Scookie Reviews

FEVER by Lauren DeStefano (The Chemical Garden #2)  3 Stars  Verdict: Miserable. And not in a good way. Let’s get one thing straight. I loved book one and I’m still pumped for book 3. Unfortunately this is a bridging story full of side plots. It was the aftermath of book 1 and the build up to book 3, and there’s one word to describe it. Miserable. What wasn’t miserable was a half-happy memory, scarred by the dystopian world. That in itself is pretty despondent. The beautiful prose made it sound like a reminiscent drone, and the scales were tipped towards pretentious in this book. Personally I didn’t connect with it like I did the last time. In particular, I never really understood the many references to bees. Life became grey for me when reading this. Well alright, the prose was beautiful so let’s say a shade of greyish lilac. So life was crap before and it’s crap now. And it’s only getting crapper. The people in their world don’t even want to fix the issue...

GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn  5 Stars  Verdict: Kinda messed up, aren't they? When Nick finds his wife missing in suspicious circumstances, he doesn’t react the way a loving husband should. That’s all I’m going to say (fearful of spoilers). The film is also very close to the book, so don't watch if you plan to read it! At first I enjoyed the two narrators, Nick's present day musings which are obliviously insensitive towards his wife, juxtaposed against Amy’s quirky diary entries of a girl falling in love. I'd say I had medium interest. The treasure hunt kept me semi-interested, and the mystery of the ‘gone girl’ seemed a little underwhelming considering how long this book was in the charts for. I think it’s fair to say this book starts off with an average plot written with flare, but no less average. When the twists began, the story began. It might have taken a while, but it was worth it. I could say ‘I saw it coming’ but that wouldn’t be the whole truth...

Unfortunately stacking a self-pub fest onto my plate right now is going to put cracks in the china. What I mean is, I don’t have enough time to coordinate the blog event I was hoping for. Organising good quality content from a bunch of authors takes time, and I want to be able to put that time in. My boyfriend of five years has a job in the same county as me – a commutable distant if we pick the right location! We’re looking to rent in one of the most expensive places to live, so there’s that. I’ve taken on new responsibilities at work too, which is taking up more of my energy although not so much my time. This isn’t the end. I’m hoping to get it up and running when everyone is thinking about those summer reads! So if you’re interesting in taking part, please get in contact. As soon as I get enough content polished up, I’ll announce the new schedule. See original post for more details.   Here's what I'm looking for: ~*~ 1000 word extract of your most enticin...

FIND ME IF YOU DARE by Vicki Leigh  (Dreamwalker #2)  3 Stars  Verdict: An action romance. Not bad.  Review of book 1   As Kayla’s father plots to bring on the apocalypse, the Protectors join forces with a coven in order to take down her father before it’s too late. This book has a lot of things I love – protective characters, thrilling action, magical powers – yet I don’t think it was quite as good as the first book in the series. As before, Daniel leads the narration. Usually I love a protective character, but in this book I found Daniel overbearing. Poor Kayla proved her strength over and over, but Daniel still saw her as weak. On the other hand, I liked how much Kayla developed in this book, both in her powers and her ability to take on anything that came her way whilst remaining sweet at heart. The story seemed to lunge over a few weeks, tumbling head first into action – but with context and characters I couldn’t place. Too many names were list...

THE WINNER'S CURSE by Marie Rutkoski 3 Stars  Verdict: Slow and flowery.  Kestrel is clever and tough, with a strategic mind and a sharp affinity for reading others. Arin is a defiant yet skilled slave, and clearly just as intelligent. After paying too much for him in an auction, Kestrel’s name becomes tarnished in society... The first half of the book is sssssslllllooooowwww. While I’m not denying the author is good at the flowery prose (a bit of an oxymoron), a lot of words were wasted telling me something which could have been shown in a much more interesting and succinct way. But what really puts cement in its shoes is that nothing much happens. Oh, there’s gossip. And romance. Silly romance. Time spent with horses. Tea parties. Other parties... Where’s the, erm, well...story? Kestrel can be an idiot too. She’s a little hypocritical when it comes to gossipers, and spends a lot of the book sorting out her own shortfalls – actually, that made her a wel...

