Review - Pantomime By Laura Lam

"R. H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass—remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone—are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimaera is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide.

Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.

But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada." taken from Goodreads

I'd been seeing the cover image for this popping up in the blogging world quite a bit and was understandably very drawn to it straight away.  I guess I did a fair bit of judging a book by its cover, as I knew I wanted to read it before I knew anything much about it.  Luckily for me the cover wasn't deceptive!!

The cover is gorgeous.  I love the vintage style image of the girl, with just the touches of colour in the background showing the circus.  I guess I hadn't thought of circus' being places filled with secrets before and the fact that the cover girl seems to be going 'Ssssh' is a fantastic little touch.

The story kicks off with two characters in two seasons (spring & summer) Its two totally different environments that I really couldn't see much to connect them, but that made the reading all the more enjoyable as I was fascinated with both landscapes.  I couldn't decide which one I wanted to read about more.

The alternating chapters / Characters are so well written and flow so well.  It kept the reading exciting.

It takes quite some time to learn what links the characters and to say I was shocked is a huge understatement.  I just didn't see it coming but also didn't expect this type of occurrence in an olde worlde setting (I love trying to be cryptic)  This also goes to prove my extreme naivety once again!!

After the link reveal I have to say that I started to feel hugely conflicted by the actions of individuals in the book.  I could totally understand why they took the actions that they did but it just didn't feel right and by this time I was so involved in the story that I felt somewhat conspiritory in what was happening.  I felt guilty and that's something I've never felt before from reading - its pretty genius!!

The conclusion to the story left my head spinning.  I actually stayed up to the early hours of the morning because I just needed to know what was going to happen.  I was shocked by some of the events and then just questioning what was happening here or what did this mean or why did this happen?  I'm just praying that a book 2 is in the works as I NEED some things filled in pronto!!!

Pantomime is a fascinating, exciting, thought provoking, colourful read that kept me intrigued for hours (especially some really boring hours at the hospital - this book was my Savior then)  Its left me dying to know more about the circus!!!

Rating 4 Out Of 5

Published In The UK By Strange Chemistry

This Can Be Purchased HERE and From good book retailers

Letterbox Love (14)

  Letterbox Love Is Hosted By The Fabulous Lynsey over at Narratively Speaking.  Its a fun way for us to showcase our weeks new books here in the UK

Book links will take you to Amazon UK

I was away last weekend so missed out a LL - Whoops!  But back this week with lots of fab goodies!

Received

From Strange Chemistry

Pantomime By Laura Lam

From Simon & Schuster

Infinite Sky By C.J. Flood

Through To You By Emily Hainsworth

Signed Sticker From Karen Mahoney, via the wonderful Jenny at Wondrous Reads

Bought

 Grisha Posters For The Gathering Dark / Shadow & Bone By Leigh Bardugo

Made By Goodnight Kittens

Thank you SO much to everyone that sent me books and stuff - you ROCK!!

Review - Poltergeeks By Sean Cummings

"15-year-old Julie Richardson is about to learn that being the daughter of a witch isn't all it's cracked up to be. When she and her best friend, Marcus, witness an elderly lady jettisoned out the front door of her home, it's pretty obvious to Julie there's a supernatural connection.

In fact, there's a whisper of menace behind increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over town. After a large-scale paranormal assault on Julie's high school, her mother falls victim to the spell Endless Night. Now it's a race against time to find out who is responsible or Julie won't just lose her mother's soul, she'll lose her mother's life." taken from goodreads

The first thing that definitely drew me to this book was the cover.  Its just the coolest imagery, to me it has a very comic book look, which blends well with the characters in the book both being into everything geektastic.  It also tells you a whole lot about the story, which is always handy for picking a read suited to you!!

From the get go, you really get that Julie the lead character is a hell of a sassy teen.  The narration is totally contemporary, but then you have a supernatural twist on it.  It really makes it for teens of today, so in that case I'm not sure of the long term reader appeal on this.

