This story was a real whirlwind in every sense of the word. I was swept up in the emotion, the sadness, the beauty, the wonder, the honesty. I really, really enjoyed this one.

The One Memory of Flora Banks tells the story of Flora, a seventeen year old who suffers with anterograde amnesia. Flora has vivid memories of her childhood but now her brain resets itself every few hours and she forgets everything. Through a series of notes written to herself, Flora restarts her life every few hours. This is a story of how Flora truly finds her courage and begins to discover herself and what she is capable of.

There were a lot of things that I liked about this book. The story itself was interesting although (and I have to say this) something about the first memory Flora successfully creates being a kiss with a boy really jarred with me for a while. It got a little tiring that so much of this story focussed on that but by the end I understood the necessity of it. The ending of this story really blew me away and is the real reason I had to give this book five stars. I thought it was actually fantastic and seemed like the perfect ending for Flora. It also reassured me to know that this did not turn out to be the typical YA ‘girl meets boy who fixes her’ which was a huge concern of mine at the beginning. This is actually a wonderful story of self-discovery.

I really loved Flora as a character. I thought she was sweet, funny and quite charming. It is no wonder that so many other characters in the book such as Agi and Toby were so willing to help her. There is certainly something very endearing about the character that has been created with Flora. I enjoyed the way the writing reflected Flora’s amnesia. Although it hurt my head a little to all of a sudden be thrown back into the darkness of not knowing who the people were or what was going on, this was so effective and special in the way it really made us empathise with Flora.

All of the characters in this book are relatable. All of them are well written and characters that I was genuinely interested in. I was easily able to lose myself in Flora’s world. The descriptions were so engaging and vivid that I truly felt like I was there with her on this wonderful adventure.

This story was so well written and well thought out. The end of this really blew me away and I wasn’t quite expecting it. It seemed so perfect and the last few chapters really brought my emotions to the surface. It showed just how damaging some of the most caring people in our lives can be when driven by certain emotions.

Flora’s story is truly touching, emotional but scattered with glimmers of hope and plenty of moments to make you smile.

Thank you to Netgalley, Penguin and Emily Barr for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Burned and Broken is the debut crime novel from Mark Hardie. DC Sean Carragher’s body has been found burned in a car park but what exactly was he involved in that lead to his murder? And more importantly, who did it? Alicia, a vulnerable sixteen year old girl also recently died, but was her death as accidental as it seemed?

This was different to other crime novels that I have read (granted that I have not read as many as a lot of other people). This book had two stories working alongside one another. One half of the story introduced us to the police investigation surrounding Sean’s murder. Here, we had the inside scoop on the investigation and we got to know his colleagues: Cat Russell and Frank Pearson. The second half of the story is where we come to know Donna, the vulnerable friend of the dead Alicia, who is convinced her friend’s death was not accidental and finds herself in a dark world of prostitution and mental health issues.

I have to admit that this story did not particularly excite me. I liked it, but I didn’t feel much tension building and that is essential for me in a crime novel. I think this was partly because of the two sides of the story being woven together. As much as this worked well, it also took away a little of the tension I wanted as I found myself patiently waiting to discover how the two sides would meet. I had also guessed pretty early on who the murderer would turn out to be and I wasn’t wrong. This was a quick and easy read, despite some paragraphs in this book being almost a whole page long, causing me to skim a little here and there.

I really liked Cat Russell as a character. I cannot leave this review without saying that. I thought she was fantastic and I particularly liked how Hardie touched upon her status in the ‘Job’ as a female. I had a soft spot for Donna and really just wanted to take her in and look after her.

Overall, a good book that I liked and found easy to read. I think if you liked crime books then this one is worth trying and I believe is the first in a series. Mark Hardie certainly has a nice writing style and I would be interested in checking out the next book in the series to see how these characters develop.

Thank you to Clara from Little Brown Book Group for my copy as part of the blog tour.

Not only is this the most beautiful book I’ve ever held in my hands (those sprayed edges are GLORIOUS) but this is probably the most I have ever willed and cheered on a fictional character. I absolutely fell in love with Wing Jones.

