N S Ford

Tag: YA fiction

  • Review of ‘Nightshade Revenge’ by Anthony Horowitz

    I’ve been a fan of Horowitz’s Alex Rider series ever since the first novel, Stormbreaker, was published in 2000. I lost track of the latest books in the series once I began university and was immersed in books for adults, but recently I have caught up with all of Alex’s adventures. He should really be thirty-something now but has only aged two years in two decades! Anyhow, I was excited to be given the opportunity to read the new instalment. I will note that you need to have read the previous book, Nightshade, because Revenge follows on from it. Ideally you’ll have read most, or all, of the series, because this would not be the one to start with.

    Alex Rider silhouette on skateboard in London.

    As with all books in this series, this one is packed with clever twists, action scenes, international locations, smart dialogue and villains worthy of Bond films. Alex is known as the reluctant teenage spy but this time, he is acting of his free will because not only are the lives of thousands of people at risk from the terrorist organisation called Nightshade, there is a personal element drawing him in. He must be the luckiest character I have ever known in fiction – he is often described as being lucky – as he cheats death by a whisker many times in each book. Of course it is improbable and you need to suspend your disbelief, but there are a lot of plausible details too about security, technology and current affairs.

    In summary, Nightshade Revenge might possibly be the best in the series yet. I hope it won’t be the last – after all, Horowitz did say that book 10, Russian Roulette (a brilliant prequel) was the last, and here we are at book 14, which I’ll certainly be buying in paperback to add to my collection.

    Thank you to Walker Books for the digital review copy via NetGalley. The book will be published on 10th October.

  • Review of ‘The Exiled’ by Sarah Daniels

    The exciting, sophisticated sequel to The Stranded sees the characters’ loyalties and motives tested as the action moves beyond the cruise ship, to a camp on the edge of the Federated States. To avoid spoilers, I won’t say anything more about the plot.

    Like its predecessor, this dystopian thriller is gritty, fast-paced and credible as a portrayal of the future almost a hundred years from now. The content and language of the book places it in the uppermost category of Young Adult and it’s a suitable read for adults too. My paperback copy approaches 500 pages, however, which for me is too long for this kind of novel. I actually put it down two-thirds of the way though and wasn’t sufficiently gripped to pick it up again for four days. I think by that time I had more or less predicted the ending and didn’t feel compelled to finish it. I did enjoy the book, but in my opinion it could lose 100 pages!

    Thank you to The Write Reads and Penguin for my copy of the book. Part of the Ultimate Blog Tour.

    Blog tour banner for the Exiled, showing both book covers.

  • Review of ‘The Stranded’ by Sarah Daniels

    A gripping, gritty YA dystopian thriller with the unusual setting of a cruise ship. I really enjoyed this read, although it was perhaps a little too lengthy.

    The narrative switches between two teenagers, Esther and Nik, with occasional viewpoints from Hadley, the enemy. The year is 2094 and generations of stranded people have been confined to a ship, the Arcadia, since a war fought with biological weapons put them into quarantine. Esther is one of the lucky few who is training to be a medic and if her grades are good enough will be allowed to leave the ship. Nik is part of the underclass and has a role in the resistance movement which aims to liberate everyone from the totalitarian rule of the mainland. Esther is drawn into the rebellion, finding her loyalties and friendships tested while clashing with Nik.

    The Stranded is a page-turner, with plenty of action, snappy dialogue, eerie atmosphere and credible details. It was first published by Penguin in 2022. Look out for my review of the sequel, The Exiled, next week!

    Part of TheWriteReads blog tour in association with Penguin.

    The Stranded by Sarah Daniels, showing a cruise ship with a girl and boy in shadow.

  • Review of ‘Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery’ by Frank Bell

    I had no idea, when I read this book, that the author Frank Bell was a pseudonym of Mildred Benson, who wrote many of the early Nancy Drew stories. It’s an excellent novel for older children, action-packed, exciting and contemporary for the era (it was published in 1940).

    Book cover of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery, showing Flash Evans rescuing an older man from a fire.

    The narrative follows 16-year-old Jimmy ‘Flash’ Evans, an intrepid photographer for a newspaper, The Brandale Ledger. As he begins to make a name for himself, risking his life for a great story, someone appears to be sabotaging his photographs in the darkroom. The head photographer is jealous and seems to have it in for Jimmy, could he be the culprit? At the same time, he is drawn into investigating a criminal gang.

    In addition to being a great read with a likable main character, the novel is now of historical interest for its representation of journalism, newspaper production and photography. There is also remarkably little in it that would today be deemed politically incorrect. A sequel was published, but there the series ends.

    The book was this month’s Project Gutenberg random read.

