REVIEW - MOONRISE BY SARAH CROSSAN

Title: Moonrise

Author: Sarah Crossan

Genre: Teens, YA, Literary, Contemporary

Publisher: Bloomsbury UK & ANZ

Release Date: 7th September 2017

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'They think I hurt someone. 
But I didn't. You hear?
Coz people are gonna be telling you
all kinds of lies.
I need you to know the truth.'

From one-time winner and two-time Carnegie Medal shortlisted author Sarah Crossan, this poignant, stirring, huge-hearted novel asks big questions. What value do you place on life? What can you forgive? And just how do you say goodbye?

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REVIEW
I have previously read a book by Sarah Crossan and loved that, so it was the authors name that initially caught my attention and made me want to learn more about the book. As soon as I read the blurb I decided I had to read the book!

The main colour of the cover is different shades of dark or muted blue, with the addition of a crescent moon so depicting the night time. There is a lone figure standing looking at the moon and stars. When you read the book you learn this is actually a scene described in the book, the lone figure being Joe. You'll know the scene when you get to it. Oh and have those tissues ready. The genre for this book has been classified as Literary,Teens & YA but to be honest I think it would appeal to a wider range of readers to include those who love contemporary and adults would also love this book.

The main character of this book is Joe Moon, who is just 7 years old when the book begins with a flashback. Joe is the only in the house to answer the telephone when it rings so naturally he answers it. The phone call is from his older brother Ed. Immediately Joe begins asking Ed when will he be home to play baseball but Ed has something very serious to tell Joe. Ed has been arrested and it's for something serious, people may start saying awful things about him and he needs Joe to know he didn't do it. As Ed is trying to explain to 7 year old Joe, their mother arrives home so Joe hands over the phone to his mom shouting "The police got Ed". Ed's mom is in a state of shock when she puts the telephone receiver down and tells Joe, the police have Ed and they are charging him with murder! Even with his mum telling him that Ed is in serious trouble, Joe still hopes that Ed will just walk through the door again soon.
Joe's main male figure has been his older brother Ed, he has been the one to make sure he got up in the morning and made it to school with some sandwiches for lunch time. Their mother was, well wasn't coping and had been turning to drink for quite some time. The person, Joe, Angela and Ed and also their mom rely on is Aunt Karen. So later as the book progresses when their mom literally goes out one day and doesn't come back it is Aunt Karen who tries her best to keep what is left of the family together.
Then the book jumps to present day where Joe has moved down to be near to Kirkland Farm where Ed is still on death row but has finally been given his date for execution! Though he is optimistic that there are a few options left before he will be executed. Angela who is Joe's older sister has a job and is saving hard to be able to take a trip to join Joe to see their brother Ed. Angela also has the task of attempting to find a lawyer they can afford to put across Ed's case of his innocence in a last ditch attempt to prevent him being executed.

The book follows Joe and Ed's brotherly relationship, separated when Joe was just 7 years old. Joe is in a strange place, in a grotty rented apartment with very little money to survive on. Joe has what little money he has earned from his job working with his friend Reed at Reed's Uncles garage. So when he is in the diner and hears there may be a job vacancy for a delivery driver, he jumps at the chance. Unfortunately there's a rather big hitch, the delivery driver needs his own transport as the delivery vehicle is broken down. Joe strikes a deal with Sammy the diner owner that if he can fix the car, he gets the job! Simple, right? Well not so simple but Joe is not a quitter and the food he is given whilst attempting to repair the vehicle solves his immediate money problem.

I absolutely adored the relationship between Joe and Ed. Ed has been both brother friend and father to Joe. Ed is also the one who attended all the parents evenings Joe can remember. Even though he has only just left school Joe bravely moves to Kirkland to be near his brother. In fact Ed has to apply for special permission for the under 18 year old Joe to even be allowed to visit him. Joe is in shock when he first visits Ed, he is totally out of his depth and stunned that there is thick glass separating them and that to speak and be heard by each other they have to used a telephone receiver. Joe is absolutely way out of his comfort zone which proves he would do anything he possibly can for his brother. Everything is a steep learning curve for Joe, never having lived alone, not knowing anyone other than the waitresses at the diner and no money for entertainment even if there were things to do in Kirkland. When Joe's older sister Angela rings for up dates, Joe hides how awful the apartment is, how he is "working" for just food. Money is tight for Angela as Aunt Karen has moved out and she is having to pay the full rent, meaning it will take her longer to save money to travel to Kirkland. It is no wonder Joe feels weighed down with responsibility.

