Book Review: Eve of Man by Giovanna Fletcher & Tom Fletcher

Now I have POV by Mcfly suck in my head.

She survived against all odds. The first girl born in fifty years. They called her EVE.

On the first day, no one really noticed. All those babies wrapped in blue blankets--not a pink one in sight. On the third day, people were scared--a statistic-defying abundance of blue. Not just entire hospitals, not only entire countries, but the entire world. Boys. Only boys.

Until Eve. The only girl born in fifty years. The savior of mankind. Kept protected, towering above a ruined world under a glass dome of safety until she is ready to renew the human race.

But when the time comes to find a suitor, Eve and Bram--a young man whose job is to prepare Eve for this moment--begin to question the plan they've known all along. Eve doesn't only want safety, and she doesn't only want protection. She wants the truth. She wants freedom.

I wasn't sure about this novel going in, I am a fan of Mcfly and therefore Tom Fletcher, but not sure if songwriting translates to prose. This was another Sci-fi by people famous for things outside of their known writing mediums that I did like. It's not perfect but its decent first attempt at YA Prose.

This is another novel with a lack of females being born. This is always the way Dystopia go along, I've only come across one Dystopian st where all the males died out. Probably never going to be a thing since more women and fewer men have in the past been able to build up the population and Afitical sperm is apparently on the way. This one goes for girls just not being born anymore which brings up questions as to why.

LGBTQ+ people aren't really talked about, apparently, there are brief references that I missed. I had a moment where I thought wouldn't it be cool if there were a trans character, but no, just appears to be a cis boy pretending to be a girl and falling in love with eyes. This is the first book in a series so it might be explored more in the sequels. The two protagonists that have been sheltered in different ways and romantic relationships do seem not to be significant in this world anymore. It's interesting to think about what would Transness be like in a world like this, but it is probably best left for a trans writer to tackle anyway. Sexism and Toxic Masculinity are present in this world, so gender roles are there. I'm not sure what it's trying to say about them, it does seem to more about the power this company has over Eve and the other women with XX chromosome havers being so rare. It could be going somewhere with gender and sex. I could write an essay on this, however, it would more my own thoughts than what is actually present in this book. Best to move on to more of the actual text.

The audiobook has two narrators to match the POVs in this book. It works well. I do like and feel for the characters.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for Rusty Metal. This is a near-future Dystopia and that will sadly never not be relvant. I think I will read the next in the series if I come across it. Anyway, I need to review my books as I read them.

Read: 6/6/2019 to 7/6/2019
Reviewed: 26/06/2019 - 16/03/2020
Narrator/s: Charlotte Ritchie and Josh Dylan
Medium: Audiobook
Published Date: 18th June 2019
Publisher: Listening Library
Source: Library
Content Warning for Book: I'm not sure, but memory says: Sexism; Sexual Assualt referenced; Child Abuse;

Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales

Maybe my favourite film is Grease. No...Or is it? No.

Ollie and Will were a summer fling; now they're classmates. But only one of them is out...

It was the very last Wednesday of August when I realized Disney had been lying to me about Happily Ever Afters. Because, you see, I was four days into mine, and my prince was nowhere to be found.

"Please don't lose contact. I need to see you again," he'd said. So why was I here, banging my head against a metaphorical wall, weighing up the pros and cons of sending another message? This wasn't a big deal. It was just a guy texting another guy. A guy who knew all my biggest secrets, and had Seen. Me. Naked™. A guy who'd convinced me he really, really liked me. A guy who'd better have been abducted by goddamn aliens...

When Ollie meets Will over the summer break, he thinks he's found his Happily Ever After. But once summer's ended, Will stops texting him back, and Ollie finds himself short of his fairy-tale ending.

A family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the country - Will's school - and Ollie finds that the sweet, affectionate and comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn't the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, a basketball jock and, well, a bit of a jerk.

Ollie isn't going to pine after a guy who isn't ready for a relationship. But as school life repeatedly throws them together, from music class to the lunch table, Ollie finds his resolve weakening.

With the noisy drama of their friends as the backdrop - from ambitious Juliette and frosty Lara, to big-hearted Darnell and king-jock Matt - Ollie has a decision to make.

The last time he gave Will his heart, Will handed it back to him trampled and battered. Ollie would have to be an idiot to trust him with it again. Right?


This was sold as a Queer Modern Retelling of Grease and it is. I think ten years ago, it probably would it been sold as High School Musical. Maybe that's just that the Love interest, Will is a basketball player. Oliver isn't a science quiz genius or anything. He does like music and is in a band. I guess basketball is just the modern equal of a bad boy car-obsessed gang. Yeah, that's not a thing anymore, probably because cars are not a novelty anymore.

I do like that we have Queer character outside the main romantic pairing. Queer people are friends with other Queer people even when we not out. We find each other completely on accident.

