Weekly Tales – 11/01/2015
Welcome to my weekly wrap up on Tales Of Yesterday where I share what I have been reading this week, what books I have bought or have been privileged to have received and any general bookish or sometimes not so bookish things I have been up to over the past week.
Currently Reading
Next week is Point Horror Book Club week which is run by the wonderful Juno Dawson over on her website so I have started reading this in preparation to enter the monthly point horror asylum. I’m liking this one so far (fingers crossed) and my review will as always follow shortly.
I finished reading Frozen Charlotte by Alex Bell this week! Wow – what a creepy read! You can find my review here. I will be recommending this to everyone! I also was over the moon to have the lovely Alex Bell agree to a Q&A with a twist…I put the idea to Alex, came up with the format and she loved it and played along with it creepily. It was perfect. You can find the creepy Q&A here.
As I was a naughty Chelley and was reading two books at the same time last week I also managed to finish reading the first in the Model Spy series by Sarah Sky Code Red Lipstick! I loved it so much and I will post my review up asap. I can’t wait to move onto Fashion Assassin asap and I was proudly part of the blog tour this week for the release of the book! You can see my blog tour post here.
Book Post
I have been a very lucky lady and privileged to have received some super fab book post this week!
The wonderful Atom Books sent me this wonderful book that I cannot wait to read! Thank you so much Atom!
Publisher – Atom
Publication Date – 5th February 2015
Megan doesn’t speak. She hasn’t spoken in months. Pushing away the people she cares about is just a small price to pay. Because there are things locked inside Megan’s head – things that are screaming to be heard – that she cannot, must not, let out. Then Jasmine starts at school: bubbly, beautiful, talkative Jasmine. And for reasons Megan can’t quite understand, life starts to look a bit brighter. Megan would love to speak again, and it seems like Jasmine might be the answer. But if she finds her voice, will she lose everything else?
I was also lucky enough to win a competition on twitter which was being run by the lovely Heather Lawson – Thank you Heather and thank you to the lovely author Christina Banach as the book was signed!
Publisher – Three Hares Publishing
Publication Date – 9th March 2015
Fourteen-year-old twins Minty and Jess are inseparable. Maybe they bicker now and then, even crave a bit of space once in a while. But they have a connection. Unbreakable. Steadfast. Nothing can tear them apart. Until a family trip to the coast puts their bond in jeopardy. As Minty tries to rescue her dog from drowning she ends up fighting for her life. Will Minty survive? If she doesn’t, how will Jess cope without her? Only the stormy sea has the answer. Minty is a story of love, loss and coming to terms with consequences. It’s a spiritual tale that will linger in your mind long after you’ve read the final word.
Book Shopping!
I have also been a teeny weeny bit naughty this week and I blame all the recs on twitter for this book buy (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!)
Publisher – Piccadilly Press Ltd
Publication Date – 1st January 2015
At Prickwillow Place, Disgraceful Mary Jane, Smooth Kitty and their fellow students are keeping a deadly secret. When the headmistress of St Etheldreda’s School for Young Ladies drops dead at Sunday dinner, her seven pupils agree on a clever scheme: to bury their teacher in the vegetable garden, dress up Stout Alice in her place, and educate themselves. This is tricky enough in a small Victorian community, but when the girls deduce that their teacher was poisoned – (it was the veal!) – they realise there is also a murderer on the prowl… An outrageous plot of mysterious happenings, farce and friendship.
NetGalley
Erm…..I have a lot of explaining to do here…I have gone a bit click happy on Netgalley! I would like to thank all the publishers for approving me to read these wonderful books.
Publisher – Stripes Publishing
Publication Date – 2nd February 2015
Wanted: Dead or Alive! (Or smashed into little bits and delivered in boxes.)
Causing chaos wherever they sail, the robotic Steampunk Pirates are roaming the high seas, hunting for gold! But the evil Iron Duke has other ideas… He’s determined to capture the pirates in return for a handsome reward from the King. Can the mechanical marauders stay one wave ahead of their enemy?
Publisher – Abacus
Publication Date – 16th April 2015
On a beautifully restored barge on the Seine, Jean Perdu runs a bookshop; or rather a ‘literary apothecary’, for this bookseller possesses a rare gift for sensing which books will soothe the troubled souls of his customers.
