Book Review // Battle Royale by Koushun Takami

Battle royale – Koushun takami 
viz media

Battle-Royale-Koushun-Takami

Battle Royale is a high-octane thriller about senseless youth violence, and one of Japan’s bestselling – and most controversial – novels. As part of a ruthless program by the totalitarian government, a group of high school students are taken to a small isolated island with a map, food, and various weapons. Forced to wear special collars that explode when thy break a rule, they must fight each other for three days until only one remains.

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Book Review // The Rental Heart and Other Fairytales by Kirsty Logan

The rental heart and other fairytales – Kirsty logan 
salt publishing

the-rental-heart-kirsty-logan

Twenty tales of lust and loss. These stories feature clockwork hearts, lascivious queens, paper men, island circuses, and a flooded world.

• On the island of Skye, an antlered girl and a tiger-tailed boy resolve never to be friends – but can they resist their unique connection?

• In an alternative 19th-century Paris, a love triangle emerges between a man, a woman, and a coin-operated boy.

• A teenager deals with his sister’s death by escaping from their tiny Scottish island – but will she let him leave?

• In 1920s New Orleans, a young girl comes of age in her mother’s brothel.

Some of these stories are radical retellings of classic tales, some are modern-day fables, but all explore substitutions for love. 

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Book Review // His Other Life by Beth Thomas

His Other LifeBeth Thomas
Avon Books

his-other-life- beth-thomas 

He was hiding a terrible secret…
Grace’s new husband Adam seems like the perfect package. Good looking, great job, completely charming – almost too good to be true. So when Adam suddenly disappears from Grace’s life, she is left bewildered and heartbroken. And with a lot of unanswered questions. As she tries desperately to find him, Grace opens a Pandora’s Box of secrets and lies – and starts to learn that Adam wasn’t so perfect after all. What shameful secrets was her husband hiding? Is Grace in danger? And can she survive the truth? However terrible it may be.

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Book Review // Song Quest by Katherine Roberts

Song Quest – Katherine Roberts
Chicken House 

song-quest-katherine-roberts

Welcome to a world from another time — where legendary half-creatures still exist. A world where nature itself can be controlled by unearthly music. A world where the forces of good and evil are held in harmony by the Singers who have mastered the secret Songs of Power. A world on the brink of destruction, threatened by a dark lord whose evil knows no bounds. Rialle and Kherron, two novice Singers, are all that’s left to stand in the enemy’s way. Stranded in a strange land with only one another to rely on, these former rivals must work together if they are to survive. In a timeless coming-of-age journey, Rialle and Kherron discover the strength of spirit that lies within them in their quest to help good triumph over evil.

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