REVIEW 'Legend' by Marie Lu

'Legend' (Legend #1) by Marie Lu

Goodreads Synopsis:

"What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. 

Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. 

Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem. 

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. 
Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets."

5*****

Hi Elementareaders!

‘Legend’ is the first book in a young adult dystopian trilogy by Marie Lu.

In a futuristic America the military Republic rules over the people. At the age of ten all citizens take a trial and their score decides where they get to finish school and what job they can have. In the poor sectors most people score between 1000 and 1249 and they end up with the rubbish jobs that no-one really wants to do. The rich tend to score higher, between 1250 and 1499 and they get jobs in the military or the government. Score below 1000 and you fail and are sent off to a labour camp. Very few get the perfect score of 1500.

June is one of those few. At fifteen years old she is at a top university and is likely to graduate ahead of all her peers. Her older brother, Metias, has high hopes for her in the military. Day is the opposite of June. He failed his trial but escaped from the labour camp and has been living in the slums since. But he has kept busy, independently fighting against the Republic by destroying vehicles and generally causing trouble. Although he always makes sure that no-one gets hurt in his escapades, he is one of the Republic’s most wanted criminals.

Day’s younger brother, Eden, falls sick with the plague and Day breaks into a hospital to steal a cure (which they have run out of), but during his escape he injures Metias who is on patrol. But when the news reaches June, Metias has been killed and she is suddenly graduated early from university and put on a team to capture Day. She goes undercover in the slums to draw him out, but when she meets him he’s not quite as she expected. After strongly denying that he killed her brother, June begins to question whether the Republic is quite as perfect as she has been led to believe.

I’d been wanting to read these books for a while so I was thrilled when I got the trilogy for Christmas, and the first book certainly didn’t disappoint! I loved the story and the characters, and the writing just flowed so well.

The book is written in first person from Day and June’s perspectives in alternating chapters. Both these characters have been brought up very differently, believing very different things so it was great to see this dystopian world from both points of view. I really liked how Day, a boy who June had been led to believe was the worst kind of criminal, managed to make June see her perfect Republic from another perspective.

I really enjoyed the first book and I’m looking forward to carrying on with the trilogy.


I would give this book 5 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)
Audible.com

Find Marie Lu on:
marielu.org
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads
Pinterest

REVIEW 'All I Know Now' by Carrie Hope Fletcher

'All I Know Now' by Carrie Hope Fletcher

Goodreads Synopsis:

"I pushed and persevered through the crap all teenagers go through - the bullying, the boys, the peer pressure, the friends, the enemies, the frenemies... Now I'm here, watching you guys go through almost identical experiences; trapped on the wrong side of a computer screen. Helpless... Until now."












5*****

Hi Elementareaders!

‘All I Know Now’ by Carrie Hope Fletcher is a part memoir and part guide to getting through life for teens and young adults. Carrie is a singer, actress and successful vlogger with over 600,000 subscribers on YouTube.

Carrie first came to my attention around this time last year when I saw one of her covers on YouTube. I think it was ‘Defying Gravity’ or ‘On My Own’ (two fantastic songs from amazing musicals!) I fell in love with her personality then clicked on her channel and found out she vlogged too and immediately hit the subscribe button.

The majority of Carrie’s subscribers are teenage girls so to them I suppose she’s a bit like a big sister, to give advice about growing up. I'm a couple of years older than Carrie, but I kind of feel like she’s ‘lived’ more than me (if that makes sense!) and I think that anyone in their twenties could learn from her.

Carrie’s book is mainly a guide for growing up, learning from your mistakes and journeying into adulthood. She has also added some of her experiences into the book as examples, which I think is a really great way to get a point across and be really relatable as a human being. Some of my favourite chapters were ‘Happy and Healthy’, ‘Dating Myself’ and the whole ‘Internet’ section. But all the chapters were fantastic and packed full of useful real-world advice that anyone can put into practice.

I really liked the layout of the book. The contents page is set out like a theatre programme which I thought was a really nice touch. The chapters are short and concise; every paragraph has tons of information and there’s no useless waffle or repetition at all. The little illustrations by Carrie herself that were dotted throughout were very cute, and I liked that the chapter titles were in Carrie’s handwriting. I loved the addition of the resources at the back, telling youngsters exactly where and how they can get help if they need it. I feel like this is a book that I may go back to again and again, so the addition of the contents page will be really useful for that. I got the Waterstones exclusive edition which also has a couple of bonus chapters at the back, and an extract from Carrie’s novel, ‘On the Other Side’ which is out later this year.

