An Education in Malice by S. T. Gibson

Pages: 288

Publisher: Orbit 

Released: 15th of February 2024 

Deep in the forgotten hills of Massachusetts stands Saint Perpetua's College. Isolated and ancient, it is not a place for timid girls. Here, secrets are currency, ambition is lifeblood, and strange ceremonies welcome students into the fold.

On her first day of class, Laura Sheridan is thrust into an intense academic rivalry with the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla. Together, they are drawn into the confidence of their demanding poetry professor, De Lafontaine, who holds her own dark obsession with Carmilla.

But as their rivalry blossoms into something far more delicious, Laura must confront her own strange hungers. Tangled in a sinister game of politics, bloodthirsty professors and dark magic, Laura and Carmilla must decide how much they are willing to sacrifice in their ruthless pursuit of knowledge.

What I Have to Say 

This book hooked me in and didn't let go until the end. It did everything that Dowry of Blood failed to do and honestly I have to wonder if it's because I read it in print instead of audio. 

The writing was sublime. It was poetic, it was enthralling, it was just deeply beautiful to read. I was captivated by the characters. Capricious nature of De Lafontaine, abusing her power and setting these girls against each other was just so interesting to see. None of the relationships in this book were in the slightest way healthy, but that was rather the point. 

I loved the dark academic setting so much. I enjoyed the poetry and the academic rivalry so much that honestly I wouldn't have missed it one bit if the vampires hadn't shown up. However, the vampires did add something to this enthralling story and I was happy to see it take place in the same universe as Dowry of Blood. 

I would recommend this book to anyone, especially if you like dark academia, but it's certainly one for the Vampire fans. 

5 stars 

My thanks goes to Orbit and Netgalley for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven (audiobook)

Pages: 406 

Publisher: Electric Monkey 

Released: 7th of July 2022 

Ten years ago, four students lost their lives in the infamous North Tower murders at the elite Carvell College of Arts, forcing Carvell to close its doors.

Now Carvell is reopening, and fearless student Lottie is determined to find out what really happened. But when her roommate, Alice, stumbles upon a sinister soul-splitting ritual hidden in Carvell’s haunted library, the North Tower claims another victim.

Can Lottie uncover the truth before the North Tower strikes again? Can Alice reverse the ritual before her monstrous alter ego consumes her? And can they stop flirting for literally fifteen seconds in order to do this?

Exploring possession and ambition, lust and bloodlust, femininity and violence, The Society of Soulless Girls is perfect for fans of Ace of Spaces, The Secret History and The Inheritance Games.

Trigger Warnings: Animal Death, Blood consumption, abuse

What I Have to Say 

I really liked the atmosphere of the book, but the ending let it down. I wanted more from it. I wanted a solution to the mystery that was as clever and well worked as the premise, but it just felt too easy, they didn't even try that hard to find out who the killer was, it just dropped into their lap. 

Also, not everything was explained. There was a whole bit with the cat that they gave no explanation for at all. It was built up but then was just left completely unexplained. This frustrated me the most because I hate when they just leave stuff hanging in books, it felt like the author just forgot about it. 

The narrators were okay. The two different voices were good to distinguish between the two girls and they did a good job of making it creepy and disturbing, but one of them couldn't pronounce Jekyll and said it wrong several times. 

In all, this book is good if you want just a creepy read, but don't expect much from the ending. 

3 stars 

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

The Lies We Tell by Katie Zhao

Pages: 352

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA 

Released: 15th of November 2022 

Anna Xu moving out of her parent's home and into the dorms across town as she starts freshman year at the local, prestigious Brookings University. But her parents and their struggling Chinese bakery, Sweetea, aren't far from campus or from mind, either.

At Brookings, Anna wants to keep up her stellar academic performance and to investigate the unsolved campus murder of her childhood babysitter. While there she also finds a familiar face – her middle-school rival, Chris Lu. The Lus also happen to be the Xu family's business rivals since they opened Sunny's, a trendy new bakery on Sweetea's block. Chris is cute but still someone to be wary of – until a vandal hits Sunny's and Anna matches the racist tag with a clue from her investigation.

