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YALC – The Maddest Weekend Ever – A Reflection

So I’ve just got back from a mad weekend in London for London Film and Comic Con because the first ever Young Adult Literature Convention was hosted there. This is going to be my round up, but instead of boring you with the details about the long queues (seriously, I queued three times on Saturday!) and the IMG_3263nonexistent air-conditioning, I’m instead going to reflect on all the amazing things I’ve learned this weekend.

I admit that I was incredibly nervous about going. I was even contemplating not going at one point, but I’m glad I did in the end. The biggest thing I’ve learned this weekend is that I have the most amazing friends in the world. From meeting people I’ve known since I first started blogging (Rebecca, that’s you!), and people I’ve only just met, it was so, so amazing to meet every single one of you.

I think I finally understand what the word ‘community’ means because we – the YA community – are so, so strong and tight. I used to worry about my age and how young I am compared to everyone else but this weekend I realised that it really doesn’t matter. You can be any gender, any age, any ANYTHING, and you will be welcomed. 

I feel incredibly blessed that I know all of you. I’ve been feeling so out of touch with the blogging world lately, so much so that sometimes I even feel like quitting, but I realised that I blog because I love it and I love the people and I would not be the same person without my blog.

IMG_3275Two years ago, I would never have had the confidence to go to something like YALC and actually talk to people. I feel as if I spoke to so many people this weekend and I am so, so proud of myself.

This weekend has also taught me the importance of supporting each and every person in our community. Whether sharing a blog post on Twitter or writing a comment on a blog post, we need to stay together to stay alive and stay true to the community we are.

I really have made friends for life in each and every one of you. I love you all – we’re all one big family!

Because I met so many of you this weekend, I didn’t want to exclude any of you so I hope you don’t feel offended if I haven’t mentioned you – I tried to include everyone as a whole rather than mention specific people and leave hordes out. 

Book Review UKYA Where to Start

REVIEW: Solitaire by Alice Oseman

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What can I say about Solitaire that will convey my thoughts on just how perfect it is? I’ve been eagerly anticipating reading it for months now and so I started it as soon as I opened the parcel containing it.

Solitaire tells the story of Victoria Spring, whose hobbies include sleeping, blogging and drinking diet lemonade. Tori is a pessimist and prefers her own company to spending time with others. Things used to be different: she had friends and her brother, Charlie, was okay, but now things are different. When things start happening around the school, harmless pranks which then turn into something bigger, Tori is left wondering who’s behind it – who are Solitaire, and what are they trying to achieve? – and also trying to live with her own inner struggles.

Solitaire is a gorgeous and breath-taking debut novel, which, in my opinion, rivals the likes of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Seeing as though Catcher is one of my all time favourite novels, it’s no surprise that Solitaire is now also a part of that list.

Filled with fandom references and incredibly realistic to teenage life, Solitaire is a book that every teenager will relate to and a book many adults will also love because of its realism and ability to just understand life on so many levels.

One of the reasons I loved this novel so much was that I felt as if I was the person in Tori’s head. It scared me in a way because so many of my own feelings were reflected in the writing. Tori, the protagonist, gets me and that made it so special to read.

Tori is juxtaposed to Michael Holden, the male protagonist in Solitaire. Before you think it, Solitaire is by no means a love story. Solitaire is a life story, and by that I mean that Solitaire captures life perfectly – life isn’t a love story, is it? Life is so much more than meeting someone and madly falling in love with him or her. I loved that about Solitaire and it’s what sets it apart from your typical YA novel.

Written from the heart, I believe Solitaire will be one of the biggest debut novels of 2014. You certainly won’t want to miss out on reading it!

 

Book in a Tweet: If you’re a teenager, or have ever been a teenager, this book has been written just for you: You’re not alone.

If you liked …. you’ll love this!

 solitaireifyouliked.pngJohn Green – love The Fault in Our Stars? Mad about Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns? Solitaire easily rivals it!

 Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – Full of fandom references that will put a big smile on your face, Solitaire deals with the same feelings as Fangirl but is possibly even better!

Blog Tour Guest Post UKYA

Countdown to 5th June: Kim Slater on the cover of Smart

COVERING SMART

Revealing the book cover process between author and publisher

 

UntitledOne thing that everyone seems to really love about Smart is its beautifully illustrated cover. It really stands out and serves as an excellent representation of the book’s content.