This novel is completely told in Oliver's POV, which I was slightly disappointed about, cause in my mind a Grease retelling should duo-protagonists, so you think the same it doesn't. This is Oliver's story more than Will's.

Will is not out to anyone, is major factor in how their relationship plays out. I think this was done well, consideration from both points of view, with both feelings been taken into account. Obviously, no one should be forced out but Will does go overboard in an attempt to hid their relationship.

This does deal with causal homophobia, by a causal, I mean making gay jokes while not intending target a gay or Queer person. Just to mock your friend because Straight boys think being gay is funny for some reason. I blame the patriarchy. This was a major problem when I was youngling and going off the teen barter I overhear its still a problem. Hopefully, this will not be a problem anymore in the future. I think its dealt with well and realistically.

This book deals with grief and the threat of grief. Knowing that you are likely to lose someone you love soon. This was done okay. The thing is I very recently read a 5/5 star book that had someone lose their Aunt to cancer. This book felt more about the romance than anything, so I didn't like it as much. I read romance heavy contemporaries but I'm Ace so I'm not all about that. There is a lot of romantic pairing going on, it's all very cute.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for Rosegold Roses. This is cute romance with attempt at depth. It's perfect for people who like cute but want something more going on than just romance. T|he relationships between all the characters were done nicely.  I will read Gonzales again, her next book sounds interesting.

Read: 3/3/20199
Reviewed: 3/03/2020
Published Date: 5th March 2020
Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
Source: Netgalley
Content Warning: Cancer, Terminal Illness, Death of Love One, Homophobia, Being Outed (this not a big deal, but does happen technically twice), Diet and comments about eating,

Disclaimer: I received e-arc of this off the Publisher for review. My reviews are always honest.

Book Review: All the Invisible Things by Orlagh Collins

What a Bi time to be Alive.


A warm, witty, important story about being a young woman today, and what it's like to find a real connection amid all the noise.


Vetty's never told anyone she gets feelings for girls as well as boys. It could have been easy once, back when Pez was the boy-next-door and she was still comfortable in her own skin. But then Mum died and her family moved out of London, and it felt much safer to keep her heart in hiding.

Now Vetty’s seventeen and heading back to London, she’s determined to start living out loud. Pez is the key, she’s sure. She was always fearless around him.

But Pez is different too. Guarded. It’s like their special connection never existed. And suddenly Vetty’s sure he’s hiding something too.

Okay, this is an odd one. I thought I had written a review for this book but can find no record of it. I definitely had thoughts when I finished this book and I looked everywhere to find a record of these thoughts but there must have got lost in the drama of another hospital stay. Not mine but I did a lot of dring this week.

This has a Bi main character realising she bi, but it's an odd one because it's like she doesn't have access to the internet. She knows she like girls at the start of the novel but has never heard of any Queer labelling outside of the LG, I mean Bi is the next letter after that. I mean this book name drops Tumblr and apparently before it managed to destroy itself. At the age of sixteen, she does a quiz to find out if she Bi, but knew she liked girls at age 12. It does have a moment of "I hate Labels" which is a trope I hate when it comes to people who are attracted to multiple genders. Yeah, some people haven't found labels they comfortable with, but why is always people who are Bi/Pan in media.

This book was meant to be set the during the time I read it and I have some tragic news. It either really dated or lives in a parallel universe as the plot involves NSFW things being still allowed on Tumblr. Maybe Tumblr will try to save itself and allowing NSFW stuff back on it. In the internet age, books can date so easy when listing the actual website. Even with a website that still exists, people who uses them changes. Facebook was for young people, not only parents use it. It's still good for group work but not much for else.

A lot of issues are dealt with in this book, including grief and addiction. The friendships and family relationships in this book were done well.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars for Wedding Planning. It is good to have a book about having someone know that they Queer and coming terms to the attraction to the opposite sex. The intention is very good, but cultures change over time, so I don't buy that main character even with her gay Aunts, I just don't buy she wouldn't have realised that multiple-gender attraction is a thing.

Read 24 July 2019, Finish Review 29/01/2020
Published Date 7 March 2019
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Source: Netgalley
I received this book as an e-arc from the Publisher, my reviews are always honest and my own opinion.

Book Review: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

I want a cool cane but there are so expensive.

Criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams - but he can't pull it off alone.

A convict with a thirst for revenge. A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager. A runaway with a privileged past. A spy known as the Wraith. A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums. A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes. Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist.

Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction - if they don't kill each other first.

I had forgotten that I once upon a time that I requested a review copy of this book and I always believe in reviewing books that I do end up reading from my review pile. I only realise when I went to mark on my Spreadsheet of books that I had finished this book, that I found it on my NetGalley arc lists. This is all funny because as I was listening to it, I was like "Ha Ha I don't have to review this and can just go on to the sequel book." I suppose, now in 2019, people wouldn't have minded if I just fulfil the need to review this book by reviewing the whole duology as one. But here we are single again.