As August the 18th draws closer Ed's case is reported on the TV which means people realise who Joe has been visiting. He has to put up with some rather verbal judgemental people in his face. The friends Joe has made rally round him. In fact one of the waitresses Sue tells Joe to just ignore them, as most people who live in Kirkland make a living doing a job that wouldn't exist if it wasn't for Kirkland Farm Prison. The other waitress Nell is younger, nearer Joe's age and does hang around with him, in fact they end up dating. However Joe eventually finds out why Nell is reluctant for her father to meet or even see Joe. It is another blow for an already emotional Joe. The cover depicts a beautiful scene from within the book, and yes it had me emotional, and eyes all bleary with tears. As I said in the Cover description you will need some tissues handy for a few places in this book. Your heart truly aches for Joe and Ed. I haven't really gone into whether Ed is guilty or not guilty or if he is executed as planned on the 18th August in the book as mentioning those would be too spoilery. There's a lot that goes on in the book that I am so limited on revealing as I don't want to give away spoilers. It is never my intention to over reveal,or over discuss in a way that would ruin someone discovering and reading the books themselves.

I really enjoyed reading this book and soon got into the flow of reading from the different perspectives. There's the present where Joe is in Kirkland and the past where Joe is telling us, the reader what has happened before he came to Kirkland. I really loved the use of the letters and telephone call's Ed makes to Joe. The descriptions are great for example when Aunt Karen's voice is described as "as hard as the stone in an apricot". You totally felt the mood of Joe's 11th birthday when he describes his cake, candles and the meal they ate as the cake was only for dessert. They way Joe reports that "dad was gone ten years and Ed was gone for." Joe obviously keeping a tally of the years his father and Ed have been gone. 
I also adored the conversation between Angela and Joe, describing living with her Aunt Karen and her rules as being like being in the military. Yet at the same time they are both grateful for the plentiful supply of milk in the fridge as well as the clean clothes in the closets. Though young they both know that Aunt Karen is really only trying to do her best for them. Aunt Karen is the person you call for help, and she normally came through for you and sorted out the mess. I honestly feel I cannot praise this book enough and how much I totally loved reading it. Seriously I cannot recommend this book enough! If you loved Countless by Karen Gregory, This Is Not Forgiveness by Celia Rees, The Possible by Tara Altebrando or any of Lisa Heathfield books then this is a book you do not want to miss.

My immediate thoughts as I finished reading this book, were that Moonrise was a powerful, emotionally packed, amazing book. It has made me want to read more Sarah Crossan books soon.

REVIEW - CHIMERA - WEREGIRL SERIES BY C.D. BELL

Title: Chimera
Author: C.D. Bell
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Shapeshifter 
Publisher: Chooseco
Release Date: 1st November 2017

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The forest is full of secrets. 

Nessa Kurland is adjusting to life as a weregirl—she is transforming with ease and running with a pack she cares for deeply. Her boyfriend Luc is a fellow shifter, and Paravida, the corporation responsible for unethical genetic experiments on the residents of Tether, has pulled out of town, leaving the community safe. 

But that’s just how it appears on the surface. 

Nessa returns home from a run with the pack to find an FBI raid and the shocking news that her mother Vivian is being held without bail for violations so serious she may be facing life in prison. What did Nessa’s mother, a small-town vet tech, do to threaten Homeland Security? Vivian’s secret past leads Nessa to discover there is more to her own story than she ever imagined. 

The wolves that are running through Tether’s woods are not the same pack Nessa knew before. These are not all natural wolves. And they are breeding. 

Nessa’s transformation is only just beginning. 

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REVIEW
After reading Weregirl I really wanted to know more about Nessa Kurland and her family. I also still wanted more of the shifter genre too. I had questions I wanted answering upon finishing Weregirl and was looking forward to the answers.

The main feature of this cover is the back of a girl's head. The girl has two plaits either side of her head. The hair is a mixture of browns and grey. The girls neck has fur that has a kind of mottled brown look to it. The byline on this cover says, "the forest is full of lies".
Prior to reading this book I of course had the obvious thought that this girl with animal markings was Nessa in a part wolf/girl form. However that is not the case and wow when it is revealed who this is, well it's most certainly a wow moment in this second book of the trilogy.

