Thursday 27 December 2018

REVIEW - THE NIGHT ROAD - SECOND CITY SERIES BY KATIE FRENCH

A brand new Breeders Universe Story 
that will keep you up reading past your bedtime. 
Title: The Night Road
Series: Breeders Universe
Author: Katie French
Genre: YA, Sci-Fi, Post Apocalyptic, Dystopian
Release Date: 6th December 2018

BLURB from Goodreads
Five generations after Riley and Clay first set foot on Shiprock, the community is thriving. Liberated from the Breeders, the new society is free to live and love how they chose.
Eighteen-year-old Meg is Shiprock’s apprentice gunslinger and wise-cracking security guard, keeping the people safe as she patrols the stony cliffs. She can hit a target at fifty paces with her eyes closed, and yet, she’s never ventured outside the sheer cliffs of her home. It isn’t safe out there. Marauders still roam, snatching up unsuspecting victims.
Then a plague hits their peaceful city. Her sister, and only living family, falls ill.
People will die if a cure isn’t found.
Meg ventures out to find renowned doctor Fulton Tally and a cure to save her sister and the town.
But untold peril awaits. Will Meg’s training prove enough to survive the night road?
PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK

REVIEW
As I have read and totally loved the Breeders series and its fantastic characters and though I thought the series came to a great end, I still felt like I wanted to read even more stories set in the same era and world of the Breeders. As the introduction explains The Night Road is the first book in the Second City series which is set in the Breeders universe a few decades on.

So I was really looking forward to reading more from the same universe but then I had to wonder if it could possibly live up the the Breeders series? Would the characters be as believable and likable as Riley and Clay? How much will the world have changed? What will the new challenges be?

So of course after thinking about all those questions I knew I had to read it!

The cover has a post apocalyptic feel to it with the broken down buildings in the background. From reading the blurb I would say the female on the cover is Meg who is a gunslinger. The cover certainly makes me think that women are still being treat "normally" and are still "kick butt women" like Riley!

As the book is set in the same universe as the Breeders and after reading the book I would say it falls into the Sci-Fi, Post Apocalyptic, and Dystopian genres. It also has suspense, plenty of action and some betrayal too.

As the blurb says this book is set decades into the future and is set in the settlement called Shiprock that was formed at the end of the Breeders Series. The "outside" still isn't safe and consequently Shiprock has its own security measure and gunslingers to protect it. In fact the book begins with Meg being an apprentice gunslinger and is on night duty which is usually quiet and boring! So when Meg spots a male trying to scale the steep rock sides to sneak into their settlement she is kind of excited. Meg knows if the guy doesn't fall to his death that there is very little trouble he could cause in Shiprock. There are actions in place to deal with those that try to sneak in. In fact there is no reason to sneak in as if you approach the front gate you can be asked to be allowed in. The guns and ammo for the gunslingers that protect Shiprock and those that still go on supply runs is supplied by Herrick, Guns & Ammo. 

Shiprock was once run by a man called Barrage and it was he and his men that made the impenetrable fortress. When Barrage died around 60 years ago, it was one of Megs ancestors that took over to create a free city. The present Mayor of Shiprock is Trax. There is very little crime or wrong doing in Shiprock. However if someone does commit a crime, become drunk and disorderly or break a rule then they can spend time in the "cooler" or have their food rations reduced. The fact life is co good in comparison to what is "outside" means most people behave. The only infractions are usually kids fooling around. The city at Shiprock has grown from just a few dozen citizens to having around two hundred people. There is a school, nurses for an infirmary that has been created, as well as a hunting team, a farming team, a security team and a maintenance team etc. The young residents attend the school until the age of 11, and then they take a job so that they are contributing to the city in exchange for food rations.

I really don't want to give away spoilers so forgive me for being more vague now rather than continuing in great detail. Meg and this man end up in a fight and the man stabs her. So Meg is in the infirmary recuperating when the first cases of a new flu like illness are brought in. Meg is immediately hustled out in an attempt to prevent her catching the illness. 

As well as guarding the borders of Shiprock the highly trained gunslingers are the ones that go out on scouting missions and retrieve supplies. Meg aspires to being a fully qualified gunslinger. Kace who is married to Megs sister Shannon has taught Meg how to shoot and fight. Kace and Shannon are both gleaners meaning they go "outside" looking for supplies that may be needed back at Shiprock. There is still lots of danger around during all scouting missions and it is during one of these missions that Meg's sister Shannon comes back with the symptoms of the new flu like illness Meg decides she needs to go out in search for medicines to help her sister. 

