“Ghost Town” by Rachel Caine

This is the latest in the Morganville Vampire series. Claire Danvers has moved to Morganville to attend college there, but has ended up an unwillingly embroiled in the vampire politics of the local community. As the series has gone on, Claire’s fate has become almost inevitably entwined with the Founder of Morganville. The vampires in this series are for the most part, every bit as menacing and dangerous as their kind should be, making for a spine tingling thriller of a plot.

I’ve loved every one of this series of YA books, they’re funny and exciting, and there is a genuine sense of peril for the characters up against the strained relationships between the humans and vampires. A quick, easy read, I know, but the pages just whizz by as I get caught up in Claire’s story. I wondered how Caine would continue the series as the first six or seven books had a cliffhanger to take you on to the next book each time, and the last couple of books have had an uneasy conclusion but didn’t leave you on the edge of your seat exclaiming, “You can’t leave it there!!!!”, but I have liked how she’s developed what’s happening in Morganville. This one doesn’t leave you on tenterhooks as such, but it does leave you feeling you know what the next book will be about, but not how she’ll deal with it.

“The Knife of Never Letting Go” by Patrick Ness

Todd has grown up in Prentisstown – a town on New World, where the early settlers have been exposed to an alien germ which has caused the thoughts of all men to be audible and has killed off the women. The “Noise” is everywhere, and it’s not just the men, but the animals have been infected too. But even this doesn’t stop the town men keeping secrets, especially from the boys. And when Todd is just one month away from becoming a man, these secrets start a chain of events and Todd must flee from everything and everyone he knows …

This book was excellent. The story expands from starting with the small scale of the farm in Prentisstown, gradually revealing the wider landscape of New World and in parallel Todd’s character expands as the experiences force him to develop from boy to man, and because of the first person narrative, the reader learns at the same time as Todd what all the secrets are, and begins to understand what has happened in this broken society.

There is no doubt that violence, rage and corruption of power play a big part in making this story seem very real, but it is the possibilities of what might be at the end of the quest that keep it from spiralling into a nightmarish, dystopian tale, and give the reader a sense of hope and optimism rather than despair.

The author has chosen to write Todd’s speech and thoughts in dialect, so there is some unusual spelling and grammar used, but it is written very much as it would be spoken, so I never felt that it jarred or took me out of the story, more that it added to the feeling of authenticity.

I don’t want to say too much about the other characters because it might give away too much, too early, but the story and the characters affected me, and I don’t mind admitting I shed a few tears at various points in the story, as I could feel the heartbreaking emotions that simple words on a page can evoke.

“Last Sacrifice” by Richelle Mead

In the final installment of the Vampire Academy series, someone is trying to frame Rose for murder, and Lissa and her friends must try to clear Rose’s name.

Rose is one of my favourite characters of recent years. As a dhampir, she is strong and can fight to defend her assigned Moroi and herself against all comers, and as a person, she’s determined, strong-willed and independent, and always tries to do the right thing even if she gets it wrong sometimes.

I have to admit, I’d sort of guessed how Rose and Lissa’s stories would end in this series, but I had a lot of fun reading how they got there, and there were some twists and turns I hadn’t seen coming. I also see where I think some of the other characters will go in the future, and I’m pleased that although Rose won’t be a main character of the next Vampire Academy books, and we’ll follow other people and stories, the author has still said that we will be able to catch up with her in the future as she’ll still be writing about that world.

I think Richelle Mead writes great adventures, develops her characters well and all these books have been fast-paced page turners. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the entire series (despite my initial grumblings about the names which I found difficult to get in my head!), and I’ve also read all her other books as well now. Great fantasy books that are entertaining escapism with strong female characters.

“Waking The Witch” by Kelley Armstrong

Waking The Witch is young witch Savannah’s first full length story, and follows her as she decides to cover her first solo investigation unbeknownst to Paige and Lucas who are enjoying a well deserved holiday. I loved how Armstrong shows Savannah trying to prove that she has conquered her hot-headed, impetuous nature and act like a mature, experienced investigator, all the while making some mistakes and some enemies along the way.

