This is a book based in a time of unrest, when the Mexicans are trying to take over the native Apache people. Siki is an orphan; her mother was killed by the Mexicans, and her father went missing after a raid, branded a coward. All Siki had left was her brother Tazhi, but her world falls to pieces when he was killed, by the opposing men. She take his spear, and vows to become a warrior, a place in the Apache no woman has every taken, and to avenge him in battle.Golahka, who is grieving for the rest of his family, also killed, takes Siki under his wing. This book take you on a journey, showing you that even if people don't deem it correct for you do do something, that you can. So, will Siki avenge her dead brother, and will the furious Apache tribe triumph over the white Mexicans. This had me thinking a lot about what the world thinks is right for different people to be doing, and whether we should. A brilliant book. Keste is a sexist boy that also hopes to one day be a great warrior, and disapproves of Siki's choice to try to as well. Siki is a brilliant character for everyone to relate to, in terms of determination, love and courage. This book can be a bit confusing with all the different names, by any good reader should and will enjoy it!

This is yet another book nominated for Wirral Paperback of the Year, which I took out from our school library. This wasn't normally one of the type of books I'd read, but once I got into it, it turned out to be one of the most original and moving stories I've read! I t may look like a girly book, and in all truth, it's about a girl and her sister, but I found it very engaging, and was truly emotional. It's about a teenage girl, Rowan, who due to her mum being very distressed (after her bother Jack died) ends up looking after her little sister Stroma, like her mum should have been.Rowan's dad has split up with her mum. Incredibly moving, this book will have you laughing and crying. It's brilliant. Life is not so good, until a boy shows up in a queue and hands her a photo, of her dead brother Jack. She comes to like this boy, and trusts him very much. But just as things start to look up, Rowan's mum was found by her dad, cut, in the bath. She is taken to hospital, where her mum promises she will try to get better. Then, Rowan discovers that her friend Bee has had a child, whose dad is none other than Jack.For a tale about grief, depression and divorce it is most enjoyable: a life-affirming, witty, romantic read, about freedom, responsibility and love.Well worth reading, this is the second book in a series, beginning with Finding Violet Park.

Set in eighteenth century India, this is definitely the worst book I've reviewed so far, but is not the worst I've read. It follows the story of Anila Tandy, who has the amazing ability to draw animals, but especially birds. She lives with Miss Hickey, her guardian, but is persuaded by her to go on a trip down the Gandes, to draw the magnificent birds along the banks. But she has been left to fend for herself in a city of rouges, and dangerous men. The trip up the Gandes may be just the thing to help her find her father, who has been missing for years. This may be, to some people, an extremely interesting and varied story, portraying India well, with it's sights smells, and sounds. Menace and mystery await this young girl in the man's word of the 1700s. This is Mary Finn's first novel, and one I borrowed from our school library for the Wirral Paperback of the Year. I can say for certain that this will not be on my shortlist, though other readers may enjoy the complicated plot of this book. In the end she does find her father, and so there may or may not be a sequel. If there is, I personally will not be buying it, but some good writing is present, Mary just has yet to perfect it!

This is Eion (pronounced Owen) Colfers first historical fiction novel, after the best-selling Artemis Fowl series. This book follows the story of one Connor Broekhart, who was born flying, and so was born to fly. He and the Frenchman Victor are together, scientific masterminds, planning to overcome flight. The king of Saltee is all in appreciation of this, and provides them the materials they need. Set in an age of discovery and invention, where flying is first tested, this makes for a great read. As a child he and the princess Isabella were best friends, until they both grew up and went their separate ways. All was fine as Conor prepares to test a new model he and Victor had built, when a cruel but sophisticated man called Bonvilain takes Victors pistol and shoots both the king and the Frenchman dead, Conor of framed and took prisoner mining the diamond that Little Saltee is famous for. He is locked up with a blind but wise man, who gives Conor hope. The stupid Guard is bribed by Conor, and after collecting materials necessary, he builds a flying machine. He escapes during the coronation of the queen, but will he survive to save Isabella, regain his fathers trust, and avenge the king? This is quite a long story, but a strong reader would manage it, and enjoy it! Published this year, it is a different genre from Eions usual work, but he's done a very good job of it. I recommend this greatly, and hope you buy it!

This is a masterfully well crafted vampire story set in the remote and forbidding landscapes of the seventeenth century. This book breathes new life into the living dead genre of horror. The well paced story moves the reader dramatically towards resolution. This is a very well written book with a wide appeal. Anyone who is able to read maturely should read this. This book is based on the very first stories of vampire folklore, where the living dead where more like zombies with a blood lust. This is bone-chilling and with transfix readers. It is a relatively small book, with only around two hundred pages. In the story a strong woodcutter named Peter lives with his drunken father Thomas on the edge of a very superstitious town, where the people keep themselves to themselves. The story really begins when a body is found in the wood, with his heart pulled out, though they bury him as a suicide. Peter feels something is wrong, though dismisses it. Until the Gypsies come in their beautiful painted wagons, that brighten up the white of winter. A young girl, Sofia, realises something is not right as well, and together, by strange circumstances, investigate. A magnificently well written book by an author with six other books under his belt, this must be read if possible. A haunting novel in which Thomas holds the key. An intriguing Gothic tale, this must be read! A modern masterpiece!