The rest of the book covers how Meg talks her way into being the one sent out for medical supplies. There aren't very many volunteers to go "outside" to search for medicines that are a scarce luxury in the world as it is now. It is revealed that there is someone in existence who maybe able to help. Of course Meg immediately plans to go looking for this person who could help her sister. 

The rest of the book tells how Meg sets off with someone whom she presumes she can trust with plenty of supplies and a great vehicle for the terrain she needs to travel. Soon she finds herself alone, with no vehicle, or supplies and just a letter of introduction to give to the person who could possibly save her sister. 

One of my most favourite characters in the book is Meg who reminds me so much of Riley with her "anything a man can do a woman can do" ("and probably do it better!") attitude. Meg is also impetuous, and to begin with thinks she is infallible. Meg soon realises that things in the "outside" are still very similar to what her ancestors experienced, but she has the motivation that if she doesn't find help and supplies her sister may die.  

I also liked the character of Trax, I really want to know more about his ancestory and his history. Why doesn't he go by his real name Henry? What is he trying to hide? And will the letter he wrote and gave to Meg convince his friend to come to the aid of those at Shiprock? Trax is best friends with Meg's sister Shannon and the Mayor of Shiprock.

There are a couple of characters I enjoyed "hating" too, but I won't reveal those as I don't want to influence what you think of them as to begin with their bad sides are not revealed!

I really enjoyed this book, I loved trying to work out who the various characters in The Night Road were descendants from. I have wrote down what I think and who I think is related to whom! I'll be interested in finding out what other readers of both series think as well as the familial connections are hopefully revealed as the series develops. Or maybe Katie will do some family trees for her breeder fans!  

So to finish up my final thoughts are that I thought that the Breeders series was an amazing series and I think that this series called the Second City that is set in the same dangerous universe could potentially be just as fantastic! Definitely looking forward to more, the Second City Series is firmly on my "Must Read" list!!



Monday 10 December 2018

REVIEW - TONGUE TWISTERS BY AMY MULLEN

Title: Tongue Twisters
Illustrated by: Amy Mullen
Genre: Childrens Fiction
Publisher: Xist Publishing
Release Date: 1st September 2018

BLURB from Goodreads
How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? 
Classic Tongue Twisters are paired with cheery illustrations in this new collection. Children will be introduced to Peter Piper (and his peck of pickled peppers), a young fisher named Fischer, a flea and a fly who flew up a flue and many many more funny tongue twisters. Amy Mullen's delightful illustrations update classic characters and tongue twisters guaranteed to trip you up.


PURCHASE LINKS

REVIEW
When I saw this children's tongue twister book I couldn't resist reading it. One of my Uncle's always used to tease myself and my cousins, saying them and trying to get us to say them back to him.

The cover is bright and attractive and I would imagine it will certainly draw the eye to it on a bookstore shelf. The genre of the book is listed as Children's Fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed the book myself and I could imagine the book making a great stocking filler Christmas Gift for a wide age range.

Each tongue twister has a double page dedicated to it with a really clever illustration to go with it. I read the kindle version of the book and the colour's seemed quite bright and I would imagine attractive to children. The tongue twisters ranged from ones I had heard a lot as a child, such as Peter Piper picked a peckled pepper, and She sells sea shells on the sea shore to new ones I hadn't heard of before such as Betty Botter bought some butter, and Once upon a barren moor.

As I finished the book I really wanted even more, but for a young child I think this book is a perfect first collection of tongue twisters.

As I said above this really brought some precious childhood memories back to me and had me chuckling. My daughter is now 22 yrs old so not really they market this book is aimed at. Though I still had fun saying the tongue twisters myself and then challenging my daughter to say them, to see who could recite them the fastest with the least mistakes. I would definitely put it on your Christmas stocking filler list! 

Monday 3 December 2018

REVIEW - DARK HUNT - EMP LODGE SERIES BY GRACE HAMILTON

Title: Dark Hunt
Series: EMP Lodge series
Author: Grace Hamilton
Genre: Post Apocalyptic, Survival, Adventure
Publisher: Relay Publishing
Release Date: 13th April 2017

BLURB from Goodreads
In the post-apocalyptic aftermath, Megan Wolford is settling in with her makeshift family at the safe haven of their lodge, but she remains wary of trusting others. Despite her growing feelings for Wyatt Morris, the leader of the group, she still feels most secure on her own. But when she becomes separated from her beloved daughter Caitlin in a storm, Megan is in danger of losing the one thing keeping her fighting to stay alive. Injured and desperate, she must fight every instinct within her to rely on the others for help when they find evidence that Caitlin has been kidnapped. 