Lots of twists and turns to keep the reader on their toes, the story of the case is pacy enough to keep you turning the pages leading to an almost Scooby Doo style reveal at the end, something I certainly hadn’t seen coming, and it is left with the promise of more Savannah stories to come.

I’ve never been disappointed by a Kelley Armstrong book yet, and this was no exception. A worthy addition to the Women of the Otherworld series.

“What I Saw And How I Lied” by Judy Blundell

Not long after Evie’s stepfather, Joe, returns home after the end of the Second World War, he and the family decamp to Palm Beach for the summer. They become friends with the Graysons and Peter, an ex-GI who was in the war with Joe. But Evie notices that all is not as it seems between Joe and Peter, and while she gradually gets to know Peter, there seems to be an ominous undertone building up in his relationship with her mother and stepfather.

The cover of this book looks stunning, with a film noir feel, drawing me in to what I anticipated would be a thrilling book with a teenage [I]femme fatale[/I]. What I actually got, was a coming of age story for a teenager with the elements of mystery, war, prejudice and adultery, albeit on a fairly domestic scale.

I loved the sense of period that the author created, and the language and characters felt authentic for that period. Once the story moves to the setting of the hotel, it does start to feel slightly claustrophic, only adding to the general darkening atmosphere of the plot.

However, I don’t think it lived up to my expectations, and by the time I got to the end, I was a bit disappointed that the heroine hadn’t either been or developed into that [I]femme fatale[/I] I’d been hoping for.

“Shadow Kiss” by Richelle Mead

Back to St. Vladimir’s Academy for the third book of the [I]Vampire Academy[/I] series, and for me, this series has now kicked up a gear. Rose may have made her first Strigoi kills, but she still has to prove her skills at school, and guarding anyone other than Lissa is a struggle. But it’s not just being away from Lissa that’s hard, she thinks she’s starting to see ghosts …

The ongoing saga of Rose has ratcheted up a notch, and I read the story with my heart in my mouth a lot of the time, as the electrifying connection between her and Dimitri runs as a simmering undercurrent that eventually bursts up to the surface, while the menace from the Strigoi keeps the sense of peril mounting throughout to the thrilling conclusion.

I am now (not so) patiently waiting for the next book to be delivered to the library for me to collect and continue the story.

“Frostbite” by Richelle Mead

The second installment of this YA Vampire Academy series continues in much the same vein as the first one. After escaping from Lissa’s uncles scheming of the first book, Lissa and Rose are not long back at school before the threat of the Strigoi causes the majority of the student population to decamp to safety of the Moroi ski resort for winter break, but trouble is never far away …

I still find the unpronouncable names irritating, but the less than subtle pointing out clues to what’s going on seemed less obvious this time around.

I like the development of the characters, and I love that Rose is such a strong individual, determined to make herself the best dhampir she can, and even with her own doubts and failings, she still holds her own.

A nice change of scene as well, taking the students out of the school setting to the ski resort allowed for a look into the wider society of the vampires in this world, and broadened the story of Lissa and Rose, and where they might end up in the future.

Enjoyable story, and I’ll keep going with the series, although I’m only borrowing from the library, not buying them as I don’t think they’d stand up to multiple readings.

“Vampire Academy” by Richelle Mead

Another series of YA vampire books, this time centred around a school of vampires and their part human bodyguards. Rose is a Dhampir, a sort of guardian for her best friend (and vampire royal princess) Lissa. At the start of the book, the girls are in hiding after running away from their school, St Vladimir’s Academy. They soon find themselves cornered and returned back to school, where they are socially ostracised and must find a way to stick together and keep themselves alive.

As is the case with most of these type of books, I enjoyed it as a mildly diverting sunny afternoon read and will probably carry on with the series.

