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‘Gilded Cage’ – Vic James

Gilded Cage

TARNISHED CITY is published early September 2017
BRIGHT RUIN concludes the trilogy in June 2018

A dark fantasy that immediately had me intrigued, and now I’ve read the first part I am desperate to see where James takes this next (it’s not that long to wait until September, honest!)

Our story opens with the death of a young slave at the hands of her ex-lover as she tries to leave the estate with their young child. Immediately it is clear that this is a brutal existence and the Jardine family – as one of the foremost Equals – are a force to be reckoned with.

In this world the ruling elite – the Equals – have authority over the masses, and everyone is forced to give up ten years of their life to servitude. Some romanticise the Equals and their Skills, but the reality of their power and capabilities is truly frightening (and isn’t really shown fully until we are immersed in the world).

We focus on the events involving Abi and Luke Hadley, the older children of a family who are set to spend their slave period working for the Jardine family. Unfortunately, Luke is not found a position and ends up in one of the slum towns working in a highly dangerous place. What is more dangerous is the group of people he encounters who hold beliefs that could result in a lot of trouble.

Without giving too much of the plot away, I found myself gripped by this. The characters were all intriguing, and it was exciting to see how each of them coped with their varied experiences. James skilfully sets up this world, and gives us a clear history/sense of where these ideals have come from, yet keeps racking up the intrigue. Throughout my reading I was vacillating between which of the Jardine brothers was least to be trusted, and there’s just enough revealed to satisfy us while keeping plenty back for the next in the series.

This was an unexpected treat, and I think it’s a definite must-read for fantasy fans.

Lauren Kate – ‘Fallen’ series

 

FallenTormentPassion
RaptureUnforgiven

Book One – Fallen (read 02/03/17)

This is the kind of story that carries you along quite happily, and it is only after you finish reading that you start to pick holes in it.

Luce is sent to a reform school due to an unfortunate incident involving a boy and flames, lots of flames. She has, since she can remember, seen mysterious shadows around her and is, understandably, keen to not share this information with people. Unfortunately, everyone she comes across at this new school clearly knows a lot more about her and her situation than Luce is allowed to know.

Things happen fairly quickly, and the inevitable relationship dilemma is dealt with in a fairly engaging way. There’s a lot of characters, many of whom are expendable and don’t seem to have much impact on the story.

While this book was not particularly bad, it was frustrating because we watched Luce get into ridiculous situations without questioning what was happening. There were a few too many unanswered questions for my liking, but I’m looking forward to seeing the development of the story in the rest of the series.

Book Two – Torment (read 05/03/17)

‘Torment’ picks up immediately after the events of ‘Fallen’. We start with Luce being taken to a new school where it’s hoped she’ll be safe as she’s surrounded by the Nephilim (offspring of humans and fallen angels).

It’s no surprise to see that it all goes rather wrong. She gets to see Daniel occasionally but Luce spends most of the book digging round and trying to find out more about her past. We meet some new characters, learn a bit more about angels and watch Luce bumble from one disaster to the next as she tries to lay low. It wasn’t bad, per se, but it was incredibly frustrating to have yet another book where we get no closer to any answers.

Book Three – Passion (read 06/03/17)

In the third in the series Luce is determined to go back through time, to the times she and Daniel have met, in order to try and work out how she can put an end to her fate. What follows is a bit of a mish-mash of us seeing Luce and Daniel fall in love through history.

I understand that there is something slightly romantic about watching Luce and Daniel fall in love in their various incarnations, but we remain pretty short on answers in this novel. The style felt even more fractured than the previous two, but there were some nice scenes.

Where this did become fun was as we drew closer to the Fall and start to gain an insight into exactly what happened and how the curse affecting Luce came into being. We get some hints of where we might be going, but it does seem that things are being drawn out rather for the sake of it.

Book Four – Rapture

Book Five – Unforgiven

 

‘History Is All You Left Me’ – Adam Silvera

History is all you left me

One of the things I love about being part of an on-line reading community is hearing from other readers about books that I might not have otherwise picked up. Adam Silvera’s novel – published in January 2017 – is my first read by this author and, based on my feelings after reading this, it won’t be the last!

Our story focuses on seventeen year-old Griffin, and how he feels after the death of his ex-boyfriend and first love, Theo. Griffin is definitely finding it hard to accept the loss of someone so important to him, and we see him being torn apart by his obsessions as he tries to adjust to life without the person who remained so important to him.

