Strike - Mitch Johnson

 

All Owen has ever wanted to do is play football professionally, so when he is recruited to Hollwell Park youth team, he feels as though all his dreams have come true.  But when his dad presents him with new boots to celebrate, he discovers a note hidden inside revealing a cry for help, everything changes and suddenly football doesn't seem to be as important any more.  But now Owen needs to choose whether to play football or to help those working in awful conditions making football boots.

I have to admit that I'm not the biggest football fan, but the blurb for Strike really appealed to me and I knew it would be a book that would appeal to lots of children at school (in fact, there was a queue for the book before I'd even finished reading it!).

From the start, it is clear that Owen and his dad are a tight unit, and their relationship is a special one (the reason for mum's absence becomes apparent later in the book and I would advise tissues!).  Despite Owen's dad's injury years ago meaning he couldn't follow the football career he started, he isn't a father who is intent on living out his dreams through his child.  All he wants is for Owen to be happy and he is clearly doing everything he can to ensure that happens.  He's a really supportive parent.  The discovery of the letter really throws Owen, especially having heard Budi, one of Hollowell's players, talking in post-match interviews.  Suddenly, worrying about whether he's really good enough to be in the youth team is the least of his problems.

Owen has some big decisions he needs to make, not least being whether he is prepared to act upon the note and risk his place on the Hollowell youth team.  It's a book that would make a perfect daily read in a Year 5 or 6 classroom, and I can just imagine the discussions that it would provoke.  

At first glance, Strike is a book about football, but it doesn't take long to realise that the book is so much more than that.  This is a book about family, dealing with grief, friendship, doing the right thing, standing up for what you think is right, being brave, trusting your instincts ... and football.

Publishing on the 4th June, Strike is a book that I loved.  It's going to be a huge hit and I know that there will be a queue of children outside my office on Monday morning, desperate to get their hands on it.

Otherland - Louie Stowell

I'm a big fan of The Dragon in the Library series so I was hugely excited when Otherland dropped through the letterbox... in fact, it jumped to the top of the TBR pile, and I wasn't disappointed!

Myra and Rohan have known each other since the day they were born, and spend every birthday together.  However, they appear to be complete opposites so their celebrations end in disaster every time, and this year is no exception as Myra manages to set fire to the shed!  It is this event that leads to Rohan's sister being stolen and taken to Otherland, where the Fairy Queen is going to turn her into a changeling unless Myra and Rohan can complete 3 tasks. 

This is a brilliant read!  Portals, fairies, quests to conquer and dresses with pockets!  What's not to love about this book?  Nothing, that's what!  I absolutely adored the relationship between Myra and Rohan who seemed to bicker constantly in a very real sibling sort of way, and Mabs was an absolute joy!  With lots of twists and turns to keep you gripped, this is a guaranteed hit.  It's not often I finish a book mid-week during term time but I stayed up late one night to finish this as  I couldn't put it down.

Cruise Ship Kid Kidnap At Sea - Emma Swan

Silver is back or her second adventure with The Gang, and this time she is on a new ship, travelling from the Caribbean to Southampton.  On board is a VIP influencer, Kindness Kay, who spends her entire time glued to her phone filming content for her fans. But when she goes missing, it's up to Silver and The Gang to discover who the kidnapper is.

Having loved Thief At Sea when I read it last April (you can read my review here), it was great to be back with Silver - I have to say that part of me is a little jealous of her life at sea, travelling from place to place exploring different countries.  With her mum having just been promoted, they are on board a new ship and her mum is determined to do her best in her new role. Meanwhile, Silver feels she is old enough to finally have a phone of her own; cue her master plan to persuade her mum that a phone is an essential item for a 10 1/4 year old living on a cruise ship.  Silver sees Kay's arrival as a way to help persuade her mum that she can be creative with a phone and sets out to help with her posts.  But when Kay goes missing thing take a more dramatic turn.

