Connor's Brain by Malcolm Rose

"Connor began his second life at the age of fifteen. He started it with a thirty-mile-an-hour brain. Connor's first life ended when a virus in his brain stripped him of almost everything - his memory, language and a sense of time. Now Connor lives in a permanent present that he doesn't understand. The 'new' Connor doesn't recognise or remember his parents, his brother, his friends - or his girlfriend Hattie. New-Connor can't remember the old Connor, but there are people who can. People who have reasons to keep him quiet - or to hurt him. Because old-Connor had a dark past. Mysterious and intriguing, this book is an extraordinary read for teenage readers who want a story with a mystery to solve and lots of twists and turns to keep them guessing. Written by Malcolm Rose, the successful author of The Outer Reaches series, this book is both gripping and thought-provoking, asking poignant questions about the life of a teenage amnesiac."

First of all I didn't manage to finish this book.

I had never heard of this book just found it at the library and it did sound really interesting. I only got to page 154 but once I put the book down I had completely lost interest and didn't pick it back up. This book dragged so much. 

Review of Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

"Britt Pheiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn’t prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants—but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage.

Britt is forced to guide the men off the mountain, and knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there…and in uncovering this, she may become the killer’s next target.

But nothing is as it seems, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally?"

Going into this book I knew nothing about Becca's writing style. I still haven't read the Hush Hush series but the premise of this book sounded interesting so borrowed it.

I figured out the twist pretty early on. It was supposed to be 'dark and adrenaline-filled' but it was as suspenseful as a teen horror film where the girls in the story are more than annoying and constantly put themselves in danger. Where there are times throughout the book where I just want to shout at the girls to think about what they are doing.

This book took me forever to read as it is quite easy to put down and forget about for a while.

1/5 stars

Review of Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty

"Despite their differences, Erika and Clementine have been best friends since they were children. So when Erika needs help, Clementine should be the obvious person to turn to. Or so you'd think.

For Clementine, as a mother of a two desperately trying to practise for the audition of a lifetime, the last thing she needs is Erika asking for something, again.

But the barbecue should be the perfect way to forget their problems for a while. Especially when their hosts, Vid and Tiffany, are only too happy to distract them.

Which is how it all spirals out of control..."

This is the first book I have read by Liane and it definitely won't be my last. I loved the way that it built up to what actually happened at the barbecue and that the chapters skipped from the day of the barbecue to other days. I also enjoyed that the story was written from the perspectives of the different characters. 

It takes ages to find out what actually happened at the barbecue and it changed the lives of all the characters that were there. With there being such a build up to what happened it made me really frustrated but in a good way. The build up made me really think that what happened was going to be shocking but in a way I felt kind of let down. 

The character I loved the most was Erika and the IVF storyline really hit me hard. Some of the dialogue about this subject is so well written and it depicts the negative feelings associated with it. "There were probably times when I was complaining about the girls and you were thinking, Oh for God's sake, shut up Clementine, don't you know how lucky you are?" Erika lies in response to her friend to protect her feelings. 

The characters are so well written even with all the flaws. There are times when I loved the characters and times when I hated them. 

I did really enjoy this book and would definitely recommend this book to others. 

5/5 stars

Review of The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge

"Faith Sunderly leads a double life. To most people, she is reliable, dull, trustworthy - a proper young lady who knows her place as inferior to men. But inside, Faith is full of questions and curiosity, and she cannot resist mysteries: an unattended envelope, an unlocked door. She knows secrets no one suspects her of knowing. She knows that her family moved to the close-knit island of Vane because her famous scientist father was fleeing a reputation-destroying scandal. And she knows, when her father is discovered dead shortly thereafter, that he was murdered.

In pursuit of justice and revenge, Faith hunts through her father's possessions and discovers a strange tree. The tree bears fruit only when she whispers a lie to it. The fruit of the tree, when eaten, delivers a hidden truth. The tree might hold the key to her father's murder - or it may lure the murderer directly to Faith herself."

Definitely shouldn't judge a book by its cover. I saw the posters in a local book store and fell in love with the gorgeous cover. So finally managed to borrow a copy and I wish I hadn't. Don't get me wrong. The story had so much promise and wasn't the worst book I have ever read but sometimes the writing left a lot to be desired and I found myself reading some lines repeatedly and even reading them out loud and asking my partner what things meant. When even he couldn't understand some parts I got annoyed with it. 

I got to the point where I would just put the book down and do anything other than carry on. I hate giving up on books so persisted till the end. In a way I'm glad I did as the story picked up within the last few chapters but then parts of it seemed really rushed.

