Skellig By David Almond (3/5)

“Michael steps into the crumbling garage... What is this thing beneath the spiders' webs and dead flies? A human being, or a strange kind of beast never seen before? The only person Michael can confide in is Mina. Together, they carry the creature out into the light, and Michael's world changes forever.”

My favourite part of Skellig isn't actually one involving the title character. I loved the realism of watching Michael and his parents attempt to live their everyday lives whilst every moment is weighed down with their worry that their new baby won't survive. His parents were such believable characters. I could feel their stress and fear and their determination to believe the best and get on with everyday tasks. I felt as if I was reading a real life account of a family worrying about the life of their premature baby, this managed to create an intense atmosphere that continued through out the book. The baby's delicate state is nicely mirrored in the vulnerability of the baby birds that Michael’s new friend Mina is watching carefully in her garden. The birds qualities are then reflected in the angelic character of Skellig. I liked the sense that all of the characters in the book were connected, almost in a cycle. David Almond's writing is very down to earth and the world he creates feels familiar. I feel like I can relate to his characters and see people from my own childhood in them. The whole thing is just so real and the setting of the book feels like being reminded of an old friend who I had previously forgotten.

Even the character of Skellig who is heavily hinted to be a supernatural creature, an Angel, is portrayed as very human in his interactions, moods and attitude. He craves dark ale and Chinese food and has lost all of his optimism and enthusiasm for existence. It takes two very kind and open minded children to show him that life can be quite a beautiful and worthy thing.

A Monster Calls By Patrick Ness (From an original idea by Siobhan Dowd) (4.5/5)

“The monster showed up after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor's been expecting. He's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming... This monster is something different, though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth.”

Oh! Where to start? Firstly I had never actually heard of this book until I went to the Hay on Wye Literature Festival where I had bought tickets to an event with Patrick Ness & David Almond. The event was wonderful and very entertaining and during it Patrick held up his new book. It was then that I noticed that this book is quite unique in its appearance. It is part novel and almost part graphic novel. Jim Kay's illustrations work in a way that they don't just accompany the text, they tell the story themselves in a completely different, but just as powerful way. The images can be subtle and creeping or over whelming and shocking, but they are able to make you feel that the book in your hands is something more than just paper and ink. It becomes more than just a book, more than just a container of words. It is a very physical thing, almost a piece of art. This novel actually made me feel bad for putting it on my bookshelf closed. I wanted to keep looking at the images or display them. It is a perfect balance between art and text.





I started reading this book whilst walking around the festival. (Read-Walking is a very difficult skill to achieve, but very worth it in the long run!) Considering that this book is indeed an intense emotional cheese grater I could think of better, less public places to become completely absorbed in it. Once I'd started there was no way I was going to put it down. The book follows the story of Conor a 13 year old boy who is watching his single mother go through chemotherapy. Because of her therapy she is often tired and weak and Conor is learning to take care of himself as a result. He is becoming more alienated at school, is being bullied by the teacher's pet and takes these incidents calmly. He is almost detached completely from the beatings, because it makes him feel a little less isolated, a little less invisible. This sets a dark mood over the entire book before the monster even shows up. You can feel Conor's repressed fear and rage in everything he says and does. His pain is almost tangible and you just want to help him, but you can't. No one can. The only person who can help Conor is himself. Himself and a rather large monster, The Green Man, in the shape of a yew tree. The monster comes walking and promises to tell Conor three stories from his past before Conor tells the monster one true story in response, his nightmare, his real worst fear, the one that makes this monster look tame in comparison.

The Monster's stories are one of my favourite parts of this book, I'm a complete geek for a story within a story. The stories read like particularly dark fairy tales, ones where everything is not always what it seems and the villains are not always the ones you would think. They do not always get punished as you would expect with a fairy tale. As the monster itself says “There is not always a good guy. Nor is there always a bad one. Most people are somewhere in between” The stories are thought provoking, shocking and managed to affect me on quite a deep emotional level. I loved the fact that the Monster's speech is written in italics and not in speech marks, like Conor is hearing it inside his own head. This was interesting to me, as if a Monster were to speak out loud, who would be the one to say what language it would be in.

This story is one of a young boy coming to terms with loss and grief. Some of the most painful parts are when Conor's grandmother and father come to him attempting to discuss plans for if his mother doesn't doesn't pull through and the chemotherapy is unsuccessful. Conor is in a position of being able to act quite adult at a time when he is being treated like a child. The Monster manages to give him ways to vent his frustration and inner rage and slowly come to terms with the fact that he is grieving and in terrible pain. One of the most painful aspects is how Conor is optimistic at a time when people close to him are telling him not to be. The only person who tells him to think positively is his weak mother.

This story is a painful, cathartic, often amusing roller coaster ride. The characters are all so flawed and believable. Despite the fact that one of the main characters is a Monster the book is so realistic, you go on this emotional journey with Conor, you feel everything he feels. When I finished this book I was so emotionally wrung out that I felt like I was the one facing the loss of a loved one. I closed it sobbing, whilst stood up in the middle of a queue waiting for a show and tried my best to stop crying. This book is one that haunts you and one that is hard to forget.

Author Events With Julia Donaldson, Patrick Ness & David Almond (My Hay-on-Wye Adventures!)

For a recent annual celebration a certain beloved of mine surprised me with booking many events at the Hay-on-Wye Literature Festival for us to attend.

