Exciting News for two of our young reviewers!

It's been a bit quiet here as most of our young reviewers are now in exam years. However I do have some exciting news.

A big congratulations to Zobdy and MJ, two of our young reviewers,  who have had poems published recently.

MJ's poem, 'School', Zobdy's poem, 'Drifting Away', and Yvie's poem, 'My Love', are all recently published in the Young Writers anthology called 'Express Yourself Through Poetry - Heart of England'.

MJ's poem, 'Solomon's Story' is due to be published very soon in the Young Writers collection called 'Express Yourself - Leicestershire and Northamptonshire'.

www.youngwriters.co.uk.


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Tyme's End by B.R Collins

I don't really know what i think about Tyme's end by B.R. Collins. In some aspects it's really REALLY good but in some it's just creepy, insane and a little disturbing.

I didn't really think it was very realistic either and it was kind of hard to follow. I started off, after reading the blurb, thinking it was going to be some sort of dramatic love story set in an old house (the old house thing automatically made me assume it was set quite a while back) to be honest that would have been the perfect book for me. However, the two characters who are supposed to fancy each other are 11 years apart. The girl is 16 and the guy is 27!!! I mean that's just wrong on so many levels, I mean in the real world, surely that would be considered creepy, or is it just me thinking that?! I also got a little confused by the swapping of the eras in it. Maybe it's one of those books that calls for being read several times? I thought the back story of Oliver was good and in actual fact i think that the story line could also be good if Oliver and Bibi didn't fancy each other . . . that's just weird. . .

I think the book is a good read if you are willing to look past some things that don't seem to fit, but i don't really think that the blurb does the book any justice.

haunting violet by Alyxandra Harvey

Haunting violet was a very good book. I'll say right now it gets a 10/10 from me.

Violet’s mother is a scam artist. she pretends that she can communicate with ghosts and she forces Violet to take part.
With elaborate tricks, Violet and her mother make a living off their innocent victims. Violet detests taking part in these deceptions however she has no choice.

Things start to get problematic though when Violet actually does start to see a ghost. The ghost of a young girl who was killed and who is looking for someone to find the truth and avenge her death. But can Violet solve the mystery before something dreadful happens again?

The book is set in Victorian times and so Violet has been told that she must marry into aristocracy to keep the family's good name. However there are 2 men for Violet to choose from. The rich, handsome Xavier or poor but true friend,Colin.

Blood Feud & Out for blood By Alyxandra Harvey

Blood Feud and Out for Blood are the 2nd and 3rd books in the Drake Chronicles. In Blood feud, The Drakes’ mother has just been crowned queen of the vampires and so politics are a mess. The story mainly follows Logan Drake. Logan's love for Isabeau, a French vampire with a dark and troubled past, often finds him in some sort of trouble.
In out for blood, it follows Hunter, who lives up to her name. She attends a vampire hunting academy. Hunter is prepared for everything and anything that comes her way. Everything, that is until she goes and falls in love with one of the drake brothers............

I thought that both of these books were amazing and made great sequel to My Love Lies Bleeding, which is the first in the series.
I'd recommend to it to anyone who is into the vampire world. I think it’s mainly aimed for girls aged 13+

Tempest Rising - Tracy Deebs

Mermaids are up there with fairies and dragons as creatures that i can't seem to keep away from. When I started to read this book I thought i would love it and it may even make my top 10 favourite books, but I'm sad to say that didn't happen.

There was a lot of stuff I liked in the book but mainly I didn't think it was the best. It's not a bad book, no not at all, but i don't really think it was anything to rave over.
Also, when I'm reading a book with romance in, I like certain things to happen between the two characters that the romance is between however, the romance was not to my liking at all considering the circumstances.

I think the writing style slowed down the story a lot and i found that half way through it started to get rather tedious.

There are good things though, so far my review has sounded rather negative but that's not because it was a bad book, only that it was merely average.