This was one of those books that snuck up on me and has left me more than a little stunned…in a great way…and there were a number of reasons for this.
First, let’s deal with the fact that Griffin is gay and celebrate that this book doesn’t treat it like anything other than part of who he is. Yes, he has relationship difficulties. Sometimes he acts like a jerk. His relationships have touching moments that I felt privileged to be allowed to witness. Sometimes it’s painful. Whatever we’re witnessing, it’s part of him.

Second, the structuring of the story was something that I found immensely satisfying in revealing the characters we were introduced to. Splitting between History and Today to show the memories Griffin has and how he’s dealing with the aftermath of Theo’s accident was, initially, rather confusing but it makes perfect sense as we draw closer to Griffin and see just what he’s living with.

There are so many things I liked about this story. It explores a painful event in anyone’s life, but learning to live with loss and first love will be relevant in some way to most readers. The closing pages – as we see Griffin finally coming to accept, in part, what he needs to do to forgive himself – were emotionally hard to read.

The final line really intrigued me as it suggested Griffin might not be quite as reliable a narrator as we were led to believe. Who can judge whether you have a shared history wrong? I’ll be puzzling this over for some time.

‘Scythe’ – Neal Shusterman

Scythe

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

When we first meet Citra and Rowan it is clear that they are no ordinary teenagers. Their behaviour makes it clear that each has certain attributes that would make them a good scythe. Neither wants the role – and this is a good thing – but they are each taken on as apprentice to the indomitable Scythe Faraday (who I think has to go down as one of my favourite mentor figures in Literature).

It definitely makes for a better read to know little more than the information we are given prior to reading. We are quickly immersed in this futuristic setting, and also get a real sense of a microscope being held up to our contemporary world to scrutinise our own beliefs.

There is a lot of political intrigue behind the scenes, and it’s not giving anything away to tell you that after a series of unfortunate events Citra and Rowan end up pitted against each other in possibly the cruellest competition ever. There’s a truly wonderful cast of characters here, and though there is a lot of violence it is not out of place.

Personally, I cannot wait until book two is released…

‘Monsters’ – Emerald Fennell

Monsters

The first thing I have to wonder is how this passed me by when it was released in 2015.

The second thing I have to say is that this is a children’s book that will probably appeal just as much to adults.

Monsters…it’s an evocative title. When we’re told that this story focuses on two children you would never want to meet it seems they are the monsters referred to. Our female narrator has a morbid fascination with murders, and Miles is a sociopath whose macabre behaviour hints at something very odd going  on under the surface. However, things are not quite as clear-cut as they seem – and thought they’re not particularly likeable characters, I came to feel something akin to sympathy for our narrator which made me rethink exactly who the monsters of the title were.

The two children meet when they both end up in the same seaside town for their summer holidays. Our narrator spends every summer in the hotel belonging to her aunt and abusive uncle, and Miles is on holiday with his overbearing mother (whose relationship with Miles appears to owe a lot to that of Norman Bates and his mother). When bodies start to appear in the otherwise quiet town, it seems a serial killer is at large and the two children are desperate to investigate further. It is inevitable that they will get themselves into trouble.

The cover drew me to this initially…and it sounded vaguely creepy, but in the style of ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was certainly creepy, but nothing had prepared me for just how darkly humorous this was. This might not sit easily with some readers, as the humour to be found in a book about murder- where animals are injured and people are treated with casual indifference – is never going to appeal to everyone’s tastes. I have to admit that there were some scenes that had me laughing out loud: the demise of Fuka the cat, the ingenious way in which rival Mary is removed from the annual festival and the judgements on Mr Queen’s artwork to name but a few. Finding such humour in these circumstances might seem odd, but the two children were fascinating in their depiction.

While I was thoroughly enjoying this as I was reading, the ending took it into realms I really wasn’t expecting and which made it go from simply a good read to one that I will be urging people to try. The hypocrisy of our ‘polite society’ -which only comes to the fore with this shocking ending – really left me questioning just who the monsters were.

‘My Ladybird Story’ – Magus Tor

 

My Ladybird Story

In this novel Tor focuses on the story of John, a young teenage boy who feels different but can’t identify why. We follow him through school as he becomes friends with the new girl, Aureus, a force to be reckoned with.

