Release Date: 26/04/12
BOOK BLURB:
Elizabethan London: a teeming city of traders and thieves, courtiers and preachers, riff-raff and quality, cut-throats - and demons. When scrunty Jack the 'Judicious Nipper' picks the wrong pocket at the Globe Theatre, he finds himself mixed up in an altogether more dangerous London than he could have imagined - a city in which magic is real and deadly. An outbreak of devil-worship has led to a wave of anti-witch fervor whipped up by the Elect, a mysterious group of Puritans recognizable from their red-stained right hands, led by the charismatic Nicholas Webb, a growing power at Court. Rumour has it that he wants to purge the city entirely and build a New Jerusalem. Jack has his own reason for hating him: he saw him kill his mother. Helped by Beth Sharkwell the Thief Princess of Lambeth, Kit Morely the Intelligencer and Dr Dee the Queen's Wizard, Jack pits himself against Webb's Puritans. But this is no straightforward struggle. Things are not as they seem. In fact, ever since his encounter with Webb, there has been something wrong with Jack's vision. He keeps seeing things. Demons. "Black Arts" is the first in a series of thrilling time-travel adventures, each bringing the past to glorious life, as Jack and his companions hurtle from one epic struggle to the next.
REVIEW:
If you’re after an adventure of adrenaline for the young reader in a fantasy world then this could well be the book that you’re looking for. The characters within are vivid and full of imagination whether it’s the Faginesque Mr Sharkwell or the villainous Preacher Webb there’s something for all tastes.
Add to the mix a cracking lead character in the form of Jack who brings the world to life backed up with a great sense of pace, some truly magical twists and a story arc that keeps you glued right to the end which overall makes this something very special. Finally throw into the mix authors who seek to hit the reader hard and fast alongside keeping them demanding more leaves this as a book that will enthral even the most reluctant young adult reader.
Release Date: 02/02/12
BOOK BLURB:
Laugh your socks off! Stripy sharks and woolly crocs, Purple dogs with polka dots! What can you see made from Socks? Kids (and grownups!) will love this socktastic celebration of the nation's favourite footwear. Look out for sockerels, sockodiles and Goldisocks, and prepare to see your socks in a whole new light.
REVIEW:
If you love socks then this story is for you as its sockywockydoodah. With bright colours, wonderful invention and of course a whole host of socks to help take the reader on an adventure it’s a story for the younger market that will entice and be a lot of fun, especially if you get a spare sock out to play a role or two.
Add to this a wonderful sense of fun in the illustration, words that repeat that will allow the young person to join in and a story that gives an adventure and all in its great fun.
Release Date: 01/03/12
BOOK BLURB:
'We're the Demon's Watch, son. Protectors of Port Fayt. Scourge of all sea scum. Don't tell me you've never heard of us?' Half-goblin boy Joseph Grubb lives in Fayt, a bustling trading port where elves, trolls, fairies and humans live side by side. Fed up of working at the Legless Mermaid tavern, Grubb dreams of escape - until a whirlwind encounter with a smuggler plunges him into Fayt's criminal underworld. There he meets the Demon's Watch and learns of their mission to save the port from a mysterious and deadly threat. Can Grubb and his new allies uncover the dark plot in time, or will they end up as fish food in Harry's Shark Pit?
REVIEW:
If you want a fantasy world for your young reader that has a wonderful setting, great characters and populated by many different creatures in a hodgepodge melting pot, then you really have to get Conrad Mason’s The Demon’s Watch. It brings the best of fantasy to the reader with a whole host of cracking characters, top notch entertainment and of course demonstrates that brains can outsmart brawn be it either magical or physical.
It’s cleverly written, there is a whole host of twists and Conrad doesn’t waste time by getting down to the nitty-gritty that will keep your young reader hooked to the final page. Throw in conspiracy, double dealing and selfish desires, which when fought against by the positive traits of our band of mismatched heroes, really gives the reader a treat to enjoy. Magical.
Release Date: 02/02/12
BOOK BLURB:
Rollrock island is a lonely rock of gulls and waves, blunt fishermen and their homely wives. Life is hard for the families who must wring a poor living from the stormy seas. But Rollrock is also a place of magic - the scary, salty-real sort of magic that changes lives forever. Down on the windswept beach, where the seals lie in herds, the outcast sea witch Misskaella casts her spells - and brings forth girls from the sea - girls with long, pale limbs and faces of haunting innocence and loveliness - the most enchantingly lovely girls the fishermen of Rollrock have ever seen. But magic always has its price. A fisherman may have and hold a sea bride, and tell himself that he is her master. But from his first look into those wide, questioning, liquid eyes, he will be just as transformed as she is. He will be equally ensnared. And in the end the witch will always have her payment. Margo Lanagan has written an extraordinary tale of desire, despair and transformation. In devastatingly beautiful prose, she reveals unforgettable characters capable of unspeakable cruelty - and deep unspoken love. After reading about the Rollrock fishermen and their sea brides, the world will not seem the same.
