Tag: #Love

Star Quest Academy: Above and Beyond by Adrian Lynch

On By @f33lthesunIn Upper KS2+Leave a comment

Blurb

For centuries, trillions of life forms throughout space have allowed humanity to believe we’re alone in the Universe. Any alien who dared to befriend us has met an unfortunate end: eaten, squashed, sent to a zoo, or even planted in a garden pot. But our advances in space exploration now threaten every civilisation across the Cosmos.

Amelia, a savvy, street-smart orphan, is one of four exceptional children selected from around the globe to represent humanity in the Human Inclusion Programme at the intergalactic Star Quest Academy. Here, they’ll unravel the Universe’s wonders, explore strange new worlds, and encounter magical creatures. Earth’s safety from invasion hinges on their success as cadets, but if any of them fail, Earth will be invaded by ruthless warlords.

When a series of sinister incidents jeopardise their mission, it becomes clear that someone – or something – wants them to fail. To save their world, the cadets must overcome their differences and combine their unique skills.

Review

I am always happy to see more sci-fi for 9+ being written and published and Star Quest Academy doesn’t disappoint.

It is a fast paced adventure that starts off on Earth and ends up in space, with Earth being threatened with alien invasion because to all other species, humans are seen destructive. This is a #NotAllHumans moment.

Although the tempo and adventure are fast moving, we still get to know Amelia and her fellow human candidates well and their strengths, when pooled together, enable the team to meet their foes head on.

The themes of solitude, lost family, friendship, human behaviours and interconnectedness are handled well. There are also some gross moments (looking at you, vomit bubbles) that manage to temporarily take your mind off the tension that builds throughout the story.

The ending hints that this is the first of a series and I hope the next one is just as exciting.

About the Book

Genre: Science Fiction

Age Category: Middle-Grade 

Number of Pages: 280 Pages

Publication Date: February 13, 2025

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/223726420-star-quest-academy 

Storygraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/79fe4e6c-7911-4343-b8ed-c0290ed1cf8d 

Amazon: https://a.co/d/6jjdGea (Canada) https://a.co/d/fZhLPiZ (USA) https://amzn.eu/d/fQelUs8 (UK) 

Or purchase from your local independent bookshop.

Undine’s Blessing by Tessa Hastjarjanto

On By @f33lthesunIn #YA1 Comment

Blurb

A dutiful daughter, a mystical archipelago, and a hidden power waiting to command the tides…

Marella spends her days caring for her sick mother and selling her father’s fish. Bound by duty and love, she dreams little of adventure. But when her mother must travel to the city for treatment, her father takes her out to sea, despite her fear of water.

A storm steers them to Emberrain, home to a tribe of magical nymphs and a place of secrets, where Marella discovers a startling truth: her father is a frequent visitor to these mysterious islands. Soon she learns that Emberrain isn’t the only secret he had kept from her.

Marella has the power to control water and communicate with aquatic animals.

Overwhelmed by the magical but dangerous islands, and the secrets of her father, Marella must learn to harness her powers to save herself and her new aquatic friend before they are separated from their parents forever.

Undine’s Blessing is a journey of wonder, where fears are faced and mysteries unravel, and a young girl learns that true adventure begins when you dare to embrace who you truly are.

Review

Undine’s Blessing is a fairy tale like story that mixes human and magical worlds through Marella and her father.

Marella’s childhood is spent looking after her poorly mother and doing chores to help them earn enough money to get by whilst her father takes his boat out for long periods, fishing and bringing back intriguing fruits they have never seen before. Where do they come from? Her father is evasive on that.

Marella is caught between her over protective mother and her adventurous father. She questions why her mother does not want yer hear the water but her wish to obey her mother clashes with her joy of swimming and her father’s wish to see her enjoy life more and not be bound to the home by chores.

When he takes Marella on one of his boat trips, she discovers where the fruit comes from…a magical land of nymphs. But what dark secrets lie beneath the surface? How can this place be linked to Marella’s apparent affinity with water and water based creatures?

You will have to read this to find out. Join Marella in this wonderfully crafted world as she discovers her talent for water magic and takes on the village elders to help nature recover from their actions.