Wing Jones is a half Ghanaian and half Chinese fifteen year old girl who lives in the shadow of her older brother Marcus. Wing finds herself at the receiving end of spiteful comments in school due to her appearance but finds comfort in the happy times she shares with Marcus, Monica and Aaron. After a life changing accident for Marcus and the whole family, Wing is forced to learn more about herself than ever before, opening her up to a whole new world of possibility, love, strength and life.

This is much more than a story about a girl who finds her feet and learns how to fly. This book covers such a variety of relevant topics that I know I will be pushing it on everyone this year. It is a wonderful example of why diverse books are so important. As well as several POC characters, I also loved the complete inclusion of Eliza and her sexuality. Not only was the issue of racism tackled, but this book also contained a very realistic portrayal of grief, bullying, guilt, self-belief, love. There is something here for everyone to relate to and learn from.

Towards the beginning of this book there is a real focus on Wing’s appearance: both how she sees herself and how others see her. Wing is different from her peers: she is described as being dark skinned with Chinese eyes. Webber makes some exceptionally valid points in this book about race: the fact that Wing has never seen a model that looks like her before; how using words such as ‘exotic’ are not appropriate when talking about a person of colour. I was pleased to see the way in which racism was tackled in this book, I thought it was very important to do so and the way it was done felt right.

Wing has easily become one of my favourite fictional characters and I believe she will be an inspiration for many. I loved the honesty of her character, her self-doubt and difficulty in accepting herself felt so real. I really felt that I went on a journey with her and in those last few chapters I was rooting for her so hard. I also loved LaoLao and Granny Dee and could feel Wing’s exasperation and humour at her grandmothers’ interactions. They are both fiercely protective of their family and really reminded me of my own grandmother. I really loved the family dynamics that shone throughout the story.

I have fallen in love with Webber’s writing style and I loved the touches of magical realism. They made this book feel so alive to me and the imagery was really vivid. I truly felt that I was there with Wing every step of the way.

Wing Jones is sure to be a source of inspiration for many young people. I am sure that so many young people will read this book and be able to relate to one, maybe more, of the issues touched upon here. My hope is that for some of those young people, this could be life changing. If Wing can learn to fly, so can you.

I had my copy of this (two actually) for ages before finally reading it and I have to admit that I went in a little apprehensive after seeing some mixed reviews. Whether this affected my reading experience I do not know but I do know that I enjoyed this book.

On the island of Fennbirn, heirs to the throne are born in triplets, but only one can rule. Separated at the age of six, Mirabella, Arsinoe and Katharine are turning sixteen and will be expected to kill two of their sisters to prove their place as Queen. Each of the sisters has their own speciality branch of magic and have been raised for this moment, but who is the strongest?

The plot of this book sounded seriously fantastic, I knew I would enjoy this but I did feel that the plot for this book was a little misleading after reading the actual book. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a great book, but it is not quite the murderous novel I was expecting (although it did have its moments – some very bloody moments are included in this book, be warned!). To me, Three Dark Crowns is more the story of the three sisters and their preparations leading up to the Ascension Year, the year they will have to kill one another. I expected that by the end of this book I would know who would rule as Queen but I don’t. Which is actually fine by me because I am now expecting that the sequel will be full of action as the three seek their revenge and place on the throne.

This book is told from multiple POVs and it works really well. I like books with multiple POVs as long as they are written well and these ones were. Each of the characters had a unique voice and it was a good way to glimpse into the lives of the three Queens as well as some of the other characters such as Jules and Natalia. It also continued to work well later on in the book when the stories became a bit more entangled.

I was torn in half by the characters in this book. Some of them I really liked and others I just didn’t really care for, but this was for personal reasons in not liking them as characters, not because they were badly written. I would have liked to see a bit more about Katharine as I felt during the middle of the book she was a little left out, but I did like all of the sisters. My favourite character from the book is probably Jules, Arsinoe’s closest friend and fiercest protector. I thought she was great and I loved her cougar, Camden, too.

