Darklife - Kat Falls

Darklife by Kat falls is set in the future. The whole world has grown unbearably hot and most of the land is now underwater. Ty was born underwater and knows it as home. He meets a girl, Gemma, at the beginning of the book and she explains that she is searching for her brother. Gemma lives in a care home and wants to get out. She hangs out with Ty and his family under the sea and slowly they become best frineds. While searching for Gemma's brother, they come across a nasty gang called Sea blite and their leader, Shade. Gemma's brother is nowhere to be found and Sea blite are growing more and more dangerous. Lots of mysteries are waiting to be answered and Gemma is under threat of being taken home to the 'Top side'.

Overall this was a very good, interesting book. aimed probably 11+ years, Girls or boys. Definatly a 10 out of 10!

Pompom

Giveaway - Hush Hush

I have a paperback copy of Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick to give away. All you need to do is comment and one commenter will be selected via randomiser.

This is my review from the hardback in October 2009

It's beautiful. The cover isn't just a great image it's beautiful with it's slightly metallic quality to the cover, the evocative font type and on the inside of the hardback cover the white feathers showing on the black paper. I could happily just hold it.

I read it in two big happy chunks, before bed last night and over breakfast this am. Hush Hush is a paranormal YA and in an increasingly popular genre it is becoming more and more difficult to stand out. This stands out. It's tense and dramatic, Nora is riddled with doubt, unsure who to trust, who is a threat and what is really going on. Fitzpatrick is very effective in creating the doubts and anxiety not only in her heroine's mind, but in her readers. There are enough potential threats and twists that for everyone I saw coming there were more that caught me by surprise. Nora is a likeable heroine who is drawn gradually from normality into a world of angels and fallen and that allows the reader to be drawn into a place where such things are possible with her.

Ok Patch is a silly nickname, but I got over that pretty quickly and that really is the only nitpick I can manage with this one.

Becca Fitzpatrick, like Sarah Rees Brennan, is an author set to make a real impact in a YA market with a thirst for the paranormal.

The Vampires Assistant - Darren Shan

The Vampires Assistant is a mind blowing adventure that will capture you in the moment!
I read this every day and at night I would stay up way past 11 o'clock just to finish the chapter .I just couldn't put it down and even got told off for reading in class when I supposed to be doing a maths paper!

The book is about a teenage boy (Darren Shan) who enjoys his life until one day his mate brings in a flyer saying about a freak show in town.He ends up going and falls in love with a spider. Darren sets up for a adventure training the spider until one day an awful mistake happens. Darren is forced to make a life changing decision.

You have GOT to read this book! I didn't think it was very good at the start until I got to chapter 2 and then I couldn't put it down. I think this book is better than Harry Potter and that's saying something!

Cookie Monster
age 10

Extras - Scott Westerfeld

Extras is a book that goes with the Uglies, Pretties and Specials series. It is set slightly later than the others and the main character is a girl called Aya. Aya lives in a different city to Tally (the star of the main series) but knows about her because she is famous worldwide. In Aya’s city, everyone has a face rank determining how famous and popular they are.

Aya starts off as a nobody, an extra, but then she joins a mysterious group called the Sly Girls and kicks (puts on her feed, which is a network similar to the internet) a story about aliens planning to destroy the world and suddenly everyone wants to listen to her. But then who should turn up but Tally herself and then Aya goes with Tally to uncover the truth.

When I had finished reading the other books, I really wanted to know what happened next and Extras does that. It’s thicker than the others so there’s more to sink your teeth into. It’s fast paced and exciting. The futuristic slang is really easy to pick up but it adds that extra something. It’s great.

By Zobdy

Age 13

Review Captivate - Carrie Jones

This is an absolutely brilliant sequel to "Need" By Carrie Jones. In this book, Zara, Nick, Issie, Devyn and Betty discover that an outbreak of pixies have come from Valhalla to help release the pixies that Zara once trapped in a pixie house. Zara wants to know who they are and where they come from, and, on her journey she finds a young, Handsome pixie called Astley. His name means 'Star'. Astley keeps showing up where Zara needs him...and when she doesn't. Take the girls toilets for example! One day, when Zara realises that Her biological father is about to die, she goes to the pixie house to save him.

Spoiler Zone..........highlight to view
Nick gets attacked by a pixie there and is on the verge of dying when an evil pixie takes him away. They are just about to kill Zara when, surprise surprise, along comes Astley and swoops her into his arms. Astley explains that he is a pixie king who has learned to control his need. He says that he needs a queen and he feels that Zara is the one! But of course, she would need to turn pixie.

Zara has to choose between turning pixie, Being astleys queen and being strong enough to get Nick back,

or let him live his own life in Valhalla......without her.

Either way has its consequences and it is a tough decision for Zara to make.
End of Spoiler Zone.....

This is a fantastic book, only one thing annoyed me.

The ending.

It made me so angry that i could have hit myself! I don't think that there is another book in this series and the way they ended this book implied that there was. Spoiler It leaves Nick in Valhalla half dead, with Zara vowing to come for him, even if she has to kill thousands and it doesn't say a word about what they do or how they get there!End of spoiler I don't think I've ever been so mad at a book before! Other than that though this is an awesome book and I'd recommend it to anyone.......but warn them about the ending!

(it's ok, this is listed as the second of the series so eventually it will all be resolved - Hagelrat)

Uglies, Pretties, Specials - Scott Westerfeld

It is a series of three books. They are set in the future with a Sci-Fi theme. In the future, when they reach the age of sixteen, everyone has an operation that turns them from an ugly (a normal person) into a pretty. The story starts when the main character, Tally Youngblood, is fifteen and waiting impatiently for her birthday. But, when she becomes friends with another ugly called Shay, Tally is forced into the wild and she learns the terrible secret about the operation. With her new friends, Tally battles with the city but she can’t tell which side she’s on when people keep messing with her head.

It is an exciting story full of action and adventure. It has suspense and it’s even a little sad sometimes as Tally struggles to find who she is, save the world and protect the people she loves all at the same time. It is a great series and I loved the adventure.

There is a fourth book called Extras which is set slightly later and stars a girl called Aya. There was a sneak peek at the end of Specials and I would love to read it.

By Zobdy

Age 13

Wait! I’ve got Extras now! Yay!

13 Curses - Michelle Harrison

Hi folks, another new reviewer here on Young & Un:Bound, please welcome cookie monster - Hagelrat

The thirteen curses is about a teenage girl named Rowan who runs away only to discover that her brother (James aged 2) has somehow run away too .They end up in a care home and Rowan realises that she must protect her brother from the fairies who are trying to capture James. She goes out of her way to protect him by finding every item of red clothing she can. This is because Rowan knows that red is invisible to fairies. But one night she wakes up only to find her brother gone…

Rowan suddenly gets captured by the Hedge Witch and makes friends with a young man called Stitch. They bond well and decide to escape. Tension builds as they escape and steal a glamour disguise that is a fox coat. The fairies set Rowan a challenge of retrieving all of the thirteen treasures and only then will she get her brother back. She meets a boy and a girl who decide to help her. They have found eleven of the treasures when Rowan has a feeling that the twelfth is at her Aunt’s house. She travels there only to discover that her Aunt has been keeping a dark family secret for all of these years.

I felt this book was well thought out and had a fantastic story line. The characters are very strong willed and show that you don’t have to give up easily. Whilst I was reading the book in class I started to cry because it was really sad at the end. However my friends are all desperate to read it now! I’d highly recommend the Thirteen Curses to boys and girls aged 10 upwards who enjoy adventures. I will definitely now read more Michelle Harrison books!

cookie monster

Age 10