Once again, the book is written in a friendly chatty style of writing that will appeal to readers.  The use of illustrations (Katie Sunders has, once again, done a brilliant job), quizzes and scribble space makes the book feel more personal and approachable.  And with clues aplenty dropped throughout the plot, readers will enjoy trying to work out which are red herrings and which will lead to the culprit.  There are most definitely giggles along the way and the gang of oldies are just as wonderful as they were last time - they make me hope I'm as much fun as they are when I'm old!  However, amongst the laughs and the detecting, there are some very important messages about finding your voice, believing in yourself and the potential negative affects of mobile phone usage - something I've discussed a lot with my class recently. 

Once again, Emma has found the perfect balance  between laughs, adventure and positive messages and I already know this book is going to be snapped out of my hands in school on Monday morning!  

Cruise Ship Kid Kidnap At Sea publishes on the 12th March and I'm already looking forward to seeing where Silver's next adventure will lead her.

Black River - Ruby Jean Cottle

 

Black River is a small town where everybody knows everybody else.  Dusty lives with her younger sister, Opi, and her father, but prefers the company of books to people, choosing to close herself off after her mum left.  However, one morning, she wakes with her book on the floor and dirt on her feet.  With no recollection of what has happened, she begins her day, but it quickly becomes apparent that something has changed - Dusty has changed.  And she's not the only one.  What exactly has happened and can Dusty learn to control her new emotions before there are deadly consequences?

The remote location of this book is perfect and sets the atmosphere wonderfully: a small town, the mountain on the edge that leads to trails that disorientate; the misty eeriness and the feeling that somebody/someone is always watching... it creates that sense of mystery and gives an ominous feeling from the very beginning when Dusty and Opi go foraging for mushrooms.

Dusty is a character that readers will warm to: she prefers her books to people, she's a bit of a loaner, and she's inwardly struggling since her mum left.  Once she begins to change, she has no choice but to explore her emotions and face what is happening to her.  And this is done well: the idea of vampires is revealed slowly and subtly, diving into the effects and changes in detail - this is a vampire story with depth and secrets.  It looks at the difficulties of keep something so mammoth from your family and the consequences of needing to feed without causing harm.  

Family relationships are explored in various guises, as well as friendships and romance.  This is an atmospheric novel that will draw you in and haunt you in the best way.  It's more than just a vampire story; it's an immersive YA that will sink its teeth into you and won't let you go.

Black River is out now.  

A Clock Stikes Murder - Michelle Harrison

Spike and Merry are back and this time they are on the island of Crete whilst their mum restores paintings for an old friend of hers. At the same time, Yiannis is holding an auction to sell a cursed painting that reportedly kills anyone who looks at it.  Competition is fierce between those who want it but when one of them ends up dead, things take a dramatic turn.  Can the twins and their new friend Nikos get to the truth  before it's too late?

It was lovely to be back with the twins and their unusual ability to stop time, and I liked that their back story was woven seamlessly into the beginning of the book so that those who haven't read Twice Upon A Time could pick up A Clock Strikes Murder and read it as a stand alone (although I highly recommend reading it - you can read my review here).

This time, it's a small Greek museum, taverna and villa as the setting, recently cut off by a landslide and only accessible through some tricky to navigate caves - perfect for creating isolation and a murderous setting.  The summer sunshine, and descriptions of delicious Greek food sent me back to long hot days spent in Crete myself and more than made up for the fact that I read it in rainy Britain over February half-term! 

The plot is pacey and leaves little clues as it goes so readers will be able to pit their wits and see if they can guess the identity of the killer before the twins do. With twists to fool and make you think, it's a book that will keep you guessing. 

Danger, daring and drama lurk around every corner in this race against time - it's a book that readers are going to love.

A Clock Strikes Murder publishes on the 12th March.

