The Blurb On The Back:

First they killed my father.
Then they threatened my family.
Now I’m coming for them.


Aihui Ying’s life is viciously torn apart when her father is killed by a masked assassin. Left with only his journal and a jade pendant snatched from his killer, she vows to take her revenge.

Seeking answers, King infiltrates the prestigious Engineers Guild - the ancient institution home to her father’s secret past. With the help of an unlikely ally - Aogiya Ye-yang, the nation’s cold but distractingly handsome prince - she begins to navigate a world fraught with politics and treachery.

Soon though, Ying’s quest for vengeance turns into a fight for survival and she’ll have to stay one step ahead of everyone … if she’s to make it out alive.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Amber Chen’s Chinese-inspired YA fantasy (the first in a duology) has interesting world-building and I liked the focus on engineering. However the pacing is inconsistent (especially in the final quarter), the plot relies heavily on things happening to Ying rather than her agency and her romance with Ye-yang is unconvincing, in part because Ye-yang is under-drawn as a character. That said, the ending is interesting and I would read the sequel.

OF JADE AND DRAGONS was released in the United Kingdom on 20th June 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

Do opposites ever really attract?
When Karim and Zara’s works collide, they have to work out just how far they’re willing to go to give their love a chance.


They’ve got nothing in common: Karim is a globally renowned influencer while Zara is just a normal teen.

With Zara, Karim can finally let his guard down, and his glamorous world offers Zara an escape.

But someone has their eye on them - a secret gossip who’s been spilling truths for years.

As their dates get swooned, the blogger’s posts get more personal - and more threatening.

Can they unmask their tormentor in time to get their happily ever after?


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Anam Iqbal’s thoughtful debut YA romance uses the opposites attract trope to explore issues relevant to the British Muslim community. However, even for me there’s a lot of plot here while the book’s key mystery goes unresolved (albeit there’s scope for a sequel) and the privilege porn wasn’t questioned enough for me. That said, it’s good to see a YA romance with Muslim characters and there’s enough here for me to want to Iqbal’s next book.

THE EXES was released in the United Kingdom on 2nd May 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

November 1999
North Dana, Massachusetts.


Nesbit Nuñez discovers the partially devoured body of Bastion Attia - star quarterback, secret witch and Nesbitt’s even-more-secret boyfriend.

Now the remaining members of North Coven - Nesbit, Dove, Drea and Brandy - vow to get answers. Nothing can prepare them for what they uncover. Nesbitt’s nightmare is only just beginning …

An ancient evil. A coven bound in blood.
A love that death cannot destroy.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Freddie Kölsch’s debut YA historical dark fantasy/horror mixes THE CRAFT with IT in an engrossing tale of love, sacrifice and ancient evil. I believed in Nesbit’s relationship with the charismatic but tragic Bastion and the way Kölsch reveals North Dana’s dark history is well done. However I wonder how well modern teenagers will relate to the 90s setting and Cameron didn’t quite work for me in terms of his role in the story.

NOW, CONJURERS was released in the United Kingdom on 6th June 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

The Squirrels need to be QUIET while watching a butterfly but Roly’s being LOUD - which is the opposite!

Join everyone’s favourite dog in this up-and-down tale for budding young Squirrels.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

This entertaining educational board book that explains what “opposite” means and gives a number of examples. The illustrations are jolly and young readers will learn about big and small, young and old (although learning that 42 and 3 quarters is old felt like a significant kick in the guts), wet and dry among others. All in all it’s a book that young readers will enjoy and learn something from and perfect for Hey Duggee fans.

HEY DUGGEE - THE OPPOSITES BADGE was released in the United Kingdom on 13th June 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

ALEX ALWAYS is a normal, everyday kid living in a normal, everyday city …

AXEL STORMWARD is a monster-slaying hero living in a world of magic.

But all that’s about to change …


When the two boys magically swap places, needy nerd Alex is thrust into an epic quest to save the world of Aërth.

