Review: Front Lines - Michael Grant

Front Lines by Michael Grant, published by Electric Monkey on 28th January 2016

Goodreads synopsis:
1942. The fate of the world rests on a knife’s edge. And the soldiers who can tip the balance . . . are girls.

Set in an alternate World War II where young women are called up to fight alongside men, this is the story of Rio Richlin and her friends as they go into battle against Hitler’s forces.

But not everyone believes that they should be on the front lines. Now Rio and her friends must fight not only to survive, but to prove their courage and ingenuity. Because the fate of the world is in the hands of the soldier girls.

 

Review:

'Front Lines' has such an innovative storyline.  Michael Grant has imagined an alternative history where girls enlisted and fought on the front line during World War Two.  Joining their male counterparts, they protect their country against attack.  Uniquely different, this made for a plot which piqued my interest as soon as I read it.  I couldn't wait to see how Grant's spin was going to unravel.

 

Set in 1942, the story follows three girls as they go to war.  We initially see them at home with their families, understanding their motives for enlisting, before following them through rigorous training and all the way to the front line.  They have a lot to contend with along the way as they try to prove their worth.

 

I enjoyed 'Front Lines' and I think YA readers will too.  Although the subject matter might initially seem male orientated, because the central characters are all girls, I think this will appeal equally to female readers.  If you are a history buff then you need to get your hands on this title which provides such a unique and different spin on events.  Who would ever have thought of imagining girls as soldiers?  Michael Grant, that's who. 

 

I still haven't found any of his books quite as gripping and addictive as the Gone series, but this is still a great read and as the first in a new trilogy, it will be interesting to see what is in store for readers next.   

 



Review: Messenger of Fear - Michael Grant

Messenger of Fear by Michael Grant, published by Electric Monkey on 26th August 2014

Goodreads synopsis:
I remembered my name – Mara. But, standing in that ghostly place, faced with the solemn young man in the black coat with silver skulls for buttons, I could recall nothing else about myself.

And then the games began.

The Messenger sees the darkness in young hearts, and the damage it inflicts upon the world. If they go unpunished, he offers the wicked a game. Win, and they can go free. Lose, and they will live out their greatest fear.

But what does any of this have to do with Mara? She is about to find out...

Review:
I'm a massive Michael Grant fan so I was desperate to read this book.  The Gone series introduced me to his incredible writing and jaw-dropping stories but was almost too amazingly good, making it hard for any of his other series to really live up to it.  'Messenger of Fear' was brilliant but I still miss the Fayz and the characters that I had grown attached to. 

If you are looking for a creepy, shocking story which is all out gruesome at times then this is the book for you.  Horror fans will love it as Grant doesn't hold back from inviting the reader to join Mara on her twisted journey.  When Mara finds herself an unwitting accomplice to the Messenger of Fear she struggles to remember how she ended up with him.  She gradually starts to piece her memories back together which leads to a fantastic twist about her identity.  The Messenger himself has been appointed to uphold the balance.  If someone commits a terrible act then he ensures that they are given the choice to pay or play.  This leads to some harsh lessons being dealt but all with the expectation that the person will learn to be better because of it.  

There are lots of interwoven mini stories and characters throughout the book whose fates unravel as the plot progresses.  Some of these stories were actually quite difficult to read about, as not everyone gets a happy ending.  What I love about Michael Grant's books though is that happy endings are really immaterial.  He is never afraid to wrench one of your favourite characters away from you or to confront the reader with a difficult scene if he feels that it is right for the story. 

The plot is incredibly unique and original and I really did enjoy it, even though it didn't quite wow me as much as some of his other books have done in the past. A sequel is planned but you will have to wait until 2015 to get your hands on it.        

Cover Reveal: Messenger of Fear - Michael Grant

The day has finally arrived to reveal the cover of Michael Grant's new book 'Messenger of Fear'.  I'll hand over to Michael to let him do the honours!



I think the cover is fantastic and extremely striking!  I'm incredibly excited to get my hands on a copy as it sounds like it's going to be a brilliant read.  Let me know what you think of it and don't forget to check out #MessengerOfFear to see what Michael's other fans have to say. 

Electric Monkey very kindly gave me the opportunity to put a question to Michael and I asked:

If you could travel back in time to witness any historic event which would you choose and why?
"If I could go back in time to witness a single historical event it might be Trafalgar. I’m a big fan of Patrick O’Brian’s books and fascinated by the age of sail. I’d love to be standing on the HMS Victory with Nelson. Of course I’d be wearing cannonball-resistant armor. Also I’d probably be hiding behind a mast and whimpering in fear. But it would be an amazing thing to see and hear."