I took this book out from our school library, as it is one of the nominated for Wirral Paperback of the year. It's a great, haunting novel set in the not-so-far future, where resources have been used up and adults, or "Legals" have decided children are using up our oxygen and don't deserve to be alive or walking. So they send these children to Grange Hall, where the head matron Mrs Pincent makes the children Useful, and finally makes them Valuable Assets, working for the Legals. These children are known by everyone only as Surpluses. Anna is such a Surplus, and a good one too. She is on the verge of becoming a Valuable Asset, and the people at the hall have made her hate her parents, because if they hadn't had created her, then there would be more resources for the Legals. Her life is going fine, though she has a secret- a diary given to her by a woman she worked with during work experience. Surpluses aren't allowed written words, so she must keep this hidden. She is a model Surplus, and Mrs Pincent loves her, but when Peter, a teenage boy, is caught and brought in, her life changes. They plan an escape, and Peter says he would take her to her parents, who loves her. This is a beautifully written book, by a promising first time author. This is a book for all children who are mature readers, and adults alike. A perfectly intriguing book, with an important message. Well done Gemma Malley! Wonderful!

This is a great book written by Jed Rubenfield, and is based on true events which took place on Sigmund Frued's only visit to the United States. On the morning he arrives he finds a stunning debutante is found bound and strangled in her penthouse apartment high above Broadway. It's social divisions, it rumbustious energy and it's tall skyscrapers have a vivid authenticity. The following night another beautiful heiress, Nora Acton, is discovered tied to a chandelier in her parents home, viciously wounded and unable to speak or recall her ordeal. Soon Freud and his American disciple Strathem Younger, (of whom the story is written through) are enlisted to help Miss Acton recover her memory and to piece together the killers identity. It is a riddle that will test their skills to the limit, and lead them on a thrilling journey. This book makes for some absolutely brilliant reading, but is definitely more for the adult population. As this is Jed Rubenfields first novel, I think he's done pretty well, and should be praised. Jed himself is the professor of law at Yale University and is described as one of the most elegant writers of his time. Published in 2007, this is not an old book, but has been overlooked as an amazing novel written by a promising author.

This is the sixth book from the Artemis Fowl series, and is as good as all the rest. By legendary Irish writer Eoin (pronounced Owen) Colfer. Eoin specializes in children's novels, and the Artemis Fowl ones are his best. Based around a human genius at the age of twelve. Artemis has met the Fairy world in his previous adventures. He is companied with his bodyguard Butler, and his Fairy friends Captain Holly Short, Mulch Diggums, and No1... Artemis finds his mother ill in bed, and realizes from Fairy knowledge, that the animal needed to cure his mother, was killed by himself- sold to the Extinctionists, to aid in the finding of his lost father. In order to save his mother, he needs the time travelling help of his friend No1, and the specialized skills of the Fairies. Artemis Fowl has to face his deadliest enemy yet. Himself. As well as a devious young elf and some caged Extinctionists. This book is possibly not the best in the series, as it is confusing some of the time, as to what character, considering there would be two Artemis' as well as an enemy Butler. It is brilliant fantasy though, and deserves praise. This book may be for children, but an adult could read it quite happily as it has all the makings of a great read. This is an inventive mix of myth and modernity, magic and crime, and well worth buying.

This is the fifth book in the Wardstone Chronicles, following the life of Tom as the apprentice of the Spook, an old man who helps defend the county from evil. The book is scary and shouldn't be read by anyone under the age of eight. It is a good book though, with a well thought out plot and imaginative writing that captures the mind. The story is that Tom is sent to the spook's former apprentice, Bill Arkwright, now a spook, to complete six months severe training. during this training Tom is wounded, and gains a few bruises. But all this comes in use when he and Bill find a rouge press-gang terrorizing a local village, of which they take care of. One problem is solved, but another awaits. The Fiend has entered the world in the book before this one, and he sends his daughter, a powerful water witch, to get rid of them. The Fiend tries to persuade Tom that Alice, his friend and former witch, was his own daughter. Tom doesn't believe it, but is anxious as Alice begins to send messages the witch way, and protect him in a way only a witch would think of. The water witch sent to destroy him, can mesmerize anyone with her Red Eye, and so Tom has to be very careful. There could be enemies round every corner, even within his friends. So who can he put his trust in? The book is hardback and has four hundred and sixty two pages.

