THE QUICK
Lauren Owen
ISBN: 9780099569978
Published 1st September 2014, Jonathan Cape (Random House)
I started reading The Quick without knowing what it was about. I bought it because the cover attracted my attention and the purposely vague blurb on the back pricked my interest. I enjoy reading good Victoriana and halfway through the first page I was confident I had found it.
THE DREAMSNATCHER
Abi Elphinstone
ISBN: 9781471122682
Published 1st March 2015, Simon & Schuster
As far as I’ve been able to determine (i.e. in the 2 minutes I spent searching on Google Scholar before my suspicions were vaguely confirmed and I got bored) cats don’t really sweat. I mean, they sweat but the majority of their sweat glands are in their paws. On those cute little squooshy pink jelly beans. So, if it’s really hot or if you and your cat have been doing a bit of cardio, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll reach down and feel the sweaty fur on the back of your cat, wild or domestic. And if you do, it’s probably a good idea to make your way to a vet quick smart.
A STERKARM KISS
Susan Price (Scholastic, 2003) ISBN: 0 439 96865 8 
The memories I had of A Sterkarm Kiss, sequel to The Sterkarm Handshake, were hazy and unpleasant, rather like memories of a good night out tainted by a hangover. Upon rereading, I have discovered that it is indeed an interesting but horrible book. While just as well-written and more complexly plotted than its predecessor, this novel was rather unpleasant to read. It is one of the most morally — uh, let’s say “grey” – – books I’ve read. Yes, that includes the entire Song of Ice and Fire series.
THE WELL
Catherine Chanter
ISBN: 9781922182685
Published 11th March 2015, Text Publishing
Ever heard the call of nature? No, I don’t mean the loo for crying out loud – trees, the countryside, that sort of thing. I’ve always wanted a little cottage with a parlour and a lavender garden and bees and enough land for a cow and a donkey and chickens and a couple of pigs. It’s not too much to ask is it? The difficulty of course is deciding what colour to paint the donkey cart for riding into town with. Have I said too much? I’ve said too much. Let’s get on with it.
THE STERKARM HANDSHAKE
Susan Price (Scholastic, 1998) ISBN: 0590543016 
The Sterkarm Handshake is yet another book I read in high school and always intended to buy, but never got around to it until quite recently. I remembered the novel as unusual and not popular, though at the time it felt it had been written for me — a tale specifically for a small subset of nerdy high-schoolers who liked history, historical linguistics, and time travel. But I returned to the books, for The Sterkarm Handshake is the first of a duology, knowing they were also rather flawed. I was interested to find out, as an adult reader with the benefit of historical hindsight, why these books did not succeed. To the best of my knowledge, neither book in the duology is in print any longer.
NIGHTBIRD
Alice Hoffman
Simon & Schuster (Mar 2015; ISBN 9781471124211)
In the outskirts of the idyllic town of Sidwell lives a lonely girl named Twig. She and her mother have a secret. A secret which makes them virtual recluses on their apple orchard. Everything changes though, when a family moves into the old witch’s house nearby. The possibility of friendship arises, so does the chance to bring the secret to an end. But there will be trials to navigate before the prize is won.
This is a delightful story. Hoffman is a skilled writer who spins an interesting and dramatic tale about the better aspects of human nature. It is a story of trust and friendship, honesty and kindness.
HAVOC
Jane Higgins
ISBN: 9781922148339
Published February 2014, Text Publishing
The rise and rise of the YA dystopian novel seems to come at a time in our history when there is a conglomeration of so many real and perceived threats to our future. How do you pick which is the most frightening when there are so many to choose from: climate change and its consequences, war, disease, social catastrophe stemming from widening economic class rifts, sentient technology, velociraptors. Right here, right now – from an increase in extreme weather events, to the Crimea, Nigeria, the Levant, to ebola, to the 1%, to velociraptors, we are on the brink of something.* And maybe that’s why we are eating up dystopias like never before. Maybe those futures seem closer than ever.
THE POISONWOOD BIBLE
Barbara Kingsolver (Harper, 1998) ISBN: 0-06-017540-0 
Ah, Africa. Africa, Africa, Africa. Having re-viewed Binyavanga Wainana’s How to Write About Africa (which I have tried linking to, but cannot make it work–sorry!), I’m somewhat more satisfied that The Poisonwood Bible at least doesn’t commit the most egregious of authorial crimes against the continent. And being aware that the book was written more than 15 years ago, for a white American audience, I should perhaps try to be more forgiving. Nonetheless, this novel seriously rubbed me the wrong way. I wanted to like it. I wanted to love it, because it had been recommended me so many times by people whose opinions I trust. I felt certain I would love it. What a bitter betrayal.
BAD GIRLS AND WICKED WOMEN
Jan Stradling (ISBN 9781741960433)
In honour of International Women’s Day (yes, a day late, but, well, it is still International Women’s Day in some parts of the world), allow me to point you towards the beautiful, charming and witty work of Jan Stradling. Bad Girls and Wicked Women is the perfect antidote to anyone who thinks that ‘accurate’ historical fiction or quasi-medieval fantasy must relegate all female characters to a background role.
THE MINIATURIST
Jessie Burton ISBN: 9781447250920 Published July 2014
Never judge a book by its cover – that’s the old saying, right? I’ll let you into a little secret… shh… come closer… I judge books by their covers. I know, I know, it’s terrible. It’s atrocious. It’s unforgiveable. But come now, you do too, don’t you? Just a little? Surely some of you must, otherwise why else would publishers go so out of their way to replicate the “feel” of a successful book cover to sell similar books? I don’t blame them. I’m a sucker for aesthetics and if I’ve associated a cover with a story I’ve enjoyed, of course I’ll be attracted to a similar looking book. I’ve veered slightly from where I was going with this, suffice to say The Miniaturist has a pretty cover and I fell for it. Mainly it was the ruff. I mean, who hasn’t spent their formative years wishing the full-sized ruff would come back into vogue one day? No? Just me then.
HEAVEN’S NET IS WIDE
Lian Hearn (Hachette, 2007) ISBN: 978 0 7336 2144 4 
At last, we’re here, Heaven’s Net is Wide, the prequel to the Tales of the Otori trilogy. And, it should be added, I am sufficiently backlogged that I feel comfortable in saying my reviews will now be a weekly event. You may celebrate in whatever way you feel appropriate.
THE COAT ROUTE: Craft, Luxury & Obsession on the Trail of a $50,000 Coat
Meg Lukens Noonan
First published July 2013
A few Christmases ago, my cousin-in-law regaled me, as she always does, about a book she’d recently read. What she described to me with such enthusiasm made me want to forgo the table piled high with desserts and head straight home for a bit of binge reading. Quite maturely I reigned in that urge and carried on socialising like a normal human being. That very night however, I summoned the e-book from the cloud and it wriggled its kilobytes into my e-reader. Not long after, I was compelled to purchase a solid copy as it was crystal clear that this one was a keeper.