The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…
A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering
And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

First off, going into Aurora Rising was actually a bit of a worry for me, I worried over the hype, I worried about not liking a book that so many others loved, I worried that as I hadn’t read Illuminae I would somehow not be as in tune with the story. But all those worries needn’t have mattered as, I’m jumping well and truly on the bandwagon and shouting about how much I loved this book!

Where do I start? The characters, the banter, the immeasurable amount of 90’s pop culture references? I think I’ll start there. As a maturer reader of YA it’s always nice to remember that in fact, a lot of YA writers are around my age – I enjoyed that lots of the little nuggets around the story are from from films and tv shows that I grew up with and made me feel that the authors acknowledge that the book would have a varied age range of readers. From “five by five” to “would you like to know more?” each one brought an excited little fan girl squeal, and the Hitchhikers Guide style chapter breaks were a brilliant touch.

The characters are my perfect band of misunderstood misfits, each one bringing their own unique style to the story and a little something that will hopefully feel inclusive to every reader. With squad goals to rival my beloved Rampion Crew, they very nearly toppled them from the top spot; nearly… I immediately identified with Zila, although her chapters are short, her ability to sum things up perfectly in just a few lines is perfect, and her illogical logic always made me smile. Fin is hilarious in an inappropriate way, his jokes being his figurative armour to distract from his literal exosuit, Kal will satisfy any fae based cravings, and Tyler, Cat and Scarlett bring the human balance to the team. Even though they’re great and they know it, they are written in such a wonderful way that it never comes across as conceited. I have to say that Aurora was kind of the weak link in squad 312 for me, I would have loved to seen a bit more depth around her as the gravity of her situation never really got a chance to settle, I guess I found her a little too quick to be fine with everything, which is a teeny tiny gripe, I know.

That brings me to the banter, it’s a clear testament to the authors friendship that the banter flows so freely and with such understanding, there is little in the way of awkward misinterpretation and I bet the authors had so much fun with it! It’s a constant back and forth, with rarely a serious conversation to be had. It really reminded me of the crew of the Serenity and the friendships in Starship Troopers in that even when everything is going to hell, friendships bring focus and the trust between them is pretty special.

Which brings me finally round to the story, I have to admit that Aurora Rising was a 100% hype buy and I went in knowing zero about it, but I found myself surprisingly easily captivated by the story, it had a little bit of everything with the crew running for their lives, crazy aliens, conspiracy coverups, a bit of a heist (my personal favourite) and snarky electronic devices.  There was so much crammed into the pages and pacing was pretty full on at times. Honestly it brought out all the feels and I did shed a little tear (which is a real rarity) as I didn’t think that that would happen. It left on a high though and I have to admit that I’m a little in love with squad 312 and I can’t wait to continue reading about their adventures!

5*

Set on a planet that has fully definitive, never-changing zones of day and night, with ensuing extreme climates of endless, frigid darkness and blinding, relentless light, humankind has somehow continued apace — though the perils outside the built cities are rife with danger as much as the streets below.
But in a world where time means only what the ruling government proclaims, and the levels of light available are artificially imposed to great consequence, lost souls and disappeared bodies are shadow-bound and savage, and as common as grains of sand. And one such pariah, sacrificed to the night, but borne up by time and a mysterious bond with an enigmatic beast, will rise to take on the entire planet–before it can crumble beneath the weight of human existence.

I went into City in the Middle of the Night with great expectations. I had seen it widely promoted on its release and the premise sounded amazing. Straight off, this is a good book I just felt that it missed out being great. The world building was exceptional, creative and unique and the characters diverse in background and life.

The toxic friendship between Sophie and Bianca was hard to read at times but it was exceptionally well done. Bianca is immensely manipulative and I found her personally, to be the real villain of the piece. It felt though, that many of the relationships were fractious; a product of the infighting on the mother ship combined with the closed off and insular nature of the cities I suppose. There is a real sense that emotions are festering, yet in a society where it seems there is no time or allowance for feelings – it’s little wonder that elements of the story felt like a ticking time bomb. There was balance though,as Sophie and Rose’s relationship felt like the entire opposite I really enjoyed the trust building between them, the acceptance and desire for inclusion on both sides.

