This is a weekly meme now hosted by The Artsy Girl Reader.  This week’s theme is: Most Anticipated Releases of the Second Half of 2019. 

I have recently posted my favourite books in a series which are being released in the second half of 2019, so I’m only including books which are not on that list.

No matter how many books I have in my TBR, I keep eagerly awaiting more. 

JULY Fire Girl, Forest Boy by Chloe Daykin, released on 4^th July The True Colours of Coral Glen by Juliette Forrest, released on 4^th  July.

AUGUST A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Busby, released on 8^th August.

SEPTEMBER Rise of the Dragon Moon by Gabrielle K Byrne, released on 1^st  September. The Girl who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson, released on 5^th  September. The Time of Green Magic by Hilary McKay, released on 5^th  September. The Frozen Sea by Piers Torday, released on 5^th September.

OCTOBER The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll, released on 3^rd October. Frostheart by Jamie Littler, released on 3^rd October. Shadow of Winterspell by Amy Wilson, released on 17^th October.

Has anyone else got these on their list?  I’m sure I’ll be adding to my TBR from reading others lists today!

I was utterly spellbound by this absolute marvel of a book, full of jaw-dropping discoveries and unexpected twists, led by the most wonderfully realised cast of human and personifate characters.  The story is crafted beautifully by a masterful storyteller, whose imagination and world-building are breath-taking.

Prue Haywood is a talented engineer who lives on her small farm, building and repairing mechanimals.  She is overwhelmed by grief at the devastating loss of her older brother Francis.  But what if she could find a way to bring her adored brother back? 

A seemingly chance encounter with Craftsman Primrose from the Imperial Personifate Guild of Medlock offers her just that.  Prue makes a spur of the moment decision to leave her small farm and travel to the City of Medlock where she accepts an apprenticeship with Craftsman Primrose under the guise of Frances.

Once apprenticed, she is determined to use her superb engineering talent to bring her brother back into her life.  How?  The Guild have perfected the ability to bring people back from the dead and place them in the bodies of animal personifates, but they have no memories of their previous lives.  Can Prue bring her brother back with his memories intact? 

It is not long before Prue and her friends, Agapantha and Edwin (who is the first personificate apprentice) make some startling discoveries which lead them on an action-packed adventure to save the City of Medlock – but who is the enemy?  What terrors lurk in the depths of the forest?  The tension is palpable as the plot twists thicken, the threat increases, loyalties are questioned, and heart-breaking decisions have to be made. 

Prue is just the most amazingly inspirational young girl.  She is not only ingenious, curious and determined but also courageous, kind-hearted and principled, no matter the cost.  She is also a fantastic STEM role model, who is determined to make a difference in the world. 

The work of the Guild also deserves mention as it raises fascinating moral questions which centre around the exercise of free will, the entitlement to knowledge and the right to equality for all.  These are political and philosophical points which are addressed by a variety of characters, at different levels of society within the story, and are arguments I really enjoyed following as an underlying thread in the narrative.  As a reader, willingly ensconced in the City of Medlock, it made me question and challenge and really engage with the issues alongside the citizens of Medlock. 

Wildspark really is the most deeply immersive story which transported me on a journey as thrilling and awe-inspiring as I imagine a ride on the Gigantrak would be!  I didn’t want the journey to end, and I hope I get to adventure with Prue and her friends again.

I’m really enjoying writing reviews for my blog, although I must admit, it’s taking me a LOT longer than I thought it would to write each one – and I don’t really understand why!  I make pages and pages of notes as I read.  I think I need them as a kind of security blanket whilst I get more confident in my ability to write reviews!  The funny thing is that, although I write copious notes, I hardly look at them when actually writing my review.  I don’t yet find it easy to write reviews (not sure I ever will), but I do find it enjoyable and personally rewarding.

For most of my life, I have been an avid reader and, before I became a teacher, I was easily able to devour a book in one sitting, and would frequently be reading a book I couldn’t put down at 3am!  My nine to five job enabled me to come home from work, switch off – and read!

This is something that virtually stopped overnight when I started my PGCE and teaching life, as teaching simply took over my life!  At a time when reading books would have helped me and my class, I just stopped as the endless cycle of marking, planning and assessment took up the majority of my time.  Holidays were spent preparing for the next term and recuperating from physical and mental exhaustion! 

This is something I now regret, and I am determined to redress the balance.  During Christmas this year, I made a conscious decision that I was going to actively engage with reading again, and it really has been the most rewarding experience.  Over the Christmas period, I read 10 books – and took a break from school work for most of that time.