The first of these which I'll discuss is the Hay Fever (Read- For Pre School Children) Event with Julia Donaldson. I imagine a lot of people will know her better by her best selling work “The Gruffalo” or by the fact that she has recently been made Children's Laureate, a very well deserved honour. Working with pre school children for the past 4 years has taught me which books they enjoy to listen to and which fail to hold their attention, promoting wriggling and chatting. *frowny face* Her books most definitely have the power to hold the attention of children, large groups of children even! And this is a wonderful skill to have. This said, I just had to meet her and listen to her event. Sadly on the way in I realised that waiting for the show without a small child made me stick out like a grown up at a children's event. So I found myself saying things like “Behave please” and “Don't climb that” to large faceless crowds in an attempt to make it seem like I had a child to watch over. *is secret genius* Now, child or no child, the event was amazing. Julia Donaldson is wonderfully insane, in an epic and glorious way. I think it was the point where she donned Dragon wings and began to hop around the stage that my other half actually began to cry with laughter.


She was surreal and fabulous and every single child in the room was glued to their seat. She really is great at what she does and I told her as much after waiting in line to get my book signed. (Hey, when I do have children this book is going to make me the coolest mum in the world, guaranteed, assuming that small children judge on signed books... I'm sure they do, right?)

I told her that out of the all the books that I had read to children, hers managed to keep 30 toddlers still and paying attention, which anyone who has worked with children knows, is near impossible. : ) Also rather amazingly, whilst the huge line waited for the people ahead to get their books signed, her husband strolled down the queue, holding a guitar and taking nursery rhyme requests to keep children, and young at heart grown ups, entertained. He was joined sporadically by The Gruffalo himself. (When I told a small boy, whom I was looking after, this he innocently said “But didn't he try to eat you?” as his first comment) This event was unpredictable, unique and wonderfully entertaining, I was glad that I went and had the opportunity to meet this tremendously talented woman.


Next I am going to discuss the wonderfully enlightening event with Patrick Ness and David Almond. I have been a fan of Ness since I began reading The Chaos Walking trilogy (My review of “The Ask And The Answer”) so being able to hear his opinions on various subjects, in person, was a very rewarding experience. David Almond is still fairly new to me, even though I, along with thousands of others, can recall reading “Skellig” whilst at school. David was a very thought provoking, down to earth man and I found learning about his writing process fascinating.

The group discussed many issues, only some of which I can highlight here. Patrick Ness explained that in his opinion a book making you cry wasn't a bad thing, crying was a cathartic experience and said that he actually cries all the time, recently because he woke up and realised that it was actually morning and he would have to get out of bed. (A sentiment that I can share! I love my bed *happysigh*) An interesting question that was asked was whether or not there was a limit to what they would be willing to write, a subject that they wouldn't be willing to discuss, for instance. It seemed the general consensus was that it would be written if the story called for it, but not unnecessarily for controversial reasons. After all even very sensitive issues can be handled delicately and with the appropriate level of respect.

For Patrick Ness, it was discussed how it felt to be continuing somebody else's project with his latest book “A Monster Calls”, which was an original idea by Siobhan Dowd, who lost her fight with cancer before she was able to share her idea. (The Guardian wrote an inspiring obituary for Siobhan that I wished to share in this post.) It was interesting listening to Patrick discussing how to find a balance between honouring the work of somebody else whilst still managing to make it your own. Patrick also discussed how his new book was almost bordering a Graphic Novel in that illustrations were used in very powerful ways, not just to accompany the text, but to tell the story almost separately in their own way. The success of this needs to be seen to be believed, the illustrations are overwhelming and almost make the book you are holding in your hands a character itself, it's just beautiful.

Both David Almond and Patrick Ness shared examples of how people sometimes have a fixed idea of what it is children should be reading, which often criticised both men's books. Ness shared that a “Newspaper” (Quotation marks used, because I don't believe The Daily Mail should really qualify as a Newspaper *pokes tongue*) criticised “The Knife of Never Letting Go” pretty much because it had the word “Knife” in the title, without actually looking into what the novel itself was about. David Almond said that he has been criticised for his main female character in “My Name Is Mina” with people saying that a young girl wouldn't express themselves in the ways he portrays. Both authors shared the obvious fact that all young people are different and David himself has a young daughter who enjoys the character of Mina as a believable one. David also shared that his characters appear almost complete in his head and he is the medium that puts them onto paper.

I found this event a very inspiring and compelling one. Both authors shared things that I really enjoyed learning and I found the whole experience engaging and rewarding.

Whilst getting my books signed I managed, as I often do, to say ridiculous things to people I admire. Patrick was pleased to sign my copy of “Monsters of Men” as it looked well read. (My Review of "Monsters of Men") I responded that it had indeed been very well read and that I agreed with what he said about crying being cathartic. I described “Monsters of Men” as an “Emotional Cheese Grater” (It made sense in my head, okay?) and he laughed and said that he really hoped it wasn't quite that irritating. I quickly explained what I meant by the term and he laughed again and said that he liked it.


I shared with David Almond that I found the fact that he got his inspiration almost mysteriously very thought provoking. His reply was to ask me where I was from (Thank you Northern English accent in a land of Southerners! I am sure that my accent isn't that strong *stamps foot*) We then moved on to discussing my home town, which he said he knew quite well, this all felt a little surreal. O_o


Outside of the Literature Festival I had many adventures in the town itself. Bookshelves were found unsupervised inside the grounds of a castle, down an alleyway, in a bus stop and in more basements than I can count. Most of these had a honesty policy and a money box you put your coins in before leaving with books. I found this concept amazing and over whelming and fainted clutching many novels in my hands. Hay-on-Wye was an exciting town, one where a breathtaking 3 floored beautifully furnished, cosy bookshop became a piano bar that would give you a cocktail if you placed a little paper bird in a cage. It may sound like I'm making this up, but the beauty of Hay is that you never need to make up fabulous stories about it. : ) I would happily live in Richard Booth's Bookshop. It is a magical cosy place full of wonder.