I did like the idea of the story a lot. I think that mermaid mythology is touched on quite often these days but i felt that Tempest rising had a modern take on the myths. My saying that as praise is rare as I'm more of a traditionalist and I'm not a big fan of modern takes on things however i felt that it worked in Tempest Rising and it made for a nice read. If i was to rate the book out of 10, i think I'd give in 6.5 - or 7 if I'm stretching it.

Press Release | Moonlands by Steven Savile

I've been sent the official press pack for the Moonlands Diaries which I reviewed in the previous post. I loved it and think you will too
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Has an eerie feeling in the air ever teased chills from your spine? Have you been deep in thought and suddenly shifted topic entirely, unable to explain why? Is it possible, at least once in your life, you had to look twice to verify what you saw? Then it's possible you've been a part of it already.

Welcome to London - the magical city where all is not as it seems. Where the unexpected is expected by those who know to look for it. Ashley Hawthorne has lived here all her life and like everyone else who's grown used to the city, it holds no special meaning to her. That is, until that fated day she is willed an odd looking key - a key that not only unlocks her past, but her present and future as well. Suddenly, boring old London is turned into an otherworldly labyrinth where her first step could be her last. With frightening creatures intent on tracking her down and strangers who claim to have known her all her life, how can a teenager who doesn't even know who she is, hope to survive the dangers that await?

"Savile's newest work symbolizes the spirit of Young Adult adventure reading! Bold and unexpected - Moonland Diaries is a thrilling read for everyone who needs a break from the mundane. Savile proves he can write anything he wishes."
- Ashley Knight, author of Fins & Fathom



Foxrain AB teams up with bestselling fantasy author Steven Savile for the epic and groundbreaking multimedia reading experience, Moonland Diaries. The project, which will initially launch as a series of richly illustrated novels, will be supplemented online, with apps and other exciting developments that take advantage of modern technology to give the most immersive experience imaginable.

The Moonland Diaries takes place in modern day London, but as the heroine fifteen-year-old Ashley Hawthorne soon discovers it’s a world quite different from the one we are all so familiar with. The city holds ancient gates and passages to the Moonlands – a world that is both fantasticly beautiful and deeply sinister. When wolf-like creatures enter our world through the gates, intent on killing Ashley, these two worlds collide. She is forced on a wild and terrifying adventure that could cost Ashley her life as well as her heart.

“The Moonland Diaries is a wonderful project that perfectly encapsulates the ethos of Foxrain. The company is all about telling classic stories of fantasy and horror, but with contemporary and completely unique take on them, both thematically and in terms of delivery. Readers will be able to experience the Moonland Diaries across all media platforms, making it the ultimate storytelling experience for the smartphone generation. To be able to create this universe together with a brilliant and versatile writer like Steve is nothing less than a dream coming true.” Says Foxrain CEO Michael Stenmark.

“I was drawn to Foxrain for Moonland Diaries because it was immediately obvious we shared a common belief that stories can (and in this day and age should) transcend traditional paper and ink, and even e-ink, into completely immersive universes. As a writer it’s a wonderful feeling to watch other incredibly talented artists and developers run with the ideas in your head and create wonderful rich imagery that just makes everything feel more alive,” Steve explains.

Foxrain AB is a publisher of primarily children’s and young adult fiction based in Stockholm Sweden-
Steve Savile is a multiple award-winning and bestselling British fantasy writer living in Stockholm Sweden.

www.moonlanddiaries.com

Moonlands | Steven Savile

Moonlands
by Steven Savile

This is part one of a four part story. That in itself is deeply, hugely frustrating, because it's good and it ends on a cliffhanger.

Traitors Heir (the full story) focusses on a girl in our world with no idea who or what she is, a wolfen sent to finish her before she can claim her kingdom and the selection of strange, supposedly long dead characters who have been  guarding her in secret her whole life.

I can't tell you much more than that without giving too much away and after all only part one is available right now, part two should be released in November. IT display's Savile's ever present feel for character and adventure but contains more warmth and humour than has been characteristic for him lately. The move into YA seems to have been simple and natural. It's still dark in places and definitely mysterious, but a swift entertaining read suggesting that when complete Traitors Heir is going to deliver an excellent YA story full of courage and adventure, humour and a little blood.