I started reading middle grade books which has completely rekindled my love of reading.  Reading these has reminded me of why I loved reading in the first place:  the sense of escapism; the freedom to wander in new worlds; the complete suspension of disbelief and pure joy of the fantastical; and, the emotional connection with characters. 

Just before Easter, I thought I’d have a go at blogging as I’d been admiring some great bloggers via Twitter.  I didn’t have a clue – except that maybe WordPress was a good platform to use!  It took me a while to get my head around using it – and I’m definitely still not confident with most of the features – but I learned enough to let me post my first book review! 

I thought no-one would ever read my posts, or engage with me but, to be honest, I started blogging as a personal challenge to myself – to give myself something to write other than comments in children’s books and modelled texts for writing in class!  It was an added bonus when some people liked, and commented, on my posts. 

Coming back to reading, and discovering blogging and some of the wonderful people in the book blogging community (both via WordPress and Twitter) really has been a cathartic release which has helped me in balancing my home/work life, and has made me feel so much more relaxed and content in my life. 

Picking up a book now helps me to de-stress and relax after work, but it also benefits the children in my class who love having a ‘bookish’ teacher who chats to them about books, reads to them every day and gives them free range of an ever-growing class library of fantastic fiction.  Not to mention having a relaxed, happy teacher – most of the time!

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

They say the day the Governor arrived, the ravens did too.  All the smaller birds flew backwards into the sea, and that is why there are no song-birds on Joya.  Only huge, ragged ravens.

Any ideas?

This is by one of my absolute favourite authors.    Goodreads synopsis:

Forbidden to leave her island, Isabella Riosse dreams of the faraway lands her father once mapped.
When her closest friend disappears into the island’s Forgotten Territories, she volunteers to guide the search. As a cartographer’s daughter, she’s equipped with elaborate ink maps and knowledge of the stars, and is eager to navigate the island’s forgotten heart.
But the world beyond the walls is a monster-filled wasteland – and beneath the dry rivers and smoking mountains, a legendary fire demon is stirring from its sleep. Soon, following her map, her heart and an ancient myth, Isabella discovers the true end of her journey: to save the island itself.

Books in Series:  New releases in next few months

Even though I have an ever-growing TBR pile, I just can’t resist looking forward to new books in a well-loved series being published:  I guess they feel like returning to catch up with old friends.  I’ve been finding out which of my favourite authors are releasing new books in a series which are being published later this year. The covers for all of these are absolutely stunning!

These are the ones I’m really looking forward to with the synopsis from Goodreads.

Princess Sofia of Drachenheim is sick of being used for her older sister’s political gains. At twelve years old, she’s already been a hostage to invading dragons and a promised future fiancé to a wicked fairy. Her only comfort lies in writing letters to her pen pal and best friend–Jasper, a young dragon whom she’s never even met. When Sofia’s older sister sends her on a diplomatic mission to far-off Villenne, she’s meant to play the part of a charming, smiling princess. But when an accident leads to her exile from the city, Sofia is free to wander as she pleases for the first time in her life. And when Jasper’s food-mage sister Aventurine turns him into a human boy, Sofia thinks life can’t get any better. Until… the legendary ice giants of the north attack, trying to reclaim the territory that they lost centuries ago. With the dragons and royals frozen in ice, can Sofia and Jasper save their families and kingdom?

From the Ice Wastes beyond the Cinder Wall emerges an unlikely hero. Rejected by his village and left to die, young Uki is given life and unique powers by a long-buried spirit from the time of the Ancients . . . and a life or death mission. Joined by two other outcasts – a trained assassin who refuses to kill people and a very short rabbit who rides the fastest jerboa on the plains – Uki must capture Valkus, the Spirit of War, before rabbitkind destroys itself in conflict.

A magical adventure to delight the imagination. The curl-up-on-the-sofa snuggle of a series from a uniquely talented author. After solving the mystery of Tilly’s mother’s disappearance, the bookwandering community is at risk. An extreme group of Librarians have taken over the British Underlibrary and they want to restrict bookwandering. Tilly and Oskar believe that The Archivists are the key to restoring balance – but nobody has seen them for thousands of years, and most people think they never really existed anyway. Is a journey to the French Underlibrary and a peculiar book of fairytales, the key to discovering their whereabouts? But wandering into fairytales is dangerous and unpredictable, and the characters aren’t as they seem. Soon, Tilly and Oskar realise that villains don’t just live inside the pages of books. Sometimes, you don’t get to live happily ever after…

