antics were acceptable. If all of us could do one Stargirl-type thing every day then this world would be a beautiful place to live. 

Why You May Not Love This Book:

• I’ve come across a few people who saw me reading this book at work and commented that they “didn’t get it” when they read it years ago. On asking for a reason, they just shrugged and said they “just didn’t”. I think it is one of those books that can split people, a marmite book if you will. If you like transparent storytelling and all your loose ends tied up then you may not like this book. Being left with that eerie sense of wonder is part of Stargirl’s charm, but I guess some people just don’t like it that way. 
• It’s a bit too innocent compared with current YA. Leo is a senior, and yet he takes AGES to kiss Stargirl, and there’s not even a hint of sexytimes. This is a very chaste novel, and whilst that does add to the surreal charm, it just seems a bit too unrealistic. Even if Leo and Stargirl never actually Do It, surely Leo is thinking about it? Surely???
• It’s too short dammit! It’s a book that leaves me wanting more and asking even more questions than when I started it, and yet it works so perfectly as a standalone, I’m not even tempted to read the actual sequel, because I’m scared that it will ruin the magic. Sometimes in life we need a bit of mystery, like at the end of Lost in Translation, or the bit where Bastian has to say the Childlike Empress’ name at the end of The NeverEnding Story. 
• Maybe because I’m reading this as a twenty-something, but I found something quite dark in Stargirl. Without spoiling anything, you could read something horribly sinister into the ending. Maybe that’s just me and my twisted, dark mind, but if you really think about how Stargirl would cope as a grownup in the real world, I think your mind might grow some dark conclusions too. 

The Hypersomnia Test:

Passed with shiny pink colours! Mostly because this book is so short, and the mystery of Stargirl is just so beautiful and riveting, I read this in one day. I even stayed up into the early hours to finish it. 

Final Verdict:

If you love YA, you have to read this book. It’s one of the absolute essentials you should read in order to understand the genre. A wonderful classic that possibly gets overlooked nowadays by the heady rush of ‘on-trend’ YA, I wish that publishers would find more beautiful books like this to highlight instead of focussing so much energy on all the lesser, but probably more commercial, books. Without this book there would be no John Green or Louis Sachar. Read this book and embrace your own inner Stargirl. 

Further Reading:

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

Looking for Alaska by John Green

The Cardturner by Louis Sachar

To buy Stargirl click HERE!!!

A Late Night Rant (because it's my blog and I can do that)

If you're reading this post 16th May it means I've decided to leave it and not delete in flurry of morning-after horror. 

Before I begin this rant, please note, I am not drunk. The new medication I am taking for my Hypersomnia means I can not drink. This evening I went to a lovely engagement do and consumed one mini cupcake and two rosewater-flavoured lemonades. So I am ranting with a sober heart. 

I just need to vent, because being an aspiring author is really tough and right now I have no idea what I'm doing and don't have many people to talk to about it. I have no idea what the future holds for me. I have a Plan B, and a Plan C, but in a double-dip recession they're not too easy to make happen should Plan A fail. I have this horrible vision of entering my thirties and still living with my parents, crooked of back from hours spent looming over a laptop and shoving random bits of paper at publishers yelling 'Print Me! Print Me!' in the manner of a wolf who howls at the moon. 

And tonight, at this lovely engagement do in Hampstead I did some mingling, which I actually quite enjoy because I like people and I like to chat. And I came across someone who, whether meaning to or not, made me feel about half the height I actually am (I'm nearly 6ft). 

"So what do you do?" she of no name asks.

"Well I work part time, but right now I'm trying to get my novel off the ground." I reply. 

"Oh, have you actually written one then?"

"Yes, it's sitting with agents at the moment. But it's all very tentative... you know..."

"And you work part time?"

"Yes, so that I can focus on my writing."

"Gosh, that's brave" FULL PATRONISING INTONATION. "And I suppose you're scouring over that big red Writers and Artists Yearbook every night?"

"No... I don't have one of those."

"I used to be a journalist. I found that very helpful. You should look at it."

"I think I'm doing ok at the moment, I know a few people who know a few people, and the internet is pretty handy."

"Have you had anything published before?"

"No..."

"Not even a short story?"

"No..."

"You should try and do that. Agents like that."

"I have done a Masters in Creative Writing..."

"But you haven't had anything published from it? Not even a short story?"

"I don't think I'm much of a short story writer. I really like writing bigger things."

"Well good luck with that." Side glance around the room. "So what do you do to earn money?"

"I work in a bookshop in London."

"Well I suppose that's linked to the writing thing. You could probably make some good contacts from that."