  • Review of ‘A Popular Schoolgirl’ by Angela Brazil

    I say, old sport. What a ripping story! Three cheers for Angela Brazil and her jolly schoolgirl tales!

    Book cover of A Popular Schoolgirl by Angela Brazil

    I have never been a huge fan of stories set in boarding schools, unless they have a magical element. It’s therefore unsurprising that I’ve not encountered Brazil’s work before although I’ve read work influenced by her. This novel, first published in 1920, turned up as one of my random Project Gutenberg reads.

    Skip the deadly dull hockey matches and what you’ll find is a well-written story which is both modern and of its time. It follows Ingred Saxon, the popular schoolgirl of the title. Her family life changes when they can’t afford to move back into their lovely house, which was used by the Red Cross during the War. Worse luck, the girl who lives there now would be a wonderful friend but Ingred refuses to like her. There are various troubles with her brothers and sister, which you know will be resolved by the end. One issue I had with the story was that there was no villain. Ingred is her own worst enemy and although she is a decent sort, she must strive to be a better and more useful member of society. Even the teachers were all right and the meanest girl in the class is said to be capable of telling lies. It’s all a bit too pleasant for today’s young readership, I suspect. The Empire spirit and English patriotism in the school, plus the use of cocoa powder to emulate an exotic skin tone for fancy dress, would be frowned upon now. However, there are some classic comedy moments and daring escapades which definitely make this book worth reading.

    There is an added historical interest, as the effect of the First World War on civilian life is explored. Cinema culture is also referred to and there is even a mention of looking like a flapper. The illustrations by Balliol Solomon are decidedly contemporary, showing the schoolgirls as uniformly tall and slim with bodies like cigarettes. It has occurred to me that this book, in which teenagers are the main characters, would have been in the category of YA fiction, had that category existed at the time.

    In summary, I recommend this book, old chum. It’s simply topping, although the hockey is rather a bore.

  • Review of ‘If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come’ by Jen St Jude

    ‘Sometimes, love is an apocalypse.’ This novel has an unusual concept which elevates it and should appeal to readers who, like me, do not usually read YA romance. If that is your usual genre, you’re sure to love it! The book is at the uppermost end of this category due to the language and content. Perhaps it would be better described as New Adult, particularly because the protagonist is a nineteen-year-old college student. There is a list of content warnings at the beginning of the book.

    Here’s what the publisher says:

    If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come is a heart-breaking, romantic, and gripping queer first love story from debut author Jen St Jude. On the morning Avery Byrne plans to end her life, the world discovers there are only nine days left to live: an asteroid is headed for Earth, and no one can stop it. As time runs out and secrets slowly come to light, Avery fights her way home to save the girl she has been in love with her whole life. But can Avery also learn to save herself and find hope again in the tomorrows she has left?

    For a debut novel, this was brilliantly accomplished. The writing was so confident and authentic. There are many things to admire about the book, such as the diverse representation, cast of characters, emotional pull, important messages and clever structure. It made a big impact on me and I’m not even the target audience. I didn’t completely love it, however, because it was too long for me, the sport theme was a turn-off (and it’s American football too, of which I have zero knowledge), there were some noticeably repetitive phrases like running a thumb over a cheek or collarbone, sweatpants were mentioned a little too often and the ending was less dramatic than I anticipated. Generally, I thought this book was a great read and I would encourage you to try it, even if the genre is out of your comfort zone.

    Thank you to TheWriteReads and the publisher Penguin for the paperback proof copy. The book will be out on 11th May.

    Part of the Ultimate Blog Tour from May 5th – 19th.

    If Tomorrow Doesn't Come by Jen St Jude blog tour banner

  • What I was reading 5 years ago

    In 2017, I read 104 books, which is more like my average. Considering that I had a lot going on with home, family and work, plus the beginnings of writing the novel which became We Watch You, it’s pretty good. I remember my reading was mostly library books and re-reads from my shelf. This was my last year of reading before I began the blog.

    Some of the same suspects turn up yet again in 2017, such as The Starlight Crystal, Brideshead Revisited, The Enchanted April, Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction, Beyond the Deepwoods, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, The Illustrated Man and Picnic at Hanging Rock. It was the first time I read Railhead, which I discovered at the library. I also read Dune, which I’ve never had the urge to re-read but I did enjoy the film four years later. I had more of a balanced mix of reading this year, including more non-fiction and contemporary fiction, as well as sci fi and classics.

    Other books I read included Life, Death and Vanilla Slices by Jenny Eclair, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Fahrenheit 451, Emergency Admissions by Kit Wharton, Mad Girl by Bryony Gordon, Brighton Rock, The Gender Games by Juno Dawson, The Essex Serpent, Bit of a Blur by Alex James and The Neverending Story by Michael Ende.