Yes, I have read the whole the Grisha trilogy and while liking the world, I did have issues with the solution to that series. Honestly, it's depressing as hell. This book does have sad things; that can be found in life right now. This is a heist plot at its core with a bunch of personal storylines that all the characters have.

This is a lot pairing off in our Six of Crows gang. It's basically made up of couples to be. They all fine, a decent Hate/Prejudice to Love thing and another too emotionally scarred to just being together. The relationships are fine, we do have Queer characters and there's a bit of pinning over the seemly straight ones. The characters are okay, they all have different wants and motivations. I feel for them,

The rep in this book is okay, there's a lot this book is meant to have but I never pay attention to character descriptions except for the weird Irish Stereotypes that I just sigh at now but won't say anything because it's not a weird Scottish stereotype and this is a technically a fantasy world originally based off Russia. I know how the characters look more because of the fan outrage over the casting than anything else. I know Nina is meant to be plus-sized a.k.a. fat like me. Nina is very obsessed with food so I don't love that about her but she is also very "sexy" which is nice to see with a fat character and her love of food isn't made out to be a bad thing.

Now for the rep that I actually care about it, because it affects me and is lacking in fiction. There are two Disabled characters in this book. Kaz is out there with his badly healed broken leg and then another character whose disability is a twist. I actually recently tweeted that there is so few dyslexic characters or even coded ones in fantasy and books in general. This is the most undeveloped character of the crew and I'm hoping that in the sequel they are more developed and more like actual rep.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for fragile Ice. This is a fun book about revenge and other things. Yeah, tons of sad things that play into the real world but in a fun way. We already discussed in other reviews that weird definition of fun books. Ableism would be easier to cope with if it came with magic and heists.

Update: I have now read and reviewed the sequel.

An e-arc was provided from Netgalley and this book was published by Orion Children's Books on 2 June 2016 (I'm not sure if this was the UK date or not since I brought it in 2015, but maybe I did pre-order it).

Book Review: Outside by Sarah Ann Juckes

Scottish music, it's a thing.

Here's the thing about being Inside. Ain't no one believes that they are.

Ele has never been Outside, but she knows it exists - she just has to prove it.

Her whole world is Inside. Trapped with her books and the Others and Him. 
She has never seen a tree or felt the rain but that's about to change. Ele's getting out. For good.

Another book about someone being raised in isolation, but this time it's for the YA market. I would say it's Young YA, it has very dark topic but the way it's handled is almost middle-grade. I guess if you're not a 12 year watching True Crime Docs but that was me.

Ele has not been properly socialised so she doesn't know the words for basic objects and only has access to four books to frame her world. She speaks in a confusing way and it took me a while to figure out whether the word she kept using was meant to positive or negative. I got used it to eventually but I don't think it helps that I started this book while in a waiting room and didn't read it for hours later. Probably better to read the first fifty pages in one go.

Another language choice that is uncomfortable is the way she describes the character, Willow, whose mixed raced with a dead Jamaican Mother and ginger Scottish father. Yeah, it's does get minus points for stereotypes. Having diverse characters is a plus but the some of the descriptions of Willow by Ele are oddly racist; not in the racist way in that she been locked in a room entire life so doesn't know the connotation of the things she says; more in what the hell does that mean? "His head hair ain't like no truths in no books. It's all together and bouncy." I think Juckes is trying to be poetic, but it's more what? This could just be a me thing.

This book tries to have twists, but if you know true crime then it obvious what they'll be and you won't be shocked.  It's also a very Juvenile Happy Ending way, I mean the characters literally say we don't why, it just is, which is realistic of life, but the way it's said doesn't help. I do say this Young Ya, and to clarify is not a bad thing. A young side to YA is needed, so this book might be good for Young teen wanting to step their toes into something darker but safe in that there will be Happy ending for the characters.

This book is set in Scotland, but where in Scotland? Fantasy Scotland probably. So I was born in Scotland, I was raised in Scotland. I went to school in Scotland. Okay, I'm probably overkilling this. There's just a lot of questionable things in this book that makes me think that Juckes has never been to Scotland or had her book proofread properly. She checked with someone's mum that the dialogue was correct. There's odd things referring to potatoes as Tatties and potatoes: " brown spotted balls called 'potatoes' - once Willow also called them 'Tatties'' and this not something someone would do unless they were questioned. Frankly, it should be the other way if you wanted to point out that Scottish people called them that. You either use that word or you don't. The Scots was, of course, wrote very touristy, but this book is obviously meant for a non-Scottish audience. The thing that made me really go what?, is this scene: When he’s done with the slow song, he starts playing something else. Something fast.  Something that has him dancing from left to right as his arm swoops from side to side and up and down. The music bounces off the walls and has me sitting up, smiling, my feet bouncing along like they’re running on music.‘Come on!’Willow shouts, spinning round in a circle and bouncing from foot to foot. I get up and copy him, though it’s difficult without a violin to play myself. I hop from one foot to the other. Spin round. [dance till collapsing] ‘Phew! Ah, that’s a fun one.’I pull my head to the side so I can see him. He’s smiling wide at the ceiling, pulling in breaths from his inhaler. ‘Irish,’he says, catching my eye. ‘They know how to dance."

