Top Ten Halloween Reads

I haven't done a Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish) in ages, and this week's theme is a really fun one, so here goes!

Top Ten Books to Read During Halloween

Well, for me, Halloween isn't necessarily about horror. Or rather, it's not just about the scares. It's also fun, colourful, a litte cheesy, a little goofy, funny, and a bit wicked. For me, it's about the supernatural more than serial killer horror; it's about wonder and magic, about the lines between worlds becoming thinner for one night. So with that in mind, here are my top ten Halloween reads...

1) The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman. This book just sums up Halloween for me. It's the perfect read for this time of year!

2) Interview with the Vampire, by Anne Rice. The ultimate gothic vampire book. A must-read for vampire fans. The whole series is good, so if you like his one, carry on to later books too!

3) The Bartimaeus Series, beginning with The Amulet of Samarkand, by Jonathan Stroud. An alternate London run by warlocks, a charismatic demon, and lots of fun. This is a fantastic series and highly recommended.

4) The Whitby Witches, by Robin Jarvis. This is a must for a Halloween read. Witches, sea-people, weird goings on as the mist rolls into Whitby. Atmospheric and entertaining!

5) Strangewood, by Christopher Golden. A very creepy and definitely adult read. This fits in with Halloween's 'line between worlds' idea in an unexpected way. This is a book that's stayed with me a long long time after reading it.

6) Carpe Jugulum, by Terry Pratchett. This is a Discworld book, but you don't need to have read others in the series to enjoy it. Vampires and witches and very funny!

7) Poison, by Chris Wooding. Oh god the spiders... and they're far from being the creepiest part. This is a brilliantly written book that offers a fun, scary tale, with a fantastic ending.

8) The Neverending Story, by Michael Ende. It's funny how many of these books have a similar idea running through them, actually. Perhaps books that make me question the reality of my own existence are oddly the scariest kind for me? Anyway, this has plenty of weird beasties in it too. A classic, and always fun.

9) The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, by Catherynne M. Valente. This is another book like The Graveyard Book that just seems perfectly suited to Halloween. A slightly sinister but charming view of fairyland, which involves a trip to a land of always-Autumn.

10) Hollow Pike, by James Dawson. Witches, strange dreams, and a killer in a small Yorkshire town.This is a fun, creepy YA story that captures something of the feeling of old R. L. Stine books.

What are your Halloween reads? This year I'll be at World Fantasy Con, so I'm not entirely sure what I'll be doing on the night. Over the Halloween period I think I might read Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake, which looks fantastic, and of course I'll be sticking on all the Buffy Halloween episodes. :-)

All Is Fair - Book Review

All Is Fair
by Emma Newman


WARNING – while there are no spoilers for this book, there are some spoilers for previous books in the series. I’d advise reading books and 1 and 2 before looking at this review.

William Iris struggles to keep the throne of Londinium whilst hated by his own court and beset by outsiders, while Cathy discovers the legacy of her former governess. But those who dare to speak out about Society are always silenced. Sometimes for good.

While trying to avoid further torments from the mercurial fae, Sam finds himself getting tangled in the affairs of the Elemental Court. But an unexpected offer from the powerful and enigmatic Lord Iron turns out to be far more than Sam bargained for.

Max and the gargoyle are getting closer to uncovering who is behind the murder of the Bath Chapter and the corruption in London and Max finds the gargoyle’s controversial ideas harder to ignore. Can he stay true to his sworn duty without being destroyed by his own master, whose insanity threatens to unravel them all? (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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I love this series! This is the third installment in the novels about the Split Worlds and its characters, and I enjoyed it just as much as the previous two.

As usual there’s plenty of intrigue as Max and the gargoyle continue their investigation, and Sam is pulled deeper into the mystery surrounding his wife and Lord Iron. We get to spend more time with Max and the gargoyle, which I loved, and there are some truly moving moments between them as they seem to grow closer together. It felt a little as if the soul was beginning to rub off on Max, and I thought he came across as more human in this book. There’s also a scene at the end that brought a lump to my throat.

I loved the way Sam’s storyline evolved in this book – I really wasn’t expecting this, and I’m curious to see how it will affect the power dynamics in the Split Worlds. Cathy is pushing ahead with her plans to help the women of the Nether, and this soon extends to anyone oppressed by the conventions and rules of her society. When she finds out the manipulative and disturbing actions of the Agency, she is determined to stop it. She’s taking on some powerful enemies now, and it’s fun and satisfying to see Cathy steadily gaining confidence and respect, and stepping up as a leader. I was a little disappointed with the way she treated her sister at one point, but it did make sense, and I think the problems from their past is something that will take a while to resolve.