Wyatt is determined to do everything he can to bring her home, and he organizes a search party to visit a set of old adversaries in the guise of traders to try and find the missing girl—but Megan would rather take matters into her own hands. With Megan setting off alone to face unknown enemies, she is more vulnerable than ever. When a mysterious stranger known as the Green Woman appears to be a lead in finding Caitlin, she’ll have to track her down. 

Can she put aside her stubborn need for independence and accept help from her newfound community before it’s too late?


PURCHASE LINKS

REVIEW
After reading and loving Dark Retreat the rest of this series was instantly put onto my "must read" list! So saying I was looking forward to reading Dark Hunt which is Bk2 in the EMP Lodge series is a kind of understatement. Though I had other titles on my kindle to read I felt the pull to purchase Dark Hunt and revisit with the characters I quickly grew to love in Dark Retreat.

So the cover of Dark Hunt is a view from the side rear of the Lodge. We can see the corner of the Lodge with a male figure who is holding a rifle and looking out on two people walking away with a dog. This also fits a scene within the book really well however I am not going to tell you more about it and that would involve spoilers! So you will just have see if you realise which scene the cover depicts when you read the book yourself!


The genres I have seen listed for this book are Post-Apocalytic, Survival, Action and Adventure and I would say they all fit the content of this book well.


This book begins with everyone being relatively happy in their surroundings nevertheless still cautious of any visitors, or anyone from another settlement. With no real end in sight to their way of life those that live in the Lodge are thinking about building extra rooms and/or even an extra one or two buildings. Thought is also being put in to prepping for the winter. The plan is to try hunting larger animals and preserve the meat for the leaner months of winter, as well as using animal pelts for warmth of course.


Megan and Wyatt are becoming even closer, however Megan is conscious of making time for just herself and Caitlin together too. Caitlin is still happy with the Morris clan and has certainly grown to love Wyatt and the rest of them! Megan has settled in but is always aware of the fact no one knows what is round the corner these days, so she understandably wants to take part in the hunting trips keeping some of her independence, passing on more of her tracking and trapping knowledge in exchange for herbal remedy knowledge from Wyatts mum who clearly now treats her as a daughter in law and accepts Caitlin as another grandchild too.


It's during one these mother & daughter trips out that both Megan and Caitlin get caught up in the increasingly turbulent storms that seem to be occurring more often lately. Both Megan and Caitlin are hurt. When Megan regains consciousness it is apparent she is badly hurt. She has either broken or badly sprained her ankle/leg. An injury such as this in the times they are all living in can ultimately lead to death so she is in a lot of pain and then when she realises Caitlin isn't with her or in the immediate vicinity the panic soon sets in.


When Megan is found and Caitlin is still missing she is devastated and desperate to go out and search for her. But the injured Megan can only sit and wait or the others to return when they search for any signs of Caitlin. Where could she be? Could someone have taken her? Could Kyle's group be behind this? Or has someone simply taken an injured Caitlin in and is giving her first aid treatment. The fact Wyatt keeps returning from searching empty handed causes a rift between him and Megan. The sad thing is he and his family are as desperate to find Caitlin as Megan is! 

So new alliances are made, another lone survivor who has extremely valuable skills meets up with the Morris Clan, but they also hear of a dangerous ruthless group travelling near to the area they live. Can the small survivor groups manage to ignore or fight off these ruthless raiders or should they perhaps band together and bring an end to the ruthless gangs raiding spree's?

There were the great characters from book one such as Wyatt, his mum, brother etc with the addition of a few more such as "the green woman" who is seemingly impossible to find and quick at raiding others for things she needs. I warmed to this character and hope to see more of her in the rest of the series. She could be a key person in bringing down those who wish to take what they want and hurt or kill whoever gets in their way.

Wyatt's mum and her herbal remedies are once again needed in throughout this book. I have become attached to the whole Morris clan really. I'm thinking maybe the "green woman" may end up a romantic interest for one of the Morris clan but I will have to read more of the series to find out what happens there.

We also meet Kyle's brother again in this book, though he seems to have forgiven the Morris clan for the death of his brother. Can he be trusted? Or not? I'm not sure I would fully trust him. Then there's the people in his settlement, if not best friends maybe they will be a group that can be bartered with for skills or produce.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing this book were, Wow this series is going to be amazing if it continues like this! I actually read the first 93% in one reading session and was fairly irritated when I had to put my kindle down to go to sleep! So of course I finished the rest of the book the following night. I am definitely looking forward to reading both more o this series and other series by this author.