The Winter Place by Alexander

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 448

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Released: 22nd of October 2015

When a mysterious stranger and his brown bear show up on the same day that Axel and Tess's father dies in an accident, Axel fears he might be going crazy, especially as only he can see them. However, the strange duo are quickly forgotten when Axel and Tess are shipped off to Finland to stay with grandparents that they've never met. But when they arrive in Finland, Axel is stunned when the stranger and his bear reappear. More incredibly, the stranger tells him that his parents are lost and need help. 

Desperate to see his father again, and actually meet his mother, Axel follows the man and his bear, disappearing deep into the frozen wilds of northern Finland. When Tess realises that her brother has vanished she's distraught. And so begins the frantic search across snow and ice into the dark forest. But as the hours creep by and with no sign of Axel, Tess begins to wonder if her brother has ventured onto a path that she cannot follow. 

What I Have to Say 

This book got better and better as it went on. It's not the kind of book that I was in love with from the start, but by the end of it I was sad to finish it. It was a very urbanized fairy tale, with the enemy for the most of it being a wheelchair. Which really worked when you found out what it actually was and how the mythology worked.  

The Finland setting was really interesting as it's a country that I don't know Learning about the mythology of other places is one of my favourite things about books like this, so I was glad there was so much of it. 

The reader is kept in suspense for most of the book and I did feel it was drawn out a bit, especially towards the start. But on a whole, I enjoyed it a lot. 

Boy 23 by Jim Carrington

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Released: 19th of November 2015 

Boy 23 isn't in My Place any more. He can't see The Screen, he can't hear The Voice. Boy 23 is alone.

One dark night, Boy 23 is thrown in the back of the van and driven out of My Place - the only home he has ever known. He is abandoned in a forest with a rucksack containing the bare essentials for survival. Before the van drives away, a voice tells him he must run as far as he can. His life depends on it. Boy 23 has never known another human. Boy 23 has never even been outside. So who is he? Why do people want to kill him? And more to the point, who is the voice that wants to save him?

What I Have to Say 

I really enjoyed this book. There was such a lot of great mystery in it. From the start, we have no clue who Jesper is or who the Voice is and what their connection to Marsh Flu is. Jesper's voice really draws you in. He sounds perfect for the boy he is, having grown up in seclusion with no contact with another person, his only knowledge coming from videos. 

The replacement of words in Jesper's vocabulary didn't bother me. Though they weren't really needed, since why would he know some words and not others, but there weren't too many of them so it just fell naturally into the way he spoke. Comparing it with Sophie Someone, which I really hated because of the replacement of words, I think it is because Boy 23 just replaces a couple of words whereas Sophie Someone replaced so many. 

If you're looking for a good post apocalypse book, this is a really good one to pick. There's people who've taken advantage of the break down of the society and others who have tried to help. There's so many things that get revealed later in the book too. 

This was a really good read. 

The Iron Warrior by Julie Kagawa

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: MIRA Ink

Released: 27th of October 2015

The Iron Prince betrayed us all.

He killed me. Then, I woke up.

Waking after a month on the brink of death, Ethan Chase is stunned that the Veil that conceals the fey from human sight was torn away.

The human world has been cast into chaos and the Forgotten Queen is leading an uprising; a reckoning that will have cataclysmic effects on the Nevernever.

Leading the Lady's Forgotten Army is Keirran, Ethan’s nephew and the traitor son of the Iron Queen. To stop Keirran, Ethan must disobey his sister once again as he searchs for answers.

In the face of unprecedented evil and unfathomable power, Ethan's enemies must become his allies, and the world of the fey will be changed forevermore…

What I Have To Say 

So my last review of this series was a little down on it. I still think my views regarding Kenzie and Annwyl were valid, but this book changed them completely. Kenzie and Annwyl were a couple of badass ladies who were clearly only hiding behind the boys so they didn't steal their thunder! 

Let's talk about Kenzie, because Annwyl holds a lot of spoilers. Kenzie, in the previous books, was a bit of a love interest, letting Ethan and the others protect her because she doesn't have the fighting skills to defend herself. This is still true in The Iron Warrior, but what she does have is her mind. Between the books, she's been preparing herself to go back into Nevernever and she's done it so well. 