So this is the thing called Ceilidh in Scotland, and if you had gone to a Scottish School you would know from the age of 8, we are all taught Scottish Group dancing and this continues until we were finally free of P.E. (in 6th year in my case) but still would make us do them at the Christmas Dance (at least my school did), we were made to do them at Christmas Dances during Primary. The Gay Gordons are drilled into my head. My point is there is a scene where a Scottish person plays a fiddle fast and does a dance that can't wrap my head around at being like anything that exists. Is he meant to be 'Riverdancing' with a violin? Maybe the targeted audience won't be old enough to immediately think of that Irish Scene in Titanic and all those dead Irish people. There are really fast Scottish dances and that type of music would be associated with Scottish dancing, if you were Scottish. There are other questionable things like Ele somehow never seeing trees on her way outside, or not being eaten alive by midges. This isn't really a big deal, just in the back of mind, where the hell in Scotland is this meant to be? I think Highlands but a lot of Scotland has middle of nowheres. Basically, all the questionable Scottish stuff just becomes really distracting and I don't get the choice.

I mean if you're not from Scotland, then I don't know why you would do it. The setting is never really described in detail, there's a lack of houses so I know it must be in the countryside but that's it. It could be anywhere.

Another big problem is the unquestioning nature of the characters, I guess spoils for after the 30% of the book. Ele gets outside and through a series of events ends up staying in this boy's, Willow, house and his dad doesn't question anything. Even with this going on for several days, with this girl who doesn't understand the basic things of the world and it's obvious that this is a case where the police should be called. She is also magically toilet trained and she learns everything really easily.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars for Dead Trees. This is a book with serious topics that is unrealistic in its execution. This is on the Younger side of YA (which they has been lack of in recent years and they should be more published), with the protagonist being thirteen and the push for a happy ending. Maybe I'm just to jaded to be really touched by this story especially there are several books with similar topics. This is okay but not story that will stick with me.

I received this book for review off NetGalley and the publisher Penguin. It was published on the 3rd January 2019. Do I have to say that this review was honest?

Book Review: Whiteout by Gabriel Dylan

Ski Trips: For the rich kids to die on.

Charlie hopes that the school ski trip will be the escape from his unhappy home life he so desperately needs. But there is something wrong with the remote ski village of Kaldgellan. Something is out there, something ancient and evil, among the pines and the deep untracked drifts, watching and waiting. 

And when the storms blow in, Charlie and his schoolmates wake to find the resort deserted. Cut off from the rest of the world far below, as night falls the few left alive on the snowbound mountain will wish they were somewhere, anywhere else. Only ski guide Hanna seems to know of Kaldgellan’s long-buried secrets, but whether Charlie can trust her is another question…


This is the second Red Eye book to featuring snow storms that cause isolation and with it having other similarities I couldn't help but compare them, especially as 'Fir' is one my favourite Red Eye books. I was pretty excited for this concept, as Teen "30 Days of Night" which oddly is one of the vampire films not mentioned in this.
                                                 
This book has third person narration that closely follows a few different people in the group. Charlie is the main character and gets a sort of romance. There are lot of characters at the start with this meant to be school trip, with thirty pupils so probably has two or three teachers with the group, so it's slightly confusing with all the girl names thrown around. We have other characters such as Tara who is the spoiled ex-rich girl; she is a terrible person, that's her deal and she only there to undermine everyone else. She meant to be the character you dislike the most, but guess who I dislike the most?That's right, Nico. My notes involve telling Nico to go die in the snow. Nico is your toxic geek stereotype with side of sexism. This sexism comes in his first introduction so that I was able to confirm that this quote made it to the finial book by using the Amazon Preview: "Ellie’s blue eyes were locked on to Stefan, a glint of admiration hovering there that gave Nico a twinge of envy. She was pretty, although he wondered if she’d be even more attractive without so much make up."

Yeah, Ellie is described as breaching her hair and wearing fake tan, and skiing with hooped earrings so is probably in that awkward phrase of make-up but it's makes me dislike Nico immediately because girls are judged for their make-up use even when it's fantastic. There's other comments by Nico through out the book make me dislike him for his toxic geek culture. I think these comments are meant to make him relatable but he just makes me think of those guys who quiz girls when they say they like Star Wars and deny that girl geeks exist. You can have shitty characters or flawed characters, but it doesn't add to the character or more importantly challenged. So with that sexist comment, I started counting how often the characters cry, 3:1 when comes to girls to boys. One of those times Tara cried for no reason and then never again. Maybe that was to show she was attention seeking. It's really minor thing, they are diverse side of girl characters so can just ignore Nico if you want.

