Archive for October, 2010
We heard a few days ago from Rachel Vincent, so today we share with you Bookbabbkler Sarah’s review of her new book…
Alpha – Rachel Vincent
Power, revenge, and justice – prepare yourself for the final battle! In the final chapter of “The Shifters Series”, Faythe and her Pride must fight a tyrannical werecat intent on taking over the territorial council, and the south-central Pride in particular. It’s down to Faythe to take on the role of Alpha before she feels completely ready for the job. Forced to rise to the occasion, Faythe must balance experience, advice, and the urge for vengeance. She must also finally choose between Marc and Jace…No decisions will be is easy, and not everyone will survive this epic fight to the death.
Alpha is a brilliant action packed read. Although I have not read the other titles in the series, I was immediately immersed in the book and the strange world of Faythe Sanders.
The book tells the story of Faythe, her secret life and struggle with the council that controls it. There is a very strong plot and many surprises in the story with Faythe seeming like a much more mature character by the end of the novel.
Vincent writes in a way that makes the reader become addicted to the novel, I ended up just wanting to read more and more. Faythe is also a very compelling heroine and it would be difficult not to like her and not to feel involved in all of her struggles.
The ending seems to tie up the romantic strings which have been floating throughout the series. It was in fact tear jerking in some places! The only problem I did find was that the love triangle became a bit confusing at times and it was occasionally difficult to discern between the Marc and Jace. I also felt that perhaps there should be one more book after this series to let the reader know what happens in Faythe’s future.
I would really recommend this book and I now intend to read the earlier novels too. I am sure that if you’re already a follower of Shifters series then you will not be disappointed. A great Halloween read! 8/10
Thanks very much Sarah. It’s available in our shop for you to buy now.
With Halloween just a few days away, Rachel Vincent shares with us what scares her…
I come to urban fantasy by way of horror. I grew up reading horror—you know, those books in which the vampires and werewolves will actually eat you, instead of sparkling at or flirting with you. I’ve been reading Stephen King, Robert R. McCammon, Dean Koontz, and John Saul since I was in junior high, and at that time, they were all classified as horror. I read and loved stories of possessed cars, genetically altered people/creatures, post-apocalyptic battles between good and evil, and monsters galore.
In my youth, if no one was possessed, gored, murdered, mutilated, or tortured, I had no use for the book.
They still haven’t figured out exactly what’s wrong with me. 
But out of all the horror I’ve read, and all the horror movies I’ve watched (and I’m a big horror movie fan), it’s the human monsters who scare me the most. Every. Single. Time.
I think that’s because for me, horror (much like romance) always seemed to be more fantasy than anything else. I don’t actually believe in ghosts, or vampires, or mythological monsters (or flawlessly handsome, patient, hot-for-only-me men), so it was impossible to truly be scared by them. But real life monsters? Psychopaths and sociopaths. Sadists. Cannibals. The truly insane. Those willing to do anything for profit—or worse, for entertainment.
Those are the things of my nightmares.
So, here are a few of the books that terrified me. [Warning: these are some seriously disturbing reads. Also, they are not the kind of thing I actually write.]
The Girl Next Door – Jack Ketchum
This is the based-on-a-true story of a set of sisters who were left in the care of a psychopath who tortured them (mainly the older girl) in her basement and encouraged the neighborhood children to both watch and participate. Truly horrific. Difficult to read, and terrifying, because this really happened. Someone really did those horrible things to two innocent girls. And what’s even worse than that is the number of onlookers who let it happen.
The Hannibal Lector books – Thomas Harris
Hannibal Lector. That should say it all. Way scarier and more disturbing than the movies. Also, fantastic reads.
The Kay Scarpetta novels – Patricia Cornwell
These aren’t horror in the traditional sense; they’re murder mysteries, solved by a medical examiner. But the crimes she’s solving bothered me. Some of the murders are…sadistic.
And here are a few of the movies that scared that terrified me:
Psycho. Both the original and the remake. It’s the insanity factor. Not to mention the voyeurism, violence, and that creepy, off-the-grid feeling of the practically abandoned motel.
