Showing posts with label elizabeth may. Show all posts
Showing posts with label elizabeth may. Show all posts

Tuesday, 31 October 2017

Top Ten Tuesday | Playing Dress-Up


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week you compile a list of ten books which coincide with that week's theme. You can find everything you need to know about joining in here!


HAPPY HALLOWEEN!


Christmas will always be my favourite holiday, but Halloween is a very close second - which is probably why I love The Nightmare Before Christmas so much. Today's theme is a Halloween freebie and, while I thought recommending you some Halloween reads would be fun, I thought I could do something a little different: today I'm going to talk about couples in books, and who I think they should dress up as, from another book/movie, for Halloween!


Molly and Reid from Becky Albertalli's The Upside of Unrequited as Arwen and Aragorn from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings: Given that Reid is the ultimate Tolkien superfan, I'd be very surprised if he didn't want to dress up as Aragorn with Molly beside him as his beautiful elf queen.

Aileana and Kiaran from Elizabeth May's The Falconer as Titania and Bottom from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream: An opportunity for Aileana to be a faerie queen and dress Kiaran in donkey ears - why would she say no?

Cress and Thorne from Marissa Meyer's The Lunar Chronicles as Leia and Han from Star Wars: Honestly, can't you imagine Thorne taking great delight in dressing up as Han Solo? And if it meant he got a chance to see Cress dressed as Princess Leia, he'd definitely be all for it. Besides Cress loves make-believe, she loves pretending to be someone else, so I think she'd have a lot of fun pretending to be the galaxy's greatest princess and general.

Nix and Kashmir from Heidi Heilig's The Girl From Everywhere as Elizabeth and Will from Pirates of the Caribbean: From one pirate ship to another, I think Nix and Kashmir are both accustomed to having to pretend to be someone else and they'd enjoy playing the part of these two. Then again, Kashmir might think of himself as more of a Jack Sparrow than a Will Turner...

Bella and Edward from Stephenie Meyer's Twilight as Mina and Dracula from Bram Stoker's Dracula: If the two of them never do this then they're missing out on the one good opportunity their relationship can give them.


Pei and Ashby from Becky Chambers' The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet as Zoe and Wash from Firefly: TLWtaSAP has been compared to Firefly a lot, and I can understand why - I think Ashby would be missing a trick if he and Pei didn't dress up as these two.

Maxim and Mrs. de Winter from Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca as Mr. Rochester and Jane Eyre from Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre: I've always wondered if du Maurier was a little inspired by Jane Eyre when writing Rebecca, and I don't want to say much more than that - if you haven't read either novel I don't want to spoil them for you, but they're both great books!

Meche and Sebastian from Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Signal to Noise as Anne and Captain Wentworth from Jane Austen's Persuasion: I can't imagine Meche is a big fan of Austen, but given he's much more of a reader than Meche is I like to think Sebastian has read some Austen and would get a lot of fun out of seeing Meche in a bonnet. Both these novels share the theme of second chances, something I think Sebastian, at least, might appreciate.

Alexia and Conall from Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series as Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf: If I was married to a werewolf, I'd take great pleasure in dressing him up as the Big Bad Wolf for Halloween, and I'd be disappointed if Alexia never thought of doing the same to her husband.

Sue and Maud from Sarah Waters' Fingersmith as Carmilla and Laura from J. Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla: Carmilla is one of my favourite pieces of Victorian literature, a vampire story that pre-dates Dracula and has some serious homoerotic vibes. Given that Sue and Maud are also lovers from the 19th century, I think they'd have a lot of fun pretending to be these two.

What did you talk about this week?

Wednesday, 27 January 2016

This Week in Books | 27/01/16


This week I'm joining in with Lipsy @ Lipsyy Lost & Found to talk about the books I've been reading recently!


NOW: I've started The Vanishing Throne, and I'd like to have it read and a review scheduled by the end of this month if I can - I'm trying to slowly but surely make my way through my eARCs!