So as the blurb reveals Paravida have left Tether and everyone is safe, or maybe they feel safer. . .but are they? Nessa is adjusting well under the circumstances to her ability to transform into a wolf. In fact that's where this book picks up, Nessa is out in her wolf form running through the woods with Luc. Luc was born with the ability to transform into a wolf, and one day not that far away his human side will walk into the woods, transform into a wolf and never return to his human form or life again.
It's whilst Luc and Nessa are chasing around, kind of playing in their wolf forms that they scent Paravida wolves. They follow the trail of the wolves when Nessa scents something familiar, however it is not so familiar to her in her wolf form. The two wolves then smell blood, meaning the wolves they are following are hurt. Eventually Nessa's wolf brain/memory clears and she recognises the smell as one she has been around in her work at the vets surgery. The smell is anaesthesia, meaning the Paravida Wolf has been shot with a tranquilizer gun. Luc and Nessa finally find the end of the trail and discover the tyre tracks. Whoever tranquilized the wolves have taken the bodies with them. Obviously somewhat puzzled Luc and Nessa make their way back to their little cabin behind Lucs home but far enough into the woods to be hidden. They change back to their human forms and hug and talk about what they have just discovered. Luc and Nessa have been dating a while and are comfortable with each other in both their human and wolf forms.  I personally think Luc is a large part of the reason Nessa has adapted to her wolf so well. He has taught her about the transformation process, how to supress it and how to make it happen when you need it. Nessa still has to transform at both new and full moons. Nessa has also gotten to a point where she can move in and out of wolf form at will. Nessa merely thinks of her family to enable her to switch back easily into her human form. To become a wolf, Nessa think about the way she feels running as a wolf to transform into her wolf. Luc and Nessa's discovery soon becomes the least of her problems when she returns home to find the FBI and Homeland Security in and all around her home. Using her wolf hearing Nessa hears snippets of different conversations going on. Upon entering the house she and her family live in she first sees a worried Delphine, whose face instantly relaxes when she see's her older sister. Nate however is in an even worse state than Delphine. Nate is in the corner alone, as far away from the bustle as possible, hugging his knees and becoming more and more upset by all the people and police in his home which is usually his sanctuary. The officers are using Geiger counters and are searching every room and drawer and cupboard in the house. It's then Nessa's eyes finally land on her mother who is continually asking the officers what they are looking for. Vivian is sat at the table in an awkward bent forward position as her arms are in handcuffs behind her back. The officers pull Vivian upright to a standing position to take her away with them. Vivian has just moments to give orders to Nessa for her to call Aunt Jane to come get them. Vivian's other instructions are for Nessa to phone Dr Morgan to ask for more shifts at the vet surgery and to continue Vivian's work there. Both calling Aunt Jane and asking for extra shifts at the vets instantly make total sense to Nessa. It's the latter suggestion confuses Nessa somewhat as she is certainly not as qualified as her mum so couldn't possibly perform her duties at the veterinarian surgery. 

I also enjoyed reading the sections that featured the Paravida wolves. The Paravida wolves had been scientifically created and raised by human researchers at the secret laboratories on the Paravida Corporate Campus North of Tethers town. These wolves had been purposely bred to be highly aggressive and were isolated from each other, kept in individual cages instead of being allowed to co-exist or form a pack as they would naturally do. In this book, Chimera these wolves had escaped into the wild, fighting each other, starving or ransacking garbage for food. Sadly this meant they had no idea of how to interact with natural born wolves. Luc has taken on the task to attempt to teach them what being part of a pack is and how they should be co-existing with each other and other wolves in the area. I love the relationship between the Paravida wolf Jack and one of the Tether wolf pack resulting in super cute sounding baby wolf cubs. There's some great scenes within the book of Luc and Nessa playing with these wolf pups. 

There seemed to be a lot of things that had happened after the ending of Weregirl yet before Chimera begins, such as the whole Nessa & Luc relationship and also the incident where Bree, Luc and Nessa break into Paravida and take a box full of files and documentation. This box is mentioned as maybe being the information that the FBI and Homeland Security were searching for in the Kurland home? The box and it's contents could perhaps be a factor in Vivian's arrest too? The box is mentioned a couple of times and then nothing else about it. An envelope is found in the important roll top writing desk made or restored by grandpa, yet this piece of treasured furniture hadn't been mentioned before, in fact I initially thought that the girls were looking for a number/envelope in a roll-a-desk telephone number gadget from the description!  To say there is a lot going on in this book is an understatement where in book one, Weregirl the plot initially felt a little slow, in this book, Chimera everything happens so very, very fast! We even get to meet Nessa & Delphine's father. There are many questions around and concerning their father. The one that immediately came to my mind was, well who is Nate's father? Then there is the whole ethics of the scientific experiments her father is doing. The shock that her mother once approved and did similar experiments herself. Then Nessa comes face to face with an experiment that should no longer exist. I could seriously go on and on and on about everything that happens in this book.

Another issue Nessa has to deal with is the increasing support in her previously peaceful loving town of Tether for hunting and killing the wolves. . . .all the wolves, not just the Paravida one's. There are some fantastic scenes where Luc and Nessa are trying to help the wolves to leave the Tether wood and escape from impending death.

I really grew to love the character of Nessa even more in this book. Nessa goes through lots of changes from the person she was in Weregirl to who she is at the end of Chimera. Nessa has to deal with losses of things and people close to her. Nessa has to become more independent and confident, she has many choices ahead of her with very few people she can discuss them with. What should she believe about her mother Vivian, Why has she been arrested? Why is she so set that Nessa should avoid her father along with any help he ever offers? Then there is her father, how come he is so rich? and the rest of the Kurland family so poor? What sort of experiments is he really doing? How should she feel when he reveals Nessa is named after his mother Vanessa? Nessa was very young when her parents split but she does have flashbacks to that time, which she uses to decipher the lies within the truths she is presented with.