I love how much Carrie’s bubbly and cheerful personality came through in the writing, even when addressing more serious topics. It wasn’t difficult to read the book in her voice, and as a result it flowed really well and I found myself reading large chunks at a time.

Although this book is aimed at teenagers and young adults I think that any fan of Carrie’s would enjoy it. I’m really looking forward to Carrie’s novel and I hope she continues to write in the future!


I would give this book 5 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)
Audible.com
Waterstones (Exclusive Edition)

Find Carrie Hope Fletcher on:
alliknownow.com
YouTube
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Tumblr
Goodreads

REVIEW 'The Lost Kodas' by Myra King

'The Lost Kodas' (Apley Towers #1) by Myra King

Goodreads Synopsis:

"In the shade of the Giant's Throne Mountain, and on the coast of the Indian Ocean, Port St. Christopher is home to Apley Towers; a riding school for girls and boys, young or old, who learn what it means to be a true horse rider.Kaela and Trixie call Apley Towers their Neverland. It's the best place in the world - a place for friendship, laughter and learning. But when both girls take on more responsibilities than they can handle, they have to make some tough choices that take a toll on their friendship.Will they have to sacrifice Apley in the end? It takes a girl on the other side of the world to remind them of what's important and that challenges are there to be overcome."





4****

Hi Elementareaders!

‘Apley Towers, The Lost Kodas’ by Myra King is the first in a series of middle-grade novels about a riding school in South Africa. I received a free copy of this book to read and review via Goodreads Giveaways.

Apley Towers is a riding school deep in the heart of South Africa. It is run by Wendy, who moved from England to Africa to set up her own school. Kaela Willoughby and her best friend Trixie King are a pair of teenage girls who learnt to ride at the school and are still having lessons in the intermediate classes. When Wendy has to go to Cape Town for a while she asks Kaela and Trixie to take over teaching the beginner’s class for a bit. Kaela accepts on behalf of both of them, but as Trixie has a longer journey to the stables Kaela has to do most of the teaching on her own. To add to the workload, a mother of one of the beginner riders asks Kaela to help put on a show jumping competition at the riding school. Kaela says they will do it, but the extra work puts a strain on her friendship with Trixie. Kaela has also recently befriended a girl names Phoenix who lives in Canada, and Trixie is battling her jealousy with having to share her best friend.

The two friends also have a lot of pressure from school to contend with. Kaela is hoping to be accepted on to a writing course but is told that she needs to do more extracurricular activities and worries that she will have to cut down on her riding to do something else. Meanwhile, Trixie is trying to persuade her parents and teachers that she will be able to take seven subjects next year instead of the required six as she wants to take all the sciences to keep her options open. The extra work though, may mean giving up riding.

The girls have all this to worry about, their friendship is on the rocks and they have a show jumping contest to organise in only a few weeks. Can they make it a success?

I thought this was a charming little book. I enjoyed the story and the writing style. The text is nice an simple and easy for young teens to read but is also very well structured and gets the story across really well.

I don’t know much about horse riding myself. The closest I’ve come to it is a pony ride/walk at a farm when I was about 7. I remember being so terrified that I almost passed out as I was a very small child and the pony seemed massive. But I do have a few friends who ride and I think horses are really beautiful creatures, as long as I don’t have to get too close to them!

I loved the fact that this was set in South Africa. I’ve never been there but from what I’ve read and seen about it, it seems like such a magical place. I enjoyed the characters in this book, especially Kaela and Phoenix. I was great seeing these two characters from such different parts of the world interacting and listening to each other’s stories with such awe. I also loved the interview with the author at the back.

I would definitely recommend this book to 10-15 year olds who love horses, but I think that older readers can enjoy it too.


I would give this book 4 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)

Find Myra King on:
Twitter
Goodreads

REVIEW 'The Maker of Swans' by Paraic O'Donnell

'The Maker of Swans' by Paraic O'Donnell

Goodreads Synopsis:

"Mr Crowe was once the toast of the finest salons. A man of learning and means, he travelled the world, enthralling all who met him.