I have to say quite often I felt really frustrated with Julie.  Now this could partly be down to me getting older and not being as youthful but I just wanted Julie to listen to the advice her Mum would give her or actually speak to an elder.  I couldn't read a reason for her to be so rebellious and so came my annoyance.  I do also understand that the story wouldn't have gone very far if she hadn't of been a tad naughty, so in that end it was needed.

For me this did feel like a very fictional world - of course it is fictional but when reading I love to be able to think about how things would work if this was real life.  This just didn't have anything that I could see actually being real.  For this it had a kind of Charmed / Sabrina the Teenage witch feel - both shows that I really enjoyed, so it didn't make the book a bad experience, just a different experience.

Something that I really loved about the book was the setting of Calgary in Canada.  I've never actually been there but my best friend moved there when we were teenagers, so it was fun reading of places that she had mentioned to me.  I now want to go to Tim Hortons even more!

There is definite room for expansion on the story.  There are quite a few loose ends that would be great to see built on or sorted once and for all!

A fun, sassy read for teens of today, that like a hint of magic!!

Rating 3 Out Of 5

Published In The UK By Strange Chemistry

This Can Be Purchased HERE and from all good book retailers

Books That Make Me Go Oooooh (52) Pantomime By Laura Lam

Waiting On Wednesday is a brilliant book blog feature hosted by Breaking The Spine     

Pantomime By Laura Lam
Published In The UK By Strange Chemistry
Due For Release February 2013
Amazon Link
Goodreads Link

"R.H. Ragona's Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass -- remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone -- are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It's a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimaera is still there. It's a place where anyone can hide.

Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist's apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.

But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada"

WOW, just WOW!!  This is definitely an exciting premise for a book, bringing together so many factors that I LOVE!!  This can't come soon enough!!

Strange Chemistry News

Lots of exciting news has been coming from Strange Chemistry towers, they really know how to treat us well!

First Up

New Signing BRYONY PEARCE

We are delighted to bring you the news today that we have signed a truly wonderful talent in the form of Bryony Pearce. Her novel The Weight of Souls is due from Strange Chemistry in Autumn 2013, and the deal was made between me and Juliet Mushens of PFD.

ABOUT BRYONY PEARCE

Bryony Pearce completed an English Literature degree at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge in 1998 and afterwards worked in the research industry.  After a while she moved to a village at the edge of the Peak District and went freelance so she could devote more time to writing.  Her first book, the award winning Angel's Fury, was published by Egmont in 2011.  She is now a full time mother to two children, writes as much as possible and enjoys doing school visits and events when she can fit them in.  Her agent is Juliet Mushens at PFD.  For more information on Bryony, please visit her website www.bryonypearce.co.uk and @BryonyPearce

ABOUT THE WEIGHT OF SOULS

16 year old Taylor Oh is cursed: if she is touched by the ghost of a murder victim then they pass a mark beneath her skin. She has three weeks to find their murderer and pass the mark to them - letting justice take place and sending them into the Darkness. And if she doesn't make it in time? The Darkness will come for her... She spends her life trying to avoid ghosts, make it through school where she's bullied by popular Justin and his cronies, keep her one remaining friend, and persuade her father that this is real and that she's not going crazy.

And then Justin is murdered and everything gets a whole lot worse. Justin doesn't know who killed him, so there's no obvious person for Taylor to go after. The clues she has lead her to the V Club, a vicious secret society at her school where no one is allowed to leave... And where Justin was dared to do the stunt which led to his death. Can she find out who was responsible for his murder before the Darkness comes for her? Can she put aside her hatred for her former bully to truly help him? And what happens if she starts to fall for him?

Second Up

Cover Reveal THE HOLDERS By JULIANNA SCOTT

17-year-old Becca has spent her whole life protecting her brother – from their father leaving and from the people who say the voices in his head are unnatural. When two strangers appear with apparent answers to Ryland’s “problem” and details about a school in Ireland where Ryland will not only fit in, but prosper, Becca is up in arms..

