Fury - Elizabeth Miles

Fury – Elizabeth Miles

Pages: 370

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Release Date: 1^st September 2011

Introducing a slick and sexy supernatural thriller from a talented debut author.

Em loves the winter holidays. And this year, things are really looking up: the guy she's been into for months has finally noticed her. But if she starts something with him, there's no turning back. Because he's going out with her best friend.

On the other side of town, Chase's home life is stressful and his social life's unravelling. But that's nothing compared to what's really haunting him. For Chase has done something cruel - something the perfect guy he pretends to be would never do. And it's only a matter of time before he's exposed.

Mistakes can be deadly. And three beautiful, mysterious girls are about to make them pay...

With such an alluring and promising synopsis, Fury looked to be a brilliantly indulgent read, but, for me, I didn't quite live up to expectations.

My main issue with Fury lay with the main characters of the novel: I didn't like them. Em committed one of the biggest crimes a girl can carry out, although the blame doesn’t lie only with her; Chase stepped on anyone and everyone to procure his popularity and then used it to his advantage and Zach, well, he was just a bit of a jerk. But for most of the novel I was wondering what Chase could possibly have done to incur the wrath of the Furies and when it was revealed I wasn’t disappointed. JD is the only character is the novel who I actually liked. He’s a genuinely lovely guy who got caught up in the revenge of Ty, Ali and Meg.   

Those girls are three people (kind of) who I would definitely not like to get on the wrong side of. They are evil and extremely creepy in their way of enacting justice on those they believe have done wrong. Their talent for fitting the punishment to the crime is scary and brilliant and this provides an ominous backdrop for the events of the novel. And with their trademark blood red orchid marking their targets, I’m sure I’ll never be able to see one without wondering who has incited the rage of the Furies.

The idea of the Furies is something that fascinates me. I love reading about Greek mythology and their inclusion in YA is something that is not done often enough. I actually expected there to be a bit more of their mythology included in Fury. It was briefly touched on near to the end of the novel, but not nearly as much as I would have liked. I’m hopefully that as Em’s story continues she’ll delve into the world of Furies much more deeply in the second book of the trilogy.

Though Fury didn't quite live up to my expectations, I did end up enjoying it and I’m curious enough to read the sequel.

For my 2011 Debut Author Challenge

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing me with a review copy.

Sophie

Blog Tour: Velvet review, Guest Post & Giveaway

Velvet – Mary Hooper

Pages: 308

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Release Date: 5^th September 2011

Other Titles by this Author: Megan, Megan 2, Megan 3, Amy, Holly, Newes from the Dead, Fallen Grace, The Betrayal and many, many others

Velvet is an orphan. She struggles to make ends meet by working in a steam laundry, where the work is back-breaking and exhausting. So when she attracts the attention of the glamorous clairvoyant of Madame Savoya, she cannot believe her good fortune.

Raised to the status of lady’s maid, Velvet is given elegant clothes to wear and is brought to live in a grand house in London. But the longer she works for Savoya, the more she discovers about the mysterious world of a spiritual medium. Velvet soon realises that her employer is not quite what she seems and that this knowledge could put her very life in danger...

I’m rather picky about my historical fiction so I’m always hesitant when starting a novel whose historical fiction I’ve never read before. I really need to get over that otherwise I may never have read the very awesome Velvet!

Mary Hooper’s depiction of Victorian London is rich, vivid and full of life. Velvet’s days in the steam laundry were full of hard graft and dangerous conditions and I could almost feel the sweltering heat and claustrophobic conditions that the laundry girls suffered for ridiculously long hours every day. And then there was Velvet’s desperation to keep her job because of the horror of being poor at the turn of the century only to be rescued by one of London’s most popular clairvoyants, Madame Savoya.

And what a world Madame Savoya introduced Velvet to! Madame Savoya’s world is lavish and romantic and completely enthralling. I loved the way that the fads of mediums changed and developed and how their showmanship got even more extravagant. This was then reflected in their clothes, house and everything else about their lives. It was fascinating to see how they adapted to these changes and how necessary it was for them to do so for them to survive. The world of Victorian mediums is dark and slightly disturbing in the lengths they went to extract money from people drowning in grief.

It was this that Velvet struggled with later on in the novel. For most of Velvet she struggled where to place her trust and belief and I thoroughly admired that she wanted to do what was right regardless of how badly she would be affected. This was somewhat surprising to me for a time when young girls would sell their illegitimate children to avoid society’s stigma and would beg for jobs that would eventually send them to an early grave. Velvet is a very strong character that is determined to make her way in the world but didn't let her sense of romance or morality slide and I would love to be her friend.

I thoroughly enjoyed velvet and I’m definitely going to be on the lookout for more of Mary Hooper’s historical fiction.

For my British Books Challenge 2011, 2011 YA Historical Fiction Challenge

As part of Mary’s UK blog tour I have a fantastic guest post about other fictional mediums from Mary. Enjoy!

