Books I Love By Authors In The UK – Part 1

In this post I want to share some of my favourite books by authors in the UK. I feel like several of these authors deserve more love and that you should all go read their books!

1 The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon – I am impatiently waiting for the next book because I love this series so much!

2 The Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton – I adore this trilogy! And Alwyn has recently announced that she will be releasing a new series set in the same world!

3 The Summoner and Contender series by Taran Matharu – I loved the Summoner books and I recently read the first Contender book and loved it too! It’s also ownvoices! You can read my reviews of The Outcast here and of The Chosen here

4 All the Things we Never Said by Yasmin Rahman – A book dealing with mental health and suicidal thoughts and how important friendship can be. You can read my review here

5 Viper by Bex Hogan – Pirates and Assassins and a bloodthirsty and violent world and I loved it! You can read my review here

6 Darren Shan Saga by Darren Shan – A childhood favourite about vampires and I really loved the whole series!

7 Gilded Cage trilogy and Sanctuary by Vic James – A dystopian UK where those who don’t have powers must serve those with powers for 10 years and are effectively slaves for that period. Sanctuary is a dark witchy book and I loved all of her books! You can read my review of Sanctuary here

8 She Wore Red Trainers by Naima B Robert – I really love all the books Naima rights but especially this one as it’s a Muslim love story! You can read my review here

9 You’re Crushing It by Lex Croucher – I really loved reading through this book. It’s about mental health, building your self-esteem and so much more.

10 I Am Thunder and Kick the Moon by Muhammad Khan – Both deal with very relevant issues and I highly recommend reading them! You can read my review of Kick the Moon here

11 A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Bushby – I really loved this book that deals with growing apart from friends, being true to yourself and standing up for what’s right. You can read my review here

12 Jinxed by Amy Alward – This book was one of those books that I came across accidently but I ended up falling in love! It’s a dystopian sci-fi with unapologetically nerdy, smart female characters who excel in STEM areas. You can read my review here

So when I started writing this post I actually realised I knew a lot more UK authors than I thought so there will be a part 2 posted in a couple days!

The Chosen by Taran Marathu – ARC Review

Thank you to Hodder Children’s Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Having loved the Summoner books by Taran Matharu I was so excited when he announced his new series The Contender especially as it was set in a world with dinosaurs! And this book did not disappoint!

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Throughout history, people have vanished with no explanation. A group of teenagers are about to discover why.

Cade is settling into a new boarding school, contemplating his future, when he finds himself transported to another realm. He soon discovers their new world is populated with lost remnants from the past: prehistoric creatures, ancient relics, and stranger still — people. Overwhelmed by his new surroundings, Cade has little time to adjust, for soon he and his fellow classmates are forced to become contenders in a brutal game, controlled by mysterious overlords.

But who are these beings and why did they choose these teens? Cade must prepare for battle . . . because hiding is not an option.

The Chosen opens with Cade already in this alternate world faced with a creature he’s never seen before so right from the beginning we’re thrown into the action. I really liked that as it made me even more intrigued about the story and how Cade ended up there.

We get the backstory of Cade and his classmates throughout the book through Cade so we slowly get an idea of why the characters behave the way they do with each other. It was interesting to see the dynamics between them all and how they had to try and get a long because of the situation they were in. They have conflicts and don’t always agree on things but I wish we had gotten to see more of that in the story.

The story is fast paced and lots happen throughout the book. They have to face dinosaurs and lots of other creatures. I really loved how immersive it was and how he weaved real history and fiction together, the history nerd in me totally loved all mentions of historical facts! The history is actually an important aspect of the story too and one of the reasons that Cade is chosen to be taken to this world.

I really liked Cade and how he thinks before taking action, it’s unusual for a teenage boy to think before he barrels into things so that was nice to see. I really liked seeing the own voices rep as Cade is half Indian and how his culture and family dynamics are. We also see the racism and discrimination he receives from some of the other boys because of it. He is looked down upon because of his lower social class and everyone assumes he is guilt because of how he looks and that he isn’t rich. I liked that he does battle with these emotions and how it makes him feel despite being a top student his opportunities are taken from him. I really hope we get to see more own voices rep in books.

