In My Mailbox 113

This meme was started by the fabulous Kristi who was inspired by Alea. Check out their blogs for more information. All summaries are from the book jackets unless otherwise stated. 


I came back to uni last week to find a pile of packages waiting for me that had built up over the last three weeks and there is also two weeks worth of post here: that’s why there’s so many! 


For Review:

We’ll Always Have Summer – Jenny Han


Just when she thought she had all the answers...


Isabel has only ever loved two boys, Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher.


One broke her heart; the other made her happier than she ever thought she’d be. But each brother is keeping a secret, and this summer Isabel must choose between the Fisher boys, once and for all.


Which brother will it be?


An amazing surprise from Razorbill! Even though I have the US edition pre-ordered and on it's way, I devoured this and posted my review earlier in the week.

Insurgent – Veronica Roth


I have done bad things. I can't take them back, and they are part of who I am.


Tris has survived a brutal attack on her former home and family. but she has paid a terrible price. Wracked by grief  and guilt, she becomes ever more reckless as she struggles to accept her new future.


Yet if Tris wants to uncover the truth about her world, she must be stronger than ever...because her more shocking choice and sacrifices lie ahead.


YAY! Thank you, HarperCollins! 

Dying to Know You – Aidan Chambers


Shy, likable Karl is in love with clever, beautiful Fiorella. To prove his affection, she demands that he bare his soul to her in letters. The difficulty? Karl is convinced he can’t write, or at least not well enough for Fiorella, who loves books and words. In a Cyrano de bergerac-like twist, Karl sets out to persuade Fiorella’s favourite novelist to write the letter for him. When the famous author unexpectedly agrees, a series of misunderstandings ensues, resulting in a startling revelation, a near tragedy, and an unexpected friendship that transforms the lives of all three.


In this smart, exhilarating book about love, identity, and finding one’s own voice in the world. Aidan Chambers shows once again why he has been called “one of young-adult literature’s greatest living writers” (Booklist). 


Really looking forward to this – thanks, RHCP!

Changeling – Philippa Gregory (ARC)


The year is 1453 and all signs point to it being the end of the world.


Accused of heresy and expelled from his monastery, handsome seventeen-year-old, Luca Vero, is recruited by a mysterious stranger to record the end of times across Europe. Commanded by sealed orders, Luca is sent to map the fears of Christendom, and travel to the very frontiers of good and evil.


Seventeen-year-old Isolde, a Lady Abess, is trapped in a nunnery to prevent her claiming her rich inheritance. As the nuns in her care are driven mad by strange visions, walking in their sleep and showing bleeding wounds, Luca is sent to investigate  and all the evidence points to Isolde’s criminal guilt. Outside in the yard they are building a pyre to burn her for witchcraft...


I’ve never read Gregory before so I’m really looking forward to this. Thanks, S&S!

Chain Reaction – Simone Elkeles


Like his brothers, Luis Fuentes is a risk taker; whether he’s scaling the Rocky Mountains or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, he’s always looking for the next thrill.


Nikki Cruz lives her life by certain rules – don’t trust a boy who says “I love you”, boys lie to get their own way, and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Then she meets Luis at his brother Alex’s wedding and suddenly she’s tempted to break all her rules.


Getting Nikki to give him a chance is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he’s tempted by a gang-member to enter the same dark and violent world that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. Will Luis’s feelings for Nikki be enough to stop him from taking the ultimate risk?


Can I just quickly say something to get it out of my system? Yes? Thanks. SQUEEEEEE. I love this series and it’s SIGNED! Thanks, S&S and Simone!

How to Keep a Boy as a Pet – Diane Messidoro


Can taming a gorgeous boy really be as easy as walking a dog?


‘I refuse to spend my life swooning pointlessly.’


Circe Shaw is on a mission.


‘I must transform into a fabulously sophisticated journalist and discover the amazing scientific truth about boys.’


