Early Review: Zenn Scarlett

Zenn Scarlett

Christian Schoon

 Publisher: Strange Chemistry

 When you're studying to be exoveterinarian specializing in exotic, alien life forms, school... is a different kind of animal. Zenn Scarlett is a resourceful, determined 17-year-old girl working hard to make it through her novice year of exovet training. That means she's learning to care for alien creatures that are mostly large, generally dangerous and profoundly fascinating. Zenn’s all-important end-of-term tests at the Ciscan Cloister Exovet Clinic on Mars are coming up, and, she's feeling confident of acing the exams. But when a series of inexplicable animal escapes and other disturbing events hit the school, Zenn finds herself being blamed for the problems. As if this isn't enough to deal with, her absent father has abruptly stopped communicating with her; Liam Tucker, a local towner boy, is acting unusually, annoyingly friendly; and, strangest of all: Zenn is worried she's started sharing the thoughts of the creatures around her. Which is impossible, of course. Nonetheless, she can't deny what she's feeling. Now, with the help of Liam and Hamish, an eight-foot sentient insectoid also training at the clinic, Zenn must learn what's happened to her father, solve the mystery of who, if anyone, is sabotaging the cloister, and determine if she's actually sensing the consciousness of her alien patients... or just losing her mind. All without failing her novice year...

More than anything Zenn wants to be an exovet so she can look after and care for all the strange and unusual aliens creatures found across the solar system. Unfortunately her dreams are endangered by the situation on Mars particularly local residents who object to having a cloister full of ‘monsters’ just down the road.

Zenn is a nice character – determined and slightly lonely, but bright and genuinely cares about the creatures she works with. Her friend, Hamish the giant bug is a wonderful character who is struggling to adjust to human society compared to his own hive-like world. However, I found some of the other characters a little flat. The locals sudden dislike of the cloister and it’s residents doesn’t feel motivated by much - it feels like a very superficial dislike and Zenn’s uncle is just a distant caring authority figure who doesn’t really develop a personality. Her love interest Liam is also a little flat to me. However, considering this is a teen book I can forgive some of these elements as morals to impart consider what else is happening.

And there is much happening in this story with multiply sub-plots with the obligatory teen romance, the locals dislike of the cloister and the animals under their care, Zenn’s strange affinity for the animals, her Mother’s death, the political situation between Earth and Mars and the missing interstellar spaceships. However, it doesn’t feel crowded with the pace unfolding at a steady rate and little hints and breadcrumbs from each plot dropped carefully throughout the story. This weaving of the story lines is very good if you are a little bored with one type of story - personally Teen romance just doesn’t push my buttons much these days so I was happy that even this area was linked to the locals dislike of the cloister. I’m really intrigued with the disappearing spaceships and what happened to Zenn’s Mother and both of these areas are teased and hinted at but not resolved – awaiting the sequel to find out more!

The writing is very competent and the fantastic description of these truly alien creatures and how they actually work is wonderfully done. These creatures do add a lot of colour and vibrancy to the story and really makes Zenn stand out from other YA stories at the moment. Overall, I enjoyed the plots and pacing and the unusual setting even if some parts of the characters and plots are a little generic. Looking forward to seeing what the wider worlds hold for Zenn though and will definitely be picking up the sequel

Recommended for fans of Laura Lam and Sarah Alderson. 8 out of 10

World Book Night - What I got Up To!

23^rd April was World Book Night!! I’m afraid it’s taken me a little while longer than I had hoped to write my day, but as often happens, life gets in the way of fictional fun!

The box of books for me to giveaway

 So I volunteered to be a Book Giver this year and was so happy to be accepted. I decided I was going to give my 20 books away at work. I’m very lucky that a lot of my friends are also big readers and I have frequent book-y conversations with them all the time! However, very few of my friends and colleagues at work are big readers. It’s well known that most of my reading is done on the train on the way to and from the office but my colleagues either drive, listen to music or peruse the Metro rather than opening a book. So I thought it would be nice to hand out the books to people who don’t read as much as me!

The book I choose I was The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde – a book I first read at university over ten years and adored. It’s set in an alternative 1985 where Dodo’s are house-pets and the Crimean War never ended. The heroine is Thursday Next, a literary detective who investigates crimes against books. It has mystery, action, hilarious jokes, satire, fantasy, romance and just surreally inventive ideas – in other words, something for everyone.

Special Edition of The Eyre Affair!

As well as the book, I also brought in some homemade rocky road bites (melted chocolate, cornflakes and marshmallows), cookies, party rings and some freshly made popcorn – the best way into my colleagues affections has always been through their stomachs! At eleven am I pulled everyone together told them what I was doing. I handed out all the books and unveiled the treats. Everyone was pretty amazed and surprised to be getting a book, but also happy and touched. Quite a few said they really should read more and were inspired to start reading that day on the train home. A couple others said they were going to take it on holiday with them later in May as a holiday read. What was nice is that we have quite a few non-British nationals in the office and the handful of French and Norwegian were keen to read a book in English!

