Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children – Book Review + Exciting Cursed Child News

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Series: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Genre: Fantasy, YA

Publisher: Quirk

Pages: 352

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Read if you like: Parallel universes, magical abilities, made-up creatures, different time zones

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Goodreads Summary

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.

A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

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Review

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar children was an interesting read… I’m always quite cautious of over-hyped books, as they tend to let me down quite often, and if I’m honest, this wasn’t as amazing as some reviews make it out to be. Needless to say I’m glad I read it and I will definitely try out the sequel, however there is a lot of criticism I have…

I think the first thing I will have to address is of course the unique format of the book. Ransom Riggs, the author, is a collector of old photographs, so he naturally incorporated some of the snapshots he found through his story. They were really interesting – unlike any other book with illustrations or pictures in it. It wasn’t one of those books which have illustrations just to make it more appealing – these photographs actually had a part in the story, they played a role in the novel just as much as the words did.

Another thing which I was worried about before I started the book was the ‘scary’ aspect of the book. I hate horror books and movies, I can get creeped out really easily, and this cover did give across the message that this would be a slightly frightening book, what with the black and white imagery and the focus on a creepy girl floating. Looks can be deceiving – this really wasn’t a frightening book at all. Sure, the characters did have some abnormal, fantastical powers but they weren’t ‘scary’. If I’m honest, I’m not sure why they chose that cover. Sure, the girl in the centre is a character in the book, but she isn’t a particularly major character who plays a meaningful role in the story. So basically – don’t judge this book by it’s cover. It’s not a very good cover for this book, they don’t fit each other too well.

I’m going to talk about the characters now. I didn’t really like any of them, if I’m honest. They were kinda flat and stereotypical – I didn’t really feel much personality coming from them. If I was asked to describe a character, for example Jacob, then I wouldn’t really have much to say except for what is stated in the book itself – that he was brave and selfless. But that’s what the author wants us to think of Jacob, and if I’m honest, I thought he was quite a weak character who relied more on others than himself. He came across as quite arrogant and self-pitying to me – being all whiney despite the fact that his parents were rich and provided pretty much everything to him. I just really didn’t like him. The only character who seemed moderately ‘okay’ was Emma, and even she wasn’t that great. She didn’t have too much personality either – other authors can make their characters so vivid and three-dimensional, which Ransom Riggs failed to deliver.

Another thing about the characters which I didn’t like was this – there were just too many! You know that feeling when an author introduces way too many characters all at once, and you struggle to know who is who? That’s exactly what happened here. And not only did you have to remember their names, but you also had to remember which person had which peculiar ability.

One thing that Ransom Riggs did manage to do well, which you don’t really find in YA books these days, was quite an advanced and sophisticated writing style. My friend, who reads classics more than any other genre, was complaining to me the other day about how YA books lack in any real writing ‘flair’. YA is my favourite genre, so of course I was quick to defend it, but I have to say I do agree with her a little. Some books have amazing plots and imaginative settings, yet the writing itself is quite simple and un-amazing. However, I really liked Ransom Riggs’ style – it was much more descriptive and detailed than most YA books, and that was something that kept me reading on.

The plot itself felt quite unplanned – everything seemed to just be written around a set of intriguing, old pictures – therefore making the plot quite random, if that makes any sense? And on top of that it was really slow. Nothing much happened in the first half of the book, except for Jacob discovering the Peculiar world. Only half way through the book did we learn about the hollowgasts and the wights, the ‘villains’ of the book, yet nothing much happened, except for the fact that Jacob learnt about them and their past, and saw some frightening pictures of them. So the real action of the story happened pretty late in the book, by which time I’m sure a lot of people probably just put the book down.

However when action DID happen, it was pretty good, and I liked it. I like the whole concept of hollowgasts and wights wanting to finish off what they started, with only some inexperienced 80-something-year old children to defeat them. It seems like one of those stories where the ‘good’ side is bound to lose, when all of a sudden the author will pull something out of the hat and shock all the readers. Considering what happened so far in the book, and how slow it was, something REALLY amazing needs to happen in order to shock me as a reader, but I’ll wait and see, I’m intrigued to see the fate of the peculiars.