Meanwhile, sword-singing Axel is faced with double maths, a gran who’s six months behind on the rent, and a crucial chess tournament he’s got to win - when he doesn’t even know how to play.

Can the boys complete their Impossible Quests and find a way back to their own lives, or will they discover they don’t have a life to come back to?


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Sam Copeland’s humorous fantasy novel for readers aged 9+ (the first in a series) has some genuine laugh-out-loud moments and gleefully subverts a number of the fantasy cliches. Although I think Alex has more depth than Axel and some of the resolutions to plot difficulties were too pat, there are also some genuinely moving moments and I enjoyed the adventure such that I would definitely read the sequel.

ALEX -VS- AXEL: THE IMPOSSIBLE QUESTS was released in the United Kingdom on 2nd May 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Progrmme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

”Fish and chips, bacon and curry in particular … These meals are more than food - more even than good food. They’re soul. Heart. Comfort. Home. They’re who I really am, and possibly, who many of us really are.”


In Britain, we have always had an awkward relationship with food. We’ve been told for so long that we are terrible cooks and yet according to a 2012 YouGov survey, our traditional food and drink are more important than the monarchy and at least as significant as our landscape and national monuments in defining a collective notion of who we are. Taking nine archetypically British dishes - Pie and Peas, A Cheese Sandwich, Fish and Chips, Spag Bol, Devonshire Cream Tea, Curry, The Full English, The Sunday Roast and a Crumble with Custard - and examining them in their perfect context, Pete Brown reveals just how fundamental food is to our sense of identity, perhaps even our sense of pride, and the ways in which we understand our place in the world.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Pete Brown is a food and drink commentator and food award judge. This is a fascinating look at 9 dishes that have come to be regarded as quintessentially British (including curry, cream teas and fish and chips) with Brown mixing comment on their development, place in British society, questions of authenticity and what they say about British class and culture with his own relationship with food, having grown up working class in Barnsley.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

A timely and unprecedented examination of how the modern Middle East unravelled, and why it started with the pivotal year of 1979.

“What happened to us?”


For decades, the question has haunted the Arab and Muslim world, heard across Iran and Syria, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, and in the author’s home country of Lebanon. Was it always so? When did the extremism, intolerance and bloodletting of today become the norm?

In Black Wave, award-winning journalist and author Kim Ghattas argues that the turning point in the once-promising history of the Middle East can be located in the toxic confluence of three major events in 1979: the Iranian revolution; the siege of the Holy Mosque in Mecca; and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Before this year, Saudi Arabia and Iran has been working allies and twin pillars of US strategy in the region - but the radical legacy of these events made mortal enemies of both, unleashing a process that transformed culture, society, religion and geopolitics across the region for decades to come.

Drawing on a sweeping cast of characters across seven countries over four decades, Ghattas demonstrates how this rivalry for religious and cultural supremacy has fed intolerance, suppressed cultural expression, encouraged sectarian violence, birthed groups like Hezbollah and ISIS and, ultimately, upended to the lives of millions. At once bold an intimate, Black Wave is a remarkable and engrossing story of the Middle East as it has never been told before.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Kim Ghattas is an Emmy Award-winning journalist born and raised in Lebanon who has spent 20 years covering the Middle East for the BBC and Financial Times. This well-researched book argues that 1979 set Saudi Arabia and Iran on a path that’s shaped the Middle East. Ghattas has a readable style and I came away feeling but there are a lot of figures in play here and despite a useful list, I sometimes found myself confused about who was who.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

A financial expert explores the transformational power of the fourth age of humanity.


We are in the midst of a revolution of humanity. The impact of the digital revolution, creating the fourth age of humanity, is that we are all connected one-to-one in real time for the first time in history. Digital Humanoffers a much-needed exploration of how the digital age is affecting human and business relationships and offers guidance that shows how companies of all sizes can adapt to become forward-thinking digital businesses.