But life is beyond complicated. Circe has to deal with a poisonous rival, her mum’s annoying ‘just friends’ men and her own Dark Past.


Can Circe’s daring investigation really teach her the facts of love?


Will it help her finally get a boyfriend?


Or will it break her heart...?


I’m really looking forward to this; it sounds fun. Thanks, Electric Monkey!

Adorkable – Sarra Manning


Welcome to the dorkside. 
It’s going to be a bumpy ride...


Jeane Smith’s a blogger, a dreamer, a dare-to-dreamer, a jumble sale queen, CEO of her own lifestyle brand and has half a million followers on twitter.


Michael Lee’s a star of school, stage and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.


They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can’t they stop snoggin?


Three words: Sarra Manning YA. Gah, so, SO excited. Thanks, Atom!


I also received copies of :
Unrest, Michelle Harrison (finished copy, S&S)
I’ll Be There, Holly Goldberg Sloan (finished copy, Piccaddilly Press)
The Hunt, Andrew Fukada (S&S)
The Drowned Cities, Paolo Bacigalupi (Atom)
Until I Die, Amy Plum (Atom)
Goddess Girls: Athena the Brain, Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams (Atom)
Goddess Girls: Persephone the Phony, Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams (Atom)
Monster High: Back and Deader Than Ever, Lisi Harrison (Atom)


Bought: 

The Miseducation of Cameron Post – Emily M Danforth (ARC)


When Cameron Post’s parents die suddenly in a car crash, her shocking first thought is relief. Relief she’ll never have to tell them that, hours earlier, she had been kissing a girl.


But that relief soon turns to heartbreak, as Cam is forced to move in with her conservative aunt Ruth. She knows that from this point on, her life will be forever different. Survival in Miles City, Montana, means blending in and not making waves, and Cam becomes an expert at this – especially at avoiding any questions about her sexuality.


Then Coley Taylor moves to town. Beautiful, pickup-driving Coley is a perfect cowgirl with the perfect boyfriend to match. To Cam’s surprise, she and Coley become best friends – while Cam secretly dreams of something more. Just as this starts to seem like a real possibility, her secret is exposed. Ultra-religious Aunt Ruth takes drastic action to “fix” her niece, bringing Cam face-to-face with the cost of denying her true self – even if she’s not exactly sure who that is.


I spotted this in my local Oxfam Bookshop and remembered CJ Skuse talking about it on Twitter so I decided to give it a shot!


Sophie

Blog Tour: Unrest by Michelle Harrison - Playlist

For my stop on the blog tour for the fantastic Unrest by Michelle Harrison, I have playlist to perfectly accompany you’re reading. So here you go!

A link to the Spotify playlist

Now I’m honoured to pass it over to Michelle who has a few words about each of the songs she’s chosen:

Unrest is the first book I’ve made a play list for. It probably seems an odd mix of songs but it’s representative of my taste in music as a whole. I’ve never listened to one particular type of music – anything can grab me if there’s a certain emotion or a powerful lyric. I don’t play music while I’m actually writing as I can’t concentrate, so this is what I listened to during thinking time to get a feel for certain characters or scenes.

1.    ‘Yesh’ ~ Planivaar

You’re probably wondering where on earth I found this! ‘Planivaar’ is someone I worked with a few years ago. As well as being a musician he’s a talented painter and one of the most unusual people I’ve met. To me this song encapsulates nightmares, it’s like a looping, twisting maze you can’t find your way out of. It’s how I imagine sleep paralysis feels.

2. ‘Was it a Dream’ ~ 30 Seconds to Mars

When I hear this I think of Elliott driving around lamenting his old life before the accident. Plus, I had to get Jared Leto in somehow – I imagine Adam, Elliott’s older brother to look a bit like him . . .

3. ‘Tainted Love’ ~ Marilyn Manson

Early in the book, there’s a scene where Elliott briefly feels a little bit like his old self, which leads him to take a risk with a girl. It ends up damaging his esteem even further.