Anna grew up in this town, but more and more she feels like maybe she isn't fully at home here -- or maybe it's that there are people here who think she doesn't belong. When a very specific threat is made to Anna, she seeks out help from the only person she can. Anna and Chris team up to find out who is stalking her and take on a dangerous search into the hate crimes happening around campus. Can they root out the ugly history and take on the current threat?

The Lies We Tell is a social activism/we all belong here anthem crossed with a thriller and with a rivals-to-romance relationship set on a college campus. 

What I Have To Say 

The first 200 pages of this book were a delight to read. Then I guessed the ending really easily, which I can never do with mystery books, so I felt it was a bit of an obvious ending. Then the situation with the two bakeries was magically resolved with no real explanation of how it happened. And then when everything was resolved and I was ready to put the book down, there was at least 50 pages more of dance contests and talk about court trials and pressing charges. I just didn't need so much ending on a book! 

It was just such a disappointing because until then it had been a really pleasant read. Really easy to read with strong themes tackling racism and secret societies. The only complaint I had up until the last 100 pages was that she wasn't using her connection to Melissa Hong to get information (because I think people are much more likely to talk if you say you're asking because the girl used to be your babysitter rather than just being nosy). 

All in all, I'm just extremely disappointed. This could have been something great, hell, it WAS something great until the ending. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Bloomsbury 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. 

Freshers Blog Tour - Best Friends

I am so happy to be hosting Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison for today's stop on the Fresher's blog tour. This book has meant so much to me, even though it is a very different look at University Life than I had, because it brought back so many memories of my own experience during Fresher's Week.

I had the best experience in Fresher's week and the memories are still strong even though it's getting to be quite some years ago now. But Fresher's week was the time when I met my best friend Katrina. She was alone and I was spending most of my time that week inviting people who looked lonely to join our group so they weren't left out.

Kat was the only friend who really stuck with me, but we spent the rest of our time at Uni stuck at the hip and I still see her all the time. I really know how my life would have gone if I didn't have Kat for a best friend.

Because of this, I've asked Tom and Lucy to talk about their fabulous friendship for their piece and how they've kept it so strong for so many years, especially after dating for a time(which is often the end of friendships, no matter how firm).

Probably the question we get the asked the most, regardless of what book we are promoting or who we are talking to, is ‘isn’t it weird to write a book with your ex?’ For everyone else it is definitely weird, it must be or we wouldn’t get asked about it so much. But it to us it doesn’t feel strange at all. We have known each other for almost twenty years. We’ve been to school together, been to uni together, lived through our twenties side by side and now into our thirties. In Freshers, there is a line where Phoebe says that she doesn’t have that many memories before she knew Luke Taylor, and in a way, that is true of us too. We were once interviewed by some young people in Holland and one of them asked Lucy what she thought of Tom. Lucy just stayed (quite awkwardly) quiet for a bit and then said she had ‘no idea’. The blogger thought it was a simple question – and it is. But the thing is in the same way you don’t consciously think about your elbow, we just don’t really think about each other that way. Your elbow is just always there and always has been and that is kind of how we are with each other. Sometimes we row, especially about timekeeping and Tom being miserable and Lucy not understanding the basic principles of English grammar and sometimes we laugh for ages but we are such a constant in each other’s lives that it just isn’t something to note. A lot of the time when we go for walks to think about plot or things about a book we are struggling with, we don’t really talk at all, sometimes for ages. 

We were friends before we went out – proper, actual mates. And when we decided to get together, we almost didn’t because we were so nervous about ruining our friendship. So we made a solemn vow in Tom’s parent’s kitchen that whatever happened between us, we would stay friends. And we have. Just because you realise that you aren’t right together in a relationship, doesn’t mean that you aren’t right to be loyal and supportive and there for each other for the rest of your lives. When you have shared as much as we have, it seems ridiculous to do anything else…

Before I go, I'd like to thank Tom and Lucy for writing such a lovely piece for me, Nina Douglas for inviting me to be a stop on the tour and you guys for reading. I hope you enjoy the rest of the tour!

Freshers by Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 367

Publisher: Chicken House Books 

Released: 3rd of August 2017 

Uni beckons. Phoebe can’t wait to be a fresher – especially since her crush from school will be there too. She’ll be totally different at Uni: cooler, prettier, smarter … the perfect potential girlfriend. She’ll reinvent herself completely. But Luke’s oblivious, still reeling from the fallout of the break-up with his ex. Thrown head first into a world of new friends, parties and social media disasters – can Phoebe and Luke survive the year, let alone find each other?