Another character I really liked was Quintus, who Cade meets in this world, he helps Cade and the others and even teaches them how to use some weapons. He has hearing difficulties and we see how he is unable to communicate with others and how that makes him feel isolated and lonely. Cade also meets a group of teenage girls while on this world and they also help him and I loved seeing them flip stereotypes that girls aren’t as capable as boys.

Throughout the whole story we are left to wonder why Cade and the others have been sent to this world. There is a lot of intrigue and mystery and it made me want to read just one more chapter. The ending of the book was so intense and kept me on the edge of my feet. They have to face these terrifying creatures and there are some things that happen that I was not expecting at all which left me reeling. We only get an idea of why Cade has been sent to this world right at the end which of course is then left on a cliffhanger and I just want to know what will happen next!

This book is full of action and intrigue and unlike any other book I’ve read. If you love dinosaurs and history then I highly recommend you pick up The Chosen! I am already dying to know what will happen in the next book!

The Outcast Book Review

Recently I took part in the summoner book club on twitter hosted by @teambkmrk and I was lucky enough to win a proof of The Outcast, which is the prequel to the Summoner trilogy by Taran Matharu.

I have been wanting to read these books for ages so when I found out that The Novice was one of the world book day books I thought it would be the perfect time to read these books. And I loved the trilogy and The Outcast was amazing too!
Basically I’ve fallen in love with these books and you all need to read them! The Outcast is a prequel but I am glad I read the trilogy first.

The Outcast is releasing in the UK on May 3rd so you still have time to pre-order the book! Read on for my review!

As I’ve already said I loved this book! It was great to be back in this world and get to see some of the adult characters in the trilogy as teenagers. Like the trilogy the book is fast paced and totally engrossing. I loved the world building, the friendships and the fierce female characters that we get to see.

At the beginning of the story we see the main character Arcturus, who is a commoner, accidently summon a demon and discovering that he is a summoner, which until then is only an ability that nobles have. Because of his ability the king decides to send him Vocans academy to train him as a summoner.

Arcturus is kind and brave and I loved reading this book from his point of view. His demon, Sacharissa is one of my favourite characters! She’s loyal and protective of Arcturus and goes above and beyond to help and protect him. She is absolutely adorable! I loved the relationship between her and Arcturus.

This book deals with the social divide in society where the wealthy (nobles) think they are superior to the commoners. We do get to see that not all nobles are like this and Alice and Elaine are definitely my favourites! Elaine especially is probably one of my favourite characters throughout all the books. I loved how protective Arcturus was over Elaine but we also got to see that she is strong and brave and can take care of herself.

As I said before one of the main themes throughout these books is friendship and The Outcast was no exception. It was the love of their friends that spurred the characters on to keep fighting to not give up. There isn’t much emphasis on couples and I loved that about these books. We see glimpses of it but the platonic friendships are much more emphasised.

There is so much more I want to say! But I want to keep this spoiler free so that is all for now. But if anyone has read these books do comment and let me know what you thought!

Rating: 5/5

 

April Wrap Up

Hey everyone! Its already the end of April! Honestly this month has gone by really fast! So this post is about the books I read this month. I managed to read 14 books and a short story. I took part in the #TotalCoverLover challenge and readathon over on Instagram so a lot of these books are for that challenge. I also took part in the #CroneBookClub this month on Twitter. So I’ve had a really fun reading month!

These are the books that I read this month:

The Truth about Alice by Jennifer Matthieu

Rating: 4/5

I read Moxie last year so when I heard this was being released I just had to pick it up! I really loved this book. It is a difficult read as it discusses slut shaming and how things like gossip and rumours could cause so many problems for a girl. I would definitely recommend this book!

Artemis by Andy Weir

Rating: 2/5

I was really disappointed with this book as it seemed like a book I would love. The story wasn’t that interesting, I hated the stereotyping and I really disliked the main character, Jazz. It did start off well but sadly it wasn’t a book for me.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Rating:4.5/5

I had heard so much about this book on bookstagram so I was excited to read it and it did not disappoint! I loved the writing style and how we see a totally different take on a famous historical event and person. Patroclus was by far my favourite character and even though I knew it would end tragically I still needed to read to the end. This book had me totally hooked.