As soon as these two become friends it’s clear they have found their own support network. Together, John and Aureus find ways to cope with the demands and stresses of high school. Yet John remains quiet, prone to periods of intense depression and nobody can work out why.

The novel takes us on John’s journey as he comes to terms with his identity, eventually recognizing that he has gender dysphoria and undergoing therapy/counseling as part of his gender reassignment.

Novels exploring identity and transgenderism do seem to be becoming rather popular at the moment. That’s no bad thing – certainly for those who are living the experience and need all the support they can get. However, though this novel was positive in its affirmation I couldn’t help but feel there was a sense of earnestness about this that made it feel a little less effective.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in advance.

‘The Future of Us’ – Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

The Future of Us

Published in 2011, this is a romance that is unashamedly set in the past while trying to explore attitudes to what – in our contemporary world – has become the norm. What I felt throughout was that something always felt slightly off-kilter.

Emma and Josh are next-door neighbours, who have been friends forever. Naturally (this is a romance) Josh has made a move and Emma has panicked…so they’ve not really spoken for a while. This would be awkward enough, but throughout the novel we can see that the whole focus is on them trying to work out they are meant to be together.

While this might seem infuriating, the cast of friends surrounding them are interesting enough to stop it all getting too much. What irritated me was the premise used to get them to see the true state of their feelings for each other. Set in the past – way back in 1996 when teenagers had to do things like page each other if they wanted to speak or, heaven forbid, actually meet up – we are led to believe that when Emma is given a free AOL CD she finds a mysterious page called Facebook that seems to tell her the future.

Part of me really wanted to stop reading. Emma and Josh acted more like olden day peasants facing witchcraft rather than savvy teens on the cutting edge of their world. Still, it was mildly entertaining but more than a little unforgettable.

‘Caraval’ – Stephanie Garber

In the world of Caraval, nothing is quite as it seems.

Scarlett and her sister, Tella, have never left their tiny island. They obsess over the annual festival that is Caraval, an exclusive ticket-only event where the audience participates in the show. For both girls, the event symbolises escape from their abusive father and, though they are desperate to participate in the game, they stand little chance of being able to get there.

When Scarlett learns that their father is playing his own game, and has promised her hand in marriage it seems their chance to escape is well and truly dashed. Then, mysteriously, tickets to the game arrive…and a young man turns up at just the right time to help the sisters get to the island.

Once Scarlett arrives on the island, I felt the book came into its own. The world of Caraval and the mystery surrounding Legend was absorbing. Scarlett’s determination to help her sister – while also finding time to develop her own romance – was not particularly justified, but as long as you don’t question some of the details too much you won’t be disappointed.

Since starting this I’ve heard it’s to be made into a film…seriously, can’t wait! This was a cleverly constructed book that will, if you buy into it, completely dazzle you.

‘Freeks’ – Amanda Hocking

Sadly, this just didn’t get me as I’d like it to have done.

Mara is a necromancer and she travels as part of a Traveling Circus that has fallen on hard times. She dreams of living a normal life, one where she doesn’t have to worry about strange events. When the circus moves to the small town of Caudry it looks as though she’ll get her wish…at least initially.

The world of the circus was well-depicted and the characters we were introduced to intrigued me. They were a close-knit group thought it was clear that many of them were hiding secrets, sometimes for reasons that made little sense.

I couldn’t understand the haste with which characters occasionally fall for each other, and Mara’s relationship with local-boy Gabe had me on edge from the start. I’m pleased I was so off in my thoughts on where it was going with regard to the relationship, but the supernatural elements to this felt rather like they came out of nowhere.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance read and though it wasn’t exactly leaving me desperate to encourage others to read it, it will have its fair share of fans.

‘Coming Up For Air’ – Miranda Kenneally

Coming Up For Air

Due for publication in July 2017 I think this is a novel that will strike a chord with its intended audience.

Maggie is determined to be a professional swimmer. She trains hard, and doesn’t have time for much else in her life. As she draws closer to leaving for college, Maggie can’t help but feel she’s missing out on something-the opportunity to have a relationship.

What follows is, let’s be honest, all rather transparent. Maggie and her best friend, Levi, spend the novel trying to work out what we assume will be obvious from the start. However, in spite of its obviousness, this is still an entertaining read.

No major dramas, nothing that will offend anyone and it all ends as we expect. Safe, but it left me feeling a little flat. Thanks, though, to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in advance of publication.