Another thing to mention about Nico is that lot of his geek references feel slightly dated, I mean he plays World of Warcraft which isn't much of thing anymore. Also it's subscription based game, with it being £10 a month. It does have a free mode and these kids are on a ski trip so maybe they parents would pay that a month for game but it's seems more likely they would be messing about on Gary's Mod or Skyrim. I don't think MMORPG are much of thing anymore or I don't think any fantasy games really have online player mode. Films are mentioned as well but films can be randomly discovered that game with pay wall wouldn't. Though, no date is actually state. They have phones but are never described so I guess this could easily take place when I was a teen and not going on the sky trip where someone smuggled weed into several other countries. I don't think they went to Austria.

I love vampires, and was really excited to hear that a Red Eye book would be tackling them. They're done okay, somewhat old school with side of sort of original myth. The final conflict was decent and with Red Eyes being established as having no win situations sometimes the states were pretty high till the end.

Overall, I give this 4/5 stars for h. A lot of filler characters, but there's one character with strong motivation so that's fun. I guess I don't like the ending, it's not terrible but it meant to be a redemption for these characters that didn't feel earned for at least one of them well at least for me. . I get what their arc was meant to be, maybe it would have been better to focus on less characters for this story. I guess they all like 16 or something anyway. It's a decent horror story, in probably in the middle for me of the other Red Eye books which I have reviewed all of them.

I received e-arc of this book for free to do an honest review.

Book Review: Unconventional by Maggie Harcourt

Yes, let me to criticise a book about conventions when I have never been to one.

Lexi Angelo is a convention Kid - she got a slip-board and a walkie talkie to prove it.

Aidan Green is a messy-haired, annoying arrogant author and he's disrupting her perfect planning.

In a flurry of awkward encounters, lost schedules and late-night conversations, Lexi discovers that some things can't be planned...Things like falling in love.

Lexi's, our protagonist and narrator, life revolves around conventions. Helping to plan and run them, even when she should be doing school work. A big part of the book is actually about Lexi feelings towards conventions and what they mean to her.

Besides the obvious romance, we also have Lexi dealing with her dad deciding to get married to a woman he's never lived with.

Some of the novel I felt unrealistic, like the marriage being at a convention, maybe if it had been explained exactly why it had to happen then and there, besides the main events of the novel happening at conventions. There is generally a bit of disbelief when it comes to this book, but could technically happen, like a film actually being made straight away when the film rights are sold. There a lot of books that had the film rights sell before publication and were hits but are still not out years later. The fastest I've seen a book to film adaption would be the 'The Hate U Give' by Angie Thompson but that didn't have casting confirmed three months after it's release and the films rights were sold a month after the book did, and that was a contemporary novel with a very timely story to tell. I guess this meant to be Harry Potter level but stuff still takes time script writing, casting, location scouting, hiring a crew and if it going to need a lot special effects that has to be considered in the pre-production as well. Though, maybe the film is just going to be garbage fire because they rushed it. That does happen too. You do just have to accept that this book gets massive as soon as it published. It can happen, often doesn't. No one has really got HP or Twilight big over night which I think this fictional book is meant to be. I mean even pre-publishing buzz doesn't mean success. Okay, this was weird tangent, it just did take me out of the story a little.

There is a lot of characters in this book, probably due to the fact that it takes a lot of people to run a convention, including Lexi's best friends Samira, Nadiya and Bede. We don't get a lot of time with these characters, but it's still believable friendships and history behind these characters. Harcourt does a good job of suggesting this history from the start. The romance side is okay, it's kinda hate to love thing and the characters talk to each so it more than just surface nonsense.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars for Running Trays. It's fun and does a pretty good job of building this Conventional community. It's a fun book, so if don't think too much about publishing and how film work it's fine. That's just me.

Book Review: Solitaire by Alice Oseman

Funfact: Radio Silence technically spoils the end of this book.

'I don't ever remember not being serious. As far as I'm concerned, I came out of the womb spouting cynicism and wishing for rain.'

My name is Tori Spring. I like to sleep and I like to blog. Last year – before all that stuff with Charlie and before I had to face the harsh realities of A-Levels and university applications and the fact that one day I really will have to start talking to people – I had friends. Things were very different, I guess, but that’s all over now.

Now there’s Solitaire. And Michael Holden.

I don’t know what Solitaire are trying to do, and I don’t care about Michael Holden.

I really don’t.

This is a book I have owned since it came out, many years ago. So many years ago, I do not remember why I brought it. Well, probably because it says it's not a Love story and even then I hated the fact that every book seemed to be a love story at it's centre and they were often very bad. 