What I Have to Say 

Me and my friends at Uni were very different from Phoebe or Luke or any of the people they hang out with, but somehow this book captured the madness that was Fresher's week and the whole first term really. The ups, the down, the break-ups, the hook ups and just the whole experience of being away from home and living with people who you don't know. 

As with all of Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison's characters, I loved them all in their unique ways (except the ones we're not meant to like of course). I thought the whole stuff surrounding Luke and the football team was really interesting and a good thing to bring awareness to. Because it was gross and disgusting and they handled it well. 

One thing I will say though, which is not a criticism of the book really, but too many books about University involve binge drinking and parties. There aren't any books or even parts of books about the insane other stuff that happens. The groups who hang out and marathon Disney movies all night. Or who do other crazy stuff that doesn't involve drinking. In Freshers there was the Quidditch and there was one character who didn't drink, but it still made out that Uni is just all about binge drinking. It gives the wrong impression to people who don't drink but want to go to Uni. It is something that some people worry about and I think more needs to be written about non-drinking Uni students. 

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

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Released: 13th of July 2017 

The arranged-marriage YA romcom you didn't know you wanted or needed... 

Meet Dimple.

Her main aim in life is to escape her traditional parents, get to university and begin her plan for tech world domination.

Meet Rishi.

He's rich, good-looking and a hopeless romantic. His parents think Dimple is the perfect match for him, but she's got other plans...

Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

What I Have to Say 

This was such a cute book. I loved the concept other it. Even though it's an awful idea that Dimple's parents just sent this boy to meet her without telling her anything about it, it was just funny, the way it all played out and the way it was written. It showed a lot about both of the characters and I think definitely qualifies as a nice "meet cute" story to tell, even if it was rather upsetting for them when it was actually happening. 

I think they showed the culture very well in this book. I had to google a lot of things, especially the clothing that was referenced so that I had an idea of what they were talking about. There were just small references in so much of it, which showed how much culture was involved in both Dimple and Rishi's lives. 

The feelings that Dimple had were so real as well. Rishi was easy to empathise with as well, but Dimple's struggle between what she wants out of life and what her parents seem to want for her, how she can't see the middle ground because she's so sure that she wants to focus on her career rather than marrying or even dating boys, was just so real and interesting. 

This book was funny, cute and really showed a wonderful snapshot of India culture in America. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with this copy for review. 

An Italian Summer by Keris Stainton

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 288

Publisher: Hot Key Books 

Released: 4th of May 2017 

It's been a year since Milly, Elyse and Leonie's dad died, and a year since their last trip to Rome. Summer's here again, and once again they are heading with their mum to Italy - but what's it going to be like going without Dad? Rome still holds its familiar charms - the sun is still as warm, the gelato as delicious, the people as welcoming. But nothing is quite as it once was ... 

With grief still raw for all of them, Milly is facing the additional awfulness of having to see Luke again - gorgeous, gorgeous Luke, who she had a fling with last year, and who she made a total fool of herself with - or so she thinks. What's going to happen this time? What's more, things between Milly, her sisters and their mum are rocky - Leonie is being tempestuous and unpredictable, Elyse is caught up with her new boyfriend, and Milly feels like she just doesn't know how she fits in any more. 

Over one Italian summer, can Milly find a way back to the life she once had? 

What I Have to Say 

This was a good story but there just wasn't much to grip me and make me want to read on. I liked the way it addressed grief and mourning and the effects it can have on people, but that's all it was. A journey of characters and how they recover. And for me, those books just aren't really enough. 

The three sisters were really interesting and I liked the way that they were different from each other. I also liked the descriptions of Rome. It made me really want to go on holiday, so I think the best time to read this is when you're on holiday. It would make a really great beach read. 

This is all I really have to say on it. Like I said, it's a good story, but it just wasn't for me. 

It would make a great beach read though. 

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

Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320 

Publisher: Pan Macmillan 

Released: 4th of May 2017 

Alice doesn’t believe in luck—at least, not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for some time now, she’s been pining for her best friend, Teddy. On his eighteenth birthday—just when it seems they might be on the brink of something—she buys him a lottery ticket on a lark. To their astonishment, he wins $140 million, and in an instant, everything changes. 

