Burning Impossibly Bright

So January's been a bit of a slow month for me again, but January is always just kind of depressing and boring so I feel like I can be let off the hook a bit because of that. Though this January wasn't as awful and boring as it could have been because I got some lovely books and got to go to some lovely events and see lovely people. Books Read: The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead Vicious by V E Schwab Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce The Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale The Realms of the Gods by Tamora Pierce Dead Ends by Erin Lange So, only 8 books this January, but I liked all of them. Though I feel like I should probably start reading more books from this century again... But I can kind of see where the whole Tamora Pierce lovefest thing has come from now. I wasn't that keen on the Alanna books when I read the first two around this time last year, but the I got on with the Immortals series much better. Mayb...

Title:  The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson Author:  Paige Toon Series:   Jessie Jefferson, #1 Pages:   336 Publisher:  Simon and Schuster Children's Books Date of Publication:  30th January, 2014 Source:  For review from publisher* Synopsis from Goodreads: My fifteenth birthday was the worst day of my life, and it's inconceivable to think that any single day in my future will ever be as bad. My mum was killed in a freak accident on her way to pick up my cake. Even when there was still no sign of her after two hours later, and my friends started to arrive at our house, it never occurred to me that she wouldn't be coming back. That was six months ago. My mum died without telling me who my real dad was. And for a while I hated her for it. I thought she's taken the secret of my father's identity with her forever. But she didn't. Holy hell, she didn't. Because three weeks ago I found out the truth. And I'm still reeling from the shock of it....

Dead Ends Erin Lange February 6th 2014 (UK) Faber (UK) Dane Washington and Billy D. couldn't be more different. Dane is clever and popular, but he's also a violent rebel. Billy D. has Down's syndrome, plays by the rules and hangs out with teachers in his lunch break. But Dane and Billy have more in common than they think - both their fathers are missing. They're going to have to suck up their differences and get on with helping each other. There are answers to be found. Powerful, funny, moving - the ultimate coming-of-age novel . I was a little surprised at how much I properly liked Dead Ends. I knew that I would like it, of course, because books about friendship are kind of what I'm all about a lot of the time. Don't know if I've ever mentioned that (I've definitely mentioned that I'm always going on about friendships I LOVE THEM). But I read it while I was having a bit of a Tamora Pierce thing and I thought I was only in the mood for 90s YA fantasy...

Title:  The Name On Your Wrist Author:  Helen Hiorns Series:   ~ Pages:   272 Publisher:  Corgi Children's Books Date of Publication:  2nd January, 2014 Source:  NetGalley Synopsis from Goodreads: It's the first thing they teach you when you start school. But they don't need to; your parents tell you when you're first learning how to say your name. It's drummed into you whilst you're taking your first stumbling steps. It's your lullaby. From the moment it first appears, you don't tell anyone the name on your wrist. In Corin's world, your carpinomen - the name of your soul mate, marked indelibly on your wrist from the age of two or three - is everything. It's your most preciously guarded secret; a piece of knowledge that can give another person ultimate power over you. People spend years, even decades, searching for the one they're supposed to be with. But what if you never find that person? Or you do, but you just don't love them? What ...

The Golden Lily Richelle Mead June 12th 2012 Razorbill Sydney would love to go to college, but instead, she’s been sent into hiding at a posh boarding school in Palm Springs, California–tasked with protecting Moroi princess Jill Dragomir from assassins who want to throw the Moroi court into civil war. Formerly in disgrace, Sydney is now praised for her loyalty and obedience, and held up as the model of an exemplary Alchemist. But the closer she grows to Jill, Eddie, and especially Adrian, the more she finds herself questioning her age–old Alchemist beliefs, her idea of family, and the sense of what it means to truly belong. Her world becomes even more complicated when magical experiments show Sydney may hold the key to prevent becoming Strigoi—the fiercest vampires, the ones who don’t die. But it’s her fear of being just that—special, magical, powerful—that scares her more than anything. Equally daunting is her new romance with Brayden, a cute, brainy guy who seems to be her match in e...

Vicious V.E Schwab 10th January 2014 (UK) Titan Books (UK) Victor and Eli, due to a research project gone wrong, become ExtraOrdinaries with supernatural powers. Ten years later Victor escapes from prison,determined to get his revenge on the man who put him there, while Eli has spent the years hunting down and killing other EOs. Driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the arch-nemeses have set a course for revenge... Vicious was a really interesting book that was kind of out of my usual reading comfort zone, I guess (it's an adult novel and I don't usually go there unless it's for college), but regardless of that it was book that I could not resist. I mean, science? Vengeance? Superpowers? Who could say no to that?! Not me, that's for sure. The real core of this novel is the relationship between Victor and Eli, how it all goes wrong and they are both sort of driven by each other towards this crazy path of revenge. From the start in college, their relationship is kind...

