OtherEarth by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320 

Publisher: Rock The Boat 

Released: 30th of October 2018 

Simon saved his best friend, Kat, from the clutches of the Company and their high-tech VR gaming experience, Otherworld. But it was at a steep price. Now he, Kat, and their friend Busara are on the run. They know too much. About the Company's dark secrets. About the real-life consequences of playing Otherworld. And about Kat's stepfather's involvement in everything. The group is headed to New Mexico to find Simon's old roommate, who is a tech genius and possibly the only person who can help them reveal the truth about the Company before it's too late and the line between what's real and what's fantasy is erased . . . forever.

Imagine a future in which you can leave reality behind and give in to your greatest desires. That future is now. And the future is terrifying. 

What I Have to Say 

This series is getting so interesting. Even though they were out in the real world for most of this book, Otherworld was very much there and starting to spill into the real world.... I liked the way that Simon was starting to show a slipping grip on reality, not knowing what's real and what's not. Though I have to say, it was hard to believe he didn't know what colour would be weird for a scorpion to be. 

I do feel like Kat and Busara are kind of shoved to the back a bit as characters though. It sort of feels like Kat is only really around to be Simon's girlfriend. It may be a bit harsh a reading, but I'd like to see more of the girls personalities coming through, especially now Elvis is around. Busara was a bit better, with looking for her father being a prominent part of the plot, but again it's Simon doing everything and Kat and Busara just hanging around in the background. 

Despite that, I am still really enjoying the series. It seems to be gearing up towards a really exciting finale in the next book and I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Rock the Boat for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Rumour by Lesley Kara

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320

Publisher: Bantam Press 

Released: 27th of December 2018 

When single mum Joanna hears a rumour at the school gates, she never intends to pass it on. But one casual comment leads to another and now there’s no going back . . .

Rumour has it that a notorious child killer is living under a new identity, in their sleepy little town of Flinstead-on-Sea.

Sally McGowan was just ten years old when she stabbed little Robbie Harris to death forty-eight years ago – no photos of her exist since her release as a young woman.

So who is the supposedly reformed killer who now lives among them? How dangerous can one rumour become? And how far will Joanna go to protect her loved ones from harm, when she realizes what it is she’s unleashed?

What I Have to Say 

A gripping thriller, perfect for anyone wanting to see a real modern day witch hunt. Set in a small town, it showed the way that rumour can spread and how damaging it can be to small town life and anyone caught in the way, innocent or guilty. To me, it also showed how unforgiving people can be, how people can have their lives ruined forever by things they do when they're children. It raises the moral question of whether someone should be forgiven for such actions and how much penance and rehabilitation they would have to do to get to a point where they aren't waiting for their past to catch up with them. 

It was interesting to see how the rumour spread and Joanna's part of it. How her need to be accepted by the other mothers and therefore get her son more integrated into the school. Her actions of spreading what she felt at the time was a piece of harmless gossip and how it escalated was so interesting to see and really puts across the message that you should be careful what you say. 

The ending was perfect. I didn't see it coming at all and it was so gripping. I enjoyed it completely. 

Want a gripping thriller to curl up with in these cold winter nights, this is a great choice. 

My thanks goes to Netgalley and Bantam Press for providing me with this copy for review. 

Whiteout by Gabriel Dylan

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 416 

Publisher: Stripes (Red Eye) 

Released: 10th January 2019 

‘She sat us all down and told us a story. About things that lived in the woods. Things that only came out at night.’

For Charlie, a school ski trip is the perfect escape from his unhappy home life. Until a storm blows in and the resort town is cut off from the rest of the world. Trapped on the mountain, the students wait for the blizzards to pass, along with mysterious ski guide Hanna. 

But as night falls and the town’s long buried secrets begin to surface, the storm is the least of their problems….

What I Have to Say 

A good old fashioned vampire story. I'm not ashamed of liking vampire romances, but I do feel this was a good way to start bring vampires back into YA. It's about time to get a few back in, in my opinion. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next. But I do think, that bringing back scary Nosferatu inspired vampires was the perfect start. 

I was a little disappointed this wasn't a bit more creepy. I have to admit, I was in this for scenes of vampires creeping around in the blank whiteness outside while the characters were hiding and hoping not to be found and there was less of that and more of vampires trying to break down doors, but it was still really gripping. 