At first, it seems like a dream come true, especially since the two of them are no strangers to misfortune. As a kid, Alice won the worst kind of lottery possible when her parents died just over a year apart from each other. And Teddy’s father abandoned his family not long after that, leaving them to grapple with his gambling debts. Through it all, Teddy and Alice have leaned on each other. But now, as they negotiate the ripple effects of Teddy’s newfound wealth, a gulf opens between them. And soon, the money starts to feel like more of a curse than a windfall. 

As they try to find their way back to each other, Alice learns more about herself than she ever could have imagined . . . and about the unexpected ways in which luck and love sometimes intersect.

What I Have to Say 

This is a great book about the ups and downs of life. Teddy and Alice haven't had the best of fortune in their lives, but when Teddy wins the lottery, it seems like their luck is going to turn, but it's not quite as easy as it seems. This book really looks into the expectations and media coverage that lottery winners get after their win. 

It wasn't as cute and relaxing to read as I've found Jennifer E. Smith's books before. It's not that the other books weren't deep, but I feel that because through most of the book Alice love for Teddy seems unrequited, it didn't have the romantic feel that the other books. I liked it a lot in other ways, but it wasn't what I'd been expecting. 

Alice's struggle was really interesting to read. I've read a lot of books about identity and trying to find out what you actually like rather than what you've felt pushed into and the fact that she honestly thought that she was happy until it was time to actually decide on a University felt quite realistic. Freezing when it comes to big decisions and putting it off because I don't want to face it, is something that I do a lot, so it felt very familiar to me. 

I'm not completely overwhelmed by this book but it was a good read. 

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

And Then We Ran by Katy Cannon

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 352
Publisher: Stripes Publishing
Released: 6th of April 2017

A road-trip story about following your dreams and embracing the unexpected.

Megan knows what she wants out of life and she intends to get it, whatever her parents say.

Elliott has given up on all his plans for the future – but then Megan bursts into his life with a proposal that could change it forever.

Together they embark on a road trip to escape their hometown and chase their dreams. But life is a journey and not even Megan can control where theirs will lead…

What I Have to Say 

I wasn't sure about this book. It was a good enough story and there were moments that I really liked, but it didn't leave much of an impression on me. The character's were cool. I liked Megan and her wild ideas. I liked the way that Elliott knew how Megan was with her crazy ideas and how willing he was to go along with her idea. 

I liked the way it ended too. It was such a desperate scheme that I knew it probably all work out the way they planned it to. So I'd guessed pretty much how it would end, at least for Megan. But I like the way it came together quite neatly, even if I was rooting for them to pull it all off. 

I wasn't sure about the treatment of grief in the book. I guess that most of the grief really takes place before the book starts. Megan has reach a point where she's ready to move on and become her own person, even if her parents still weren't. 

So basically, I enjoyed reading this book, but it wasn't one that is especially good or especially bad. It was interesting but not anything special. 

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

All About Mia by Lisa Williamson

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 336

Publisher: David Fickling Books 

Released: 2nd of February 2017 

One family, three sisters.

GRACE, the oldest: straight-A student

AUDREY, the youngest: future Olympic swimming champion.

And MIA, the mess in the middle.

Mia is wild and daring, great with hair and selfies, and the undisputed leader of her friends – not attributes appreciated by her parents or teachers.

When Grace makes a shock announcement, Mia hopes that her now-not-so-perfect sister will get into the trouble she deserves.

But instead, it is Mia whose life spirals out of control – boozing, boys and bad behaviour – and she starts to realise that her attempts to make it All About Mia might put at risk the very things she loves the most.

What I Have to Say 

This is a great book about identity and feeling overshadowed by siblings and shows a great deal of insight into where this "bad" behaviour comes from. Because other than the blurb that I've used in this review. The word "bad" was never used in regards to Mia's behaviour. She is not going out drinking with the intention of causing a scene. Her actions aren't meant to make things "All About Mia", she's just a lost and struggling girl who doesn't know how else to deal with the pain she feels when she sees her parents focusing on her sisters more than her. 

It also gives a good look into the different perceptions that the family have. Even though the book is quite literally All About Mia and told from her viewpoints, throughout the book, the other siblings viewpoints come to light. I think this is especially apparent in the way that Mia and Audrey are sent away while Grace and their parents discuss Grace's situation. She comes back to see her perfect sister back to being perfect again, but she doesn't see all the arguments and shouting that got her back into their parents good books. 