And the biggest adventure of all? Trying to find a phone signal if you are with the O2 Network and a taxi if you are staying outside of the town, they will make films about that struggle. :P

On a side note, if anybody hasn't read Patrick Ness's inspiring, passionate, provoking Carnegie Medal acceptance speech, then please go do so. It sums up all of the rage and outcry that people, me included, feel about the destruction of libraries in the UK.

The Silver Blade By Sally Gardner (4/5)

“Paris, 1793. The blade of the guillotine falls on the neck of the King himself, and the spirit of the French Revolution lies in tatters. The Reign of Terror has begun. Yann Margoza is helping desperate people to escape to England, where Sido, the girl he loves, waits to hear from him. But Yann's past haunts him. He is in grave danger, and so is Sido. For under the streets of Paris, in the catacombs, the howl of a great beast can be heard. And a boy with angelic looks and an evil heart is ready to do the bidding of a man who has made a pact with the devil. A thrilling tale of secrets, of murder, revenge and romance, written with the vividness and passion that made The Red Necklace such a fantastic success”

I stumbled across this book in a tiny bookshop in a little quiet town, whilst on a weekend away. Rather perfect for me, small town, cute bookshop I was in heaven. (Well almost! I will discuss Hay-on-Wye “Bookshop That Becomes A Cocktail Piano Bar” in another blog post *faints*) I was curiously scanning a bookshelf looking for a book that I hadn't read yet. This book jumped out at me because of my “It's shiny” Magpie personality. It had the wonderful shiny image on a black background look, that I am fond of. All it took was turning over the book to read the top line “Paris, 1793.” With that it had to be mine. I have a certain weakness for any adventure in a historical setting, add in Paris and the devil to that and the Bibliophile in me is putty in your authorly hands.

I really enjoyed this book for reasons that weren't always central to the plot. I loved the setting, I loved the darkness, the fear of the aristocracy and the gritty, dirty, realism of the newly empowered working class. I could picture the bars with their straw covered floors, could smell the spilled beer and neglected to recently wash patrons. In the scenes with the actors you could smell the greasy face paint, see their stressed, haggard expressions in a very real way. That is talented writing at its best. I think I've read so much urban fantasy recently that this was slightly out of my comfort zone, but in a wonderful swashbuckling adventure kind of way.

This book was dark. Dark in a way that a lot of other books try for and miss. Dark in a casual, almost easy way. It pulled you in and sat you next to the characters, made you hide in the shadows and clutch your loved ones in sympathy for the aristocrats. There were certain parts to the book that didn't grip me as much as other books have done, didn't make me feel for the individual main characters in some way. I didn't care for them as much as I usually do when I read fiction. But this world, the atmosphere, the background characters, the setting, they grabbed me and brought me into the world in a way that the main characters didn't quite manage to do. But for once I didn't think that this detracted from my enjoyment of the book. The fear and world was more than enough for me and I indulgently fell into it and savoured the experience.

I was greatly disappointed when I realised that this book was a sequel, meaning I would have to read them in the wrong order. This didn't reduce my enjoyment of the book though, even though it should have. This was a world that I really enjoyed to explore and would like to visit again.

City of Fallen Angels By Cassandra Clare (4/5)

I stumbled across this in my local Waterstones before I even knew it had been released (Bad me losing track of time!) I was very surprised that they weren't making a bigger deal of it, and the cashier expressed the same sentiments. I was looking forward to reading it so much that I of course cancelled the rest of my shopping trip and had to go home. *coughbibliophilecough* I discovered that I was not able to walk down the street knowing that I had this book with me and was not reading it. I'd already owned it for at least 2 minutes, what was wrong with me? Luckily over the years of my addiction to fiction I have fashioned the rather talented skill of Read Walking. It means you can see enough of major obstacles to avoid them and the minor obstacles (AKA People) tend to avoid you rather than be stepped on.

There are still certain aspects to this book that I haven't quite made my mind up about yet. There were things that I really enjoyed, and the same writing style that I had fallen in love with was still there, but something felt like it had missed the mark somehow. My favourite aspect was the sheer amount of Simon perspective. I love seeing the world through Simon's eyes, even as a Vampire he has a connection with humanity and a level of compassion that the other characters don't seem to be able to grasp. His efforts to understand his new found power and to control his blood-lust made the book a page turner. I have always found Simon to be infinitely likeable, even when he is turned into a creature that is a hunter of humanity he still finds a way to be essentially himself, with kindness and humility. I loved the fact that the addition of his new romantic appeal could have made him seem like an intimidating, unrelatable Romeo, but instead it turned him even more so into an awkward, confused teenage boy, with very amusing results. Clare has a way of being able to write a character so well that you can see what they see, feel what they feel. Her characters always grab you and take you with them on their ride. I really enjoyed Jace's extended socialising with Simon in this book, they make a very unlikely couple and I found the snark and mocking very entertaining. Going with the theme of unlikely couples I found the addition of the character of Kyle to be a breath of fresh air, he was nice and dedicated and managed to fit in well with Simon and Jace's interactions. I was also able to predict the twist in Kyle's story, but that didn't make me love it any less. *adores*

On the other hand I didn't find that Clary and Jace's relationship grabbed me as much as it had in the previous books. As much as I wish it did, it just didn't. It felt somehow that their story was so neatly tied up in the end of the last book that creating a new trauma for them to overcome was just a little bit too much. Now the eternal fan girl in me absolutely loved the angst, but plot wise it just didn't feel necessary. I know that the book wouldn't have worked if they were all “Happily Ever After” so I can't offer an opinion to how I would have preferred it, I just didn't feel that it all tied up as neatly as I was used to in the previous books. Clary seemed somehow like a non presence in this book. This didn't stop me from enjoying the exploits of the boys however. They still made the book very enjoyable, but not as enjoyable as it could have been. I still eagerly await the next book from Clare, because ever since her fan fiction days I have been in love with her snarky, sarcastic characters and epic story lines. I think I probably always will be too.