Now, Mr Crowe devotes himself to earthly pleasures. He has retreated to his sprawling country estate, where he lives with Clara, his mysterious young ward, and Eustace, his faithful manservant. His great library gathers dust and his once magnificent gardens grow wild.

But Mr Crowe and his extraordinary gifts have not been entirely forgotten. When he acts impetuously over a woman, he attracts the attention of Dr Chastern, the figurehead of a secret society to which Crowe still belongs. Chastern comes to Crowe’s estate to call him to account, and what follows will threaten everyone he cares for. But Clara possesses gifts of her own, gifts whose power she has not yet fully grasped. She must learn to use them quickly, if she is to save them all."

4****

Hello Elementareaders!

‘The Maker of Swans’ by Paraic O’Donnell is a historical novel with a slightly paranormal twist. I was sent a free proof copy of this book to read and review through Goodreads Giveaways.

Mr Crowe lives in a large, grand house with his young ward Clara and his manservant, Eustace. The story begins with a murder, and although gunshots were fired the man seems to have died of something else. It appears that Mr Crowe has used some sort of power, and his misuse of it means that there will be terrible consequences.

Clara is mute. As an avid reader and writer, she communicates only through the written word. She has full run of the house and grounds where she has many adventures and she writes about anything and everything. Mr Crowe is always nice to her, but she has a much deeper bond with Eustace, who would do anything to protect her. She is a very observant youngster and notices that something is going on when the house is suddenly overrun with extra staff who all seems to be preparing for a guest.

Eustace has hired extra staff to help get the house ready, including the Crouch brothers who pose as gardeners, but are in fact extra muscle in case things go wrong. The unwanted guest they are expecting is dangerous and Eustace will stop at nothing to make sure that he doesn’t hurt Clara.

For the first half of the book the chapters alternate between Eustace and Clara’s point of view. They both see the same events from a different perspective and it was great to read through the eyes of both the old and the young.  The format changes slightly after the first half when something major happens (I won’t say what it is as I don’t want to spoil it!), and in the second half we also have flashbacks to one of the character’s past.

This book is definitely not easy-going. The language is tricky and there are some very complex conversations and passages of text that you need to really concentrate on whilst reading. But if you put in the effort it is so beautifully written and I found the text stunning. Although difficult, the story flowed really well. While not much really goes on for large parts of the book, I still found it a joy to read.

As the text is so whimsical and fanciful I did struggle sometimes to work out exactly what was happening. I believe that the ‘power’ has something to do with the written word but even after finishing the book I was left not really understanding what it was. Saying that though, I still really enjoyed the book.


I would give this book 4 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)
Audible.com

Find Paraic O'Donnell on:
paraicodonnell.com
Twitter
Goodreads

REVIEW 'Everything, Everything' by Nicola Yoon

'Everything, Everything' by Nicola Yoon

Goodreads Synopsis:

"Madeline Whittier is allergic to the outside world. So allergic, in fact, that she has never left the house in all of her seventeen years. But when Olly moves in next door, and wants to talk to Maddie, tiny holes start to appear in the protective bubble her mother has built around her. Olly writes his IM address on a piece of paper, shows it at her window, and suddenly, a door opens. But does Maddie dare to step outside her comfort zone?

Everything, Everything is about the thrill and heartbreak that happens when we break out of our shell to do crazy, sometimes death-defying things for love."





5*****

Hi Elementareaders!

‘Everything Everything’ is a young adult contemporary novel about a teenage girl who is allergic to the world. It is the debut novel from Nicola Yoon. I received a free copy of this book to review via Goodreads Giveaways.

Madeline Whittler, an eighteen-year-old girl from California, suffers from a very rare condition known as SCID. Basically, she is allergic to the world. Anything can trigger a reaction which can make here severely sick. Because of this she is locked away from the world, living in a protective bubble. He house has an air lock, the inside air is filtered and nothing (and no-one) gets through without rigorous inspection. Madeline has never left the house in her eighteen years, her only contact being with her mum and her nurse, Carla.

