This is a very enjoyable, mysterious and creepy read. Coraline tells the story of a young girl who leaves behind the boredom of her every day life to enter an alternative world with a terrifying 'other mum', creepy surroundings and mysterious happenings. I really enjoyed this quirky little story. The simple language and factual writing style make this a quick read, but this story is not without its terrifying and dark side. I felt sympathetic towards Coraline who is a brave, courageous and quirky character. The characters with sewn on black button eyes terrified me and the constant eerie surroundings creeped me out too. I thought this was a great little read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I think this would have made me very fearful of locked doors and what was lurking on the other side as a youngster but as an adult, I thought this was a clever, dark and enjoyable read.

On a separate note to the story itself, this edition came full of gorgeous illustrations which were both fascinating and terrifying. Here are some of my favourites:

It's not that I disliked this book, in fact, I read it in one sitting. It was an easy read but I found it to be fairly predictable. I knew quite early on who the answer to the mystery was and as a result I kind of felt like not a lot happened. There wasn't much character development and every time I thought there would be, it just kind of stopped. I guess this book just wasn't for me. There were certainly some things about the book that I liked but on the whole I feel that maybe I just needed to be about 10 years younger to appreciate this a bit more. I feel like I am totally in the minority here in not giving this book a really high rating but there is something telling me that I can't. I'm a bit confused about what it is that I missed that so many others loved. I guess you'll have to read it to find out for yourselves!

This is a quick but effective read. This short essay discusses so many important ideas about feminism: the meaning of the word 'feminism' itself, personal experiences of both herself and her friends in Nigeria, society's view of both men and women and more. Her discussion of the gender stereotypes and how we, as a human race, allow these to develop as we conform to society's ideals is articulated in a passionate and relatable fashion. I thought this was a thought-provoking, interesting and passionate read which clearly shows why feminism is still so important today. A must read for everyone!

It took me a long time to get around to finally picking up this book, but I am so glad that I did. This turned out to be an exciting, interesting and magical fantasy story. Going into this book I knew very little about it. I knew it revolved around different London's and I knew it involved magic. Aside from that I went in pretty open minded.

I really liked the story. I enjoyed learning about the different types of magic: blood magic and elemental magic. The magic in this story was both powerful and interesting, wonderful and terrifying - I loved seeing the numerous ways in which magic was used by the different characters. The plot was action-packed and exciting, culminating in a series of exciting fights, twists and turns. This is an easy read, with a simple writing style and short chapters which suck you in and keep the pages turning.

I really fell in love with the world-building whilst reading this book. The author very cleverly created four separate Londons: Black London, White London, Red London and Grey London. I enjoyed hearing a little about the background of each of these Londons and seeing how different they were from one another. I thought the writing style was beautiful: simplistic yet intricate. I was easily able to visualise these different worlds and I loved how reference was made to points in each London which were solid and kept them intertwined. I would have loved to learn more about Black London and I'm hoping it will come up more in future novels.

The characters were also great! Despite the sheer amount of action preventing the characters from making a huge amount of development, there was more than enough to love or hate about each of them. Kell, our protagonist, is a level-headed, intelligent and complex character. His love for his brother Rhy knows no bounds and he makes some huge sacrifices for him. I also absolutely loved Kell's multiple sided coat, this was such a clever idea by the author. A coat which has many sides and layers in order for Kell to move between the worlds and blend in everywhere. The Dane's terrified me, especially Astrid. The idea of her moving in and out of different people's skins was horrifying and the grin she is described as having is etched on the inside of my brain! Such great villains!

Lila is by far my favourite character from the book. She is strong, independent and sassy. I loved her sarcastic nature and how strong-willed she is. There is definitely something mysterious about her character and her glass eye has sent my mind spinning out theories. I really hope to learn a lot more about her in future books.

Overall, I really, really enjoyed this book. I loved the characters and the multiple Londons. The story ended neatly but I am really interested in learning more about the world, Kell and Lila in the next two instalments. A must read for fantasy fans!

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a well-written, relatable and touching coming of age story. Frances is the studious, hard-working head girl of her sixth form. She has an array of top grades and is destined for a future in Cambridge University. Aled is the quiet, mysterious and intelligent boy across the road. Frances has no idea how her life will change when she discovers that Aled is the anonymous face behind her favourite ever Youtube podcast series.

This story takes a lot of twists and turns along the way. We see both Frances and Aled walk along a road to revealing their true selves to one another. As they both peel away the layers, we get treated to a beautiful, touching friendship between the two of them. A friendship where they can both comfortably be themselves. As we delve into their world and learn more about the intense fandom of Universe City, Aled's famous podcast, we see the reality of being 'internet famous'. This has almost devastating consequences for their friendship: will they be able to move past this and come back to one another?

Underlying the story of their friendship, this book delicately looks at so many themes: the difference between having a supportive mother or an abusive on, sexuality and relationships, finding yourself, living your life for you and not others. So much happens in this book that young people will be able to relate to. Whether it be the pressures of school or conforming to society/friendship groups, relationships with parents or living that secret teenage life behind closed doors. There is really something in this book for everyone.

