Tag Archives: London

Review: Ironhand by Charlie Fletcher

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Ironhand by Charlie Fletcher

Ironhand (Stoneheart #2)
Charlie Fletcher
Hodder Children’s Books
Published October 1, 2007

Amazon | Audible | Goodreads

About Ironhand

Now that George Chapman has upset the fragile truce between the warring statues of London, he has been drawn into a war that will test his mettle. He and Edie, a glint who can see the past, may have succeeded in their quest to find the Stoneheart, but their journey is far from over.

Edie and the Gunner, a statue of a World War I soldier, have been captured by the Walker, and it’s up to George to save them. But first he must deal with the three strange veins, made of marble, bronze and stone, that have begun to grow out of his hand and curl around his wrist. Legend has it that unless he successfully completes three challenges, the veins will continue up his forearm, and eventually pierce through his heart.

As George struggles to find the strength within to face the choice he has made, to take the Hard Way, he is determined to use his power for good—even as others wish to harness it for its great potential for evil.

My Review

It looks like IRONHAND is out of print, which is really sad, because I liked it a lot. I listened to the audiobook version, which is narrated by Jim Dale. His performance is, as always, fantastic.

The story begins with a section that kind of reminds readers what happened in the first book, which was perfect for me, since I read STONEHEART more than a year ago. I’ve thought about continuing the series a bunch of times since reading STONEHEART, which is usually a pretty good indicator that I’ll actually do it. If a book sticks with me the way this one has, I feel like it’s worth the investment.

I really enjoyed getting back into the London with living statues and following George, Edie, and the Gunner through a new adventure. I love Edie’s indomitable courage. She is fierce and never gives up. The thing that really struck me this time about George is the way he has the power to change things.

For example, he winds up befriending a gargoyle, whom he calls Spout. Only certain human statues are supposed to be George’s allies. Gargoyles should be working against him, but perhaps because he helps this one and gives it a name, it changes its allegiance. It begins trying to help and protect him. There was something about that relationship that struck deep for me. I loved both the story of the friendship between the two of them, but also then Spout’s role in the story. He helps George understand who he is and what he can do.

And, yet again, I love the Gunner. He’s loyal and protective and smart. Edie doesn’t really have anyone in her life she can count on. So, I feel like that makes her relationship with the Gunner even more incredible. He never stops fighting for her. I love his story in the book so much, too.

I might have liked IRONHAND better than the first one? I’m not sure. I liked it a lot, and I’m really excited to read the third book in the series now. If you like magical adventure stories like THE STORM KEEPER’S ISLAND by Catherine Doyle, you definitely need to check out this series.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 up.

Representation
George and Edie are both white. Most other characters are statues.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Statues come to life and are either working to help George and Edie or harm them, depending on the nature of the statues. George is a Maker. He can magically create things from stone, but if he doesn’t fulfill his promises, he will die. Edie has the ability to see history or memories witnessed by stone or statues.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Brief but scary battle violence.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog.

Review: Ghostcloud by Michael Mann

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,

Ghostcloud
Michael Mann
Peachtree
Published October 7, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Ghostcloud

Twelve-year-old Luke Smith-Sharma shovels coal under a half-bombed, blackened power station. With his best friend Ravi he keeps his head down, hoping to one day earn his freedom and return to his family, while avoiding the wrath of the evil Tabatha Margate. When he tries to help new girl Jess, Luke is punished and sent to clean the sewers of the haunted East Wing, a place from which few return.

Whilst serving his punishment, Luke realises he can see things others can’t in the power station: ghostly things. He befriends a ghost-girl called Alma, who can ride clouds through the night sky and bend their shape to her will.

But when Luke discovers the terrible truth of why Tabatha Margate is kidnapping children and forcing them to work in the power station, Alma agrees to help him and his friends escape. Will Alma convince the ghost council to help their cause? And can Luke find his voice, while trying to find a way home?

My Review

I liked the story world a lot. GHOSTCLOUD is set in London, but an alternative London, one ravaged by war and pollution. One in which children disappear. I liked Luke right away. He’s the guy who knows he should keep his head down so he can win a ticket home to his family. Instead, he risks everything to help a girl who clearly has no idea what she’s doing.

So much happens in this book. Adventures in the air with ghosts. Adventures exploring ventilation systems with Jess and a precocious cat they call Stealth. Luke is determined to win not only his own freedom, but to help Jess and Ravi and the others, too. He can’t help but care about everyone he meets, and I love that about him.