News: Messenger of Fear - Michael Grant

Michael Grant fans will be excited by the news that his new book 'Messenger of Fear' will be published by Electric Monkey in September. It sounds incredible and should fill the hole left by the end of his bestselling Gone series.

"I remembered my name – Mara. But, standing in that ghostly place, faced with the solemn young man in the black coat with silver skulls for buttons, I could recall nothing else about myself. And then the games began. The Messenger sees the darkness in young hearts, and the damage it inflicts upon the world. If they go unpunished, he offers the wicked a game. Win, and they can go free. Lose, and they will live out their greatest fear."

If you are on tenterhooks waiting for publication day then you'll be pleased to hear that Electric Monkey are releasing the cover for Michael's new book on 30th June.  Start counting down the days now! 




Check out Electric Monkey's Tumblr to stay up-to-date with all the news about 'Messenger of Fear'.

Blog Tour: Light - Michael Grant

I'm extremely lucky to be hosting one of the stops on Michael Grant's first ever UK blog tour.  I'm a massive fan of the Gone series and can't believe the epic adventure is finally over.  I have a fantastic giest post to share you with from Michael, about one of his favourite characters in the series, Edilio, as well as news about a brand new online game to accompany the books. 

 

 

 

Every GONE fan has their favorite character. And everyone has characters they can’t stand. I’m no different.

Of course as the writer I have different criteria. For me a “good” character is one that’s fun to write and does good work for me in the story. For readers the characters are closer to being friends, while for me they’re more like employees.

 No one was more fun for me to write, or did better service, than Diana Ladris. I love Diana. I like her snark and her vulnerability. I like that she’s not afraid of Caine, even when she should be. I had fun edging her ever-so-slowly toward the good side of the equation over the course of six books.

I also had a lot of fun writing Brianna and Dekka and especially Lana. I think I must like tough chicks. I never quite knew what to do with Mary -- she was just too good. I mean, if you set aside the fact that she went nuts and tried to kill all the little kids, she was a saint. A saint aside from the attempted mass-murder. So, a saint by GONE standards. All that caring, all that self-sacrifice: I pretty much had to kill her. She was getting on my nerves.

Who else can’t I stand? Brittany. I didn’t dislike her, exactly, I just never did figure out how to write her. Dahra was another. I tried, but meh. Usually when a character became useless to me I’d kill them off. But I was kind of stuck with Brittany. She became the person I wanted to fire but couldn’t. And Dahra . . . well, read LIGHT.

The character I’m most proud of actually is Edilio. I wish I could remember where I first read that the real hero of Lord Of The Rings was not Frodo but Sam Gamgee. It struck me as a bit of a revelation at the time. So with the GONE series I wanted to create a character like that, a character who would only very slowly be revealed as central and important and even heroic.

Edilio is from a family of undocumented migrant workers. Throughout the early books he’s often denigrated as Sam’s “sidekick.” Unlike our obvious hero, Sam Temple, Edilio has no special powers. He’s not a genius like Astrid, he’s not charismatic like Caine, he’s not the best-looking or the funniest. What he is is the guy who gets it done. He doesn’t brag, he doesn’t swagger, he doesn’t demand anything, but again and again and again he gets it done.

Edilio, in addition to being brave, selfless, decent and loyal, is competent. Sometimes you’ll hear people use that word almost as an insult, because we’re all supposed to want to be extraordinary, we’re all supposed to want to be stars. You might hear that someone is merely competent. Very inexperienced people say that, people who don’t know enough to understand how precious and rare competence is.

Now, if you happen to combine brave, selfless, decent and loyal with competent? Then, wow. You have everything it takes to be a real man or real woman.

So I raise a glass to Edilio. (Literally, because I’m in a Sausalito bar called Poggio as I write this. Cabernet Sauvignon, not that it matters.) Because Sam Temple might be the good-looking guy who can shoot light out of his hands, but Edilio is the man. 

