Book Review: Between the Lies by Cathy MacPhail

When I run away, I'm staying away fro the Clyde.

"I heard Jude ran off to IBiza."
"Why yould Jude message no-mates-Abbie?!"
"Jude! Seriously. Where are you?"

The mean girls and the isfits alike are obsessed with Judith Tremayne's sudden disappearance.

Then Abbie Kerr, a school nobody, receives a message that changes everything.

"I want to come home."

Who can find the truth between the lies?

 Basically, everyone lies in this book until it explodes in their faces. For like no real reason either.

The main character Abbie seemed very unlikable from the start of the book. I don't really feel for anyone in the events of the novel. I took quite dislike to Abbie's dad and thought he quite failed the parenting test.

 The plot is a bit dull with its twists.

This book is set in Port Glasgow so somewhere in the central belt of Scotland. So there's this on the street reporter called Sara Flynn who has red hair.  Jackie Bird in wild? She meant to be the most famous reporter in Scotland, unless STV has one, it must be Jackie Bird. The person BBC Scotland should stop using for everything. I really hate Jackie Bird's presenting.

The format is somewhat interesting, the book is told in first person by Abbie, mixing in with texts and status/comments she reads online. Probably the best part of the book was the way this was executed.

Time for Rachel Verna points out something stupid: As someone who attempted to read "IT" by Stephen King at 13 years old and stopped at the 600 and something page mark, I don't buy for one minute that half a class of 3rd years (mostly 14 years olds) have read IT or have read many over a thousand page books. I really doubt MacPhail has either. Seen the the original 90s TV-movies, maybe and would have definitely seen reference to that. Apparently, they all loved it too and no mention of the 11 year old gangbang. I didn't get to that part back then. I read it last year in full.

The school has a unrealistic amount of working tech. Unless someone just brought them a TV studio for some reason. Yeah, it's never explain why they have that, unless it part of a Higher or something. I know a few school have recording studio set ups (there are often just cupboards with sound proofing), but TV studio with a relayable system to broadcast over the school is something that University with degrees in that technology stuff have issues with. I get it from the plot point but not realism.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars for school cameras. This book was fine, forgettable quick read. The only interesting thing that the book it's set in Scotland which is something that I don't often come across by accident. The summary sounds like such a cool book, so slightly disappointed. Oh well, I'll probably give MacPhail another chance.

Book Review: Fir by Sharon Gosling

Forests are obviously evil.

Moving from Stockholm to an isolated pine plantation in northern Sweden is bad enough, but when the snows come early and all links between the Strombergs and the outside world are cut off, it gets worse. With only a grudging housekeeper and increasingly withdrawn parents for company, there is nothing to do but to explore the old plantation house. Anything to stay out of the endless pine trees pressing in on them. But soon it becomes clear that the danger within the old plantation house is even greater than what lies outside…

A chilling YA horror, perfect for fans of Dawn Kurtagich, Juno Dawson and Stephen King.

I just want to comment on the Stephen King being added on to YA horror writers. Sure, they on the same level as King's horror (Well, I know I rather read Kurtagich or Dawson again. King though...?). So finally with this book I have read all of the released books of the Red Eyes series (I don't have connections to get a book five months, that has a preview in Fir so is probably finished. We can compare in April).

So this is unique setting of Sweden (though I know of another British Horror book out there that is set in Northern Sweden and involves the Forest. Stay out of the Forests in Northern Sweden I guess).

The book is told in the POV of a unnamed protagonist in sort of a diary form, with poem from the forest every second chapter, which is why is probably compared to Kurtagich with her 'Dead House'.

The parents are generic have their own issues going on so lets solve our problems by moving to nowhere without a support unit to run a business that they know nothing about it. We also have a guide and much of kids that part of programme to educate kids about the forests. Then there's the creepy old maid that's worked at the house her whole working life.

The forest is also personified with tales of creatures in it.  The house is spooky as well so the setting is great and the mystery side works.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for secret hidey-holes... I'm now conflicted because this book levels with Frozen Charlotte or is better. It has similarity with isolation and supernatural beings messing with people. Also spooky child/ren. I would recommended if like that book and just if you like YA Horror.

Dis: This is the only Red Eye book that I have currently not gotten this for Review off NetGalley. Just saying so you know I didn't forget the disclaimer.

Buy.

Book Review: Eden Summer by Liz Flanagan

Eden is not a Paradise to spend time with.

IT STARTS like any other day for Jess – get up, draw on eyeliner, cover up tattoos and head to school. But soon it’s clear this is no ordinary day, because Jess’s best friend, Eden, isn’t at school . . . she’s gone missing.

Jess knows she must do everything in her power to find Eden before the unthinkable happens.

So Jess decides to retrace the summer she and Eden have just spent together. But looking back means digging up all their buried secrets, and she starts to question everything she thought Eden’s summer had been about ...

