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!

The sun was raining again.  Soft and bright, rainlight fell through the sky, each drop tearing a hole in the season.  Winter had been steady and predictable, but it was quite poked through now, and spring was peeking from underneath it.  The world was ready for a change.

Any ideas?

I hadn’t heard of either this or the second book, Whichwood, but I spotted both on a visit to Foyles in London. I definitely judged these books on their cover.  They’re so gorgeous I just had to have them!

Goodreads synopsis:

Alice Alexis Queensmeadow, 12, rates three things most important: Mother, who wouldn’t miss her; magic and color, which seem to elude her; and Father, who always loved her. Father disappeared from Ferenwood with only a ruler, almost three years ago. But she will have to travel through the mythical, dangerous land of Furthermore, where down can be up, paper is alive, and left can be both right and very, very wrong. Her only companion is Oliver whose own magic is based in lies and deceit. Alice must first find herself—and hold fast to the magic of love in the face of loss.

I absolutely adored this extraordinary story, full of wonderful characters, rich description and powerful messages relating to identity, familial bonds and belonging.  It wholeheartedly captured my imagination as it took me on a riveting rollercoaster of fast-paced action through a series of tantalising twists and turns which astounded and delighted me.

Deep down in The Hole, a monster has been hatched by the Ogre King, formed from the last regretful sigh of a dying man, and the first gurgling laugh of his grandchild.  What hatches is an enigma:  nothing from the known bestiary of monsters, but a young boy, with a heart and a soul.  The boy has been created for a sinister purpose, but will he have the strength and courage to fight against his destiny?

When he draws the keen and hungry attention of King Thunderguts, the ruler of the monsters, and his crone, he makes a desperate escape from the pandemonium that ensues.  During his escape, he encounters three gargoyles:  Wheedle, Bladder and Spigot.  The relationship between the boy and the gargoyles is incredibly heart-warming as these gruff, kind-hearted creatures make him a part of their pack and give him a sense of belonging.  They are hiding a secret of their own which, if revealed, would see them even more despised by the monsters than they already are.  It also explains their kindness, humour, loyalty and protectiveness towards the boy – and possibly their love of chocolate!

The diverse collection of monsters, who have their own hierarchy, are richly imagined and described in horribly delightful detail, striking a perfect balance between the scary and the grotesque. 

The aching vulnerability and innocence which radiates from the boy as he grapples with some of life’s big questions relating to identity and belonging is very touching:  Who am I?  Where do I belong?  As he begins to find answers, the reader is drawn into some amazing twists and unexpected discoveries which makes this a book which I found impossible to put down.   

Thank you to Toppsta Book Giveaways and Bloomsbury Kids for a copy in return for an honest review of the book.

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 An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson.  This has been on my TBR for a while, and I’ve since bought Sorcery of Thorns which I’m really looking forward to.

This week I have read The Frozen Sea by Piers Torday, The Land of Roar by Jenny McLachlan, The Secret Dragon by Ed Clarke and two more books from my 20 Reads of Summer:  Circe by Madeline Miller and Firefly:  The Magnificent Nine by James Lovegrove.  This takes me to 12 books from this list.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

I hope to read The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu and Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver.

• 

• 

I really enjoyed The Secret Dragon even though it wasn’t quite what I was expecting.  I guess I was anticipating this story to be firmly grounded in the fantasy genre but, actually, I feel it has more of an historical science basis – with a fantasy twist! 

Don’t let anyone stop you being who you want to be.

This is the motto 11-year-old Mari lives by after the loss of her scientist father.  She has much more of an interest in exploring the past through her love of fossil-hunting than helping her Mum take care of the living animals on their farm.  She is determined to become a palaeontologist and, whilst exploring the coastline of South Wales makes an astonishing discovery: a living dragon!

She decides to keep Gweeb – a wyvern only heard of in legends – a secret.  Of course, Gweeb doesn’t understand that Mari’s discovery is meant to be a secret which leads to all sorts of capers as the rather mischievous and curious dragon wants to explore the world.

Mari is rather a complicated young girl.  She does not have any friends at school and is unwilling to play games to be popular.  Instead, she is single-minded and fiercely independent in her determination to realise her dream of becoming a scientist.  I really felt for her as she struggled to form friendships, build a closer bond with her mother and admit hidden truths to herself. 

What starts out as a scientific study turns into much more as Mari forms a mutual bond of friendship with Gweeb which I found really endearing.  Mari cares for her wyvern’s needs as a living creature and not a study; she protects it from harm; and, she trusts in this tiny creature when danger arrives.

I enjoyed the STEM focus in this story including the references to Mary Anning, Mari’s own ambition to become a scientist and the fossil facts at the end of the story. 

