ARC Review | The Stranger's Guide To Talliston by John Tarrow

Title: The Stranger's Guide To Talliston
Author: John Tarrow
Publication Date: 11th July 2019 by Unbound
Format: ARC via Netgalley
Target Audience: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy, Science-Fiction
Goodreads | Amazon | Waterstones

Synopsis  

Abandoned and alone, thirteen-year-old Joe's world is shattered when he enters a deserted council house and becomes trapped within a labyrinth protecting the last magical places on earth. There, Joe discovers a book charting this immense no-man's land, without time or place, its thirteen doors each leading to a different realm. Hunted by sinister foes, the boy is forced ever deeper into both the maze and the mystery of his missing parents. What will he find at the labyrinth's centre, and can it reunite him with the family he so desperately needs? 

My Rating  

Book Review | The Life and Death Parade by Eliza Wass

Title: The Life and Death Parade
Author: Eliza Wass
Publication Date: 12th July 2018 by Quercus
Format: Paperback
Target Audience: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal
Goodreads | Amazon

Synopsis

One year ago, Kitty's boyfriend Nikki Bramley visited a psychic who told him he had no future. Now, he's dead.

With the Bramley family grieving in separate corners of their home, Kitty sets out to find the psychic who read Nikki his fate. Instead she finds Roan, an enigmatic boy posing as a medium who belongs to the Life and Death Parade--a group of supposed charlatans that explore, and exploit, the thin veil between this world and the next. A group whose members include the psychic... and Kitty's late mother.

Desperate to learn more about the group and their connection to Nikki, Kitty convinces Roan to return to the Bramley house with her and secures a position for him within the household. Roan quickly ingratiates himself with the Bramleys, and soon enough it seems like everyone is ready to move on. Kitty, however, increasingly suspects Roan knows more about Nikki than he's letting on. And when they finally locate the Life and Death Parade, and the psychic who made that fateful prophecy to Nikki, Kitty uncovers a secret about Roan that changes everything.

Rating 

Book Tag | Who Am I?

So, again I was doing a little blog hopping and going through some of my favourite blogs archives and I found this tag on Howling Libraries, which is one of my favourite blogs to browse through. This seemed like such a fun tag as I love all those personality tests and it's also a great way to get to know the person behind the blog in a different way.

Top Ten Tuesday | Favourite Childhood Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature that highlights ten books that all relate to a certain topic and is  hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This Weeks Topic Is... 

Favourite Childhood Books and this was such a trip down memory lane. I loved looking up all those books I loved when I was younger, so much nostalgia rediscovering books I loved but had forgotten about. I can't wait to read some of these to my neice when she's a bit older and hopefully they'll become some of her childhood favourites as well.

June 2019 Reading Wrap Up

I managed to read a total of 10 books in June which isn't bad, it's only a couple less then what I read in May, and yet for some reason I'm quite disappointed in myself. I think it's mostly down to the fact that I didn't manage to read all of the books on my June TBR post and therefore didn't reach my monthly goal. I've had a couple of slow weeks so I've only felt like reading a few chapters here and there rather then picking up a book and reading half of it in one sitting. I suppose it brings up the question of whether we should be setting ourselves reading goals and whether or not that applies too much pressure on us as bloggers. We should just be reading what we want when we want and reading simply for pleasure instead. Anyway, here's all the books I read in June and a little of what I thought about them...

July 2019 TBR + The Book Junkie Trials

How is it nearly July already?? We're now nearly 7 months into the year and I just don't know where the time is going, I feel like it was Christmas only a couple of weeks ago. Anyway, a new month means a new TBR. I didn't quite manage to read all of the books on my June TBR, you can find that post here, as I had a bit of a slow reading week near the beginning of the month so I didn't manage to read my classic or my non-fiction book of the month, as well as one of the books from my TBR box and an ebook. I've decided that whatever I don't manage to read from my TBR posts will just get put straight into the next months TBR and will be prioritised.

Series Review | The Cogheart Adventures by Peter Bunzl

 

Title: Cogheart Adventures series (Books 1,2 & 3) 

Author: Peter Bunzl

Publisher: Usborne

Format: Ebooks via Scribd

Target Audience: Middle Grade

Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy

Goodreads | Amazon 

Synopsis

Cogheart -

Lily's life is in mortal peril. Her father is missing and now silver-eyed men stalk her through the shadows. What could they want from her? With her friends - Robert, the clockmaker's son, and Malkin, her mechanical fox - Lily is plunged into a murky and menacing world. Too soon Lily realizes that those she holds dear may be the very ones to break her heart...

Moonlocket - 

Storm clouds gather over Lily and Robert's summer when criminal mastermind the Jack of Diamonds appears. For Jack is searching for the mysterious Moonlocket - but that's not the only thing he wants.

Skycircus - 

When a travelling skycircus arrives in Brackenbridge, Lily and Robert can't wait to step aboard... But there's something sinister about the hybrid children who appear as part of the act. And before Lily and Robert can do anything, they're captured by shadowy figures and whisked off in the mysterious flying circus to somewhere far, far away...

Overall Rating

WWW Wednesday | 26/06/2019

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words that highlights three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

What did you recently finish reading?

I finished The Fates Divide by Veronica Roth, the second book in the Carve The Mark Duology. I ended up giving this book 3 stars, the same rating as the first book, as I thought it was just ok but nothing that really wowed me. The writing style was probably what I enjoyed the most and I did like Cyra and Akos's characters for the most part. I was just really confused throughout most of this book. There are so many POV's and character names and places and the names all looked really similar and eventually my brain was hurting from trying to figure out who was who.

What are you currently reading?

I'm currently reading Genuine Fraud by E. Lockheart and whilst it's slightly confusing and I haven't quite worked out what's happening plot-wise, it's also incredibly gripping. I'm enjoying reading a novel written backwards and seeing all the events unfold that led up to the opening chapter.

I've also just started The Strangers Guide To Talliston by John Tarrow which is an eARC I received through Netgalley and have heard absolutely nothing about. It's actually only got one rating on Goodreads so far. The premise sounds interesting though as it follows a boy who enters a house with thirteen doors which each lead to a different realm and you have to work out a puzzle to unlock the next door. I'm only a couple of pages in but I'm very excited to read on.

What do you think you'll read next?

I have a feeling I won't be able to read all the books on my June TBR post so right now I'm focusing on my library books and trying to get them read before they're due back. I'm going to read The Sin Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury next which reading the synopsis actually sounds quite similar to Carve the Mark so we will see how my opinions differ between books once I've read it.

Sixteen-year-old Twylla lives in the castle. But although she's engaged to the prince, no one speaks to her. No one even looks at her. Because Twylla isn't a member of the court. She's the executioner. As the goddess-embodied, Twylla kills with a single touch. So each week, she's taken to the prison and forced to lay her hands on those accused of treason. No one will ever love her. Who could care for a girl with murder in her veins? Even the prince, whose royal blood supposedly makes him immune to her touch, avoids her.

But then a new guard arrives, a boy whose playful smile belies his deadly swordsmanship. And unlike the others, he's able to look past Twylla's executioner robes and see the girl, not the goddess. Yet a treasonous romance is the least of Twylla's problems. The queen has a plan to destroy her enemies-a plan that requires an unthinkable sacrifice. Will Twylla do what it takes to protect her kingdom? Or will she abandon her duty in favor of a doomed love?  

Have you read any of these? What were your thoughts? What are you currently reading and hoping to pick up next? Leave a comment or link your own WWW Wednesdays below for me to check out!