4. ‘Just the Way I'm Feeling’ ~ Feeder (not in the playlist – bonus track)

I’m a big Feeder fan and this is one of my favourite songs. The imagery of internally screaming and bruising is so sad and powerful, it could be referring to Elliott and Ophelia and how they’re both the ‘healing hand’ that each other needs.

5. ‘Sex on Fire’ ~ Kings of Leon

I LOVE this song. This song does strange things to me. Elliott and Ophelia go to watch Adam’s band one night, and Adam, being a bit of a cad, uses the lyrics as an opportunity to flirt outrageously with other girls while his girlfriend is there.

6. ‘Running Up That Hill’ ~ Kate Bush

I became a bit obsessed with this song while I wrote Unrest – I’m not really sure why, but I listened to it loads. The more I did the more I felt that Ophelia would be a Kate Bush fan, so this song is another that’s played by Adam’s band after Elliott requests it for Ophelia.

7. ‘A Historic Love’ ~ Trevor Morris

An instrumental piece for the love scene in the Past Lives orchard. Fans of The Tudors might recognise it from a raunchy scene with Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

8. ‘Stay’ ~ Shakespears Sister

It’s all about Siobhan Fahey’s part - they should have made the whole song like that.

9. ‘Low’ ~ Foo Fighters

‘Hey you . . . are in you in there? I’m stuck outside you . . .’  The angry guitar and lyrics describe Elliott’s state of mind perfectly at the point when his body is possessed. He’s starting to realise that not only is he in danger, but so is Ophelia.

10. ‘F.E.A.R.’ ~ Ian Brown

I think this song is about self-acceptance and courage. Elliott has to accept his ability before he can overcome his fears. There’s the promise that once he does, he’ll be able to use his ability to do some extraordinary things.

11. ‘Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart’ ~ Gene Pitney & Marc Almond

I really wanted to use this song as the one that keeps playing when the spirit of Sebastian manifests. The lyrics can be taken in two ways; firstly as a love song, but also as something sinister and insidious. Sadly, anything involving permissions has always been a nightmare for me so I ended up writing my own lyrics.

12. ‘Banquet Hall’ ~ Loreena McKennitt (not in the playlist – bonus track)

I love Loreena McKennitt and listened to her Stolen Child a lot while I wrote the 13 Treasures trilogy. Listening to Banquet Hall transports me straight to an Elizabethan feast in my head, which fits with the penultimate scene at Past Lives.

13. ‘Ordinary World’ ~ Duran Duran

I’ve had a crush on Simon le Bon since I was three - my sister told me I was going to marry him - so I had to make room for Duran Duran. This song really belongs to Tess, the first ghost Elliott encounters and the catalyst for the story. It’s all about moving on and trying to regain a sense of normality after a relationship ends.

14. ‘Ophelia’ ~ Darren Rook (not in the playlist – bonus track)

A haunting piano piece composed by my lovely boyfriend. Initially we wondered whether we could use it in some kind of promotional video but to me it became more than that, it became Ophelia’s theme.

Thanks so much, Michelle! Now I have to order you all out to buy a copy of Unrest which is awesome and hits the shops today, and if you don’t believe me, read my review first!

Sophie

We'll Always Have Summer - Jenny Han

We’ll Always Have Summer – Jenny Han

Pages: 291

Publisher: Razorbill UK (Penguin)

Release Date: 3^rd May 2012

Other Titles in the Series: The Summer I Turned Pretty, It’sNot Summer Without You

Just when she thought she had all the answers...

Isabel has only ever loved two boys, Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher.

One broke her heart; the other made her happier than she ever thought she’d be. But each brother is keeping a secret, and this summer Isabel must choose between the Fisher boys, once and for all.

Which brother will it be?

I devoured We’ll Always Have Summer on the day it arrived after absolutely adoring the first two books in the trilogy in January.