Charmed Life By Diana Wynne Jones (4/5)

Once again I have a book by Diana Wynne Jones that leaves me thoroughly impressed by the woman's imagination. (You can read my previous review of a Diana Wynne Jones book HERE) This book follows a young boy nicknamed Cat and his sister after the death of their parents. Cat's sister Gwendolen has the gift of magic and he admires her very much, after the loss of their parents he has nobody to cling to but her. This is the reason that he lets her take the lead on most things and doesn't seem to realise that she isn't really a nice person. Her magic makes her vain and selfish and she cares far more about her own success in the field than her younger brother.

When a fortune teller tells Gwendolen that she is destined for fame and power she arranges for them to be taken away from their carer by the rich and powerful Enchanter, Chrestomanci.
Unfortunately for Gwendolen when she arrives there children are forbidden from using magic without the supervision of their teacher. Gwendolen doesn't take this very well and begins to use magic anyway, resulting in punishment. This causes her to misbehave more than ever and she acts out repeatedly, causing mayhem for the entire household, trees crowd around the building, the house is in perpetual darkness, all of the food transforms. Some of the things she does even frighten her younger brother, but she would never stop for his benefit.

Eventually Gwendolen gets fed up with the tight controls of the house and runs away to another world, finding a doppelgänger from a parallel world to fill in her place. Her lookalike is friendlier than Gwendolen and yet finds herself being punished and disliked by the majority of the household, who understandably still believe her to be Gwendolen.

The conclusion of the book leads Cat to find out a secret about himself and the true nature of his sister. I won't reveal the exact details in this review as it surprised me in some ways, so I wouldn't want to spoil it for anyone. It was the kind of revelation that turns a book on its head and makes you flick back through the story in order to see if you could have seen this from the beginning. For this reason I would recommend it to anyone, particularly fans of any of Diana Wynne Jones' other works.

This is the first book that I read by Diana Wynne Jones since learning of her tragic passing. The back of this version had a few interviews with her, where she discussed things like which characters she would like to meet in real life and how her travelling was usually jinxed. It was quite strange to listen to her fascinating opinions and imagination after her demise, and yet it made me realise how much she has truly left behind for the children of future generations. They have these wonderful fantasy books to dive into, different worlds they can wander into whenever they want to escape from reality, and isn't that one of the best things you can give someone? The world has truly lost one of its greatest imaginations, but at least it still has these wonderful books to experience for as long as they are needed.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets By J K Rowling (5/5)

This was the 12th time that I've read this book and somehow every time I read it I am surprised by how dark it is. I seem to always think that the first books of the Harry Potter series are a lot softer and gentler than they actually are. (Read my review of the first book HERE) I think most of this is due to the feeling of fear and vulnerability that runs through the story, caused by the monster that lives inside the Chamber of Secrets. The Basilisk is a dark creature indeed and from the first moment Harry hears its voice when nobody else can, saying “let me rip you... let me tear you,” the tone for this book is set. When the students begin to be attacked the fear and hysteria that ripples amongst the children makes for a great read, even the teachers are powerless to prevent more attacks when they have no idea who is responsible. It is this dark feeling and tense atmosphere that I believe made this book my favourite when I was quite a bit younger. Scenes where it is explained that Ginny Weasley was influenced to strangle the school roosters by the Heir of Slytherin or where Harry finds her in a near death state having the life drained from her in the chamber, are other reasons why this book is particularly dark.

This book isn't just dark though it contains some of my all time favourite moments, the best of which is the monumental, immature fight between Mr Malfoy and Mr Weasley in Flourish & Blotts. They are basically scrapping, causing books to go everywhere with the twins hooting support and because of the nature of this fight this scene has remained one of my favourites for over 10 years. (Yikes that makes me feel old! :P) Another favourite moment of mine was the reaction of Mr and Mrs Weasley when finding out that Ron, Fred and George had flown Mr Weasley's enchanted car to go and rescue Harry from near imprisonment at The Dursleys. Mrs Weasley's righteous anger is wonderfully contrasted by Mr Weasley's immediate eager response of “Did you really? Did it go alright?” In fact any scene that contained the flying Ford Anglia was a great one to read, from Harry and Ron crashing into a tree that would hit them back, to the car saving them from a cluster of giant spiders with a taste for flesh.

The introduction of the character of Dobby was great. His constant attempts to save Harry's life by almost causing his death are very entertaining and he provides a very bizarre form of comic relief to the books. Professor Lockhart is another wonderful new character to this series and his vapid self obsession and vanity is another aspect of the book that is very amusing. He is the opposite to Harry in some ways. Harry is extremely famous for something he had no control over and wishes to be left alone, whereas Lockhart has grabbed at his fame greedily and loves any opportunity to show off. The scenes between him and Harry are very funny moments in Harry's school year.