DEMON ROAD by Derek Landy 5 Stars Verdict: Easily the best book I have read this year. #2 - Desolation #3 - American Monsters Amber’s parents want to eat her. Amber doesn’t want to be eaten. This calls for a deal with a demon, a hunt for a murderer, and an action packed road trip! Fantastic premise. Loved the characters too. Amber is relatable - the right amount of awkward, self-conscious, and generally a good sport. Milo is her hired protector, although something felt very off about him... He’s serious, strict, and secretive. Blunt too. Gotta love a blunt character. Then there’s the loveable idiot, Glen, who they accidentally acquire on their way. He grinds Milo’s nerves, which makes a great banter. I’m so glad this book isn’t about romance. It wouldn’t have worked. Instead it’s witty and entertaining, and an adventure that will make an amazing film, or even a series... Ever watched Supernatural? It’s hard not to see the similarities: old car, deals with demons, tu...

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green 5 Stars Verdict : For a book about dying cancer kids, it didn't half make me laugh. (I'm a terrible person...) Two kids with cancer meet at a support group. We all know where this one is heading. If you don't then perhaps skim past this review for now.  It was good the Green decided to inject humour into this one. If he hadn't, it wouldn't have worked.  That's not to say it didn't get touch at times. However, the story never made me cry. The moment you pick up the book you know what terrible event is looming. It's inevitable. Although I might not have shed a tear when the time came, I still felt sorrow in the moment.  The writing is intelligent and creative. Combined with quirky characters, you have a prose that's both funny and thoughtful. Every sentence was inspiring. If you're an aspiring author of young adult novels, read this book - no, study it. It felt effortless how much Green m...

STARDUST by Neil Gaiman 5 Stars  Verdict: A gritty fairytale for adults. A star falls. Tristran proclaims he will fetch that star to prove his love to a woman who frankly isn’t bothered. Witches, dead princes, magic and a little gore, STARDUST is a fantastic modern fairytale that still feels traditional. This is a book for anyone who loves gritty fairytales. I loved the film, and now I love the book. Those are two very separate things. Of course the story is similar, but the style, the creativity, and the resolutions are very different. Compared to the film, Tristran felt flat to me, but the playful yet dark voice of the book makes up for what the male lead lacks. It’s a short book, but not a children’s book. I reckon I’d still have loved it as a teen. Bit of swearing, bit of gore, bit of sex. Best part? The resolve. I love clever round ups, playing on words and slotting pieces of the story together. Worst part? The ending. After a clever resolve, it turns into a...

Do you know what time it is? My birthday! Okay, but what else is it? It’s the time where I start to plan my self-publishing fest. If you’re self-published then come on over and get involved. Last year was amazing. We had a vast mixture of posts: author interviews, guest articles, book reviews, giveaways. If you're interesting in taking part in any of these things, let me know and we'll sort it out. The sad part is I don’t have time to read your lovely books this year. I’m snowed under and don’t like making promises I can’t keep. Instead I’d like to feature an extract of your novel for anyone to read and decide for themselves! This extract can be up to 1000 words long, so pick wisely. Every post goes through me. I’ll offer editorial feedback, guidance, and generally  In return for your wonderful contribution, you’ll have my thanks as well as your time in the spotlight. Most of all, you’ll have the support of other authors. Last year more than ha...

THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO by Patrick Ness 5 Stars  Verdict: If you can adjust to the style, this is the book of never putting down.  At first, I didn’t like this book at all. I struggled with the unconventional spelling, I found the voice a disconnected ramble, and nothing seemed to happen in the first four chapters. Then, all of a sudden, I could barely put it down. The voice and spelling worked. The plot took off, with poor Todd running for his life almost continuously from start to finish. The mystery of what happens when the boys become men is strung out for the whole book. Ness sets up ample opportunities for us to learn more, and then twists them around so that I ended up with a growing number of questions. The lack of answers irritated me, yet I kept reading. It tore out my heart, yet just like Todd I kept going. This book can only be described as emotional self harm. I’m not recommending this book to all readers. It’s a book that will get your ...