Overall, it was a nice event and celebration in what is normally a pretty dull office life and I hope I inspired a few of them to try reading even slightly more. I am definitely keen to take part again next year! J

My Book Haul / Showcase Sundays

This is Books, Biscuits and Tea's Showcase Sunday where I share my lovely book hauls each week. Have a look back at Vicki's link up to see what everyone is up too!

This week was far too long for my liking! Still in the UK it's a long weekend so I get a lie-in tomorrow...much needed!

I finished reading the second Lily Bard book - Shakespeare's Champion by Charlaine Harris, an enjoyable mystery that was less cosy and more violent. I also read The Lady of the Rivers by Phillippa Gregory - a very enjoyable historical fiction and Immortal Eclipse by Sherry Soule - a nice atmospheric paranormal fantasy.

This week was a bit of a bumper week for me with a couple of pre-orders turning up and a little spending in The Works. No excuse - I just love buying books! Added to that a couple of unexpected review books arrived so books in definitely out weighed books read!

For Review

Stung - Bethany Wiggins

Publisher: Bloomsbury

In a world in crisis, children are the future. Part of the cure. Not now. Children are deadly. Marked one to ten. Fiona is a TEN. She just doesn't know it yet . . . She doesn't know her true strength. 
Fiona doesn't remember going to sleep. But she has woken to find her entire world has changed - her house is abandoned and broken, and her neighbourhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right wrist that she doesn't remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost. And she's right. When the honeybee population collapsed, a worldwide pandemic occurred and the government tried to bio-engineer a cure. But instead the vaccination turned people into ferocious, deadly beasts. They have been branded as a warning to unvaccinated survivors. Key people needed to rebuild society are protected inside a fortress-like wall. Fiona has awakened branded, alone and on the wrong side of the wall ...

I do like the odd dystopian story and this sounds like an intriguing story!

Transcendence - C.J. Omololu

Publisher: Bloomsbury

When a visit to the Tower of London triggers an overwhelmingly real vision of a beheading that occurred centuries before, Cole Ryan fears she is losing her mind. A mysterious boy, Griffon Hall, comes to her aid, but the intensity of their immediate connection seems to open the floodgate of memories even wider. As their feelings grow, Griffon reveals their common bond as members of the Akhet-an elite group of people who can remember past lives and use their collected wisdom for the good of the world. But not all Akhet are altruistic, and a rogue is after Cole to avenge their shared past. Now in extreme danger, Cole must piece together clues from many lifetimes. What she finds could ruin her chance at a future with Griffon, but risking his love may be the only way to save them both.

Teen romance isn't really my thing at the moment but I can be seduced by a pretty cover and the idea of reincarnation...

Bought

Bronze Gods - A.A. Aguirre

Publisher: Ace Fantasy

Hy Breasil is grimmer than it used to be.
Before the Architect closed the door, there were regular crossings, and a great war decimated both humans and Ferishers. The native fae who refused to treat with the invaders faded; their bodies withered and died, stranding them as hungry, angry spirits that haunt the countryside.
That means there’s always trouble brewing in Dorstaad.
Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko work for the Criminal Investigation Department, keeping citizens safe from things that go bump in the night. He’s a hardboiled cynic with an uncanny sixth sense; she’s determined to justify her promotion as the first female detective in her division. Together, they’re trying to keep a black tide from drowning the city.
But when the second body surfaces, murdered with the same type of infernal device, the entire CID must face the truth. There’s a madman on the loose, twining magic and blood… and only Mikani and Ritsuko can unravel the intricate, lethal conspiracy before the Royale killer completes his macabre plan, unleashing old, forbidden magic on an unsuspecting populace. If the maniac succeeds, it could mean the end of everything...

This is one of my pre-orders that arrived this week. I love the Ann Aguirre Corine Solomon series and I do enjoy a bit of steampunk so this was a no-brainer purchase for me!

Oath Bound (Unbound #3) - Rachel Vincent

Publisher: Harlequin MIRA

The Tower Syndicate will fall... The secret daughter of the head of an infamous Skilled crime family, Sera Brandt has hidden her past, her potential and especially her powers. But when a tragedy strikes her other family, Sera needs justice. And the only way to get it is to reveal her heritage–including a rare Skill–and take the reins of the Tower Syndicate from her cunning and malicious aunt. 
If he can figure out how... 
Kristopher Daniels might have the answer. He's fought the syndicate to protect his sisters, but he'd never realized just how close to the new heir he needed to get.... 
And if they can survive 
Neither is used to trusting. But there's something between them that can't be ignored. And so Sera is on the run with a man she can't figure out, a target on her back and the new knowledge of just how powerful she really is...