Finally before I finish I want to quickly talk about the romance in the book. There wasn’t really much in it – and if I’m honest the little romance there was didn’t really seem very necessary – it was kinda just ~there~. However, it was a very weird romance. Jacob, 16, falls in love with Emma, who is 88 (?). Okay, I get that Emma looks Jacob’s age on the outside but is that not really weird? And to top it all of, Emma fell in love with and dated Jacob’s own grandfather, which to me is just really weird. I don’t know, it just didn’t seem very necessary – and it’s not even like the romance added to the plot or anything, I’m sure things would have turned out just the same if Emma and Jacob were friends.

So that was a pretty negative review, but I did enjoy the book – I just found many, many flaws with it. I think I’ll give Hollow City a try, and if I don’t enjoy that, I’ll just drop the series.

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Here’s the movie trailer for Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar children which is going to be directed by Tim Burton. It’s coming out some time September, and I think I will watch it whether I finish the series or not, because movie adaptations are always fun to be happy about (if they’re good) or annoyed at (if they are bad).

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Cursed Child

On a happier note – Harry Potter and the Cursed Child have released the photos of the cast in character!!!! I am so, so excited!! Although I haven’t got tickets to see the play (Mia has 😡😡) I am still trying to convince my mum, and I’m sure there’ll be more performances after 2017 so it’s all okay.

But ahhhh the cast is perfect!! At first I was pretty annoyed at Harry’s casting – it just didn’t work for me. I like it though, now! You can actually tell that Jamie Parker is  Harry Potter – it works! Of course, Daniel Radcliffe will always be the true Harry, but this is good too!

Sam Clemmett, i.e Albus Severus is great too! I’m not sure if it’s how I imagined, but I like it!

However, I’m not sure if I really like Poppy Miller as Ginny…I mean, we know Ginny is a Quidditch player, but this Ginny looks more like a Molly Weasley kind, stay-at-home mum, nothing like the Ginny we know.

Also notice the new Hogwarts robes? What do you think?

One thing I’m really hoping I’ll get out of Cursed Child is for Scorose (Scorpius Malfoy and Rose Weasley) to be canon. Draco and Hermione are one of my OTPs and J.K Rowling herself admitted that Draco loved Hermione. So if Dramione is never going to be canon, Scorose is the next best thing!

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Anyways, hope you enjoyed the review and my fangirling on Cursed Child! Comment below to tell me what you think about the book, and the cast of HP & the CC!!

– V

The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo #1) – Book Review

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

Series: The Trials of Apollo

Genre: MG, Fantasy, Humour

Publisher: Puffin

Pages: 359
Goodreads Summary

How do you punish an immortal?

By making him human.

After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disorientated, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus’s favour.

But Apollo has many enemies – gods, monsters and mortals who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and he can think of only one place to go . . . an enclave of modern demigods known as Camp Half-Blood.
Book Review

Oh. My. Gods. AMAZING. Okay okay before I start the review I’m gonna give you two warnings. Warning 1 – Beware, there’ll probably be a bunch of spoilers for the Percy Jackson series, Heroes of Olympus series, and Magnus Chase. Warning 2 – This post is going to be full, I repeat FULL, of fangirling. A LOT of fangirling.

I’m going to start off with what I first noticed, right on the first page – and that’s the haikus. Yes, haikus. The story is told in the POV of the God Apollo (as you may already know) – and if you’ve read the rest of Rick Riordan’s Greek mythology books, you’ll know that Apollo has a slight obsession with writing really bad haikus. And guess what each chapter starts off with. Yup, you guessed it. Really bad haikus. AND IT IS JUST SO PERFECT ljnfskejnnsfekjnsfdjknsdfk. I told you there’d be loads of fangirling.

” You’ve got to be kid-
Well, crud, what just happened there?
I ran out of syl-“

I think that was one of my favourite bad haikus in the book. But each haiku is basically a short, humorous summary (and spoiler-free) of the upcoming chapter, which I thought was a pretty awesome and Apollo-y take on a normal, bland chapter title.

Another thing I liked was how Apollo’s character and personality is portrayed through the book. So, we all know how arrogant Apollo is, and how self-centered he is. And that was shown so well throughout the book. When the demigods are facing a true problem, Apollo gets frustrated because they aren’t focussing on HIM, and his petty little problems. I’ll admit, I found Apollo super annoying, especially seeing as the whole story is told through his eyes, but that’s good – Apollo is MEANT to be seen as annoying.