THE 100 by Kass Morgan 4 Stars Verdict: You can't go wrong with a concept like that. #2 - Day 21 #3 - The Homecoming 100 juvenile delinquents sent to earth to see if it’s inhabitable. No adults. You know this will be angst ridden and full of peril. This is my kind of book! The writing itself is fairly perfunctory, but sometimes it’s not even that. Chunks of detail were skipped, events were missed, and I found myself wondering how, just how, did this or that happen. How did a medical tent become a thing, and where did the supplies come from? How did Glass manage to... okay, spoilers aside. The book is always tumbling forwards, the characters twisting around each other as we work out what they did to deserve such a fate. After watching the TV series, which is now my current favourite, I have to say it’s not the same calibre. I’m glad the storylines are different as it means I can enjoy both, but if you only have time for one, I’d recommend the TV alternative. Th...

WE WERE LIARS by E. Lockhart  5 Stars Verdict: Unconventional and thought provoking. I’m glad this was a short story because the writing style was poetically, erm, you know... Pretentious. It was pretentious. Phew. Glad to get that word out of me. Okay, so sometimes it was beautiful. I decided at the beginning to not let that bother me because when it worked, it worked damn well. For every paragraph which sounded melodramatic, I could pull out ten more which I loved to bits. And what’s wrong with British toothpaste? That’s probably the weirdest thing that’s irked me about a novel. Somehow Lockhart has made me patriotic over toothpaste... Back to the review. The characters inspired emotions in me. I loved to hate the manipulative granddad. I enjoyed reading how the spoiled sisters tore their family apart from the inside out over their own greed. The romance that strung the mystery together had me reading on and on. The little fairytales were a nice touch - short a...

ALLEGIANT by Veronica Roth  5 Stars  Verdict : Ouch. #1 - Divergent #2 - Insurgent I can’t review this book in detail without spoilers, so I’m keeping it short and sharp -  which is fitting, as this book felt like a knife to the heart. No, not a knife. This book is Roth’s warning: Enter my imagination at your own peril. What I will say, is that this book is very different from the others. It had to. The end of book 2 was a game changer, and so this book isn’t the final step in the revolution. It’s much more of a message. A statement. And in true Divergent fashion, it’s slow to get going but hard to put down. Until that final section. I’ve come to terms with the ending now. It held a lot of meaning, and felt like the realistic option. A bold move, by all accounts, but after reading hundreds of pages, I feel disappointed, jilted, and well and truly done. The next in the series doesn’t interest me. It was good while it lasted, but so long Divergent...

INSURGENT by Veronica Roth  5 Stars  Verdict : Gradual twisting plot with a prose that kept me entwined. #1 - Divergent #3 - Allegiant I love the way Roth writes. One sentence slips into the next, punching you in the gut or sending shivers down your spine depending on what the situation calls for. I lingered over several lines when reading them, soaking up the impact. Not one of those lines overstep the boundary into purple prose or pretentious, in my opinion. Just beautiful and meaningful. The story picks up where we left off, with a steady pace and a gradual build. The factions become a lot more salient in this book, and the world develops in the way I hoped book 1 would have explored; I felt like Roth knew what she was doing from the start. Tris and Tobias have issues to sort out in this book, and the state of their relationship is put to the test. I wouldn't call it action packed until past the half way point, but it’s an enjoyable read. Lot’s happens, th...

TALON by Julie Kagawa 3 Stars  Verdict : A romance novel with the slightest touch of dragon. I haven’t read a book on dragons before, I somehow I still don’t feel like I have after this one. The reasons that drew me in to the book didn’t transpire on the page. That said, Kagawa has a way with words that melts descriptions off the page to form images right there in front of you. Although Talon wasn’t my favourite read of the year, I’m tempted to checkout Kagawa’s Iron Fey series. Let’s get one thing straight. Talon is a romance novel, not action. It has a slight fantasy twist as the word ‘dragon’ is used a lot, but it doesn’t have a fantasy feel to it. If you think you’d enjoy a love triangle centred on the military and secret operatives, this is probably the book for you. As far as young adult novels go, this book felt on the younger side of the spectrum. Our main dragonell, Ember, sounds and acts younger, so maybe that’s why it didn’t appeal as much to me. I pref...

ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW by Jordan Elizabeth 3 Stars Verdict : Intriguing but not thrilling. Everyone in Arnn - a small farming town with more legends than residents - knows the story of Witchwood Hollow: if you venture into the whispering forest, the witch will trap your soul among the shadowed trees. *** Escape From Witchwood Hollow will always stand out to me as unusual in a good way. The eerie feeling of the hollow drew me in, and the multiple timelines developed steadily in a way that kept me thinking about where the story might be going. I’m a fan of the author and always surprised by some of her ideas, but overall this book didn’t hit the right notes for me. There were three main perspectives, each with different stories surrounding the haunted Witchwood Hollow. First we have schoolgirl Honoria from 2001. There’s not much to say about her, other than she’s still grieving the loss of her parents from the September 11th tragedy. I found her section just too...

WITCH HUNTER by Virginia Boecker 4 Stars Verdict : Brilliant opening followed by lots of long conversations, a few odd moments peppered with action, and then an epic end. Review done. Elizabeth Grey is one of the king's best witch hunters, devoted to rooting out witchcraft and doling out justice. But when she's accused of being a witch herself, Elizabeth is arrested and sentenced to burn at the stake. Salvation comes from a man she thought was her enemy. Nicholas Perevil, the most powerful and dangerous wizard in the kingdom, offers her a deal: he will save her from execution if she can break the deadly curse that's been laid upon him. But Nicholas and his followers know nothing of Elizabeth's witch hunting past--if they find out, the stake will be the least of her worries. And as she's thrust into the magical world of witches, ghosts, pirates, and one all-too-handsome healer, Elizabeth is forced to redefine her ideas of right and wrong, of friends and enemie...

SUCH A SECRET PLACE   by Cortney Pearson 3 Stars Verdict: Brilliant but inconsistent fantasy concept. Raids splatter across the news--Arcaian soldiers are stealing magic left and right, using it against the people they steal it from. When sixteen-year-old Ambry Csille's brother gets taken in one of these raids, her utter fear and panic should be enough to invoke tears in any normal world. But for Ambry, tears are a thing of the past. Because of a spell, people can no longer feel emotion; not enough to cry, and definitely not enough to defend themselves against the tyrannical soldiers stealing her people’s magic. A rare vial of enchanted tears chooses Ambry to reverse the spell, and soon she finds herself the target not only of the Arcaians, but of battle-scarred Talon Haraway, who wants the tears for his own reasons. All Ambry wants is to rescue her brother, but when her tears get stolen, Ambry determines to work with Talon to get them back. Any day the Arcaians could...

FROSTBITTEN by Heather Beck 4 stars Verdict : If you can get into it, you won’t want to put it down. Great beauty hides dark secrets...  Seventeen-year-old Anastasia Lockhart has never led an easy life, but when she starts getting into serious trouble, she’s sent to live with her grandparents in Cedar Falls. The small, picturesque town hasn’t changed since she visited four years ago, with one exception – the presence of a handsome, mysterious boy named Frost. Despite warnings from her grandparents and friends to stay away from Frost, Anastasia can’t deny their attraction, and the more time they spend together, the deeper in love they fall. Unfortunately, Frost has a secret that is beyond Anastasia’s wildest imagination, and she soon finds herself in the midst of a supernatural legend that has haunted Cedar Falls for years. Can Anastasia and Frost’s love really overcome anything, or are their fates much darker? ~*~ The Rating Breakdown Enjoyment: 3  Lots of ...

Nest Pitch has taught me so much writing. Here are a few thing's I learned from polishing up my first 300 words and taking part in the Nest Pitch: Your openings matters a lot. If your story kicks off in chapter two, or only grabs a reader's attention half way through chapter one, then you might be giving potential readers too much time to put the book down. Show . If you're cramming ideas in to hook the reader, you might actually be burring them with information instead. See if you can leave some of the exposition aside and show it later. Avoid vagueness . Your readers are blank slates, and they will only pull into the opening image what you give them. Specifics are what interests readers, and confusion is not the same as intrigue. One idea per sentence. If the sentence starts to sound full or unclear, then writing it as two separate sentences could strengthen your writing. Take a unique angle. Ask yourself, what makes your opening specific to your book? ...

Introducing the winner of Scookie Review's Hidden Gem Awards, Jason P Crawford, and his supernatural novel, Chain of Prophecy! How does it feel to win the Hidden Gem Awards? Fantastic! I really didn’t think I had a chance at it when I got a good look at the competition. I watched the final countdown with my heart in my throat…for five days! What inspired you to write Chains of Prophecy? Like a lot of my books, I wrote Chains of Prophecy after being inspired by a role-playing game. Ars Magica is a magical-European-medieval period game, and in it God is an objective reality. My book doesn’t use the mechanics presented in Ars Magica, but several of the concepts are borrowed from the same origin. What was the best part of writing it? Chains of Prophecy was my first published novel but my second written. The best part of writing it was that I had the same fire of creativity, but more confidence in myself as a writer because I knew I could finish a book. The harde...