We’ll Always Have Summer kicks off at the end of Belly’s freshman year of university, two years after the end of It’s Not Summer Without You and her and Jeremiah are still a happy couple. The time jump surprised me a lot, but I’m really glad Jenny Han made that decision. Belly’s choice between the boys, now at nearly nineteen, now had a stronger and more important baring as she was moving on into the real world. I loved seeing how she had changed and grown-up, but in a realistic way. She still had those quirks that made her character and retained some flecks of childhood and teenage angst that made me love her even more. She’s so, so realistic; she could be me, my best friend, the girl I wave to in class every day but have never had a conversation with or the girlfriend of one of my friends. She leaps off the page and straight into my heart.

One of the biggest things about this novel was that I finally chose my side; like Belly, it was time for me to pick between the Fisher brothers. I was actually very surprised at how quickly I made my decision after my complete indecisiveness in the previous two novels. I chose Conrad. And, oh my goodness, that boy broke my heart. I loved the chapters from his point of view. A boy like that is nearly impossible to read so hearing his thoughts directly was the only confirmation of what he thought and felt and it only made some of the decisions made, conversations had and situations played out so much more agonising. It was a genius play on Jenny Han’s part.

Other than those things, I’m finding it hard to sum up just why I’ve fallen so in love with this trilogy. Maybe it’s the setting of Cousins Beach and that sense of an endless summer and the constant possibilities of it; the tense, sultry moments between Belly and her boys; the unusual focus on the parents of the kids and the element of family that brings; the agony of unrequited and first love or maybe Jenny Han’s smooth, enveloping prose that carries me away to the beach. Who knows. But whatever it is, I’m glad it’s there.

I adored every word of this trilogy and I wish I could wipe it from my mind and re-read them and re-read them fresh each time.

For my 2012 Contemporary YA Challenge

Sophie 

The Immortal Rules - Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules – Julie Kagawa

Pages: 512

Publisher: MIRA Ink

Release Date: 4th May 2012

Other Titles by this Author: The Iron King, The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen, The Iron Knight

In a future world, vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity. She must decide what – and who – are worth dying for.

My vampire creator told me this:

‘Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?’

I didn't then. Not really.

I do now.

I’ve been a fan of Julie Kagawa since the ever-awesome The Iron King so after Megan’s story came to a close, I was anxious to see what she’d write next. Then I heard: a dystopia, with vampires and I got very excited...

Julie Kagawa got the blend of the vampire fantasy and epic dystopian novel perfectly balanced. She used the idea of a Plague and a mutated virus to explain both elements and combined them seamlessly so that it felt as if the existence of the rabids and the control the vampires had over the humans in the vampire cities was inevitable. The system by which the vampires ruled New Covington had stirrings of Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampires, but not strongly enough for it to have a negative impact on it for me.

Ones of the things that set The Immortal Rules apart from other vampire YA for me was that we saw a vampire-hating human to a vampire and then a vampire girl falling for a human boy. I loved the role reversal and I really felt Allie’s struggles against what she became and the never-ending Hunger she faced much more than in others. I really do love a kickass heroine who saves the boy. And Allison certainly is kickass: she’s fierce, strong and hell-bent on surviving. I have to admit that I didn’t really champion the love story until very near the end of the novel for some reason even though I thought Zeke was adorable. Admittedly, I had a soft spot for stern, mysterious Kanin – I kind of shipped them.

As ever, Julie Kagawa excels when it comes to world-building. Her imagery is vibrant and involving and she really knows how to make her fantasy worlds come to life. The city of New Covington was dark and desolate with a smothering atmosphere of danger and dread hanging over it and Old Chicago was bustling and new, and I could feel how just different it was to New Covington through Allie.

I did expect to be blown away by The Immortal Rules, and I sadly wasn’t, but I still really loved it and I’m looking forward to the next instalment of the Blood of Eden series.

For my 2012 Dystopian YA Challenge

Sophie 

When You Were Mine - Rebecca Serle

When You Were Mine – Rebecca Serle

Pages: 334

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Release Date: 26^th April 2012

What if your love story didn't have a happy ending?