This book is more about friendship than romantic love, but it's also sort of there. We also have sibling relationships and as well as dealing with being a family with a sick sibling, which from my experience was done pretty well.

The way mental health is dealt with in this book is so great. If you're someone who wants to know nothing then leave this paragraph now. I related to Tori hating everything because I too kinda hated everything when I was seventeen and then I realise that this book was slowly showing beginning to related even more to my seventeen old self in an important way. It's done so fucking well. It's remind me of my slow dive into that state of numbness and then mixed in with the guilt because wasn't allowed to be sick. But haha that doesn't stop it.

I've seen others hate on the mental illness rep and the fact the main character is a teenager. Tori is shitty person, most teenagers are, I think that's pretty realistic to the story. Reading other reviews is interesting because you can see where other people get real hanged up on.

The plot is about this website called Solitaire.com that is playing planks on the Grammar School that Tori goes to. It used to drive the characters interactions with each other to figure out whose behind it/why.  With the plot description, it might seem like a thriller but it's really not, especially it's usually going on in the background. The focus is very much on the characters and their relationships together.

In terms of rep, we have Queer supporting characters as well as the mental health side. It sort of comes into the plot, but it's realistic and fine besides that. They function for the most part like a straight couple. There's also autistic feel to some characters, not saying they meant to be coded autistic but you could read them that way.

Overall, I give this book 5/5 stars for soft muttering. I related to this book a lot so I really loved it. I don't know if I liked it so much because I related to it so much, but I think either way it was done pretty well. In terms of her other books, I like this book better than Radio Silence. They have similar themes/issues and I think it works better in this one. I'm doing an review of Radio Silence so I talk about it there. Both are good, but I think this one was better, I also get why that might be a me thing. This book does have issues, but I like intention over all.

Book Review: Savage Island by Bryony Pearce

Yes, Children trust Mark Zuckerburg and his fictional counterpart.

When reclusive millionaire Marcus Gold announces that he’s going to be staging an “Iron Teen” competition on his private island in the Outer Hebrides, teenagers Ben, Lizzie, Will, Grady and Carmen sign up – the prize is one million pounds … each. But when the competition begins, the group begin to regret their decision. Other teams are hunting their competitors and attacking them for body parts. Can the friends stick together under such extreme pressure to survive? When lives are at stake, you find out who you can really trust…

One of the more boring Red Eyes, as it literally wandering an island for three days. Other stuff happens conspiracy and the risk of maiming. It takes from other Red Eye books (intentionally or not). It's similar to 'Flesh and Blood' and reminds me of Frozen Charlotte because it's on an Scottish Island (one of the Shetland islands, meant to be private island). So Rich, gore and isolation. A bit of 'Sleepless' as well.

I really lacked the motivation to finish this and it's not like it long. There were few hiccups. Ben doesn't have a great relationships with his brother, Will but it pressured into looking after him. Will is some sort of Genius and clearly disturbed. There was an awkward moment for me where I was like "is he meant Autistic?" No, he's a sociopath. I wouldn't say that a spoiler, it clearly what going on and I want talk about it. People often confuse Autism and Sociopathy, despite being different and think having that "oh no" feeling probably didn't help my enjoyment of the book. My own research (after reading this book) said that what Pearce wrote can be accurate, it just awkward for me.

We have the island stuff and tons of childhood flashbacks of Ben being sad. Lots of fun wildlife while you know horror. This format worked well for what Pearce was trying to do. The book stays in Ben's POV so we only know what he knows. It also get repetitive after awhile. A lot of going in circles. 

There's also a dumb romance because people can't just be friends (Okay, that's really just my pet Peeve). The characters are done well and Pearce does an good job of balancing everyone. I think the relationships are part that's done the best, which is good to see in horror when so much is just bodies to get rid of. Though, I did think Carmen being Spanish was pushed a lot at first.

This is sociopaths and conspiracy theorist stuff. If you find most of that stuff boring and overplayed, this probably not the book for you. Obviously, conspiracy theories are hot right now with the youths so makes sense and there's always an online quiz asking if you are Sociopath. Maybe I know too much about Sociopaths and the ones that become killers for this book. I guess most of the target market won't be like that. That being said I've read true crime novels since I could read, but still I probably would have enjoyed this more when I was younger.

I found the ending to be dumb. The END bit I mean. I get the ending for the story Pearce was trying to tell, I saw it coming so stop being invested. There's a twist, I guess it works and Pearce lays down the ground work for it. It's just didn't have much of impact. The Reveal just seemed like a bad business plan and like why?

Overall, I give this 3/5 stars for Geocache Boxes. This was an okay addition to Red Eye series. It makes sense to tackle conspiracies in this series (again), and I do think it might be part of personal taste in what you want your horror to be, if you're like this book. Not so much for me, it might work for you. Having read the all the Red Eye books, I do compare them to one another. This one is kinda in the middle for me. The cover is cooler than the actual book as well, because it's really cool. I just wish I had liked the book as much.