I really loved the dynamic between Kenzie and Ethan, with Kenzie being the brains; the negotiator; helping Ethan navigate the faery deals and bargains with her smarts and knowledge, while Ethan is just the brawn; running forward to fight the battles. Looking back at it, it was obviously coming from the start. I just wish we could have seen more of this beautiful partnership before the end! 

This book really reminded me strong women aren't just women who are good at fighting. I think there should be more characters around like Kenzie because it was a reminder that I needed to get. 

This review has been rather focused on Kenzie, but I wanted to do a bit of an update on the feelings from the previous books. There were other things that I really loved about Iron Warrior too. This book as a whole has really renewed my love of Julie Kagawa. 

The Rise and Rise of Tabitha Baird by Arabella Weir

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 213

Publisher: Picadilly Press Ltd

Released: 2nd of October 2015 

When 13-year-old Tab Baird starts at a new school, she's determined to be the coolest, most popular girl there - whatever it takes. She adjusts her school skirt so it's just the right length. She has enough attitude to make it into the in-crowd. She even gets the attention of the hottest guys. But it's not easy being uber-cool. No one must find out that her mum, brother and her have moved into her gran's house, so she tries to persuade Gran to pose as a house-keeper. And if anyone discovers her mum's blog - about her teenage daughter - it'll be the ultimate in social death. 

What I Have to Say

I really hated this book. I don't like saying that, but it's true. The character was the most annoying type of teenager that exists, which is realistic but just not something I want to read about. You know the type, the sort that overuses words like "Mankenstein" and thinks they're so clever for finding ways to mess with teachers.

I found some of the stuff about her mother and the dog funny, but a lot of it was repetitive and overused. The issues looked at in the book were good though. I feel it was a realistic portrayal of how someone would feel having her family go to live with her gran after her parents split up. I did feel sorry for Tabitha in parts.

Some people might find this book enjoyable, but I just didn't.

The Winter Place Blog Tour: Five Writing Tips From Alexander Yates

As part of The Winter Place blog tour, I am pleased to have Alexander Yates sharing his tips for writing. 

I’ve been a creative writing teacher for about five years now, and a published author for nearly as long. In that time I’ve run courses in multiple countries, teaching both children and adults (currently I’m finishing up a class for Vietnamese university students, here in Hanoi). And in that time, I’ve realized something important: I’m not sure I know what I’m talking about. Every piece of advice I’ve ever given, I’ve also ignored. So please take the following tips with a grain of salt. Here are five things that I try, and sometimes fail, to do as a writer.

1) Just get to the end! 
When writing a longer project (like a novel, or even a novella) you’re always better off setting revision aside in the early stages so that you can focus on completing a full draft. After all, it’s only when you have a complete manuscript that you’ll truly understand what this project is meant to be. Also, doing this will keep you from falling into the trap of endlessly writing and re-writing a chapter that’s destined to wind up on the cutting room floor.
Or… at least that’s how it works in theory. I’m currently on my 4th full rewrite of the opening chapters of my next novel. So I see this as similar to advice about eating right—just because I believe it to be important, doesn’t mean I always do it.

2) “Inspiration” is not a thing you wait for.
Waiting for your muse to strike? Well, why not help your muse out a bit by opening up that story you’ve been working on? The unexpected flash of inspiration that arrives unbidden while you’re chopping onions, or going for a jog, happens more often in bad movies than it does in real life. There is no substitute for time at the keys.
(Note: This is not to say you shouldn’t jog. Jogging is also important.)

3) Don’t beat yourself up for slow days.
Even when you diligently make time for your writing, that doesn’t always mean you’ll actually feel productive. Sometimes you’ll feel slow, or foggy. Sometimes you’ll do nothing but re-work the same lousy paragraph for hours on end. It’s important to realize that slow days like this aren’t only inevitable, they’re also part of the bargain.
Here is my bare-bones definition of an acceptable writing day: I opened up the document. I didn’t escape to facebook, or anywhere else online. That’s it.

