Hey everyone! I’m very lucky to have Helen Eve on the blog today, who is the author of Stella. She has written a great post about the books she has read recently, and I really hope you enjoy it.
GONE GIRL (Gillian Flynn)
I was slow to discover this book, but I loved the exploration of unreliable dual narrators, a beautiful anti-heroine and the intricacies of media representation.
THE BONE DRAGON (Alexia Casale)
Narrator Evie both reveals and conceals harrowing details from her past in this haunting thriller which leads the reader, via magic realism, the beauty of nocturnal nature and the redemptive power of revenge, to a wonderfully unsettling conclusion.
DARE ME (Megan Abbott)
I loved the lyrical prose of The End of Everything, and the subject matter is equally dark in this high school-set crime thriller where a new cheerleading coach threatens the status of the current queen bee.
WHY WE BROKE UP (Daniel Handler)
A letter from Min to her erstwhile boyfriend Ed, this vivid colour-illustrated novel details the pain and angst of a teenage relationship gone irreversibly awry.
THE FIFTH WAVE (Rick Yancey)
A beautifully rendered father-daughter relationship was my favourite element of this dystopian novel detailing an alien attack that decimates most of the earth’s population.
THE TWISTED THREAD (Charlotte Bacon)
I found this boarding school-set mystery distinct in its primary focus on the reactions of adults following the murder of a popular student and the disappearance of her previously undiscovered baby.
THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL (Philippa Gregory)
I enjoyed the film but only recently read the book, and was pleased to discover that the sisterly dynamic between Anne and Mary as they vie for the King’s attentions in this historical interpretation was every bit as fascinating as I’d hoped.
RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA (Kimberley McCreight)
Social media is almost a character in this book, such is its part in Amelia’s downfall and her mother’s subsequent investigation of her apparent suicide as she uncovers the rituals of a venomous school clique.
…AND FIVE BOOKS I’M ABOUT TO READ
FOLLOW ME DOWN (Tanya Byrne), THE LIST (Siobhan Vivian), AMELIA ANNE IS DEAD AND GONE (Kat Rosenfeld), ALL OUR PRETTY SONGS (Sarah McCarry), BURN FOR BURN (Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian)
STELLA is out now from Macmillan Children’s Books.