I loved the characters. It was good that the characters thrown together by the events were people who didn't know each other that well. It created great tensions between the characters and watching them come together and get to know each other, when they had only before known themselves in passing. 

I loved the vampire mythology they used too. This is definitely a great point horror vampire book. 

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

The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 180

Publisher: Hot Key Books 

Released: 27th of September 2018 

Martha can tell things about a person just by touching their clothes, as if their emotions and memories have been absorbed into the material. It started the day she fell from the tree at her grandma's cabin and became blind in one eye.

Determined to understand her strange ability, Martha sets off to visit her grandmother, Mormor - only to discover Mormor is dead, a peculiar boy is in her cabin and a terrifying creature is on the loose.

Then the spinning wheel starts creaking, books move around and terror creeps in . . .

What I Have to Say 

I loved the mythology in the book and the way the author weaved it into the story, how everything fitted in to the myths and legends of Norway. I loved Martha so much. She was an interesting character, I loved how she could read clothing. It seemed like such an interesting ability and one I hadn't come across before. 

The creepiness was a good level for me. I wasn't too scared by it but it did have a creepy atmosphere that sent shivers down my spine. The isolation and the storm made the whole thing feel so much more risky. I wanted so much for them all to survive, especially Gandalf, the dog. 

It was just a good story with a solid foundation of mythology adding to the story. I loved the way that it all worked perfectly as a story, the world of gods and norns fitting smoothly into a modern setting. 

Definitely great for mythology fans. 

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

The Growing Pains of Jennifer Ebert, Aged 19 Going on 91 by David M. Barnett

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 304 

Publisher: Trapeze 

Released: 15th of November 2018

Nineteen-year-old Jennifer is regretting her hasty move into Sunset Promenade, an unusual retirement home taking in students to save money. Despite their differences in age, Jennifer and the older residents thrive and embark on a series of new adventures. But when Sunset Promenade is threatened with closure, cracks begin to show, and this quirky group of friends must work together to save their home.

What I Have to Say 

This combined my love of old movies with my love of books that have a different take on what's normal. I love the idea of uni students lodging in a care home with old-aged pensioners and it really highlighted the tensions that we have going on between generations at the moment. Add in some mysterious disappearance of personal items and Jennifer's love of old movies and a strong desire to reinvent herself and become Lauren Bacall and it's a wonderful book full of mystery, hijinks and people who aren't quite what they seem.

But of course Lauren Bacall, traditional femme-fatale and oh so glamorous movie star, doesn't quite fit Jennifer's actual personality and the constant strain of trying to be someone she's not inevitably gets to Jennifer and it turns into a lovely story about identity, about finding herself and working out how to bridge the gap between who she is and who she wants to be.

The story has so much more than this, but if I go into everything I loved about it, it would become one of those reviews that says more about what happens in the story than what makes it good. Just know that it has a thrilling mystery, amazing characters that not only are quirky and fun but also feel very real and sinister goings on that will make you feel like you're in an old film-noir.

I got this book because it sounded fun, but I didn't realise quite how good it would be. I absolutely loved it and I hope you do too!

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

This Lie Will Kill You by Chelsea Pitcher

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320 

Publisher: Simon and Schuster UK Children's 

Released: 27th of December 2018 

Tell the truth. Or face the consequences.

Clue meets Riverdale in this page-turning thriller that exposes the lies five teens tell about a deadly night one year ago. 

One year ago, there was a party.

At the party, someone died.

Five teens each played a part and up until now, no one has told the truth.

But tonight, the five survivors arrive at an isolated mansion in the hills, expecting to compete in a contest with a $50,000 grand prize. Of course…some things are too good to be true. They were each so desperate for the prize, they didn’t question the odd, rather exclusive invitation until it was too late.

Now, they realize they’ve been lured together by a person bent on revenge, a person who will stop at nothing to uncover what actually happened on that deadly night, one year ago.

Five arrived, but not all can leave. Will the truth set them free?

Or will their lies destroy them all?

What I Have to Say 

This Lie Will Kill You gripped me right from the first page. The secrets, the lies, the mysterious murder mystery dinner party that they're invited to, which they know and the reader knows that is definitely far more sinister than the invitation would suggest. 

It was just perfect. The emotions from each of the characters, the lies and secrets that are revealed throughout the book. It kept me wanting to know more and more without leaving me too long between each snippet of information that I got bored and frustrated. 