The final fight between Harry and Tom Riddle/The Basilisk at the end of the book is perhaps one of my favourite confrontations of the series. It is simple and yet tense. It provides a very different aspect of Lord Voldemort to the series and Harry running from a giant monstrous snake is quite the page turner!

I can understand why when I was younger this book was my favourite out of the first three in this series. The darkness that permeates the tome is well balanced by comedic moments from new characters, and even on the 12th read I enjoyed it very much. I would suggest reading it to anyone, along with the rest of the series! (And in fact do often suggest reading it to everyone!)

Maddigan's Fantasia By Margaret Mahy (4/5)

This is the third of Margaret Mahy's books that I have read and I think I can say that it is by far my favourite. I think I enjoyed it the most because the travelling circus gave a unique atmosphere to the story. The fantasia seemed more like a character itself than a setting and it travelled through so many different locations, giving the whole book quite a sense of adventure. I loved the idea of a travelling circus full of many different personalities, all moving together to various places just hoping to find an audience to perform to. This may have been my favourite part of the book. The Fantasia was lovely to read about.

Another part of the story that shone out to me was the relationship between Garland and her mother and how they each coped after the death of Garland's father. Both were very powerful characters and they clashed a lot in the story, but beneath that was a deep familial love for one another that nothing could beat. Garland's mother Maddie was strong and dedicated and Garland rightfully felt that Maddie could lead the Fantasia on after the loss of her father. But what Garland didn't always understand is that she was not the only character grieving. Her mother and her father's friends all deeply missed him too and they were just trying to keep going, to do what he would have wanted and keep the Fantasia moving. Garland's hostility towards Yves was also great to read. She thought he was trying to take her father's place, by leading the Fantasia and comforting her mother, and it takes a long time for her to come to terms with the fact that he cared about her father as well and his actions are in the best interests of all of them.

The main character of Garland was very likeable. She was kind but not too soft. She had a great strength and determination that she clearly inherited from her parents and their lifestyle. She goes through a lot in this story and is tested in many different ways, but always fights back, stays strong and takes any adventure that is offered to her. Through this sense of adventure she meets two brothers and their baby sister who claim to be from a very unpleasant future. Their stories all intertwine and, as they travel together escaping evil henchmen time and time again, they face many different unpleasant experiences in their journey. Fake witches, mind altering food, towns ruled by irresponsible children and even communities that had been abandoned since they last visited them. Though the world they're in is very hostile and dangerous as long as they're together and able to perform to an audience then the Fantasia will survive.

The brothers, Timon and Eden are also both great characters. The older brother looking like a prince from a fairytale, but with his own dark secret and the younger who looks like he is an extension of the forest and is able to conjure flowers to fall from the air and the ground to bounce like a trampoline. The boys are determined to change the future they have come from and prevent the evil Nennog from ever taking power but their every footstep is followed by the Nennog's evil henchmen, one human, one that appears human.

Together the Fantasia must fight future evil and current hostility everywhere they go, defeating many challenges and always remaining unified and strong. It was an enjoyable escapist read and I'm glad to have found something of Mahy's that I could enjoy as much as I'm sure the author deserves.

Monsters of Men By Patrick Ness (4.5/5)

“Three armies march on New Prentisstown, each one intent on destroying the others. Todd and Viola are caught in the middle, with no chance of escape. As the battles commence, how can they hope to stop the fighting? How can there ever be peace when they're so hopelessly outnumbered? And if war makes monsters of men, what terrible choices await? But then a third voice breaks into the battle, one bent on revenge...”

My review of the previous book in this trilogy can be found Here. The wonderful world building and moral trials continue in this final installment.

There are so many positive aspects to this book, that I'm unsure if I can describe how I felt and still do it justice. I've had it on my bookshelf for a couple of months and even though I really wanted to own it, I hadn't yet felt in the mood to read it. I knew that it was going to be deep and painful and quite emotionally exhausting to immerse myself in that world again. Though when I did, time flew by. I read solidly for 6 hours without stopping. I could see it all, the suffering, the hard choices, how when people are at war nobody is innocent and everybody believes that they are fighting for the right reasons.

There are so many different sides to this book that it can make your head spin, but at the same time creates such a rich depth that you can fall into the world and be dragged through the emotional grinder along with all the characters that it follows. I loved the new perspective of the “Spackle” 1017, or The Return as he is known amongst his own people, “The Land”. His drive for revenge after the genocide at the end of the second book in this trilogy prompted The Land's entry into this war. His voice is the most raw and brutal one of this story, a voice of single minded vengeance , all aimed at Todd. The way The Return projects all of his rage at Todd, who he calls “The Knife” creates a pulse increasing, mind spinning ride that you can barely keep up with. His character is so three dimensional as he is portrayed as just one of the villains in this novel. His motivations and drives are so deep that you want him to get peace, you feel righteous indignation on his behalf. He deserves justice, but revenge against Todd is just unthinkable. The genocide of The Spackle was an awful moment, and Todd pulling 1017 out of a pile of the corpses of his fellow species is an amazing example of how dark and gritty this trilogy can be.

The continuation of the separation of Todd and Viola in this book was very well done. It allowed for both of their perspectives to be used and to provide opposing views from the different sides of the war, even though they were still technically on their own side, the side that wished for peace.

