The Loneliness of Distant Beings by Kate Ling

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Younger Readers

Released: 19th of May 2016 

'It is that quick, it is that strong, it is that beautiful. And it is also totally impossible.'

Even though she knows it's impossible, Seren longs to have the sunshine on her skin. It's something she feels she needs to stay sane. But when you're floating through space at thousands of kilometres an hour, sometimes you have to accept there are things you cannot change.

Except that the arrival of Dom in her life changes everything in ways she can barely comprehend. For a while he becomes the Sun for her; and she can't help but stay in his orbit. Being with him flaunts every rule designed to keep their home in order, but to lose him would be like losing herself.

In the end they must decide what is most important: loyalty to the only home they've ever known, or to each other?

What I Have to Say 

Overall, I liked The Loneliness of Distant Beings. It had a nice story behind it and was written in an engaging and relatable way, but the style put me off a bit. I think that the teenage voice was very accurate is very similar to the way that a teenage girl would write in her diary, especially while suffering from depression. I got into it after a while, but it did put me off a lot at the start. 

I also felt that the action was all clustered too much at the end. There just wasn't much really happening throughout most of the book and then shortly after things start happening, it ended. It's another of those books where I feel like the relationship had a bit too much importance put on it. I feel that I would have enjoyed it more if it was more about a girl who is so desperate to get away from the stifling atmosphere of the ship and feel the sun on her face and the sand beneath her feet for the first time rather than having it so much about trying to have a relationship with Dom. 

It was really an interesting book though. The idea of how humanity would react to potential contact extraterrestrial life and send a ship to seek it out as well as the rules in place to ensure that the human culture stays consistent throughout such a long voyage was really interesting. 

I think if there's a sequel then I would be very interested to read it. 

My thanks go to Little Brown Books and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 240 

Publisher: Orion Children's Books 

Released: 14th of July 2016 

Subhi is a refugee. Born in an Australian permanent detention center after his mother and sister fled the violence of a distant homeland, Subhi has only ever known life behind the fences. But his world is far bigger than that—every night, the magical Night Sea from his mother's stories brings him gifts, the faraway whales sing to him, and the birds tell their stories. And as he grows, his imagination threatens to burst beyond the limits of his containment.

The most vivid story of all, however, is the one that arrives one night in the form of Jimmie—a scruffy, impatient girl who appears on the other side of the wire fence and brings with her a notebook written by the mother she lost. Unable to read it herself, she relies on Subhi to unravel her family's love songs and tragedies.

Subhi and Jimmie might both find comfort—and maybe even freedom—as their tales unfold. But not until each has been braver than ever before.

What I Have to Say 

This was a beautiful magic story set against the backdrop of one of the worst places a human can exist. The magical feeling of the Night Sea and the Shakespeare duck are a massive contrast to the grim and horrific reality of the center. Subhi is the perfect person to tell this story because his optimism and imagination soften the tone and make it so that it doesn't get too depressing.

I loved Jimmy as well. Having the two views, one from inside the camp and one from outside the camp really contrasts the differences, even though Jimmy's life isn't that great, it highlights the fact that even someone living in a trailer with very little in her life, she is still better off than those in the camp.

This is definitely an eye opening book, but it is also a really fun and enjoyable read.

My thanks go to Orion and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

A Library of Lemons byJo Cotterill

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 256 

Publisher: Piccadilly Press 

Released: 5th of May 2016 

Calypso's mum died a few years ago and her emotionally incompetent Dad can't, or won't, talk about Mum at all. Instead he throws himself into writing his book A History of the Lemon. Meanwhile the house is dusty, there's never any food in the fridge, and Calypso retreats into her own world of books and fiction. When a new girl, Mae, arrives at school, the girls' shared love of reading and writing stories draws them together. Mae's friendship and her lively and chaotic home - where people argue and hug each other - make Calypso feel more normal than she has for a long time. 