Nest Pitch is over, and wow, I really wasn't expected the results. I'm ecstatic to announce that Team Sugar Rush cleared up the contest!  Not only did I receive four agent requests, I got to meet loads of lovely, supportive authors. Can't wait to read all your books, guys. If you'd like to read the opening 300 words of THE CLEARING, here's a link to the blog of my wonderful mentor, Louise Gornall , My whole manuscript is a lot stronger, thanks to her. I've also worked on the cover using copy-right free images. I think I'm getting the hang of Paint.Net. Despite danger lurking between the trees, the banished always run into the forest. Ruby doesn’t understand why. Until rebellious behaviour gets her sentenced. Now, Ruby is about to learn first-hand why the banished must run. Sixteen-year-old Ruby is not supposed to question the way of her village life. She is expected to settle down with her best friend and focus on bearing children,...

The contest is over, and congratulations to the winner, Jason P. Crawford. I will be posting up an author interview about The Chains of Prophecy within the next month! Here are my thoughts for the next contest. Feel free to comment below if you have any ideas, opinions, or musings. A Few Alterations So that the whole process is a little quicker, I will only select three top entries to read. This should make it much easier for me to post up the results within a few weeks, especially in case life gets unexpectedly busy again. After I've selected my three finalists, I will read each of the books entirely. In this contest, I mentioned I might put the book down at some point, but I decided against this. I need to know the ending to be able to truly judge a book. With so few final contestants, it seems unfair of me not to give everyone an equal chance. To Potential Contestants There's still time to vote on the next genre. The top two genres were Fantasy and Sci-Fi, so p...

#1 The Chains of Prophecy Jason P. Crawford When Samuel Buckland discovers he's descended of a powerful bloodline, he must first battle with his lack of faith before he faces evil in the form of a vicious yet smooth-talking politician.  This book takes no time in getting started, which is probably because Samuel is a character who likes to take action. Some of the side characters also act strangely at first, but it soon starts to fall into place as Samuel discovers that he must save a powerful yet helpless being. I'm going to keep my wording vague to avoid spoiling the plot, but if you're a fan of contemporary fiction involving angels, powers, and villains, then you'll love Chains of Prophecy . I’m a huge fan of angels and legacies, especially when the author adds in a few new spins like Crawford has. After learning that God and beliefs would play a part in the story, I was also thankful that this book handled beliefs in a way that isn't designed to...

#2 Bloodline Tara Ellis A meteor shower is followed by an infectious disease, one that seems to changing everyone around Alex into emotionless aliens. Alex always knew her father’s death was suspicious, but now solving the clues he left behind for her seems to be the key to reversing the disease.  The mystery behind the disease is well thought out. I loved the hieroglyphics sketched into the book – a nice touch, very unusual. The sketches pulled me into the puzzle left for Alex to solve, and it’s quite a clever quirk. I also commend the author for the diversity of her characters. I'm a fan of anything Egyptian and was glad to see Alex's heritage being part of the story. Alex is a sweetheart and her brother is intelligent and loving too. They make a good pair. On the other hand, I didn’t care much for ‘nice guy’ Chris because I just didn’t feel like I knew him very well. Maybe I’ll have to read book 2 to find out more about him. This was a quick read with a g...

#3 The Scary Girls J.D. Kaplan Trick needs a new band, preferably one where the lead singer doesn't make out with his girlfriend. That's when he meets the Scary Girls: three beautiful, mysterious, and talented musicians whom Trick instantly clicks with. He soon finds himself playing extraordinary music as well as bumping into otherworldly beings that have him questioning who, or what exactly, is he? Mixing music with the supernatural, The Scary Girls was the most original book of all the entries. I could tell the writer must be an awesome musician as well as a talented writer. I liked Trick a lot. There was something very relatable about all the characters - something real and raw, especially with Trick. He's a little uncomfortable in his skin, but rises to the moment, and comes across as very likeable, easy going, and very easy to follow as a main character. If you're tired of strong female leads, then this might be the book for you.  I became real...