I love the whole idea of the series, as summarised by the title of this book, that in war nobody is innocent, everybody has to do things that they're not happy about or that goes against their morality for “the greater good”. War does indeed make monsters of men. Todd sees this better than most when he is involved in a rather brutal battle, fighting with the Mayor's men against “The Spackle”. Their weapons are intense and the men are nearly annihilated. Todd sees men burst into flames in front of him, he smells their flesh melt and sees their dying thoughts, the pain they feel at never seeing their loved ones again. Because of this when the tide turns and the surviving enemy is left to run away, Todd feels the buzz of defeating them. He experiences the thrill of chasing a losing enemy, of wanting to fire into their backs whilst they are fleeing. It's only when he sees the Spackle he was aiming at trip over the corpses of his people that his conscience returns, and he is reminded who he really is.

This book manages to show the opinions and morality of multiple characters, all with different tactics and limits and yet with each of them you can see them as human, see what has driven them to where they are now. You can see the horrible things that they do, and you can see how they justify their actions, and a lot of the time, you agree with them. You become so involved with this world and the people in it that you can understand and relate, and no matter what horrible things they do, in some ways you can't quite see what you would have done differently.

This book pulls you in and doesn't let you go until the very last page. You're dragged along with these characters and it hurts. You fear for them, you fear for their physical safety and for their identities when they risk compromising who they are. You'll gasp and you'll cry and when finished you'll feel exhausted, relieved and still slightly on the edge of your seat. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes stories that aren't black and white, and where the enemy of the tale is relative depending on which side of the war you're on.

The Iron Witch By Karen Mahoney (3.5/5)

“Donna is a freak. An outcast. Branded with iron tattoos that cover her hands and arms, she is cursed with a magically- enhanced strength that she does everything she can to hide. But now, the dark exiles of Faerie are coming and Donna must choose between saving her best friend – or betraying one of the world's greatest secrets.”

I've been following Karen's short stories and blog for a while now and I was eagerly awaiting her debut novel. I love seeing somebody who I admire become published and their talent being recognised. So it was with quite a bit enthusiasm that I found this book with it's shiny golden pages on the shelf at Waterstones.

I loved the start of this book, a girl's journal explaining her nightmares that recall the night her father died whilst saving her life. The mood that this brief scene creates is dark and heavy. It perfectly paints a picture of dream like terror balanced with memories, leaving the reader to try and choose which parts are genuine recollections and which are fabricated, due to the trauma that Donna experienced as a young girl. In some ways this mood is evident throughout scenes in the book, and it is this atmospheric style that made me read the book quickly over a couple of days.

In this style I loved the threat of the Wood Elves. I enjoyed the fact that the “villain” of the piece was one species of Faerie. I think when books contain Faeries it can be tempting to get overwhelmed by the amount of mythology to choose from and to pick many different varieties, whether friend or foe. I liked the simplicity that this book provided by picking only one type of creature to represent that world. The Wood Elves were almost made of nature themselves, and there was a certain rough quality to them that I really enjoyed. They seemed to be made of the forest itself, and as an extension, the feeling whenever our characters entered the forest was one of claustrophobia and paranoia. Then again, it's not really paranoia if they really are watching you.

I liked the character of Donna, I felt like when she was in everyday situations, for instance feeling left out at a party or remembering being excluded at school, she was very likeable. These qualities in a person could have seemed cheesy and clichéd, but Mahoney made them seem new and utterly realistic. It wasn't melodramatic suffering, it was real and unglamorous. Though I didn't feel as much of a connection with the character when she grew stronger and was able to fight almost single handedly to save her friend and mentor. It may be a reflection of me as a reader that I found the main character to have greater depth when she was suffering and acting out, as opposed to when she was able to defend herself sensibly and almost strategically.

A part of the book that I couldn't get used to was the character of Xan. He was attractive, he was rich, he was a little pretentious, he had a big insight into the world which Donna was absorbed in, making him a perfect confidant for her to lust after. He was perfect. I desperately wanted him to be evil. I don't enjoy stories as much when the characters get the things they want easily and without struggle, I don't like it when things work out for them. I guess I'm slightly sadistic, but I need my characters to have what they want torn away from them and really have to work to get it back again. Or I want them to realise they were wanting the wrong thing all along. It just doesn't feel right when things are wrapped up nicely.

I also didn't quite understand her relationship with her best friend Navin. There was too much chemistry between them for it to be purely platonic, they had so much closeness and affection that it would have been very satisfying to see some sort of love story form between them, particularly if it was unrequited. I love me some UST. : ) I still feel that this is possible, but I would have loved to have had some tension between them, instead of Donna loving the fact that she had a great friend, with whom she can share anything and yet lusting after the pretentious pretty boy in the corner.

In general I loved the mood of this book, and the background it was set in, it was gritty and I enjoyed it. My opinion of it was hindered by the love story unfortunately.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone By J K Rowling (4.5/5)

I think there is very little point in me explaining anything about the concept of this book, as only someone living under a very oblivious rock, wearing ear plugs and buried somewhere closer to the centre of the Earth than the surface could be unaware of the world of Harry Potter. I recently sat down to re read the series and as this is the 8th time I have read this specific book I felt that it was slightly criminal that I'd never sat down to review it.

In the old days when only 5 Harry Potter books existed and before most fan fiction found itself to be shockingly inaccurate when compared to cannon, I regarded this book to be my least favourite of the five after reading them all. Thinking about this now I feel this was rather unfair and have tried to recall how I felt when I first finished the book, around the age of 14. My initial reaction at the time was that I had just read something special and found a new world to yearn for. Even when this book was my least favourite of the series the world building could not be faulted. Rowling had built up a new universe completely, with characters that leapt from the page and locations that not only could I see in my imagination, but hear and smell as well. The book is also filled with lots of subtle moments of humour, particularly at the beginning when the horror of the Dursleys is being described, trying to hide Harry from the wizarding community.