I got this book for review off NetGalley and Stripes Publishing, it was published on 5th April 2018.

Book Review: What I couldn't Tell You by Faye Bird

There's a lot a couldn't you. Most of it isn't important.

When Love turns to jealousy, when jealousy turns to rage, when rage turns to destruction...

Laura was head over heels in love with Joe. But Laura lies in a coma and Joe has gone missing. Was he the one who attacked her?

Laura's sister Tessie is Selectively Mute. She can't talk but she can listen. And as people tell her their secrets, she thinks she's getting close to understanding what happened that fateful night.

I read this book because mystery and Selective Mutism. I am Selectively Mute and have been during a video series of reviews on novel with Silent Protagionist, so I found this book looking for books to review for it. This intrigued me as it was Mystery which seems to be the second favourite to straight up contemporary.

The Selective Mutism is done okay. Sometimes it felt a bit more telling but Bird also does a good job of showing Tessie stress from the threat of speaking. Tessie is bullied by two people, they seem to have no lifes. Maybe we should feel sorry for Kat and Holly. Remember Kids, bullies have no lifes and feel free to argue why do they spend so much time annoying you (unless they punch you, then go to the cops). 

My least favourite part is the romance side of this novel. It's a cringey. I just never got that side at all, I guess completely lust based and that's just not the romance for me. Tessie is a bit of bad friend and it can't be excused by the hard time and her SM. It's realistic be a bad friend sometimes because of a boy but it bit extreme. Tessie also runs on juvenile side for a 15 year old, but it could be argue because of how extreme her SM is, she delay in her relationship understanding.

Another big part of the book is the bond Tessie has with her family and their dynamic with in it. Tessie's mother has symtoms of depression before Laura's accident and her part was helping her mother cope. So without her Tessie and her older brother have to keep going mostly. The family being in limbo is explored a lot and the half grief they feel.

This story is mostly told in first person by Tessie with different parts. An odd choice is to just list exactly what happens to everyone after the story ends like in a film. I've never seen that in a book before but I guess it get the point across. 

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for missed words. This was decent portrayal of selective mutism, probably the best I've seen in book form yet. The crime/thriller aspect was decent but the romance for me really lets this book now for me, especially with ending up being such a major part of the novel. I don't know if the book would have worked without it either, I guess that part just wasn't for me.

Book Review: For Holly by Tanya Byrne

All the girls in comas nowadays.

Lola Durand hates her stepmother. It's a cliché but it's true.

Lola Durand can't get through to her father. He never wants to talk about the things that matter: why they had to move to Paris, why he had to marry evil Agatha, and how they can get through the heartache of her mother's death together.

If he won't listen, she'll show him. She'll show him the truth about his new wife and then her life can go back to normal, just the way she likes it.

Lola Durand knows a secret about her stepmother. She's going to share it.

This is the second novel by Tanya Byrne that I have read (and reviewed). I probably enjoy this book less, but I really like Follow Me Down.

This book is in a diary/confession form from point of view Lola going over the events that lead outcome of the book. Most of the main plot has already happened by the time Lola starts writing. This book has a lot of tropes, but uses them to explore the emotion of the characters.

Lola is a sympathetic character going through a hard time since the death of her mother and her father's half abandonment. She has done dumb stuff, but I feel for her as she is a motherless 17 year old whose not handling her grief well with a bad support system. The adults aren't really better, as they aggravate the situation.

It explores grief and being from a mixed race character, Lola having a white French father and black Barbadian mother (I got this book from library, I might be slightly wrong), without the parent she takes after and feeling disconnected from her father without Mother's presence.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for stolen lippy. This was a decent YA distraction, with complex character and though is filled with medical tropes (this is third book I've read with a coma in the past few months and it's a random first in books), they are used well as away get to the emotion.

Book Review: Kid Swap by Michael Lawrence

I hated this book. I hate people who condescending to kids this does both.

Jiggy is horrified to hear that his parents have signed him up for a reality TV show called Kid Swap. He is to move in with another family and everything he does will be filmed. Sadly, most of what he does while the camera is pointing his way is not the kind of thing he wants to share with millions of total strangers. 

And then, on top of it all, there's his bizarre skin problem...

Find out how Jiggy copes with TV fame and
flick the pages for a disgusting dinner!

My little brother had been moaning about his English Homework for months. At first, I thought he was exaggerating but then I read it. It was terrible. It has no plot, it has no character developed and lacks entertainment valve. Then there's the 23-year-old women flirting with 13-year-old. I have nothing positive to say about this book. It's lazy and has dated horribly since 2008 release date. Michael Lawerence doesn't appear to have written anything else since this series ended. Probably for the better but I doubt Lawerence put any effect into this book.