Nessa really goes through the ringer in this book, she has to accept that what she has with Luc is not permanent. Nessa feels pulled in many directions during this book by her mother, her father and her pack, the Tether wolves. Nessa has to deal with the feeling of ostracisation when some of the people of Tether turn against Vivian. Nessa also deals with bullies at school who seem to love talking about her mothers arrest. It both annoys and upsets Nessa, these are the same people whose pets Vivian has saved or treated for free when they were down on their luck and money. Poor Nessa seems to solve one problem only to have another one land in her lap.

Another much smaller character within Chimera that I really liked a lot was Vivian's court appointed lawyer, Zach Chandler. Zach is young but knows what is needed to help Vivian and when because of his firm not wanting to go up against a large company like Paravida reveal they would take a plea for a shorter jail sentence instead of going the whole way through the court to free Vivian he meets with Nessa, explains the situation and gives her pointers on where to find the right sort of help. 

My immediate thoughts upon reading the last page in Chimera was, Wow I really, really hope there are more books to come in this series! I now know, after a little research that this book is part of a trilogy. This book covered so much but I would truly love more! Loved it! I would love a novella or two, perhaps covering Nessa and Lucs relationship and him helping Nessa come to terms with what she transforms into. Also a novella on Vivian set before she returned to Tether, so we know exactly what she took part in and how she argued with Nessa's father about the ethics of what they were doing and maybe even more about Vivian after the ending of this book too. Every time I think about Chimera and its ending all I can think is wow when can I read the final book in the trilogy?

WEREGIRL REVIEW

Title: Weregirl

Author: C.D. Bell

Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Shapeshifter 

Publisher: Chooseco

Release Date: 1st November 2016

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Eager to escape her small hometown, high school junior Nessa Kurland is focused on winning a college scholarship for cross-country running. A chance encounter with a trapped wolf while out on a run leads to powerful and frightening changes, and one day, Nessa is transformed into a full werewolf. Now Nessa must navigate the challenges of high school while coming face to face with true human darkness, as she tries to make peace with her new wild nature.

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REVIEW
I'd had this book on my kindle quite a while and had just not gotten around to reading it. I decided to look back on my kindle and checkout the titles that weren't so new. I fancied a shifter/werewolf genre read so with a title like Weregirl this one seemed the perfect choice!

The first thing I noticed about the cover were the beautiful piercing icy blue eyes of a wolf. Before reading the book I automatically presumed they would belong to the werewolf/girl that was also the simple straight to the point title of the book. The fur of the werewolf on the front cover is a luxurious looking white, silver grey. The byline on the cover say's "everyone has an animal inside" and after reading the book I can say is a quote from another mystical character we meet in the book who tries and I feel succeeds in being instrumental to Nessa accepting her gift.

The central character of this book is Nessa Kurland who lives with her hardworking single parent mother Vivian Kurland and her younger siblings, Delphine and Nate. Vivian works as a veterinarian technician at the local vets in Tether. The youngest in the family Nate has ADHD/Autism so has to be handled in a certain way to prevent him withdrawing completely into himself or having a meltdown. Structure and routine are extremely important to Nate. Delphine is the middle child, she loves fashion, clothes and is probably the most social of the siblings. Nessa is more reserved than Delphine and enjoys working weekends at the vet surgery her mum works at earning her own money to fund her running necessities, such as trainers etc. It's whilst Nessa is doing her running through the woods that she comes across a wolf stuck in a farmers trap. Nessa is an animal lover and has a good calming way with animals and she cannot just run by, unlike the other runner Cynthia that was supposed to be meeting with Nessa for them to run together. Cynthia hadn't waited and it was whilst attempting to catch up with her that Nessa found the injured wolf. Nessa approaches the animal carefully making sure it knows she is wanting to help. It's whilst freeing the trapped wolf that Nessa is attacked by a different wolf and is bitten. Nessa passes out and when she wakens she is in the health centre with Dr Kallish dressing her fairly large, painful wound. Dr Kallish asks about the wolves Nessa encountered and reassures her he has given her shots to counteract infection and the possibility of rabies, he even gives her the tooth that the wolf left behind in her hip when it bit her. Dr Kallish and Dr Raab work at the health centre where Nate and other children his age are being regularly monitored to check for any ill health that could be the result of the enviromental waste that a local company called Dutch Chem has illegally and irresponsibly dumped in the area. 