And Will... when did I decide to forgive Will? It's been coming on so gradually, I hardly know. But I believe I must date it from his buying Cathy a library full of every science fiction book ever written. *nods*

Oh Will, just as he takes two steps forward, he takes one back again. I think Will’s journey has been a very believable one. He’s been hurt by the patriarchy of his society too, but has never dared to question it before. He cares a lot about what others think about him, and about his perceived responsibilities. But he also cares about people, and about Cathy, and the difference between him and his brutish brother, for example, is huge. He’s not as brave as Cathy, but in this book we can see him beginning to really admire her. When these two start working together properly, they’re going to be a formidable team!

This is a fun book, adding more characters and different perspectives on the Nether and the Split Worlds, plenty of humour and excitement, and a few revelations. It answers a lot of questions and wraps up all the main storylines nicely, leaving the book without a cliffhanger but with plenty of hints of things to come.This felt a little like the end of a season in a TV series, which has been wrapped up so that it could be the end if it needed to be. I'm not sure if this is the case here, but I do hope that the series continues. I want to know more about the world Emma Newman has created, and I'm not ready to say goodbye to these characters yet!


Thank you to Angry Robot and NetGalley for providing a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Glitter and Mayhem - Book Review

Glitter and Mayhem
Edited by John Klima, Lynne M. Thomas, and Michael Damian Thomas

Welcome to Glitter & Mayhem, the most glamorous party in the multiverse.

Step behind the velvet rope of these fabulous Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror tales of roller rinks, nightclubs, glam aliens, party monsters, drugs, sex, glitter, and debauchery.

Dance through nightclubs, roller derby with cryptids and aliens, be seduced by otherworldly creatures, and ingest cocktails that will alter your existence forever. Your hosts are the Hugo Award-winning editors John Klima (Electric Velocipede) and Lynne M. Thomas (Apex Magazine), and the Hugo-nominated editor Michael Damian Thomas (Apex Magazine). (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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Glitter and Mayhem is a short story anthology with the theme of glamour, parties, nightclubs, drugs, sex and rollerskating, all with a science fiction or fantasy element. The stories are all odd, some more so than others, and there’s a wonderful mix of fun, tongue-in-cheek, scary, thoughtful and sad. An anthology with this kind of theme could have suffered from stories that are all too similar in style and feel, but here this is not the case at all; the editors have managed to collect a really interesting mix.

This collection is a huge amount of fun, but it’s also refreshingly diverse in the characters, lifestyles, relationships and sex it explores. The most obvious theme of the anthology might be glamour and parties, but I think its strongest themes are acceptance, identity, and loving yourself for who you are.

As always with anthologies, there were some stories that didn’t grab me as much as others, but overall it’s a really strong collection. There are funny stories and straightforward stories and some with very clever twists. There are fairytale themes, aliens, the supernatural, the fae, and plenty of rollerskating!

Some of my favourite stories were:

Sooner Than Gold, by Cory Skerry, in which a door could lead to anywhere, but you might not like what’s on the other side.

Subterraneans, by William Shunn and Laura Chavoen, an interesting take on body-swapping.

Such & Such Said to So & So, by Maria Dahvana Headley, which plays with language in a clever little story about drinking and addiction.

Bess, the Landlord’s Daughter, Goes for Drinks with the Green Girl, by Sofia Samatar, a very weird and well-written story.

Blood and Sequins, by Diana Rowland, an unconventional approach to the cops-take-out-the-bad-guys story.

Inside Hides the Monster, by Damien Walters Grintalis, which explores how a siren might have difficulty adapting to modern music tastes.

Bad Dream Girl, by Seanan McGuire, a really fun story about roller derby teams with some unusual members.

A Hollow Play, by Amal El-Mohtar, which asks what people might be willing to give up for what they love, and how much they really value those things.

A really enjoyable anthology with a good variety of stories and styles!


Thank you to Apex Publications for providing a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Supernatural Freak - Book Review

Supernatural Freak

by Louisa Klein

When paranormal expert Robyn Wise is offered an outrageous sum of money to cure a boy who is turning into a dead tree, she's very sceptical. A politician ready to pay that much to make his son stop growing branches instead of hair? Come on! She's more likely to be abducted by aliens. This is a trap. Or much worse. And, of course, it's much worse.