The only person he is unable to cure, it seems, is himself. He has nursed a broken heart ever since the night, twenty-one years ago, when the love of his life fled Paris, leaving behind a handwritten letter that he has never dared read. His memories and his love have been gathering dust – until now. The arrival of an enigmatic new neighbour in his eccentric apartment building on Rue Montagnard inspires Jean to unlock his heart, unmoor the floating bookshop and set off for Provence, in search of the past and his beloved.
Publisher – Corsair
Publication Date – 5th March 2015
When police officer Theresa Grey is called to the New Zealand town of Kahukura on Tasman Bay, she drives straight into a horror story. The locals have been overwhelmed by a sudden collective madness, causing them to kill themselves and each other in truly gruesome ways. First, Theresa tries to help; then, she is forced to run for her life. An hour later, she emerges to a scene of carnage.
There are thirteen other survivors. Slowly, they find one another and face their new reality: trapped in the town by some kind of invisible force-field, cut off from the world outside.
What begins as a story of horror becomes a story of survival. Together, they must bury the dead, become a community, face their own fears and weaknesses. Ultimately, they must fight for their lives – because whatever caused the insanity is still at large. And it hasn’t finished.
Publisher – Orion
Publication Date – 26th February 2015
Ashcombe was the most beautiful house Saskia had ever seen as a little girl. A rambling pink cottage on the edge of the Suffolk village of Melbury Green, its enchanting garden provided a fairy-tale playground of seclusion, a perfect sanctuary to hide from the tragedy which shattered her childhood.
Now an adult, Saskia is still living at Ashcombe and as a book restorer devotes her days tending to the broken, battered books that find their way to her, daydreaming about the people who had once turned their pages. When she discovers a notebook carefully concealed in an old Bible – and realising someone has gone to a great deal of trouble to hide a story of their own – Saskia finds herself drawn into a heart-rending tale of wartime love…
Publisher – Hodder & Stoughton
Publication Date – 12th January 2015
Vinnie is an ordinary man. Ellen is an ordinary woman.
Ellen is unable to move on after a terrible accident that left her mentally and physically scarred.
Taxi driver Vinnie is struggling to cope with bringing up two children on his own.
Everyone deserves to find that one person who’s meant for them, don’t they?
Fall in love with the story of Vinnie and Ellen. Because ordinary lives can be extraordinary.
Publisher – Electric Monkey
Publication Date – 5th February 2015
Lara’s life has changed radically since her father lost his job. As the eldest, Lara tries to keep upbeat, and the one outlet for all her problems is her diary where she can be open about how dire everything is at home, and worse, the fact that she’s being horrifically bullied at school.
Publisher – Bloomsbury
Publication Date – 12th March 2015
Betty Plum has never been in love. She’s never even kissed a boy. But when H.O.T. Tobystarts school it’s like Betty has been hit with a thousand of Cupid’s arrows. It’s like abomb has exploded – a love bomb!
More than ever Betty wishes her mum hadn’t died when Betty was a baby. She really needs her mum here to ask her advice. And that’s when she finds hidden letters for just these moments. Letters about what your first kiss should feel like and what real love is all about …
Is Betty ready to fall in love? Will she finally have her first kiss?
Other Bookish Goings On
I am reviewing a book for Bookouture next week as part of a release date for a great book so look out for that on the blog and also checkout #pointhorrorbookclub on the 13th January!
Also check out my challenges page to see how I am getting on with my 2015 challenges!
Are you a fan of UKYA? Want to know all the upcoming releases? Check out this fab spread sheet created by @snugglingonsofa and @yayeahyeah. Keep up to date on the fab books coming out this year here!
Don’t forget the wonderful @thatjessebloke book forum – bookishpeeps.com which is a fab new forum to talk about all books MG and YA amongst other things! Its such a fab idea and a great place to have a bookish talk about various bookish things – perfect. Join in the on the forum by clicking on the link above and registering.
Have you read any of the books above? Are you looking forward to reading any of them? Do you get a bit carried away on Netgalley or are you a fan of the old Point Horror Books? I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to click on the reply button at the top of the page to leave a comment or why not tweet me on twitter on @chelleytoy?
Happy Reading