I had very little interest in the romantic interests in this book. It was inevitable that there would be some but I don’t feel they are all that important in this story. One of them made me particularly annoyed and if you’ve read this book you probably know who. I did like Billy, I thought he was kind of sweet and I’m looking forward to seeing what will become of him in the next book.

This book opens with a gorgeous map, which is always one of my favourite aspects of a fantasy book. I liked the world-creating although I felt that I needed more vivid descriptions to imagine the book more clearly. I liked the different aspects of the magic the sisters could use but I felt that this needed more of a focus and development to truly understand the power of the Queens. I loved the idea of the familiars that the Naturalists had and would have liked to learn a bit more about the connections. I’m hoping that we’ll learn more about the different types of magic in the next book.

On the whole I thought this was an original, interesting YA fantasy novel. Kendare Blake has certainly left an opening for plenty of bloody action in the next book and I’m very much looking forward to seeing how the fight to the throne plays out.

I found it quite difficult to decide whether I would rate this book 3 or 4 stars but the longer this internal debate went on the more I realised that I wouldn't be having such a tough time rating it if this was a 4 star book for me. Although, please note that a 3 star rating does mean that I liked the book.

I loved the premise of this book. The world that George Orwell created for this story is terrifying, I can't imagine what it would have been like to read this book before 1984, it would have absolutely petrified me. I hated almost everything about the society that Orwell created here and I really liked that the small rebellion was discretely shown. There were parts of this book where I felt like I was staring at large chunks of texts that just didn't interest me, yet at other times I found myself flying through chapters. It made my experience feel a little disjointed. The last few chapters of the book were by far my favourite as it really showed just how the human psyche can be manipulated.

I only hope that what Orwell wrote will never become a true reality (although many similarities could be drawn today, I'm sure). Overall a good read that I would recommend everyone gives a go at some point in their life time.

Rebel of the Sands was sat patiently waiting for me on my shelf for almost a year before I finally picked it up, but I’m so glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the characters that Alwyn Hamilton has created. It’s fast-paced and there are plenty of twists and turns on the way.

Rebel of the Sands tells the story of Amani, a teenage girl who lives in the desert. A girl who is desperate to break away and seek out the life she wants for herself. As Amani tries to escape from ending up being married off, she meets Jin and a whole new world of adventure opens up before her eyes. With plenty of action along the way, Amani starts to discover her true identity and the role she can play in the rebellion.

I really loved reading a book in such a different setting. This was the first book I have read that is set in the desert and I really loved the imagery that was created. I was easily able to imagine the stretching sands, the blazing sun in the sky and this is due to some seriously wonderful writing from Alwyn Hamilton. I was curious to learn about the traditions and folk stories of the desert and got swept up in the magical elements too. The plot of this story was really strong and a lot happens in this book to get us to the end point ready for book number two. For me, this was great and did not take away from the characters at all.

Amani has easily become one of my favourite fictional characters. I love that in a society where women are of a much lower status than men, she is constantly breaking through the stereotypes against her gender. She is witty, brave and has more sass than all the other characters put together. I also loved that Amani is such a flawed character, she is by no means perfect but this made her feel all the more real. She steals the title for best character development! I also really like Jin, I thought he was a good balance to Amani, although his secret was quite predictable. In my review notes, I wrote the following: “Jin = YES PLEASE”. I think that probably says it all.

The world-building was well written, the plot was strong and I truly cared for the characters. Everything I want in a book. I’m so glad I read this just before the release of Traitor to the Throne because I cannot wait to read it!

It's hard to rate a novella when there are other parts available. I read this to fill a challenge prompt but have ended up feeling intrigued by where this Downton Abbey-esque series of novella may go. It's possible I'll be adding further chapters to my tbr.

I'm really glad that despite owning a physical copy of this book I chose to download the audio book from Audible. This book is very long and is incredibly detailed. At points some of what Hillary writes about is way above my political knowledge (especially being from outside of the US) and I would have found that really difficult to push through in a physical format, I think. This book is also full of incredibly inspiring messages and the last few chapters in particular really resonated with me given the current state of things in America. Why this lady isn't currently the first female President of the US is completely beyond me.