THEN: I read my first short story collection of 2016 (one of quite a few I'd like to read this year!) and enjoyed it. I loved, loved, loved Silvia Moreno-Garcia's debut novel, Signal to Noise, and when I discovered I have to wait until October before her second novel I thought I might as well check out some of her short fiction. Look out for my review of This Strange Way of Dying on Friday!

NEXT: One of my most anticipated releases of this year is the A Tyranny of Petticoats anthology, which is coming out in March. Marissa Meyer and Robin Talley, two authors I love, have written stories for it, as have Leslye Walton, Lindsay Smith and Elizabeth Wein. I own novels by Walton, Smith and Wein but haven't read them yet, and I'd like to familiarise myself with their work before the anthology is released. I've heard nothing but amazing things about Code Name Verity, so I'm planning to read it first!

What are you reading?

Wednesday, 20 January 2016

This Week in Books | 20/01/16


This week I'm joining in with Lipsy @ Lipsyy Lost & Found to talk about the books I've been reading recently!


NOW: January is when Britain really gets its winter. It always makes me laugh when people start complaining about the cold in November, because January is freezing. I'm in the mood to read some wintery books, and you don't get much more wintery than the middle of the Canadian wilderness. I tried reading The Tenderness of Wolves before and couldn't get into it, but I'm enjoying it a lot more this time around.

THEN: I recently read and adored Celeste Ng's debut, Everything I Never Told You. It's a fantastic book - look out for my review on Friday!

NEXT: I've actually already started The Vanishing Throne, which I received from NetGalley, but I want to finish The Tenderness of Wolves before I continue with it. I'm aiming to have it read this month so I can review it soon, especially as it came out in November. You can check out my review of The Falconer here!

What are you reading?

Friday, 4 December 2015

Monthly Wrap-Up | November 2015


November was a fairly mixed month for me. I can't believe it's December already!






by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro

by Derek Landy

by Marissa Meyer

by Jane Austen and Alex Goodwin

by Laura Konrad and Danielle Evert

by Catherine Orenstein

by Jay Faerber, Scott Godlewski and Ron Riley

Disturbance
by Ivy Alvarez

The Falconer
by Elizabeth May

The Grownup
by Gillian Fynn

The Only Woman in the Room: Why Science is still a Boys' Club
by Eileen Pollack


I read ten books in October, and somehow I managed to read eleven in November. Don't ask me how! The Lunar Chronicles finally came to an end with the arrival of my most anticipated release of this year, Winter, and I ended up reading a lot of good books this month - there were no books I didn't like, which is always nice!



My sister, brother-in-law and I went to see Mockingjay Part 2 together in November, and I enjoyed it! I really like what Francis Lawrence has done with the series, and given how sceptical I was about Mockingjay being divided into two I actually think it was done really well and the cast were superb. As with all adaptations there were parts of it that I didn't like as much as others, but as a whole I think it was a very good adaptation!

I was pleasantly surprised by a new period drama in November. Whenever I see the word 'Frankenstein' in the title of a drama I'm immediately wary - there has never been a decent adaptation of Frankenstein - but The Frankenstein Chronicles isn't an adaptation of the book, in fact one of the characters is Mary Shelley, played by the wonderful Anna Maxwell Martin.

The Frankenstein Chronicles is set around nine years after the publication of Frankenstein, and children, sewn together from various body parts, are being found dumped around London. At a time when science and religion are constantly butting heads, it's up to John Marlott, played by Sean Bean, to find out who's committing these monstrosities before all of London discovers what's happening.

If you're in the UK it's on ITV Encore on Wednesday nights t 9pm, and Thursday nights at 10pm. Those of you outside the UK, I have no idea if the drama's already out there or if it's going to be, but if you have the chance to watch it then do - it's surprisingly good!




by Marissa Meyer

by Derek Landy

by Elizabeth May

by Gillian Flynn

by Eileen Pollack









November has been a month of highs and lows for me. Earlier in the month my sister and I went to see Imagine Dragons in Cardiff, and they were amazing. I bought tickets for us for my sister's birthday, so we'd been waiting to go and see them since February.