The child is turning into a dark portal, created by a powerful entity determined to absorb Fairyland's power. This means that not only queen Titania and her court are in danger, but the very balance of the magic fluxes.

Robyn'd rather stick a pencil in her own eye but, to learn how to destroy the portal, she has to sneak into the Wizardry Council, a place full of wizards who are hiding something—though it’s certainly not their dislike of her. There, she discovers a terrible secret that could help to overthrow Fairyland's enemies for good, but puts her in the midst of an ancient and deadly war, and not as a bystander, but as the main target. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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I’m not quite sure where to begin with this review; I had such mixed reactions to the book. So, I’m going to begin by saying that, despite the issues I had with it, I really enjoyed reading it and laughed out loud at several points. The story was packed full of supernatural stuff, a little crazy, and a lot of fun.

The book is written in the voice of the main character, Robyn, who has a sarcastic and wry sense of humour, and who never seems to view the world or the dangerous situations she is in entirely seriously. This gives the book a lovely light-hearted feel, perhaps something akin to Buffy or Charmed, and there always seems to be a faintly teasing undertone, as if the author knows the story (and the whole genre) is a bit silly, and is going with it enthusiastically. There were points where the humour even seemed to take on a slightly camp or bizarre quality, and sections where I wasn’t entirely sure if I was supposed to be taking the characters/situation seriously or not. For instance, there is a wizard named Gock Wang. At first I thought this was Robyn’s nickname for him, but no, it does actually seem to be his real name. Strange... but kinda works. It’s that sort of book.

The characters themselves are mainly well written and interesting. I have a soft spot for supernatural fiction in which the heroine has a gang of helpers (again, that Buffy/Charmed feeling). I loved the idea of the stuffy but sweet ghost in Robyn’s attic, the geeks, the fun-loving uncle, and the magical friends. I also liked the brief glimpse of Robyn’s parents. One character, who looks set to become a love interest, was a little more irritating at points, and I found that some of Robyn’s uncle’s jokes fell very flat (but maybe they were supposed to!). Robyn herself is an oddball. She’s so flippant about the supernatural aspects of her life, but didn’t seem too impressed with the idea of saving the world. She seems a little wrapped up in her own world, and her little quirks (her collection of action figures based on a beloved cartoon, for instance) were wonderful. She does seem to stereotype people very easily, however, which became annoying. Overall, I thought all the different personality types of Robyn and her friends made a nice, fun mix.

Unfortunately, the characters’ speech was often jarring. Many of them sounded exactly like each other, or used colloquialisms that seemed out of place. Everyone called each other ‘mate’, from the modern characters to the wizards who have been alive for centuries, and even a faerie! At other points, slightly weird words and phrases called attention to themselves. ‘Cut a caper’ and ‘British aplomb’ are two that popped up a lot, and were very noticeable every time they did. I liked that the main character had such a mixed European background, and that she could speak several languages, but her obsession with ‘typical’ traits of each was a little weird. This was especially the case with British people, and so we are reminded constantly that the British should be unflappable and in control at all times.

The story itself was fun and incredibly fast-paced, which meant that the book was a very quick read. At points it did become almost a little jumbled, with perhaps just a bit too much going on. Having said that, the author does handle it well, and though it’s a bit of a whirlwind, she never lets it get out of control. Some bits felt a little unresolved – the abomination and the exact fate of the dark elf, for one – and everything was rounded off very suddenly at the end. However, this could have been to leave things open for a sequel, which I very much hope there will be! I would like to read more about these characters and their adventures.

The book has some issues, mainly with some out-of-place words and phrases and slightly awkward dialogue. There were also some bits that bemused me a little. But the story and characters are so much fun, and the quirky, wry, and sometimes bizarre humour really lifts the book. I enjoyed reading it. I think this has promise, and could become a great series. I’m definitely intrigued to read more!


Thank you to the author for providing a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Any Other Name - Book Review

Any Other Name
by Emma Newman

Cathy has been forced into an arranged marriage with William - a situation that comes with far more strings than even she could have anticipated, especially when she learns of his family's intentions for them both.

Meanwhile, Max and the gargoyle investigate The Agency - a mysterious organisation that appears to play by its own rules - and none of them favourable to Society.

Over in Mundanus, Sam has discovered something very peculiar about his wife's employer - something that could herald a change for everyone in both sides of the Split Worlds. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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Warning: slight spoilers if you haven't read the first book. 