I finished reading Rebel of the Sands only a few days before I was lucky enough to pick up an early copy of Traitor to the Throne at an event with Alwyn (and I also got it signed!). I jumped straight into this book without a second of hesitation and I loved every second. I found myself flipping through the pages at quite a rapid rate because I couldn’t get enough of it.

Traitor to the Throne picks up nearly a year after we left the first book. The rebels are in the midst of fighting for their Rebel Prince and we are straight away plunged into action. After Amani is kidnapped we are thrown into a world of politics and danger at the hands of the Sultan himself. Can the rebels free Amani and what will the consequences be?

This book is full of action from beginning to end. Not once did I find myself skimming over the words, I was desperate to absorb each and every letter of this book. As the Rebellion moves forward the intensity of this book increases. There were moments where I almost couldn’t bear to read on for fear of what might happen to some of my favourite characters. There were so many twists, turns and surprises in this book, right down to the very last few pages.

This book evoked a lot of emotion in me, I was SO angry at the way in which Amani was being treated by the Sultan, especially the way in which she was stripped of her powers. Then I was all fuzzy and warm-hearted at Amani/Jin and the fierce friendship between Amani and Shazad. The next second I could barely breathe as I was so wrapped up in this book that Amani’s fears and anxiety became my own. I also felt an overwhelming surge of passion for how strong Amani and Shazad are. Alwyn Hamilton certainly knows how to send me on a rollercoaster of emotion!

I LOVED (seriously loved) learning so much background in this book. It’s possible that this won’t be for everyone but I really enjoyed learning about the old tales of the Djinn and learning so much about their powers. The magical elements in this book are SO fantastic. It’s fun discovering the different powers of the Demdji and I really love the idea that the Demdji cannot lie. The exploration of how a Demdji truth can also have devastating consequences in a prophecy-like manner was also really interesting.

The world that Alwyn Hamilton has created for this series is so rich. Her writing is vivid and descriptive which easily allows me to visualise the story. The world is so well thought out and built that you could almost forget this is fiction (which is a weird thing to say about a fantasy book).

Next up are the characters. There were a LOT of new characters in this book and sometimes that was a little hard to follow but as someone who reads more than her fair share of fantasy books I didn’t find it too difficult. We are joined by the old gang of Amani, Jin, Shazad, Ahmed, Imin, Delilah, Hala and others as well as some appearances from the long lost Tamid and Shira. Add into the throw a whole ton of new characters including Rahim, Leyla, the Sultan, Ayet, Sam and Safiyah, there’s bound to be a character that everyone loves.

There are SO many great characters in this series but my favourite two have to be Amani and Shazad. I love that Alwyn has created two female characters who are so strong, sassy and independent yet they have such a fierce love for each other and their friendship is more like a sisterhood. Shira really rose up in my expectations in this book and I loved how strong she turned out to be. Ahmed and Rahim are two male characters that I like and obviously I cannot leave out Jin. I love Jin SO much and my only bug bear with this book is that there wasn’t enough of Jin (or Jin/Amani for that matter – I did love the glimpses that we got though!)

Overall I thought this was an excellent addition to the series and the way in which it ended has me desperate for the final book in the trilogy. There is sure to be plenty of bloodshed and action when the Rebellion continues.

Caraval was one of my most highly anticipated releases but as we got closer to release date I was starting to worry that the huge amount of hype surrounding this mysterious book would leave it falling short for me. I am SO happy to report that this did not happen and this book is in fact as marvellous and wonderful as everyone has been saying. From beginning to end, I could barely put down this magical story and was completely sucked into the world Stephanie Garber has created.

Caraval tells the story of sisters Scarlett and Donatella (or Tella). The girls have been brought up by their father since their mother disappeared and are desperate for a brighter future. Scarlett has been writing to Legend, the mysterious leader of Caraval, and both girls wish to attend this magical experience before Scarlett is married to a Count she has never met. When their wish finally comes true, they discover that Caraval is not all that they imagined, will they come out the other side?