I did feel that as a story it didn’t really feel confident in itself, like the author had all these amazing ideas and people and worlds, but just could quite get it to come together on the page the way it did in her mind. I didn’t know where it was pitched either, Sophie appears very much a YA protagonist but this was in no way a YA book. Initially, I struggled to get into the story as the opening chapters had a lot going on with little context, which whilst initially confusing it did all fall into place as things moved on. The prose is very lyrical and and when I got into it’s flow, I suddenly found it to be a much easier read. Sadly though I felt it plateaued early on, never really reaching the heights it could and whilst I’m usually a fan of open endings, this just felt like the end of a chapter rather than the story.

I can, however, appreciate the skill of the writing and the wonderous world with so many complex layers but it didn’t wow me the way I wished it would have.

3*

It’s not safe for anyone alone in the woods. There are predators that come out at night: critters and coyotes, snakes and wolves. But the woman in the red jacket has no choice. Not since the Crisis came, decimated the population, and sent those who survived fleeing into quarantine camps that serve as breeding grounds for death, destruction, and disease. She is just a woman trying not to get killed in a world that doesn’t look anything like the one she grew up in, the one that was perfectly sane and normal and boring until three months ago.
There are worse threats in the woods than the things that stalk their prey at night. Sometimes, there are men. Men with dark desires, weak wills, and evil intents. Men in uniform with classified information, deadly secrets, and unforgiving orders. And sometimes, just sometimes, there’s something worse than all of the horrible people and vicious beasts combined.
Red doesn’t like to think of herself as a killer, but she isn’t about to let herself get eaten up just because she is a woman alone in the woods…. 

There was a point last year that I felt every book I picked up was a fairytale retelling and to be honest, I had to a degree had my fill. I was wary about picking up another. But I’m so glad I took the chance on this one as the contemporary dystopian setting really set it apart from the usual high fantasy based tales. From the very first page I knew I was in for something completely different, it felt gritty and survivalist and dark.

Whilst we meet Red part way through her journey to Grandma’s, the chapters flip between what’s happening now and what came before, this was a great narrative choice as the start really packs a punch and I think to have it written in a start to finish way would have lost so much of the impact and led to a very “by numbers” story. We are faced instantly with Red’s paranoia, things that live in the shadows have never had such blurred lines as it’s everyone for themselves. I really enjoyed how closed off Red was and how that translated on the page – too often in dystopian stories do the characters not develop as a result of their surroundings, Red is a 100% a product of her surroundings  travelling through the woods guerilla style, this is no place to be vulnerable and Red kicks established tropes out of the water, proving that really there is much to be gained from a diet of apocalypse movies and books. it actually the first book I have read in a long time that actually features representation of a disability – Red owns this completely, dispelling myths and showing total capability and utter fortitude with everything that crosses her path.

I loved the crossover between human kindness and human atrocity and both are given time across the spectrum, you never know who can be trusted and that sometimes even the most bizarre of alliances can be forged. The Crisis itself has lead to an almost walking dead scenario with plenty of nods to Red’s diet of dystopia, Henry is certainly masterful at conveying both impending and slow burning dread. Despite the heavy themes though, the book is an easy read, thanks in no small part to how compelling it is. The the writing style flows easily with short snappy chapters that drive the story forward, I was hooked!

Sadly though,  I felt the wrap up was pretty unsatisfactory, It’s the first book of Christina Henry’s that I have read and I don’t know if this is typical of her writing style – I can’t say much more about it but it felt like i had fallen asleep halfway through a movie and then woke with a start at the end credits. One thing for sure though, I am really wanting to go back and read some of Henry’s earlier retellings as her writing style drew me in completely and her covers are amazing, simple but impactful.

4*

Every year for the past fifty-four years, the residents of Pinsbury Port have received a mysterious letter inviting all eligible-aged boys to compete for an esteemed scholarship to the all-male Stemwick University. The poorer residents look to see if their names are on the list. The wealthier look to see how likely their sons are to survive. And Rhen Tellur opens it to see if she can derive which substances the ink and parchment are created from, using her father’s microscope.
In the province of Caldon, where women train in wifely duties and men pursue collegiate education, sixteen-year-old Rhen Tellur wants nothing more than to become a scientist. As the poor of her seaside town fall prey to a deadly disease, she and her father work desperately to find a cure. But when her mum succumbs to it as well? Rhen decides to take the future into her own hands—through the annual all-male scholarship competition.
With her cousin, Seleni, by her side, the girls don disguises and enter Mr. Holm’s labyrinth, to best the boys and claim the scholarship prize. Except not everyone is ready for a girl who doesn’t know her place. And not everyone survives the deadly maze.