About the Book

Length: 298 Pages

Genre: Fantasy

Age Category: Young Adult

Date Published: January 27, 2024

Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/3A6CTUC (Canada) https://a.co/d/cFNzg3k (USA) https://amzn.eu/d/iR6Injk (UK)

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/199001923-undine-s-blessing 

The Story Graph Link: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/acdc824e-225e-40be-9778-03566593b1cb

About BBNYA

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 finalists (16 in 2024) and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official. BBNYA is brought to you in association with the book blogger support group @The_WriteReads. 

Yellow Tape and Coffee by Pat Luther

On By @f33lthesunIn Young Adult1 Comment

Blurb

In Portland, Oregon, Investigative reporter Veer Rosen has come across the story of a lifetime. If she makes it public, her career and life will be in danger. If she doesn’t, tens of thousands may die. The last time the werewolves were revealed, violence swept across Europe. Computer mogul Victor Stumpp will go to any lengths to keep that pattern from repeating. Junior software engineer Carl’s friend was murdered for breaking the rules, keeping the existence of the werewolves secret. He is determined to change the system that allowed it. Homicide detective Michael must balance keeping his city safe and bringing a criminal to justice when he learns that the murderer he’s pursuing is part of a secret society of werewolves.When middle aged accountant Gordon is attacked by a rogue werewolf he finds himself thrust into a war that he wants no part of, but he may be the only chance for peace. Alliances shift, friends are made, and others betrayed as conflicting agendas clash across the city and by the end Portland and the entire world will never be the same.

Review

I read the first 2k extract and wanted more. I then read the 10k extract and definitely wanted more. I loved this book and it thoroughly deserved its place as a BBNYA 2024 finalist. It was the longest book by far, page wise, that I read last year but it certainly didn’t feel like it. The pacing and characters kept the story alive all the way to the end.

Sometimes history teaches us something, we learn from it and move on, develop society. Other times, history teaches us something, we learn from it and then a few decide that the reasoning behind decisions are unsound and set out to change it.

In Portland, and around the world, werwolves exist but keep themselves hidden. There are societies, structures and a worldwide network in place to ensure the safety of both themselves and non werewolves. It has been this way for a long time, lessons having been learned many years ago. However, a group have decided this is wrong and werewolves should be allowed to reveal themselves and integrate with society, as well as turn more of the population into werewolves.

As you would suspect, mayhem and biting ensue, creating more werewolves, but killing in some cases. Also, as you would expect, the majority of people (and werewolves) are not happy about it, including the recently transformed ones…no one asked their consent to be bitten and turned…no one trained them in keeping themselves secret and not murdering humans.

This story deals with secret societies, integration and exclusion, corporate greed, consent, conflicting loyalties and human/werewolf nature in all its glory.

Look out for other blogs on this tour

About BBNYA

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 16 finalists and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official. BBNYA is brought to you in association with the @Foliosociety (if you love beautiful books, you NEED to check out their website!) and the book blogger support group @The_WriteReads.

Curse of Souls by Niranjan

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment

Blurb

The fates of two nations hang on the balance on a man’s choice between love and an arcane bond.

Philip has been spearheading a rebellion in his country, with Casey, his lover and partner, at his side. The rebellion has snowballed into a civil war and casualties on both sides are mounting. In a desperate attempt for peace, Philip decides to approach Raylan, the second in command of the other side. He has learned that Raylan is not as stubborn as his mentor and that he may be open to negotiations.

The last thing Philip expects is for a soul mate bond to spring to life between him and Raylan, activating an ancient curse that will kill them both if the bond isn’t consummated. Philip has never loved anyone but Casey, and Raylan is a total stranger who he has no feelings for. Yet, the delicate negotiations between the two nations will fail without him and Raylan. Philip’s life is not his own, after all; it belongs to the people he has pledged his service to.

With more than his life at stake, will Philip be able to let go of the love of his life to bring peace to his people?

Review

This is a fantasy romance novella about a couple, Philip and Casey, together for 15 years, who are emotionally wounded when an ancient magic soulmate bond awakens in Philip, giving him a short time in which to find his soulmate and consummate the relationship or they will both die.

Time is no issue however, as they discover almost immediately that Philip’s bond soulmate is the person who they have been negotiating with to end the war and bring peace to the country, making this an issue they had not expected.

The author deals with the emotions of the three main characters well, their separate reactions to the bond curse and working through the issues (both in their own minds and together) being a very strong theme of the story.

The story being told from the different viewpoints of the three main characters is useful to us, the readers, as it means there are no unreliable narrators leading us on about how others are thinking because of the perceptions of the other characters.