Going back on the point on the book’s POV, I really enjoyed the way the story was told through a God’s eyes. The whole Percy Jackson series was told through Percy’s eyes, and in Heroes of Olympus widened out a little and was told through the Seven and some other characters’ eyes. But we’ve never, ever had a God’s point of view. And it was really interesting. I liked how they showed how insignificant the demigods were to a God like Apollo, yet he had to rely on the demigods to fight the monsters. I liked how he realised that he should probably pay more attention to his children, and how he seemed to be thinking about getting other Gods to do that too.

I’m gonna move onto a certain ship now, before I explode from excitement and feels. This is pretty much the fangirl central of this post, it’s gonna be crammed with feels. Okay, so Solangelo. Solangelo is, apart from Percabeth, one of the most loved ships in the FanDam. And I don’t know about you, but before I started The Hidden Oracle, I read a couple of posts and book reviews on people who’d already (amazingly) finished the book, on the day it came out (one of my friends did that too, wow). And I discovered that Solangelo was canon. Yes. CANON. I couldn’t breathe, I was so excited, I was crying. Don’t judge, but Solangelo is SO PERFECT. asdfGhjlKL.

“Will put his hand on Nico’s shoulder. ‘Nico, we need to have another talk about your people skills.’
‘Hey, I’m just stating the obvious. If this IS Apollo, and he dies, we’re all in trouble.’
Will turned to me. ‘I apologize for my boyfriend.’
Nico rolled his eyes. ‘Could you not-‘
‘Would you prefer SPECIAL GUY?’ Will asked. ‘Or significant other?’
‘Significant ANNOYANCE, in your case,’ Nico grumbled.”

*jumps of cliff*. Such. Perfection.
Okay I’d better forcefully move myself away from the amazingness that is Solangelo, and onto the new character introduced – Meg McCaffrey. I’m not sure about Meg. She’s one of those characters you either hate or love, and I think I hate her. Sure, she has her good bits – she’s funny, sassy and sarcastic; she’s brave and determined – but I just found her annoying! I’m not too sure WHY I found her annoying, I just did. Every time she appeared in the book, I kinda got really frustrated and willed her to leave, go away. Yes, she’s very funny, and I guess I can bear her presence in the rest of the series, but I’m kinda hoping Rick Riordan will kill her off. *hold hands up in surrender* I’m sorry, really, but it’s true!

“‘Nuh-uh,’ She showed me her rings, ‘I always use two swords. Plus, I need a free hand for slapping when you act stupid.’

I had the uncomfortable sense she was serious.”
Wait I just remembered something. Quick mention before I continue the review but – Percy is in a SWIM TEAM!! *squeals* How awesome is that!!

Okayyy moving on, Percabeth – there was no Percabeth in the book *sobs*. Sure, there were mentions, but we didn’t ever get to see them together! I think the book was set during Magnus Chase time, as Percy mentioned that Annabeth was over in Boston, as she was during Magnus Chase. So I guess that both the plots are sort of, occuring together. Since both Magnus Chase and Trials of Apollo are ongoing at the same time, how awesome would it be if the stories merged some point further on? Think Norse mythology meeting Roman and Greek mythology – it’ll be awesome and action-packed.

I realised I haven’t yet spoken about the actual plot and storyline itself – and I’ll admit, it wasn’t the best plot Rick Riordan has ever conjured up. I think Rick Riordan is really beginning milk the cow – he’s trying to keep the Percy Jackson universe going (not that I’m complaining 🙂 ), when maybe he’s starting to run out of ideas. I love his books, and I’m not saying he should stop writing them – but maybe Uncle Rick should say goodbye to Percy Jackson and it’s characters. I noticed that in Magnus Chase as well – Magnus Chase could’ve been a really amazing individual novel on Norse Mythology, but then he had to drag the Percy Jackson references and characters in, and it just didn’t work for me. What do you think about this whole situation? And don’t punish me for being a traitorous fangirl 😂! I  love Percy Jackson, really!

All in all, I really liked The Hidden Oracle. I’ll read the rest of the series, but only because I want to see if the the characters and how they’re getting on – not because of the plot. I’m sorry to say that, because Rick Riordan is really amazing, but it’s true. 

I’d recommend the book to anyone who loves reading MGs, YAs, fantasies, and anybody interested in reading about Greek Mythology. I’m gonna rate the book 4/5 – but like I said before, the majority of the rating is probably based on my biased and overexcited fangirl’s mind.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

– V

Glass Sword (Red Queen #2) – Book Review

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

Series: Red Queen

Genre: YA, Dystopia

Publisher: Harper Collins

Pages: 440

Goodreads Summary

If there’s one thing Mare Barrow knows, it’s that she’s different.

Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control.

The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors.

But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.

Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they’ve always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul.
Review

Oh my gosh, I LOVED this book. Amazing, it was so much better than Red Queen. Gahh, it was perfection. Well, not quite perfection, but wow. I was hooked right from the beginning, I just wanted to find out what would happen to Mare and Cal! Oh, and warning – this review will probably contain spoilers for Red Queen, so if you haven’t read Red Queen then you should probably not continue (you can read our review for Red Queen here).

As I was saying, the beginning was so gripping. Some sequels often start off at a different time to when the previous book ended. It may be a couple of days or so. What I liked about Glass Sword was that it started pretty much where it left off, so you weren’t confused or anything, all your questions were immediately being answered.

So I finished Red Queen only a couple of days before starting Glass Sword, and even those few days were so painful – I just wanted to find out what happened to everybody after that stupid plot twist! Therefore I can’t imagine how it must have felt for the people who had to wait a whole year to read Glass Sword. But, never fear, your questions about Maven will be tended to.

I’d like to talk about the love triangle…or rather love square. In Red Queen, Maven and Cal loved Mare, and Kilorn showed hints of admiration but it wasn’t canon yet. Well, in Glass Sword our love triangle has morphed into a love square – yes, Maven still loves Mare after what he did. Ok, normally I hate love triangles, so a love square would probably be a bit too much for me…but you know what, I think it works! I feel like Mare is destined to be with Cal, but then again, I felt like Mare was destined to be with Maven in Red Queen and we all know how that turned out.

You’re also probably wondering who I ship Mare with the most. Well if you read my review for Red Queen, you’d know that I was Team Maven – and believe me, I still am. I think that Mare can get around Maven, talk some sense into him, get the boy who Mare thought he was back. However, I’ll also have to admit, I think I’m also Team Cal now. If Maven is now a lost hope, I honestly wouldn’t mind if Mare ends up with Cal! Although I would mind if she ends up with Kilorn – that’s just not right, like why! Who would ship Mare Barrow with Kilorn!

The romance in Glass Sword is so cute! Of course, there’s Mare, Cal, Kilorn and Maven, but some more love is sparking, and it was just adorable!

The humour is also great, Mare is just as sassy as ever. However, I did find Mare’s character more infuriating and annoying, and I really dislike her. She just comes across as so self-centred and narcissistic, even though I KNOW she’s anything but. It’s just frustrated me so much how although she does think about others…she doesn’t..if that makes any sense? Her character is so whiny! I’m not sure if it was intentional or not for Victoria Aveyard to make her protagonist like this, it may just be something to portray how much stress Mare is going through.

The general plot of this book is also pretty awesome. Different from Red Queen, and different from the next book as well I’m guessing, the plot of Glass Sword was to basically gather all the ‘newbloods’ as they are called (using Julian Jacos’ list) and raise an army of those with Red blood and Silver abilities, to defeat Maven and his people. It was really entertaining, although I felt some bits were a little slow and unnecessary. All the same, I enjoyed it, in general.

Like Red Queen, the ending of Glass Sword does not fail to impress. It’s shocking and unexpected, and I’d suggest keeping a box of tissues by you when you’re around half way through. It seems as though Victoria Aveyard is the queen of plot twists, as her endings are just so surprising!

Okay I had bits of criticism dotted around throughout the post – but here’s my main complaint. Will I remember this book? Will I remember the plot and its characters? The third book in the series will come out next year, the fourth the year after that. Right now, at this moment in time, I want to read those books. I want to finish of the series, now, quick. But in all honesty, I doubt I’ll remember any of what happened this time next year. Mare would have probably been erased from my mind, I’d probably only remember traces of the plot. I just don’t think the writing is very memorable at all. Sure, you’ll remember it a couple of weeks after reading it, but otherwise it isn’t really that special, a book that stands out from the crowd and sticks to your mind for years to come. As great as it was, it wasn’t THAT great.

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My overall opinions on this book was – well, good! I liked it, I enjoyed reading it and I definitely want to read on. Whether I’ll be able to or not, we’ll see next year, but I do want to finish the series. It had its flaws like all books, but it was good! I’d recommend this book to any YA fantasy dystopia readers, especially fans of The Lunar Chronicles and The Hunger Games.

All in all, I’d give this book a 4 star rating…or maybe 3.5. I’m torn between the two, so let’s just say it 3.75 stars! (I can’t do 3/4 stars, but you know.)