What is you were the girl Romeo loved – before he met Juliet?

Meet Rosaline. She’s in love with her best friend Rob and, when they finally kiss, she knows it’s meant to be.

But then her cousin Juliet moves back to town. Beautiful, intriguing, and a little bit crazy Juliet – all the boys love her, and Rob doesn’t stand a chance.

Like her namesake, Rosie is about to find out that while being written out of your own story might feel like the biggest tragedy of them all. Being alone isn’t the worst fate of them all.

Because the greatest love story ever told might not be the right one, but we all know how it ends.

I had massively high hopes for When You Were Mine. It promised all of the things I love: contemporary romance, a twist on a classic story and an a brand new author to fall in love with, and yet it didn’t quite hit the spot.

Romeo and Juliet is one of my favourite stories so I was at once extremely excited and slightly wary of how it would be rehashed in When You Were Mine. Rebecca Serle took Shakespeare’s classic from a completely different angle: Rosalind’s story, one I’d never even really considered. It occurred to me that Rosalind/Rosaline’s story is the one that I’d relate too, the one that would resonate with people all over the world in a way that the original just can’t. This was a bit of a revelation and I almost hated myself for thinking it!

I have to admit that I was actually able to forget the inspiration behind When You Were Mine and the inevitable ending and see it as a story on its own. At first, I championed Rose and Rob and thought Len was a bit if a creep, I soon changed my mind. Rob is the guy we all know and think we’re in love with; Len is the boy who makes your story. I really loved Len. But him and Rose were the only characters that I actually did like. I empathised with Rose entirely. Watching the guy you’re in love with be with another girl is one of the hardest things ever, especially when he’s your best friend,  and my heart broke for her, but she was the only character that really elicited an emotional response from me.

Charlie was hard and controlling, Olivia was a little bit shallow and rather annoying, Juliet was just a bitch, no excuses, and I can’t even really remember any others, let alone have cared about them. This is going to sound a little odd considering the basic plot that this novel follows and probably for those that have read it as well, but I just thought everything was a little too perfect. All the girls are stunningly beautiful and well-off, able to snap up boys left, right and centre, even if they don’t keep them for whatever reason. I mean, even Rose managed to find someone to heal her heart after she lost her Romeo – is that really realistic, or am I just prematurely bitter and jaded?

When You Were Mine didn’t live up to my staggeringly high expectations, but I will still keep my eye out for Rebecca Serle’s future works.

For my 2012 Debut Author Challenge and 2012 Contemporary YA Challenge

Thank you to S&S for sending me a copy to review.

Sophie

In My Mailbox 112

This meme was started by the fabulous Kristi who was inspired by Alea. Check out their blogs for more information. All summaries are from the book jackets unless otherwise stated.

For Review:

Bringing the Summer – Julia Green

I turn on to my back and let myself float, arms outstretched, eyes open to the wide blue sky. For a moment I let myself drift, held by the water, surrounded by light.

It’s the lazy end of summer but Freya is ready for something new, a change, and then she meets the gorgeous, good-looking Gabes. Freya is drawn not just to Gabes himself but everything about him, including his large, warm and shambolic family, so different to her own.

Then Gabes’ older brother makes it clear that he is interested in Freya – and Freya has some difficult decisions to make about what she wants...

Thanks, Bloomsbury! I love Julia’s light, heart-warming summer romances.

Sophie

Goddess Interrupted - Aimee Carter

Goddess Interrupted – Aimee Carter

Pages: 296

Publisher: MIRA Ink

Release Date: 6^th April 2012

Other Titles in the Series: The Goddess Test

Fate brought them together

The Underworld wants to tear them apart

After surrendering her mortal life, Kate’s about to be crowned queen of the mythical Underworld, home to the Gods.

Her king – dangerous, mesmerising Henry – the boy she sacrificed everything for, is becoming ever more distant and secretive.

Then he is abducted in the midst of her coronation.

