GUEST REVIEW: Solitaire - Alice Oseman

GENRE: Contemporary

PAGES: 400
PUBLISHER: HarperCollins
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 5 Stars

This book is released in July and can be preordered in store now for a £3 deposit.

Find out details for the Solitaire launch party in Birmingham here.

SUMMARY

In case you're wondering, this is not a love story. My name is Tori Spring. I like to sleep and I like to blog. Last year - before all that stuff with Charlie and before I had to face the harsh realities of A-Levels and university applications and the fact that one day I really will have to start talking to people - I had friends. Things were very different, I guess, but that's all over now. Now there's Solitaire. And Michael Holden. I don't know what Solitaire are trying to do, and I don't care about Michael Holden. I really don't.

REVIEW

Oh God, I don’t even know where to start. I’ll begin with saying that this book is definitely a ten out of ten, and that I couldn’t fault it even if I tried. 

The protagonist, Victoria Spring (or Tori as she prefers to be called) is not a brave, out of this world character. But rather a real teenager that suffers through the days the same ways we do. I found that this was the main message of the book, not love or bravery or being above average, but being a teenager in this screwed up world, and how Tori grew as a person. She was so easy to relate to and I found myself on multiple occasions thinking to myself “That is literally me” or “THANK YOU for expressing my thoughts so perfectly!” The fact that she is so pessimistic and hates pretty much everyone, and simply can’t care makes it so easy for me to just relate to her. I also dislike many people at my school, I generally don’t get along with many people and just like Tori, I’d rather just sleep and blog. 

Michael Holden. Michael is one of those boys that you are likely to encounter at some point in your life. He’s not a strong, cool dude who everyone seems to love (I hate people who everyone loves), he’s a boy who is also trying to figure himself out, and figure the world around him. He’s real and honest. He’s also crazy and a bit weird, but that’s what made me love him. Lucas, Becky, Charlie and Nick are also very interesting side characters who make the book all that more interesting (and can I please have Becky’s hair??)

I loved that no one in this book seemed to be completely fine; no one seemed to have a perfect life either. Everyone had something going on, they all made mistakes, and that reflected life so perfectly. Even Solitaire, a blog that everyone suddenly started following and loving, made silly mistakes (like almost killing some people)- showing that even a strong figure that people look up to will make mistakes, and this reflected life so perfectly. 

The fandom mentions and school references (like PEE, ugh.), made the book even more real and agh, I love this book so much.

I did guess who was behind Solitaire quite early on (and got it right, whoop!), but the element of mystery was always there, and I was always second guessing myself and wondering whether I was just an idiot ha!

The ending of the book was not perfect, there was no real closure. But that’s what I loved most, the sheer honesty of it. Problems don’t get solved when you find romance or when you make up with your friends, some problems take years to go away, and some never do. 

I cannot recommend this book enough, go and preorder it ASAP if you haven’t already. Alice Oseman is going to be famous, I just know it. 

Also, follow Alice’s blog ( http://chronicintrovert.tumblr.com/ ) and her twitter. ( https://twitter.com/AliceOseman )

Thank you to Harper Collins for sending me the book, follow them on twitter too!( https://twitter.com/HarperCollinsCh )

- Maryam

GUEST REVIEW: Irresistable - Liz Bankes

GENRE: New Adult

PAGES: 224
PUBLISHER: Piccadilly Press
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 3 Stars

SUMMARY

When Mia gets a summer job in a country club, it's a chance to see into a whole world of privilege and passion she's never imagined. Thankfully there's Dan to keep her feet on the ground. He's laid-back, funny and could be the perfect person to go travelling with when the summer's over. But behind everything that happens in the summer, there's Jamie. Wealthy and sexy, he's got everything he could ever want, and enjoys nothing more than messing with people's lives for his own entertainment. Mia knows that any relationship with Jamie is a bad idea, but as she's drawn into his dangerous and madly exciting world, she finds the one thing she can't stop is herself.

REVIEW

Irresistible is essentially a book about a sixteen year old girl who has just finished her GCSEs and decides to get a job at a posh restaurant where she meets two boys, and a typical love triangle begins.

Although the book is well written and did keep me entertained, it was not a great work of literature. It lacked in depth and thought, and was quite unoriginal- a plot that I have seen many times, where the girl falls for both the nice guy who seems to be completely head over heels for her, and the bad boy, who is quite ruthless towards her- and yet she still somehow falls for him. I have never understood love triangles to be honest; I find them quite boring and predictable; but that being said, the book was a fun read nevertheless. 

The ‘nice’ boy, Dan, is quite… nice? His and Mia’s (the main character) relationship is cute, but definitely lacked in chemistry from her part, I felt quite sorry for Dan- he suffered due to Mia’s childishness. And Jamie is a bit of a bad boy, a little overly so and I do want to go and slap some sense into him. Mia did make me grit my teeth and clench my fists a lot (The book did definitely grab me). She is young and inexperienced, but her choices are just awful, even for her. She somehow always manages to hurt someone and even then thinks that she is the only victim. Character wise, the book wasn’t so great.

I don’t want this review to be all bad, so I’ll end on the positives. Like I have previously stated, the book is a very fun and easy read, some of the characters do crack some jokes now and then that make me smile, and both boys are definitely attractive (in my mind anyway), which makes everything better doesn’t it? 