To Best the Boys was a light and fun read, absolutely perfect if you have a few hours to yourself and want to immerse yourself in a different world for a bit. I’ll admit I really don’t like the title at all and likely would have put me off buying it but as I received this in a book box I was a captive audience. The premise was quirky, anything with a misfit group trying to solve something, usually ticks my boxes and I like how Rhen was very far from from the usual female protagonists in YA. She loves to get her hands dirty and see how things work, a brilliant scientific mind in a time where women were just meant to smile and be pretty. The feminist theme in the story is strong, but Rhen manages to get her point across with good humour. Lines like “or maybe they could just look at women as it we’re regular people” are simple yet effective. Much of the writing feels that way, so the story flows easily over the pages.

I adored her relationship with her dad (that’s another thing – the author is from the US but many references are in UK English :D) their working tirelessly together was just beautiful and so full of understanding. “You follow your dreams, not your guilt” was perhaps my favourite line in the book and it was spoken between them – the more I think about that line the more relevant I think it feels to how many of us perceive potentially leaving loved ones behind, it really struck a chord with me.

But, for those expecting this to be like the maze runner you’ll be disappointed, it took 2/3 of the book to get to the labyrinth itself and whilst the first part does an amazing job at setting Rhen up as the contender who could achieve great things, it could have been condensed. I didn’t feel like the the part of the over fishing of the port added anything at all, and whilst it did highlight an important environmental concern, it bore little relevance to the story other than serving as a last minute wheel to get another character in the maze. The maze section though was great, packed with mind bending trials, the right balance of terror and excitement as well as a generous dose of somewhat unhealthy competition. I just wished it lasted longer! This writing was great and if only more pages had been dedicated to it, To Best the Boys would have been a much higher rating from me.

3.5*

When Lucie Sterling’s niece is abducted, she knows it’ll be no easy feat to find answers. Stanton is no ordinary city: invasive digital technology has been banned, by public vote. No surveillance state, no shadowy companies holding databases of information on private citizens, no phones tracking their every move. Only one place stays firmly anchored in the bad old ways, in a huge bunker across town: Green Valley, where the inhabitants have retreated into the comfort of full-time virtual reality–personae non gratae to the outside world. And it’s inside Green Valley, beyond the ideal virtual world it presents, that Lucie will have to go to find her missing niece.

Green Valley is a real slow burn of a novel, I’ll admit it took me a little while to get into, but when it finds it’s feet everything kicks up a notch or two. Lucie’s analogue world feels quaint but immediately frustrating, thinking back to only being able to move as far as your telephone wire will let you, will certainly strike a chord! it’s unsurprising, however, that there would be some who were so entrenched with the digital, that it would seem almost unthinkable to revert to payphones and pen and paper.  I was surprised at how small an area Green Valley was, but being faced with a fully immersive “jacked in” society, I would certainly choose to walk away from my computer and keep to the real world.

It’s a stark choice though, one or the other.  Families are divided and friendships lost, children not able to decide and having to follow what ever vote their parents took, and what of those born into Green Valley? Lucie though, falls in the middle. Maintaining her relationship with her analogue pioneer boyfriend, whilst secretly coveting the bad old days, I instantly identified with her. I have to love any relationship when the golden rule whilst reading is not to disturb one another until the chapter has ended! But her job in criminal justice was certainly easier with CCTV and DNA databases and never more so when unidentified children begin turning up dead all around town.

The story had a real City and the City feel to it, Louis Greenberg did an amazing job of painting Stanton as an almost beige society, I read it very much picturing the 1970’s/1980’s where concrete architecture was at it’s worst and orange and brown dominated homewares and fashion.  It felt cold and a little bleak if I’m honest. Green Valley by comparison, projected like a perpetual infomercial bursting with happy faces and colour.

Lucie’ descent into total immersion into her investigation was very well written, I enjoyed the pacy thriller style as the pieces started to fit into place, with twists and revelations that left me in shock. I found it tough to read at times, the drama taking a darker turn as the true toll of living in a virtual world took shape. I was turning each page with increasing horror as more information filtered through but by this point I felt as immersed as Lucie and just couldn’t stop reading. It was an incredibly atmospheric read, almost oppressive at times, but I truly felt I was in Green Valley with her, holding my breath with her – such skilled writing.

One thing is for certain, it’s made me think a lot about what passes by, even in my own home, when i’m looking at my phone. Although the salutary tale may appear trite, it really had a deep effect on me, Green Valley will certainly be a story that will stay with me for a long time and that reminder from time to time can only be a good thing.

4*