Nessa heals much more rapidly than expected and is eager to abandon her crutches and get back to school and her running training with Coach Hoffman. Delphine, Nessa's younger sister takes the tooth to school and gets a hole drilled in the tooth to make into a necklace/talisman for her sister. Despite still being in pain from the bite, Nessa begins running faster times. It is good news as if Nessa is to get into college she will need a scholarship. Then things start to be a bit strange, her hearing becomes much more sensitive. One day whilst at her best friends studying, she hears a conversation between Bree and Gabe who are both downstairs whilst she is in the upstairs bathroom. Nessa's eyesight has also improved so much that she no longer needs her contact lenses. Nessa hides all these changes including the recurring nightmares she is still having about being attacked by the wolf. The final straw that finally makes her reach out for help is when she dreams that she is changing into the wolf. That's when a friends of Bree's rather hippy mum introduces Nessa to a local shaman who helps Nessa understand what is happening and how to deal with it.

I was immediately pulled in by the prologue, and wanted to learn more about the scientist featured in it called Camille Rogerson. Camille has been given a job on the team attempting to to clean up what Dutch Chem has left behind in the form of pollution. It's whilst working alone than Camille has an encounter with wolves. Then the book begins telling us Nessa's story. It was a shame we didn't revisit Camille and learn more about her work and her run in with the wolves. The genres I have seen this book labelled as are YA, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Paranormal and Shifter, which all fit the book well.  

I did really enjoy this book, its difficult to explain why on Goodreads I only gave the book 4/5 stars. The book felt a little slow in some places, though it is well worth sticking with and reading to the end. I enjoyed this book so much I read the second in the series that is called Chimera straight away. The cover of Chimera has me making all sorts of guesses and thoughts about what could happen next.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading this book were that I found this to be an interesting start to what could be a fantastic book series! Not sure how to explain it other than to compare it to two Book/TV adaptations and say it's more like the Teen-wolf TV series and YA aimed than the Bitten series adaptation from Kelley Armstrong's Women Of The Otherworld book series.

REVIEW - MUM HACKS BY TANITH CAREY

Title: Mum Hacks

Subtitle/Byline: Time-saving Tips To Calm The Chaos Of Family Life

Author: Tanith Carey

Genre: Parenting

Publisher: White Ladder Press, Crimson Publishing

Release Date: 25th April 2016

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Family life is pretty chaotic at the best of times and as any busy mum knows it can be an uphill battle to get out of the house in the morning let alone meet the demands of work deadlines. In her witty easy to read style, Tanith Carey encourages mums to banish the dream of becoming the ultimate supermum and brings them innovative, new ways to make life at home less chaotic and avoid meltdowns.

With tried-and-tested advice for fellow working mums who feel like they are on the stopwatch from the moment they wake up, the book is a hands-on guide to fitting it all in, finding a routine and stressing less about the small stuff.

Find out how to:

•Head off mess before it happens and choose toys which won't leave your home looking like a bomb-site
•Throw together a nutritious school lunchbox – in just ONE minute
•Get your children to do what you ask the FIRST time, not the twentieth
•Dress your kids in less time and get out of the house quicker
•Get your life back and yes, spend time with your partner

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REVIEW
Every now and again I like to through a non fiction read into the mix of genres I am reading so I felt a little overdue and found this book and decided to give it a go. I mean I know my daughter is now 21 years old but we can all use a hack or too can't we?

The cover has a woman with her arms outstretched and she looks to be juggling various household items that represent chores such as scales for baking/cooking, an iron for the laundry,a teddy and a bottle to represent children and babies. So the items cover the multitude of chores a typical woman/wife/mother has to do on any and everyday of the week. The cover is in my opinion perfect for this book. The only things missing are the woman's sweating, exasperated face with steam literally coming out of her ears. 

The book begins by stating that it is not only for mums that it is intended for anyone who is doing the caring, and needs some extra time saving ideas. 
The author explains her life changed the day she traded her quaint little wooden chair for a not so pretty plastic version with a huge tray. The huge difference this fairly small change meant that no matter how hard her baby tried to throw food over the edge, as the new replacement had a wider tray, the baby couldn't manage to get the food beyond that tray. I though this was quite a good recommendation/hack.

Then the book began making recommendations on what the author thinks are the essentials such as a big freezer, a microwave, a dishwasher and so on. Then she goes on to suggest food stuffs to always have in the cupboard like rice, pasta and eggs.

The book then goes onto doing crafts with young children with the idea that if the weather is warm and dry enough to do the crafts outside and then just sweep/hose any mess away. If outside isn't an option the idea is to put down plenty of newspaper under everything and once finished the newspaper can just be crumpled up and thrown away.
Continuing on the children theme is a quite extensive range of substitute toys that can be easier to tidy away, such as swap flashcards for flip books, swap magnetic toys for fuzzyfelt, swap play-worlds for foldaway book versions, and finally swap board games (with lots of fiddly pieces for online versions.

