Book Haul #48

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted on Tynga's Reviews and Letterbox Love is a UK edition hosted by Narratively Speaking. Here we can share what new books we've picked up this past week. There are also lots of other 'book haul' memes out there for you to choose from!

Thanks for all the well wishes about my dad, that meant a lot :) He's doing alright so far but we're all still worried about him a great deal. I'm giving myself the day off from looking after him and heading to my first ever convention! As you read this I'll be enjoying various panels such as 'How To Poop In A Fantasy Universe' and 'Seriously Inventive Ways of Killing People' at BristolCon, mixing with lots of lovely people and lots of lovely authors. The only thing I'm not looking forward to is having to get up at 6am, the con is only 20 miles from me but of course, being a non-driver, I have to get the train which involves leaving too early for my liking...

Without further ado, here are the books I got this week! I would just like to say that the cover of Fearie Tales is absolutely stunning in real life and if you love fairy tales you need to buy a copy of this book (and there's a Neil Gaiman story in there as an added incentive to invest). There's a whole load of bargains in the UK Kindle store at the moment, you can be proud of me as I managed to resist buying dozens of books!

Bought

Fearie Tales - ed. Stephen Jones

Dark Currents - Jacqueline Carey

Deathless - Catherynne M Valente

Kindle

Ways To See A Ghost - Emily Diamand

A very restrained week on all counts, I'm hoping this new surge of will-power will get me through BristolCon without blowing too much. What will help is knowing whatever I do buy I've got to carry home...

Let me know what you got this week!

Book Haul #23

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted on Tynga's Reviews, In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Letterbox Love is a UK edition hosted by Narratively Speaking. Here we can share what new books we've picked up this past week. There are also lots of other 'book haul' memes out there for you to choose from!

It's an illness, a bona fide illness - the compulsive need to buy books! It must be otherwise I've got no excuse. Here's what I got this week without even meaning to... I blame a certain chain of shops in this country who were having a clearance sale. I was good... only bought five books which cost me £4.00/$6.00!

Bought

Loki's Wolves - K L Armstrong & M A Marr

Deadly Hemlock - Kathleen Peacock

Muse - Rebecca Lim

The Dark Glamour - Gabriella Pierce

Casebook Of Victor Frankenstein - Peter Ackroyd

The Shadow Lantern - Teresa Flavin

Bronze Gods - A A Aguirre

If You Find Me - Emily Murdoch

From the publisher

The Testing - Joelle Charbonneau

From LibraryThing Early Reviewers

Bridge Of Dead Things - Michael Gallagher

Kindle Buys

If I Should Die - Amy Plum

What Really Happened In Peru - Cassandra Clare & Sarah Rees Brennan

Kindle Freebies

Prince Of Wolves - Quinn Loftis

Grace Doll - Jennifer Laurens

Death Comes Home - Rhiannon Frater

The Written - Ben Galley

So, that's my haul... I've already read If You Find Me and If I Should Die - wow! A big thank you to Templar for sending me The Testing, I can't wait to get started on it! Thanks also to my buddy for the tip about The Written, love what I've read so far!

What did you get this week? Enable me a bit more...

Book Haul #22

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted on Tynga's Reviews, In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren and/or The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Letterbox Love is a UK edition hosted by Narratively Speaking. Here we can share what new books we've picked up this past week. There are also lots of other 'book haul' memes out there for you to choose from!

Another great week for me, I got some good books this week, including a couple of review books which I can't wait to start. One day though, I'll have a book haul post which will be empty... one day!

Bought

Zenn Scarlett - Christian Schoon

The Crimson Shard - Teresa Flavin

The Curiosities - Maggie Stiefvater

Mayhem - Sarah Pinborough

Of Poseidon - Anna Banks

Kindle Buys

Wolves & Witches - Amanda Davies & Megan Engelhardt

Kindle Freebies

Everblue - Brenda Pandos

For Review

Pack Of Lies - Sara Dailey & Staci Weber

Circle Of Lies - Sara Dailey & Staci Weber

Viral Nation - Shaunta Grimes

Pack Of Lies and Circle Of Lies were kindly sent to me by the the publisher and Shaunta Grimes was kind enough to send me a copy of Viral Nation which I'm so excited about as it's been on my wishlist!

What did you get this week?

The Blackhope Enigma - Teresa Flavin

The Blackhope Enigma* - Teresa Flavin

Twitter - @TeresaFlavin

ISBN - 9780763660673

Publisher - Templar UK

Twitter - @templarbooks

Find - Book Depository/Goodreads

'For centuries, Blackhope Tower has been shrouded in intrigue, which seems to centre around a curious painting hanging in the Mariner’s Chamber. Its meaning has baffled historians, but when fourteen-year-old Sunni Forrest visits the tower, she finds herself transported to the very heart of the Blackhope Enigma, and the painting itself.

Can she and her friend Blaise overcome its dangers and evade their ruthless pursuers? And will they find their way home . . . alive?

An age-old mystery is about to unravel.' - Goodreads

Sunni Forrest is studying a painting, painted by Il Corvo, a renowned Renaissance painter whose reputation is shrouded in rumors about enchanted paintings, in the Mariner's Chamber of the Blackhope Tower. Her step-brother Dean is with her and, getting bored of waiting around, starts following the path of a labyrinth engraved on the chamber floor. Somehow he figures out the trigger to magically transport him into Corvo's painting and disappears. He is followed by Sunni and the next day, by Blaise, an American student in Sunni's art class who was there when Dean disappeared. Once in the painting they discover Arcadia is actually exists in the painting as a real world and the adventures begin! There are mazes, monsters and pirates, a scheming artist from their own time (the brother of their art teacher), an apprentice who studied under Corvo, a man called Hugo who appears to be some sort of caretaker & his servant and a motley assortment of other characters. Confirming the rumors that Fausto Corvo indeed did know how to paint a world within a world inside a painting the children set off to find a way out of the world and the painting to get back home. 

I loved The Blackhope Enigma, it was a fantastic adventure novel with the added fantastical elements, pirates and all the male characters mean it would appeal to anybody. I also loved the art element present all the way through, from Corvo's painting to Sunni & Blaise's sketchbooks which are never far away from them to Teresa Flavin's illustrations scattered throughout the pages. It's aimed at children aged 9 & up but anyone could read it really as there's adventure, fantasy & history all of which gives it wide appeal and not forgetting the art which only fuels your interest - especially in the creation of Corvo whose life comes across so convincingly you're almost certain he's a real artist and not just one created purely for the story.

Labyrinths, mazes, pirates & pirate ships, treasure maps, bad guys, good guys - The Blackhope Enigma really does have it all and I can't wait to get started on the next book, The Crimson Shard, to see what else Sunni & Blaise can get up to and whether Blaise's crush on Sunni is ever reciprocated!

*My copy was borrowed from my local library but I have just bought my own to keep for the future library of F & E when they get older!

Reading RoundUp #17

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey This is a great way to plan out your reading week and see what others are currently reading as well… you never know where that next “must read” book will come from!

What a difference a week makes! Even though I was away for most of the week I managed to finish a few books, hopefully this means my slump is over or at least a short one!

Finished

Black Spring - Alison Croggon

A Game Of Thrones - George R R Martin

Witch Hunt - Syd Moore

Mortality - Kellie Sheridan

Started

The Blackhope Enigma - Teresa Flavin

A Clash Of Kings - George R R Martin

Falling To Ash - Karen Mahoney

Still reading

Bitter Greens - Kate Forsyth

Broken Illusions - Ellie James

The Taker - Alma Katsu

What's everyone else been reading?