But then she sees him. Olly and his dysfunctional family move into the house opposite and Madeline is captivated by him. “Tall, lean and wearing all black” Madeline can’t get her mind off him and he’s noticed her too. A week after moving in Olly scribbles his email address on his bedroom window and the two begin communicating, first through email then instant messaging. Maddy quickly beings to fall for him and decides that she needs more; she needs to meet him. Carla arranges for Olly to come over while Maddy’s mum is at work, but there are strict rules. Olly has to go through a decontamination process, stay on the other side of the room to Maddy and above all, no physical contact.

This isn’t enough for them, however, and Maddy soon finds herself wanting more. Like in her favourite book, ‘The Little Prince’, Maddy chooses to take her life into her own hands and go out and explore the world with Olly, even if it’s only for a short time.

Wow. Okay, when I first started reading this book I didn’t realise quite how emotionally attached I would become to these characters. Especially Maddy. She’s such an interesting character; a very strong-willed and stubborn girl who can’t even leave the safety of her home without getting ill. I absolutely fell in love with her. Olly is such a fantastic character too. I found myself wanting them to be together more than anything.

The book is so well written and fast-paced. I read the whole thing in a day, and probably wouldn’t have put it down if I didn’t have important things to do. Like, you know, eat. It’s hard to believe that this is Nicola’s first novel as it’s so fantastic. The style reminded me a little of John Green, but it also has something that makes it so unique. I liked that the chapters were short and I loved the little additions like Maddy’s dictionary, the emails & IMs, the post-it notes etc…

And nothing could have prepared me for the shocking twist at the end. I’m not going to spoil it but WOW! It blew my socks off! I also liked how some mental health issues were covered as well as physical ones.

Although I’m pretty sure this book is meant as a stand-alone, I’d love to read more about Maddy and Olly’s future relationship and how Maddy dealt with the shock she was given. I’m pretty sure that this book would delight both teens and adults alike, so I’d recommend that EVERYONE reads it (that means you too!) I’m super excited to read more of Nicola’s books in the future as with this book she’s made it onto my top-authors list.


I would give this book 5 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)
Audible.com

Find Nicola Yoon on:
nicolayoon.com
Twitter
Facebook
Tumblr
Instagram
Goodreads

REVIEW 'The Gospel of Loki' by Joanne M. Harris

'The Gospel of Loki' by Joanne M. Harris

Goodreads Synopsis:

"The novel is a brilliant first-person narrative of the rise and fall of the Norse gods - retold from the point of view of the world's ultimate trickster, Loki. It tells the story of Loki's recruitment from the underworld of Chaos, his many exploits on behalf of his one-eyed master, Odin, through to his eventual betrayal of the gods and the fall of Asgard itself. Using her life-long passion for the Norse myths, Joanne Harris has created a vibrant and powerful fantasy novel."










5*****

Hey Elementareaders!

‘The Gospel of Loki’ by Joanne M. Harris is the story of the Norse Gods from the point of view of Loki, the Trickster. I’ve always found Norse Mythology very interesting and Loki is by far my favourite of the Gods. I first heard about this book about a year ago and I finally managed to grab a copy from my local library earlier this week, then proceeded to read the whole book in two days. It was just that good!

Odin rules the nine worlds from his fortress of Asgard. When this book starts his people, the Aesir, have finally made peace with the Vanir and members of both groups make up the Gods of Asgard. The world is split into Order and Chaos, with Odin and the Gods trying to maintain Order over the nine realms. Loki was born from Chaos and is essentially a demon with no physical form (or Aspect) living in the realm of Pandaemoniem under the evil Lord Surt. But Loki was curious about the worlds where Order and Chaos co-existed so he left Chaos and traveled to the worlds above where he gained a physical Aspect, met Odin and was invited back to Asgard where he became the 25th God.

He did not receive a warm welcome from the other Gods, however, and soon lived up to his names of Wildfire and the Trickster. This book, which I would imagine takes place over a number of years, tells the story of many of Loki’s exploits in the nine realms including when he tricked a builder into fortifying Asgard’s walls without paying him, cut off Sif’s golden hair (to Thor’s outrage), got Thor to dress up as a bride to infiltrate the Ice Folk and kill their enemies, met the giants of Utgard and their own Trickster Utgard-Loki, all the way up to Ragnarok and the final battle between Order and Chaos.

Okay, I’ve just tried to describe the plot fairly simply above and I don’t know how much sense it will have made if you’re not familiar with the Norse Gods, but hopefully it wasn’t too bad!