Where I wanted more was the back stories…to the characters (not just Philip, Casey and Raylan), to the world they inhabit and the magic. I wanted to be more emotionally connected to the story of Raylan and his four friends since childhood, to then be really invested when we find out one of them may be a traitor.

About the Book

Length: 158 Pages

Genre: Fantasy, Romance

Age Category: Adult

Date Published: January 19, 2024

Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/fML4oX2 (Canada) https://a.co/d/iMVvXJM (USA) https://amzn.eu/d/8MzvDYy (UK)

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/193384554-curse-of-souls

The Story Graph Link: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/6c7e346e-d40f-4fb2-863d-9cc2e837d9cd

Fallen Knight by Ceril N Domace

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment
Cover art by Atlas Theseus Schmidt

Blurb

Leon Quinn has two goals in life: stay out of the reach of the Templesbane and drink himself unconscious whenever he can afford it.

The first is because the Templesbane wiped out his home and family among the Knights Vigilant when he was a child, destroying everything he knew and loved in one night. The second is to help him sleep when the memories of the first overwhelm him.

But he can’t avoid his past forever. His mercenary work has brought him back to Mezeldwelf, the city he fled to after the downfall of the Knights Vigilant, and to his estranged father just in time to get embroiled in a scheme that threatens the very foundation of the city. A scheme that could see Mezeldwelf, its people, and its gods handed over to the Templesbane.

To protect the city and man that adopted him, Leon will need to confront the ruins of the life he left behind and the horrors that threaten the life he’s cobbled together since then.

Review

It took me a couple of chapters to get my head round who was who and who stood for what, but once I did, what a story! The world building is superb, the characters are deep, idiosyncratic, and Leon is a fabulous main character.

There are several themes running through the book including found family, war, revenge, loss, the weight of expectation and, mainly for Leon, perception not only of himself but how others see him.

Leon grew up knowing certain facts about his early life and thinking he knew other things, which continue to influence the decisions he makes and what he keeps secret from others. He is tortured about what has happened in the past and also what he thinks others want of him. This is not helped by the group of ghost Knights Vigilant who appear to him uninvited, telling him what he should do. Because of this he distances himself, both physically and emotionally, in what he sees as his only way of protecting the people he loves.

Despite perceiving thoughts about him by others mostly incorrectly, he does have some self awareness and when he finds himself responsible for the safety of a teenage girl, he changes his approach to things in order not to scare her.

I love the wide ranging characters that surround Leon, looking out for him despite his best efforts to distance himself, and really look forward to the next book in the series to meet them again, especially Jackie…like Leon, we just never know where she is going to turn up next!

Thank you to the author , Ceril N. Domace, and @The_WriteReads for a copy of the book including order to take part in this blog tour.

About the book

Genre: Fantasy

Age Category: Adult

Number of Pages: 351 Pages

Publication Date: January 24, 2025

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/218368070-fallen-knight 

Storygraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/5d13c73d-29d9-4caa-b799-c8eb6379e2b7 

Amazon: https://a.co/d/379YB4Y (Canada) https://a.co/d/g3uGmmv (USA) https://amzn.eu/d/e6UwdPK (UK)

Hermit of Paradise by Kim Sanders

On By @f33lthesunIn Adult1 Comment

Blurb

Detective Auby Midnight is retired. Or so he imagines. Jaded and transformed by a long career of witnessing degeneracy, tragedy, and true evil, he reflects on the place that first nurtured him: Paradise Cove, Lake Texoma, and the rich, endearing memories of mischief, adventure, and friendship that shaped his childhood. That is, until the day a violent feud brought irrevocable trauma for his best friend, Sunny.

Now Sunny implores the wearied Auby to right the wrongs of the past and return to the case that has haunted him and his childhood friends for years. Older, wiser, and far more experienced, they set out to defeat the evil that stole their innocence and restore the magic of Paradise Cove.

Inspired by the author’s own life events as a sixth-generation Texan and a former member of the Dallas Police Department with decades of experience under his belt, Hermit of Paradise explores meaning, morality, and the fight to stay human in the face of a grim and complicated world.

Review

After reading the blurb, I had in my head how I thought this story would unfold…but I was wrong. Yes, there is some police procedure but as part of Auby’s backstory, rather than the main chunk of the tale, and that is no bad thing.

