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It's very difficult for me to give this a star rating for a couple of reasons. The first half of the book felt like a 5 star read for me. When we switched genre at the halfway point I Martha arrives at the circus, deep in the forests of Northern Norway, determined to learn how Nina died. Did she fall from the trapeze as Stig said, or was there more to her ‘accident?’ The characters were all well developed and interactions were nuanced and convincing and I loved the relationships between them. The themes of family and belonging throughout really added to this and the changes in Ivy from the impact of the relationships created a convincing character arc and a well developed strong female lead. There was a tangible sense of foreboding throughout and the book was a great combination of YA fantasy and YA horror throughout and I particularly enjoyed the horror created by the unknown in the first half. Juliette Cai of the Scarlet Gang has returned from her banishment for falling in love with Roma, the son of her family’s rival gang, the White Flowers. But when they suspect a mysterious plague killing their family is caused by a monster in the river, the gangs must come together to stop it.
As I was writing the book, I kept in mind that some readers would empathise with Ivy and find 'home' a difficult word as she does. The theme of found family is hugely important in the story, and I would love it if just one person felt a sense of hope from reading it. Even if you have a difficult childhood, you can still find a sense of family and belonging as an adult. I liked Ivy as a character and her growth as the story progressed. I thought her affiliation with the butterflies from the start of the story was going to have more significance later on but sadly not. Her friendship with Tom was sweet and a welcome light relief in the story at times. Great concept, poor execution. Marketed as YA, yet the writing style and characters were so juvenile I wouldn't put this in the hands of any reader over the age of 12, despite the gore and mild violence.We have our protagonist Ivy who has lived in care all her life after being abandoned as a baby, working at a butterfly house. A job she loves except for the pervy Manager who has made unwanted advances on Ivy multiple times. We then have Tom, Ivy's co-worker at the Butterfly House who becomes a central part of the story.
It's very difficult for me to give this a star rating for a couple of reasons. The first half of the book felt like a 5 star read for me. When we switched genre at the halfway point I felt less enamoured with it and I felt further disappointed upon realising that this seems to be set up for a sequel, given the length of the book I would have much preferred a standalone. Overall all though I think 4 stars captures my feelings. The book ends in a way that could lead to a sequel but could leave the following chapters to the reader's imagination. Generally, I am a slow reader but I sped through this book wanting to know what happened next - always a sign of a good book! In Creije, most magic is illegal, bought and sold in secret. When dark magic threatens to destroy Creije and everyone in it, four crooks must work together to save it…that is if they can trust one another. Setting also plays a big part. I like to choose settings that are slightly apart from the 'real' world, where you have the sense that something unexplained could happen. I spend a lot of time trying to create a strong sense of place and atmosphere, so that the reader feels they're in the story with the characters. This hopefully makes the story feel more believable.Teenager Ivy lives in the south-west of England, and has spent most of her life searching for her birth mother. Abandoned as a baby, and passed from one foster home to another, all she has is an unfinished note from her mother telling Ivy "I can no longer protect you". Eventually, a surprise lead points her to a woman living on a island off the coast of Wales, who might be her mother. Following a strange experience at work, Ivy finds herself on the road to Wales, courtesy of friend-not-friend Tom. The world building/setting was done so well and definitely made you feel engrossed in that environment. The characters themselves were great, Ivy never felt like a cliche of a character and the writing managed to avoid making her into a classic “Mary-Sue”, as we so often see. The other characters were very interesting and seeing the twists for some of the well-known people of Arthurian legends was refreshing.
Look out for witches, Arthurian myths and otherworldly creatures in this strange and eerie book by Rachel Burge, set on an almost deserted, windswept island where Ivy goes to search for her missing mother. We asked Rachel to tell us more about what inspired the story, Merlin myths and feminism, and how she uses settings in her stories. The winners of the Diverse Book Awards 2023 have been announced, with one winner from each of the four categories announced: Picture book, Children...
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Four - The family / Sisterhood / Found Family / Friendship plots within this book are *chefs kiss*. I'm not saying more for spoilers but just... Yes. Dapo Adeola, Tracy Darnton, Joseph Coelho and Chitra Soundar are among the 19 authors and illustrators longlisted for the Inclusive Books for Child... The setting was throughly atmospheric and the island, wild and isolated from human life (beside Ivy’s mum) really helped to bring the mythological magic to life, especially the sinister feeling of unease and foreboding which impressively managed to linger for the entire book—I have to say I was definitely on the edge of my seat both dreading and anticipating that something terrible was about to occur.
However weird things start to happen after she reaches out to find her real mum. She starts seeing shadows and people act strangely and aggressively around her... Do you like young adult fantasy novels of humorous and horror fashion? Look no further than City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaefer. To be honest, I didn't know much about Arthurian legend before I started work on the book. When coming up with story ideas, I nearly always begin with setting. I was looking up remote areas in the UK and came across Bardsey Island off the west coast of Wales. There were so many fascinating facts and folklore about the place, I knew there had to be a story I could set there. When I discovered it was said to be Avalon and Merlin's last resting place, I began to look more closely at Arthurian legends. My only criticism of the book was the middle part did drag a little, the start and ending with were fantastic with lots of things happening and events that kept me guessing right up until the end. The middle portion in comparison to this just felt a little flat but still enjoyable. The ending is, hopefully, setting us up for a sequel as well which I’ll be keeping an eye out for.A circle of people preparing to publish their next/first book. Looking for beta readers? A critiquing partner? A review? Just looking for a free read? A circle of people preparing to publish their next/first book. Looking for beta readers? A critiquing partner? A review? Just looking for a free read? Then you've come to the right place. Some of the more magical/fantasy elements won't appeal to everyone but if you like a dose of that in stories inspired by folklore then I would highly recommend this book.
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