I always felt that this book had a certain juvenile quality to it, when compared to the others in the series, I think this was why I didn't appreciate it as much as I did them, but I should try and remember that it is from the perspective from a boy who has just turned 11 years old. It took me a while to realise that the easiest solution to stop this book from suffering in comparison is to simply stop comparing it! J K Rowling spent a long time trying to get this book published and got no appreciation for it for a long time. I can just imagine how the publishers who rejected it are feeling now. *beams*

This book introduces the reader into a world of wonder and magic from the perspective of a young boy who never knew it existed. His wonder is our wonder, his shock our shock. I have read hundreds of books in my lifetime and I have never found a series that gripped me as much as this one did. I still count it as my favourite series of all time, and nothing has beaten that yet. For a long time I was quite an obsessive Harry Potter fan, I cringed when the films were inaccurate and yet still collected the merchandise with a fervour that was slightly scary to my friends and family at the time, I'm sure. A few years ago when I was moving house and could only take a small bag of things my priorities were inevitably my laptop and my Harry Potter series. I don't think that this type of wonder will ever really leave me, and if anyone ever asks for a book recommendation then this is the first one that I give. I want to share the Harry Potter series with everyone and often make it a prerequisite for anyone requesting my friendship. *shifty eyes*

I know that I'm not the only person who felt their entire view on reading change because of this series, for this reason it will always be special to me and I will continue to recommend it to everyone and anyone that crosses my path.

Arrow By R J Anderson (4/5)

Once again R J Anderson has allowed us to visit the wonderful world that she created in the first of this series “Knife”. (Review of previous book in this series, Rebel.) In this book we are shown the battle for the Oakenwyld through the eyes of Rhosmari, a Faerie who has lived her entire life on the Green Isles as one of The Children of Rhys. The Faerie population of these Isles are pacifist by nature and have no desire to join a fight, but after the loss of their Stone of Naming they are unsettled and one of the Elders, Rhosmari's mother, is considering aggressive action to get the stone back. The thought of this scares Rhosmari so much that she decides to run away to the mainland and try and find Garan, the Faerie responsible for the removal of the stone from the Isles and Rhosmari's ex betrothed, and get it back.

I loved Rhosmari's attitude in this book, she was strong and yet completely naïve to the world outside of her personal experience. Even though she was very knowledgeable and a very accomplished scholar she had some preconceptions about herself and the world around her that were altered quite extremely throughout her journey. I loved her gentle, idealistic nature and found her a character that was very likeable, especially when she found solace in research. She meets many people on her journey and doesn't always know who to trust, even though she is wise it turns out she is easily manipulated because of her somewhat optimistic spirit. Her morality is tested quite a lot throughout the story as she interacts with people who handle situations differently than she would. She questions her own extreme views and has to accept that in certain situations deception and violence are unfortunately a necessary evil. The development of her character in this way was a fascinating read, I respected her because of her peaceful attitude and watching her morality shift and change because of the distressing situations she finds herself in really pulled me into the story to travel with her on her journey.

Another theme to this story that I found great was the concept of loyalty and betrayal. When you are setting out on a journey on your own how do you know who to trust? What does someone need to do to prove themselves to you? And even then can you ever really know what someone, or even what you yourself are really capable of? Rhosmari's trust is tested a lot in this story, people she thought to be friends turn out to be less than trustworthy and people who she naturally distrusts because of actions which she sees as immoral turn out to be the ones she can rely on the most.

I really enjoyed reading this book and read it very quickly over a couple of days. I had a rather over excited moment when Cardiff was visited in the story, as this is the place that I am currently moving to. : ) Like the previous books in this series I loved the world building and vast amount of characters. This book also had a plot that was like a snowball, once it started to roll it just grew and grew. There was never a slow moment, or a part that felt like it suffered for editing, it was all great reading.

At the end of the book I am treated to the news that not only is Anderson releasing another book in this story, “Swift” but also a story for older readers, “Ultraviolet” I can't wait for more on these. I have great faith in this author to give me a rich world I can fall into it, main characters that I invest so much hope into and villains that I can't bring myself to dislike no matter how deplorable their actions are. This is because whatever she writes she makes it feel real and tangible, everyone has a history and a story of their own. I can't wait for more.


Currently Reading: The Iron Witch By Karen Mahoney

Beauty By Robin McKinley (4/5)

This is the first book in a while that I have found myself falling into, I read it in less than two days, whilst moving house and interviewing for jobs in a new country. I didn't care, they could wait. It was only The Book that mattered. : ) This happens quite rarely for me these days, so when I find myself unable to put a book down I just let myself go with the flow.

Beauty and The Beast is my favourite Disney film and one of my favourite films of all time. I don't care if it's meant to be for children, I fell in love with it when I was 6 and apparently it was a love that would last a lifetime. I still have the original VHS that I used to watch as a child and just got the DVD for Christmas.(*squeal*) I watched it three times in one week and feel no shame about this. Small town heroine yearns to escape, achieve more in life and have adventures? Me like. So, with this in mind it was with great trepidation that I picked this book off of the shelf. I'd been disappointed in a Beauty & The Beast novel before, (Beastly Review) Though I'd heard good things about Robin McKinley, I've been meaning to pick up something by her for ages, so when I saw this I couldn't resist. Also I really liked the simple cover, the white background with black and red detail is very striking.