"Yes... I know..."

I'm going to leave it there because the conversation tapered after that point anyway and I can't remember how it ended. I just felt so small, and so low and so sad because whether intentionally or not, this one person really made me feel like an idiot, even though I'm pretty sure I'm not one. 

But if I'm going to take one thing from this little, bitter tidbit, it's that it's given me some damned fire in my belly. Because if the zombie apocalypse arrives tomorrow, I know that I spent my final days dedicated to what I love doing. And I may fail, I know this, but I don't want to be one of those people who never tried. I've given up a lot to do what I have dreamed of doing since I was a little girl who folded over pieces of dot-matrix paper and bound them with cellotape to make her own library, and I'm not some naive little creature wide-eyed with optimism. I know what I'm doing. I love what I'm doing, and I may never ever make any money from it but right now I don't care. 

Bring on the rejection slips. I'm ready for you. 

VENTING OVER. HEART RATE SLOWED. TIME FOR BED.

xxx

Contempo-May Review: Geekhood by Andy Robb

In One Line:  Geek meets girl; cue hilarity!

Genre: High School underdog does good.

The Gist:

Just in case you haven’t already guessed, our main character, Archie is a geek. But he’s not just any old geek, he’s an uber-geek. The kind that paints tiny fantasy figurines and plays dungeons and dragons. In terms of mainstream society, he’s pretty much a lost cause. Until Beautiful Goth Sarah walks into his life, mistaking his fantasy games shop hangout for a new-age, cult boutique. Sarah is quite obviously da bomb, and Archie is in love. But not just any kind of love, this is the real deal, life-changing LURVE. Will Archie break out of his geeky shell and get the girl? Will he manage to avoid being beaten up by the school bully? And most importantly, who will win in the game of life?

The Cover:

It is so cute and dorky! And I actually quite like the fact that they didn’t resort to cliches. I mean, you could have put a dragon and/or a Frodo and/or a Spock on there, but there are probably copyright issues involved. So they went for the simple, and the simple works for me. What I really want to talk about is the quote on the cover. Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Who the hell got Vampire Bill to quote on the cover of this book, and can that person please get in touch with me so that I can force my way into their life and therefore meet Vampire Eric and Werewolf Alcide??? (because I’m totally over Bill since he became the king and became even more mysterious and secretive than usual). ANYWAY. Yeah, the cover’s alright. 

Why You’ll Love This Book

• This book is actually just like a little geek. Initially a little weird to look at, but it’s core is all warm and friendly and fuzzy. Seriously, this book is stuffed with heart and that makes it a wonderful, engaging read. 
• So this is what young teenage guys think about when they see girls! They notice our bras! They like to make us laugh! They think we’re elven princesses! Ok, maybe not the last one, but in any case this book is an enlightening insight into how the other half thinks and feels. 
• Contemporary YA is aimed so much at the girlie market that it’s truly refreshing to come across some great, young, comic writing that boys can equally enjoy. Give this book to your brothers! To your boyfriends! To your boy-cousins! 
• Proto-Big-Bang-Theory. This is like a What If scenario, if Big Bang Theory was set in England and the characters were all 14. Of course Sheldon would blatantly already be graduating from Oxbridge at this stage, but Archie is so obviously a younger Leonard that it made me want to hug him. 
• Geek overload. There are some truly epic references in this book, and every one is SO entertaining. From Star Trek, to Star Wars, to Lord of the Rings, I don’t think there is anything that is missed out. Mr Robb has clearly had a lot of fun writing this, and it’s lots of fun to read too.

Why You May Not Love This Book:

• Sarah. I’m sorry, but from the very first moment she showed up, I couldn’t stand her. She’s written like she’s some unreal creature, which is fair to an extent because the story is from Archie’s point of view, but it left me wondering if Mr Robb can in fact write women. Because Sarah makes pretty much no sense to me, and other than Archie and Sarah’s mothers, there are no other girls in the book. I want to lay down this gauntlet to Mr Robb: write a believable girl next time please, because I don’t know anyone who would have behaved like Sarah. By the end of the novel I actually wondered if she was mildly autistic, as she has absolutely NO idea of the affect she’s having on the guys around her. 
• Every now and again I wanted to go through some pages with a big red pen. I just don’t think this book has been edited enough. All the writing is great, but there is a lot of unnecessary stuff going on here. This book could have been a lot shorter and not suffered at all for it. 
• I wanted more of Archie’s friends. Can’t really elaborate much on that, especially after I’ve said that the book could do with being a little shorter, but Archie’s mates all merged into one entity for me, and I couldn’t tell them apart much. 