OTHER MEDIUMS I HAVE KNOWN...

Considering the enormous interest in the occult from the Victorian age onwards, it is surprising that there aren’t more spirit mediums around in fiction. Perhaps people are just too nervous to write about them in case there are ghostly repercussions. Here are some of my favourites...

Madame Arcati:

The first medium (ie someone who purports to speak to dead people) I ever heard of was

Madame Arcati in a play written by Noel Coward called BLITHE SPIRIT. Madame Arcati is asked by a novelist, Charles, to conduct a séance so that he can discover more about the occult. Unfortunately Madame accidentally conjures up the spirit of his dead wife – who immediately sets about trying to break up Charles’ current marriage. Madame Arcati is dippy and eccentric, but at least she is the genuine article, and after conducting a great number of séances, manages to rid the house of its spirit.

Alison Hart

Is the name of the medium in Hilary Mantell’s prize-winning novel, BEYOND BLACK. Alison tours the country with her business partner, Colette, bringing ghosts to within everyone’s reach in her psychic show. Alison has ghosts of her own to exorcise, however, and is tormented by all the awful things that happened to her in her past. Her “spirit guide”, Morris, is more ghastly than ghostly and has any number of spirit friends who pop up from time to time to taunt and humiliate her. A strange and compelling book.

Selina Dawes

Sarah Water’s first book, AFFINITY, is about Victorian Spiritualism and tells the intriguing story of a middle-class prison visitor, Margaret, who forms an desperate attachment to lower-class Selina Dawes, a medium who is in jail for fraud. Soon Margaret begins to receive certain messages and proofs from the “other side” and, her love for Selina seeming to be returned, the two women contrive to run away together. The ending is completely devastating and unexpected – a great read. 

Miss Jessell

Is a medium who doesn’t want to be one. In THE TURN OF THE SCREW, by Henry James, Miss Jessell is employed as governess for two young children and believes that she is in communication with the former governess and her lover, who are trying to corrupt the souls of the two children she is caring for. Spine-chilling and subtle, this book wraps itself around you like a Victorian fog. Is the governess suffering from delusions, or are the dead governess and her evil lover really trying to claim the children’s souls?

And thank to the lovely people at Bloomsbury I have a fantastic giveaway: Marys entire backlist of historical novels: At the Sign of the Sugared Plum, Petals in the Ashes, The Remarkable Life and Times of Eliza Rose, At the House of the Magician, By Royal Command, The Betrayal and Fallen Grace

This giveaway is UK ONLY and ends 11:59pm GMT on the 14^th September.

To enter: leave a comment with your name and email address.

Good luck!

Thank you to Bloomsbury for providing me with a review copy and asking me to take part in the tour.

Sophie

Undead - Kirsty McKay

Undead – Kirsty McKay

Pages: 299 (ARC)

Publisher: Chicken House

Release Date: 1^st September 2011

It was just another school trip – stuck on a bus with a bunch of freaks...

When their ski-coach pulls up at a roadside cafe, everyone gets off except for newbie Bobby and class rebel, Smitty.

They’re hardly the best of friends, but that all changes when through the falling snow, they see the others coming back.

Something has happened to them. Something bad. Soon only a pair of double doors stands between those on the bus and the Undead outside.

The time has come to get a life.

Kirsty McKay’s zombified debut, Undead, is one my favourite books so far this year, though I can’t quite put my finger on what made me love it so much!

Bobby is a brilliant protagonist. I have to admit that during the first few pages of the novel I wasn’t quite sure whether she was a boy or a girl, but once I’d figured out she was in fact a girl, I zoomed through this novel. I loved how confused Bobby was about whether she was British or American due to moving to the US when she was younger and then moving back a few months before the novel started. But my favourite thing about Bobby is how tough that girl is! She was literally Action Woman in her leaping into dangerous situations with very little thought. She’s awesome.

She’s not the only excellent character in Undead and my favourite was most definitely Smitty. I enjoy it when the rebellious, smart-mouthed guy turns out to be a strong leader and a decent human being. I may have fallen for him a little bit during the course of Undead... We also have the hugely irritating Alice and super-clever Pete to complete this very unlikely bunch; but it works.

The zombies that drew them together are brilliantly, and gruesomely, depicted. There was just enough gore surrounding the antics of the zombies to make me cringe but not enough to make me feel ill, and it was brilliant because you can't have a zombie novel without blood and guts! I thought t was interesting how Kirsty McKay created such a sure-fire explanation for zombification as it’s rarely known in other zombie YA.

I loved Undead and I can’t wait to see what Kirsty McKay writes next. And I’m hoping that it’ll be soon!

For my 2011 Debut Author Challenge and British Books Challenge 2011

Thank you to Chicken House for providing me with a review copy.

Sophie

In My Mailbox 95

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.

