Between Shades Of Grey by Ruta Sepetys

The Blurb On The Back:

That morning, my brother’s life was worth a pocket watch …

One night fifteen-year-old Lina, her mother and young brother are hauled from their home by Soviet guards, thrown into cattle cars and sent away. They are being deported to Siberia.

An unimaginable and harrowing journey has begin. Lina doesn’t know if she’ll ever see her father or her friends again. But she refuses to give up hope.

Lina hopes for her family.
For her country.
For her future.
For love – first love, with the boy she barely knows but knows she does not want to lose …
Will hope keep Lina alive?

Set in 1941, Between Shades of Grey is an extraordinary and haunting story based on first-hand family accounts and memories from survivors.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Ruta Sepetys’s debut YA novel is a harrowing, brutal and personal tale of the horrors suffered by the people of the occupied Baltic states at the hands of the Soviet invaders. There are times when it’s difficult to read and I think that its impact is very much let down by an abrupt ending, but this is a powerful debut that well deserved its critical reception and deals with a subject that the West is willing to brush under the carpet.

The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda

The Blurb On The Back:

Against all odds, 17-year-old Gene has survived in a world where the general population has eaten humans to near extinction. The only remaining humans, or hepers as they are known, are housed in domes on the savannah and studied at the nearby Heper Institute. Every decade there is a government sponsored hunt. When Gene is selected to be one of the combatants he must learn the art of the hunt – but also elude his fellow competitors as suspicions about his true nature grow …

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Andrew Fukuda’s YA novel (the first in a trilogy) portrays vampires as dangerous predators rather than emo romance fodder. The world building is fascinating and although it didn’t all work for me, it’s nevertheless a fascinating spin on the dystopian genre and for that alone, it deserves to have an audience.

London Falling by Paul Cornell

The Blurb On The Back:

The dark is rising …

Detective Inspector James Quill is about to complete the drugs bust of his career. Then his prize suspect Rob Toshack is murdered in custody. Furious, Quill pursues the investigation, co-opting intelligence analyst Lisa Ross and undercover cops Costain and Sefton. But nothing about Toshack’s murder is normal.

Toshack had struck a bargain with a vindictive entity, whose occult powers kept Toshack one step ahead of the law – until his luck ran out. Now, the team must find a ‘suspect’ who can bend space and time and alter memory itself. And they will kill again. As the group starts to see London’s ancient magic for themselves, the have two choices: panic or use their new abilities. Then they must hunt a terrifying supernatural force the only way they know how: using police methods, equipment and tactics. But they must all learn the rules of this new game – and quickly. More than their lives will depend on it.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Paul Cornell’s novel, the first in a new dark fantasy series, is THE SWEENEY takes on hell. I found it very slow to get started and quite bitty in terms of how the pieces fit together, although there are some great ideas underpinning it and it has potential to be an interesting series.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the free copy of this book.

The Chinese Nail Murders by Robert van Gulik

The Blurb On The Back:

The brutal lust-murder of a woman whose head had been cut off to prevent identification; the foul killing of a champion boxer; a corpse on which the medical examiner could find no signs of violent death – three sensational crimes confronting Judge Dee, the long-beaded, bewhiskered detective of Ancient China. Yet it seemed he could only unravel one of them. Torn by an emotional conflict, deeply shocked by the loss of his best friend and confronted with the imminent uprising of a hostile population, the imperturbable Judge Dee lost his composure and started to doubt himself and others.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

The last in Robert van Gulik’s Judge Dee series is a deftly crafted historical mystery set in 7th century China, based on a real judge who rose to prominence in Imperial China and using real cases from the time. It’s a cosy, twisting mystery with some brutal murders and hidden melancholy as Dee becomes interested in the wife of the local pharmacist and medical examiner. Perfect reading for a rainy Sunday afternoon …

Master List of Books 2012

1. The Great And Dangerous by Chris Westwood.

2. Babylon Steel by Gaie Sebold.

3. The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith.

4. Muncle Trogg And The Flying Donkey by Janet Foxley.

5. Dark Parties by Sara Grant.

6. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

7. The Book Of Wonders by Jasmine Richards.

8. Deadline by Chris Crutcher.

9. Someone Else’s Life by Katie Dale.

10. This Dark Endeavour by Kenneth Oppel.

11. The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa.

12. The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa.

13. The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa.

14. Stuck On Me by Hilary Freeman.

15. Secrets Of The Henna Girl by Sufiya Ahmed.

16. I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga.

17. After The Snow by S. D. Crockett.

18. Oliver Twisted by J. D. Sharpe.

19. Runelight by Joanne Harris.

20. Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber.

21. The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin.

22. Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion.

23. The Killables by Gemma Malley.

24. The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff.

25. The Age Of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker.

26. Timeless by Gail Carriger.

27. Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick.

28. The Shadow Of The Soul by Sarah Pinborough.

29. Eve by Anna Carey.

30. Wonder by R. J. Palacio.

31. Zoo City by Lauren Beukes.

32. Deadweather And Sunrise by Geoff Rodkey.

33. The Reluctant Widow by Georgette Heyer.

34. A Waste of Good Paper by Sean Taylor.

35. Skulduggery Pleasant: The End Of The World by Derek Landy.

36. Red Glove by Holly Black.

37. Black Heart by Holly Black.

38. Earth Girl by Janet Edwards.

39. The City’s Son by Tom Pollock.

40. City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare.

41. Heart-Shaped Bruise by Tanya Byrne.

42. Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews.

43. A Local Habitation by Seanan McGuire.

44. An Artificial Night by Seanan McGuire.

45. The Traitors by Tom Becker.

46. Late Eclipses by Seanan McGuire.

47. Slated by Teri Terry.

48. Black Arts by Andrew Prentice and Jonathan Weil.

49. The Inquisitor by Mark Allen Smith.

50. Ash Mistry And The Savage Fortress by Sarwat Chadda.

51. Kill All Enemies by Melvin Burgess.

52. I’m Dougal Trump … And It’s Not My Fault! By Dougal Trump and Jackie Marchant.

53. The Chosen Seed by Sarah Pinborough.

54. The Good, The Bad And The Multiplex by Mark Kermode.

55. All Fall Down – A Story Of Survival by Sally Nicholls.

56. Dust by Joan Frances Turner.

57. The Last Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson.

58. The English Monster by Lloyd Shepherd.

59. Untold Stories by Alan Bennett.

60. Dead End In Norvelt by Jack Gantos.

61. Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson.

62. Steampunk! Edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant.

63. Zombies vs Unicorns edited by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier.

64. Dust And Decay by Jonathan Maberry.

65. Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel.

66. Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake.

67. How To Survive A Robot Uprising by Daniel H. Wilson.

68. King Rat by China Mieville.

69. Dead Man’s Boots by Mike Carey.

70. Thicker Than Water by Mike Carey.

71. The Naming Of The Beasts by Mike Carey.

72. Flight From Berlin by David John.

73. Whispers Underground by Ben Aaronovitch.

74. DarkMarket by Misha Glenny.

75. Deadline by Mira Grant.

76. Blood And Feathers by Lou Morgan.

77. The Sacrifice by Charlie Higson.

78. Taboo by Casey Hill.

79. Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan.

80. Skulduggery Pleasant: Kingdom Of The Wicked by Derek Landy.

81. A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge.

82. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater.

83. Dark Lord – A Fiend In Need by Dirk Lloyd and Jamie Thomson.

84. Between Shades Of Grey by Ruta Sepetys.

85. The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda.

86. London Falling by Paul Cornell.

87. The Chinese Nail Murders by Robert van Gulik.