Overall, it is a story about Auby retiring from the police and finally facing up to what happened one summer when innocence was lost and a group of young teens is caught up in a feud between local family factions, underworld gambling, war veterans, and family ties that are either blood or bands of brothers.

There are a lot of characters to keep track of and the author does a superb job of creating fully formed characters and integrates their story arcs seamlessly.

I can get frustrated when information about the past is drip fed in a dual timeline narrative but in this case, Sanders does it pitch perfect. So much so, the sucker punch hits its target.

This story will sit with me for a long time to come.

Thanks to @The_WriteReads and Brown Books for the eARC to read and review for this blog tour.

Looking for Lucie by Amanda Addison – A Spotlight Post

On By @f33lthesunIn Young AdultLeave a comment
Cover by Jet Purdie

I am shining a spotlight on the wonderful Looking for Lucie by Amanda Addison, to celebrate its publication in the US on October 1st 2024.

I really enjoyed reading this when it came out earlier this year in the UK and reviewed it here.

Book Info

Genre: Contemporary YA

Length: 272 pages

Published: April 2024 in UK and Oct 1st 2024 in US

Goodreads 

StoryGraph

Amazon UK 

Amazon US

Or buy it from your local independent bookshop, which is my preferred option.

Blurb

Looking for Lucie is a contemporary YA novel that explores identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship as an 18-year-old girl sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history.

It’s a question every brown girl in a white-washed town is familiar with, and one that Lucie has never been able to answer.

All she knows is that her mother is white, she’s never met her father, and she looks nothing like the rest of her family. She can’t even talk about it because everyone says it shouldn’t matter!

Well, it matters to Lucie and—with her new friend Nav, who knows exactly who he is—she’s determined to find some answers.

What do you do when you question your entire existence? You do a DNA test.

About the Author

Amanda Addison is an award-winning author of books for adults and children. Her writing has been translated into German, Greek, Italian and Ukrainian. Her picture book, Boundless Sky, was nominated for The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal, and her YA novel, Looking for Lucie, was listed for the Searchlight Writing Novel Opening Award. A graduate of Chelsea school of Art, her writing and artwork are inspired by travel, textiles, and the natural world. Amanda holds an MA in Writing the Visual and lectures in Art & Design and has also led workshops in Creative Writing at the National Centre for Writing. Amanda lives in Norfolk, UK, with her family.

Her writing includes flash fiction, short stories, picture books and novels. She explores themes of home and belonging, and enjoys using the juxtaposition of rural and city life. Her characters are often artists or scientists, as their curiosity about the world around them are two sides to the same coin, and the exploration of art and science can give us meaning and purpose in life with its infinite avenues of discovery. Amanda’s debut YA novel, Looking for Lucie, Neem Tree Press 2024, explores the above. It is a contemporary story of identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship. Lucie, an 18-year-old art student sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history with her new scientist friend Nav. Together they unravel family secrets.

Amanda believes in the power of stories as a window on the world, and a mirror to better see ourselves and is passionate about stories which are empowering and inclusive. When not writing she can be found swimming in the North Sea or running in the countryside, and that is when she gets some of her best ideas!

Please look out for other spotlights and reviews on this tour to celebrate the US release of Looking for Lucie.

Calm by SJ Baker

On By @f33lthesunIn Young Adult2 Comments

Blurb

In this enthralling dystopian YA thriller where emotions become weapons, the fight for humanity’s true essence takes centre stage.

In a near-future Britain, society’s calm facade conceals a sinister truth: the state maintains its control by meddling with the nation’s water supply. The result? A population lulled into apathy. Lulled, apart from a courageous few known as the Resistors.

New Resistor Owyn joins lifelong Resistor Tiegan in a fierce quest for freedom. Spurred on by the promise of a mass Resistance, they ignite a chain of events that shakes the foundations of Britain’s oppressive regime.

One thing is clear: the price of freedom is higher than they ever imagined.

Review

“There’s a rumour on the corner
But it’s always been denied
‘Cause they don’t want you any wiser
You’re just toeing the party line”.

Word of Mouth – Mike and the Mechanics

“Swear allegiance to the flag
Whatever flag they offer
Never hint at what you really feel”

Silent Running – Mike and the Mechanics

The lyrics in both these songs came to mind as I read Calm.

In order to quell ongoing violence and disturbances across Britain, the government add chemicals to the water to calm the population, removing any emotional responses the people may have.