And the story when it came out was dark and full of conflict and passion and so many twists. No one is who they seem and everything was captivating. 

Looking for a good mystery? Look no further. 

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

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 400

Publisher: Harper Collins 

Released: 3rd of December 2018 (Kindle only, paper release 24th of January 2019)

EVERYONE’S INVITED. 

EVERYONE’S A SUSPECT.

Bristling with tension, bitter rivalries, and toxic friendships, get ready for the most hotly-anticipated thriller of 2019.

In a remote hunting lodge, deep in the Scottish wilderness, old friends gather for New Year.

The beautiful one

The golden couple

The volatile one

The new parents

The quiet one

The city boy

The outsider

The victim.

Not an accident – a murder among friends.

What I Have to Say 

The ending ruined this book to me. The reveal of the murder. Because the author took the same way out that tons of other crime writers do to explain why this person did the things they did. So, SPOILERS FOR MOTIVE OF MURDER BUT NOT THE ACTUAL KILLER: surprise surprise, it was a personality disorder, because why else would someone kill someone? If there were more books about people with personality disorders living healthy lives without being cast as the villain every time, this wouldn't be so big of an issue. The fact is there are people living out in the world with these issues. And every time they see themselves in fictions they are the twist in a crime novel. The world is sending them a message to say that they are destined to kill someone and THAT IS NOT OKAY. 

Until that, I really liked the book. I'm really upset with how that one bit of the book ruined the rest of it for me. Because the plot was really engrossing. The characters were engaging and completely dis-likeable in the way that some plots work with dislikeable characters and the setting was beautifully written. I loved the feeling of beauty all around that was created at the start of the book and the way it changed to an isolated, desolated landscape as the storm hit. 

I wish I could recommend this book, because it really kept me reading and enjoying it for most of the book, but I know the damage it does to people with personality disorders, so I just can't. 

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

Codename Villanelle and No Tomorrow by Luke Jennings

Codename Villanelle 

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 224 

Publisher: John Murray 

Released: 26th of June 2017 

She is the perfect assassin.

A Russian orphan, saved from the death penalty for the brutal revenge she took on her gangster father's killers.

Ruthlessly trained. Given a new life. New names, new faces - whichever fits.

Her paymasters call themselves The Twelve. But she knows nothing of them. Konstantin is the man who saved her, and the one she answers to.

She is Villanelle. Without conscience. Without guilt. Without weakness.

Eve Polastri is the woman who hunts her. MI5, until one error of judgment costs her everything.

Until stopping a ruthless assassin becomes more than her job. It becomes personal.

Originally published as ebook singles: Codename Villanelle , Hollowpoint , Shanghai and Odessa. 

No Tomorrow 

Pages: 256 

Publisher: John Murray 

Released:  28th of November 2018

In a hotel room in Venice, where she's just completed a routine assassination, Villanelle receives a late-night call.

Eve Polastri has discovered that a senior MI5 officer is in the pay of the Twelve, and is about to debrief him. As Eve interrogates her subject, desperately trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, Villanelle moves in for the kill.

The duel between the two women intensifies, as does their mutual obsession, and when the action moves from the high passes of the Tyrol to the heart of Russia, Eve finally begins to unwrap the enigma of her adversary's true identity.

What I Have to Say 

I really enjoyed Killing Eve, the series on the BBC, so when I saw the books, I thought I'd give them to read. It wasn't as good as the series, the writing was a little clunky and the plot was quite long and drawn out (which is more understandable now that I know it was a series of eBooks), I think that the way that they changed it for TV was better. It did however make much more sense in the books when they went to Shanghai. I'm not sure why they changed it to Germany in the series. 

I did like having more details about the characters. Villanelle got a lot more background and detail in Codename Villanelle and it was so cool to see more about her life and the way she became an assassin. In the second book it was Nico who I loved to see more from. In series he was kind of in the background being there and getting annoyed at Eve's growing obsession with Villanelle. But in the book he was funny and quirky. He was so sweet and he had goats. It was worth reading for the antics of the goats. 

The other thing that I liked better in the book was the ending. It was so different from the series and it was far more satisfying. 

I think it was worth reading, but I was off-put by a lot of the sex and the gritty stuff that wasn't really needed. Villanelle was unecessarily crass in some scenes and it just wasn't my thing. I also felt that telling everything about Villanelle's identity in the first few paragraphs took away all the mystery and suspense. The series kept a lot of surprises so it kept you watching and guessing. The book was very lacking in this respect. 