#4 Broken Dolls B.R. Kingsolver Private Investigator R.B. Kendrick usually uses her telepathy to help nail cheating spouses. But when she's asked to investigate the disappearance of a missing girl, Kendrick uses her abilities to unravel a much more dangerous plot in the dark underbelly of the telepathic society. I loved the creativity in this one. The feisty character’s main gift was telepathy, which allowed a brilliant spin on a private investigator story. My favourite part was how Kendrick can tell what nasty things a person has done by the stains on their soul. There were also lots of juicy plot twists and action scenes too – a lot to keep me reading onwards. As much as I loved the concepts, explanations were often wordy and complicated, even when rereading. It all seemed to sound overly complicated for what it was, and new powers would pop up whenever needed rather than recycling old ideas to really knit the concepts together. I thought it would be better if the ch...

Ladies and gentlemen, readers and writers, it's about time I announced the results of the  Hidden Gem Awards . Eleven supernatural themed books entered, all self-published. Five were selected from reading the opening alone, and now they are all read and reviewed. I'll be posting one a day until we reach the winner to give each fantastic entry it's own time in the light. Here's the first runner up: #5 A Time Apart Rebecca Norrinne Caudill Olivia moves to Ireland, feeling a down on her luck and looking to kick start her life back up, starting with a tour of William Macauley's castle. When William rejects her offer, he wasn't expecting such a feisty reply, but Olivia was even more surprised when she remembers just exactly who William is. I knew a little of what was to come when I checked it was supernatural, but the twist was still a good one. The writing was quite clever, weaving in a few ideas that only really came together at that click mo...

I've had quite the month, guys, one that's been unexpectedly fantastic. Let me break it down: Nest Pitch 2015 Nest Pitch is a query contest, and I'm ecstatic to announce THE CLEARING made the cut! I'm on #TeamSugarRush, working with the lovely Louise Gornall to polish up my opening for the agent round on the 11th of May. Fingers crossed! Oxford University Press After several interviews, I've been offered an internship at Oxford University Press in the digital content ops department. I can't wait to get started, although I'll actually need to wait until June 29th before embarking on that stage of my career.  Hidden Gem Awards I've read all of my top picks - all were fantastic. I'm working on mini reviews and the rankings. If all goes to plan, I will be posting up the result next week.  Cheers!

FAIRY KEEPER by Amy Bearce 4 stars Verdict: Young girls will love this one! Shorten blurb: Forget cute fairies in pretty dresses. In the world of Aluvia, most fairies are more like irritable, moody insects. Almost everyone in the world of Aluvia views the fairy keeper mark as a gift, but not fourteen-year-old Sierra. She hates being a fairy keeper. Fairy nectar can heal people, but it is also a key ingredient in synthesizing Flight, an illegal elixir that produces dreaminess, apathy and hallucinations. She’s forced to care for a whole hive of the bee-like beasties by her Flight-dealing, dark alchemist father. Then one day, Sierra discovers the fairies of her hatch are mysteriously dead. The fairy queen is missing. Her father’s Flight operation is halted, and he plans to make up for the lost income by trading her little sister to be an elixir runner for another dark alchemist, a dangerous thug. Desperate to protect her sister, Sierra convinces her father she can retrieve the...

SLEEPING TOM by E.V. Fairfall 3 Stars Verdict: Brilliant first third. I can definitely recommend the first third... Hitchhiking is a bad idea but Caden is desperate.  When she accepts a ride from the first car to come by she meets Gabriel. He's her age, hot, and the closest thing she has to a savior. Problem is, he is a total jerk. With nowhere to go, Caden convinces Gabriel to let her stay with him for one night. He reluctantly lends a couch. That night Caden wakes up to strange noises. Concerned, she rushes into Gabriel’s room, already anticipating his bad temper. Instead, he’s kind, sweet, and suspiciously harmless—nothing like the man who gave her a ride. He seems like a different person altogether, and claims he is. By night he is Tom, and by day he is Gabriel. Caden finds herself drawn to the mysteries hidden in his eyes. For Gabriel, Caden is an annoying mistake. One night turns into many, and despite all his anger towards her, she stays. She even seems to acce...