 

 

To celebrate the release of 'Light', Egmont have created an online game based on the books.  It can be played at http://www.goneonlinegame.com/ over a six-week period.  Starting with four games at launch - Zeke Zap, Word Search, Hacker and a Gone quiz - there will be further games and challenges released on a weekly basis until the winner is announced.  Highly addictive, the games are designed to challenge, infuriate and test your skills, and to get you completely hooked.  The winner of the game - the highest scorer at the end of the six weeks - will win an iPad and the chance to meet Michael Grant in a private capsule on the EDF Energy London Eye on 4 May. Participation will also be rewarded with prizes along the way, including signed editions and book tokens as well as never-before-seen content such as extra chapters and video messages from the author.

Hotly Anticipated Reads for 2013: Egmont's Electric Monkey

Egmont is the publisher of one of my absolute favourite books, 'Forgotten' by Cat Patrick. They have some stellar titles lined up for 2013 (January-June) under their imprint Electric Monkey (although I'm still gutted that they aren't publishing the last book in Cynthia Hand's trilogy), so here's a selection of the ones which I'm most eagerly anticipating for next year.

All links go to Goodreads where you can add all of these books to your wishlist!

* Finished cover art may not be available yet for all titles

From What I Remember by Stacy Kramer and Valerie Thomas, published 7th January

KYLIE: MEXICO WHAT? I should be putting the finishing touches on my valedictorian speech. Graduation is TODAY, and is this a wedding band on my finger.

MAX: It all started with Kylie's laptop and a truck full of stolen electronics. Okay, it was kind of hot, the way she broke us out like some chick in an action movie. But now we're stranded in Tijuana. With less than twenty-four hours before graduation. Awesome.

WILL: Saving Kylie Flores from herself is kind of a full-time occupation. Luckily, I, Will Bixby, was born for the job. And when I found out she was stuck in Mexico with dreamy Max Langston, sure, I agreed to bring their passports across the border -- but there's no reason to rush back home right away. This party is just getting started.

LILY: I just walked in on my boyfriend, Max Langston, canoodling with Kylie Flores, freak of the century. Still, I can't completely hold it against him. He NEEDS me. It's even clearer now. And I'm not giving him up without a fight.

Survive by Alex Morel, published in February

Jane is on a plane on her way home to Montclair, New Jersey, from a mental hospital. She is about to kill herself. Just before she can swallow a lethal dose of pills, the plane hits turbulence and everything goes black. Jane wakes up amidst piles of wreckage and charred bodies on a snowy mountaintop. There is only one other survivor: a boy named Paul, who inspires Jane to want to fight for her life for the first time.

Jane and Paul scale icy slopes and huddle together for warmth at night, forging an intense emotional bond. But the wilderness is a vast and lethal force, and only one of them will survive.

Skinny by Donna Cooner, published 4th February

Hopeless. Freak. Elephant. Pitiful. These are the words of Skinny, the vicious voice that lives inside fifteen-year-old Ever Davies’s head. Skinny tells Ever all the dark thoughts her classmates have about her. Ever knows she weighs over three hundred pounds, knows she’ll probably never be loved, and Skinny makes sure she never forgets it.

But there is another voice: Ever’s singing voice, which is beautiful but has been silenced by Skinny. Partly in the hopes of trying out for the school musical—and partly to try and save her own life—Ever decides to undergo a risky surgery that may help her lose weight and start over.

With the support of her best friend, Ever begins the uphill battle toward change. But demons, she finds, are not so easy to shake, not even as she sheds pounds. Because Skinny is still around. And Ever will have to confront that voice before she can truly find her own.

Finding Cherokee Brown by Siobhan Curham, published 7th March

His lips touched mine and for one split second the whole world stopped. Then every cell in my body fizzed into life...When I decided to write a book about my life I thought I'd have to make loads of stuff up. I mean, who wants to read about someone like me? But as soon as I started writing, the weirdest thing happened. I found out I wasn't who I thought I was. And I stopped being scared. Then everything went crazy! Best of all, I discovered that when you finally decide to be brave it's like waving a wand over your life - the most magical things can happen...

By Any Other Name by Laura Jarratt, published 1st April

Nobody can know the truth - her life depends on it. I picked up the book and thumbed through the pages. Names in alphabetical order, names with meanings, names I knew, names I'd never heard of. How to pick? Nothing that would stand out, nothing that would link me to the past - those were the instructions. The past. As if everything that had gone before this moment was buried already. Holly is fifteen years old, but she's only been "Holly" for a matter of months. Because of something that happened, she and her family have had to enter witness protection and have all assumed new identities. All, that is, except her sister Katie, who is autistic. Starting at a new school mid-term is hard enough at the best of times, and Holly has no clue who she is any more. Lonely and angry, she reaches out to friends - new and old. But one wrong move will put all their lives in danger...