Title:  The Savages Author:  Matt Whyman Series:   ~ Pages:   280 Publisher:  Hot Key Books Date of Publication:  6th June 2013 Source:  Bought Synopsis from Goodreads: They'd love to have you for dinner . . . Sasha Savage is in love with Jack - a handsome, charming ... vegetarian. Which wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the fact that Sasha's family are very much 'carnivorous'. Behind the family facade all is not as it seems. Sasha's father rules his clan with an iron fist and her mother's culinary skills are getting more adventurous by the day. When a too-curious private detective starts to dig for truths, the tight-knit family starts to unravel - as does their sinister taste in human beings . . . My Thoughts: I was absolutely desperate to read The Savages . I don't know why, just something about it really appealed to me. I used to really love vampires stories (not gonna lie, still do, a little bit), and the way it says, "They'd lo...

A Face Like Glass Frances Hardinge May 10th 2012 Macmillan's Children's In Caverna, lies are an art — and everyone's an artist . . . In the underground city of Caverna the world's most skilled craftsmen toil in the darkness to create delicacies beyond compare. They create wines that can remove memories, cheeses that can make you hallucinate and perfumes that convince you to trust the wearer even as they slit your throat. The people of Caverna are more ordinary, but for one thing: their faces are as blank as untouched snow. Expressions must be learned. Only the famous Facesmiths can teach a person to show (or fake) joy, despair or fear — at a price. Into this dark and distrustful world comes Neverfell, a little girl with no memory of her past and a face so terrifying to those around her that she must wear a mask at all times. For Neverfell's emotions are as obvious on her face as those of the most skilled Facesmiths, though entirely genuine. And that makes her very d...

Title:  This Song Will Save Your Life Author:  Leila Sales Series:   ~ Pages:   288 Publisher:  Macmillan Children's Books Date of Publication:  10th October 2013 Source:  For review from publisher* Synopsis from Goodreads:  All her life, Elise Dembowski has been an outsider. Starting a new school, she dreams of fitting in at last – but when her best attempts at popularity fail, she almost gives up. Then she stumbles upon a secret warehouse party. There, at night, Elise can be a different person, making real friends, falling in love for the first time, and finding her true passion – DJ’ing. But when her real and secret lives collide, she has to make a decision once and for all: just who is the real Elise? An irresistible novel about hope, heartbreak and the power of music to bring people together. My Thoughts: When I first heard about This Song Will Save Your Life , I must admit, I was unsure that it would be my cup of tea. In the end I...

Title:  Roomies Author:  Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando Series:   ~ Pages:   288 Publisher:  Hodder & Stoughton Date of Publication:  2nd January 2014 Source:  For review from publisher* Synopsis from Goodreads:  It's time to meet your new roomie. When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge. That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room. As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex. With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by change, it suddenly seems that the only people Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives . . . and each other. Even though they've never met. N...

Bloodlines Richelle Mead August 23rd 2011 Razorbill Blood doesn't lie... Sydney is an alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of human and vampires. They protect vampire secrets - and human lives. When Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, at first she thinks she's still being punished for her complicated alliance with dhampir Rose Hathaway. But what unfolds is far worse. Jill Dragomir - the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir - is in mortal danger, and the Moroi must send her into hiding. To avoid a civil war, Sydney is called upon to act as Jill's guardian and protector, posing as her roommate in the last place anyone would think to look for vampire royalty - a human boarding school in Palm Springs, California. But instead of finding safety at Amberwood Prep, Sydney discovers the drama is only just beginning... This review is going to be weird to write because I've already read The Golden Lily, but I...

It feels a bit weird starting off the new year with a recap post, but hey! December was a pretty good month for me reading wise, and also in general because Christmas, though I didn't get any books. I did get the first 3 volumes of Sandman, though, so that should be fun to get into! So, yeah. Books Read: Skulduggery Pleasant: Mortal Coil by Derek Landy Drama by Raina Telgemeier Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta Bloodlines by Richelle Mead The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle Saga volume 1 by Brian K Vaughn  Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge Books Reviewed: World After by Susan Ee Untold by Sarah Rees Brennan Let It Snow by    John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle Yeah, not such a good month on the reviewing month, but it was December so I was both busy with Christmas and busy making lists and preparing for the new year and making bad ex...