But when Calypso finally plucks up the courage to invite Mae over to her own house, the girls discover the truth about her dad and his magnum opus - and Calypso's happiness starts to unravel.

What I Have to Say 

A touching tale about a girl living with neglect and responsibility to look after her father while he struggles with depression, A Library of Lemons was beautifully written to show an accurate and very touching view into the world of a young girl. 

I enjoyed the way that throughout the start of the book Calypso goes about her own business, making friends and enjoying stories before the carpet is pulled out from under both her and her father and the truth is revealed about just how bad things are. It shows how many young people can just see these things as normal and everyday because they don't know any differently. 

I loved Mae and Calypso friendship as well. It started out seeming like a story about a girl making friends for the first time and seeing how much better it can be to have someone in her life to share things with, but as it turns out Mae and her family provide a vital amount of support for her as the plot unfolds.

Overall this was just a beautiful book that tackled some very tough issues in a sensitive and informative way, while also making it an enjoyable story.

My thanks go to Piccadilly Press for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Crown by Kiera Cass

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 279

Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books 

Released: 3rd of May 2016 

In The Heir, a new era dawned in the world of The Selection. Twenty years have passed since America Singer and Prince Maxon fell in love, and their daughter is the first princess to hold a Selection of her own.

Eadlyn didn’t think she would find a real partner among the Selection’s thirty-five suitors, let alone true love. But sometimes the heart has a way of surprising you…and now Eadlyn must make a choice that feels more difficult—and more important—than she ever expected.

What I Have to Say 

The Selection series is one that I loved from start to finish, so reading The Heir and the Crown was wonderful. Not many series give you the opportunity to see things a few years later, to see how things really change and develop after the end of the series, but it's something that I think more series should do. 

I liked Eadlyn quite a lot in the Heir. She was so different from America and it was obvious from the start that this series would be more about her growing up and taking the responsibilities that come from the power that she has to inherit. 

I think what I liked about The Crown was the politics of it all. How Eadlyn has to fight to keep her life her own while also ensuring that the public like her and respect her as their queen so that they won't rebel against her. 

It's the fact that this series, despite being centered around romance, has so much more to it than just a love story. 

I am so, so sad to say goodbye to these beautiful books. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Harper Collins for providing me with this copy for review. 

Under Rose Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 368

Publisher: Chicken House Books

Released: 7th of July 2016 

Agoraphobia confines Norah to the house she shares with her mother.

For her, the outside is sky glimpsed through glass, or a gauntlet to run between home and car. But a chance encounter on the doorstep changes everything: Luke, her new neighbour. Norah is determined to be the girl she thinks Luke deserves: a ‘normal’ girl, her skies unfiltered by the lens of mental illness. Instead, her love and bravery opens a window to unexpected truths …

TRIGGERS FOR: Anxiety 

What I Have to Say 

This book was a very accurate portrayal of OCD and agoraphobia. It dealt very well with the way that people with OCD get stuck on a certain thought and can't get away from it. Even though a lot of Norah's OCD symptoms were very different, I could relate to it so much. So much that it was really hard for me to read without getting really anxious because my mind was picking up on the fast thought pattern that was shown in the book. 

I found this a little bit with Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne, but not nearly so much, because Norah is so much in the heart of her illness and everything is very intense for her. I wouldn't say this is a bad thing at all, because it shows a really accurate account of exactly how people with anxiety and OCD think, but I would warn those who suffer with anxiety to be careful and step away from the book when they need to. 

I was worried for quite a lot of the book that it would be one of those stories where a boy gets together with a girl suffering from anxiety and his love manages to fix her. Luckily it wasn't. While Luke does have an influence on Norah, her progress during the book is only affected by Luke in the way that he gives her an extra reason to face her disability and push to improve. 

This is definitely a really accurate portrayal of mental illness, that really gets to the heart off the issue and shows how hard and debilitating it can be. 