The adventure continues in book two of the stunning The Train to Impossible Places middle-grade fantasy series! Suzy Smith and her friends have gathered again for the re-launch of The Impossible Postal Express. The celebrations don’t last long though, before Trollville is rocked by a violent tremor—one of a series growing more powerful by the days. It’s clear something sinister is underfoot. Nevertheless, Suzy’s got a long overdue package that the Express must deliver, and it may just lead her to some answers.  In P. G. Bell’s The Great Brain Robbery: A Train to Impossible Places Novel, Suzy and the Express will travel deep under Trollville through the Uncanny Valley, and sky-high to new impossible places like Cloud Forge. She and the gang will test out its kinks, er, new features, and meet new allies and enemies alike, from a sentient cloud-consciousness to an obnoxious magician.

After rescuing Tomas from enchantment, orphan Seren Rhys is enjoying her first summer at Plas-y-Fran. But as autumn arrives, it brings with it a mysterious new governess who seems intent on drawing Tomas away from Seren and his family.           Dangerous figures from a bewitched toy carousel stalk the house, and fearing the worst, Seren calls on her old friend, the clockwork crow, to help her.

Is anyone else looking forward to these?  Are there any being released this year which I’ve missed out?

This is a meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words.  It asks three questions:

1.       What are you currently reading?

2.       What did you recently finish reading?

3.      What do you think you’ll read next?

I’m currently reading You Won’t Believe This by Adam Baron.  This is one I’ve been approved for through NetGalley.  I had totally forgotten about my NetGalley Approvals when compiling my #20BooksofSummer, so I guess I get to do some extra reading!  This book is brilliant:  it’s written in a really honest, conversational style and is so believable – even though it’s called You Won’t Believe This!

I recently finished Wildspark by Vashti Hardy.  I read the majority of it on Saturday as I really could not stop reading it.  I’ll post my review shortly.

Even though I really want to read Circe, I’ve decided to leave it until we break up from school.  I want to try to get more middle-grade read before July.  I’ve decided to read The Longest Night of Charlie Noon by Christopher Edge.  Having read The Infinite Lives of Maisie Day, I just know this is going to be an incredible read.

She Wolf is the powerfully engrossing story of one young, fiercely independent, Danish girl’s fight for survival, and vengeance, in the bleak, wintery landscape of Northumbria in AD 866, following the death of her mother soon after they are washed ashore.

The story centres around Ylva’s absolute single-minded determination to get revenge for her mother’s death, revenge being a central tenet of Viking religion.  She resolutely believes that her mother has been killed by the three-fingered man, a dangerous and frightening warrior, and refuses to cry or grieve, until she has succeeded in her vengeance. 

Her fear and pain are kept at bay by her inner conversations with Geri, her faithful dog and her memories of the stories her mother told as well as the biting of the inside of her cheek, something she relies on to keep her emotions from spilling over into the grief she refuses to express.  I found this action, which is repeated at various points in the story, incredibly moving; for me, it crystallises what an incredibly courageous and fierce young girl Ylva is as she battles to control her pain, anger and fear.

Soon after her mother’s death, Ylva meets a Saxon warrior, Cathryn and her silent, wary companion, Bron.  Cathryn is determined to help Ylva, and Ylva is just as determined to journey alone.  Initially, Ylva fights against accepting any help as she is fiercely independent and naturally mistrusting of strangers, until circumstances leave her no choice.  Should she trust this stranger offering to help her, and talk her out of her vengeance?  What price is Ylva willing to pay to avenge her mother’s death? 

The action is relentless and fast-paced as the tension builds to an almost unbearable crescendo:  hunter becomes hunted, wolves and bears roam the forest …  This tension is masterfully counterbalanced with the building of fledgling friendships, blossoming trust and the tentative acceptance of help.

Ylva’s story captured not only me, but also my class who I read it to as our class reader.  We were all utterly engrossed in Ylva’s heart-stopping adventure through the forests of Northumbria, and learnt a lot about fierce girls and Viking culture.

The June theme for Six for Sunday, hosted by A Little But a Lot, is Bookish Wishes and today’s wish is for:  Characters who deserve another/their own book.  This was quite a tricky one for me as a lot of the characters I love have, or are getting, sequels.

These are the ones who I would love to read about again or follow other characters in the story, which I’m not aware of having/getting sequels:

Tess de Sousa in The Star-Spun Web by Sinead O’Hart:  Tess’s adventure to a parallel universe with the star-spinner was engrossing.   I’d love her to go to other universes as she takes on Mr Cleat and Mrs Thistleton again!