There are lots of suggestions or rules to install to make your life easier and hopefully less frantic. Such as lay out clothes the night before they are needed, both for yourself and the children. To lead by example, such as when you come indoors you throw your jacket on a chair, your children will see that as acceptable because mummy/daddy does it.

The book was a quite interesting read, the changes are fairly achievable for anyone. They aren't necessarily expensive ones either they just require some forethought and organisation to put them into place. 

I'll be totally honest some of the hacks were obvious and pretty common sense ones, such as putting the newspaper down before letting your children loose with the crafting. Also it's okay suggesting cooking meals for the whole week and freezing them, so long as you have the room in the freezer to store them all. I personally tried this one and just didn't have the room, and I already had the largest fridge freezer that would fit in my kitchen. I guess I enjoyed reading the book and it certainly brought some happy memories back to me of when my daughter used to bring multiple paintings home from nursery. To be totally honest i think the book is aimed at the younger, newer parent than myself. I would have been a little miffed I had bought this one for myself.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing the book were Lots of ideas for shortcuts some easier than others. Some easier said than done especially from my point of view as a mother who didn't have a supportive partner and then later became a single parent. Plenty of useful, possibly adaptable ideas.

REVIEW - WEREGIRL - WEREGIRL SERIES BY C.D. BELL

Title: Weregirl

Author: C.D. Bell

Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Shapeshifter 

Publisher: Chooseco

Release Date: 1st November 2016

BLURB from Goodreads

Eager to escape her small hometown, high school junior Nessa Kurland is focused on winning a college scholarship for cross-country running. A chance encounter with a trapped wolf while out on a run leads to powerful and frightening changes, and one day, Nessa is transformed into a full werewolf. Now Nessa must navigate the challenges of high school while coming face to face with true human darkness, as she tries to make peace with her new wild nature.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon US

Amazon UK

REVIEW
I'd had this book on my kindle quite a while and had just not gotten around to reading it. I decided to look back on my kindle and checkout the titles that weren't so new. I fancied a shifter/werewolf genre read so with a title like Weregirl this one seemed the perfect choice!

The first thing I noticed about the cover were the beautiful piercing icy blue eyes of a wolf. Before reading the book I automatically presumed they would belong to the werewolf/girl that was also the simple straight to the point title of the book. The fur of the werewolf on the front cover is a luxurious looking white, silver grey. The byline on the cover say's "everyone has an animal inside" and after reading the book I can say is a quote from another mystical character we meet in the book who tries and I feel succeeds in being instrumental to Nessa accepting her gift.

The central character of this book is Nessa Kurland who lives with her hardworking single parent mother Vivian Kurland and her younger siblings, Delphine and Nate. Vivian works as a veterinarian technician at the local vets in Tether. The youngest in the family Nate has ADHD/Autism so has to be handled in a certain way to prevent him withdrawing completely into himself or having a meltdown. Structure and routine are extremely important to Nate. Delphine is the middle child, she loves fashion, clothes and is probably the most social of the siblings. Nessa is more reserved than Delphine and enjoys working weekends at the vet surgery her mum works at earning her own money to fund her running necessities, such as trainers etc. It's whilst Nessa is doing her running through the woods that she comes across a wolf stuck in a farmers trap. Nessa is an animal lover and has a good calming way with animals and she cannot just run by, unlike the other runner Cynthia that was supposed to be meeting with Nessa for them to run together. Cynthia hadn't waited and it was whilst attempting to catch up with her that Nessa found the injured wolf. Nessa approaches the animal carefully making sure it knows she is wanting to help. It's whilst freeing the trapped wolf that Nessa is attacked by a different wolf and is bitten. Nessa passes out and when she wakens she is in the health centre with Dr Kallish dressing her fairly large, painful wound. Dr Kallish asks about the wolves Nessa encountered and reassures her he has given her shots to counteract infection and the possibility of rabies, he even gives her the tooth that the wolf left behind in her hip when it bit her. Dr Kallish and Dr Raab work at the health centre where Nate and other children his age are being regularly monitored to check for any ill health that could be the result of the enviromental waste that a local company called Dutch Chem has illegally and irresponsibly dumped in the area. 
Nessa heals much more rapidly than expected and is eager to abandon her crutches and get back to school and her running training with Coach Hoffman. Delphine, Nessa's younger sister takes the tooth to school and gets a hole drilled in the tooth to make into a necklace/talisman for her sister. Despite still being in pain from the bite, Nessa begins running faster times. It is good news as if Nessa is to get into college she will need a scholarship. Then things start to be a bit strange, her hearing becomes much more sensitive. One day whilst at her best friends studying, she hears a conversation between Bree and Gabe who are both downstairs whilst she is in the upstairs bathroom. Nessa's eyesight has also improved so much that she no longer needs her contact lenses. Nessa hides all these changes including the recurring nightmares she is still having about being attacked by the wolf. The final straw that finally makes her reach out for help is when she dreams that she is changing into the wolf. That's when a friends of Bree's rather hippy mum introduces Nessa to a local shaman who helps Nessa understand what is happening and how to deal with it.