I really enjoyed Rachel's Shifter series so I've been buying the Unbound books and the pre-order on this one arrived this week. This is the last one in the trilogy (I think!) so now I can read all of them with little waiting!

The Secret Hour - Scott Westerfeld

Publisher: Atom

Nobody is safe in the secret hour.

Strange things happen at midnight in the town of Bixby, Oklahoma.

Time freezes. Nobody moves.

For one secret hour each night, the town belongs to the dark creatures that haunt the shadows. Only a small group of people know about the secret hour -- only they are free to move about the midnight time.

These people call themselves Midnighters. Each one has a different power that is strongest at midnight: Seer, Mindcaster, Acrobat, Polymath. For years the Midnighters and the dark creatures have shared the secret hour, uneasily avoiding one another. All that changes when the new girl with an unmistakable midnight aura appears at Bixby High School.

Jessica Day is not an outsider like the other Midnighters. She acts perfectly normal in every way. But it soon becomes clear that the dark creatures sense a hidden power in Jessica . . . and they're determined to stop her before she can use it.

I've been eyeing this book up in The Works for a while and I cracked this week!

So what have you picked up this week...?

Always There Review

Always There

Carol Ann Albright Eastman

Kindle Book

Shelby Lynn LeeMaster grapples with her recent “orphaned” life and how to let down her guard to fully experience true love, allowing it in to her heart without fear. The mother, Betheny LeeMaster, struggles with dying before she could teach and guide her children into adulthood. The daughter cannot break from her own fears, while the mother cannot forgive herself for leaving her children too soon. The different narrators, the mother in Heaven and the daughter on Earth, tell their stories in alternating chapters. Can the two women reconcile their fears and remorse before it’s too late, and Shelby loses the one man she’s destined to be with?

This isn’t my usual type of book but when Carol contacted me with a lovely email and told me what it was about I admit I decided to give it a chance. Having recently lost my mum, the story of a mother in heaven hoping she’d done alright by her children and a daughter on earth struggling to cope with more loss touched me.

Told in first person by both narrators it really allows us to get under the skin of each character – their hopes and fears and reactions to events. Being part of a large family, there are aunts and siblings everywhere, but despite that large support system both Shelby, the daughter and Bethany, the mother feel alone and different and both are grieving for what they have lost. I felt my heart go out to both ladies as life and loss have battered their hearts. They keep secrets – Shelby especially as she keeps locking her heart to new love in order to avoid the pain. Those feelings are not alien and the way they are dealt with is both moving and beautiful. At the same time the characters are fully rounded and I did enjoy a lot of the discussions between siblings and the feeling of family between them made me smile.

The writing is melodic and wonderful – it certainly doesn’t feel like a debut novel but a competent and inspiring author. I can’t help feeling the book was very personal to Carol as well. The story has a truly timeless quality to it and the unique way in which the afterlife is portrayed makes a lot of sense. While the story will pull at your heartstrings, it is not overwrought but beautifully done – invocative and realistic. I felt for the characters and just wanted to give Shelby a hug! I

Recommended for fans of Adriana Trigiani and Joanne Harris. 9 out of 10

Early Review: The Disgrace of Kitty Grey

The Disgrace of Kitty Grey

Mary Hooper

Publisher: Bloomsbury - Released 8th May 2013

 Ecopy Courtesy of Netgalley and Bloomsbury

Kitty is living a happy, carefree life as a dairymaid in the countryside. The grand family she is employed by looks after her well, and she loves her trade, caring for the gentle cows and working in the cool, calm dairy. And then, of course, there is Will, the river man who she thinks is very fond of her, and indeed she is of him. Surely he will ask her to marry him soon? Then one day disaster strikes: Will disappears. Kitty is first worried and then furious. She fears that Will has only been leading her on all this time, and has now gone to London to make his fortune, forgetting about her completely. So when Kitty is asked to go to London to pick up a copy of Pride and Prejudice, the latest novel by the very fashionable Jane Austen, Kitty leaps at the chance to track down Will. But Kitty has no idea how vast London is, and how careful she must be.

Set in Regency England, the story follows milk maid, Kitty Grey who is left with her beau’s young sister after he disappears. She follows him to London with Betsy, the sister and finds herself getting deeper and deeper into trouble. It is amazing how quickly Kitty manages to lose her money and without instant communication that we enjoy today is stranded and friendless. The time is not easy on Kitty especially as she has a young child to look after – which most people assume is hers. A lot of people look down on her because of this and she easily finds herself on the wrong side of the law, even without meaning too. The law doesn’t seem fair and is weighted towards those with money.