For review:

The Last Dragonslayer – Jasper Fforde

In the good old days, magic was powerful, unregulated by government, and even the largest spell could be woven without filling in magic release form B1-7G.

Then the magic started fading away.

Fifteen-year-old Jennifer Strange runs Kazam, an employment agency for soothsayers and sorcerers. But work is drying up. Drain cleaner is cheaper than a spell, and even magic carpets are reduced to pizza delivery.

So it’s a surprise when the visions start. Not only do they predict the death of the Last Dragon at the hands of a dragonslayer, they also point to Jennifer, and say something is coming.

Big magic...

A surprise from Hodder. I’m not really sur ethis is my thing so I’m going to pass it on to a friend. I also have a different cover to the one I’ve got here, but I couldn’t find an image of it anywhere.

Ashes – Isla J. Bick

No, she thought. No, please God, I’m not seeing this.

Sixteen-year-old Alex is hiking through the wilderness when it happens: an earth-shattering electro-magnetic pulse that destroys everything.

Survivors are divided between those who have developed a superhuman sense and those who have acquired a taste for human flesh. These flesh-hunters stalk the land: hungry, ruthless and increasingly clever...

Alex meets up with Tom, a young army veteran, and Ellie, a lost girl, and they will fight together and be torn apart. Alex must face the most difficult question of all: in such a vastly changed world, who can you trust?

A story of high-wire tension, gut-wrenching twists and burgeoning love, Ashes will leave you breathless.

Very excited for this. Thanks, Quercus!

The Monstrumologist: The Isle of Blood – Rick Yancey

The Monstrumologist Dr Warthrop has abandoned a devastated Will Henry to go in search of “The Holy Grail of Monstrumology” with his new assistant, Arkwright. But when Arkwright returns to New York alone, with news of the Doctor’s death, Will doesn’t believe him – and determines to find the Doctor, alive or dead.

Will’s search leads him to Socotra – the Isle of Blood – where the Doctor was last seen alive, and blood rainsfrom the sky. The island is home to the most bizarre and mysterious monsters Will has ever seen – but will they also be the last things he ever sees?

Thanks, S&S! I really need to catch up with this series.

Lies – Michael Grant

66 hours 55 minutes

Suddenly it’s a world without adults and normal has crashed and burned. When life as you know it ends at 15, everything changes.

Tensions are growing in the FAYZ. The mutants are under attack. Food is scarce. Sam’s gone AWOL.

At night, a solitary figure roams the streets -  the ghost of a boy with a whip hand, haunting the dreams of those he has tormented.

Then the town is deliberately set on fire...And through the flames, Sam sees the figure he dreads most – Drake. But that’s impossible, Drake’s dead.

Sophie 

Dark Inside - Jeyn Roberts

Dark Inside – Jeyn Roberts

Pages: 360

Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books

Release Date: 2^nd September 2011

Something bad is about to happen. A lot of people are going to die and it’s only the beginning.

A murderous rage has been unleashed. Moments after earthquakes rock the world, people start to change in the most terrifying of ways. Friends turn on friends, girlfriends on boyfriends, brothers on sisters. Nobody can be trusted.

For those who survive the first wave of killing, the world is a different, deadlier place. Michel, Aries, Mason and Clementine must battle to stay alive in a world determined to kill them. All they have is one another...but can they be sure of that?

An apocalyptic, heart-stopping saga of rage, hope and survival.

I was a little wary of Dark Inside because the idea of the population turning into homicidal maniacs is pretty terrifying, but once I got stuck into it, I enjoyed it.

For the first hundred-or-so pages of Dark Inside I was largely ambivalent to both the story and the characters. I think this was largely due to the four-character alternating narrative that were, in the beginning, all very unrelated to each other. There were no crossover points and at time it felt like I was reading four separate novels as their experiences were so different. But I persisted because dual narration is a favourite format of mine and I was starting to warm up to the characters.

Michael, Aries, Mason and Clem are four very different people and their stories panned out very differently to what I expected. The way they changed throughout the novel made me wonder how I’d react in a post-apocalyptic situation – and I really couldn’t work it out. Aries changed from a scared little girl into a strong leader (she was by far my favourite character), Mason from a survivor to a guy on a path to self-destruction, Michael from a leader to a person driven by self-preservation. And Clem didn’t really develop all that much; I don’t feel like I really know her very well as her search for her brother propelled her entire story.

But perhaps the most prominent and imposing character of Dark Inside is the mysterious force that is driving people to violence and insanity. This entity was represented (I think) in sporadic, short chapters titled ‘Nothing’ that discussed the impact of the darkness and violence on the brain and body. By the end of the novel it seemed to develop and intelligence and retain shreds of humanity and develop into what seemed to be a group mentality. It was extremely freaky.

Dark Inside is a highly intriguing debut and I hope that there’s a sequel to answers all of my remaining questions.  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

For my 2011 Debut Author Challenge, Dystopia Challenge 2011


Sophie