Something about the writing and the mysterious/magical story world reminded me of THE SONG FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE by A. F. Harrold. Both stories have that fantastical feel to them and kids with big hearts at their centers. I think readers who love magical realism or are looking for a story about courage will find a lot to love in GHOSTCLOUD.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Luke is half white and half Indian.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
A girl kisses Luke on the cheek.

Spiritual Content
Luke meets a ghost named Alma who introduces him to other ghosts. Because he was dead for a moment at birth, he can see and interact with ghosts himself. Alma tells him this makes him “half-ghost”.

Violent Content
Luke and other children are forced to labor in a factory for a woman named Tabatha and her guards. She punishes them severely if they make mistakes or do something she doesn’t like. Brief references to torture and abuse.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy o GHOSTCLOUD in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Loophole by Naz Kutub

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , , , ,

The Loophole
Naz Kutub
Bloomsbury YA
Published June 21, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Loophole

Your wish is granted! This YA debut is equal parts broken-hearted love story, epic myth retelling, and a world-journey romp to find home.

Sy is a timid seventeen-year-old queer Indian-Muslim boy who placed all his bets at happiness on his boyfriend Farouk…who then left him to try and “fix the world.” Sy was too chicken to take the plunge and travel with him and is now stuck in a dead-end coffee shop job. All Sy can do is wish for another chance…. Although he never expects his wish to be granted.

When a mysterious girl slams into (and slides down, streaks of make-up in her wake) the front entrance of the coffee shop, Sy helps her up and on her way. But then the girl offers him three wishes in exchange for his help, and after proving she can grant at least one wish with a funds transfer of a million dollars into Sy’s pitifully struggling bank account, a whole new world of possibility opens up. Is she magic? Or just rich? And when his father kicks him out after he is outed, does Sy have the courage to make his way from L. A., across the Atlantic Ocean, to lands he’d never even dreamed he could ever visit? Led by his potentially otherworldly new friend, can he track down his missing Farouk for one last, desperate chance at rebuilding his life and re-finding love?

My Review

For some reason I thought this book was going to be a romcom type of story? The cover copy makes it sound like this light, fun romp around the world for love, and it is those things. But it’s also got some heavy stuff in it that I wasn’t expecting. The scene where Sy’s dad beats him with a belt. Reggie’s clear and heartbreaking alcohol addiction.

I really liked Sy. He’s messy and flailing and desperately trying to figure his life out. The one thing he knows for certain is that he loves Farouk. That love is his guiding star, and I loved that element of the story. I loved that he learns so much on his journey and finds confidence in his independence.

There are two notes the story didn’t hit that I wished it did. So, Farouk left on this glorious world-traveling trip. Sy stayed behind because he was afraid. The cover copy tells us that much. But then we learn that Sy is seventeen. And has an abusive dad. And eventually we learn the circumstances surrounding Farouk’s request for Sy to come with him, but that’s spoiler-y, so I won’t clarify that. It didn’t help how I felt.

I think I wish that Sy had paused to examine what was happening there and ask whether it was actually reasonable for Farouk to expect him to come with him. Or whether it was reasonable to lay the blame for their breakup on Sy for not going. Or whether it was more complicated than him simply being afraid.

Another thing that I wish the story addressed is Reggie’s alcohol addiction. Sy seems to think he can manage her addiction by distracting her with his friendship. I wish that there had at least been some mention of her getting professional help or recognizing that rescuing someone from addiction is not a burden that a friend can carry.

All that makes it sound like I expected every issue to be fully examined and processed by Sy before the end of the story, which I know isn’t reasonable. I guess I tend to struggle with that in the books that I read. It’s pretty realistic for some things to be left unexplored by the hero. It also leaves a lot of space for readers to examine things and draw their own conclusions.

Anyway, I still loved a lot of things about THE LOOPHOLE, especially the way Sy grows and builds his friendship with Reggie. I loved the scenes in Istanbul especially. Fans of THE MUSIC OF WHAT HAPPENS by Bill Konigsberg or ARISTOTLE AND DANTE DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE by Benjamin Alire Sáenz should check this one out.

Content Notes for The Loophole

Content warning for homophobia, Islamophobia and abuse.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Sy is Indian American, Muslim, and gay. Farouk is Pakistani American and gay.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between two boys. In one scene, they go skinny dipping together. Sy’s dad has a second family in India.

Spiritual Content
Sy visits a mosque and prays. His family believes being gay is a sin.

Violent Content
Sy’s dad beats him with a belt because Sy is gay. Sy reveals this isn’t the first time his father has done this. Sy learns of a terrorist attack in London. At an airport, officers detain Sy and threaten him with a strip search. Sy and Reggie hit an officer while trying to get through a police barricade.