They were so good live and they put on an excellent show - I definitely want to see them again in future, and I'm glad my sister liked her birthday present. It was nice to spend an evening with her; she's ten years older than me, so she's married and has two daughters of her own, so I don't get her all to myself that often.

Throughout November I took part in Rinn @ Rinn Reads' Sci-Fi Month. I didn't read as much as I hoped I would, but I wrote a couple of blog posts I really enjoyed writing and I managed to get a couple of reviews up. I even took a picture of my Lunar Chronicles books on Instagram, and it ended up getting used in an article on Bustle!

November was also my last month at work as my contract came to an end. I was hired as an Administration and Marketing Assistant at the independent publishers, Seren Books, for a year to help organise the centenary celebrations of WW2 writer, Alun Lewis.

My colleagues and I went for lunch and they got me a lovely card and some unicorn-themed gifts; I think of everything it's the other people at Seren I'm going to miss most. I really enjoyed my year in publishing - I basically ended up single-handedly updating the blog, which I really enjoyed doing - and I spent a lot of November applying for new jobs.

I ended up getting an interview for a writing job that I really wanted in the city I went to university, where I still have a lot of friends, but unfortunately I didn't get the job and I'm pretty bummed about it. So right now I'm feeling a little down and a little lost, but I'm sure I'll feel more optimistic when I've stopped feeling sorry for myself. For now, though, I'm going to allow myself a couple of days to just be sad.



Vlora @ Reviews and Cake talked about Why She Doesn't Go to the Library

Jamie @ The Perpetual Page-Turner talked about her Insecurities Then Vs. Now

Kaja @ Of Dragons and Hearts talked about giving authors Second Chances

Amanda @ Of Spectacles and Books talked about Cinderella and the Marginalized

What did you get up to in November?

Saturday, 28 November 2015

Review | The Falconer by Elizabeth May


by Elizabeth May

My Rating: 

She's a stunner.
Edinburgh, 1844. Eighteen-year-old Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, has everything a girl could dream of: brains, charm, wealth, a title—and drop-dead beauty.

She's a liar.
But Aileana only looks the part of an aristocratic young lady. she's leading a double life: She has a rare ability to sense the sìthíchean—the faery race obsessed with slaughtering humans—and, with the aid of a mysterious mentor, has spent the year since her mother died learning how to kill them.

She's a murderer.
Now Aileana is dedicated to slaying the fae before they take innocent lives. With her knack for inventing ingenious tools and weapons—from flying machines to detonators to lightning pistols—ruthless Aileana has one goal: Destroy the faery who destroyed her mother.

She's a Falconer.
The last in a line of female warriors born with a gift for hunting and killing the fae, Aileana is the sole hope of preventing a powerful faery population from massacring all of humanity. Suddenly, her quest is a lot more complicated. She still longs to avenge her mother's murder—but she'll have to save the world first.

The Falconer takes place a year after eighteen year old Aileana Kameron witnessed the murder of her beloved mother at the hands of a fae. Now, while trying to come across as a perfect lady who would make a wonderful wife to any eligible bachelor, she hunts the fae with the hope of avenging her mother.

Those of you who've been following my blog for a while will know that I love me some historical fiction. Add in a dash of speculative fiction - magic; mythology; folklore; fairy tales - and I salivate. Needless to say, The Falconer has been on my radar for a long while, particularly as I follow Elizabeth May on Twitter and love her tweets. I've sat back and watched her glorious feminist rants many a time, so I was very excited to read some of her fiction despite the mixed reviews I'd heard from other people who'd read the book. If anything, their opinions just made me more curious about what my own might be.

After receiving an eARC of The Vanishing Throne, the second book in this trilogy, I thought it was about time I read The Falconer, which I actually bought back in January and just hadn't gotten around to because I'm rubbish. So I finally picked it up!

And...? And to be honest, now that I've read it I can understand the mixed reviews, because what follows is a mixed review of my own.