The writing style is so easy to read and I couldn't stop turning the pages. The characters are incredibly diverse, whether it be by sexuality or race, this is such an amazingly diverse book. I could see a lot of myself in Frances: the girl who is expected to be a certain way but can't always keep up that mask. There were so many points in this book where I just wanted to take Frances and Aled and remove them from the difficult situations they faced. I really wanted them to feel loved, especially Aled. My favourite character in the book is actually Frances' mum. She reminded me a lot of my own mother: supportive, understanding and caring for Frances' happiness before anything else. She was so different from Aled's mother and I loved how Oseman contrasted the two in order to show how different the life of a young person can be as a result of treatment by their parents.

I originally was going to give this book 4* but as I've been writing this review, I have realised that I can't actually fault this book. The one tiny thing I would have changed would have been the story surrounding Carys' disappearance. I really felt that this was being built up to be more than it was, but it still fitted in perfectly with the story and it still felt meaningful at the end.

A great coming of age story full of love, laughter, sadness and teenage angst. There is something in this book for everyone, I highly recommend it.

This is the closest I've come to DNFing a book this year. Despite the fact that I liked the writing style, it did not take me long to realise that there was little else that I liked about this book.

I didn't care at all for a single character in this book. This sends huge alarm bells ringing in my head. Characters are so important for me and the fact that I could not care less about what happened to them was a huge negative for me. In fact, I could not help but be completely irritated by the use of 'Not-Triss' as a name for a good portion of this book, it did nothing to help me connect to the characters. I liked the initial premise behind the plot, but it very quickly spiralled into so many different sub-plots and things going on that I spent most of the book wondering what the hell was going to happen, but not in a good way. I'm not being funny but this 'girl' was eating beads, shoes(!), newspaper, all sorts of weird and wonderful items. Rather than feeling intrigued and mystified, I just felt that it was completely and utterly ridiculous. I just could not connect with this book at all, which is a shame. I've heard many great things about Frances Hardinge books and maybe one day I'll try another one.

There are so many positive reviews of this story and I just can't quite wrap my head around what it is that I am missing. Obviously just not the book for me!

Where do I begin? I think this is probably one of the most difficult and disturbing books I have read in a very, very long time. The premise of this book frightened me before I even started it, but little did I know how terrifyingly addictive it would turn out to be.

From the moment Joe sets eyes on Beck in the bookstore, he is completely and utterly besotted. He immediately starts stalking her: watching while she is in her apartment, reading each and every email she sends, following her across the country and keeping tokens of his obsession along the way.

This story is terrifying. It is very cleverly written with a second person narrative and it didn't take long for Joe to be inside my head. I had to keep reminding myself that this was fiction and that Joe wasn't stalking me. It is an incredible piece of work by the author. It was an addictive read from beginning to end and I couldn't stop turning the pages. I must admit, I wasn't expecting to read so many graphic descriptions. There is a lot of very sexual narration in this book and that won't be welcomed by everyone.

As a character, Joe is both creepy and mesmerising. At times I could not help but feel sorry for him. He was so totally and utterly blinded by his obsession that he truly believes Beck is obsessed with him and that all of her actions are laid out for his eyes. On the other side, I often felt repulsed by Joe's train of thought and the way in which he collected tokens of Beck's life

from panties, to a bottle of drink, to a used tampon

. This book felt so real and it scared me.

This book is clever in the way it makes you feel differently about your own life. It made me think about how much someone could learn about me from my social media accounts, or my personal interactions on my phone via email or text messages.

This is an excellent read. Unsettling, powerful and terrifyingly real. I know I won't be able to resist reading more about Joe, despite how he makes me feel.

Just when I thought the Lunar Chronicles couldn't possibly maintain its 5* streak, I picked up Cress and was delightfully proven wrong.

Cress is everything I love about the Lunar Chronicles so far. All of the characters are SO well developed, whether they are a main character or a secondary figure, each and every one of them has their own unique personality and role to play. I love this so much about these books. The plot of Cress moved along quite quickly, and although it was a little predictable in places, it kept me obsessively turning pages and devouring the story. It was very fast-paced and exciting, especially the last 150 pages or so.

Cress is a loose take on the traditional Rapunzel tale but, to me, it very much stood apart from the tranditional story. Aside from the fact that Cress spent seven years in isolation on a satellite and has ridiculously long hair

which quickly gets chopped off by Thorne

, it was easy to forget that this is a fairytale retelling. This is something I feel that Meyer has truly mastered. She leaves just enough of a lingering scent of the traditional tale to fill you with childhood joy but then masks it in a completely unique and spellbinding story.

I cannot get enough of the characters in this series. Every time I try to pick a favourite, I am introduced to another character I love! Iko is still reigning close to the top of the list. I just love this sassy little android and I loved that she had such a huge role to play in the second half of this book. As well as her little dreams coming true, she also was a vital team member and I often forget that she started out back in Cinder as a tiny android friend. I also loved having more chapters with Cinder this time around. I missed her quite a lot in Scarlet and was delighted to have her back again. I love how Cinder's character is developing and how she has started to embrace her true identity more fully. I love the way in which she uses her Lunar skills combined with her cyborg and very human emotions to protect and fight for those that she loves.