This story ends in a way which sets up the next book in the series perfectly.  I’m really looking forward to seeing where Mari’s and Gweeb’s adventures take them next …

Oh, my goodness!  I can’t stop smiling after finishing this wonderfully enchanting story.  This is such a joyous treat of a book, a real celebration of the never-ending importance and power of the imagination … if only we can let ourselves believe!

Twins Rose and Arthur are growing apart as they get ready to start secondary school.  Rose is too busy to play with Arthur as she becomes engrossed in the world of her phone, Youtube, make-up and fitting in with the popular girls.  And Arthur is feeling left out, lonely and worried about his new school. 

Every summer, the children are sent to stay with their Grandad where, in his attic, they had created and explored the Land of Roar:  a glorious world, filled with their loves and fears, moulded in the freedom of allowing their imaginations to run wild.  But now, their make-believe den is to be turned into a more grown-up retreat … until their Grandad is taken to Roar through an old camp-bed which is the portal into this land.  And the children follow …

What the twins discover is not the world they left behind … there is real danger, and perhaps rescuing their Grandad is not the only saving needed.  Joined by Arthur’s best ‘non-real’ friend Wininja and Rose’s dragons, Pickle and Vlad, they must attempt to rescue their Grandad and foil Arthur’s nemesis, who is just the right amount of scary to make him the perfect adversary … revengeful, dark and deliciously evil! 

I really loved the superb world-building, captured through both the rich description and Ben Mantle’s illustrations which are just divine, really helping the reader immerse themselves in this truly magical, and sometimes frightening, world.  I can just imagine two young children sitting in an attic room, looking for adventure, drawing the map of Roar with its ‘Dungun’, ‘Tangled Forest’ and ‘Bad Side’ and venturing off into this world for many a happy hour, filled with fun, excitement – and a desire to scare each other!

Our Grandad is important because he believes in magic.

The Land of Roar has the most wonderful cast of characters from the very young-at-heart Grandad, whose imagination is still strong, to the fierce and daring Lost Girls.  I must admit that I have a real soft spot for Wininja, the wizard-ninja whose ninja powers are a little more advanced than his wizarding powers, but who is just so carefree and full of joie de vivre, not to mention hilarious, and a wonderfully fearless friend.  Arthur and Rose are such believable characters who find a way to reconcile the land of their imagination with the land of reality, and I really hope they get to venture into Roar again!

I wonder if every child has a world like this, only not all of them are lucky enough to find it.

I so hope every child can find a world of imagination, if not on their own, then through the inspiration of such fantastic stories as this one! 

The July theme for Six for Sunday, hosted by A Little But a Lot is Summer Reads and today’s prompt is for: Perfect Pool Reads. I’m posting this late as I just had to finish my current read which, for a change, is not a middle grade book! These are all books that I would choose to indulge myself with by the pool … although it has been a while since I’ve been on a pool holiday.

Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding brought me many happy laugh-out-loud moments and I have such fond memories of devouring this and The Edge of Reason. It’s one of the few books that I shared a love of with my best friend.

Last Chance Saloon by Marian Keyes is, I suppose, as close as I come to chick-lit! Funny, friendships, relationships … a perfect pool side read. And I managed to convince my sister to read this – no small feat!

I think Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine was the first adult timeslip novel I read. I love the idea of someone travelling back in time to discover past lives, and this is still my favourite book in that genre. Just thinking about this one makes me want to sit by a pool and re-read it.

Val McDermid is probably my favourite crime author and this story was the first of her books I read. I don’t really know why crime novels and thrillers appeal as a pool side read, but they do!

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. The world of Faeries … and Prince Cardan. I loved this dark and dangerous world … perfect escapism.

I have to admit that I loved the Trueblood TV series and, when I discovered the books by Charlaine Harris, I devoured them in very quick succession.

A Girl Called Owl is a marvellously magical read, full of wonder, danger and adventure which spans both a wintery real world and a secret hidden world – truly beautiful!

All her life, Owl McBride has been told by her mother that her father comes from a magical wintery land, but folktales are just for little children, and she’s not a child anymore.  Owl is searching for the truth … but the truth may be more than she ever imagined …

As winter approaches, 13-year-old Owl notices strange and beautiful frost-like patterns on her skin … her tears are ice … and the new boy Alberic keeps staring at her!  When her mother finally reveals the truth of who her father is, Owl refuses to believe it …

… to be different is difficult …

Owl’s paternal problems are just beginning, but her best friend, Mallory, also has family problems to deal with – and these are grounded very much in reality.  Both girls are fragile, and this leads to friction in their friendship, but there is also incredible support, trust and loyalty.

Unable to control her newfound frost-magic, Owl needs Alberic’s help to distract her classmates from noticing her powers.  Alberic clearly knows more about Owl’s background than she does herself, and seems to be trying to help her … or does he have ulterior motives?  A fledgling friendship develops between them, but where has Alberic come from, and why does he seem to be following her?

