The Wolf Wilder, Katherine Rundell

Pages: 317

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Release Date: 10^th September 2015

Edition: UK proof, review copy

Other Titles by this Author: The Girl Savage, Rooftoppers, Cartwheeling in Thundestorms

Feodora and her mother live in the snow-bound woods of Russia, in a house full of food and fireplaces. Ten minutes away, in a ruined chapel, lives a pack of wolves. Feodora’s mother is a wolf wilder, and Feo is a wolf wilder in training. A wolf wilder is the opposite of an animal tamer: it is a person who teaches tamed animals to fend for themselves, and to fight and to run, and to be wary of humans.

When the simmering resentment of her neighbours turns to murderous hostility, Feo is left with no option but to go on the run. What follows is a story of survival and adventure, trust and tenacity, and the toughness that the love between mothers and daughters inspire. And, of course, wolves.

I’ve read a fair few middle grade novels this year, but The Wolf Wilder is the most beautiful by miles.

Katherine Rundell’s writing throws you straight into the cold Russian wilderness with Feo and her mother, Marina. It’s a world of snow, forests, wolves and danger. The descriptions of Feo’s surroundings are unusual and completely magical and everything she experiences is so clearly hers; Feo’s voice is wholly unique and it blew me away. Her love and respect for her mum, her wolves (Black, White and Grey) and her home are vibrant and pulsing with life. Feo’s understanding of life and the world outside of wolf wilding is limited, but it also enables her to see the world differently. She’s a delightful narrator to experience this adventure through.

I went into The Wolf Wilder with very little knowledge of the plot and I’m really glad. I expected a soft, beautiful story about a nearly wild girl living with wolves, and I got a high-octane, beautifully written story about a half-wild girl on a life-changing adventure across the frozen Russian wilds. The punches kept on coming for Feo and her wolves and I spent most of the novel gnawing on my nails anxiously, terrified for their safety as they were trailed by a truly awful villain.

The Wolf Wilder is a beautiful, captivating story of adventure, wolves and the love between a mother and a daughter. It’s the perfect read for the coming winter nights.

Thanks to Bloomsbury for the review copy.

Sophie

You should read The Song of Achilles because...

It’s the story of Achilles becoming a legend, from a young prince to receiving his education at the top of a mountain, a terrible destiny revealed to his final battle in the Trojan War.

And Patroclus, the exiled prince that waked beside him every step of the way.

The love friendship between Achilles and Patroclus evolves from companionship to an intense, genuine love that lasts eighteen years and it’s wonderful to watch.

You know that song I Will Follow You Into the Dark by Death Cab for Cutie? That pretty much sums up Achilles in Patroclus’s narration.

Both boys become men with different strengths, different weaknesses and each earning respect and a place in the community of Greek soliders fighting the Trojans.

The writing is beautiful.

The Trojan War is something most people have heard of, but few really know the details and the stories behind the men fighting it.

It makes the epic tales of The Iliad accessible to everyone.

It’s a true Greek tragedy. There’s love, death, war, betrayal, hubris and hamartia.

The last few chapters are some of the most emotionally wrought and heart-breaking I've read in a long time.

Because I said so.

About the book

Two boys, both alike in age, yet so different in character. One is awkward and shy; the other is brave, perfect in almost every way, and destined to become one of the greatest legends in history. Brought together by chance, Patroclus and Achilles soon become the closest of friends and as they grow into young men skilled in the art of war, their bond blossoms into something deeper. But when Achilles is called to war in Troy, Patroclus has no choice but to follow his dearest friend, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they hold dear.  

352|Bloomsbury|12^th April 2012

Sophie

All of the Above, James Dawson

Pages: 319

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Release Date: 3^rd September 2015

Edition: UK e-proof, NetGalley review copy

Other Titles by this Author: Hollow Pike, Cruel Summer, Say Her Name, Under My Skin

A funny and moving love story about friends, first love and self-discovery by the Queen of Teen 2014.

When sixteen-year-old Toria Bland arrives at her new school she needs to work out who her friends are, all in a crazy whirl of worry, exam pressure and anxiety over fitting in. Things start looking up when Toria meets the funny and foul-mouthed Polly, who’s the coolest girl Toria has ever seen. Polly and the rest of the ‘alternative’ kids take Toria under their wing. And that’s when she meets the irrestible Nico Mancini, lead singer of a local band – and it’s instalove at first sight! Toria likes Nico. Nico likes Toria…but then there’s Polly.

Love and friendship have a way of going round in circles.

I feel head over heels in love with All of the Above and it’s definitely one of my favourites of the year so far.

James Dawson is a known advocate for diversity and he really puts his money where his mouth is in All of the Above. This novel has characters from across the LGBTQIA+, but very importantly, it features an asexual character! This was the first time I'd never seen this openly in a YA novel and I cheered. And then Toria is mixed race as her mum is Indian and her dad white and one of the characters has an eating disorder. The portrayal of the eating disorder felt very important. Dawson highlights the stigma of an eating disorder – and other mental illnesses – and how it is never seen as serious as a physical illness until it’s noticeable by someone else. The experience of the characters in All of the Above demonstrated the danger in that and just how grave it can be.