This book takes places over a day, with flash backs to the events leading to Eden's disappearance, in first person, with a flash forward about as well.

 Even with everything Eden is dealing with she still comes across as unlikable, especially with the flash back before the event. She has this perfect life, till the terrible thing happens and just come across as spoiled. I only cared about her being missing because the effect it was having on Jess and other characters. Jess is likable protagonist and I felt for the other characters.

This book deals with a lot of complex things including Hate crimes on sub-cultures and grief. It does a decent job of dealing with the topics.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for Graveyard Snow. It was a quick read with some punch. I would recommend it for a readathon.

Book Review: I have No Secrets by Penny Joelson

Maybe this book should be called I have all the secrets.

I have no secrets of my own.
I can't do anything without someone knowing about it.
I can see, though, and I can hear, and sometimes
people forget that.
Sometimes people talk about me
as if I'm not there.
I hate that. 
And sometimes people tell me their secrets.
Dan did.
And I can't tell anyone.
I wish I could do something.  

This novel is told from POV of someone with cerebral palsy on the extreme end. It's done okay. She does feel like a person and full out character. Jemma is fourteen and has own stuff going on.

Jemma is also forested by a family who forest two other children with specials needs, an autistic non-verbal six-year Finn and Olivia whose nine and something going with her, which was interesting to see as I've not came across another book YA that had the main character in that situation as portrayed positively. It was nice to see that dynamics.

The mystery/thriller side is kinda slow as Jemma is unable to communicate to people in anyway, so a lot of it is just her frustration and overhearing things. I do feel like the ending was bit of cop out, but this is on the young side of YA.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for nose technology. This was an interesting idea and I'm glad people with disabilities getting to be in Thriller-est books instead of just standard contemporaries, while straight contemporaries are fine (usually too romance heavy for me), but they often just about people's problems and not tracking much besides that, no conspiracy or magic. Though, this book's plot is heavily reliant on her disabilities, I still enjoyed it.

I also did a video review.

Book Review: Six Four by Hideo Yokoyama

I don't think the British police would care about a protest.

The Japanese crime sensation that sold a million copies in six days.
SIX FOUR.
THE NIGHTMARE NO PARENT COULD ENDURE.
THE CASE NO DETECTIVE COULD SOLVE.
THE TWIST NO READER COULD PREDICT.

For five days in January 1989, the parents of a seven-year-old Tokyo schoolgirl sat and listened to the demands of their daughter's kidnapper. They would never learn his identity. They would never see their daughter again.

For the fourteen years that followed, the Japanese public listened to the police's apologies. They would never forget the botched investigation that became known as 'Six Four'. They would never forgive the authorities their failure.

For one week in late 2002, the press officer attached to the police department in question confronted an anomaly in the case. He could never imagine what he would uncover. He would never have looked if he'd known what he would find.

This is a very slow book for something that comes technically under the thriller genre.

Our protagonist Mikami is an outsider, working in the hated media department in Administer, while having previously been a detective. Office Politics is big part of this book, with the police officers and Admin going up against each other. Mikami also has personal stuff that effects where he lies in this 'war' and this does goes in a circle while Mikami is trying to find out what they all up to, especially as he thinks its vital for him to know.

The mysteries presented are mostly solved, a big one is left to wonder about. I go on the pessimist side of what is hinted about the one that isn't.

The writing is odd sometimes, obviously this is a translation (translated by Jonathan Lloyd-Davies) so that might come from what is the usual in Japanese. Mikami just starts listing things, which is especially odd as this book is written in third person. This book is quite long and the plot drags on sometimes.  

They were some culture barriers in this book for me. A big early plot point is the Journalist threatening to put in a written compliant to the police and I honestly don't get why anyone would care as they were complaining about something Mikami was ordered to do. The police have no respect/like for the Journalist so why was a big deal if they complained. I know Japan does have a big thing about honour and shame so maybe because its a shamefully thing to happen, or the whole disconnect they have with their bosses. It doesn't really matter I guess if you understand why, it is important for plot reason and then what that leads to.

I listened to the audio book of this and I don't think I would recommended that. I didn't really like the actor's, Richard Burnip, voice. He also made the female character kinda whinny and didn't like a lot of the choices for the other characters either. I also found it confusing since I'm not familiar with Japanese names it was hard for me to remember character's by the sound of their names and would have been better reading it, but ar last I did not have the time to do that and got used to both these issues eventually.

Overall, I give this book 4/5 stars for Irritable Reporters. While I enjoyed this book, a lot things are left unresolved and everything that is resolved is done very quickly compared to the size of the rest of this book.

Discamilar: I listen to book on Audio book from the library, but I had also received a ebook version off it from NetGalley and Quercus Books when it came out in Hardback over here.