Overall, although not the best book ever, I did thoroughly enjoy it and I would recommend it if you’re just looking for something light and fun to read on holiday maybe? Not sure if I’ll be picking up another Liz Bankes book anytime soon though…

- Maryam

GUEST REVIEW: Shift - Jeff Povey

PAGES: 368
PUBLISHER: Simon and Schuster
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 3 Stars

SUMMARY

Get ready for one apocalyptic detention. These misfits are going to save the world! Meet Rev, Billie, the Ape, Johnson, GG, Carrie, the Moth and Lucas, a motley crew of bickering teens who find themselves totally alone in the world after a strange power surge hits their classroom during detention. With no answers as to why or how the rest of the world has disappeared, the mismatched group is soon facing a bigger nightmare than they could ever imagine… Standing between them and the only way home are lethal duplicate versions of themselves, super powered teenagers who will kill anyone who gets in their way. Our unlikely heroes must somehow work together to save themselves… or they'll never see home again. SHIFT is the first in a fast-paced, page turner of a series, filled with action, adventure and humour. Perfect for fans of Michael Grant, Charlie Higson and Antony Horowitz and for anyone who loves Misfits or Shaun of the Dead.

REVIEW

This book is definitely not one that I would normally pick up, and even after reading it, I still am not that fond of it- but it was exciting to read nonetheless. 

Shift tell the story of 8 'misfits', Rev, Billie, the Ape, the moth, Johnny, GG, Lucas and Carrie (the names and nicknames were quite interesting), who are all in after school detention, unaware that in just a matter of a few minutes they will have to rely on each other to survive. They are pretty much strangers at the beginning of the book, but a few of them grow quite close as the story goes on. The book starts off with the teenagers being introduced, and then it is quite clear from the start that the Ape will be quite a character. When a sudden burst of light appears, the teenagers find themselves alone, they scoured ever inch and crook of the town they live in, but there is no one there, except for the ones who were in that room (excluding the teacher, who managed to leave just before 'it' all happened). 

The plot of the book is quite exciting and original, and the characters very extravagant. For me, I found that some of the characters were very over the top at times and hard to associate with. The book didn't offer great character development either so when a few of them were in unfortunate events, I didn't really feel or care for them. 

The romance in the book is not the main focus, but it does dominate a lot of the actions that the characters take. I did feel that the 'love' and 'liking' aspects were a little unrealistic at times due to the character's age, but I guess when you find that you are the only normal people left in the world, you’d cling onto the first person you see. 

I'd have to say though, my main criticism would be that the book took place over 48 hours- it definitely felt a lot longer than that, and I don't think all the events that happened could take place over so little time. 

Even though this was not an amazing, eye opening book- it kept me reading and wanting to know what will happen. Whether I will be reading the sequel or not, that's a mystery. The ending did grab me though, so I am a little curious as to what will happen next. 

- Maryam.

GUEST REVIEW: Split Second - Sophie McKenzie

GUEST REVIEW

This review has been written for us by one of our customers and we're very grateful! If you want to be involved please email us at yabirmingham@gmail.com. 

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PAGES: 368

PUBLISHER: Simon and Schuster

FORMAT: Hardback

BUY IT: Waterstones

RATING: 4 Stars

SUMMARY

Bound together by the devastating consequences of a terrorist attack on a London market, teenagers Charlotte (Charlie) and Nat appear at first to have much in common. But, as Charlie gets closer to Nat and his family, she begins to wonder if perhaps he knows more about the attack than he has let on. Split Second is an action-packed thriller that shifts between the perspectives of its two main characters as their courage and their loyalties are tested to the limit.

REVIEW

When I first read this book’s summary, although very intriguing, I wasn’t sure whether I would enjoy it- the word ‘terrorist’ does have quite an effect on me, since people who follow my religion are often labelled so. But from the first sentence I was instantly pulled in, and I could not stop reading it. I was glad that McKenzie has used the word terrorist correctly, labelling people who actually inflict violence with the word, rather than calling every person with a scarf on their head or a beard so.

Split Second is set in London in the near future where current issues, like unemployment and budget cuts, are cleverly explored and made me wonder whether the same concepts would actually happen if it was to happen in our society; whether politicians would take the same route as one of the characters in the book in order to gain power, lie and use the peoples weaknesses for their own good.

The book alternates between two protagonists’ point of view, Charlie and Nat; who, due to an event that had occurred early on in the book, both suffered from a terrible loss, which caused them to get involved with a secret organisation in order to seek revenge. Having a similar goal, Nat and Charlie find themselves growing closer together, but even though there is a certain romantic aspect to the book, I was glad that McKenzie did not put too much emphasis on it, and rather focused on issues that are widely witnessed in today’s society. 

The racist and discriminative words that some of the characters used seem farfetched, but they are not far from the truth. The book really touched me, having many Pakistani friends and seeing how racist some people could be, made me feel very overprotective and ignited my hate towards them. It is quite terrifying, wondering whether people would turn against other human beings just to regain the supposed power and glory of their country. 

All in all, the book was very enjoyable and very insightful. The characters were easily relatable, and the alternating views really worked and made the story all the more interesting. A fast paced novel that makes you worry about the power politicians hold over us and puts emphasis on the idea that no one can be trusted. The sequel, which I am very much looking forward to, will be published this year and will be entitled ‘Every second counts’.

- Maryam.