I was really excited about this book as I loved the first one and was anxious to see what would happen next. It didn’t disappoint at all! The characters continue to be interesting, the stakes are even higher, and there is plenty of intrigue all round.

Cathy is now being forced into a marriage she does not want, and the author does a good job of making us feel the tension and desperation that Cathy is going through. This is really her worst nightmare coming true, and it soon gets even worse. It seems that Lord Poppy, insane and temperamental as he is, is nothing compared to Lord Iris, the Fae lord in charge of William’s (and now Cathy’s) family. Escape becomes even more unlikely, and Cathy’s situation even more dangerous.

Cathy now has to deal with the expectations of two powerful and manipulative Fae lords, as Lord Poppy has certainly not forgotten the painting and the Iris secret he’s demanded from her, and now Lord Iris has his own expectations too. I found the sinister interactions with the Fae even better than in the first book (have I mentioned how much I love evil Fae?), and, perhaps a bit worryingly, or perhaps in contrast to Lord Iris, I’m becoming really fond of Lord Poppy! He’s such a wonderful character, and has some fantastic lines.

In the first book I liked that Cathy didn’t give in on what she wanted. She argued, she fought, and she plotted, and she continues to do so in this book. Again, she doesn’t give Will an easy pass; he might be trying, but he’s really doing so for the wrong reasons. Cathy also faces up to her father a little more, and the two actually come slightly closer to understanding each other. It’s tragic that her father seems so intent on maintaining the status quo of their society, given his own history. The characters and their reactions all felt very believable to me, and the book doesn’t really pull punches or offer easy solutions. The patriarchy of the Nether society hurts everyone caught up in it, including Will, and yet so many seem determined to simply accept it.

However, there are also plenty who are unhappy, and who would perhaps fight for change if they felt they had allies. One of the best moments in the book is a scene in which Lucy makes Cathy realise that she is not as alone as she thinks. She is not the special, different girl who wants more independence; she is only one of many. This is where Cathy finally manages to stop looking down on the other women of Nether society, and begins to think about how she can try to change things. I liked how Cathy was able to see and admit her mistake in this, and that she immediately began to think about helping others.

Will, on the other hand, gave me some trouble in this book. I really want to like Will, but he seems far too eager to see himself as the victim simply because Cathy is ‘being awkward’. I think he’s learning, painfully slowly, but then... well, I don’t want to give away any spoilers but, let’s just say he really pushes into sinister territory here. And then it becomes clear that Will actually is a victim too, in a similar way, and despite the slightly disturbing poetic justice of this, I do feel sorry for him. And now he’s dealing with some heavy duty Nether society politics, and he really is a little too naive for all this. There are plots weaving around him, and he’s just as much the pawn of the Fae as Cathy. I’m definitely curious to see where the third book will take him after the dramatic events at the end of this book.

The storyline with the arbiter and the gargoyle, the wizards, and the mystery surrounding the destruction of the chapter continues in this book, though it is really Cathy and Will who are centre stage. This was a bit of a shame, as I really love the arbiter and the gargoyle, and am dying to know what’s going on behind the scenes here and how it all connects to the Fae and the Rosas. I love Sam and enjoyed seeing him become a bigger character, and am really intrigued by the introduction of Lord Iron. Just as with Cathy and Will, things are becoming more sinister on this front too; in fact, the second book is darker all round. The ending wraps up some things but leaves some pretty big cliffhangers, and I can’t wait for the next book!

Any Other Name is as exciting and entertaining as the first book, exploring the characters more deeply and plunging them into even more danger and scheming. I love this world and these characters, and can’t wait to return to it to find out what happens next!


Thank you to Angry Robot and NetGalley for providing a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Location, Location, Location - A Guest Post from Emma Newman

For the past week I've been doing some posts about things I love, and now it's the turn of one of my new favourite authors (read my review of the first Split Worlds novel here). Emma Newman is here to do a guest post about the setting for her Split Worlds fantasy series. So Emma, why Bath? :-)

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Bath (picture: Michael Maggs)

The first novel of the Split Worlds series Between Two Thorns is set in modern-day Bath and its secret magical reflection Aquae Sulis. The reflected city is in the 'Nether' – a place between the mundane world (like ours) and Exilium, where the Fae are imprisoned.


Why Bath?