I especially liked the fact that Williamson looked into what it's like for a teenager applying to UCAS when they don't have something that sets them apart. Mia is the type of person who's hobbies aren't something that you can put on a UCAS form, not that she really wants to go to University anyway. She's not a swimming star like her younger sister. She's not good at academics like her older sister. She has no idea what to put on her form. And the teachers reaction is to shout at her. It shows the faults in our school system, and in a lot of ways our society, that only caters to certain people. The fact that someone who doesn't have particular hobbies that they can talk about is seen as a problem or shallow. This is something that even I've fallen into the trap of thinking in the past, so this was something really eye opening. 

Williamson's books are so amazingly written. They're very easy to read and they make you think about things that you haven't even considered before. I personally think that everyone should read them. 

My thanks go to David Fickling Books for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Synopsis (Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Corgi Childrens 

Released: 3rd of Novermber 2016 

Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.

The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true? 

What I Have to Say 

I wouldn't class myself as a romance fan as such, but I think I really like this sub genre of two people meeting each other and spending an intense period of time together, in this case a single day, and them coming out of it completely changed, both by each other and the things that have happened to them over the course of the day. I loved it in You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina Lacour, I loved it in The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith and again I've loved it in The Sun is Also a Star. 

I think to pull of this genre, you have to have a pair of good strong main characters. Daniel and Natasha were both great characters. They both had interesting things in their lives that they are wanting to run away from. Natasha, I found especially interesting because she was facing deportment, which is not something I've read much about. They were also both from backgrounds which weren't my own, Natasha being Jamaican and Daniel being Korean, both of which makes them more interesting in my view. 

They just were such great characters with such great stories and also such  different opinions on things, which they're willing to discuss at length, cutely and over coffee with experiements into falling in love. 

It has a wonderful pair of characters, great conflict and science experiments involving staring into each other's eyes for four minutes. What more could you ask for? 

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

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 400

Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books 

Released: 25th of February 2016 

What if everything you set yourself up to be was wrong?

Frances has always been a study machine with one goal, elite university. Nothing will stand in her way; not friends, not a guilty secret – not even the person she is on the inside.

But when Frances meets Aled, the shy genius behind her favourite podcast, she discovers a new freedom. He unlocks the door to Real Frances and for the first time she experiences true friendship, unafraid to be herself. Then the podcast goes viral and the fragile trust between them is broken.

Caught between who she was and who she longs to be, Frances’ dreams come crashing down. Suffocating with guilt, she knows that she has to confront her past…

She has to confess why Carys disappeared…

Meanwhile at uni, Aled is alone, fighting even darker secrets.

It’s only by facing up to your fears that you can overcome them. And it’s only by being your true self that you can find happiness.

Frances is going to need every bit of courage she has. 

What I Have to Say 

I don't even know how to begin to sum up this amazing book. It is just so important. Alice Oseman has put into writing so many things that people have been avoiding saying for years. Things like the way our school system just doesn't give teenagers any other option than A Levels and university, simply by not saying that the other options are out there. How they are making teenagers feel like not getting good grades at GCSE will ruin their lives completely. And not only that, but she has dared to write a book where a boy and a girl main character are friends and never get together or have any romance with each other. She even used the word asexual. 

Not only did she manage to include all these extremely important topics, but she did so while creating a beautiful and moving story. A story about identity, taking the main character, Frances on a journey of finding herself, learning what she actually likes and is good at outside of what school has taught her that she has to be. 

This story has so much mystery, suspense and tragedy that it overwhelms me in a way that makes it hard to write about just how wonderful it is, because there's just so much that I could say. It's reminded me how great Alice Oseman is as a writer and what I originally liked about Solitaire, while also going on to achieve something even better. 

This book is definitely one that will stay with me and that I will force on all my friends.

I think that teenagers looking towards university and finding out what they want in life should read this book.

Students facing GCSEs, especially if they're bad at tests should read this book. 

And perhaps most importantly, anyone who feels that university or even A Levels may not be the right path for them, but doesn't know what other options are out there, should very definitely read this book. 