Owyn lost his parents and was brought up in a boarding school, knowing nothing else but compliance. However his resistance to the drugs starts to wear off.

Tiegan lives with her family but has a resistance to the drugs in the water. To keep her safe, her parents train her to keep her face calm and not react to anything emotionally.

Calm is told as dual perspective, alternating Owyn and Tiegan’s stories. It follows them as they end up on the run, being hunted by the Servants, being helped by other resistors and some others from the more organised Resistance. As they both separately head north to where they believe there is a Resistance stronghold, we follow their fight for survival.

As well as a lack of knowledge of anything beyond his well controlled boarding school experience and the usual teenage hormones to deal with, the sudden arrival of ALL the emotions is a lot for Owyn to deal with. Anger, betrayal, grief, jealousy, confusion, shame and hate swirl inside his brain whilst he attempts to build trust in others on the run.

The story is riveting, full of well crafted characters and action sequences. I am full of hope for a sequel…please!

Thank you to Neem Tree Press and @The_WriteReads for the eARC to read and review for this blog tour. Look out for all the other blogs too.

Nocturne with Gaslamps by Matthew Francis

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment

Blurb

An historical crime fiction novel set in Victorian London’s gaslit theatre scene, where ghosts lurk in the shadows and murder takes centre stage.

Gaslight. Ghosts. Murder.

Hastings Wimbury has always dreamt of playing Hamlet, but for now he works as a theatre gas-boy. Here, he tends to a gas chandelier so powerful it creates its own weather, and limelight machines that can throw a shadow onto a wall ten miles away.

When Hastings suddenly disappears, his fiancée Flora sets out to find him with the help of Cassie, her rival in love who is more preoccupied with the ghosts terrorising the streets of London. Soon total darkness is imposed upon the city, and they realise that something far more sinister is at hand…

Ladies aren’t supposed to solve mysteries, but this is a matter of life and death.

Review

As well as being about a disappearance, a murder and ghosts in the darkness of Victorian London, this story is very informative historically about how gaslight was used in theatres at the time, to create wonderfully dramatic, almost ethereal, illusions. It also highlighted to me the origins of the term “in the limelight”.

The story is noir-ish in tempo and style, with elaborate detail about the use of gaslight, the physicality and danger of the gas-boy profession and London at night. The spectacle of the “theatrical” ghostly production around London is something I would have loved to have been real and have seen for myself.

I loved the strength of character and independence of Cassie and Flora, something definitely frowned upon by society at the time. Just like me though, neither of them saw the twist at the end coming.

Thanks to Neem Tree Press for the ARC to review for this blog tour.

Buddy the Knight and The Queen of Sorrow by Peter David

On By @f33lthesunIn Children KS2Leave a comment

Blurb

Buddy is no ordinary teddy bear.

He’s a Knight, crafted by The Nameless Wizard himself, and sworn to protect his Person, 10-year old Mieya, from all the Things-That-Go-Bump-In-The-Night.

When Mieya is cursed into a magical sleep, it’s up to Buddy and his friends Esteban the Bard, Sasha the Warrior-Princess, and Copper the Butterfly to journey across The Realm-Under-The-Bed and find the one responsible.

But this is no ordinary Quest. The Realm is a dangerous place, filled with jungles, deserts, lightning storms, and Monsters. But worst of all is The Queen of Sorrow who waits for them in her dark castle in the crags. To break her curse, Buddy will need more than his skill with a blade, Esteban’s witty songs, or Sasha’s ferocious might.

He’ll need Heart.

Review

Starting off with a fabulous map of The Realm-Under-The-Bed, which sets the scene for this questing adventure, is always a winner.

The author has created a fantastic world into which our brave hero, Buddy the Knight, must journey, in order to save his Person, Mieya, from the evil Queen of Sorrow’s curse.

Armed with his enchanted sword, a magic amulet to show him the perilous way and Esteban, his trusty sidekick, Buddy sets off to battle monsters, sirens, storms and other unknown perils.

Along the way, Buddy encounters friends, foes and challenges that make him question his bravery and everything he believes to be true. Can he solve the quest riddle and defeat the evil Queen?

There are a few themes woven through the story which hit the right notes; do not let how you look or how you think others perceive you to limit you or make you feel less than who you are, know that you need both heart and mind to be whole and finally, be there for your friends and let them be there for you.

Thank you to the author for the eARC in exchange for this review.