2/5 stars

Review of How the Cow Jumped Over the Moon by Sally Huss

"In this book you'll meet a very stubborn, bored, and uninspired cow. She is steadfast in her determination not to try something new. She is amusingly invited to join one animal after the next in an adventure with them, but sticks to her old habits. It is not until a chicken encourages her to jump over the moon that she decides to change her ways. 

All in rhyme, and all with a smile, this story is one to delight every child, and subtly spark the spirit of adventure within them. It emphasizes the importance of trying something new -- to be adventurous -- in the most whimsical way.

-- Charmingly illustrated in bright and happy colors. 
-- Your child will want to read along and encourage the young the cow to try something. Great fun!"

How the cow jumped over the moon is a story for children about trying something new. All the animals asked the cow to try something new but the cow just wanted to stay in his field and chew as that's all he thought he could do. Until the chicken persuaded him to try something new. 

The book also has a lot of repetition and rhymes which helps children to remember the story. Even though some of the rhymes didn't flow that well. 

3/5 stars

Review of Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

"You can’t stop the future. 
You can’t rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah’s voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why. 

Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah’s pain, and as he follows Hannah’s recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever."

I've had this book on my to read list for years. I've even had a copy of this book for years but wasn't sure when to get around to it. As soon as Netflix advertised the series I knew I'd have to read it. It's only a quick read. I was expecting so much from this book but felt that it didn't really deliver.

Hannah's character seems to think she's the victim throughout the book but towards the end she's as bad as some of the people she blames. She also don't seem to care about how her actions affect others, especially as she uses people to get what she wants. She also annoyed me as she don't take responsibility for any of her actions.

I did like the ending with Skye. Even though it don't give you a reason as to why he wants to talk to her it gives readers the chance to come to their own conclusions.

I also liked the comparison to a snowball. How all the little things snowballed together.

3/5 stars

Review of Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs

"A boy with extraordinary powers. An army of deadly monsters. An epic battle for the future of peculiardom.

The adventure that began with Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and continued in Hollow City comes to a thrilling conclusion with Library of Souls. As the story opens, sixteen-year-old Jacob discovers a powerful new ability, and soon he’s diving through history to rescue his peculiar companions from a heavily guarded fortress. Accompanying Jacob on his journey are Emma Bloom, a girl with fire at her fingertips, and Addison MacHenry, a dog with a nose for sniffing out lost children.

They’ll travel from modern-day London to the labyrinthine alleys of Devil’s Acre, the most wretched slum in all of Victorian England. It’s a place where the fate of peculiar children everywhere will be decided once and for all. Like its predecessors, Library of Souls blends thrilling fantasy with never-before-published vintage photography to create a one-of-a-kind reading experience."

It was an awesome book to end an awesome trilogy. There were times throughout when I put the book down to have a break and had to reread some parts I had already read as some parts were forgettable.

There were some parts throughout the book that were quite repetitive and didn't add much to the overall story. I did find myself getting bored a few times as the narrative did drag at times.

The photos are so beautiful, even if a little creepy. It is easy to picture the places without the pictures and found that sometimes the pictures I had of places were so different to what the pictures depicted.

The development of Jacob's character was well written and I hated the decision he had to make.

The ending was amazing and I now love the relationship between Jacob and Emma.

4/5 stars

Review of Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

"This second novel begins in 1940, immediately after the first book ended. Having escaped Miss Peregrine’s island by the skin of their teeth, Jacob and his new friends must journey to London, the peculiar capital of the world. Along the way, they encounter new allies, a menagerie of peculiar animals, and other unexpected surprises."

*Spoilers*

I already got book 3 ready to read next. I need to know what happens. The last few chapters are pretty awesome and left me wondering about Jacob's new found ability. Just confused as to how he seemed to learn it all through a dream. I still found the relationship between Jacob and Emma weird. But her telling him to go got me emotional which I didn't expect. There are parts of this book that seemed to drag and I would put the book down for a while. However there were parts that were amazing and that I was able to zoom through. The photos are also beautiful even if they are creepy. Definitely better than book one.

4/5 stars

Review of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

"A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of peculiar photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its decaying bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that Miss Peregrine’s children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive."

I'd heard so much about this book so when I saw it was on offer I had to get a copy. I like the uniqueness of this book. The photos add to the narrative and some of them are so beautiful, yet some of them are creepy.

The 'relationship' between Emma and Jacob is weird.

But for some reason the story fell short of my expectations. The writing was slow and the story was dragged on. However the last few chapters built up the story ready for the next book. I will finish the trilogy just to see what happens.

3/5 stars