REVIEW:
I love a book that takes me on a journey and that’s something that Margo Lanagan always does in her own special way. Here we get all the attributes that have made her a known author wrapped up with the ancient myths about the selkie bride. It is clever, it has some magical sleight of hand alongside twisting the readers expectations. Add to this great prose, top notch characters and an overall arc that makes you believe in the concept that Margo is selling, makes this a cracking start to a new series.
Release Date: 01/09/11
BOOK BLURB:
Thunderbolt, Benny, Bridie and Sharky Bob are a mixed bunch of vagabonds and urchins who come together to form the New Cut Gang in two comic tales of stolen silver, skulduggery and desperadoes.
Fake coins are turning up all over Lambeth and the finger of suspicion is pointing at Thunderbolt's dad - could he really be the forger? The crime-busting New Cut Gang come to the rescue!
And when just two clues - a blob of wax and a Swedish match - are discovered at the scene of a break-in, the children find themselves on the trail of an extremely cunning criminal.
Set in late Victorian London, these two action-packed thrillers have now been put together in a single volume - with new illustrations throughout from Horrible Histories illustrator, Martin Brown.
REVIEW:
If you love a story that has action, adventure and set in the Victorian Era, this title by Philip Pullman (he of Golden Compass fame) will more than draw you in. Compiled for the first time is two stories featuring his young crime solving gang which have previously been released under their separate titles: Thunderbolt’s Waxwork and The Gas Fitter’s Ball.
As usual with Philip the writing is crisp, the prose a lot of fun and it’s the characters that he draws you in with as you will them to succeed in their quest. Add to this a whole new set of illustrations by Martin Brown, a hardback edition to enjoy rereads and it’s a more than satisfying story for all those who love a great book. A real gem of a title and one that I think could find many a bookshop being jemmied for younger readers to get their hot little hands on this great release.
Release Date: 05/05/11
BOOK BLURB:
The humans are weak and vulnerable. Soon the beasts that share their stone-age world will kill and eat them. To save his tribe, Stopmouth must make his way to the Roof, the mysterious hi-tech world above the surface. But the Roof has its own problems. The nano technology that controls everything from the environment to the human body is collapsing. A virus has already destroyed the Upstairs, sending millions of refugees to seek shelter below. And now a rebellion against the Commission, organized by the fanatical Religious, is about to break. Hunted by the Commission's Elite Agents through the overcrowded, decaying city of the future, Stopmouth must succeed in a hunt of his own: to find the secret power hidden in the Roof's computerized brain, and return to his people before it is too late. Peadar O Guilin has followed his extraordinary debut The Inferior with an equally original and pulse-racing sequel in which human primitivism collides with futuristic technology.
REVIEW:
Whilst this title won’t appeal to all readers, it’s definitely one that relies on character driven plot rather than forcing them in the direction that the author wants. The characters are believable, they’re refreshing and above all else there is plenty of hooks for the reader to enable the reader to associate with them.
Add to this some great prose, decent dialogue and a kickass story that will keep the reader not only amused but entertained for quite some time. The only downside is that I do wonder if it should be aimed more at Teens than the 12 market as parts are quite scary as well as complex.
Release Date: 06/01/11
BOOK BLURB:
Ben Tomlin has been an only child for thirteen years. So when his research-scientist parents bring home a baby chimp to raise as a human child, Ben's life is turned upside-down. Teaching a baby chimp how to understand language is not his idea of fun, especially when he's trying to settle in at his new school. But it isn't long before Zan's infectious personality endears him to everyone and he becomes a real member of the family. But just what will happen when he grows up and the experiment comes to an end? Ben must take dramatic steps, and the repercussions ricochet through home and community with devastating results. This phenomenal novel is a thought-provoking story of relationships and family, first love and growing up, ethics and dilemmas.
REVIEW:
This was a title that I wasn’t sure which way it would go. It had potential to be a story of eco discovery, the potential to be a tale of emotional as well as worldly knowledge as well as possibly becoming a hodge podge of too many idea’s and not enough substance.
What actually happens within is a novel that takes the reader through the emotional wringer and also has a message about mankind’s influence on nature and what we should be doing rather than what we are.
This is a title that’s more for the older reader and one that will play with the heartstrings, emotional, inventive and about all else one that will make you think.