Borderland. This is another based-on-a-true story about some kinda-spoiled white college kids (though, to be fair, they’ve just graduated and are about to go to grad school) who head down to Mexico for some it-would-be-illegal-here fun and games—and wind up victims of some seriously vicious, gruesome Santeria-practicing locals. Again, the bad guys are insane. And psychopathic. And they don’t just kill/sacrifice their victims. They cut them into pieces first. And that evidently really happens. There’s nothing in the world scarier.
Last House on the Left. I tried to watch the original, and couldn’t get through it. The dated film quality and poor acting just didn’t hold my attention. But the remake is… Well, the first half is horrifying. Innocent people tortured, physically and psychologically by a foursome of psychos. Fortunately, the last half of the film is all about revenge, and…well, I love some revenge violence.
Rachel Vincent is the author of Alpha, part of her Shifter’s series about a pride of werecats which is out now from MIRA books £6.99, and in our shop. We’ll be bringing you our review of Alpha here soon.
Today we hear from Helen…
A Little Book of Alliterations by Felix Arthur and Jenny Capon
I wasn’t sure what to make of this book when we first received it, so I put it on one side while we began the other two that arrived at the same time. I still can’t decide what category of book to put it into – it’s certainly not a story, I suppose it’s a kind of reference book which is also entertaining. Arranged alphabetically, it contains an alliterative sentence for each letter of the alphabet, plus one each for the digraphs ch, sh and th. The sentences themselves are fun (Claude the cockroach could consume countless crunchy carrots) and are enhanced by an illustration on the opposite page.
After a few days, I discovered that Erin had been looking at it herself. She can’t read yet but has been doing phonics at school and was using the book to identify things in the pictures which started with each sound. When we read the words, we discovered that on many of the pages there are other things included in the picture which begin with the sound in addition to the words from the alliteration, e.g. the “person” mentioned by name in the alliteration often turns out to be an animal beginning with the same sound (for instance in Chunky Charlie cheerily chewed chips and cheddar cheese, Chunky Charlie is a chimp). This means that the book encourages children to consider other words which begin with (or contain) the sound in question, as well as those used in the sentence, and also means that children who are not quite reading can use the pictures on their own to “read” a mini-story containing all these words.
We would thoroughly recommend this little book for children of primary school age (it might be a bit difficult for pre-schoolers), perhaps as a stocking-filler or something, as it definitely fits in with the synthetic phonics approach to reading currently taught in schools. You can have a good laugh over the sentences and the pictures and talk about the language (some of the words used for the purposes of alliteration might need explaining, e.g. “available“,“utterly”, etc). There is definitely more to get out of it than just reading the sentences and, even when the book has been put aside, it could well spark off a game for inventing your own alliterative sentences which a wide age range of children would enjoy. My only criticism would be that it doesn’t include more of the digraphs from the synthetic phonics syllabus, such as oo or ee. However, the final page invites you to invent your own alliterations and submit them at a website, so perhaps I should have a go!
Thanks Helen, and thanks to Inside Pocket Publishing for sending it to us.
Today we have a review from Luke…
The Dead of Winter – Chris Priestley
A boy, a mysterious guardian and a haunted house with a terrible secret.
When Michael Vyner goes to spend the Christmas holidays with his distant and aloof guardian, he finds himself in a dark and desolate East Anglian house – a house that harbours a terrible secret which it will fight to retain. Michael’s lonely task soon becomes clear as he is haunted not just by a solitary woman in the mists but by the terrible reason behind her death.
The book starts with the funeral of Michael’s mother and as his father is also deceased, he is sent to live with a man whom his father had connections. He is to spend Christmas at Hawton Mere, the home of his guardian Sir Stephen and his sister Charlotte. Whilst travelling to Hawton Mere, Michael sees a vision by the road. This is the start of the torment he feels during his stay and which reaches a climax which kept me guessing until the end.
This is by far the best ghost story I have read and I read it in one sitting. Sir Stephen is tormented by previous occurrences from his childhood in the house and this has led to deterioration in his mental state. Michael is isolated with no one to befriend apart from the servants, and it is them that give him indications that all is not well within Hawton Mere.