If you loved the series though and want to see more behind the characters and the parts of their personality that had to be dropped for the series, then it's worth reading, but perhaps not if you're not into grimy, gritty crime. 

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

The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 352

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK 

Released: 4th of October 2018 

They called us the Mercies, or sometimes the Boneless Mercies. They said we were shadows, ghosts, and if you touched our skin we dissolved into smoke ... 

Frey, Ovie, Juniper, and Runa are Boneless Mercies – death-traders, hired to kill quickly, quietly and mercifully. It is a job for women, and women only. Men will not do this sad, dark work.

Frey has no family, no home, no fortune, and yet her blood sings a song of glory. So when she hears of a monster slaughtering men, women, and children in a northern jarldom, she decides this the Mercies’ one chance to change their fate.

But glory comes at a price …

What I Have to Say 

For me this was Skyrim in book form. Or at least Skyrim the way I play it. Tough Nordic Girls battered into warriors by years of harsh winters and fending for themselves. April Genevieve Tucholke's writing drew me so deeply into Frey's world that it felt like I was part of the sisterhood. And it was a beautiful sisterhood. I could have read about these four girls fighting to make something of themselves beyond where their fate had led them all day. 

This for me is the perfect Feminist book. It didn't have the background of so many of the books around where women are subjugated through rape only. Books that try to empower women and show them fighting back while still reducing them to just their bodies. In The Boneless Mercies, the only mentions of rape are alluded to pleasure houses and it shows the few options there are for women without actually showing the violence that is used against them. Coming to the story at the end of the struggle. When the Mercies make the decision to fight for more was the perfect way to show the struggles of women without showing the violence. 

Every word of this book was perfect: the ending and fighting the monster, the Cut-throat-queen,the empowerment of women through the entire book. There wasn't anything I didn't like. It was beautiful and made me feel like a warrior just reading it. 

This is supposedly a standalone, but the ending certainly left it open for more. If I never get to see another story from the Mercies and this world, I will be very disappointed. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with this copy for review. 

Christmas at the Palace by Jeevani Charika

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 368 

Publisher: Bonnier Zaffre 

Released: 18th of October 2018 

Campaigner, feminist, doctor, humanitarian - all words that Kumari would use to describe herself. Potential princess? Not even in the vocabulary.

But when Kumari's charity work catapults her into the limelight and brings her to the attention of Prince Benedict - playboy prince and sixth in line to the British throne - all bets are off.

Royal party boy, charming rogue, England's most eligible bachelor - Prince Benedict is all those things. Or at least he was. These days he's taking life more seriously, following in his dear mother's footsteps and focusing on charitable causes.

When he meets Kumari the attraction between them is instant. But, according to the press, Prince Benedict might just have found the most unsuitable bride.

Will love win the day?

What I Have to Say 

This was a lovely book, but another one that just didn't have enough Christmas in for me. From the cover, I expected a book filled to the seems with Christmas, but it was only the last hundred pages that really was about Christmas at the palace. If it hadn't had Christmas in the name, I wouldn't have minded so much, it was just that my expectations were so different. 

I also think the way that they did the flashback for the main content of the story didn't really work for me. It didn't leave much suspense as to whether they'd end up together or what would happen in their relationship. 

I loved Kumari's character though. I loved how focused on charity she was, how brazen she was. How she wouldn't take no for an answer for a lot of the time, despite the fact that it could get her and the whole royal family in trouble. 

The romance may have fallen a little flat for me, but Kumari made up for everything. I loved her so much. 

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

Evie's War by Holly Webb

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 300

Publisher: Scholastic 

Released: 4th of October 2018 

In the seaside town of Whitby, when the United Kingdom is on the cusp of World War One, Evie and her family are touched by tragedy when Evie's younger brother Alexander dies unexpectedly.

As Evie's mother and father struggle in their own ways to come to terms with their loss, Evie's older brother David distracts himself with the ever-growing threat of war and Evie and her sister Kitty find ways to keep their spirits up.

But when the threat of war turns into reality and David enlists in the army, Evie's mother is truly heartbroken. And as the family does their best to contribute to the war effort, they also struggle with the sacrifices each of them are forced to make.