Drug Content
Reggie drinks alcohol almost constantly. Sy drinks alcohol a couple of times.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE LOOPHOLE in exchange for my honest review.

Review: A Question of Holmes by Brittany Cavallaro

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

A Question of Holmes (Charlotte Holmes #4)
Brittany Cavallaro
Katherine Tegen Books
Published March 5, 2019

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Question of Holmes

Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson think they’re finally in the clear. They’ve left Sherringford School—and the Moriartys—behind for a pre-college summer program at Oxford University. A chance to start from scratch and explore dating for the first time, while exploring a new city with all the freedom their program provides.

But when they arrive, Charlotte is immediately drawn into a new case: a series of accidents have been befalling the members of the community theater troupe in Oxford, and now, on the eve of their production of Hamlet, they’re starting all over again. What once seemed like a comedy of errors is now a race to prevent the next tragedy—before Charlotte or Jamie is the next victim.

My Review

First, I want to say this: I’m not very good at sticking to a series, much less a series with more than three books (gasp!), but I listened to most of the books in the Charlotte Holmes series this year during the pandemic, and having something energetic and fun to look forward to at the end of the day really helped me get through some stressful and difficult days. I love this series for that, and I am really glad I listened to all four books.

That said, A QUESTION OF HOLMES wasn’t my favorite book in the series. I liked the idea, and the mystery itself– the theater group, the disastrous events, the fact that Jamie and Charlotte had to figure out how to work a case when their reputations were already known to the people involved.

I think I just wanted the story to tie together some of the big rivalries and larger elements from the earlier books, and there’s a hint of that, but it didn’t feel like enough to me, if that makes sense. I wanted more of that, and instead the book kind of reads like a standalone mystery featuring some familiar characters.

Despite all that, I love that the story continues in the epilogue and we get a glimpse of Charlotte and Jamie and who they might be going forward into adult life. I thought that was a really cool way to end the series, kind of a final gift to readers.

I’m still really glad I read this one and have no regrets about spending my one monthly audible credit on A QUESTION OF HOLMES. It was a lot of fun, and I think anyone looking for a good escape read should check out the series.

Here are my reviews of earlier books in the Charlotte Holmes Series:

#1 A Study in Charlotte

#2 The Last of August

#3 A Case for Jamie

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Charlotte is from London. Jamie is white American.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between a boy and girl. They sleep in the same bed.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. A girl is missing, possibly murdered. A woman dies in a suspicious manner.

Drug Content
Charlotte and Jamie drink or pretend to drink alcohol with a group of teens who get very drunk.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog.

Review: Glitter Gets Everywhere by Yvette Clark

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Glitter Gets Everywhere
Yvette Clark
HarperCollins
Published May 4, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Glitter Gets Everywhere

Kitty’s mother died on an inappropriately sunny Tuesday. So much has changed in Kitty’s life over the last few months, and she needs the world to stop spinning around her. She needs things to return to normal — or as normal as they’ll ever be.

Normal definitely does not include her family moving from their home in a cozy corner of London all the way to New York City. Moving means leaving behind her friends and neighbors, her grandmother, and all the places and people that help Kitty keep her mother’s memory alive.

New York City is bright and bustling and completely different from everything Kitty has known. As she adjusts to her new school, explores her new city, and befriends a blue-haired boy, Kitty wonders if her memories of her mother don’t need to stay in one place — if there’s a way for them to be with Kitty every day, everywhere.

With her wry, poignant wit, Kitty tells a universal story about the grief of losing a beloved family member, the fears of starting over, and the challenges of how to remake a family in this powerful, heartfelt debut novel.

My Review

When I agreed to review this book, I had no idea what I’d be going through when it came out. Reading a book centered around grief while grieving has been an interesting journey. A lot of things Kitty experienced really resonated with me. I loved the way the story shows different characters responding to grief in different ways, too. It’s really Kitty’s story, but around the edges of her own experience, we get to see other people wrestling with grief in their own ways.

This book is packed with a fantastic cast of characters. There’s Kitty’s older and often antagonistic sister Imogen, who knows all the things the cool kids know. There’s Kitty’s dad, treading water, trying to keep the family afloat and both be available to his girls but also shelter them from some of his own grief and fears about the future. So relatable. I loved Kitty’s spunky grandmother, with her strong opinions and fierce insights. And the wacky Mrs. Allison, the British baking star with her lovable dog, mothering everyone and fussing over them all with cookies and cakes. Something about all those people in a room together made those scenes really sparkle.