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

The Incredible Adventures of Cinnamon Girl by Melissa Keil

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 294

Publisher: Little Tiger Group 

Released: 11th of February 2016

Alba loves her life just as it is. She loves living behind the bakery, and waking up in a cloud of sugar and cinnamon. She loves drawing comics and watching bad TV with her friends.

The only problem is she’s overlooked a few teeny details:

Like, the guy she thought long gone has unexpectedly reappeared.

And the boy who has been her best friend since forever has suddenly gone off the rails. 

And even her latest comic-book creation is misbehaving.

Also, the world might be ending – which is proving to be awkward.

As Doomsday enthusiasts flock to idyllic Eden Valley, Alba’s life is thrown into chaos. Whatever happens next, it’s the end of the world as she knows it. But when it comes to figuring out her heart, Armageddon might turn out to be the least of her problems.

What I Have to Say 

This is a book about comic-books! Well, not just about comic-books. It's also about art, the possible end of the world and the fear of leaving what's comfortable and safe in order to go out into the big wide world and do something with your life. But they had me at comic-books, everything else just made it extra awesome. 

I'm almost ashamed to say how confused I got with the setting of this book. I couldn't work out how it was the summer holidays and the end of school at the same time as it was coming up to Christmas. Luckily as soon as I realised it was Australian, it all fitted in. 

As I said, this book is about the scary part of life where you let go of your comfortable home life in order to go out into the big wide world. I think a lot of people know what this feels like. I know I do. It shows an very realistic look at how the need to make this decision and take the plunge can be paralyzing and watching your friends do it with relative ease can be the worst thing in the world. 

I think this is very relevant for the teenagers getting ready to go off to University as well as people in their 20s starting to head out into the workplace. 

Though to be honest, at any stage of life there are places where you may have to make this kind of decision. 

Also, comic- books!! 

Counting Stars by Keris Stainton

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 288

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Released: 3rd of September 2015

Big city, big dreams, no money, no problem...

Six 'friends', one flat, big dreams... what could go wrong? When eighteen-year-old Anna leaves school and moves to Liverpool, she feels like her life is finally beginning. She's landed her dream job at a theatre, and she's moving into an exciting (if not slightly run-down) flat on a buzzing street lined with shops, bars, and buskers. Best of all, her new flatmates are kind, welcoming and a lot of fun - what more could she ask for?

But although her new life is fun, it's also a little overwhelming. Anna's job quickly falls through, and then she realises that although her new friends are great, they're also a little mixed-up... and it's not long before Anna starts using her blog to talk about her experiences, from the hilarious to the ridiculous to the little-bit-scary. But when Anna spills a bigger secret than she can handle, suddenly the consequences are all too real. She'll have to prove she has the mettle to make it in the big city, or risk losing everything she thinks she wants.

What I Have to Say 

This book was a very realistic tale of a teenager moving away from home for the first time and one of the few books I've see that show a character choosing not to go to University, which is good because it shows the other path that people can choose. This will really help people who, like Anna, don't really want to go. 

Anna moves into a house with people who are honestly the dream housemates. They're fun, they're quirky and they don't argue about who's going to do the washing up (though I think that's just because Alfie does it). I really liked them as a group.

It shows various problems, living away from home for the first time, abuse, job hunting, parental pressure, sharing your life with the internet and many more. But it was a fairly gentle read. A lot of these problems bubbled away under the surface of the story for a lot of the book with the only real conflict coming in the last couple of chapters.

Though this book wasn't a "page-turner" or a "thrill a minute", it made a lot of valid points whilst being a gentle read. Let's be honest here, if all the books you read are "unputdownable" you'd never get anything done.

It probably won't be a book I think back on in six months time, but it was one that I enjoyed reading.

3.5 Stars

The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 512

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

Released: 26th of March 2015 (First Published 1993) 

Twenty-year-old Ruth Berger is desperate. The daughter of a Jewish-Austrian professor, she was supposed to have escaped Vienna before the Nazis marched into the city. Yet the plan went completely wrong, and while her family and fiancé are waiting for her in safety, Ruth is stuck in Vienna with no way to escape. Then she encounters her father’s younger college professor, the dashing British paleontologist Quin Sommerville. 