Once again Mary Hooper has managed to capture the atmosphere and tone of the era with London bustling, crowded and moving towards a city we might recognise now as well as the gentle country life that hasn’t changed in years of Kitty’s home. I adore the way that the environments described come to life with the sights, sound and smell stirring all senses. Kitty is a sympathic character if naïve and her trials really make you feel for her. The writing is layered simplicity which draws you in, involves your senses, invokes emotions and teaches all at the same time.

This is not a long book and I was able to read it in a couple of sittings, but for those who love and appreciate historical stories with a splash of romance, then Mary Hooper is the author for you. I am a complete fan and still have a couple of book from her back catalogue I want to start reading soon!

Recommended for fans of Ceclia Rees and Sophie MacKenzie. 8 out of 10

What Shall I Read This May?? + GIVEAWAY

Last month you lot couldn't make your minds up and I had two books to read from my ever growing TBR pile - Shakespeare's Landlord by Charlaine Harris (a cosy mystery with a disturbed heroine) and The Red Tree by Caitlin R Kiernan (a ghost story with a disturbed heroine). Both were good reads and one's a I would recommend. The Red Tree especially has been playing on mind since I finished it. Both filled a need for a little mystery reading...

So what is this all about? I realised the other day that I've been doing these Throwback Thursday posts inspired by Melissa at My World...in words and pictures for nearly year now - I have posted about over 100 books I own but I have hardly read any yet. So on the first Thursday of each month I will post a poll highlighting all the Throwback Thursday books I've highlighted in the last month plus one of the older Throwbacks and ask you to pick which book I should read. The most popular book after 5 days or so, will be picked up by me and actually read and (hopefully!) reviewed by the end of the month. However, in thanks I will also offer anyone who enters a copy of any book from my TBR Shelf. This way older books get a lot of love from both of us!


So to summarise -
- Pick a book you want me to read from my Throwback Thursday's posts and be in with a chance to win a book for yourself from my TBR pile for your own - check my TBR Shelf at the top for some other books that I need to get round to reading!
- I'll ship it out to from the Book Depository or fishpond so it will be open internationally.
- Leave a comment for an extra entry telling my why I should read your choice!
- Open to followers only (Sorry, but I want to reward those who stop by regularly! Also I'm not advertising or publicising this giveaway so it's just for those who read my blog regularly!)
- Poll closes midnight on Tuesday 7th May - I will try to announce the winning book and lucky follower, by next Thursday.

This month has a little bit of an mix as I looked a variety of book in genres I haven't read much from in a while! You can go to the original posts to see what I said about them if you click on them.

The Long Earth - Terry Prachett & Stephen Baxter

Meet Me At The Cupcake Cafe - Jenny Colgan

 

The Light of Other Days - Arthur C Clarke & Stephen Baxter

Sixty-One Nails - Mike Shevdon
 

Early Review: Brush With Death

Brush with Death (The Gray Whale Inn Mysteries #5)

Karen MacInerney

Publisher: Midnight Ink Books – To Be Released 8^th May 2013

Review Copy Courtesy of Netgalley and Midnight Ink Books

With an upcoming gallery show and a popular artist visiting Cranberry Island, art is on everyone's minds--especially innkeeper Natalie Barnes. When Gwen, Natalie's niece, is invited to present her paintings at the art show, Natalie is torn between worrying about stressed out Gwen, the arrival of her future mother-in-law, and the threat of foreclosure on the Gray Whale Inn. But then Natalie finds Gwen's mentor dead. Will she uncover the truth behind this murder masterpiece?

I haven’t read any of the previous Gray Whale Inn stories but I was able to jump straight into the story and join Natalie with only a slight wobble at the beginning as what felt like a hundred characters were thrown at me in the first couple of chapters. After that though I was able to follow the immensely likeable Natalie and her friends and family as they prepared to welcome a famous artist to their island. Previous stories would probably make me appreciate some of the character development better but to be honest I never felt like I was missing out.

This was a fun, light read that just brought a smile to my face. The descriptions of food that Natalie cooks where mouth watering – and I was pleasantly surprised to find the recipes for most of them at the back of book – I will be sampling some of them soon! The story ambles along – not too slowly but never more than a brisk walk as Natalie and her fellow islanders debate suicide verses murder and gay rights all while knitting, baking and painting.

Comfortably in the cosy mystery groove which only changes towards the end when the murder is revealed when some real peril occurs for the first time. The murderer and motive are not a huge surprise but that’s almost beside the point. In fact even the murder seems like a sub-plot as I was more worried Natalie’s financial woes and her niece’s art show, than an crime. I will have a look to see if I can find any of the other books in this series as they are the literary equivalent of chocolate chip cookies and milk: sweet, tasty and familiar.

Recommended for fans of Janet Evanovich and Joanna Fluke. 8 out of 10