Forced to take up her role in a bitter war between the Gods, Kate battles to save Henry’s life. Worse, her only hope of victory means turning to Persephone, Henry’s first true love...and the greatest threat to Kate’s future.

Kate now knows that rescuing the one she believed to be her destined soulmate means losing him forever.

I loved The Goddess Test so Goddess Interrupted had high expectations to meet. It definitely met them.

Kate’s struggles were beautifully portrayed. She’s trying to be a calm and dignified queen and do what she can in the upcoming war while trying to deal with the thoughts that Henry no longer loves her. It was heartbreaking to see her crying out for his attention and his constant denial, especially after the Henry that we got glimpses of in The Goddess Test. the switches between brave, mature decisions that held lives on the line and her mini-tantrums showed how much pressure her new role is at such a young age.

Now, I don't know how many of you know, but I have a serious fascination with Greek mythology and the story of Hades and Persephone has always been one of my favourites. This series takes all of these gods and goddesses out of context and into reality and I love it. Persephone is one of my favourite goddesses and in Goddess Interrupted she is a bit of a selfish cow, really. She knew what power she had over Henry and she used it and it only ended up hurting Kate even more, she even managed to cause trouble when she tried to do good, albeit in a twisted sort of way. And yet you can't argue that she’s not a brilliantly crafted character that I really hope comes back in The Goddess Inheritance.

I loved how after introducing all of the known myths of the original six in the first book, the mythology was taken deeper as Kate was further embroiled in the world of the gods. In Goddess Interrupted she was launched into the tales of the Titans and learned the origin stories of the original six gods that were made by the Titans. I knew very little about this branch of the mythology so I gobbled up every tidbit of information and I’ve been left with a yearning to really read up on it.

I’m thoroughly enjoying this series and I can’t wait for Kate and Henry’s story to conclude in The Goddess Inheritance.

Thank to MIRA Ink for providing a copy for review. Make sure to check back later on in the month when Aimee Carter stops by on her UK blog tour.

Sophie 

Unrest - Michelle Harrison

Unrest – Michelle Harrison

Pages: 375 (ARC)

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Release Date: 26^th April 2012

Other Titles by this Author: The Thirteen Treasures, The Thirteen Curses, The Thirteen Secrets

Seventeen-year-old Elliot hasn’t slept properly in months. Not since the accident that nearly killed him. Sometimes he half-wakes, paralysed, while shadowy figures move around him. Other times he is the one moving around, while his body lies asleep on the bed. His doctors say sleep paralysis and out-of-body experiences are harmless – but to Elliot they’re terrifying.

Convinced that his brush with death has attracted the spirit world, Elliot secures a job at a reputably haunted museum, determined to discover the truth. There, he meets the enigmatic Ophelia. But, as she and Elliot grow closer, Elliot draws new attention from the dead. One night, during an out-of-body experience, Elliot returns to bed to find his body gone. Something is occupying it, something dead that wants to live again – and it wants Ophelia, too...

I’ve been a fan of Michelle Harrison since her debut, The Thirteen Treasures, so when I found out she was writing a ghost story for a YA audience, I got extremely excited. And I had every reason to.

Unrest immediately draws you into Elliot’s unsettled and creepy world where he is haunted in his own house. Wondering whether he’s losing his mind or experiencing something ‘other’, he needs to find a way to make it stop. There’s an electric tension running through the novel as Elliot’s encounters become more frequent and infinitely more dangerous that kept me on the edge of my seat and tightly clutching the book in my hands, furiously turning the pages.

I immediately warmed to Elliot and his struggles (and not just because I love his name ridiculous amounts) and there were moments where I was genuinely scared for him. I fell a little in love with him if I’m honest. Ophelia was rather different. At first, I thought she was stuck-up and cold, exactly like Elliot did. but as she warmed to him and more and more was revealed about her life and her character, I began to see what Elliot saw in her. One of m favourite elements of their relationship was the stony start they had and that Elliot wasn’t immediately drawn to her stunning beauty or anything like that. It was a natural and realistic progression that is really quite badly represented in YA sometimes. Ophelia continued to surprise me and with each revelation, I liked her a little more.