First thing's first: this book is very fun, very fast-paced and so easy to read. In fact I'd recommend this book to anyone who's a little intimidated by historical fiction because this book is proof that historical fiction isn't boring. As a big history nut I don't mind the slower reads, but I'm not about to recommend something like Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, which is over 1,000 pages long and has footnotes, to someone whose palms begin to sweat at the thought of reading historical fiction.

The Falconer isn't actually straight historical fiction; there are elements of steampunk and alternate history in it, so I think any readers who are fans of Gail Carriger's work would probably enjoy this, particularly fans of her Finishing School series. When I first realised this book was also steampunk I worried that the historical accuracy would slip, but I think Elizabeth May did a fairly good job of reminding me of the time period we were in; I would have liked a little more history, though, that was more than just 'oh good gracious me the neighbours saw my ankle how shall I ever show my face at the next tea party?'. I'm all for societal and marital politics - life was hard for women in the 19th century just as it was for them in any other century, because they had to be so accomplished and yet also so demure - but I didn't feel like I was reading anything new when Aileana was thinking about how limited her future was because she's a woman. That's not to say her feelings aren't valid or they shouldn't have been there, but it would have been nice to have seen it explored in a different way. Does that make any sense?

One thing I must say is that this book pleasantly surprised me with the complete lack of a love triangle, something which I've become so fed up with seeing in speculative YA fiction trilogies. I'm hoping this is a trend that continues throughout the next two books in the trilogy, because love triangles are just boring unless they're done well, and they're very, very rarely done well.

Having said that, there were still parts of the book that felt a little clichéd; Aileana's beautiful and intelligent and rich and kickass. I don't like to say that a character can't do all of these things - I'm still not sure if I like the term 'mary-sue' because I feel as though many of the qualities that make a heroine a mary-sue wouldn't make us bat an eyelid if it were a male protagonist who possessed them - I'd just like to see some plainer main characters in YA. And by that I mean characters who are actually plain and don't suddenly become stunningly beautiful when they take off their glasses or brush their hair.

Similarly Kiaran, a fae who's been teaching Aileana how to slaughter his kind, is described as beautiful as the men in YA often are. In other words I lost count of the amount of times I came across a description of his eyes. I did quite like Kiaran, though, but I suppose that's mainly because I have a fondness for characters who are sarcastic.

Personally I wanted more of Catherine, Aileana's best friend whose older brother, Gavin, was the character I feared was going to turn the book into another love triangle book. Considering Catherine is Aileana's closest friend I felt as though I didn't see enough of her, in fact Aileana spent most of the novel with a bunch of men which I was a little bit disappointed with. I understand that men had more freedom back then and, in the book's defence, two of the men she sees most often aren't actually human, but if Aileana can defy society's expectations why can't some of the other women do the same?

The most important relationship Aileana has is with her deceased mother, whose gruesome death still haunts her and whom she still misses dearly. That I can totally understand, and if I were in Aileana's shoes I'd want revenge, too - plus her mother seems to have been a very keen astronomer and sounded like a generally cool lady - but I started to get a little tired of hearing how desperate for revenge Aileana is. I felt as though I was being reminded every two seconds how all Aileana lived for was revenge and, dammit, I get it. Can we please talk about something else other than your unquenchable thirst for revenge?


In fact Aileana began to annoy me a little at the end of the novel. I'm not going to spoil anything, but some of the decisions she made were infuriating because if she'd just concentrated on what she was doing things would have turned out very differently. I'm intrigued to see what happens in the next book, though.

The Falconer certainly feels like the build-up to whatever's going to happen in The Vanishing Throne, but it's a really fun read and even though it's not the best thing I've ever read I did enjoy it, and I'm looking forward to reading more of May's work in future. I've never really read any books about the fae, so this was a nice change; I liked how May incorporated the folklore into her story, and I definitely got the sense that this was a novel she poured her heart and soul into creating because her love for the ties between Scotland and the fae is so clear.

Is it a mind-blowingly excellent masterpiece of brilliance? No, but it's a lot of fun and this trilogy has a lot of potential.

Friday, 20 November 2015

Late November TBR!

Today I thought I'd share with you some of the books I'd really like to try and read by the end of November, but as this is a very over-ambitious amount of books and I don't do well when it comes to TBRs, we'll see how it goes. The majority of these books are sci-fi, because there's no better time to read sci-fi than during Sci-Fi Month!



I received eARCs of both of these from NetGalley, so I'd really like to get them both under my belt soon. I'm actually reading The Only Woman in the Room right now, and I'm planning to get to The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet very soon because I've heard nothing but great things about it.


I love historical fiction, and I love it even more when it has fantastical elements, so The Falconer has been on my radar for a while. I picked it up a few nights ago after I received an eARC of the second book, The Vanishing Throne from NetGalley, and I'm hoping to finish it soon and then jump straight into the second book and whack out some reviews!


I love the White Trash Zombie books and I always find them so quick and fun to read. If I can cross these two off my TBR during Sci-Fi Month I'll be a happy bunny, as I'd like to focus on Christmassy books in December and some other books I'd really like to have read by the end of the year.

I'm hoping I get to all of these. The Falconer and The Only Woman in the Room I'll definitely finish, and if I can read The Vanishing Throne and The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, too, then I'll have crossed three of my eARCs off my TBR before I dive into my Christmassy eARCs! If I can, though, I'd love to get to those White Trash Zombie books, too.

What are you reading at the moment?

Wednesday, 18 November 2015

This Week in Books | 18/11/15


This week I'm joining in with Lipsy @ Lipsyy Lost & Found to talk about the books I've been reading recently!


NOW: Last night I decided to pick up The Falconer to see if I was in the mood to read it, and ended up reading the first hundred pages in an hour. It's not the best thing I've ever read, and I do fear there may be a dreaded love triangle, but it's a lot of fun! I haven't really read any books featuring fae and it's been a long time since I read a book set in Scotland, so I'm planning to finish this one soon. I'm also currently reading Eileen Pollack's memoir The Only Woman in the Room, and I'm enjoying it so far.

THEN: I finished, and really enjoyed, Little Red Riding Hood Uncloaked at the weekend; it was very interesting to see how the story of Little Red Riding Hood has changed over the centuries, and how it's been used as both a moral tale and for advertising. I recommend it, especially to any fairy tale fans!

NEXT: The main reason I picked up The Falconer is because I received an eARC of the second book in the trilogy, The Vanishing Throne, from NetGalley. The Vanishing Throne is actually released tomorrow, but November slipped away from me before I could try and read it in advance. I'm hoping to finish The Falconer very soon, though, and then I'll jump straight into this one and review them both! Also you should all check out Elizabeth May's Twitter account. It's brilliant.

Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Top Ten Tuesday | Historical Fiction I Can't Believe I Haven't Read Yet!


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week you compile a list of ten books which coincide with that week's theme. You can find everything you need to know about joining in here!

This week's theme is 'Top Ten Books I Haven't/Want To Read From X Genre'. As you all know by now, I love my historical fiction, but there are still a lot of historical fiction books, including some historical fiction staples, that I haven't read yet. That's something that needs to change!

So, without further ado, here are my top ten!




Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel: I love the Tudors, and I love my historical fiction set during this period of history, but I still haven't gotten around to reading this yet. I'd like to read it soon, though, so I can watch the BBC adaptation!

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett: This book is a bit of a beast, which I think is why I still haven't read it despite having owned my copy for over four years. Oops!

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters: I'm desperate to read this - I've heard amazing things about Fingersmith - but for whatever reason I've just never gotten around to it. That's going to change very soon, though!

Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman: Considering I live in Wales I haven't read many books set in Wales, and I definitely haven't read any historical fiction set in Wales. Here Be Dragons is based on the story of Joan, Lady of Wales, a real figure from history. She was the illegitimate daughter of King John who was married to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (also known as Llylwelyn the Great) in the early 13th century, at a time when England and Wales were not the best of friends.

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón: If there's one thing I need to read more of it's books that weren't originally written in English. In fact I need to read more books that aren't written by British or American authors in general. This is another book I've heard amazing things about, and another I just haven't gotten to yet.




Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein: Why I haven't read this yet I really don't know, because it involves two of my favourite things: history and female friendships. I need to read this soon!

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray: I used to pass this book all the time during my teens, back when Borders was still around (R.I.P Borders, forever in our hearts), and for some reason I just never bought it, but I was obviously interested in it because I'd pick it up and read the blurb every time I saw it. I finally bought myself a copy last year, and I'd like to read the entire Gemma Doyle trilogy this year!

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler: Kindred is both historical and science fiction, because the main character actually ends up time travelling back to the Antebellum South, which isn't all that great for a young black woman. I've heard amazing things about it, and I really want to check it out for myself.

Temeraire by Naomi Novik: Unlike the other books on this list, Temeraire is a piece of alternate history. It's the Napoleonic Wars, but with dragons. Why wouldn't I want to read it?

The Falconer by Elizabeth May: I've heard mixed things about this book, but I still want to check it out for myself. Not only because I haven't really read much involving faeries, but also because I follow Elizabeth May on Twitter and I love her feminist rants.

Which books made your list?

Tuesday, 21 October 2014

Top Ten Tuesday | Series I Want to Start!


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created at The Broke and Bookish. Each week you compile a list of ten books which coincide with that week's theme. You can find everything you need to know about joining in here!

This week's theme is 'Top New Series I Want to Start'. I've gone with series that have been published since 2012 or later, and none of them have been completed yet. So, without further ado, here are my top ten:



by Mira Grant

A decade in the future, humanity thrives in the absence of sickness and disease.

We owe our good health to a humble parasite - a genetically engineered tapeworm developed by the pioneering SymboGen Corporation. When implanted, the tapeworm protects us from illness, boosts our immune system - even secretes designer drugs. It's been successful beyond the scientists' wildest dreams. Now, years on, almost every human being has a SymboGen tapeworm living within them.

But these parasites are getting restless. They want their own lives...and will do anything to get them.



by Trudi Canavan

In a world where an industrial revolution is powered by magic, Tyen, a student of archaeology, discovers a sentient book in an ancient tomb. Vella was once a young sorcerer-maker, until she was transformed into a useful tool by one of the greatest sorcerers of history. Since then she has been gathering information, including a vital clue to the disaster Tyen’s world faces.

Elsewhere, in a land ruled by the priests since a terrible war depleted all but a little magic, Rielle the dyer’s daughter has been taught that to use magic is to steal from the Angels. Yet she knows from her ability to sense the stain it leaves behind that she has a talent for it, and that there are people willing to teach her how to use it, should she ever need to risks the Angels’ wrath.

Further away, a people called the Travelers live their entire lives on the move, trading goods from one world to another. They know that each world has its own store of magic, reducing or increasing a sorcerer’s abilities, so that if one entered a weak world they may be unable to leave it again. Each family maintains a safe trading route passed down through countless generations and modified whenever local strife makes visiting dangerous. But this is not the only knowledge the Travelers store within their stories and songs, collected over millennia spent roaming the universe. They know a great change is due, and that change brings both loss and opportunity.



by S. E. Grove

She has only seen the world through maps. She had no idea they were so dangerous.
 
Boston, 1891. Sophia Tims comes from a family of explorers and cartologers who, for generations, have been traveling and mapping the New World—a world changed by the Great Disruption of 1799, when all the continents were flung into different time periods.  Eight years ago, her parents left her with her uncle Shadrack, the foremost cartologer in Boston, and went on an urgent mission. They never returned. Life with her brilliant, absent-minded, adored uncle has taught Sophia to take care of herself.

Then Shadrack is kidnapped. And Sophia, who has rarely been outside of Boston, is the only one who can search for him. Together with Theo, a refugee from the West, she travels over rough terrain and uncharted ocean, encounters pirates and traders, and relies on a combination of Shadrack’s maps, common sense, and her own slantwise powers of observation. But even as Sophia and Theo try to save Shadrack’s life, they are in danger of losing their own.



by Nancy Bilyeau

Joanna Stafford, a Dominican nun, learns that her favorite cousin has been condemned by Henry VIII to be burned at the stake. Defying the rule of enclosure, Joanna leaves the priory to stand at her cousin’s side. Arrested for interfering with the king’s justice, Joanna, along with her father, is sent to the Tower of London.

While Joanna is in the Tower, the ruthless Bishop of Winchester forces her to spy for him: to save her father’s life she must find an ancient relic—a crown so powerful, it may possess the ability to end the Reformation.

With Cromwell’s troops threatening to shutter her priory, bright and bold Joanna must decide who she can trust so that she may save herself, her family, and her sacred way of life.



by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

When two soldiers from opposite sides of a never-ending galactic war fall in love, they risk everything to bring a fragile new life into a dangerous old universe. 



by Julie Kagawa

Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.



by Chris Kuzneski

The Hunters: a team of renegades - an ex-military leader, a historian, a computer whiz, a weapons expert and a thief - financed by a billionaire philanthropist are tasked with finding the world's most legendary treasures. 

The Mission: recover a vast Romanian treasure that was stolen by the Russians nearly a century ago. Fearing a Germany victory in World War 1, the Romanian government signed a deal to guarantee the safety of the country's most valuable artifacts until after the war. In 1916 two treasure trains full of gold and the most precious objects of the Romanian state - paintings, jewellery from the Royal family, ancient Dacien artifacts - were sent to the underground vaults in the Kremlin only to be lost to the Romanian people forever as Russia severed all diplomatic relations with the country and scattered the treasure to its outlying regions. With a haul valued at over $3.5 billion dollars, everyone wants to claim the vast treasure but its location has remained a mystery, until now.

Can the Hunters succeed where all others have failed?



by J. A. White

Hand in hand, the witch's children walked down the empty road.

When Kara Westfall was six years old, her mother was convicted of the worst of all crimes: witchcraft. Years later, Kara and her little brother, Taff, are still shunned by the people of their village, who believe that nothing is more evil than magic . . . except, perhaps, the mysterious forest that covers nearly the entire island. It has many names, this place. Sometimes it is called the Dark Wood, or Sordyr's Realm. But mostly it's called the Thickety.

The black-leaved trees swayed toward Kara and then away, as though beckoning her.

The villagers live in fear of the Thickety and the terrible creatures that live there. But when an unusual bird lures Kara into the forbidden forest, she discovers a strange book with unspeakable powers. A book that might have belonged to her mother.

And that is just the beginning of the story.



by Elizabeth May

Edinburgh, Scotland, 1844

Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, was destined for a life carefully planned around Edinburgh’s social events – right up until a faery killed her mother.

Now it’s the 1844 winter season and Aileana slaughters faeries in secret, in between the endless round of parties, tea and balls. Armed with modified percussion pistols and explosives, she sheds her aristocratic facade every night to go hunting. She’s determined to track down the faery who murdered her mother, and to destroy any who prey on humans in the city’s many dark alleyways.

But the balance between high society and her private war is a delicate one, and as the fae infiltrate the ballroom and Aileana’s father returns home, she has decisions to make. How much is she willing to lose – and just how far will Aileana go for revenge?



by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis and Brooke Allen

WHY WE LOVE IT: Five best friends spending the summer at Lumberjane scout camp...defeating yetis, three-eyed wolves, and giant falcons...what’s not to love?!

WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT: It’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Gravity Falls and features five butt-kicking, rad teenage girls wailing on monsters and solving a mystery with the whole world at stake. And with the talent of acclaimed cartoonist Noelle Stevenson, talented newcomer Grace Ellis writing, and Brooke Allen on art, this is going to be a spectacular series that you won’t want to miss. 

WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Jo, April, Mal, Molly and Ripley are five best pals determined to have an awesome summer together...and they’re not gonna let any insane quest or an array of supernatural critters get in their way! 

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