Release Date: 01/05/08
BOOK BLURB:
Rossamund has always dreamed of a career in the Navy, fighting tentacled monsters and rescuing damsels from hook-handed pirates. But fate has chosen him for a different path. He is being sent to train as a Lamplighter - to bring light to the inland roads of the Half-Continent, to shine the way for travellers through lands peopled by outcasts, monsters and worse. But for Rossamund to begin his education, he must first undertake a journey of his own: to the great city of High Vesting. Such a road is not for the faint of heart. Only monster-hunters, leers and the most desperate of brigands dare travel the inland ways unguarded. And all Rossamund carries with him is a battered almanac and a pocketful of cheap potions. It is unlikely to be enough. Stunning in scope and rich in detail, alive with memorable heroes and villains and brimming with new and original science and magics, D.M. Cornish's tale of scolds, scourges, smugglers and shrewds will thrill and captivate, and leave the reader desperate for more.
REVIEW:
OK, this book is one of the titles that I’ve been promising myself to read when I had some spare time. Whilst some of the elements within didn’t come across as a surprise (due to having read the second novel Lamplighter) it certainly filled in some of the gaps such as the huge amount of world building that has gone on within.
It’s seriously good fun and whilst different to a lot of other Young Adult titles out there, is definitely one that I’d sell as a crossover to help get your reader into more adult titles. In fact, its so good that its one that I got a huge blast from and proves that solid world building with great characters will carry the reader into a world with no budget, few rules and above all else a series that they not only deserve but one that will be revisited time and again. I seriously can’t wait for the third part, but before that, chance for a reread of the second one. Pure bliss.
Release Date: 07/05/09
BOOK BLURB:
Rossamund Bookchild has successfully negotiated the treacherous route to High Vesting. But even within the sturdy walls of the great city he is far from safe. For the path to becoming a Lamplighter is fraught with dangers - and not just from the dread monsters who lurk in the wilds. Rossamund will need all his wits to survive his training. And he must watch his back too, for enemies from his past are never far behind. Stunning in scope and rich in detail, alive with memorable heroes and villains and brimming with new and original science and magics, D.M. Cornish's tale of scolds, scourges, smugglers and shrewds will thrill and captivate, and leave the reader desperate for more.
REVIEW:
Originally, when this tale landed, the first thing I noted was that this was a second book in the series. Generally, I'm quite loathed to start a tale part way through as you generally have missed a lot of the world building along with the opportunity to get to know the principle protagonist in the way that other readers have. So at a bit of a loss as to what to do I promised myself that I'd read the first 50 pages and see where it took me. If I didn't like it, I'd put it down and leave it until I obtained the first book (if there was promise) or forever condemn it to purgatory on my own Hell Shelf (jokingly called so as the lowest levels are reserved for books that should never see the light of day again) if I really didn't rate it.
What unfurled really demonstrated that I have to now get the original. Not that you can't read this tale without having enjoyed the first instalment, you can, but because the world building, along with the protagonist and the myriad of other cast members is so beautifully sculpted you just can't help to fall in love with all of them. Special note here to Mr Numps who's a firm personal favourite whilst the stories villains also deserve note, in this case the Master of Clerks whose personal goals are well performed chess moves worthy of any true villain. It's wonderfully constructed. It's a cracking story but above all it's world building at its best demonstrating a quality that makes this an absolute must read. It might appear a bit thick for the normal YA out there but at the end of the day you really don't notice it especially with all the additional goodies contained in the appendices.
Release Date: 28/10/10
BOOK BLURB:
Not all monsters look like monsters. Some everyday folk are the worst monsters of all ...Rossamund Bookchild's lamplighting career has been brought to a dramatic close. Now he is faced with a new life as personal servant to Europe, an elegant and powerful monster-hunter. As Rossamund settles into his new home, he finally discovers the true story of his origins, a story that must remain hidden if he is to survive in a land divided by the conflict between men and monsters. But now that he knows the truth about where he comes from, how can Rossamund play his role as assistant to a professional monster-hater? Only his loyalty to Europe keeps him by her side as they embark on a dangerous monster-hunting tour that can only end in tragedy...
REVIEW:
The third title in the Monster Blood Tattoo series and perhaps the most gripping one yet, as our hero, Rosamund is now the Factotum of the most famous monster hunter. It’s gripping, it’s definitely a title that will keep the readers entertained as we share the dangers, the thrills and above all else the struggle to keep Rosamund out of the hands of those who would do him harm.
DM has definitely done the series proud and with taking it in a new direction the next title will be something even more special. With a whole host of superb supporting cast members backed up with great prose, some top notch illustrations and a comprehensive guide you really are in for a treat. The only real downside to the this title is that you have to read the rest of the series to fully understand it even though there’s a great glossary on hand otherwise you won’t get the full flavour of this complicated world that will put a number of adult titles to shame. Seriously good fantasy and one that as an adult I can appreciate as well as savour. Great stuff.