There were, however, a couple of things I found particularly irritating. The first was the names given to the various races, families and even characters at times, which I found incredibly difficult to pronounce, even in my head. Whilst I understand that authors want to make their work original, and particularly in the fantasy arena, it is fun to come up with new words and names, I felt the ones in this book were just a series of letters thrown together at times. The best “made-up” names are often derived from other languages (e.g. latin, greek or norse are common amongst this genre), but the ones this author used were either too much of a mixture of languages, or just plain thrown together letters. Usually when I come across a name I find difficult to pronounce in a book, I substitute it for another word, or read it slightly differently to the spelling as it’s only in my head anyway, but for this book, there were just a few too many names that made this jar every time I read them.

The other irritation was that I often felt there were too many less than subtle hints at what should be clues to some of the events or revelations that happen over the course of the story. I like that authors leave clues and subtle pointers as to what might have happened that will be revealed or foreshadowing events that occur later in the story, but in this book, I often felt there should have been a big pop-up sign hanging over a paragraph saying “Oi! Over here, look here, this is a BIG clue!”

Despite these grumbles (which are actually quite minor really), the book was entertaining enough, but I wouldn’t rush out to buy more, or necessarily encourage anyone to read them, unless you’re already a fan of the genre and desperate to read more.

“Hurricane Gold” by Charlie Higson

Hurricane Gold is the latest in Charlie Higson’s Young Bond series. On the criminal haven on the Caribbean island of Lagrimas Negras, a deadly game is played out for those who break the rules. Meanwhile, James is with his aunt recouperating from the injuries sustained in his last escapade, when during a tropical storm the children of the family he is staying with are kidnapped and he gives chase to try and save them.

Charlie Higson has created a great series of books based on the life of a young James Bond. Using the adult James Bond as the blueprint, Higson writes tales that show how the experiences of childhood developed this famous character, whilst always being cracking adventure stories. A genuine page turner, I loved reading this book, and I finished in a single sitting as I couldn’t bear to put it down. The plot twists and turns from one explosive incident to the next, with the requisite amount of violence and death required of a good Bond story, and the excellent climax is fantastically exciting and full of suspense.

If you like the Young Bond series, and haven’t tried the Anthony Horowitz Alex Rider series, I would strongly recommend them.

“The Last Testament” by Sam Bourne

The book opens amidst the looting of the Baghdad Museum of Antiquities, where we see an Iraqi boy who finds himself swept up in the crowd. Escaping the mob, he finds an ancient clay tablet in a hidden vault, which he feels must be valuable if it’s been locked away. We then skip forward a few years and witness the death of an archaeologist at a peace rally, who approaches the prime minister and is mistaken for an assasin reaching for a gun and is shot by bodyguards; it turns out he merely wanted to give the prime minister a letter. The result is that, instead of completing a peace deal between the Isrealis and the Palestinians, a series of revenge killings look set to disrupt and even destroy the peace process. Maggie Costello, an former negotiator is “persuaded” out of retirement to try and recover the talks, but as soon as she arrives, she starts to believe that the initial shooting was not just a mistake, so investigates the apparently random killings and is soon on a political, religious and very high risk quest to find the truth

I read Sam Bourne’s first novel, The Righteous Men last year as part of the Richard & Judy Summer Read book club, and liked it enough to try his latest thriller. This book would make a great beach read, as it’s an exciting, action-packed thriller. Although it’s about 560 pages, I managed to read it in three sittings, and really enjoyed it. Having said that, the chapters move around quite quickly, jumping back and forward in time, and I did find myself having to flick back to the previous chapter to check where I was in the sequence of events, but after a quick reminder, it was easy to understand where the plot was going. There are obvious comparisons between this author and Dan Brown, but for me, Sam Bourne wins hands down; at least his books are well written, even though nowhere near literary classics, they are enjoyable summer fodder, as opposed to The Da Vinci Code which I felt was poorly written, badly plotted and was extremely overhyped. So, overall, a good holiday page turner, but not too taxing on the brain.