I will not spoil the ending by telling more of the plot, but you will be as surprised as me at the outcome.
Thoroughly enjoyable book and very well written.
Thanks, Luke, and thanks to Bloomsbury Children’s Books for sending it to us.
Today we’ve a review by Wendy, for little ones..
Egg – Alex T Smith
When Foxy DuBois invites Egg in for a BITE to eat she cooks up a perfect cunning plan to turn him into breakfast! But Foxy is in for a big shock when Egg hatches…
This book starts with a version of the famed line from Casablanca “Of all the suspicious looking houses in the deserted woods in all the world, he had to roll up to hers…” which being a big fan of that film immediately made me want to read more.
The story concerns Foxy DuBois who finds an Egg on her doorstep and invites him in for tea, with the cunning plan that she will feed him up so that he becomes the most delicious egg she has ever eaten. Egg stays the night and in the morning he has turned into an enormous Egg and Foxy DuBois thinks her plan has worked but unfortunately for her a crocodile cracks out of the shell.
The book is a nice length for a bedtime and the attention to detail in the illustrations is brilliant with everything in Foxy DuBois’s house bird related from the pictures on the walls to the edging of the carpet and even the seats have egg shaped feet.
My three year old enjoyed the story and thought it very funny when the crocodile cracked out of the shell. As we have chickens he hoped that was not going to happen to one of our eggs!!
I would also recommend it as an early reading book as my five year old was able to read it herself and she was determined to find all the bird related items in the illustrations.
Thanks, Wendy and thanks to Hodder Children’s Books for sending us a copy – it’s on our shop for you now.
Today we hear from Bookbabbler Luke..
Spy Glass – Maria V Snyder
After siphoning her own blood magic in the showdown at Hubal, student glass magician Opal Cowan has lost her powers. Immune to the effects of magic, Opal is now an outsider looking in, spying through the glass on those with the powers she once had. Powers that make a difference in the world. Suddenly the beautiful pieces she makes begin to flash in the presence of magic and opal learns that someone has stolen some of her blood. Finding it might let her regain her powers or discover that they’re lost forever.
This is the first time I have read any of Maria V Snyder’s work and starting with the third book from the trilogy was probably not the best introduction to the story of Opal and her quest for her lost powers. The book starts with Opal at home helping her mother prepare for her sister Mara’s imminent wedding to Leif when she is visited by Valek, a character prominent in the previous books. Although I was not aware of the other characters and the roles they played in the previous books I felt the author explained well their importance in the book and all the characters from the previous book appeared to knit together and each had their part to play in Opal’s quest. Opal finds out that the warpers who had taken her also had her blood which if she could manage to get back then she could regain her powers. The rest of the book concerns itself with Opal’s search and along the way she becomes involved in many adventures with many of the characters from the previous books. The book is exciting and very fast paced. However, if I did not read the book daily, I quickly became confused and found myself having to refer to the previous pages I had read to get back on track with the story line. I found the characters very believable and I loved Opal. She’s really gritty, loving, feisty and a true heroine. It kept me guessing until near the end of the outcome and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So much so that I am going to go backwards and read the two previous books.
Thanks, Luke – sounds great! It’s in our shop now.
Lee is our ‘author in residence’ this month, so we’ve put a few questions to her..
Who were your favourite authors when you were a child?
I loved reading both fantasy and real-life fiction, and some of my favourites included Lloyd Alexander, S.E. Hinton, C.S. Lewis, Tove Jansson, Barbara Wersba, and Norma Klein. (Several of those are American authors whom your readers might not have heard of, but I’d really recommend checking them out!)
When did you know you wanted to write?
I’ve literally almost always known. One of my earliest memories is of sitting at the little school-desk that I had in my bedroom, writing and illustrating a story. I was very serious about it; I was determined that it was going to get published! I was lucky in that both of my parents loved to read and read aloud to me from an early age, so I suppose it was only natural that creating my own stories was something I wanted to do.
For those who haven’t read Angel yet, tell us a little about it.
