My Bookish Year 2017 - January to June

Started well but ended badly... I'd like to forget about 2017 from August onwards but I can't. I didn't go to any bookish events from January to June as I was determined to save for ComicCon and YALC, and I was trying to make sure that I read a lot of books from my own shelves. Neither worked out as well as I hoped but never mind. Here are my favorites of the first half of the year, and, hopefully, followed shortly by July through to December! Some are titles I've reviewed on the blog, you can find them by clicking on the book picture, and others will link to Goodreads.

Dream Magic - Joshua Khan

In a world ruled by six ancient Houses of Magic, a girl and a boy begin an epic and dangerous journey of discovery . . . Lilith Shadow, princess of darkness, is struggling with her growing powers. Castle Gloom is filling with ghosts, zombies roam the country and people throughout Gehenna are disappearing. Then Lily is attacked in her own castle by a mysterious sorcerer known as Weaver and his army of jewel-spiders whose bites send victims to sleep. Thorn and his giant bat Hades must save Lily from the realm of sleep and help her overcome the evil Weaver in order for her to reclaim her kingdom.

Ah Gehenna, how good it is to be back! After falling in love with all things Gehennish in Shadow Magic I was utterly thrilled to be back in the world of Lily, Thorn, Tyburn and Hades, and what a ride it turned out to be! 

Having saved the Kingdom Thorn thinks it's time for a rest but unfortunately things don't quite work out that way. The troll clans are massing and threatening war, there's a much-unwanted guest in the form of Gabriel Solar, and villagers are going missing in large numbers. Turns out that there's much more work for Lily, Thorn, squire and friend Wade, new troll maid Dott and the castle's very own zombie army.

If you like magic, giant friendly bats, princesses who are just a teeny bit Goth, squires who don't know their place but will do anything to save the girl, troll girls who think Gabriel Solar is 'bootiful' then Dream Magic is definitely for you. Thanks to unforeseen events the secret is out that Lily can do magic, forbidden thanks to an ancient curse it might be the only thing that saves Gehenna.

Tyburn is missing, there's an evil wizard intent on destroying both Lily and Castle Gloom, but worst of all? There are spiders... Beautiful crystalline spiders but all the same, spiders! They're incredibly venomous and one bite sends you into the Dreamtime where Weaver, the evil wizard, is using the power the dreams create to take revenge on Lily and her family.

Dream Magic is better than Shadow Magic, I didn't think that was possible but it is. I adored everything about it, the way that Lily steps forward with her magic knowing that she may be executed just for knowing never mind doing, the interaction with Lily's family from her father in the Library, the only place he appears to be able to manifest, to her mother and brother in the Dreamtime, beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. Thorn is just as grumpy as ever but his feelings for Lily are so sweet and sometimes it's hard to remember he's still only a twelve-year-old boy. His relationship with Hades is wonderful to see, you'd never think a giant bat would be the perfect companion for a boy but he most definitely is.

Both Shadow Magic and Dream Magic go beyond the standard middle-grade novel, the friendship between Lily and Thorn, the world-building and the page-turning writing will hook any reader who loves fantasy. I know I picked up Dream Magic at 11pm intending to read a couple of chapters and didn't pit the book down until I had finished, 4 hours later... Joshua Khan has an amazing way with words, and the world he has created leaps off the page thanks to this.

Now starts the long wait for Burning Magic, where a certain young K'leef hopefully makes a welcome return and Lily and Thorn (and Hades, naturally) must team up yet again for another epic adventure!

About The Author

Joshua Khan was born in Britain. From very early on he filled himself with the stories of heroes, kings and queens until there was hardly any room for anything else. He can tell you where King Arthur was born* but not what he himself had for breakfast. So, with a head stuffed with tales of legendary knights, wizards and great and terrible monsters it was inevitable Joshua would want to create some of his own. Hence SHADOW MAGIC. Josh lives in London with his family, but he’d rather live in a castle. It wouldn’t have to be very big, just as long as it had battlements.

                           *Tintagel, in case you were wondering.

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Dream Magic (Shadow Magic #2) - Joshua Khan

ISBN - 9781407172095 (UK Edition)

Publisher - Scholastic UK

Release date - April 6th, 2017

Find - Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon UK

Tour Schedule
 

Monday 3rd April

Kirstyes

Alix Long

Tuesday 4th April

Bookish Outsider

The Books Bandit

Wednesday 5th April

A Daydreamer’s Thoughts

It Takes a Woman

Thursday 6th April

YA Under My Skin

Bibliobeth

Friday 7th April

Alejandra’s Life

Northern Plunder

Saturday 8th April

Planet Print

Sunday 9th April

Bart’s Bookshelf

Waiting On Wednesday #178 - Dream Magic

Waiting On Wednesday, where we put the spotlight on upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating, was created by Jill at Breaking The Spine and currently doesn't seem to have a home...