I was immediately pulled in by the prologue, and wanted to learn more about the scientist featured in it called Camille Rogerson. Camille has been given a job on the team attempting to to clean up what Dutch Chem has left behind in the form of pollution. It's whilst working alone than Camille has an encounter with wolves. Then the book begins telling us Nessa's story. It was a shame we didn't revisit Camille and learn more about her work and her run in with the wolves. The genres I have seen this book labelled as are YA, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Paranormal and Shifter, which all fit the book well.  

I did really enjoy this book, its difficult to explain why on Goodreads I only gave the book 4/5 stars. The book felt a little slow in some places, though it is well worth sticking with and reading to the end. I enjoyed this book so much I read the second in the series that is called Chimera straight away. The cover of Chimera has me making all sorts of guesses and thoughts about what could happen next.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading this book were that I found this to be an interesting start to what could be a fantastic book series! Not sure how to explain it other than to compare it to two Book/TV adaptations and say it's more like the Teen-wolf TV series and YA aimed than the Bitten series adaptation from Kelley Armstrong's Women Of The Otherworld book series.

MORE IN THIS SERIES

In CHIMERA, the second installment in the Weregirl trilogy, 

Nessa confronts the truth of who she is, where she comes from, 

and what she has to do to survive.

Title: Chimera
Author: C.D. Bell
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Shapeshifter 
Publisher: Chooseco
Release Date: 1st November 2017

BLURB from Goodreads
The forest is full of secrets. 

Nessa Kurland is adjusting to life as a weregirl—she is transforming with ease and running with a pack she cares for deeply. Her boyfriend Luc is a fellow shifter, and Paravida, the corporation responsible for unethical genetic experiments on the residents of Tether, has pulled out of town, leaving the community safe. 

But that’s just how it appears on the surface. 

Nessa returns home from a run with the pack to find an FBI raid and the shocking news that her mother Vivian is being held without bail for violations so serious she may be facing life in prison. What did Nessa’s mother, a small-town vet tech, do to threaten Homeland Security? Vivian’s secret past leads Nessa to discover there is more to her own story than she ever imagined. 

The wolves that are running through Tether’s woods are not the same pack Nessa knew before. These are not all natural wolves. And they are breeding. 

Nessa’s transformation is only just beginning. 

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK

REVIEW - THE HANGING GIRL BY EILEEN COOK

Title: The Hanging Girl

Author: Eileen Cook

Genre: YA, Mystery, Thriller

Publisher: Bonnier Zaffre, Hot Key Books/HMH Books

Release Date: 19th October 2017/3rd October 2017

BLURB from Goodreads

Skye Thorn has given tarot card readings for years, and now her psychic visions are helping the police find the town’s missing golden girl. It’s no challenge—her readings have always been faked, but this time she has some insider knowledge. The kidnapping was supposed to be easy—no one would get hurt and she’d get the money she needs to start a new life. But a seemingly harmless prank has turned dark, and Skye realizes the people she’s involved with are willing to kill to get what they want and she must discover their true identity before it’s too late.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon US

Amazon UK

REVIEW

After two really good paranormal shape-shifter books I felt I should have a change of genre and settled on this book. After reading With Malice also by Eileen Cook, I have high expectations for this one. I am also curious about the psychic and tarot elements mentioned in the blurb.

The cover I have chosen to describe as part of my review is the one I have pictured above and it is also featured below within my Cover Compare feature. This cover has a tree as it's major feature, with a very dark and what may be described as a more sinister feel to the cover.  Then there is a depiction of Eileen Cooks version of the "hanged man" tarot card which is nailed onto a tree. The card has the book title on it. This cover features the byline which says, "Trust No One, Deceive Everyone" at the bottom of the cover.

The main character of this book, who is also my favourite character is Candi Skye Thorn, though she uses her middle name of Skye in everyday life hating her real first name Candi! Skyes lives with her mother in an apartment in an increasingly run down area. Skye isn't in the popular gang at school, in fact after the "incident" she tries to keep a low profile and generally keeps to herself. During the "incident" she was caught lying. Skye dreams of getting out of her home town. In fact Skye and best friend Drew have been planning their escape for years. their dream is to move in together, Drew will attend college and Skye will find a job. Drew doesn't need to worry about money as she has rich parents so will have their financial support throughout college. 