Angel imagines a world in which angels are real…but instead of being kind helpers who look out for us and have our best interests at heart, they’re actually predators, who drain humans of their energy and leave them irreparably damaged. Alex is an AK, an Angel Killer – one of the few who knows the truth and is committed to destroying the angels who have invaded our world. And Willow is a half-angel. Against all odds, the two of them fall in love. (Plus, there’s a road trip!) I had always wanted to write a big, epic story, so Angel was lots of fun to do.
Your depiction of angels is interesting and unusual – where did the idea come from?
I was standing in a bookstore one day, looking at all the non-fiction books about angels, and I suddenly thought – what if angels aren’t what they seem? What if they have their own agenda, and are actually beings to be feared instead of admired? Angel happened very quickly after that!
What can we expect in Angel 2?
Without giving too much away, Angel Fire is going to have mostly an urban setting instead of the wide, open spaces of Angel. We’ll have many of the same characters (including Alex and Willow, of course!), as well as some new ones. Both Alex and Willow will find themselves and their love for each other tested in ways they never imagined – and meanwhile, the angel threat is now poised to take over our world completely, unless something is done to stop them.
You grew up in America, but now live in England. What do you miss most about America, and what do you love most about England?
Ooh, good question! The things I miss most about America tend to be just silly little things – being able to order iced tea in a restaurant; seeing fireflies at night in the summertime; enjoying lots of bright, hot sunny days (I grew up in the south!). And what I love most about England is just that it’s my home now – plus I love the countryside (and here in Hampshire we really have some gorgeous spots), and the people with their wry sense of humour.
What do you like to do with your free time?
Free time? Um, I don’t understand the question… Just kidding! In my mythical free time, I love to read, and also really enjoy cooking. I also do silversmithing, and like to make my own jewellery – though I haven’t had time for that in a while!
Thanks, Lee! If you’ve questions you’d like to put to Lee, post them in our forum or on our Facebook wall and Lee will pop by and answer them.
Today we hear from author, Julia Jarman..
A Book Babble
Lots of writers say they write for themselves or – if they’re children’s writers – their ‘inner child’. Me? I’m not sure. If I’ve got an inner child I must have an inner toddler as well and an inner teenager. I write for a wide range of readers – from tots to teens and in-betweens but not grownups – yet. But that’s not entirely true. When I write picture books I’m aware of the adult who is reading the book to the child, maybe many times, so I try to put something for them too. I think I write for an audience. When I write I like to think there’s someone out there wanting to read my story, maybe aloud. It’s no coincidence that the first books I wrote were novels for bright 8-12 year olds and I was a mother of three children: one boy two girls aged 12, 10 and 8. They all said, ‘Write about real children like us.’ The girls said, ‘Put lots of scary bits in.’ My son said, ‘No, don’t.’
I started writing my Time Travelling Cat series – though I didn’t know it was going to be a series – because I couldn’t get them to read historical fiction. ‘The past – boRING!’ said one of them. I set out to prove they were wrong but needed to trick them into reading it. My device, a time-travelling cat, came from eldest daughter who heard me talking to her cat when he’d returned after an absence of over a week. ‘Where have you been?’ I said. ‘He’s probably been time-travelling,’ she said. I knew it was a brilliant idea because it put me in ‘What if?’ mode. What if a cat could travel through time, where would it go? Egypt was the obvious answer and I wrote ‘The Time Travelling Cat and the Egyptian Goddess’ (though early editions are called ‘The Time Travelling Cat’ as I thought it was a one-off). The cat has now travelled to Roman, Viking, Tudor and Victorian Britain and the Aztec era in Mexico. and the latest is ‘The Time Travelling Cat and the Great Victorian Stink’.
My children grew up faster than me – maybe I do have an inner child – and I started writing for teens. ‘Hangman’ about bullying and ‘Inside’ set in a prison are dark and I don’t like dark but they did, well the girls did. I write books for teens that I have to write because they’re in my head and I have to get them out or go mad.
Nowadays I’m more influenced by the children I meet on my school visits. ‘Class Two at the Zoo’ was the outcome of a writing workshop, in which a Year 4 boy proved to be an expert on anacondas. Lynne Chapman’s zany pictures capture the craziness.