Together, they strike a bargain: a marriage of convenience, to be annulled as soon as they return to safety. But dissolving the marriage proves to be more difficult than either of them thought—not the least because of the undeniable attraction Quin and Ruth share. To make matters worse, Ruth is enrolled in Quin’s university, in his very classes. Can their secret survive, or will circumstances destroy their love?

What I Have to Say 

I wish I could have gotten into this, I really do. The first Eva Ibbotson book I read was The Secret Countess. I adored it. The writing was beautiful and the story was enchanted and it's left me with the feeling that I want to grab and read every other Eva Ibbotson book that I've found. But it's hard. This and the other one I've tried, Magic Flutes, have been so slow and hard to get through and though the prose is absolutely beautiful and the stories are gorgeous, I just can't get past the slowness. 

As I said though, this was a beautiful. Set against the backdrop of WW2 there was plenty of potential danger as Ruth tried to flee Vienna. And her character was beautiful. Her joy in everything new that she experienced. Her love for everyone and everything around him. I think Ruth is someone that everyone can learn from when it comes from optimism and the beauty of the world. 

In the end, it was a lovely story but just far too slow for me so my search for another Eva Ibbotson book that I like continues. 

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Macmillan for providing me with this e-copy. 

Pages: 272

Publisher: Swoon Reads (Macmillan Children's Books)

Released: 26th of August 2014

The creative writing teacher, the delivery guy, the local Starbucks baristas, his best friend, her roommate, and the squirrel in the park all have one thing in common—they believe that Gabe and Lea should get together. Lea and Gabe are in the same creative writing class. They get the same pop culture references, order the same Chinese food, and hang out in the same places. Unfortunately, Lea is reserved, Gabe has issues, and despite their initial mutual crush, it looks like they are never going to work things out.  But somehow even when nothing is going on, something is happening between them, and everyone can see it. Their creative writing teacher pushes them together. The baristas at Starbucks watch their relationship like a TV show. Their bus driver tells his wife about them. The waitress at the diner automatically seats them together. Even the squirrel who lives on the college green believes in their relationship. 

Surely Gabe and Lea will figure out that they are meant to be together....

What I Have to Say 

This book, without a doubt, is the best romance I have ever read. 

With Romance a very important part of the appeal is wanting the characters to succeed and live happily ever after. Which is part of the reason I don't read that many romance books. Quite often I just don't care about whether the characters end up together or not. But I definitely, definitely wanted Gabe and Lea to get together and was getting as frustrated as the other characters in the book when they kept dancing around each other. 

I think that this is partly down to the way it's written, and also just the adorableness of Gabe and Lea as a couple, naturally. The different perspectives and the way they all start shipping Gabe and Lea, trying to push them together, just seemed to make it so easy to fall into the obsessiveness that is Gabe and Lea watching. 

The perspectives are really wonderful. It's a very fresh way of reading romance, as the title suggests. I found myself really liking some of the more obscure characters, the bus driver, Victor and the squirrel. I really think that the squirrel was the best one. Though I am a sucker for animal points of view in general. I did think at one point that maybe Gabe and Lea would take in the squirrel and help him recover from his starvation over the winter when he lost his acorns, but I guess their help was not needed in the end (it would have been cute though). 

I can't honestly think of a single thing not to love about this book, except perhaps that I wish there had been more of it (but then that might have been more of Gabe and Lea being shy and taking even longer to get together. Torture!), Just go and read it, because it's definitely one of the best books I've ever read. 

Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 279

Publisher: Hodder and 

Released: 1st of January 2014

It's time to meet your new roomie.

When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge. That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room.

As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex. With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by change, it suddenly seems that the only people Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives . . . and each other. Even though they've never met.

What I Have To Say

As novels go, I'm surprised there aren't more written about the transfer from high school to university. Or in fact from teenagehood to adulthood in general as it's a very important time in anyone's life. But off the top of my head, I can only think of three, one of a teenager not going to college and two who do. I think it's a real shame there aren't more.

Roomies was not the best of these. Although I feel it would be a perfect read for someone to read the summer before they go to Uni, as it's a great guidebook through the anxieties of that time, the story just didn't do that much for me. 

I almost feel it would have been better had it just been the character's emails to each other, though I am possibly a little bias as I love books like that, because the two characters have such strong voices and I was more interested in the emails than anything else. 

All my criticisms aside, I would be interested in seeing a sequel of how EB and Lauren get on at University.