Be prepared for spoilers, but definitely go out and by this. it is the seventh book in the Charlie Bone series, and it enchanting to the end. I think that you should definitely read the whole series first though, because the plot is intertwined. Here is a plot of the story in full...When Charlie's curiosity gets the better of him, he finds out that the enchanter Count Harken is back to take a his revenge on the Red King's heirs, starting with Charlie's family! Charlie's ancestor has been kidnapped and imprisoned in the dark, forbidding land of Badlock, and it's up to Charlie to save him. Traveling through a painting to the terrifying countryside, Charlie and his best friend's dog, Runner Bean, take up the quest. But when Runner Bean gets trapped, Charlie needs the help of his friends. Can they get past an army of trolls, rescue Runner Bean and Charlie's ancestor, and get out before it's too late? Can Charlie outwit Count Harken and his sinister troops, or will the prisoners be doomed to being held captive in Badlock forever? Otus Yewbeam, an ancestor of Charlie Bone and husband of the Red King's daughter Amoret, is trapped by Count Harken in Badlock. Charlie meets him when he is completely, involuntarily sucked into a painting of Badlock. When he manages to escape, he finds he must return due to the fact that Benjamin's Dog, Runner Bean, has become trapped in the painting. Billy returns home with Charlie in order to try and communicate with Runner Bean, who is still in the painting. When they go to visit Mrs. Kettle, they are attacked by Eric, who is controlling a giant statue of Harken's military leader, Oddthumb. Late one night Billy decides to go and see the painting where it is kept in Charlie's cellar. Runner Bean is ejected from the painting and Billy is sucked in. He meets Count Harken and his family, becoming close friends with the Count's granddaughter, Matilda. Charlie decides he must go back into the painting, where Billy is being held. When he returns to the cellar, he finds that the painting is gone and no one seems to know where it is.This book is very good, and I highly recommend it, though it should be really for eight years olds upwards, as it contains very mild horror and violence. Other than that, a great read!

This is the fifth in the chronicles of ancient darkness series by Michelle Paver. This enchanting story is set in a wilderness that houses very different clans, named after animals. When Torak, the hero of the book s an outcast and without a clan, he was the hunted one. Nine moons later he becomes the hunter when he vows to avenge the killing of one of this closest friends. He believes it is the last of the Soul-eaters, Thiazzi, who has done it. Is he wrong? He sets off with his brother Wolf and his best friend Renn on a quest that will take then in the heart of the Deep Forest, and to places feared by everyone. Here they will meet all sorts of clans, and are put in mortal danger. Will they lose valuable friends and will they complete their cured vow? All these questions are answered in Oath Breaker. It is a story about keeping secrets , and the true cost of vengeance. It is written in a way that is amazing to read, because she writes like there is different names for things, like humans to Wolf are ‘Tall Taillesses’. this is extremely good writing and this book should be bought, though the stories before this are also very good and link together. You should rad the whole series, though, not just this book alone.
I highly recommend you read this, but not before reading the other four, as they has a very close relationship. I don't think many people will understand the story as it should be, as they intertwine will what Torak is feeling most of the way through the book, and his way with the other characters.

Collection of four tales set in the world of Stuart and Riddell’s bestselling The Edge Chronicles. The Edge is a vast, floating island, over whose rocky edges waterfalls plummet into nothingness; a flat earth above which magnificent Sky Galleons clash in battle with pirates, monsters and other mysterious forces. It is also, more importantly, the set for Paul Stuart and Chris Riddell’s best-selling fantasy series, The Edge Chronicles.
Already spanning to nine books, across three trilogies (or sagas) charting the lives of three generations of the adventurous Verginix family, The Edge Chronicles is a complex and detailed epic, for which the Edge in itself provides a suitably vivid and well-imagined setting. Collected here are four tales from the Edge, telling stories from across the several generations of history the chronicles have so far described.
‘Cloud Wolf’ is the tale of a young Quint’s first battle in the sky, aboard the ship of his father, Wind Jackal; essentially a prequel to the Quint saga.
‘The Stone Pilot’ is the tale of Maugin, the mysterious creature who tends to the flight-rock at the sky-galleons heart, keeping the vast ship afloat. Like ’Cloud Wolf’, this novella was originally published as an exclusive World Book Day story.
’The Slaughterer’s Quest’ features Keris, the daughter of Twig (and hence granddaughter of Quint) as she attempts to uncover the truth about her fathers fate.
’The Blooding of Rufus Filiate’ is the first story to feature the title character, Rufus, a Freeglade Lancer, in what seems to be only the beginning of his adventures…
A fold-out timeline included in The Lost Barkscrolls handily recounts the history of the Edge and many readers will be familiar with the intervening episodes in the chronology, but it is nonetheless something of a mystery why these four particular stories should be included together here. There’s nothing really to connect the four stories, and while for the complete anorak, there’s something appealing about the idea of a book that taps into the depth of the longer series, for anyone else it can prove somewhat frustrating. These stories are pivotal, not to each other, but to the separate trilogies to which they form prequel, sequel or companion, and perhaps belong with the parent6 books, where their strengths would best be shown. But, at the end of the day, while the stories are not the best of the Edge Chronicles numerous instalments, they are of the consistently high quality the authors have set for the series thus far.