Owl decides to take action, and wanders into the local winter landscape, which she feels an affinity towards, to attempt to attract her father’s attention.  But his attention is not at all what she had hoped for …

In her desperation to find out more about her father, and build some kind of relationship with him, Owl finds herself lying to her mother, in danger of losing her humanity in her magic, and making choices that could put her life at risk, all in order to connect to her father, no matter the consequences.

Owl is a wonderful character, who is more believable, despite her other-worldly quality, because she is fallible.  She lies, feels guilty, argues, but she’s also brave, determined and a real fighter for what she believes in. 

I loved the magical quality, steeped in frost-magic and folklore, but also the authenticity of the relationships very much grounded in reality. 

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!

The boy growled, dropped to all fours and took one end of the stick between his teeth.  The dog at the stick’s other end – a hefty Alsatian with long ears – bared its gums and slobbered.

Any ideas?

I’ve seen lots of good reviews about Scavengers and just recently spotted it on my local Waterstones shelves, so took it from their shelf to add to mine!

Goodreads synopsis:

Landfill has lived his whole life as a scavenger, running with wooflers, swimming with turtles and feasting on fresh gull. Old Babagoo has always looked after him, on one condition – follow his rules. Never come looking Outside. Never rise above the wall. But despite the dangers, Landfill longs to see Outside. And some rules are made to be broken.

Spoiler/Not Spoiler:  Cosmo does not die, so now you can enjoy his wonderful story.

I, Cosmo is a ‘woof-tastically’ heart-warming story, full of life, heart and humour which will appeal to any dog-lover, adult or child.  Telling the story from the perspective of Cosmo, the 13-year old family golden retriever, is genius!  The tone is conversational and authentic:  I can really imagine that this is exactly how a dog sees himself within a loving family.  Cosmo is wise, humorous, devoted and loves ‘doggedly’.  I’ll let Cosmo explain the last one himself:

“There is a word I’ve learned in my twelve years:  doggedly.  It means “with persistence and full effort.”  Humans attribute this to a dog’s stubbornness – our refusal to give up chewy sticks, the way we freeze in the doorway when it rains.  But really, it’s the way we love, with our whole hearts, no matter the circumstance.  I vowed to protect Max – and my family – doggedly, for the rest of my life.

Cosmo has been bought as a puppy by the family, shortly before the birth of their first son Max, who has a heartfelt bond with Cosmo, each being the other’s champion and best friend.  One of the aspects which really engaged me in this story was how Cosmo reminisces about his life with his family, recalling many humorous and heart-warming moments.  This makes the family break-down in the ‘present’ of the book all the more poignant.   Cosmo is told by the children’s Uncle Reggie to: “Protect their hearts.” And he does so, with all his heart.

I fell in love with Cosmo for a two main reasons: his devotion and sensitivity towards his family, and especially to Max, which is wonderfully depicted; and, his sharp, witty observations which permeate the story, lending it many humorous moments.

Humans can learn many lessons from Cosmo’s honesty and wisdom, and from his love of old movies and dancing!  Indeed, dancing is pivotal in his attempt to save his family and avoid separation from Max.  The courage, perseverance and devotion shown by Cosmo, despite his own afflictions due to age, is genuinely touching.

My favourite quote, which I think will resonate with many is:

“…I do believe that, with the right human by your side, it’s possible to leap fearlessly into the unknown.”

Will Cosmo, with his dancer’s soul, be able to save his family?  Will he become a movie star?  Will he remain with Max, his best friend?  Will he defeat his nemesis the sheepdog?  So many questions, so wonderfully answered in this exceptional story, with the most uplifting, hopeful ending. Just perfect!

Thank you to Nosy Crow for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

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 The Frozen Sea by Piers Torday.  I requested this via NetGalley and was very excited to be approved.  I loved The Lost Magician and am looking forward to finding out what happens!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

I’ve now started my summer holidays, so I’ve been able to do more reading than I usually would.  This week I have read:

Malamander by Thomas Taylor: This was such a wonderfully atmospheric read, full of mystery rooted in a great legend.

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill: This has been on my TBR pile for a while and it was definitely worth the wait. A dark fantasy which completely captured me in its magical quality.

A Girl Called Owl by Amy Wilson: I loved Snowglobe so was eager to read this one. It was such a beautiful, fantastical story – and wintery! Review pending.

The Space We’re In by Katya Balen: I requested this one via NetGalley. It is being published on 5th September. This is told from the viewpoint of a ten-year-old boy with a younger autistic brother – raw and very emotional.

• 

• 

• 

I hope to read The Land of Roar by Jenny McLachlan, The Last Spell Breather by Julie Pike and The Secret Dragon by Ed Clarke, and maybe another one from my #20BooksofSummer.