CRESS! Oh this little gem captured my heart immediately! I love her so much. I adore that after having two such strong female leads in Cinder and Scarlet, in Cress we have a much more naive and gentle young girl. I love that she doesn't even realise her own true worth and power and I fiercely wanted to protect her throughout this book. Which is where Captain Thorne comes in! These two are the most adorable little couple. I love that her naivety brings out Thorne's softer side and I really hope to read a lot more about them in Winter.

I kind of missed Scarlet in this book as she is gone for most of it and I can't wait to see what will happen when she is reunited with Wolf. (Assuming that this will happen, that is ...)

The Lunars still creep me out. Even though Cress does a lot to inform us of the many hundreds of Lunars who are hiding out on Earth, I still get scared when I think of Queen Levana and her sidekicks, especially Sybil. I hated the way in which Sybil treated Cress up on that satellite and I couldn't have been more pleased by how this book ended for her. I enjoyed learning more about Luna and the people who live there. I know there will be a lot more of Luna on display in Winter too.

Overall, I loved this addition to the Lunar Chronicles. I think it is my favourite book so far. I just love all the characters and seeing how they are coming together into this unstoppable team to save the Earthen Union. Fantastic storytelling, brilliant world-building and incredible characters. What isn't there to love?

My only previous experience with Jane Austen was reading enough chapters of Emma to scrape through an exam many years ago. At the time, I think I was simply too young to appreciate Austen's writing style and delicate story telling. Reading Pride and Prejudice has made me desperate to pick up more of Austen's work in the future.

Pride and Prejudice is a story of love, society, status and, most importantly, family. This is an enchanting glimpse into the life of the Bennet family and their acquaintances. I enjoyed reading about the different time period and the whole thing felt very Downton Abbey which I, of course, absolutely loved!

As a family, the Bennet's never failed to both amuse and frustrate me. Mr Bennet captured my heart immediately with his endearing love towards Lizzy and his quick wit and dry humour. I found him to be so British and I was laughing to myself on several occasions due to the dialogue given to him by Austen. Mrs Bennet frustrated me but I understood her completely. Put quite simply, she is a loving mother who wants nothing more than for her five daughters to be married and well-looked after, even if she doesn't always get her point across in the most effective way!

Out of the five sisters, Lizzy is my absolute favourite, followed closely by Jane. I believe that this was probably Austen's intention as we learn a lot more about these two than we do the other three. I adored Jane's kind heart and her endless support and love of her family, especially Lizzy. I couldn't help but love Lizzy, she reflects so much of what I admire and crave from female characters. She is strong-willed, independent and not afraid to speak her mind, whilst still being a loving and caring sister and friend. I love that Austen took her opportunity to use Lizzy as a female character who does not conform to all of societies expectations at the time. I could not be happier that these two characters got their happy endings!

Mr Darcy, oh where do we begin? Although I knew how this story would end having seen the movie adaptation, I still felt myself flicking through the pages hoping to catch glimpses of Mr Darcy and Lizzy's names being mentioned together. This story is truly a love affair and shows exactly how love can come from the most unlikely of places.

It took a little while to get into this book at the beginning as I adapted my reading to Austen's written language. But this is the real treat of the book. I love the way in which Austen manipulates and uses the English language. I adore the way that Austen uses the word 'handsome' to refer to the women in her stories, it's something that always makes me feel a little fuzzy inside. You have to take your time to fully enjoy and appreciate this story and I could not be happier that I have finally read it.

4.5 stars

I've seen some conflicting views of this beautifully written novel and they all seem to boil down to people feeling that this novel does not accurately reflect the reality of Asperger's Syndrome. I think it's important to remember that each and every human being is different and this, of course, includes those with AS.

I thought this was a beautifully written story about the reality of love, loss, grief and emotion. This novel cannot be viewed purely as a 'book about a girl with Asperger's Syndrome'. It deals with so much more than that. As we enter this story, we are immediately confronted with the heart-breaking situation of a school shooting with has resulted in the loss of Caitlin's brother, Devon. Grief is explored in this book from Caitlin's view of her father's loss of a son but also her own loss as she begins to come to terms with the loss. This is dealt with in a delicate and realistic manner and I felt it to be very touching.

As you read this book, you realise how hard life is for Caitlin outside of her family situation. She openly struggles with identifying emotions and social appropriateness due to her AS and by the end we see a Caitlin whose eyes are much wider open to the world around her than they are at the beginning of the book. She is learning the merits of having friends and how to begin socialisation successfully to make new friends.

As a teacher, I personally really loved seeing the relationship between Caitlin and her counsellor/teacher. Their relationship is so key to Caitlin's happiness and welfare and I couldn't get enough of the interactions between the two of them.

A well-written, emotional and delicate read.