Childrens Book Review in The South Wales Evening Post April 2- 3rd

Find my Childrens Book Review Column in The South Wales Evening Post this weekend April 2-3rd. My picks including a very naughty book eating monster, a ballet dancing tiger, a gladiatorial zebra and a coming of age drama in 1970's Alaska. Never say I don't give variety!!

BOOK OF THE WEEK

NIBBLES BOOK MONSTER BY EMMA YARLETT
PICTURE BOOK 3+
A superbly crafted and ingenious picture book. Nibbles loves books but unfortunately as more of a snack!! Chase him through three of your favourite fairy tales, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and The Beanstalk and Goldilocks and The Three Bears causing chaos, with lift the flaps and holes he has naughtily made. So much to see and do this will be returned to again and again. A book that keeps on giving.
ISBN: 9781848691933 HB Little Tiger Press Group £11.99
5/5 Stars

TIGER IN A TUTU BY FABI SANTIAGO

PICTURE BOOK 3+

A striking picture book about a tiger who aspires to be a ballet dancer in Paris. Against all the odds he follows his dream and with a little help from his new friend finally performs in a proper theatre. The bold limited palette really captures the French capital and the twilight world of theatre life. Enchanting and inspiring with the lovely sentiment that nothing is impossible this is the perfect present for little dancers everywhere.
ISBN: 9781408336885 HB Orchard Books £11.99

5/5 Stars

JULIUS ZEBRA: BUNDLE WITH THE BRITONS BY GARY NORTHFIELD

CHILDRENS 7+

The unlikely madcap story of a gladiator and peoples champion who just happens to be a zebra! This is an irreverent, fast paced and zany introduction to Roman Britain. Emperor Hadrian asks one last favour of Julius and his bumbling friends before they are set free. Will they survive to tell the tale? Heavily illustrated with cartoon style drawings and brimming with jokes and historical facts this is great for early readers. Educational and hilarious! 
ISBN: 9781406354935 HB Walker Books Ltd

4/5 Stars

THE SMELL OF OTHER PEOPLES HOUSES BY BONNIE SUE HITCOCK

TEEN FICTION 12+

A coming of age story about four very different teenagers who's lives collide in 1970's Alaska. Beautifully written it touches on first love, self preservation against the odds and friendship. A bit of luck is thrown in but will the four overcome adversity and will their scars heal? An unusual and deceptively sensitive book with a real sense of place, this has wide appeal from teen to adult and would be great for a book group. Riveting!

ISBN: 9780571314959 PB Faber & Faber £7.99

5/5 Stars

Meeting Sarah J Maas with ACOTAR

Loved meeting author Sarah J Maas in Cardiff for a book signing of her new fantasy series A Court of Thorns and Roses. She was seriously charming and answered everyone's questions. She also had the most fabulous cat ring on!!

 Can't wait to see what happens in the series.

I asked her how long it took to write this book. She said the plot took about a month then editing about 9 months after that! She is now writing 2 books a year, which her fans will be thrilled about, including me! 

It was interesing to know also that not only did she get inspiration from Beauty and the Beast but also looked to Greek Myth, specifically Hades and Persephone. Is this a clue for the next installment? We will have to wait and see.

The Iron Fey Series by Julie Kagawa

The Iron Fey Series

The Iron Fey saga follows half-human, half-faery Meghan Chase as she fights to claim her magical birthright.

Meghan’s journey begins in the mortal world, when her half-brother Ethan is kidnapped. The mission to rescue the innocent child draws Meghan into the Nevernever—the magical world—where the never-before-seen Iron fey are raining destruction upon traditional faeries. Meghan’s quest is fraught with unimagined dangers, unpredictable powers…and an utterly forbidden love.

Now little Ethan is all grown up—and a new breed of fey has come for him. Bound by blood to a world he despises, Ethan plunges into the Nevernever searching for answers: who are the ghostly assassins hunting him? Who controls them? And why are exiled and half-breed faeries vanishing from the mortal world?

With a vulnerable human girl to protect and an enigmatic faery ally he could never have imagined, Ethan embarks on his own Fey saga. Along the way he will encounter kin, comrades and deadly new enemies. He will discover his formidable strengths, and his deepest weaknesses—and he will fight for his life against the Forgotten.

 

 

The Iron King Book 1

 

Meghan Chase has a secret destiny-one she could
never have imagined…

Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school…or at home.

When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.But she could never have guessed the truth—that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face…and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.

 

 

The Iron Daughter Book 2

Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan s own fey powers have been cut off. She s stuck in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can t help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.

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My Musings

I was totally enthralled with the Iron Fey Series. Kagawa builds very visual conflicting worlds which really draw you in. The main character Meghan continues to fight her destiny throughout, her loyalties and her loves. We are introduced to a myriad of colourful characters in this darkly forbidding series, it is never one dimensional or self indulgant. I loved every minute of it and was thrilled when Kagawa started a new vein in The Iron Prince and Iron Traitor. What really lifts the series above is the witty and funny dialoghue between Puck and Ash, Meghans rivals in love and the hilarious Grimalkin, the talking and rather cheeky cat. If you love dark fairy stories with extra bite this is definately for you.

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