4) When in doubt, a description!
When I don’t know what should happen in a given scene, I jump into a detailed description. Whether it’s about an object, a vista, or an article of clothing one of my characters is wearing; description always gives me a way to move forward. But this particular piece of advice could just as well read: “When in doubt, some witty repartee!” or, “When in doubt, go to your strengths!” Description happens to be mine. Find the thing you do best (this is generally also the thing you most enjoy doing) in your writing, and you can use it to get out of almost any problem.
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5) There is nothing you love that isn’t worthy of being written about.
Even if what you love seems silly to other people. Even if what you love sometimes seems silly to you. The fact that you love it is all that counts. After all, you’re going to need that love to get you through all the slow days.

For more information on Alexander Yates, you can visit his website or follow @TheOtherYates on twitter. The Winter Place is his first novel for younger readers and is published in October 2015

Sophia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 439

Publisher: Twenty7 

Released: 3rd of September 2015

"Brilliant idea! Excellent! Muslim dating? Well, I had no idea you were allowed to date.' Then he leaned towards me and looked at me sympathetically. 'Are your parents quite disappointed?'

Unlucky in love once again after her possible-marriage-partner-to-be proves a little too close to his parents, Sofia Khan is ready to renounce men for good. Or at least she was, until her boss persuades her to write a tell-all expose about the Muslim dating scene.

As her woes become her work, Sofia must lean on the support of her brilliant friends, baffled colleagues and baffling parents as she goes in search of stories for her book. In amongst the marriage-crazy relatives, racist tube passengers and decidedly odd online daters, could there be a a lingering possibility that she might just be falling in love . . . ?

What I Have to Say 

This book captured my heart in the way that very few romance books do. Sophia was just such a great character. She was strong and well written, with a voice that felt more like she was just chatting to you than that you were reading a book. She was hopeless at recognizing when guys liked her and even more hopeless in recognizing when she liked them back. She faced racists on the tube and potential in-laws down with a witty sense of humour and complete faith in herself and what she wants. 

The story was good enough for a romance book. with quirky characters and strange happenings bringing it up in places. I think I didn't like the main plotline so much because I'm not really into romance that much rather than the story itself. But the book had plenty ways to make up for this. 

I picked this book to request from Netgalley simply because it had a Muslim character. I'm a big fan of diversity and always find a book about ten times more interesting if it has a person of another culture or just a different perspective in it. I don't know enough about Islam so I can't say how realistic Sophia is as a Muslim, but I can say that she was wonderfully British in her opinions on biscuits so they got that bit right. It was great to see how she was so religious while not having that define her entire personality. Sometimes authors portray religious people as having nothing to them but their faith, so I'm glad that this one didn't. 

This is definitely a book for fans of diversity and feminism. I would be really interested to hear a muslim's opinion on this book and Sophia. 

Monster by C.J. Skuse

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 384
Publisher: MIRA Ink
Released: 24th of September 2015

At sixteen Nash thought that the fight to become Head Girl of prestigious boarding school Bathory would be the biggest battle she’d face. Until her brother’s disappearance leads to Nash being trapped at the school over Christmas with Bathory’s assorted misfits. As a blizzard rages outside, strange things are afoot in the school’s hallways, and legends of the mysterious Beast of Bathory – a big cat rumoured to room the moors outside the school – run wild. Yet when the girls’ Matron goes missing it’s clear that something altogether darker is to blame – and that they’ll have to stick together if they hope to survive.

What I Have to Say 

This was really good. Sometimes CJ Skuse's characters can be a little annoying. In both Dead Romantic and Rockaholic, the characters were very unobservant and didn't have much common sense. So it's nice to see a smart character in Monster, especially as she looks after the other characters. 

I really liked the way that elements of the boarding school life contributed to the plot to make the characters more isolated. The fact that Matron had the girl's mobile phones and had shut off the internet really added to the plot in a convenient way which added to the general atmosphere of the book.

The elements of this book really added up to form a perfect whole. The boarding school setting, the intelligent and resourceful main character and the mysterious Beast of Bathory really made a book worth reading. If I had to pick a negative, it's that the battle between the two girls to become Head Girl was such a small part of the book, when at the start it seemed like it would be a bigger thing. 

All in all, this is a great book.