Showstopper - Tom Ramsay

 

The Larry's are a prestigious award for teen musical-theatre performers.  Olly, an old hand, is thrilled to be in the final thirty and is determined that his last year will be his best yet; meanwhile, it's Tarun's first year, having been nominated for one performance.  When the boys are paired together as room mates, they get off to a bad start, completely misunderstanding each other.  But can they get over their differences and come together against rival competitors?

Olly has lived his life immersed in musical theatre and knows everything there is to know about it - Broadway, off Broadway, Sondheim, huge hits as well as those that flopped; if it's been a musical for more than two seconds, Olly knows about it!  This is his last year as a Larry's finalist and he knows how much winning means if he is to make it as a professional one day.  He is determined to make the most of every minute and is adamant that events from last year won't affect him this year.  Tarun, meanwhile, is a newbie to The Larry's, having been nominated for one performance where he stood in as understudy in Les Mis.  He's thrilled to have been nominated but, once he arrives, he quickly feels as though he doesn't belong: everybody seems to know more than him and it's making him feel more and more anxious by the minute.  Olly and Tarun have had very different upbringings: whilst Olly's dad has embraced his passions and his sexuality; Tarun's dad has shunned it - if it weren't for his mum since his parents' divorce, he wouldn't be involved in musical theatre at all.  The pair appear very different at first meet, but they actually have so much more in common than they think; it's just a question of whether they can get past their initial impressions.

 

Showstopper was just what I needed this half-term!  Sometimes in life, you just need pure escapism and to lose yourself in the pages of a book that sweeps you away in romance, drama and musicals... and this is just that!  It's a joyous celebration of young love; it's a beautiful exploration of first kisses, of managing unkindness and celebrating and loving who you are.  However, it quickly becomes apparent that, amongst the romance, there is so much more to the book: anxiety, parental acceptance, having the strength to stand up for what you believe in, and facing bullies are all themes that are explored alongside the will they/won't they romance.  It's a book that quietly packs a punch with messages that readers need to hear. 

Publishing on the 7th May, Showstopper is a page turning YA romance that will warm your heart and remind you that being yourself is the best thing you can be.  So whether you're defying gravity, dreaming a dream or saying hello to Dolly, this is a book you need to read - it deserves every moment of the limelight.  

Two Little Liars - Michelle Harrison

Erin lives her life in fear; fear of repercussions of what she did as a girl.  She and Bea told a lie, one that ended with the death of a teenage boy.  Although Erin admitted to the lie shortly afterwards, the damage had already been done. Due to their young age, the courts ruled that the girls should never be named and from then on, became known as Child A and Child B, or Two Little Liars by the press.  The girls went their separate ways, they were never really friends, but when Bea turs up again on a college trip Erin is on, everything is raked up again.  Then Bea is murdered and her killer remains at large.  Twenty years later, Erin is convinced someone knows her real identity and is trying to uncover the truth of what happened.

Having been a big fan of Michelle's middle grade books for years, I was thrilled and intrigued at the idea of a book for adults.  An early read was too tempting to turn down and proved to be completely compelling.

Told in dual time perspectives, the story follows Erin as a child as well as an adult, and we discover what why she is so paranoid about her identity and is terrified at the thought of anyone discovering who she actually is.  She is on permanent alert and never lets her guard down, ever.  Her entire life since that fateful day with Bea has been ruled by this and it is quickly easy to see the effect this has had on her as well as those around her.  Readers will quickly begin to feel for her as a character: she was just your average child where one split second decision changed everything.

The plot is scary (I found it incredibly believable how quickly everything can go wrong and that sent shivers down me); dramatic and incredibly tense.  The different time periods not only allow the plot from the past and the present to unfold, but also help to build the suspense and really create that need to read 'just one more chapter'.  From the beginning, the book will raise questions with readers, and I can absolutely see this book making the perfect read for book clubs - I can't wait to be able to talk to someone else about the plot!

Publishing, 4th June, Two Little Liars is going to chill and thrill readers, and will most certainly get them talking!  With this, Michelle is certainly showing us that she can write brilliant books for adults as well as children.