When I first got my book deal with Macmillan Children’s Books (MCB), my agent told me they were going to give the book an iconic cover. And boy, didn’t they just?

The amazing illustrator, Helen Crawford-White did a fabulous job as did the entire art department at MCB.

But the final version was the result of a rigorous and fairly lengthy process and began as a pooling of ideas between myself the author and my MCB Editor, Rachel Kellehar.

Publication date for the book is 5th June 2014 but the cover process began way back in June 2013, when Rachel emailed me with a Cover Dialogue. This was basically where we both discussed our ideas and impressions that could be moulded into the beginnings of a vision for the cover.

Continue Reading

UKYA Uncategorized

Obsessed With… Stonewylde!

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Obsessed With… is a new feature where I discuss something (usually a book series) that I can’t stop obsessing over and the story behind it. 

Today I’m going to be talking about the book series I am most obsessed with. If you know me well enough, you can probably guess what it is! I’ve done various posts on the Stonewylde series before but I want to go into a bit more detail this time and really talk about my personal experiences and what they mean to me, because they mean an awful lot.

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Above is my Stonewylde shelf – yes, an entire dedicated shelf! I was incredibly pleased when I managed to fit them all perfectly in to the section they’re in. I first read the series when I was around 11. My mum had seen them at the library while I was browsing and thought it sounded good so handed them to me. They sat on my pile whilst I read a few other books, and then I started reading Magus of Stonewylde. It’s safe to say that my life changed forever when I started reading, and that’s not an exaggeration. I can remember being away on a school trip and being sad because I didn’t have enough time to read the second book (yes, I read the first three in quick succession!). I can also remember staying up late to finish the third book and being hooked right from the start. Continue Reading

Book Review UKYA Uncategorized

REVIEW: The Year of the Rat by Clare Furniss

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The Year of the Rat is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that discusses themes of grief and dealing with the death of a parent and how one goes about leading a normal life after that.

After hearing Furniss talk at an event, and hearing part of The Year of the Rat being read, I couldn’t wait to start it. I didn’t know an awful lot about it, but I had an inkling that I would love it, and I really did.

Losing somebody close to you must be one of the worst feelings in the world. For Pearl there is the added factor of a baby sister to look after, a sister who reminds her of her mother who died in pregnancy with ‘The Rat.’

The Year of the Rat is going to be a book I recommend to a lot of people because of it’s emotional depth and ability to hook the reader into Pearl’s story. There are psychological themes within The Year of the Rat – the reader unsure whether Pearl is actually seeing her mother’s ghost or if she is fabricating her to deal with the grief she is going through. The emotional depth really makes the novel stand out because it all felt so real; it was as if Pearl was living inside me and voicing the thoughts I’ve had in the past.

I feel as if there isn’t anything quite like The Year of the Rat released at the moment so if you’re looking for originality this is definitely for you.

Pearl isn’t always a likeable character and I often found myself questioning why she did particular things, but this is what makes the book so magic and, if this even makes sense, makes Pearl even easier to like.

The Year of the Rat is such a good book, and Furniss an author you really need to watch out for. If her debut is this stunning, I can’t wait to read her future novels.

Book Review UKYA

7 Reasons to read Keep the Faith by Candy Harper

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I read Have a Little Faith last month and craved a sequel so badly so I was mega excited when I received Keep the Faith to review. It saved me from a lot of pain!Keep the Faith carries on where Have a Little Faith left off and, let me tell you, it was even better.

  1. Keep the Faith is even funnier than Have a Little Faith, the first book. You may even wet yourself reading it, or cry with tears of laughter. You have been warned (but it’s totally worth it).
  1. Faith. Do I need to say anymore? Faith is possibly one of my favourite characters ever – can we please be best friends?
  1. Keep the Faith is incredibly easy to slip into. It doesn’t matter if you can’t remember much of what went down in Have a Little Faith, you will remember once you pick Keep the Faith back up.
  1. Keep the Faith is very true to UK teenage life. I can connect with Faith and her friends because they are so realistic and Harper has managed to capture all the aspects of being a teenager perfectly and write them into Keep the Faith.
  1. It’s a relatively short book, but a lot is packed in. I read it within an evening, and it was definitely an evening well spent!
  1. This is the perfect book to pick up if you want to escape your normal life and be transported somewhere else. You’ll forget all about your actual life!
  1. ETHAN. Finn. ETHAN!!! (Did I mention Ethan?)