Digital Human explores the implications of the digitalisation for humanity, trade, commerce and our future. The mobile network is achieving the goal of eroding boundaries and inclusion of everyone. This digitalisation of our planet is bringing about a major transformation. Everyone on the planet will soon be included in the network and everyone on the planet will get the change to talk, trade and transact with everyone else in real time.

This book offers insight into a number of intriguing topics that stem from the digitalisation of humanity such as how bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are challenging government and control mechanisms and why the Chinese tech giants are more imaginative than their Western counterparts.

Chris Skinner also explores the rise of the most fundamental innovations in emerging markets and examines the challenge to govern a globalised world when we live in nation states. In addition, Skinner includes the first-ever in-depth English-language case study of Ant Financial and Alipay; the mobile wallet that aims to be used by over two billion humans.

Digital Human explains why the fourth revolution of humanity will include everyone, no matter where they live or how they live.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Chris Skinner is a financial markets commentator and former advisor to the White House and the World Bank. In this book he makes some interesting arguments about the future of technology and there’s an interesting case study of Ant Financial and Alipay but he simply down’t want to consider the dangers of the tech he evangelises here, which was a big negative for me - especially when he uses examples from China, where it is part of state control.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

Last night Wesley and his friends Josephine and Margot threw their neighbour Rachel a surprise birthday party.

This morning Rachel is dead. And Wesley is the one who finds her body.


Rachel’s friends throw a traditional Caribbean Nine Night celebration to help guide her soul to the next world. But Wesley, Margot and Josephine don’t have time to mourn Rachel. They are determined to find out what has happened - and what secrets Rachel was keeping …

A brilliantly sharp and funny whodunnit that will keep you guessing till the end, from the queen of twisting murder mysteries.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Sharna Jackson’s mystery sequel for readers aged 9+ is an emotionally sophisticated affair that deals with grief, regret and betrayal in a way that the target readership can relate to. The 9 night structure gives the Copseys plenty of scope to dig into the suspects, including Wesley’s mum which lends tension and the mystery itself is more about Rachel herself than her death. All in all it’s a solid read and I’d check out Jackson’s other books.

THE NINE NIGHT MYSTERY was released in the United Kingdom on 6th June 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

Pen in one hand,
On my wrist,
A ticking clock
I’ve got to make this work,
Just need
A little luck …


When fourteen-year-old Ronny’s life is struck by tragedy, his mum decides it’s finally time they move from East London to East Anglia.

In his new city, as a Black teenager in a mostly white school, Ronny feels like a complete outsider and struggled to balance keeping his head down with his ambition of becoming a rapper.

But when a local poet comes into class, Ronny discovers and opportunity he never considered before. Rap is like spoken word, bars equal poetry - and maybe the combination of both could be the key to achieving his dreams?


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Ashley Hickson-Lovence’s YA novel effectively uses its verse narrative to tell a compelling story of a boy who learns how to tap into his creativity to express himself. However I don’t think that the Malachi storyline had the intended impact and nor did Ronny’s friendship with the extroverted Leigh. That said, the use of language is great and Ronny’s guilt over Maz holds true. I’d definitely check out the author’s other work on the basis of this.

WILD EAST was released in the United Kingdom on 23rd May 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

One night, Jeremiah plants a packet of tiny sunflower seeds and makes a wish …


The next morning, a magical array of vines and leaves has burst through the ceiling of his apartment! When Jeremiah and his brother chase the plant up through the floors of their tower-block home, will they discover something even more magical along the way?

A glorious and uplifting story about the power of nature and community.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Lanisha Butterfield and Hoan Giang’s picture book is a luscious celebration of life, nature and community. The colours are vibrant and the illustrations packed with character and a sense of place and I liked the fact that there is also a subtle sense of grief in the background as Theo and Jeremiah are dealing with the death of their father. All in all it’s an entertaining read that shows the importance of neighbourhood and connection.

FLOWER BLOCK was released in the United Kingdom on 6th June 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

What is a ‘custard’ wind? - Why is a rainy wedding lucky? - What’s the difference between ‘daggle’ and ‘dibble’ weather? - Does sunshine make us kinder? - Why were weather reports once banned?


