Friday 12 October 2012

The Hunchback of Notre- Dame by Victor Hugo

In this novel is set in medieval times in the duration of the reign of King Louis XI. There, in the Ile de la CitĂ© in Paris lives a deformed bell ringer named Quasimodo, who is been an outcast living in the cathedral of Notre Dame he is known as the `creature of the cathedral`. He plays the character of a young hero to the gypsy dancer Esmerelda who is in love with Captain Phoebus. Unfortunately, Claude Frollo a man filled with hatred  
because his envious love for Esmerelda is bestowed upon someone else he cast her out as a witch. Quasimodo's heart felt devotion to Esmerelda seeks revenge only to find that she will meet her tragic fate.
I really enjoyed this novel and I think the author is trying to potray the element that love in many ways can possess you to do things that you wouldn't dream of and he really shows the role of a hero in Quasimodo in that he wishes for nothing but for Esmerelda to be happy even if it's not with him.
I would highly recommend it to any passionate readers and my overall review I would give it 5/5 stars.It really made me understand the characters and I  loved the imagery and action which was written in a sense that I could capture every detail.

Wednesday 10 October 2012

In Patagonia- Bruce Chatwin

In Patagonia-Bruce Chatwin

This novel is based on Bruce Chatwin's travels through South America in Patagonia, he finds himself almost in complete isolation in this rare country. His adventures are described wonderfully when he uses creative metaphors to describe the people and the wildlife in Patagonia. He meets strange people on his way to searching for his beast and learns all of their live experiences and gripping stories in Patagonia. The author makes Patagonia sound like as if he has never seen or experienced any of these wonders.
I think that this book portrays a very interesting view in his perspective of the life there and as a reader i felt that the imagery drawn my attention. I wouldn't recommend it to young readers because sometimes i found the author didn't create enough conflict which could bore the reader. Over all i really enjoyed this novel and in my review i would give it 5/10 stars.

Lies of silence by Brian moore

Lies of silence by Brian Moore
By Mark Daly
lies of silence is a book about a hotel manager call Mr Dillon and he works day in day in day out until he comes home one evening to find that when he and his wife are trying to get to sleep and then they here a big slam on the door so Mr Dillon goes to see through the peep hole and find its masked men (IRA) ask to open the door so he lets him them in fearing to himself that if he doesn't do what they say they will shoot. They were taken hostage for the whole night and in the morning one of the masked men told Dillon to come upstairs  to find that the masked man has told Dillon to go and drive his car to the hotel where he leaves it In the car park and he is told that there is a bomb in the car and that bomb was left there so try and kill one of the famous names back then Dr pottinger and as the bomb blew up the guards told Dillon that the found one of the suspects and is asked to see if he is the criminal but if he does press charges he knows he can be hunted down by  other IRA that will come for him and kill him on the spot.

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Chill Factor, by Vincent McDonnell

Chill Factor is a fast paced thriller by Vincent Mcdonnell. The book is set in Ireland and centers around teenager Sean Gunne, who is desperately searches for his missing father and in the process uncovers a dark genetic project. The story starts off a bit slow but it soon gains pace and becomes exciting. The characters were reasonably likable and the author brought up a lot of interesting and controversial issues. The fact that it was set in Ireland was a nice touch and I found it easier to relate to as an Irish teenager. The story itself was well though out and had some great twists. Overall I would give the book 6 1/2 /10.

There is No Dog by Meg Roscoff

There Is No Dog
By Meg Roscoff



'There is no dog' is a fictional novel written by Meg Roscoff. The book is witty and funny and written for young adults. The book follows Bob, a cranky teenager who unfortunately for earth has the job of being God. Bob is reckless and unpredictable and because of this Earth is in the states its in. But when Bob falls in love with beautiful , mortal Lucy , things go rapidly downhill.
The book is light and funny and a very easy read , its interesting enough and has quite a few plots twists to keep the reader involved. I would give it 4/5 stars and would probably reccommend it to people looking for a light , comical read.

Friday 28 September 2012

I am David by Anne Holm

A must read would definitely be 'I am David' by Anne Holm. This heart-wrenching story about a boy from a concentration camp, breaking out in order to discover where he truly belongs, is one of the best novels to date. The most exciting part of the story for me was when David runs into 'them' accidentally towards the end of the journey. With no previous encounters you'd think that 'they' will never show up in the story again, so it's very shocking when we find David hiding behind a thin bush within throwing distance of 'them'. "His flight would end where it began - at the point of a rifle.... A real page turner I would rate this book 10/10.

Wednesday 26 September 2012


Ways to Live forever by Sally Nicholls is 180 paged novel about an eleven-year-old boy, who is dying from leukemia. Sam only has one year left to live and he doesn't want to spend that time in hospital. He starts to make lists of things that he wants to do before he dies - go up a down escalator and down an up one, break a world record, go in an airship, and ironically, become a teenager. Felix, Sam's friend also has cancer helps him with his lists. Sam and Felix are too ill to go to school so them have a teacher who comes to their houses to teach them. The main plot is doing everything on Sam's list before it's too late.