I definitely think you should go out and buy Keep the Faith as soon as it’s released. If you haven’t read Have a Little Faith yet, I think you need to read it right away. The books are now right up there on my favourites list and I can’t help but shove them at everyone I see. They’re perfect for everyone!

UKYA

UKYA

I should probably warn you in advance that today’s post will be filled to the brim with enthusiasm. I’ve realised that I haven’t written a post about UKYA on this blog for a while now, and so I thought I would.

If you don’t know, UKYA is any book written by an author of YA currently residing or born in the UK. That’s the basic definition, although it can get a bit hazy. I’ve been running Project UKYA, a website dedicated to spreading the word about UKYA through campaigns and projects, since September 2013 and I’ve loved every single moment of it. It’s really nice to have a space to solely talk about UKYA and I’d like to think we’re doing lots to encourage people to read UKYA.

Here are a few fab UKYA titles:

Night School by C.J. Daugherty – This series is fast becoming one of my favourites and the fourth is being released in June. These next few months are opportunity for you to catch up on the first three books, because you’re in for a real treat!

Trouble by Non Pratt – I posted my review of it here last month.

Weirdos VS. Quimboids by Natasha Desborough – This is hilarious! The sequel is being released very soon and I can’t wait. It’s one of the funniest books I’ve read all year.

Banished by Liz de Jager – My review can be found over here.

Have a Little Faith by Candy Harper – Another book that will have you crying with laughter. It reminded me of the Georgia Nicholson books, but even better!

 Since I hosted my UKYA Fortnight back in the summer, I’ve felt such a passion to shout about UKYA and I really hope that comes across. Even if one person picks up a UKYA book because of something I’ve done, I’ll be a very happy girl indeed! To me, UKYA books aren’t just any old book I could pick up and read. They represent the lives of so many I know because they speak a lot of truth to me – I’m familiar with the language and culture. I just love UKYA so, so much!

Which UKYA books are your favourite?

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: Banished by Liz de Jager

Banished was another of my most highly anticipated books of 2014, and so I was delighted when I won a copy from the publisher. A blend of Maggie Stiefvater’s Lament, with the intensity and passion of Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments, you really need to watch out for this trilogy.

Kit is part of the impressive Blackhart family. Trained to fight, Kit isn’t any normal person, for her family fights enemy Fae. When the prince of Alba, the Fae world, needs rescuing, things turn from bad to worse because Kit has to face a lot more than a rogue Fae. Fae battle Fae in a war that threatens the human world and Kit has to fight for those that she holds dearest.

By far the thing that made me love Banished so much was Kit herself. She takes charge and really drove the story on. Her voice was so clear and shone through, unwavering in its consistency. Kit was very action-driven and I loved reading about her.

I also loved reading about Kit’s cousins. I really hope we get to see more of them in future novels because from the parts we saw them in during Banished they seem really awesome. Why can’t I be a Blackhart?!

I loved the inclusion of snippets of information about the lore and traditions before some of the chapters. It offered a really great insight into the world de Jager has created, which I can’t wait to hear more about in future books. I love it!

I’ve always been a huge fan of mythology and folklore so it’s not a surprise how much I loved the Fae world. De Jager has put her on spin on it, Banished being a truly unique novel. I just want more!

The plot is thrilling and there’s so much packed into one book. There are lots of plot twists and the climax was just amazing. The last 100 pages or so had me on the edges of my seat because I was so engrossed in the story. After reading the ending, I was left wanting more because it was just so good.

There were a few things I disliked, but I think this is mostly down to the fact that I haven’t been reading much lately and so it’s weird to be back in a fictional world again. On reflection though, I really loved the story and think everyone will really enjoy it.

You should definitely read Banished if you’re a fan of fantasy and the like. Even if you’re not, there is so much you can take out of this novel and I can see it being really popular once it’s released. Read it, read it, read it!