My thanks go to Chicken House and Nina Douglas for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Apprentice Witch by James Nicol

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 349

Publisher: Chicken House Books

Released: 7th of July 2016

Arianwyn has fluffed her witch’s evaluation test.

Awarded the dull bronze disc and continuing as an apprentice – to the glee of her arch-rival, mean girl Gimma – she’s sent to protect the remote, dreary town of Lull. 

But her new life is far from boring. Turns out Gimma is the pompous mayor’s favourite niece – and worse, she opens a magical rift in the nearby Great Wood. As Arianwyn struggles with her spells, a mysterious darkness begins to haunt her – and it’s soon clear there’s much more than her pride at stake …

What I Have to Say 

This book took me back to my childhood in the most wonderful way. Growing up, I adored the Worst Witch books and the Apprentice Witch has got a very similar quality to it. It's written for slightly older readers and has a beautiful world built up where witches live and work to keep each village safe. 

I'm not sure exactly what time period this story was supposed to be set in. It had an almost timeless quality while having motorcars giving it a sense of the 1920s about it. In a lot of ways it didn't matter, because it's a different world with spirits and demons commonly acknowledged. But this slightly old fashioned setting gave it the most wonderful feel to it. I definitely want to explore this world more. 

I think there's something about Arianwyn as a character that appeals to me a lot. Drawing back to the comparison with the Worst Witch, she and Mildred are the sort of people who always set out to do good. They just want to help and get things right, but everything just goes wrong for them along the way. I think it was that which made the Worst Witch books so relatable to me as a child. You feel more for a character who wants to get things right and so their failures make you feel so much more sorry for them. 

I think that everyone should read this book. It's one that I quickly came to adore and I hope that everyone else loves it as much as I do. 

Nightfall by Jake Halpern and Peter Kujawinski

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 346 

Publisher: Hot Key Books 

Released: 1st of May 2016 

After fourteen years of Day comes fourteen years of Night. Be sure not to get left in the dark.

On Marin's island, sunrise doesn't come every twenty-four hours - it comes every twenty-eight years. Now the sun is just a sliver of light on the horizon. The weather is turning cold. The shadows are growing long. The dark is rising. And soon it will be Night.

The eerie Evening sunset is causing the tide to begin its slow roll out hundreds of miles, and so Marin, along with her twin brother Kana and the rest of the islanders, must frantically begin preparations to sail south, where they will wait out the long Night. But first the house must be made ready for their departure. Locks must be taken off doors. Furniture must be arranged just so. Tables must be set as if for dinner. The rituals are bizzare - unnerving, even - but none of the adults will discuss why things must be this way. And then just as the ships are about to sail, the twins' friend Line goes missing. Marin and Kana know where he has gone, and that the only way to rescue him is to do it themselves. And surely the ships will wait?

Because Night is falling. Their island is changing. And something is stirring in the dark.

What I Have to Say 

Nightfall was the kind of book I looked forward to going back to. Every time I got a chance to read it was a massive pleasure to sink back between it's pages. Most of it was because of the idea behind the story. The idea of a world where night happens every fourteen years was so intriguing. I wanted to know everything about it and although, naturally it would take a much longer book to answer every question I had, the book gave away enough information to satisfy me. 

Throughout the start of Nightfall, one of the main characters, Marin, brings up another question to be answered. Every fourteen years when the people leave their homes, fleeing the night, they do rituals to ensure their homes are just right. Homes that the first settlers of the island found already their, perfect for their needs. The mystery of who built these houses and why things have to be left in a certain condition made me even more desperate to read on and enjoy the thrilling answers. 

The whole of Nightfall is constructed around these mysteries, the questions that the reader has right from reading the description. It makes it an interesting and well thought out read and brings the reader on an adventure that I think most people will enjoy. 

I hope there is  a sequel as there's so much of this world that I still want to find out about. 

My thanks go to Hot Key Books for providing me with this copy for review.