Even though I’ve only read one other of Dawson’s books – Under My Skin – I feel like he really found his voice and his style with All of the Above. Toria’s narration felt authentic and current and so incredibly real. All of the characters are so much more than what they are to each other. I loved that Toria wasn’t just a part of the story going on with Polly, Nico and the rest of the gang, she has a separate life with parents, an online presence with friends and a fandom, and she loves making digital art and writing poetry. Toria’s poetry was a really unexpected element of the novel and I really loved it. Sadly, it wasn’t quite formatted in the e-proof I read, but I was still able to enjoy and appreciate it.

It would be easy to dismiss Toria’s story as an ‘issues’ book, but it’s really not. It just so happens that ‘issues’ happen to people in everyday life. It made way for a conversation about labels as Toria struggled to understand what she felt and then the pressure to define what that was. Labels carry weight for the person being labelled. They have pressures and expectations to conform to what makes up that label and it’s pretty ridiculous really – why should you have to define your feelings or yourself for others?

All of the Above is heartbreaking, hopeful and empowering and I hope we get more of this kind of contemporary from James Dawson in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hot Key Books for the review copy.

Sophie 

Letterbox Love #104

Letterbox Love is a way to give all of the books I receive for review some exposure. Summaries are taken from the cover, or Amazon/NetGalley/Goodreads in the case of e-books, unless otherwise stated.

Landfalls, Naomi J Williams (e-proof)

An epic voyage, undertaken with the grandest of ambitions.

When Lapérouse leaves France in the Spring of 1785 with two ships under his command, he knows that he sails with the full backing of the Frech government. This is to be a voyage of scientific and geographical discovery – but every person on board has their own hopes, ambitions and dreams.

As the ships moves across vast distances in their journey of nearly four years, the different characters step forward and invite us into their world. From the remote Alaskan bay where a dreadful tragedy unfolds, to the wild journey Barthélemy de Lessups undertakes from the far east of Russia to St Petersburg, the reader sees the emotional, physical and mental toll exacted by such an endeavour.

Landfalls marks the launch of a brilliant new writer, who creates an unforgettable world through a web of voices and narratives.

The lovelies at Little, Brown have been raving about this so I grabbed it from NetGalley.   

Stand Off, Andrew Smith (paperback)

Senior year is supposed to be easy, but for Ryan Dean West there are no guarantees.

He may be the school rugby captain but his new roommate, Sam Abernathy, is a twelve-year-old with extreme claustrophobia and a crush on Annie Altman, Ryan Dean’s girlfriend.

And Ryan Dean has his own problems, too – he’s haunted by things from his past he can't escape, fear of losing Annie, and the fact that sometimes the uncontrollable force of friendship moves under its own power.

A laugh-out-loud story of heart and hope.

I loved Winger last year so I’m really looking forward to being back with Ryan Dean.

Sophie

Zom-B Fugitive, Darren Shan

Pages: 240

Publisher: S&S

Release Date: 10^th September 2015

Edition: UK hardback, review copy

Other Titles in this Series: Zom-B, Zom-B Underground, Zom-B City, Zom-B Angels, Zom-B Baby, Zom-B Gladiator, Zom-B Mission, Zom-B Clans, Zom-B Family, Zom-B Bride

Exhausted and jubilant, B Smith has finally located the virus that could save mankind. Can she transport the precious test to safety with Mr Dowling’s mutants hot on her heels?

I stick the tube inside my hollowed-out stomach and root around until I find some pliant flesh to wedge it into. I grit my teeth as I work the tube firmly into place, taking no chances, not worrying about the discomfort. When I'm satisfied, I shake myself roughly and jump up and down. The tube doesn’t budge.

I feel like an expectant mother, only instead of carrying a baby, I’m carrying hope for the entire world. If I can get this to Dr Oystein, the stalemate will be broken and he can uncork a tube of Clements-13, bringing the curtains down on every zombie and mutant on the face of the planet.

‘So, no pressure,’ I giggle.

I turn my back on the safe, limp into the corridor and make my slow, sluggish, excruciating break for freedom.

It has become almost impossible to review these books without mentioning spoilers from earlier in the series so consider yourselves warned!

The eleventh instalment in the Zom-B series is possibly the most mind-blowing yet. I felt like my brain had melted by the time I had finished Zom-B Fugitive.

When we left B at the end of Zom-B Bride, she had been tortured, rescued, made a deal with Mr Dowling, got married, become the mother to a hoarde of zombie babies and escaped once again, with some incredibly valuable information. I was on the edge of my seat from the get go. B has the opportunity to save the world and she's really not about to waste it! It’s amazing how far B has come from the beginning of the series and I couldn’t help but be really proud of her! She's become a good person and I've come to respect her and the choices she makes, and that’s not something I expected when I first started this series!

I’m not going to spoil anything about Zom-B Fugitive, but I will say that it has what is hands down the biggest plot twist in the entire series, and that’s really saying something. Darren Shan pulled out the big guns with this one and I genuinely found myself putting the book down and muttering to myself in shock. I gobbled in down in one sitting.

The Zom-B series has got better and better as it’s gone on and I can't wait for the final instalment, Zom-B Goddess, though I’ll be very, very sad to see it over.

Thanks to S&S for the review copy.

Sophie