I love that this book opened with a series of letters from Scarlett to Legend. They looked really pretty on the opening pages and immediately set the scene of just how much Scarlett wants to experience Caraval for herself. It definitely added a level of intrigue into what exactly Caraval was. There was also a gorgeous map at the front of the book and I can’t not talk about how gorgeous the covers are. I have two copies so far and I love the hidden covers we have here in the UK, they are beautiful.

This book was a lot darker than I was originally expecting. I had somehow convinced myself that Caraval was going to be this lovely, happy circus-esque place but it was so much darker than that. The people in Caraval were creepy on a number of different levels. Some of them seemed pure evil whilst others left my skin tingling and I did not know who I could trust except for Scarlett. The writing definitely threw me right into the story with her. The various shops and stalls gave me some serious Knockturn Alley vibes: where else would you find a shop where you pay for a dress with a day of your life? I also found it difficult to extinguish between what was real in Caraval and what might not have been. Who was an actor? Who was a contestant? I really enjoyed this element of the book a lot and the feelings it created in me are a true testament to how wonderful Stephanie Garber’s writing is.

On another dark note, this book could be triggering to readers and I feel that it’s important to acknowledge that in my review. Scarlett and Tella’s father is an incredibly abusive man and throughout the book we see the effect of his physical and emotional abuse of the sisters. He is absolutely evil and I really hated him throughout the book (which I’m sure is the point). I’m not going to expand any more on that except to be mindful of this point if you are going to read it and this could trigger you. I’d be happy to talk in more detail about that to anyone who may want to know more.

This book is overflowing with emotions and I honestly felt like I was being dragged up, down, sideways, backwards and any other direction possible. One minute I was laughing along at something light-hearted, the next I was terrified, then I was anxious, next up was the overwhelming sadness I felt on several occasions topped off with a sprinkle of love. To me, this truly felt like I was on the journey with Scarlett and everything that happened to her felt really personal which is why I went through so many emotional states.

The writing is GORGEOUS. I was completely captivated by every sentence that was written and honestly couldn’t get enough of this book. I absolutely have to acknowledge the exceptional use of colours in this story. They are integral to the world of Caraval and help to create such vivid images in the readers mind. I am so in love with how Stephanie linked colours to emotions. Scarlett says on several occasions throughout the book that she views emotions in different shades of colours but whilst reading the book you come to realise that she sees literally every colour of the rainbow and it is beautiful! Some of my favourite examples were ‘peach embarrassment’ and ‘forget-me-not blue disappointment’.

Characters. So many excellent characters. I really liked Scarlett and I related to her on so many levels as I am also the older sister to my siblings. Her caring and protective side is something that I also harbour and could easily understand the decisions that Scarlett often made. I LOVED Tella and wish that there had been more with her in the middle of the book. From our first encounter with Tella I knew I would like her. She is headstrong, independent, sassy, spontaneous and carefree. Both of the sisters have a FIERCE love for each other and I always enjoy reading about sibling relationships so it was inevitable that I would like them both.

I knew there would be more to Julian from the beginning of the book, I just had this feeling he would be important. He definitely has the potential to become a well-loved YA book crush, I think. He is ruggedly handsome, adorable and a bit of a rogue. I loved the slow burn romance in this book and thought it was really well done. It completely and utterly made me root for them whereas an instalove would have completely turned me against it I think.

I hope that book two will give us more about Legend as he is (excuse the pun) still a bit of a legend and a mystery to us. I can’t decide if I will like him or if I just think that he is evil at the moment so we shall see how that pans out as the series continues.

Caraval is full of twists and turns. Literally every time I found myself thinking ‘Oh, _____ will happen next’ the book responded with ‘Not on my watch it won’t!’ and everything would morph into a whole new direction. I loved that I couldn’t really predict what would happen or what was going on, it made this book so mysterious and I would advise others to just throw themselves into this book wholeheartedly.

A wonderfully magical and mysterious book full of emotion, colour, excellent characters and gorgeous writing. It’s safe to say that Caraval will be one of my favourite books of 2017. Marvellous!