Kitty’s grief is real and raw and very relatable. I found myself nodding along to some of her observations and taking comfort in her refuge of colors. I loved the relationship between her and Imogen, with its sparks of tension and tenderness underneath. GLITTER GETS EVERYWHERE is a therapy-positive story, but it’s also real about some of the struggles of therapy. Sometimes things don’t make sense the first time you hear them. Sometimes things a therapist says don’t connect with you at the time or ever. But other times, it provides a vehicle for you to say things you didn’t know you needed to say or to hear healthy things you didn’t know would challenge what you believe.

All in all, I’m so happy I read this book. I love its tenderness and sadness and its surprising joy. I think readers who enjoyed CHIRP by Kate Messner or CATERPILLAR SUMMER by Gillian McDunn will love this book.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 to 14.

Representation
Kitty and her family are white and British.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity appears a few times. Strong British profanity appears a few times.

Romance/Sexual Content
A kiss on the cheek between a boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Kitty wonders what happens after someone dies and talks about sometimes feeling her mom present with her really strongly.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
One of Kitty’s friends mentions that his mom has a drinking problem.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog. I received a free copy of GLITTER GETS EVERYWHERE in exchange for my honest review.

Review: As Far As You’ll Take Me by Phil Stamper

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , ,

As Far As You’ll Take Me
Phil Stamper
Bloomsbury YA
Published February 9, 2021

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About As Far As You’ll Take Me

Marty arrives in London with nothing but his oboe and some savings from his summer job, but he’s excited to start his new life–where he’s no longer the closeted, shy kid who slips under the radar and is free to explore his sexuality without his parents’ disapproval.

From the outside, Marty’s life looks like a perfect fantasy: in the span of a few weeks, he’s made new friends, he’s getting closer with his first ever boyfriend, and he’s even traveling around Europe. But Marty knows he can’t keep up the facade. He hasn’t spoken to his parents since he arrived, he’s tearing through his meager savings, his homesickness and anxiety are getting worse and worse, and he hasn’t even come close to landing the job of his dreams. Will Marty be able to find a place that feels like home?

My Review

I have mixed feelings about this one. Mostly, I think, I have mixed feelings about Marty as a character.

He has anxiety– and I thought that part was really well crafted. I felt like I was experiencing it with him, and definitely felt for him. I tend to love angsty musician characters, so I figured Marty would be a sure win.

Plus the oboe holds a special place in my heart, since I’m practically surrounded by oboe players. (My sister, my daughter, my former roommate, and my cousin all either play or played the oboe. Actually, both my sisters played, my youngest only briefly.) So I was super excited to see an oboe player. In a YA novel! Yay!

And I loved that the story featured such complex, twisty friendships. Marty and Megan is a great example. I feel like a LOT of people have had the experience where that one super close friendship we thought we couldn’t live without has some real, undeniable toxicity to it. Marty’s wrestling with how to feel about his friendship with her and the way his new friendships put that relationship into context was SO. Well. Done.

Despite that, I struggled with some feelings about Marty. He stressed about money and agonized over whether he’d be able to land gigs and stay in London, but then off he’d go with his friends and chasing down potential romance. He ignored his friends when they tried to tell him things he didn’t want to hear and seemed pretty comfortable using them. I thought he made a lot of selfish decisions.

Some of that made sense in the context of his being totally swallowed up by his romantic feelings, so I wanted to give him a break. All the breaks.

He does grow a lot through the story. I kind of wanted some of his epiphanies to happen earlier. Some things felt a bit crammed in to the last few chapters, and that didn’t really give me a chance to see him walk things out, which I think would have been really satisfying.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Marty is gay and has anxiety. His mother was born in Ireland. He comes from a conservative Christian family. Marty’s friend group is a pretty diverse group.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used roughly a few times per chapter.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between two boys. Brief touching. One scene shows them undressed and leading up to sex. Brief kissing between two girls.

Spiritual Content
Marty’s parents are deeply religious Christians. Marty is pretty disparaging of their faith, for two reasons that are pretty interconnected. One is that he just doesn’t believe in God anymore. He also feels it’s been pretty hammered into him that who he is is a sin, which has been pretty damaging.

Violent Content – Trigger Warning for Homophobia
A person Marty cares about outs him as gay to people in his hometown. His parents offer support to him personally, but display some homophobic behavior to the LGBT community at large.

Drug Content
Marty and his friends drink alcohol together. Marty and another group member are underage at seventeen.

Note: I received a free copy of AS FAR AS YOU’LL TAKE ME in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog.