Showing posts with label julie kagawa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label julie kagawa. Show all posts

Tuesday, 23 December 2014

Best Book Covers of 2014 | Top 10 of 2014


It's the second day of Top 10 of 2014, a book blogging event hosted by Two Chicks on Books and various lovely co-hosts to celebrate the last week of the year in bookish style!

Today's event is 'Best Book Covers of 2014', and the books we share must be books released this year. I'm not very good at staying on top of trends and the latest releases (which almost begs the question why I signed up for this event at all...) but thankfully I don't have to have read the books I mention, which is probably just as well. There are a lot of terrible books out there with gorgeous covers and vice versa.

So, on with my top 10!

YA Covers


Talon by Julie Kagawa: I've been drooling over this cover since I first saw it. It's so simple but it's still so rich; it looks so glossy and just plain gorgeous. There's no mistaking what this book is about.

Cress by Marissa Meyer: I love all the covers for The Lunar Chronicles, though I think Cinder is still my personal favourite. I can't wait to see the cover for Winter!

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige: Such a fun cover, I love it!

Alienated by Melissa Landers: This is another fun one. While I don't think it's particularly pretty, because I'm not that fond of people on book covers, I do think it's a good cover for its story.

Half Bad by Sally Green: When I first saw this cover I had to look at it a few times before I realised the blood makes a face. I'm a little dumb.


Adult Books


Symbiont by Mira Grant: Such a cool cover. The cover for Parasite, the first book in this series, is brilliant too.

Miss Carter's War by Sheila Hancock: I don't know what it is about this cover I like so much. I really like the colour pallette used, and I like that we can't see the cover model's face - as I said before I'm not that keen on book covers with people on, but this is a very classy cover.

Viper Wine by Hermione Eyre: I love this cover. If I had to pick an absolute favourite from all the covers here it'd be this one. I love the contrasts between the Renaissance art and the pop art-esque typography; it reminds me of Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette.

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton: This cover's just beautiful. It looks so warm and cosy.

The Bees by Laline Paull: This cover's so bright it just draws the eye, but the main reason this cover made my top ten is because I love the detail on the cover beneath the dust jacket, too. When publishers put effort into the appearance of the books they sell it makes me so happy, and this is a great example of a well produced book.

Which covers made your top ten?

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! 

Which books made your top ten?

Monday, 11 August 2014

Anticipated Autumn Releases!

I'd be lying if I said I was the kind of person who's always on the look out for the latest book releases, because unless there's an author or series I really love I usually won't go looking for books that aren't out yet. There are only three books I'm really looking forward to next year, and two of those - Winter by Marissa Meyer and Lamentation by C.J. Sansom - I only know of because I'm a big fan of their respective series.

That being said, this autumn brings the release of a few books I'm really interested in getting my hands on, so now that it's the last month of summer (already!) I thought I'd share them with you!



by Lauren Oliver

Release Date: 23rd September, 2014

Wealthy Richard Walker has just died, leaving behind his country house full of rooms packed with the detritus of a lifetime. His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance. 

But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb. 

The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

I'm not sure what it is about this book that interests me, because while I enjoyed Delirium I wasn't a fan of either Pandemonium or Requiem, and I've never been particularly interested in checking out Oliver's other YA books. This book sounds intriguing if nothing else, and I think this kind of story will really suit Oliver's gorgeous writing style.



by Garth Nix

Release Date: 14th October, 2014

Clariel is the daughter of the one of the most notable families in the Old Kingdom, with blood relations to the Abhorsen and, most importantly, to the King. When her family moves to the city of Belisaere, there are rumors that her mother is next in line for the throne. However, Clariel wants no part of it—a natural hunter, all she ever thinks about is escaping the city’s confining walls and journeying back to the quiet, green world of the Great Forest.

But many forces conspire against Clariel’s dream. A dangerous Free Magic creature is loose in the city, her parents want to marry her off to a killer, and there is a plot brewing against the old and withdrawn King Orrikan. When Clariel is drawn into the efforts to find and capture the creature, she discovers hidden sorcery within herself, yet it is magic that carries great dangers. Can she rise above the temptation of power, escape the unwanted marriage, and save the King?

You have no idea how excited I've been since this book was finally given a cover and a release date! The Old Kingdom was one of my favourite trilogies during my teen years, in fact it still is. If you're interested in some female dominated fantasy that is focused on action, adventure and character development rather than the usual romantic-heavy plot, then I highly recommend Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen if you haven't already read them.

There's been talk of Clariel for years, and it got to the point that I was certain it simply wasn't going to happen, and then all of a sudden, earlier this year, there was a release date. I'm so excited!



by Julia Kagawa

Release Date: 28th October, 2014

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.

I'm going to be honest with you: while I love fantasy, I've never been that interested in dragons. I didn't like Eragon (I'm sorry Inheritance Cycle fans - I really did try!) and I haven't really read that much dragon fiction in general - I'm much more of a unicorn girl!

That being said, the premise of this book just sounds cool. I always wondered when someone was going to bring St. George into a book about dragons! I'm also eager to read more books featuring a brother and a sister; I seem to own a lot of YA books featuring sisters, and while that's not a bad thing by any means I'd like a little more variety.

Also, I love this cover - it's gorgeous!



by Robin LaFevers

Release Date: 4th November, 2014

Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has.

But across Brittany, the tides of war are drawing ever nearer, with France pressuring the beleaguered duchess from all sides. Annith’s search for answers threatens to rip open an intricate web of lies and deceit that sit at the heart of the convent she serves. Yet to expose them threatens the very fabric of her existence and risks an unforeseen chance at love, one that she can no longer deny. Annith must carefully pick a path and, gods willing, effect a miracle that will see her country—and her heart—to safety.

If you've been following my blog for a while then you'll know I read both Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph back to back in the spring, and I surprised myself when I loved them. Yes they're a little cheesy in places, but they're so fun while still exploring some pretty deep stuff. Therefore, it was only natural that Mortal Heart earned a place on this list.

After the events of Dark Triumph I'm really interested in seeing how Annith is going to fit into the wider story, and I'm also looking forward to seeing Annith finally being given the chance to shine. She's a cutie.



by Sherry Jones

Release Date: 25th November, 2014

He is the most famous philosopher in the world, the arrogant headmaster of the Notre Dame Cloister School, and a poet whose songs and good looks make women swoon. She is Paris’s most brilliant young scholar, beautiful and wry, and his student. Forbidden by the church and society to love each other, Heloise and Abelard defy the rules to follow their hearts, risking everything that matters to them — including each other. An illicit child, a secret marriage, an abusive uncle: nothing, it seems, can come between them — until a vicious attack tears them apart forever. Or does it?

As I'm sure you all know by now I love historical fiction. I've been fascinated by the sad story of Abelard and Heloise since I first learned of them during my teens, and yet I haven't read a single piece of fiction based on their story. This novelisation interests me in particular as it has been written after the discovery of 113 "Lost Love Letters" between the two that were discovered in 1999, and Jones has incorporated some of these letters into her novel.

Needless to say, I'm really looking forward to this one!

Will you be rushing out to buy any of these releases? Are there any books you're looking forward to seeing on the shelves this autumn?

J.

Monday, 5 May 2014

#WeNeedDiverseBooks | Whitewashing and YA

Before I say anything I'm going to say that these are just my personal thoughts. I am by no means an expert on racial issues and it's not my intention to insult or offend anyone, I'm just adding my own thoughts to the debate!

Over the weekend #WeNeedDiverseBooks trended on Twitter as authors, publishers, librarians and readers from all over the world talked about why diversity in literature - and in children's literature in particular - is important. You can find an article about it here!

So I thought today would be the perfect opportunity for me to talk about my thoughts concerning whitewashing and YA.

The majority of us, if asked, will say that we're not racist, and while I don't think most people who say that are lying it is possible to be racist without realising; especially if, like me, you're white. Most of us who are white don't tend to realise just how privileged we are.

I'm not trying to lecture anyone, and I'm certainly not trying to demonise white people. I'm a white person myself, and I think it's ridiculous to say that because someone's white they're therefore a horrible person, but I do think more of us need to realise just how underrepresented people of colour are.

YA today is fantastic at giving minorities - and I hate to use the word 'minorities' - a voice. Not only is YA well known for giving readers brilliant female characters who are more than just 'the love interest' or 'the sidekick', but many of these characters also happen to be people of colour.

So why haven't publishers and film makers noticed this?

Take The Hunger Games, for example. Katniss Everdeen is one of the best heroines to grace YA today; she's flawed, brave and loving. She's also olive-skinned, though the film franchise would have you believe otherwise. In fact fans of the series who only watch the films and don't read the books might have no idea that Katniss is a woman of colour at all.

Don't get me wrong, I love Jennifer Lawrence; I think she's fantastic as Katniss, but she is white. Other than Lawrence, several other actresses were considered for/interested in the role: Kaya Scodelario; Chloë Grace Moretz; Emma Roberts; Saoirse Ronan; Emily Browning and Shailene Woodley just to name a few.

Is it just me, or are all of those actresses white?

In her own words, author Suzanne Collins said: "In her remarkable audition piece, I watched Jennifer embody every essential quality necessary to play Katniss." (You can find the rest of that article here).

If the author's happy with the choice then I suppose the rest of us should be too. Collins knows Katniss better than any of us could ever hope to, and as I said before I do think Lawrence is a brilliant Katniss, but how do they know they wouldn't have found the qualities they were looking for in an olive-skinned actress if they didn't audition any?

Sadly it's not only the film industry that whitewashes its characters, the publishing industry does too; it's notorious for putting a white model on the cover of a book which features a non-white protagonist. Perhaps one of the most shocking examples of this is the cover of the first book in Julie Kagawa's Blood of Eden series, The Immortal Rules.

This series, set in a post-apocalyptic future where vampires roam the earth, features a heroine named Allison Sekemoto. If her surname isn't enough of a clue, Allison is Asian. Fantastic! I can't remember the last time I stumbled across a book with an Asian protagonist.


Hm. I don't know what's worse: that the cover designer didn't read the book and assumed the heroine was white, or that the cover designer did read the book and put a white model on the cover anyway.

(I have nothing against the model, of course, she's very pretty, I just don't think she's quite how readers picture Allison).

I wish I could say The Immortal Rules is the only example of a publisher choosing the wrong cover model, but sadly it happens a lot.

Let's look at Maria V. Snyder's Poison Study, the first book in her Study series. This particular series follows Yelena Zaltana, a young woman who is thrust from deathrow into a new job as the Commander of Ixia's food-taster. As far as Yelena knows she's an orphan from Sitia, the land that lies South of Ixia and is known for its magic-users and its warmer climate.

In the book it's mentioned that people from Sitia tend to have darker skin than those in Ixia, thus leaving Yelena's skin tone unspecified - meaning people can imagine her to be olive-skinned like Katniss or black like Malorie Blackman's Sephy in Noughts and Crosses - but one thing we know for certain is that she is not white.

And yet, once again, we are left with a white cover model. More than once.

Why are publishers so afraid of putting people of colour on the covers of their books? I refuse to believe that books featuring people of colour won't sell because there is an audience for books featuring such characters. Personally I don't care what the colour of the protagonists's skin is - I'll read anything! - and the majority of other readers I come across feel the same.

Representation matters, and both people of colour and white people should be on our book covers. The world is made up of so many different races that in this day and age it's ridiculous that we still think it a novelty to see people of colour in the media.

What are your thoughts on the matter?


J.