Pog  in Pog Padraig Kenny:  I would love to go on another adventure with Pog, perhaps as he helps some other children, saves the world from monsters again, or to learn more about his backstory.

The sheep dog in I, Cosmo by Carlie Sorosiak:  whilst I adored Cosmo, I’d really like to know more about the sheepdog’s story, told from his viewpoint.

Bron or Ylva in She Wolf by Dan Smith:  I’d love to know about the adventures of Cathryn and Bron, perhaps from Bron’s perspective, before they meet Ylva, or follow Ylva beyond the end of the story as I’m sure there’s more fierceness to come as she fights for justice.

Emmeline and Thing in The Eye of the North by Sinead O’Hart:  Emmeline and Thing are such fantastic characters that I’m sure they could go on a mission to save the world from another villain bent on world domination!

Eska, Flint and Blu in Sky Song by Abi Elphinstone:  another adventure with Eska, Flint and Blu in the wonderful snowy kingdom of Erkenwald as it comes under threat once again would be fantastic.

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words.
What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we
judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

On the bright side of the valley, ten furrows from Lane
End and some twenty furlongs from the village of North Owlcot, in a place where
the great metal city of Medlock was just a dream, there was a small farm.

This one is the opening to a middle-grade book:  any ideas?

This is my current read which is incredibly engaging. I’ve
booked myself some reading time tomorrow morning to finish it.  Goodreads synopsis:

A year after the death of her older brother, Prue Haywood’s family is still shattered by grief. But everything changes when a stranger arrives at the farm. A new, incredible technology has been discovered in the city of Medlock, where a secretive guild of inventors has developed a way to capture spirits of the dead in animal-like machines, bringing them back to life. Prue knows that the “Ghost Guild” might hold the key to bringing her brother back, so she seizes the stranger’s offer to join as an apprentice. But to find her brother, she needs to find a way to get the ghost machines to remember the people they used to be. Yet if Prue succeeds, all of society could come apart…

There were two reasons I was attracted to this book:  the front cover (Elsa Klever) which immediately made me think of primordial witchcraft; and, the fact that it was set in an isolated Irish town.  I’m so glad these were enough for me to begin reading it, and it didn’t disappoint!

Sixteen year-old twin sisters, Maddy and Catlin move to Ballyfrann, an isolated Irish town nestled in the mountains, with their mother after her marriage to Brian, the owner of a castle in the town.  Although the twins clearly have a very close bond, they have very different personalities.  Catlin is outgoing, attention-seeking and quite self-absorbed whilst Maddy is more serious, introverted and reflective.  The girls also have different perspectives on life, with Catlin superfically focussed on religious iconography whilst Maddy feels more connected to nature, and suspects she may be a witch.  Their awkward moments and difficulties as they try to settle into school life are perfectly portrayed with deft, pertinent observations.

It does not take Maddy long to sense that there is something strange, and secretive,  about Ballyfrann and its inhabitants.  She sees her sister enter into an obsessive relationship with an older teenager, Lon, a relationship which threatens the sisterly bond.  Is this just young love, or something more sinister?  She discovers that Aunt Mamo, who lives with them, is a practising witch who suspects Maddy’s own latent witchcraft.   Out in the woods, she makes an horrific discovery … a sacrifice to ward of greater evil?  Oh, and there is the small matter of the missing girls … the many, many missing girls …

Catlin is not the only sister making new relationships.  Maddy, who has always found it difficult to develop friendships, seems to find it somewhat easier to form friendships, albeit awkward ones, in Ballyfrann, perhaps because she belongs in the town.  Her developing relationship with Oona, another native returning home, offers some relief from the darker nature of the main story line, although it is not without its complications.  Maddy’s character drives the story.  She is a very sympathetic protagonist:  full of brutal honesty, uncertainty, confusion, guilt and incredible loyalty to her sister.  To what lengths will one sister go to protect the other?

There is a pervading sense of foreboding throughout as Catlin’s insidious obsession with Lon grows, sacrifices are made and undertones of darkness are drip-fed into the narrative, culminating in the macabre.

This book is probably not for the faint-hearted as it does have some disturbing scenes; however, they are such an integral part of the plot and necessary to understandng  the impossible life-changing choices forced upon Maddy that they can be justified, although uncomfortably so. 

I was completely engrossed in finding out Ballyfrann’s hidden secrets, allowing its dark undertones to envelop me, and following Maddy on her journey to discover her talent, something all inhabitants of Ballyfrann have, being that which binds them together.