She reluctantly agrees to join Ryland on his journey and what they find at St. Brigid’s is a world beyond their imagination. Little by little they piece together information about their family’s heritage and the legend of the Holder race that decrees Ryland is the one they’ve been waiting for—but they are all, especially Becca, in for a surprise that will change what they thought they knew about themselves and their kind.

Books That Make Me Go Oooooh - POLTERGEEKS By Sean Cummings

Waiting On Wednesday is a brilliant book blog feature hosted by Breaking The Spine  

Poltergeeks By Sean Cummings
Published In The UK By Strange Chemistry
Due For Release 4th October 2012
Amazon LINK

15-year-old Julie Richardson is about to learn that being the daughter of a witch isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. When she and her best friend, Marcus, witness an elderly lady jettisoned out the front door of her home, it’s pretty obvious to Julie there’s a supernatural connection.

In fact, there’s a whisper of menace behind increasing levels of poltergeist activity all over town. After a large-scale paranormal assault on Julie’s high school, her mother falls victim to the spell Endless Night. Now it’s a race against time to find out who is responsible or Julie won’t just lose her mother’s soul, she’ll lose her mother’s life.

I must admit I have absolute cover lust for this one.  That is just the coolest cover I have seen in some time.  Thankfully the story sounds just incredible though.  I can't wait to get this beauty!!!

Letterbox Love (3 to 6)

Letterbox Love Is Hosted By The Fabulous Lynsey over at Narratively Speaking.  Its a fun way for us to showcase our weeks new books here in the UK

Book links will take you to Amazon UK

 Not going to lie I've not been around for quite some time.  Life just got in the way for a while and for some reason I couldn't handle the thought of trying to fit in blogging.  I'm now going to make a real effort to sort myself out and get back to some normality.

FOR REVIEW

From Harper Collins

The Selection By Kiera Cass

From Strange Chemistry

Shift By Kim Curran

 Blackwood By Gwenda Bond

From Simon And Schuster

 The Age Of Miracles By Karen Thompson Walker

 Wentworth Hall By Abby Grahame

From Macmillan

Dark Inside By Jeyn  Roberts

From Quercus

Shattered Dreams By Ellie James

Taken By Storm By Jennifer Lynn Barnes

From Atom

Hades By Alexandra Adornetto

From Andersen Press

Grave Mercy By Robin LaFevers

From Indigo / Orion

The Gathering Dark By Leigh Bardugo

The Masque Of The Red Death By Bethany Griffin

From Randomhouse

Seraphina By Rachel Hartman

BOUGHT

Harry Potter - Film Wizardry

.....Phew that's the lot!!  I just need to get some more hours to read them all!!!

What did you get?? x

Any Budding UK YA Fantasy Writers - WE WANT YOU

Well when I say we I actually mean STRANGE CHEMISTRY.  Strange Chemistry are the new YA imprint of Angry Robot Books.  They are due to release some amazingly exciting Sci-Fi / Fantasy books from Autumn 2012. 

Now here comes the really exciting part for any potential authors out there.  In April they are going to be running an open door event for new book submissions.  The basic provisos are that you -

• Write YA

• Has to be in a sci fi, fantasy, horror genre

• You are previously Unpublished

• You are from the UK

For full details look HERE   Make sure you do read it all thoroughly, don't want anyone ending up disappointed!

The open door period runs from 16th April to 30th April

Good Luck!!!

Strange Chemistry News

The awesome new imprint from Angry Robot Books 'STRANGE CHEMISTRY' have been teasing us for a while now, with their official release launch in September.  We've been waiting to hear of authors signed to this exciting new company and we finally have the release of TWO authors names & their exciting books!

First Up -

SHIFT By KIM CURRAN

This is a Science Fiction thriller with a sequel planned for 2013!!

Second -


POLTERGEEKS By SEAN CUMMINGS

This is a Teen urban fantasy that is said to be dark & funny - the perfect combo!!  A Follow-up to this is also planned for 2013

You can find all the thrilling details to the announcement On Strange Chemistry's website.  I for one am super excited for this new publishing group!!!