Based on the real-life bombing of Whitby in 1914, this beautiful, powerful and important read by Holly Webb is devastating but also wonderfully uplifting

What I Have to Say 

This was everything that I wanted from Skylark's War but didn't get. I loved setting, the relationship between the family members, the angle of loss that was clear from the very start of the book. I loved the way that Evie and her sister Kitty contributed to the war effort (especially the horse blanket) and I loved love loved the dogs. 

I've never thought about dogs during wartime, as so as not to spoil parts of the books, I won't say too much now, but the dogs were definitely my favourite part of the book. It can be hard to find decent representations of dogs in fiction sometimes, but Max and Brandy were perfect. Max was definitely my favourite, he was just written so perfectly. 

The backdrop of Whitby was a very interesting one. I've never read a book set in one of the seaside towns during wartime before. The way that the war touched them in such a massive way, with the bombing of Whitby and the ship really brought home the danger of the war in ways that home front war books often doesn't. 

This was such a sad, dramatic story and was written in an uplifting way. It's a hard balance to write about the subject matter in a way that treats it serious and puts across the horrors of war while also leaving the reader feeling uplifted.

If, like me, Skylark's War left you a little wanting or you just want to see more of the home-front during WW1, I would definitely recommend Evie's War. 

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

Frostfire by Jamie Smith

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 288

Publisher: Chicken House 

Released: 1st of November 2018 

Chosen for the honour of bonding with a frostsliver - a fragment of the sentient glacier that crests her icy home - Sabira embarks on the dangerous pilgrimage to the top of the mountain. But when a huge avalanche traps her on the glacier and destroys the pass, Sabira is determined to find another way home. In order to survive, she must face up to the merciless mountain - but there are dark and fiery secrets hiding in its depths ...

What I Have to Say 

This took me a little while to get into, but I really loved it by the end. The scenic background of the book made it stand out compared to other books I've read lately. The description of the mountain and the vast scale of it really come across in the writing. You can almost feel the cold of it chilling you to your bone. It really brought home the situation that Sabira is in, stuck on the moutain, alone (mostly) and having to rely on all of her wits and those of the frostliver just to survive. 

Everything beyond that fitted in perfectly. The conflict between the two societies worked really well and the way that it played into the main story as well as the backstory of Sabira's brother and his own attempts to get a frostsliver were perfectly entwined with with the story. 

If I had one complaint, it's that the frostsliver didn't have a name. It had a nicely defined personality but I really think that it would have been given a name at some point. 

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

Shadow of the Fox Blog Tour: Guest Post by Julie Kagawa

I am so happy to be part of the Shadow of the Fox blog tour. It is truly an honour to host Julie Kagawa, as she has been one of my favourite authors for so long. 

I also was able to request a piece that meant a lot to me, as I'm so fascinated by language, especially Japanese. So I hope you enjoy this post as much as I did. 

The Language of Shadow of the Fox 

Language was very important to me while writing Shadow of the Fox, especially the specific meaning of certain names.  For example, Yumeko, the kitsune protagonist of the story, has a very specific name. Yume is 'dream' in Japanese, so her name translates to dream child or child of dreams.  Tatsumi's demon possessed sword Kamigoroshi literally means 'godslayer,' and his family name  Kage (pronounced 'kah geh' not 'cage') is Japanese for 'shadow.'

Similarly, the families of Iwagoto are all named after the elements. The four Great Clans are the Hino, Mizu, Kaze and Tsuchi: Fire, Water, Wind and Earth.  The minor clans make up the Tsuki, Sora and Kage: Moon, Sky and Shadow, while the Imperial family is the Taiyo, the Sun clan.  The clans often reflect their families' element, with members of the Fire clan being seen as impulsive and hot tempered, the Earth clan as stubborn and immovable, and the Shadow clan as secretive and mysterious.

Even the names of the cities and buildings are important.  Chochin Machi, a small town that Yumeko and Tatsumi come across in their travels, means 'Lantern Town,' and is strung with thousands of red paper lanterns that light up the night.  The Shadow clan's home castle is Hakumei-jo, which means Twilight castle.  The Hayate shrine in the Wind district of the Imperial city means 'gale.' From the people to the towns to the forests and buildings, almost every named thing has a hidden meaning. And while most of them are not in the glossary at the back of the book, I took great care in all the names that went into Shadow of the Fox.  

Shadow of the Fox is available from any good book shop or online retailers. For my review of the book, go here.