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

-V

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare (The Dark Artifices #1)

Blurb

In a kingdom by the sea….

In a secret world where half-angel warriors are sworn to fight demons, parabatai is a sacred word. A parabatai is your partner in battle. A parabatai is your best friend. Parabatai can be everything to each other – but they can never fall in love.

Emma Carstairs is a warrior, a Shadowhunter. She lives for battle. Alongside her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, she patrols Los Angeles, where vampires party on the Sunset Strip, and faeries – the most powerful of supernatural creatures – teeter on the edge of war with Shadowhunters. When the bodies of humans and faeries are found murdered in the same way Emma’s parents were when she was a child, an uneasy alliance is formed. This is Emma’s chance for revenge, and Julian’s chance to get back his brother Mark, who is being held by the faerie courts. All they have to do is solve the murders within two weeks…and before the murderer targets them.

Their search takes Emma from sea caves full of sorcery to a dark lottery where death is dispensed. And each clue she unravels uncovers more secrets. What has Julian been hiding from her all these years? Why does Shadowhunter law forbid parabatai to fall in love? Who really killed her parents – and can she bear to know the truth?

Review
I absolutely loved this new addition to the Shadowhunter chronicles! The book mainly focuses on Emma and the Blackthorns, but there are tiny mentions of the characters from the TMI series – and some surprising bits and pieces that tells us on what they’re up to five years after the Dark War. The Infernal Devices was definitely my favourite of the Shadowhunter chronicles so of course I fangirled over Jem and Tessa’s mentions in the book!

Emma and Julian are parabatai – both of them orphans who lost their family during the Dark War. Julian is the oldest of the Blackthorns, so he has to look after Dru, Tavvy and the twins Ty and Livvy. Helen and Mark, their half-faerie siblings, were exiled from the Institute after the Dark War’s nasty turn of events. Now however Emma finds these bodies that resemble that of her parents’, so she gets to work, find out who murdered them.
It’s full of plot twists and surprising bits, I could not put it down! With every single chapter something new happens, you uncover another secret, it’s absolutely impossible to stop reading!

I would definitely recommend reading it! If you haven’t read Cassandra Clare’s other series, you may find it slightly more difficult to understand everything, but she does try to explain what’s happening, so I guess you could read Lady Midnight without reading the other books. I did find that some bits droned on a little, but it only SOME bits, so don’t let that stop you from reading it!
Definitely go and read Lady Midnight, and if you haven’t already, read The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices and The Bane Chronicles – amazing, amazing books – GO READ THEM!!!

*spoiler ahead*

Was it just me, or did Emma remind you of Will Herondale? The way she tried not to break the Parabatai Law at the end to protect Julian, reminded me of Will protecting Tessa from his fake curse…?
– V

Carry On Book Review

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Carry On, though a sequel to Fangirl, can just be read without you reading Fangirl. Also, if you didn’t like Fangirl for some bizarre reason, that by no way means you will dislike Carry On. If you have read Fangirl, you will remember that Cath enjoys writing fanfiction about Simon and Baz. Her most popular fanfiction, the one that she spends all her time writing, is called Carry On. This book is that fanfiction. Set in the world of mages (magicians), this book is brilliant, and is a must read for everyone, fan of Fangirl or not.

Simon Snow just wants to relax and enjoy his last year at Watford with his friend Penny. But things aren’t going to plan. For a start, his roommate Baz hasn’t come back to school. And Simon can’t even enjoy this break from his longtime nemesis because he can’t stop worrying about where he is. And then there’s the problem with Agatha, Simon’s girlfriend, which all started at the end of last year when Simon caught her and Baz holding hands. And then there’s the Old Families, who want to overthrow the Mage (the leader of magician world and headmaster of Watford). Oh, and you musn’t forget the Humdrum, an evil monster who sucks magic out of areas. It doesn’t help that Simon is the Chosen One, the one prophesied to defeat the Humdrum; Simon is the strongest magician in the world of mages, yet he can’t se his powers. Things aren’t looking good for his chances of enjoying his last year at Watford.

This book is inspired by Harry Potter, and is a must read for all potterheads (and TMI fans) as well as anyone else who enjoys that genre. It is a brilliant romance with comedy, adventure and mystery. The plot twists are incredible, the mystery is amazing, and this book is one of my favourites (I actually got it for free in Waterstones as they had a preview that they didn’t want (thanks Waterstones) and it was one of the best days of my life). When I got it, I instantly had three friends pestering me to lend it to them. Everyone who’s borrowed it (as well as me) has finished it in under two days, because you just cannot put it down. It’s one of the best books ever. I cannot express how amazing this book is, everyone should read it right now.