Everless by Sara Holland

Rating: 5/5

This book was recommended to me by Violettereads and yes I did end up loving it! The whole concept of time is money was so interesting and I could see parallels between the story and society. I also loved the mythology side too with the backstory slowly being told to us which kept me reading late into the night. And the ending with those plot twists…it’s safe to say that the next book cannot come out fast enough!

Blood and Sand by C.V. Wyk

Rating: 5/5

This book came in the February Illumicrate box and as soon as I read the synopsis I was pretty sure I would love it! The premise that, what if Spartacus was a woman, instantly had me intrigued. This was a really fast paced book with plenty of characters that I loved! The cliffhanger ending and the insane plot twists left me devastated and in desperate need of the next book! If you love historical fiction and retellings then definitely pick this book up!

The Magic Misfits by Neil Patrick Harris

Rating: 3/5

I basically bought this book because of the cover. Its just gorgeous! And for some reason reminded me of Six of Crows for kids. However this book kind of fell flat for me. It had a great premise but I felt the story was quite simplistic and didn’t keep me entertained. This is a middle grade book so maybe it will still be a good read for younger readers. I did love that it was interactive, which I’m sure kids will love.

Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani

Rating: 4/5

This book I had heard great reviews for so I decided to pick it up as it was on offer. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. It had an interesting world and some great characters. The plot went in a completely different direction than I thought It would so that kept me intrigued. The only thing was it was really short, just over 100 pages and I felt that had it been longer we would’ve been able to see more depth to the characters and the world.

The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

Rating: 5/5

This book has dragons so I was a little biased when I picked it up. I love books with dragons! The story was so interesting and the characters were complex. Of course I loved the dragons! I also loved that the author included legends throughout the story to fill in the back story without it feeling like an info dump. The book ended on a cliffhanger so im looking forward to seeing what will happen next.

The Extinction Trials by S.M. Wilson

Rating: 5/5

I read this book as it was part of the #CroneBookClub and I read it all in one sitting! It’s intense and has your heart racing throughout! I literally couldn’t put it down! I loved the dual point of views and I am definitely going to need to buy the next book as soon as it releases!

A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Rating: 5/5

Chimamanda is amazing! I love her so much and so glad I was finally able to read this book! It’ such an empowering book and I just loved all her suggestions. So many points she makes had me screaming THIS! And reading paragraphs out loud to my husband. Honestly reading this book was such an amazing experience.

Nemesis by Brendan Reichs

Rating: 3/5

When I first started the book I was really intrigued and it kept me wanting more but after a while I began to feel bored with the story and felt it dragged on for too long before actually telling us what had happened to the main characters. I loved Min and Tack but really disliked Noah so reading his POV was harder for me. I wasn’t expecting that ending so I’m still kinda interested to know what will happen next.

The Outcast by Taran Matharu

Rating: 5/5

I was lucky enough to receive an arc of The Outcast so look out for a full review soon! But if you loved The Summoner trilogy then you should definitely pick up this book which out in May. This is a prequel, set before the main characters in the trilogy are born. I loved seeing younger versions of some of the adult characters from the trilogy and it delved deeper into the events which we hear about in The Novice.

Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed

Rating: 5/5

I received an arc of this book and it will be out in the UK in June. Oh man this book, it tore my heart to pieces. I really loved it and stayed up all night reading it. It’s about the right for girls to get an education and the difficulties they face living in a village where girls are considered inferior to boys. I would definitely recommend getting this book once it’s out! I will share my full review soon!

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Rating: 5/5

This was a reread via audiobook and let me tell you, I have LOVED being back in this world! This is one of my all time favourite books and it made me love it even more! Everyone needs to read this book!

Okami by Renee Ahdieh

Rating: 5/5

This was a short story that recently released that is set after Flame in the Mist and before Smoke in the Sun. It’s told from Okami’s POV and I loved it! It’s made me even more excited to read Smoke in the Sun! This is a free ebook download so if you read Flame in the Mist then definitely read this!

Anyways that’s all of the books I read this month! Let me know if you’ve read any of these and what you thought of the