The Hypersomnia Test:

It didn’t pass. I’m sorry. Passing or not passing the hypersomnia test really is no indication of whether I liked the book, or whether it was good or not, but does tell me something about the pace. If it doesn’t keep me awake, it means that something in the storytelling isn’t quite hitting the right buttons. And this book is very, very wordy, with not a lot of action. In fact, I suspect that it would have done with losing a few hundred words here and there. 

Final Verdict:

I am a bonified geek, always have been, always will be. Ever since I discovered Star Trek: The Next Generation and decided that a man with a beard was ok ONLY if they also played the trombone, I knew what I was. I was attracted to the world of sci-fi for it’s optimism. My teenage years sucked - I looked odd, was brainy and had a wacky imagination, so I found solace in the world of Star Trek, with it’s prime directives and it’s sleek spaceships and replicators that could make ANYTHING and yet nobody was ever fat. I had a star trek badge. I had a Bajoran earring (google it. It’s soooo cool). So essentially, I was the female version of Archie. I identified. I know how hard it is to be a geek in a world that seems so ultimately cooler than you. I wish I had a book like this when I was younger so that I didn’t feel so alone, and I truly hope that there are more stories from Archie and his friends to come!

Further Reading:

Swim the Fly by Don Calame

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

The Strange Case of the Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger

To buy Geekhood click HERE!!!

Contempo-May Review: Adorkable by Sarra Manning

In One Line:  Girl hates boy, boy hates girl, much kissing ensues. 

Genre: High School Heart Break

The Gist:

Meet Jeane: she has half a million followers on Twitter, a blog lifestyle emporium thingy, and spends her weekends attending jumble sales and eating cupcakes. Then meet Michael, who is Mr Conventional Perfect and wears Jack Wills hoodies (I had to look up Jack Wills because I actually had no idea what it was, I am that uncool). Their respective ex-partners hook up, leaving both parties slightly enraged. Michael even knocks Jeane off her bike (accidentally)! But then they discover that they make quite good kissing buddies. And then they discover that they are quite good sexytimes buddies. And then all the emotions happen!

The Cover:

I’m going to go all out there and say: I hate it. It’s like someone’s photo-shopped in a load of images and pasted them on beige. Which is such a shame because the title logo is AMAZING and the cover models look EXACTLY how the main characters should look. But, I can’t get over the beige. I really can’t. 

Why You’ll Love This Book

• Here we go again, it’s my favourite type of literary romance! I Hate You But I Love You But I Hate You! It’s Beatrice and Benedick, it’s Elizabeth and Mr Darcy, it’s When Harry Met Sally! It’s electric and it keeps you reading because even though you know the main characters are totally unsuitable for each other, they’re also, paradoxically, TOTALLY suitable for each other. These characters get under your skin unlike any characters I have read in a long time. 
• Talky talky he-said, she-said! One of my pet hates in books with alternate character chapters is when the publisher feels the need to Spell It Out for you. Some books go with different fonts for the different characters, some feel they have to put the character’s name in MASSIVE letters at the beginning of their relevant chapters. The great thing about this book is that it doesn’t patronise you, and the editors have left the writing to speak for itself. Well done publishers!
• Dylan’s Candy Store! This place was MY LIFE when I worked in America. If you don’t know about it, google it now. And then let the dreaming begin. 
• All of the Geek Chic. This book is an overdose in awesome. It’s cool, it’s quirky, the dialogue is eerily current (judging by what I overhear in Edgware Starbucks) and I can totally believe that somewhere, if not now but in the really near future, there is a lonely Jeane Smith just waiting for someone to sneak into her heart. 

Why You May Not Love This Book:

• The characters aren’t what you’d automatically call likeable... in fact, they’re pretty horrid. Jeane is a freak of a emotional mess and there is no way that I’d ever be friends with her (she’s way too scary for me) and Michael is the kind of guy I’d see in school and stay away from because he’s blatantly too cool for me, and he hangs with a mean crowd. So why did I continue reading this book? The characters get under your skin and reveal their emotional depth slowly, keeping you hooked. 
• There’s not a lot of plot. In fact, there was a point about a third of the way in where I wondered if there was ever going to be a plot. It made me nervous, it made me wonder if anything was ever going to happen. Needless to say this was never going to be an action-packed affair, but just stick with it. Even through the bits where nothing happens. Because the Feelings are worth it. 

The Hypersomnia Test:

Alas, it didn’t pass. That’s because I had a tube journey to take when I hit that sneaky third-of-the-way-through lull. So I put it down, and had a nap, and then after I hit the halfway point it was all systems go! I couldn’t get enough! 