Pupil demand definitely dictated the choice of subject matter for the latest time-travelling cat adventure. Horrible history is IN and sewers are BIG, so I chose to set my story in Victorian times, in 1858 the year the River Thames came to a complete stand still because it was so full of the brown stuff. The plot is a murder mystery. When a hired killer sets out to murder Joseph Bazalgette , the brilliant engineer who has a plan to solve the sewage problem, hero Topher and Ka the time-travelling cat leap into action.
The biggest influence on my writing at the moment is my grandchildren, five of them now, aged 9 months to 9 years. Since the first was born I’ve written a clutch of picture books. The ‘Big Red Bath’ was inspired by bath-time fun, ‘Big Blue Train’ by riding on Grandad’s model steam train, the ‘Bears on the Stairs’ by their bed-time delaying tactics, ‘Ants in Your Pants’ by one of their favourite books. ‘Write us a pants book, Grandma!’ Guy Parker Rees’s gentle humour makes him the perfect illustrator for this story.
I’m so lucky to have fantastic illustrators and they’re influencing my writing too. They make me want to write more just so I can see how they interpret my words. Two imaginations are definitely better than one. The best illustrators always add something I haven’t thought of. Adrian Reynolds is working on ‘Big Yellow Digger’ at this moment and I can hardly wait to see his added extras AND I’ve just had an idea for the ‘Big Green Machine’! I’d better stop babbling …
Thanks, Julia! You can visit Julia’s website here now.
Today we have a review for little ones, by Keris…
Jack and Boo’s Bucket of Treasures – Philip Bell
Jack & Boo’s Bucket of Treasures follows two young children on an adventure to the beach gathering treasure washed ashore at low tide.
Jack and Boo go to the beach and collect treasures that have been washed ashore. They find seaglass, a hag stone, lugworm casts and more. They ‘slip-slide’ on pebbles, squelch their feet into the muddy sand and ‘scream when chilly waves’ crash over their legs.
Jack & Boo’s Bucket of Treasures is a really sweet book. It’s extremely atmospheric – as I read, I could almost hear the seagulls – and educational while still being entertaining. I particularly loved the Beach Spotter Guide and Family Beach Ideas at the end of the book.
The simple text gives the book an almost dream-like quality, which is reinforced by the illustrations, which feature drawings of Jack and Boo superimposed over real photographs.
I really loved this book and, thankfully, my 6-year-old son did too. His favourite activity in the world is going to the beach and now I’ll be able to read Jack and Boo’s adventures to him when we can’t actually make it there ourselves.
Thanks Keris, and thanks to Beach Books for sending us a copy.
Today we’ve a review for little ones, by Wendy..
Ants in your Pants – Julia Jarman
Leopard is having a party, but he hasn’t invited Aardvark. When naughty ants start biting bottoms at the birthday bash, it isn’t long before all the guests are throwing their pants in the air to get rid of them! Only Aardvark can eat the ants and save the day, but will he make it to the party?
This book is by the same author as Bears on The Stairs, Kisses are Yuk and Big Red Bath.
A story book about a birthday party that Leopard was having where he was only inviting ‘cool dudes.’ He didn’t want to invite Aardvark as he only ate ants and cucumbers. Aardvark did hear about the party but didn’t worry that he wasn’t invited, however the ants were very offended not to be invited and, as the title suggests, the guests ended up with ants in their pants. Luckily Aardvark turned up and saved the day and Leopard realised he had been wrong to leave him out.
The book is beautifully illustrated including fun illustrations on the inside covers. It is an entertaining read with the added bonus of having the worthwhile message that people should not be left out.
My three year old enjoyed the story and thought it was especially funny when all the pants were flying in the air and he now likes the saying ants in my pants!
Again I would also recommend it as an early reading book as my five year old was able to read it herself and was also interested in learning all the animals especially the aardvark as she thought that was a very peculiar name. We also used the book as a basis to discuss about friendships and how we shouldn’t leave people out.
Thanks very much Wendy. It’s in our shop for you to buy now.
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