This week's choice is -

Dream Magic (Shadow Magic #2) - Joshua Khan

ISBN - 9781484737620

Publisher - Disney-Hyperion

Release date - April 11th, 2017

Find - Goodreads 

Things are dire for the inhabitants of Castle Gloom and the surrounding villages. The undead are leaving their graves in droves, a troll army is on the march from the north, and people are mysteriously disappearing from their homes. The people of Gehenna are blaming their misfortunes on Lilith Shadow, their young queen. They believe she has cursed them by using magic, a practice forbidden to women. With her trusty executioner among the missing and her blackguard soldiers busy battling trolls, it is up to Lily and her friend Thorn to root out the real cause of all the trouble. Their search will uncover ugly truths and eventually lead to a nightmarish confrontation with nothing less than the rulership of the realm at stake. Zombies, ghosts, trolls, dream weavers, a black-hearted villain, and a giant hero bat are only some of the imaginative delights that await readers who relish a soaring adventure combined with a hair-raising mystery.

I absolutely adored Shadow Magic last year so can't wait to get my hands on this. Giant bats, feisty princesses and magic in one great adventure!

Favourite Things About My Protagonists - Joshua Khan

Favourite Things About My Protagonists, Thorn And Lily - Joshua Khan

Let’s start with Lily, or to give her full name and title, Lilith Hecate Shadow, ruler of Gehenna, the kingdom of Darkness. Not bad for a thirteen-year-old girl.Lily is a reaction to all the sword-wielding action heroines that have popped up in books of late, one version of a strong female character. Been there, done that. 

So, I wanted a create a new type of heroine, one who was bad-ass without being kick-ass, who played for the highest stakes imaginable, but never picked up a sword nor shot an arrow. She was inspired by two real-life heroines. 

First up is Elizabeth the First, England’s greatest queen. Now she was never even meant to be queen, she came to the throne after her brother’s and sister’s deaths. Her father executed her mother and spent her early, formative years with the banner of bastard. Yet she was clever, wise, a player and led England into a golden age of exploration and literature. Never picked up anything sharper than a needle. Then we have Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl who the Taliban tried to murder for promoting the education of girls. She survived a bullet in the head to become a Nobel Peace Prize winner, the youngest ever, and a valiant warrior for women worldwide. She, more than anyone, proved how the pen was certainly mightier than the sword, as it can deliver a message that could change the world. 

Lily’s my fantastical version of both. She rules, or tries to, not with violence, but with wit and compassion, and just a little bit of black magic. Ok, quite a lot. She lives in a world where women are banned from practising sorcery on pain of death by fire but is destined to be the most powerful necromancer of the age. Hooray for Lily! So, Lily is all about power, and women’s rights. As I pitched SHADOW MAGIC early on, this is a feminist high fantasy.

Next up, and different is all ways, is Thorn, my peasant boy outlaw for a talent of trouble and a soul incapable of deceit. He’s my Robin Hood. Born and raised in Herne’s Forest, he’s a preternaturally gifted archer, but stubbornly just. As we grow older, and perhaps more cynical, we can lose sight of the truth. Children aren’t like that. They see clearly, and passionately. Thorn’s twelve, and aware enough of what the adult world entails, and that’s danger and hardship for folk like him, but utterly driven to being just, even if he doesn’t understand it himself.Chuck them in together. 

The kingdom of Gehenna is one of deception, lies and betrayal, but great history and a glorious past. Lily wants the best for her people but doesn’t understand how to get it. Thorn sees what’s best, but has no power to make it happen. Yet Lily is a creature of darkness, raised in a lightless castle with ghosts and zombies as companions. Thorn was born under the open sky and has an affinity towards the natural, living world. They’re as opposite as can be but complement each other perfectly. Their relationship is inspired by my love for those 1930’s comedies with Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn, antagonistic, yet each respects the other, and they give as good as they get.

It’s been awesome fun writing SHADOW MAGIC and the sequel DREAM MAGIC, and I’m deep into the third book right now, BURNING MAGIC. If all goes well there will be more to come beyond that!

About The Author

Joshua Khan was born in Britain. From very early on he filled himself with the stories of heroes, kings, and queens until there was hardly any room for anything else. He can tell you where King Arthur was born* but not what he himself had for breakfast. So, with a head stuffed with tales of legendary knights, wizards and great and terrible monsters it was inevitable Joshua would want to create some of his own. Hence SHADOW MAGIC. Josh lives in London with his family, but he’d rather live in a castle. It wouldn’t have to be very big, just as long as it had battlements.

*Tintagel, in case you were wondering.

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