Light by Michael Grant, published in April

It’s been more than a year since every person over the age of fourteen disappeared from the town of Perdido Beach, California. In that time, countless battles have been fought: Battles against hunger and lies and plagues and worse, battles of good against evil, and kid against kid. Allegiances have been won, lost, betrayed, and won again; ideologies have been shattered and created anew, and the kids of the FAYZ have begun to believe that their new society is the only life they’ll ever know. But now that the Darkness has found a way to be reborn, the tenuous existence they‘ve established is likely to be shattered for good. Will the kids of Perdido Beach even survive?

The Originals by Cat Patrick, published 6th May

I glance at the three baby portraits. I feel a familiar prickling on the back of my neck. Because I know there's another picture somewhere - and the baby in that photo looks identical to the babies on the wall. Somewhere, there's a photo of the Original. Ella and I look like sisters: triplets, you might think. But that's not what we are at all. We are clones in hiding. We split our lives and exist as one person in the outside world. And we've always been happy. But now I've fallen head-over-heels in love...and that changes everything. Because, to let love in, I need to be allowed to be Me.

Charm and Strange by Stephanie Kuehn, published 3rd June

 'Don't. Please don't say my name. You have no idea who I really am.' No one really knows who Andrew Winston Winters is. Least of all himself. He is part Win, a lonely teenager exiled to a remote boarding school in the wake of a family tragedy. The guy who shuts the whole world out, no matter the cost, because his darkest fear is of himself...of the wolfish predator within. But he's also part Drew, the angry boy with violent impulses that control him. The boy who, one fateful summer, was part of something so terrible it came close to destroying him.

Scissors, Sisters and Manic Panics by Ellie Phillips, published 3rd June

Sadie Nathanson's back - with more style and tangles than ever before. "Mrs Nellist came in for her cut and colour while Auntie and Tiffany were out the back having a coffee, leaving me to sweep up, and that's kind of where everything got really ugly. It was the hairstyle that Mrs Nellist never knew she wanted. That's all it was about. I don't know why everyone had to go so completely hysterical about it, but that's my family for you." Sadie Nathanson is back! After sorting out exactly who she is, she now feels ready to tackle who she is going to be! With hair as her focus, Sadie decides to enter a major hairdressing competition - though she has her work cut out for her when she gets fired from her Saturday job in Auntie Lilah's salon. And if that's not bad enough, it turns out there are yet still more surprises in store Dadwise...

 

Comment and let me know which titles you're most looking forward to in 2013!

Review: Eve and Adam - Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

Eve and Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate, published by Electric Monkey on 1st October 2012

Goodreads synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old Evening Spiker lives an affluent life in San Francisco with her mother, EmmaRose, a successful geneticist and owner of Spiker Biotech. Sure, Evening misses her father who died mysteriously, but she’s never really questioned it. Much like how she’s never stopped to think how off it is that she’s never been sick. That is, until she’s struck by a car and is exposed to extensive injuries. Injuries that seem to be healing faster than physically possible.

While recuperating in Spiker Biotech’s lush facilities, she meets Solo Plissken, a very attractive, if off-putting boy her age who spent his life at Spiker Biotech. Like Evening, he’s never questioned anything... until now. Solo drops hints to Evening that something isn’t right, and Emma-Rose may be behind it. Evening puts this out of her mind and begins her summer internship project: To simulate the creation of the perfect boy. With the help of Solo, Evening uncovers secrets so big they could change the world completely.

Review:
'Eve and Adam' is written by husband and wife team Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate.  As well as being a huge fan of Grant's Gone series, I have to admit that I was obsessed with the Making Out series by Applegate when I was about 13 or 14.  I still have the complete set and one day I will get around to giving them all a re-read.  Understandably I was therefore pretty excited about this title which combines the writing talent of both authors in one book. 

The premise was intriguing and spiked my interest as soon as I read the synopsis. Eve is involved in a terrible car accident which leaves her with severe injuries.  While recovering in her mother's research facility she discovers some disturbing secrets about her mother and the genetic experiments that she has been carrying out.  She also meets a mysterious boy called Solo who lives at the facility and who wants to expose the truths that Eve is only just discovering for herself.  The story was a little slow in the beginning but got much better in the second half of the book and as the plot began to unravel and things got turned on their head.