As well as the aching nail-biting tension, Michelle Harrison gripped me with the never-ending trail of questions that threaded through Unrest. Is Elliot mad, or is he really seeing ghosts? What does Tess want from Elliot? What exactly is Hodge up to? Is Lesley right about him? Each answer was revealed slowly, drip-feeding us hints and clues until being explained at just the right moment. Brilliant. I loved it.

Unrest is a chilling and atmospheric novel that will make night-time jaunts through the house a thing of the past.

Thank you to S&S for providing me with a review copy.

Sophie 

In My Mailbox 111

This meme was started by the fabulous Kristi who was inspired by Alea. Check out their blogs for more information. All summaries are from the book jackets unless otherwise stated.

For Review:

The Immortal Rules – Julie Kagawa

In a future world, vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity. She must decide what – and who – are worth dying for.

My vampire creator told me this:

‘Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?’

I didn't then, not really.

I do know.

As I already have a US ARC and have a pre-ordered a hardcover copy, I am passing this on to Lily at Whispering of the Pages. Thanks, MIRA.

Hitler’s Angel – William Osbourne

Otto and Leni have escaped the Nazis and fled to England.

They thought they were safe, but now the British want them to go back to Germany.

Dropped behind enemy lines, they embark on a secret operation.  Their mission is to find and kidnap a girl who could bring down Hitler.

And so begins their bravest journey...

Really not my thing, but it sounds prett interesting. Thanks, Chicken House.

The Out of Office Girl – Nicola Doherty

From London...

Alice Roberts is having a rubbish summer.

She’s terrified of her boss, her career is stallin. And she’s just been dumped – by text message. But things are about to change...

...to Italy

When her boss Olivia is taken ill, Alice is sent on the work trip of a lifetime: to a villa in Sicily, to edit the autobiography of Hollywood bad boy Luther Carson. But it’s not all yachts, nightclubs and Camparis. Luther’s arrogant agent Sam wants him to ditch the book. Luther himself is gorgeous, charming – and impossible to read. There only seems to be one way to get his attention, and it definitely invloves moixing business with pleasure.

Alice is out of the office, and into deep trouble...

...with love.

This is obviously an adult novel, but I love the sound of it. |It feels reminiscent of Paige Toon’s Johnny Be Good. Thanks, Headline!

Secret Breakers: The Power of Three – HL Dennis

Imagine an ancient manuscript no one can read.

Imagine a secret code for someone just like you.

Imagine the chance to uncover a Truth hidden for centuries – but the Rules say it’s forbidden to even try.

Three have been chose to join a secret team to solve the most mysterious code in the world.

Brodie Bray likes a challenge. But when she and her friends try to crack the code, she finds someone will kill to try and stop them.

This sounds pretty interesting, but it won’t be top of my tbr pile. Thanks, Hodder.

Bought:

Graffiti Moon – Cath Crowley

Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight she’s going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. Somewhere in in the glass darkness, he’s out there, spraying colour, spraying birds and blue sky on the night. And Lucy knows that a guy who paintslike Shadow is someone she could fall for – really fall for.

The last person Lucy wants to spend this night with is Ed, the guy she’s managed to avoid since punching him in the nose on the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells Lucy he knows where to find Shadow, the two of them are suddenly on an all-night search to places where Shadow’s pieces of heartbreak and escape echo off the city walls. And what Lucy can’t see is the one thing that’s right before her eyes.

From Cath Crowley comes an exhilarating adventure set against a moonlit cityscape – one night of art and poetry, humour and longing, anticipation and risk, and (maybe) love.

YAYYAYYAYYAY!! I will finally discover the proported beauty of Cath Crowley’s writing thanks to getting this instead of an Easter egg from my mum :)

Sophie