The British obsession with the weather is world famous. We talk about it endlessly - five whole months of our lives, to be precise. We use it to start conversations with complete strangers. It affects our moods, shopping habits and even how we vote.

This book is packed with information you’ll want to share about this most important subject - quirky history, surprising facts, fascinating folklore, strange words and intriguing people.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Alex Johnson is a journalist, magazine editor, designer and author. This is a lovely book about the British national obsession - the weather - that mixes folklore, local dialects, psychology, economics and, of course, the weather itself. There are loads of facts and nuggets grouped around different types of weather and, yes, there are 100 words for rain as well. It’s a perfect read to enjoy in your garden on a warm sunny day with a cold drink.

100 WORDS FOR RAIN was released in the United Kingdom on 11th April 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

I heard this crazy story, and I want you to know.


It is the age of internet gossip; of social networks, repackaged ideas and rating everything out of five stars. Mega-famous celebrities respond with fury to critics who publish less-than-raptuous reviews of their work (and then delete their tweets); CEOs talk about reclaiming reclaiming ‘the power of vulnerability’; and in the world of fiction, writers eschew actually making things up in favour of ‘always just talking about themselves’.

In this blistering, addictive and very funny first book of non-fiction, Lauren Oyler - one of the most trenchant, influential and revelatory critics of her generation - takes on the bizarre particularities of our present moment in a series of interconnected essays about literature, the attention economy, gossip, the role of criticism and her own relentless, teeth-grinding anxiety.

Illuminating and thought-provoking by turns drily scathing and disarmingly open, No Judgement excavates the layers of psychology and meaning in how we communicate, tell stories and make critical judgements - to offer dazzling insights into how we live and think today.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Lauren Oyler is a novellist, essayist and cultural critic. This collection of 6 interconnected essays about gossip, cultural criticism, vulnerability, ‘auto-fiction’, living in Berlin, and mental illness makes some interesting points at times but too many of the essays left me wondering what the point was while I didn’t see the purported humour and the constant mentions of her Ivy League education made her too try-hard for my tastes.

NO JUDGEMENT: ON BEING CRITICAL was released in the United Kingdom on 7th March 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

If the fate of the multiverse was in your hands, what would YOU do?


Eleven-year-old Danny is Apprentice Caretaker of a super-secret Interdimensional Lost Property Office. It’s not an easy job, but luckily Danny has best friend Modge and cousin Inaaya to help him out!

But then a very special star is stolen from the vaults. If Danny doesn’t get it back, the whole universe is in danger. Buckle up and get ready for a rocket ride across the cosmos and an adventure like no other!


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

The second in Lorraine Gregory’s INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS humorous SF series for readers aged 9+ is an entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed read with lively illustrations by Jo Lindley. I emphasised with Danny’s insecurities as to his friendship with Modge and Inaaya and his worry about losing them as they grow apart. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and there’s a wider series suggestion that someone at Centralus is a secret baddie.

INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS - ALIEN APOCALYPSE was released in the United Kingdom on 14th March 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

On a frozen sea, where the snow falls fast,
And the whirlwinds rage and storm,
A rockhopper egg, in a stony nest,
Was lying safe and warm.

Dad watched and waited, waited, watched.
The night grew inky black.
Then he fell into a sleep so deep,
He didn’t hear the … CRACK!


Daddy Penguin finds himself adrift in an unfamiliar world, and he must get back to his egg!

From train to helicopter, hot-air balloon to limousine, Penguin hitches lifts with kindly folk - but will he be home in time?


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Anna Kemp and Alice Courtley’s warm and charming picture book, told in rhyming verse, is an epic and sweet tale of how kind other people can be and all the different types of transport there are. I very much enjoyed Courtley’s colourful illustrations, which have lots of lovely little details (my favourite being the headphone on a flamingo helicopter pilot and the teddy bear that Daddy Penguin carries with him).