-M

The Rest Of Us Just Live Here

The Rest Of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

Mikey, Mel, Jared and Henna are in their last year of high school. They’re going to graduate soon, but they want to graduate without any soul-eating ghosts or Gods destroying their school. Why? Because in their small town that nobody’s ever heard of, weird things attack the poor, heroic Indie kids with strange names and private friendships. It’s been happening for years – it happened to the previous generation and the generation before that.

The Rest Of Us Just Live Here is a really unique novel, that focusses on a town where strange fantastical creatures such as vampires attack. The Indie kids have to fight these beasts. 

Every book focusses on a main character, the character that saves the world from evil and restores the good and peace. However, The Rest Of Us Live Here isn’t like that. This novel focusses on those apart from the main characters, those who are in the background. Have you ever wondered how (sorry about this upcoming Harry Potter reference… 🙂 ) the normal Hufflepuffs, who weren’t tangled in Harry’s life, how they lead their lives? It wouldn’t have been as dramatic as Harry and his friends’. They would have still been affected by the changes of the world around them, but not as badly. This is what The Rest Of Us Just Live Here looks at. Those normal people, whose lives aren’t caught up in the mad things going on around them, how they lead their lives.

I absolutely loved this novel. It’s so rare, to see an author turn the spotlight away from the heroes of every situation, and onto the normal people. The book kind of mocks stories about zombie apocalypses, and is a really interesting read.
The author of the book is Patrick Ness – he wrote the bestselling book The Knife of Never Letting Go. This book is full of romance, humour and amazing ideas – it’s a book for everyone. 
-V

 

City of Halves

City of Halves by Lucy Inglis

Lily is a coder. She’s trying to help her dad, a barrister, to solve a case, by hacking into some CCTV footage in the area the suspect is believed to be hiding out in. And then she sees the suspect, running into a gated area. Lily sprints towards the area, hoping she doesn’t miss him – and she is then attacked by a two headed dog and saved by a boy called Regan. Regan is the Guardian of the Gates. He protects London from the other half of the city, a half full of demons and violent creatures threatening to attack London any time.

If you liked The Mortal Instruments, you’ll definitely enjoy City of Halves. It’s a great book, very fast-paced, keeping you hooked on as you want to find out whether Lily and Regan will survive. It’s full of fantastical creatures, conspiracies, romance and shocking discoveries, and I really enjoyed it. Although I felt that the beginning was quite slow, it’s definitely worth it, as the book gets much better further in. I really loved it, and I strongly recommend it, especially for those who enjoy reading YA books.

– V

The Mortal Instruments

The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

Clary Fray is a normal girl living a normal life in Brooklyn. But one day while at a club with her best friend Simon, Clary meets Isabelle and Alec Lightwood, along with their adopted brother Jace Herondale, and her life takes a whole new course, as she tries to figure out why only she can see them. When Jocelyn, her mother, goes missing, she must rely on these “Shadowhunters” and uncover her past, to find her mother. With romance, comedy, drama, great quotes and mythical creatures, The Mortal Instruments is a personal favourite of mine, and a must read for everyone.

This series is set in the modern day world but with a catch- “all the legends are true”. Demons enter our world from a parallel universe, and all that stands between them destroying our universe are half angel warriors named Shadowhunters.

This is a 6 book series (containing City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls and City of Heavenly Fire). There is also the prequel (which must be read after The Mortal Instruments) called The Infernal Devices (containing Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, Clockwork Princess), the add on book, The Bane Chronicles (containing a collection of short stories about the glorious Magnus Bane), Shadowhunter Academy (currently only an ebook but will be published soon), another add on book, The Shadowhunter’s Codex, and coming out soon, two extra series, The Last Hours and The Dark Artifices. There is also a movie of book one (which isn’t very good- I don’t recommend it) and a tv series called Shadowhunters (which is good).

This is personally (one of) my absolute favourite book series. It has you hooked right from the beginning. There are so many sad moments- (I finished the last book as we parked up for a picnic on our way to our holiday. I was sobbing my heart out as we walked around. It was so amazing) and so many great quotes. Everyone should know pop over to Waterstones now and buy this book, so if your reading this now, move onto The Mortal Instruments!

-M