I really enjoyed the part of the story dealing with Eve's creation of Adam.  This blends in elements of science and genetic modification as well as the possibility of being able to create another human being to your own specifications.  In theory this sounds incredible!  I would love to be able to make someone who has the exact looks and personality that I've chosen.  In reality, Adam doesn't turn out quite as Eve was expecting.

My main criticism of the book was that the characters fell quite flat and I felt so much time was put into the science side of things that the character development suffered.  Personally, I also wasn't feeling the romance which begins to develop between Eve and Solo or even the friendship between Eve and her best friend Aislin.  They were too one-dimensional and I didn't particularly click with any of them.

While 'Eve and Adam' may not have had that 'wow' factor which I was expecting, it was still an enjoyable read based around a great concept.  I definitely want to read the next in the series 'Adam and Eve' when it is published next year.

I'm giving away a paperback copy of 'Eve and Adam' to one lucky winner.  This is open internationally but you must be a follower of my blog to enter.  Just fill out the form below.  Good luck!

Giveaway rules.

• There will be one winner.
• Open to UK and international entrants.
• Please fill out the form completely - including email address
• You must be a follower of my blog
• Deadline for entries will be on 7th December 2012
• Winner(s) will be drawn by random.org
• Winner(s) will be contacted via e-mail, and will be given 48 hours to response. Otherwise, a new winner will be drawn.
• Any details will be deleted after use and will not be passed on to any third party.

Review: BZRK - Michael Grant

BZRK by Michael Grant, published by Electric Monkey on 5th March 2012

Goodreads synopsis:
Set in the near future, a conspiracy is afoot to create a perfect and perfectly controlled world. The Armstrong Fancy Gift Corporation is a front for the conjoined Armstrong twins, Charles and Benjamin, and the plot to create their own version of utopia.

A shadowy guerilla group known as BZRK form a nascent resistance movement. Both sides develop sophisticated nanotechnology to achieve their goals.

Review:
I’ve never read anything by Michael Grant before but I’ve read so many stellar reviews of his books that I thought it was about time I tried one for myself. BZRK is published by Egmont’s new YA imprint Electric Monkey and is unique because prior to the book’s publication, a six-month long interactive transmedia prequel was launched online, incorporating social media, web sites, blogs, video games and many other mobile devices to develop people’s interest in the characters and the story before actually reading the book. The beauty of this is that people can become as involved as they want to be but the more they interact with the content, the more they’re likely to engage with the story. I think this is a great idea and it would be interesting to know how successful this project has been. It may be something that other authors consider adopting in the future.

‘BZRK’ had a stellar opening which really grabbed my attention and left me wondering what was coming next. A private jet crashes into a stadium full of people and Grant pulls no punches in showing us what happens in gory detail. Although a book for young adults, Grant’s writing, along with the complexity and sophistication of the plot and many of the concepts and ideas incorporated into the novel are not dumbed down at all. This is a book that you need to pay attention to. I have to say that at some points I wasn’t completely sure I understood what was happening and some passages I had to go back to and read again which slightly spoilt my enjoyment of the overall story.

Grant has invented a world where two factions are battling for the future of civilisation as we know it. They’re battling not with conventional weapons but with nano technology. One side controls biots while the other side uses nanobots – designed to be implanted into people’s heads, allowing someone else to control their thoughts, actions and feelings, without them even knowing it. This is a scary idea as it seems impossible at the moment but plausible in the future. There are some explicit descriptions of them entering people’s eyes and brain which definitely had me wincing more than once.

The main fault for me with ‘BZRK’ was that I didn’t feel any real connection with the characters. Many of the people in the book go by code names to protect their identity, but this, combined with the fact that there wasn’t much back story for the two main protagonists, left me with a sense that I never really got to know who they were or their true personalities. There were some interesting and unique secondary characters in the book including the creepy conjoined Armstrong Twins who want to take away peoples’ free will and a mysterious figure called Caligula but no one that I found myself really caring about.

I’ve actually got mixed feelings about the book. I wanted to love it and I was blown away by how clever it was but for me, my favourite books are ones where what happens to the characters actually matters to me and I just didn’t experience that with ‘BZRK’. I am intrigued enough to want to find out what happens next though as there were a lot of plot threads left hanging and I’m curious to see where Michael Grant will take the story next.