PENGUIN’S EGG was released in the United Kingdom on 2nd May 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

Discover …

100 inspiring and extraordinary jobs


Why not become a cat behaviourist?

Or a rollercoaster engineer?

How about a coral reef gardener?

Find out what’s involved in these incredible careers and meet the real people who followed their dreams and are doing these jobs today.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Katherine Mengardon is an education expert on neurodiversity, play and creativity and the author of several non-fiction books. This useful book for readers aged 9+ suggests 100 jobs grouped around whether they are interested in: animals, art, maths, the environment, music, gadgets, performance, sports, fashion and writing. I enjoyed the interviews with some people who do these jobs but would have liked more information on education requirements.

FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS was released in the United Kingdom on 28th March 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

An ambitious oral history charting the epic highs and crashing lows of the UK’s most creative and hedonistic period: the nineties, told in the words of its architects.

Remember when …


Blue and Oasis battled to be Top of the Pops?

You raved the night away in a baggy T-shirt and dungarees?

Football was coming home?

New Labour won a landslide victory and things could only get better?

We really, really, really wanted to be Baby, Scary, Posh, Ginger or Sporty?

You rushed home from the pub to watch TFI Friday?

‘Girls and Boys’ embraced Girl Power and Lad Culture?

The Young British Artists were household names?

Whichever aspect of the nineties you feel nostalgic for, there is something in this book for you?


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Daniel Rachel is a musician turned critically acclaimed author. On balance this account of the 1990s ‘Cool Britannia’ phenomenon is worth a read as Rachel has secured interviews with some key figures (including Tony Blair, Noel Gallagher, Jarvis Cocker, Tracey Emin and Melanie Chisholm) if only to get their view on what happened and what it meant but there are notable omissions (e.g. Justine Frischmann) and nothing on Black British contributions.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

When Harold Humdinger turns Cap’n Turbot’s Lighthouse into a space rocket, he doesn’t realise the captain is trapped inside!

Join the Mighty Pups as they use their superpowers to hep with a Charged Up rescue!


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

This board book for younger readers is a bit of a disappointment as both the story and the language comes across as too sophisticated for the board book form while the illustrations are computer generated and somewhat soulless. If you have a young Paw Patrol fan then they will enjoy seeing the pups using their powers, but otherwise I don’t think it’s worth their time

PAW PATROL - MIGHTY PUPS was released in the United Kingdom on 25th April 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

Inspiring poems to connect with nature


This collection of 50 poems will spark a love of nature, bring calm and happiness and let the outside in.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Daniel Thompson is a poet, storyteller, filmmaker and musician. This collection of 50 poems for readers aged 7+ (beautifully illustrated by Julia Murray) themed around nature all show Thomson’s enthusiasm for the subject, with several poems working well. However the majority use rhymes that are overly strained and threw out the rhythm and I thought it was a shame that other forms of poetry weren’t used to show young readers the variety of forms.

OUTSIDE IN: NATURE POEMS was released in the United Kingdom on 11th April 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

All hail the Girl King


Sisters Lu and Min have always understood their places as princesses of the Empire. Lu knows she is destined to become the dynasty’s first female ruler, while Min is resigned to a life in her shadow. Then their father declares their male cousinSet the heir instead - a betrayal that sends the sisters down two very different paths.

Determined to reclaim her birthright, Lu goes on the run. She’ll need an army to win back the throne.

Alone in a volatile court, Min’s hidden power awakens - a forbidden, deadly magic that could secure Set’s reign … or allow Min to claim the throne herself.

The battle for the Empire has begun.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Mimi Yu’s debut YA fantasy (the first in a duology) draws on Asian history and mythology to create an interesting world with various factions, each with their own objectives and methods. However while I enjoyed the aesthetics, the story itself of sibling rivalry and power hungry antagonists is all a bit underbaked with Min in particular being underdeveloped despite being a viewpoint character and the inevitable YA love triangle left me bored.

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

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