The main character is unlikable twat at the age of 13. His dad is out of work, his mum is pregnant. They want him to do this show for the money, he's mad about it because he thinks be made fools of so does everything possible to be made a fool of. No one comes as likable or real people. His family and friends all say that the kid he swaps with is better than him. There's also this weird thing of Earth-saniser which are the opposite of vegetarian in that they only meat as the Earth is dirty. This is mainly dumb as that means they survive only on protein and fat, missing out every other core food group. I know Lawerence did this for a laugh and therefore think of what realistically they be eating, which just be meat. Should their vegetarian and clothes be made from bones and plastic? The dad of the family is a doctor of some kind and their kids seem to be healthy taking only vitamins (which sources must be of the Earth. One way or another).  But the main character develops a terrible skin problem because humour.

Like I have hinted at this book contains things I would not want my 13 yr old brother to read without me telling him that is fucked up. He basically knew already but kids' knowledge and wisdom varies so much. My little brother does dumb shit all the time because he's 13 and media is such a dangerous tool at that age. First chapter has a sex change joke, that is if the show was called Gender Swap, he would have to have a surgery to be a girl. This is a dad joke written by 60 something man in 2008, so it just part of it that badly dates it as nothing else said about Trans people and this show was probably made at the time. There was one about swapping races. There's an unnecessary fat joke when Jiggy wears giant swimming trunks. Why don't just have him worn the dad's and have the same effect. Though it's a scene that realistically would never make tv because even then that's a naked minor. It would have to be blurred, they would still have gotten shit for having shown that. The main thing is that the Director's assistant (no title is actually given) flirts with 13-year-old boy to get him to comply with the show. This made worse with being in his head. He somehow thinks she 17 when of course she can't be. The thing ends when Jiggy finds out she 23 and is dating the director. Like this is all for laughs when she 23 and knows what she is doing. It is gross but mostly messed up that it's played as a joke when even then there was a problem of children being groomed and ending up in dangerous situation, we know this more now, but it was a known thing at the time. Sure, all she is doing is getting him to humiliated himself but storylines like this have to be dealt with better. Even in 2008, I don't think there's an excuse. It is another thing that dates this book, but I don't think it would get published with all the Scandals that have come out of the entrainment system. Though, even now male victims are not taken seriously as they should be, and people like to deny that women predators do exist. They like to deny the males as well. People suck. 

This book has an interesting idea, but it's waste within this series. The book I read from didn't make clear that it was part of a going series which would have made it a bad idea to do a school project on with only 20 minutes to pick a book to nine pages of work on. But hey maybe that just a bad thing to ask a class of 12/13-year-olds to do on a random book with no guidance. (I'm kinda annoyed at my little brother's English teacher, mainly because he told me the Amazon reviews are positively when there is one that from 2015 saying it the worst book they've ever read. 

There is now two out of 15. The better argument is that it has 85 ratings on Goodreads with an avenge rating of 3.86 stars (which was probably higher till I rated it)).  This is book is just a series of events that go no way despite having two places for a climax. As part of my brother's homework we read each chapter together and he was to summaries and rate the excitement of each chapter. All 23 of them. So, I have analysed this book more than it was ever meant to be. But nothing happens to carry on the plot in a lot of chapters. Another highlight is when Jiggy befriends a bunny obviously meant for Dinner for it to be finally killed and served several chapters later. My favourite has to be when an elf randomly shows up to offer the boy Jiggy swaps with the perfect life because he's good, smart and born rich. Like why would a magical creature would do that. If it meant to be commentary on the upper class having everything, then you missed the beat. The Elf might have been less jarring if had read the other books in the series with such titles as "The Curse of the Poltergoose", "The Meanest Genie" and "Neville the Devil". So first show of magical in the book, but not in the series. Still just random as fuck. The plot is just Random as Fuck.

Normally I don't swear in reviews of books where no swearing as appears but 13 yrs swear all the time, this is 10 old book that should probably be forgotten, and I feel like it as its a descriptive word.

Overall, I give this book 1/5 stars for Sexual Manipulation of all ages. I just hate this book, I think some of my anger is more directed at my little brother's English teacher because I had spent hours trying to work from this book to help my little brother learn something. Not that is English teacher seems to care if that was possible. He also mocks my brother's reading ability whose Autistic and Dyslexic, so I really dislike him, and this review is for you Brendan from someone whose Autistic and Dyslexic that knows what it like to put up with Ablelist teachers throughout high school that don't want to do their jobs. Frankly, I think it was ridiculous to let any kid to do for so long without feedback and I don't believe for one second you would have let him changes books without my mother's complaints. Though, I am angry with how stupid this book is. Kids ain't idiots. There are good books for this age group and reading level. Does this book have positive reviews, yes, do I think they thought about it for any length no. Also, Twilight, 50 shades of Grey all have positive reviews so that means nothing.