Final Verdict:

This book is dorky and adorable. ADORKABLE. It’s got a weird, unexpected charm that may not grab you straight away, but by the end you are totally on side. Geek Chic in book form, and also oddly inspirational, this book makes me want to embrace my friends and bake cakes all at the same time. Also, I now giggle every time I walk past Garfunkle's in Leicester Square.

Further Reading:

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler (read my review HERE!)

Epic Fail by Claire LaZebnik

To buy Adorkable please click HERE!!!

Letterbox Love no.1 - Sun 13th May 2012

So here is some of the lovely jubbly stuff I've received over the past week and a bit...

And here is a bit more in depth info...

Earth Girl by Janet Edwards

Meet me, Jarra. Earth Girl.

It's the year 2788, and the universe is divided into two different kinds of people: the Norms, who can portal between other planets, and people like me, the one in a thousand who are born with an immune system which doesn't allow us to leave planet Earth.

Norms come back to Earth for one reason: the study human history. But only if they don't have to interact with us 'Neanderthals' along the way. Well, I've got a plan to change all that.

Call me whatever you like, I'm every bit as good as they are. 

And I'm going to prove it to them.

Publishes: August 2012

The Selection by Kiera Cass

In a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels The Selection is the chance of a lifetime: to compete for gorgeous Prince Maxon's heart. But for America Singer it means turning her back on her secret love, and leaving home for a prize she doesn't want. 

Then America meets Maxon and all her plans start to crumble. Can the life she's always dreamed of compare to a future she never imagined?

Publishes: June 2012

The Blessed by Tonya Hurley

A dark, contemporary rock 'n' roll retelling of three famous female martyrs - Agnes, Cecilia and Lucy.

Three girls find themselves in the emergency room at Perpetual Help Hospital at the lowest point in their lives.

Three rebels running from their lives and themselves, plagued by broken hearts and broken dreams.

Enter Sebastian. Mysterious, compelling, seductive. 

He seems to bring each of them what they long for... but in the battle for his heart, will they lose their souls?

Publishes: August 2012

Zombies Don't Cry by Rusty Fisher

Maddy Swift is just an ordinary girl, until the fateful night when she is struck by lightning and wakes up face down in a puddle. Then it's goodbye to all things Normal - such as breathing and having a heartbeat - and hello to yellow vision and a whole new Afterlife.

Turns out there's a lot more to being a zombie that shuffling and groaning, but surviving school as one of the living dead requires a different set of skills. And things don't get any easier when Maddy realises that she's not the only reanimated student at Barracuda Bay High...

Publishes: October 2012

Another Life by Keren David

Kicked out of yet another boarding school Archie couldn't be happier to find himself back in London with old friends and an exciting social life. But he's worried about his cousin Ty, who is facing a sentence in a Young Offender Institution and doesn't seem to be coping. When he begins to learn surprising things about Ty, Archie goes on a mission to uncover the truth about his cousin's past and to find out just who is the real Ty.

Publishes: September 2012

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Can one girl unite two worlds?

A fragile peace has been achieved in the realm of Goredd, and dragons and humans live together in harmony. 

But the truce is shattered when a royal prince is brutally murdered - could dragons be to blame?

Seraphina, a talented court musician harbouring secrets of her own, is drawn into the investigation and uncovers a darker plot, one that threatens the very existence of the kingdom. And soon her own life is in terrible danger as she fights to hide the secret behind her amazing gift...

Publishes: July 2012

Witchstruck by Victoria Lamb

Meg Lytton has always known of her dark, powerful gift. But there has never been a more dangerous time to practise the craft, for it is 1554, and the punishment for any woman branded a witch is death.

Sent to live amidst the intrigue and rebellion of Woodstock, where the banished Princess Elizabeth desperately awaits her fate, Meg's life is thrown into turmoil by the ruthless witchfinder, Marcus Dent, and a smouldering young Spanish priest, Alejandro de Castillo.

Publishes: July 2012

Chime by Franny Billingsley

Briony knows she is a witch. She also knows that now her beloved stepmother is dead she must look after her beautiful but complicated twin sister, Rose. Then the energetic, electric, golden-haired Eldric arrives in her home town of Swampsea, and everything that Briony thinks about ehrself and her life is turned magically, dizzyingly upside down.

Publishes: June 2012

Well I hope you are as intrigued and excited about these books as I am! I want to read every single one, and I will try to! 

Any thoughts or comments, please live them in the doobree below.

Hugs and high fives,

Nicole

x