I’ve always found Norse Mythology very interesting, mainly, I think, because of the diverse characters and fanciful stories. We get to meet all those characters in this book; Odin, Thor, Frey, Freyja, Balder, Frigg, Sigyn, Skadi, Gullvieg-Heid & many more. And as this book is written in first person from Loki, we see them all from his point of view. I also loved Loki’s illegitimate children, particularly Hel, the ruler of the Underworld and Fenris the werewolf.

I know a fair bit about Loki from things I’ve read online and books about mythology so I was a bit wary going in about how historically accurate Joanne had written her character, but I have to say that I found her version of Loki spot on! She voiced him perfectly and I also found the other characters to be very close to what I’ve read about them.

I really enjoyed the author’s writing style and the story flowed so well that I found it really difficult to put down. Loki’s storytelling was both informative and engaging and each of his stories flowed into each other very well.

This book is very heavy on the Norse Mythology (obviously) and I think it’s probably best to go into it with a little bit of knowledge beforehand. I think that if I knew nothing of the subject before, I might have found it a bit overwhelming mainly due to the amount of characters and worlds. But saying that, it is so well written and well explained that I think anyone could read it, I just think you’d get more enjoyment out of it if you knew a bit about some of the characters first. There is a very useful character list at the beginning that you can go back to.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves Norse Mythology, especially Loki and Odin but I think anyone who likes a good fantasy novel would enjoy it.


I would give this book 5 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)
Audible.com

Find Joanne M. Harris on:
joanne-harris.co.uk
Twitter
Goodreads

REVIEW 'An Android Awakes' by Mike French & Karl Brown

'An Android Awakes' by Mike French & Karl Brown

Goodreads Synopsis:

"In the future your culture will be shaped by machines.

Your world is manipulated by computer coding, search engines and social networks. It's just a matter of time before everything you watch, read and listen to will be created by autonomous machines...

Android Writer PN121928 is part of the Android Publishing Program. To replicate a writer's life, his wife has been forcibly removed and he lives in solitude with an allowance for drugs and state prostitutes. Having just had his novel The Eating of Citizen Kane rejected, he now has 14 more attempts to get a story accepted for the programme or he will be deactivated."

4****

Hi Elementareaders!

‘An Android Awakes’ is an illustrated science fiction novel set in a futuristic world of androids, which follows PD121928, an author android, struggling to get his work published. I received a free copy of this book to review through Goodreads Giveaways.

PD121928 is an author android with a vivid imagination and a wide range of characters and stories in his head. In this world, androids make up the majority of the population and take on all the creative jobs that humans previously did. Author androids need to have one of the 42 works of fiction (under 1000 words) that they submit to publishers to be accepted or they will be deactivated. PD121928 has only 14 submissions left.

This book comprises his final 14 attempts and the subsequent rejections he gets between. In a way, this book is almost like a collection of sci-fi short stories. All of PD121928’s stories and kind of related, however. They all seem to have similar themes running through them and some elements, like the mockingbird and an angel fish appear in more than one story.

I particularly enjoyed the stories; ‘The Amazing Arctic Sinking Man’, ‘2306’, ‘Bookmark’, ‘Angel Etiquette’ and ‘The Great Sea in the Sky’. All the characters in this book's short stories were very fleshed out and the stories themselves seem like they could have gone on longer. I most wanted ‘Bookmark’ to continue as I am an avid reader myself and enjoyed the idea of having a bookmark as a pet, and you have to read to feed it.

I enjoyed the writing style and I liked how it kept switching from 1st person to 3rd. I made it easy to distinguish android PD121928’s life from his story submissions. I also really liked the artwork throughout and thought that it really added to the story. I like that it was just black and white line art rather than full colour pieces. The style of the art made the book feel very futuristic and fitted in so well with the stories. I would like to thank the authors, Mike French and Karl Brown, for also sending me 2 postcard art prints of illustrations from the book.

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to someone who likes the sci-fi genre, but is open to bizarre stories set in a world very unlike our own. I would also recommend going for a paperback copy rather than kindle to fully appreciate the artwork!


I would give this book 4 stars :)


Places to buy:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!)

Find Mike French on:
mikefrench.net
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Goodreads

Find Karl Brown on:
karlillustrated.tumblr.com
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Goodreads