Firstly in this story, I loved the main character of Beauty and the way that the story spent nearly half of the book developing her character and her relationship with her family before sending her to The Beast's castle. Far too often in some novels I've finished them thinking that the heroine had far too little personality, this was not the case with this book at all. Beauty was strong and independent, and I liked how she responded the best out of her family to their new labouring life in the country. You could feel a real sense of achievement when she was able to find a place in the new town and discover jobs that she could do well. The trials of her family and their personal journey from a life of indulgence to hard work and semi poverty was a great story on it's own, separate from Beauty's interactions with The Beast. This part of the story was written so well that even though The Beast doesn't enter the story for the first part of the novel, I was still gripped by what would happen to this family, and these characters that I had grown to like.

The characterisation in this story was very well done. Her sisters were very different from her and yet still different from one another. It would have been easy for the author to have made them semi villain like, and yet they were loving and caring, in spite of the differences that made them superior in Beauty's eyes. Grace's loyalty and dedication to a lost love was quite touching, and I felt it made her character feel deeper, I was really hoping that she would find happiness. Hope's desire to settle with someone who many would think beneath her, gave an interesting twist to her character. The life that her and Ger made together was quaint and lovely, I liked the way that she responded to married life, and thought that as a couple they were nice to read about.

I found that Beauty's exploration of the enchanted castle was written very well. It captured the elegance and grand scale of the place very well. It was so well described that I could practically see it, the tall towers piercing the sky, and the grounds stretching out in front of the large castle doors. Throughout all of the descriptions of this marvellous place I was gripped by Beauty's views on it, her wonder and fear, her strength and yet hesitance. It was all great reading.

The Beast's characterisation is the only part of the story that I'm a little unsure of. I liked that he was stiffly formal in some ways, his complete acceptance that he would look terrifying to Beauty and that this was something that just had to be dealt with, was an interesting point of view. I loved the way that the characters spoke to one another, particularly when dining together. However, outside of Beauty's perspective it was sometimes hard to see the depth of The Beast's love for her. His formality in this matter made him seem somewhat cold, and it's hard to think of a character as being in love if they don't show a certain kind of weakness and vulnerability. This was communicated very well sometimes, one being when Beauty fainted on him and her subsequent reaction and anger, and again when she managed to get Greatheart to approach him, even though the horse was determined to bolt. I would have liked to have seen more examples of the depth of his fragility, as these were some of my favourite parts of the book.

The development of Beauty's feelings however were done wonderfully. I thought it was a great idea that she didn't even realise that she cared about him until she found herself defending him against her family's judgement. I liked the gradual dependence she began to have on him, even though she was still afraid from time to time. The solitary lifestyle she suffered made the small time she spent with him the highlight of her day. There was a certain feel of Stockholm Syndrome about the whole thing in some ways. :S Her change of opinion towards The Beast was so gradual that it's hard to pin point when it actually changed, and in my experience this means it has been written well.

The whole story had a certain poetical style about it and the writing style was beautiful and yet didn't detract from the story at all. The world building was brilliant and allowed you to fall into the story in many different ways, all of the different environments described were so three dimensional that you want to wander around them, from the small town that the family finds themselves making a life in, to the enchanted forest and the castle beyond.

The book was a pleasure to read and the whole world was one that I was unwilling to leave when the story ended. I think that a bookish heroine like Beauty would enjoy to read it very much.

Enchanted Glass By Diana Wynne Jones (4/5)

“When Andrew Hope's magician grandfather dies, he leaves his house and field-of-care to his grandson who spent much of his childhood there. Andrew has forgotten much of this, but he remembers the very strong- minded staff and the fact that his grandfather used to put the inedibly large vegetables on the roof of the shed, where they'd have vanished in the morning. He also remembers the very colourful stained-glass window in the kitchen door, which he knows it is important to protect.

Into this mix comes young Aidan Cain, who turns up from the orphanage asking for safety. Exactly who he is and why he's there is unclear, but a strong connection between the two very soon becomes apparent.

There is a mystery to be solved, and nothing is as it appears to be. But nobody can solve the mystery, until they find out exactly what it is!”

My initial response after putting down this book was that I may have just finished my favourite Diana Wynne Jones book yet and that I really wanted to read it again. I've always enjoyed her writing style and been amused by her work, but there has somehow been a barrier between me and the story, meaning that I couldn't connect with it as much as I would have liked to. This book was the closest I have come yet.

I really enjoyed the two main characters of Andrew and Aidan. I liked reading about Andrew because of the serious and practical ways he went about his business, and how this was directly contrasted by the rather old fashioned population in the town his Grandfather had lived in. Mr Stock and Mrs Stock were extremely entertaining characters, and the idea that they were loyal employees of the house, even though they never did what they were told and more often than not, directly made Andrew's life more inconvenient, was great to read. Aidan's curiosity and independent spirit made him a fun character to read the perspective of. I particularly enjoyed his exploration of the mysterious powers he had discovered and the subsequent dangers that he is exposed to. His repeated clashes with the various creatures in the community and the way he responds to each situation are great to read, one of my favourites being Rolf the Weredog. I particularly enjoyed the fact that most of the characters in the book were counterparts of Mr Brown's Folk, and that they responded to this rather comfortably and pro actively.

The only part of the book that felt slightly rushed and contrived to me was the love story between Andrew and Stashe. The two characters separately were great and their interactions were entertaining, but the change from impressed to besotted was too sudden for me. This may change upon re reading, but this was the only flaw in what I felt was a great book, with fabulous world building and realistic characters.

I also find the book itself absolutely beautiful, it's now one of my favourites. The colours and the text are just perfect. I was also lucky enough to find a signed copy of this wonderful book to add to my collection. *beams*

Currently Reading: The Princess Diaries 1 (Again!) : )