The author uses lots of medical terms, but explains what they mean, which makes the book seem a lot more serious. She also starts each chapter with a question such as "What happens when you die?". Another feature of writing that She uses throughout the novel is pathetic fallacy, which really ads to the richness of the novel. All-in-all in really enjoyed this novel. It was an absolute page turner and very true to life. I have to give this excellent book 5/5 stars.

Friday 21 September 2012

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins (by ailish long)

I would definitely recommend this book for all teenagers, boys and girls. It has lots of action and fighting for the boys and the author has even managed to put some love in for the girls. The author describes settings very well and  give you a great feel for the place. While it is a great book, it is a little hard to imagine that twenty-four teenagers would be fighting to the the death and everyone would think that this is normal, but once you get over that problem it is a very good book. I would give it 9/10.


Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer


Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer is from a series of novels based on the life of a teenage girl named Bella Swan, who falls in love with a vampire named Edward Cullen. Each novel is a continuation of Bella's life among these vampires. In this novel Bella's has excepted to marry Edward only to find out that later there honeymoon will bring back a lot more baggage then they thought. Bella finds herself  in a situation where the Cullen's lives and her beloved friend Jacob's might be at stake. There is an unpleasant visit from the Volturi and a fight between the vampire and wolf when Bella's news of an unborn child poses a threat to their people and the town of Forks. We will get to see Jacob's true character comes to place in the novel, but will he stand by Bella or will he protect his pack?

I found the novel to be more suited for young adults. The plot is very straight forward, and there is a lot of tension and drama which can be related to. The setting is standard and might not be appealing to many readers but i liked how author creates dramatic situations to keep the readers attention. The ending was quite cliche for me but any readers interested in romance novels or action novels would liked it. I would rate the novel 3/5 for as it shows a good perspective of each character's own view threw out the book. I really enjoyed the novel and i would highly recommend it to any young adults.

Wednesday 19 September 2012

13 Reasons Why- Jay Asher  (by Isabelle Geraghty)

13 Reasons Why follows Clay Jenson as he listens to a box of tapes that arrived on his doorstep that afternoon. He has no idea what these tapes are about, why he has them, or who they are from, but as he starts to listen all is soon revealed. Over the next 24 hours Clay hears the voice of Hannah Baker, who had killed herself a few weeks previous, explaining why she killed herself, and explaining that if you received this tape, you are probably a reason.
As Clay anxiously awaits to hear why he is a reason, he hears what others had done to her, and suffers by hearing this without being able to help at all.
The novel is full of suspense, and there are a lot of twists and turns. It was quite disturbing to read in parts, as it is her talking about why she will kill herself after the deed has been done. However it kept me hooked and I didn't want to put it down.
It's a book that makes you think about it long after you finish, and i would recommend it to almost anyone.
I give it 4/5 stars.


Tuesday 18 September 2012

Dancing in the Dark by Peter Prendergast



Dancing in the Dark by Peter Prendergast is a fictional novel based on a teenage girl called Jessica.Set in modern day Ireland, the author tells the story of Jessica's life, now that her popular rugby player brother has died in a car accident. Jessica didn't have a close relationship with her brother at all - she didn't even cry at his funeral! Since James' death Jessica wished that she had been closer to her brother before he died.

One night when Jessica was practising her dancing in her bedroom, James' ghost appeared. Throughout the novel James' ghost gives Jessica advice about her dancing, coaching her for the big competition ahead. During the competition Louisa tries to trip Jessica up, to prevent her from winning, but with James floating around in the audience Jessica is determined to win.

I found this book a bit boring at times, due to the lack of excitement. Also, the author didn't use much description which made it hard to know what was going on in some parts the story. I believe that this novel had so much potential, but because there was not enough detail and adventure at times, I can only give this novel 3 out of 5 stars.

Friday 14 September 2012

The Killables by Gemma Malley

The Killables by Gemma Malley



The Killables by Gemma Malley is a fictional novel based on the story of a teenage girl called Evie. the book is set in the near future in a post apocolyptic wasteland. After years of wars have destroyed the planet a new colony has set up a walled city called "The City". People are only allowed enter after having an operation to remove the 'evil part ' of their brain. Anyone who is showing signs of 'Evil' is labelled a 'K' and removed from the public. Nobody knows what happens to them. Evie feels she is evil and doesnt belong so when she starts cheating on her fiancé with his brother she is torn between what she has been told is right and what she feels. When the truth about the city finally emerges all hell breaks loose in Evies life.

I found the book to be an average book for young adults. It wasnt very exciting and the concept was quite hard to grasp and the storyline was quite far fetched. There werent very many action scenes and the plot never really took off. The setting was quite clever and the in depth character description was quite good though. I felt the ending was terrible and really left me very unsatisfied and dissapointed. For these reasons I would give the book 2 out of 5 stars and i would probably not recommend it to young adults.