Skye's attempt to make some money is to utilise the "gift" her mother and grandmother say runs through their family of being psychic. Skye doesn't believe on the "gift" she thinks she is just very good at reading people and the tarot card meanings. Skye finds that most people project within their actions the answers they want from Skye. Skye is good at setting the scene for the mystical tarot card readings her grandma handed down to her. Her tarot cards may look they have been handed down through generation after generation but she bought them brand new from Amazon. Skye is clever and a little cunning which she believes runs in her family more than psychic abilities. When the new tarot cards arrived Skye aged them. Skye soaked each individual tarot card in a weak tea and then dried them on a low setting in the oven. The part Skye hates most about giving a reading is asking for the payment, it feels wrong, slimy but not so distasteful that Skye would do readings for free. Skye is panicking about how she is going to tell Drew that she doesn't have the money to move away with her as they had dreamed and planned to do. Would Drew forgive her? Was she destined to be stuck here in Michigan forever. Though Skye thinks she is smart she does get drawn into helping someone with a "kidnapping" scheme. Skye and the "kidnapper/s" exchange notes by placing them in a large reference book in the library. The kidnapper insists on having a code name which is Pluto. The whole reason and choice of the code name is explained within the book much better than I can, and I really do not want to reveal anything really spoilery as that would in my opinion spoil your individual enjoyment of the book.

The other main character and the character we are supposed to love to hate/dislike in this book is Paige. Paige is a young woman who is used to getting her own way and being given anything she wants no expense is spared. Unfortunately the very thing Paige craves is her fathers attention, and its the very thing she doesn't have. Paige has run away before, so that's what everyone thinks she has done again when she suddenly disappears. 

There were many points in the book I wanted to shout at Skye to rethink the things she was about to do. When she finally caves in during a rash moment and agrees to be part of the kidnap plan! In fact a couple of my Goodreads updates explain how I felt at the time of reading the certain sections of the book dealing with the kidnapping. At around 18% so fairly early in the book was "What on earth has Skye got herself into?!" The morning after agreeing to the scheme Skye does attempt to back out of the agreement but Pluto will not allow her to and even hints that Skye could be blackmailed into going ahead with the plan!

To begin with the disappearing part of kidnap plan goes ahead without a hitch. It's as tie goes on that things start to go awry. Skye soon feels like she is being watched and followed and at a later section of the book she feels her own life and even that of her mother may be in serious danger! Which is when I make my second update comment on Goodreads which was at 75% my comment was "Wow what a mess, what a twist"! I have read two books written by Eileen Cook this one and With Malice, I truly adore Eileen Cook's writing style. As you read and become more invested in the characters of the book you feel submerged into their lives and problems. I seriously wanted to grab hold of Skye and shake her whilst asking why she ever agreed to being part of the kidnapping scheme. Then as you read more of the book Eileen reveals Skye's motivation for being involved. I guess some people will view Paige's character as an attention seeking, spoilt child but Eileen then shows us, the reader, why Paige feels as she does. In fact you begin not really liking Paige to feeling sorry for her and wishing you could just hug her. One thing the girls have in common is wanting something they don't have and having somewhat distant relationships with their parents. With Skye she has no father on the scene at all, and she views her mother as a charlatan psychic who she has little in common with and who she doesn't find easy to talk to. By the end of the book Skye's opinion does change towards her mother and Skye grows into a more mature character herself accepting who she is and where she comes from. I really loved this book I felt pulled into the action early and held there to the very end. The tension builds and then just when you think you have sorted out everything in your own mind, Eileen Cook delivers another twist. There were certainly at least a couple of twists in the latter part of the book that I didn't see coming! I will certainly be checking out other titles by Eileen Cook and recommending her books to others.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing this book, that was my last Goodreads entry was "Once again Eileen Cook gives plenty of suspense, tension building and keeps you guessing to the very end with lots of twists and turns along the way". 

COVER COMPARE

Below are the two different covers I have seen for this book.

A                                   B

COVER A is a closer view of a tree or wood that is read and brown, so perhaps an old propery or run down wood. There is a scrap of paper, perhaps torn from a notebook or a the back of a receipt is nailed onto the tree/wood  and has the byline of "Trust No One, Deceive Everyone" on it. The cover does match an area that is described in the book well, so it's almost a scene from the book.

COVER B is as I described within my review, has a tree as it's major feature. Then there is a depiction of Eileen Cooks version of the "hanged man" tarot card which is nailed onto a tree. This cover also features the byline which says, "Trust No One, Deceive Everyone" at the bottom of the cover.

I do honestly think both covers are attractive and would catch my eye when on a book shelf in a bookstore which is their primary job. Both covers work, in that I'd notice them and want to pick up the book to read the blurb, then obviously want to buy and read the book!

Having said that I do have a preference, having now read the book I feel the cover with the tarot card fits the content of the book very well. 

Which cover do you prefer?