I've always been fascinated by the city's history. I've been there more times than I remember; my family have lived nearby for many years and for the last five I've been close enough for day trips. The city is dominated architecturally by the Georgian era and as a result, I couldn't help but wonder what it was like in the eighteenth century at the peak of its popularity.

The more I learned about the city, the harder I found it to walk around without imagining the people who used to live there. I'd look at the terraced Georgian houses and imagine them lit with candlelight and full of beautifully dressed men and women in the social crush of the season. Instead of cars queuing to get into a car park, I'd imagine carriages with horses snorting and puffing plumes of steam into the air as they waited. I walked into lampposts a lot.

I visited the beautifully restored Assembly Rooms and walked around in a daze. I was caught between a longing for a time of such splendour and gratitude that I'm living in the 21st century and have freedom and rights denied the women of that time. Now I think about it, I think a lot of Cathy's struggle emerged from this.

I learned about 'Beau' Nash, who became the city's Master of Ceremonies in 1706 and was fascinated by how he transformed the social fabric of the city in only a decade. He laid down a famous 'code of behaviour' which encouraged socialising between the gentry and the aristocratic elite – something that had never been seen before. It was one of the critical factors in the success of the city.


The secret reflection of Bath

In Between Two Thorns the reflected city - Aquae Sulis - is very similar to eighteenth century Bath. There are a number of reasons for this, but the principle one is that Nether Society is stagnant in comparison to the mundane world, principally because people don't age there. It's been a long, long time since those in power last visited and understood the mundane world.

 
The Aquae Sulis of the Split Worlds series is still run by a Master of Ceremonies, a Richard Angustifolia-Lavandula, who runs the city and its social events just like Beau Nash. However, there is an additional role in the power structure; Censor of Aquae Sulis, which brings me to the Roman-inspired aspects of the reflected city.


The Roman element

Of course, Aquae Sulis was the Roman name for the city and they bathed in the same springs that were popular in Beau Nash's time and are still enjoyed today. I wanted to call the reflected city something different as people often use names and language to differentiate themselves. None of the Great Families would ever want to have the city they live in associated with mundane Bath, filled with the people they look down upon!

The Roman Baths

In Roman times, one of the powers a Censor held was the ability to judge an individual's assets, consider their behaviour (i.e. whether they'd acted with bravery or cowardice in a battle) and assign them to a particular social class as a result. Clearly this made them incredibly powerful and that's the same of the Censor in my novel. Claudia is Richard's sister and arguably the most powerful person in the city. She is the one who decides whether a resident of another Nether city may enter Aquae Sulis and participate in the Season, and also decides who may or may not become a permanent resident.

It's my hope that when people read Between Two Thorns they'll feel some of that magic of the eighteenth century social whirl. It's also my hope that they'll also see how far we've come in the mundane world…

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Thanks so much for stopping by, Emma!

Between Two Thorns is the first book in the Split Worlds series, from Angry Robot Books. The second book, Any Other Name, is out in May!

Winter's Passage - Book Review

Winter’s Passage
By Julie Kagawa

Meghan Chase used to be an ordinary girl...until she discovered that she is really a faery princess. After escaping from the clutches of the deadly Iron fey, Meghan must follow through on her promise to return to the equally dangerous Winter Court with her forbidden love, Prince Ash. But first, Meghan has one request: that they visit Puck--Meghan's best friend and servant of her father, King Oberon--who was gravely injured defending Meghan from the Iron Fey. Yet Meghan and Ash's detour does not go unnoticed. They have caught the attention of an ancient, powerful hunter--a foe that even Ash may not be able to defeat... (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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Winter’s Passage is an e-book novella (short story? It’s hard to tell length on a kindle, but it was very short anyway) connecting the first and second books in the Iron Fey series. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, as I’ve never read one of these novellas that’s meant to connect two books in a series before. It certainly works as a fun filler between release dates, and a way to build anticipation for the book, but as an actual story it falls down a bit. It feels exactly like what it is: filler.

Ash takes Meghan to the Winter Court, encountering a terrifying hunter on the way. Why is it following them and will they be able to escape it? The parts with the hunter were interesting and as ever the faery world was well realised and described.

However, most of the time the story was concerned with re-establishing where we were at the end of the first book. Meghan has to go with Ash to the Winter Court, Fairyland is dangerous, Grimalkin is helping for mysterious reasons of his own, and Puck is still stuck in a tree. There are far too many words spent on explaining things from the first book, obviously just in case readers have skipped that one. I think that was a mistake. Surely the vast majority of this novella’s readers are not only familiar with the first book, but were big fans of the first book. The repetition of information soon became very frustrating.