  • Film of the book: ‘The Giver’ (2014)

    Lois Lowry’s 1993 award-winning YA novel is a dystopian story which, like all scarily plausible dystopias with vitally important messages, appears on lists of banned books. I couldn’t find any references to the film adaptation being banned but then I think times have moved on somewhat, with the book now considered a classic.

    The film is faithful to the basic plot of the book. It’s set in a community where people are bred to be genetically similar and are medicated to dampen their emotions. Everyone has their right place and is assigned a suitable job. A boy, Jonas, is chosen to be the Receiver of Memory. Trained by an elderly man, the Giver, it’s Jonas’ fate to be weighed down with the burden of history so that everyone else may live in harmony. But will he accept his fate and the pain that accompanies it? Or will he try to escape into the unknown?

    There are a number of changes made, however, which were presumably to mould the film into something more conventional. For example, the significantly expanded – and rebellious – roles given to Fiona and Asher (Jonas’ best friends) made the characters more valuable but also seemed clichéd. There is more technology in evidence, such as drones and holograms, to make this vision of the future believable. The book’s original ending is kept but the story is expanded around it so that we see what others in the community are doing, with more explanations and everything tied up in a conveniently positive way.

    In the book, descriptions of colour are carefully avoided, as colour vision has been edited out of the genes. Except for Jonas, who occasionally sees flashes of colour. This is strikingly reflected in the film, which begins in monochrome, developing a muted palette as Jonas starts his training and finally becoming vibrant.

    I thought it was a nice touch that the Giver has a grand piano in his house (although how would he get it tuned when no one else is allowed to know that music exists?) and the montages of different cultures which represented the transfer of memories were excellent. The painful memories were toned down, which I think was probably necessary to avoid a higher age rating. It was interesting to consider that Jonas and his friends are 12 in the book, about 16 in the film and the rating is 12. I liked Jeff Bridges as the Giver and Brenton Thwaites as Jonas. Meryl Streep is the Chief Elder but I didn’t feel that her character was really necessary.

    It’s a good adaptation, worth watching at least once, but it’s not as powerful as the book.

    Low-resolution image sourced from Wikipedia.

  • What I was reading 10 years ago

    In 2012, I only read 64 books. For most people, that probably seems a lot! An average of more than 1 book a week. However, it’s actually quite a low number for me and is a contrast to my reading of 20 years ago. I can attribute this to being busy with work, academic research, commuting and other boring adult things, plus I tackled some long books such as a biography of Queen Victoria, a Dickens, a Tolstoy, a Thomas Hardy and an Arnold Bennett.

    Coincidentally or not, several books I read in 2012 I have re-read for a second time this year, including Before I Go to Sleep, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, I’ll Never Be Young Again, and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. There were also some that I have re-read in recent years since starting this blog, including Magic Fire, The Starlight Crystal, The Speed of the Dark, The Great Gatsby, Pride and Prejudice, Chasing the Sun, The Last of the Sky Pirates and Solaris. More proof, if any were needed, that my reading tends to be in 5, 10, 15 or 20 year cycles.

    Some of the other books I read in 2012: Picnic at Hanging Rock, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, The Remains of the Day, Brideshead Revisited, Making Money by Terry Pratchett, Ann Veronica by H G Wells, Love in a Cold Climate, Nightingale Wood by Stella Gibbons and The Stepford Wives. As you can see, the majority of my reading that year was classics and YA comfort reads.

    What were you reading a decade ago? Was it any different to the kind of books you read now?

  • Review of ‘Powerless’ by Vicky Ball

    A compelling debut YA novel, Powerless is an emotionally gripping story about controlling relationships and the dangers of teenage girls trusting older men who then lure them into awful situations. I would describe it as a cautionary tale. Although the topics are very sensitive, the finer details are a little skimmed over, so there is nothing too graphic for the younger reader.

    The narrative is told by two sisters, Abby and Beth, with an occasional mysterious narrative voice which is revealed nearer the end. The story begins with Beth suddenly turning up at the family home after being away for seven years, during which time Abby has grown up and is now fifteen. Gradually we find out what happened to Beth. The pace is quite stately until sometime after the halfway point. Then it speeds up and becomes more of a thriller. It was an interesting structure and had some good twists. I genuinely couldn’t predict what was going to happen.

    Although the teenagers’ behaviour was realistic, I wasn’t convinced that they had very authentic narrative voices. To me, they sounded overly formal and tended to use expressions that I would associate with people two or three decades older than them. However, perhaps they’re just nicely-spoken!

    The writing style was easy to read and concise, but I think it would have benefited from a little more proofreading, as there were some repeated words, typos and missing punctuation.

    In summary, a very good, thought-provoking debut which discusses some important issues.

    Published in 2021.