Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart

The Blurb On The Back:

IMOGEN is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook and a cheat.

JULE is a fighter, a social chameleon and an athlete.

IMOGEN and JULE. JULE and IMOGEN.

An intense friendship. A disappearance. A murder, or maybe two. A bad romance, or maybe three.

Blunt objects, disguises, blood and chocolate. The American dream, superheroes, spies and villains.

A girl who refuses to give people what they want from her.

A girl who refuses to be the person she once was.

A girl who is … a genuine fraud.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

E Lockhart’s YA psychological thriller is for the most part a well-constructed, gripping story that owes more than a passing debt to THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY while making great use of consecutive flashbacks to create tension, mystery and establish Jule and her relationship with Imogen but is ultimately let down by Imogen being thinly drawn and an anti-climactic ending that left me really disappointed.

GENUINE FRAUD was released in the United Kingdom on 5th September 2017. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

There May Be A Castle by Piers Torday

The Blurb On The Back:

Like I said, kid, it’s your story. Are you ready?

On a frozen Christmas Eve, Mouse Mallory and his family set off across a snow-white valley to visit his grandparents.

They never arrive.

As the wheels skid off the icy road, Mouse is thrown from the car. When he wakes, he finds himself in a magical landscape, with only a talkative sheep and a very bossy horse for company.

And they tell him: this is your story now.

So begins Mouse’s extraordinary quest through a world of wonder. A world of monsters, minstrels, dangerous knights and mysterious wizards; a world of terrifying danger but also more excitement than Mouse has ever known.

All to find a castle, somewhere, beyond.

But why is Mouse looking for a castle? As thoughts of his family back at the car begin to surface, Mouse realises this might be the most important journey he will ever make …

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Piers Torday’s novel for children aged 9 – 11 is a well-written, painfully bittersweet affair that mixes a contemporary tale of a boy who likes daydreaming and doesn’t see why everyone’s keen for him to get bigger with a magical realist adventure populated by sharply drawn characters with an entertainingly modern world view.

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