Winter’s Passage probably worked best at its time of release, as a teaser and a gentle way to re-familiarise readers with the world before the release of the second book. If you have finished the first book recently, however, and just want to get on with the story, this probably won’t offer anything very vital or unexpected. It could certainly be skipped. Fun in parts, a little pointless in others, it’s not a necessary read but will please fans of the series who are hungry for a little bit more.

The Iron King - Book Review

Meghan Chase has a secret destiny; one she could never have imagined.

Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home.

When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.

But she could never have guessed the truth - that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face; and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

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I have to admit that I was put off reading this book for a long time because it says ‘the next Twilight’ on the cover. But I really have a thing for the fey, especially when faeries are sinister and just a bit sadistic like in the old stories, so, let’s be honest, I was always going to end up reading this one.

And first off, this book is nothing like Twilight. Well, I mean there’s a kind of love triangle (I imagine this will become more of a thing in later books; it was just suggested in this one), but that’s about it. Meghan can be a little damsel-in-distress in this book too, but she’s a much better character than Bella. Whereas Bella has a tendency to give in to despair, Meghan is determined to keep going. Naturally, she falls for the handsome, brooding stranger, but she also never loses sight of her goal – to save her brother. She puts family first, she’s brave and pro-active, and I found her an easily likeable character.

Yes, there’s the deer-in-the-headlights issue. Meghan seems to be completely incapable of getting out of the way of danger. Her companions will be screaming ‘RUN’ or ‘HIDE’ and diving into nearby bushes or climbing convenient trees, while Meghan just stands there gawping at whichever monster is about to eat her this time. I can understand it once or twice, but this happens constantly throughout the book. However, although she can be a bit frustrating, I did understand why she would be scared and confused, and I thought her characterisation was convincing. I didn’t need her to be a powerful hero in this book; it’s enough that she keeps facing each new danger and refuses to be pushed around. She gets the hang of faerie deals quite quickly, and apart from the odd slip-up or learning how to run away when scary beasties charge right at her, I think she handles herself pretty well. I’m interested to see how she’ll grow through the series.

Also, although it seemed like they might be at first, the love interests weren’t too obnoxious. I have problems with many teen paranormal romance options, but these were actually okay. Puck (the Puck) is mischievous and sarcastic, and though he grated slightly at points, I thought he was an interesting character. Ash is presented as your typical brooding ‘bad boy’ (inverted commas because I’m not sure what makes him a bad boy beyond the fact that he happens to be on an opposing side of a feud. It would be like calling Romeo a bad boy). Ash has managed to come off completely non-creepy so far, though I hope he gets a little more personality in later books.

I thought the world of this book was perfect. All the great elements of faerie lore were woven in, and the faeries themselves were certainly not cute (well, apart from the packrat thingies). There’s a sense of menace throughout every incident involving the fey, and some bits were actually quite scary. I started reading this book at bedtime, largely because I didn’t want to read my other book (a ghost story) right before sleeping. Big mistake. Early on The Iron King features a monster in a child’s closet (is there anything scarier?). And the changeling freaked me out too.

Each new setting and character is described so well, and I enjoyed Julie Kagawa’s writing style. She creates an atmosphere that’s perfect for faerieland – a little sinister, weird and wonderful, beautiful but dangerous, scary but also sometimes funny, romantic and magical. I found the idea of the Iron Fey fascinating and really well thought out, giving a different twist to the typical stolen-child faery story.

Overall, a great start to the series, and I’m eager to read more to find out what will happen next.

Between Two Thorns - Book Review and Cover Reveal

Between Two Thorns is a fantasy novel by Emma Newman, first in an exciting new series due out in 2013. The cover has now been revealed and it's gorgeous! This is from the same cover artist behind the fabulous covers for Cassandra Rose Clarke's books, beginning with The Assassin's Curse.

Poison - Book Review

Poison, by Chris Wooding, is the story of a sixteen year old girl called Poison whose sister is stolen by phaeries. Poison, unwilling to accept her sister’s disappearance or the changeling left in her place, sets out to find the Phaerie Lord and demand her sister’s return. Poison soon finds herself pitted against weird and terrifying fairytale creatures. When she faces the mysterious figure of the Hierophant, the most powerful of the Lords, she finds herself in a fight to control her own fate, as well as the future of all humanity.