LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #5: 'Summer's Shadow' by Anna Wilson

'Summer's Shadow' by Anna Wilson

Review by Christopher Moore



 

Summary:

Her mother's will states that Summer's legal guardian is her uncle Tristan: a man Summer has never even heard of before. Forced to leave her life in London, Summer moves to Tristan's creepy, ancient house in Cornwall. There she is met with indifference from him, open hostility from her cousin, and an aunt who has chosen to leave rather than to tolerate her presence.

Soon Summer comes to believe that the house may be haunted. But is it haunted by ghosts, or by the shadows of her family's past?

Scared and lonely, Summer begins to spend more and more time in the beautiful sheltered cove she discovers nearby. But she's not alone. A local boy frequents it too. Can Summer find first love and the answers to the mysteries of her new home with this good-looking boy who appears to be too perfect to be true?


Review:

This is a sweet book that's almost literary in style, telling the story of Summer after the death of her mother and her new life at Bosleven with her estranged family. Summer is a middle-of-the-road character. It's a pity that I read Clare Furniss' The Year of the Rat before this because Furniss really captures the essence of her narrator's, Pearl's, pain and grief with splashes of humour and a distinct voice that intrigues the reader. Summer's voice is a bit flat. I found it difficult to engage with her or pay attention to what was going on. I found myself reading a page and having to re-read it because I wasn't sure what happened. I couldn't focus. I think the reader would have benefitted from a first-person perspective from Summer's point of view.

The settings were well developed; the beach, Bosleven. Wilson anchors the reader in specific places that are beautifully described.

As I read the story, I wasn't sure what sort of story it would be. There were some supernatural elements that almost echoed Alyxandra Harvey's Haunting Violet but ultimately, the story is more in line with The Year of the Rat. The characters were OK. I wanted them all to be pushed a bit further.

Overall, it's a nice read but it's not the best book in this area that I've ever read.

 Rating: 3/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ 

 

 

Christopher Moore:

Christopher is a co-founder of the YAfictionados blog and is best known as the YAblooker. He is a twenty-four year old book blogger who has previously worked in marketing and consumer insight for various publishing houses and writes in his spare time. He loves to travel and will read anything YA-related and some general fiction and fantasy.

Follow Christopher on Twitter: @YAblooker

Find Christopher on Goodreads: Christopher Moore



LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #5: 'Riot' by Sarah Mussi

'Riot' by Sarah Mussi

Review by Christopher Moore

 Summary:

England is struggling under a recession that has shown no sign of abating. Years of cuts has devastated Britain: banks are going under, businesses closing, prices soaring, unemployment rising, prisons overflowing. The authorities cannot cope. And the population has maxed out.

The police are snowed under. Something has to give. Drastic measures need taking.

The solution: forced sterilisation of all school leavers without secure further education plans or guaranteed employment.

The country is aghast. Families are distraught, teenagers are in revolt, but the politicians are unshakeable: The population explosion must be curbed. No more free housing for single parents, no more child benefit, no more free school meals, no more children in need. Less means more.

But it is all so blatantly unfair - the Teen Haves will procreate, the Teen Havenots won't.

It's time for the young to take to the streets. It's time for them to RIOT:

OUR RIGHTS, OUR BODIES, OUR FUTURE.


Review:

The novel is more plot- than character-driven but that's fine and the sterilisation of the school leavers from poorer classes is so strong that it actually ensnares and intrigues the reader from the first gruesome pages. The story reads like a sucker-punch to the face. It's bold with a fast-paced narrative and plenty of action.

Mussi flicks emotional switches at the right times though, allowing us to identify with her characters even though her characters read, for me anyway, as physical, ideological representations in this dystopian Britain. That's not to say they're bad characters and in fact, I think it mostly works for this kind of story.

Tia is an interesting enough narrator though I felt at times, there was some repetition with her language; in particular the "flipping" curse word stripped her of some of her credibility as a teen - and in general, I felt like she could have been pushed even further (to the extent that Day was in Marie Lu's Legend trilogy). She also lapses into Americanisms which conflicts with the London setting. The only other thing that irked me was that the antagonist read a bit cartoony when I wanted more depth to match the gravity and severity of the law that's being implemented.


Overall, it's a fast-paced story with a good backstory and setting that will please fans of Sophie Kenzie and Marie Lu.

 Rating: 4/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ 

Christopher Moore:

Christopher is a co-founder of the YAfictionados blog and is best known as the YAblooker. He is a twenty-four year old book blogger who has previously worked in marketing and consumer insight for various publishing houses and writes in his spare time. He loves to travel and will read anything YA-related and some general fiction and fantasy.

Follow Christopher on Twitter: @YAblooker

Find Christopher on Goodreads: Christopher Moore

LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #4: 'When Mr Dog Bites' by Brian Conaghan

'When Mr Dog Bites' by Brian Conaghan

Summary:

Hilariously touching and outrageously unforgettable: Mark Haddon's Christopher Boone meets Holden Caulfield on one *#@! of a journey. . .

Dylan Mint has Tourette's. Being sixteen is hard enough, but Dylan's life is a constant battle to keep the bad stuff in - the swearing, the tics, the howling dog that seems to escape whenever he gets stressed... But a routine visit to the hospital changes everything. Overhearing a hushed conversation between the doctor and his mother, Dylan discovers that he's going to die next March. So he grants himself three parting wishes or 'Cool Things To Do Before I Cack It'. But as Dylan sets out to make his wishes come true, he discovers that nothing - and no-one - is quite as he had previously supposed.


Review

When Mr Dog Bites is the second novel from rising talent Brian Conaghan and similar to his debut is a novel with wide crossover appeal between adult and YA fiction. The book is shortlisted for the Lancashire Book of the Year award and is in exceptional company alongside many wonderful YA novels. When Mr Dog Bites is a pleasant addition to the list as it is not strictly just a YA novel; it was simultaneously marketed with an adult cover and contains complex adult relationships alongside the teen characters.


Our narrator is Dylan Mint a 16-year old teen with Tourettes syndrome in his last year at his high school for teens with difficulties. Dylan is attending a routine visit at the hospital when he overhears from his doctor that he has only got six months to live. Determined to make these months count, Dylan creates a list of desires to fulfil before he passes on. His first wish is to have sexual intercourse with Michelle Molloy, his second to help his best friend Amir who is constantly bullied by racist cretins and lastly to get his dad back from the army to see him before he dies.


Dylan is an exceptional narrator and intriguing voice, I’ve not read a book from the point of view of a character with Tourettes and Conaghan brings such depth and clarity to his character that I immediately empathisde with Dylan. The results are honest, heart-breaking and hysterical - I loved Dylan’s attempts to speak to Michelle yet his nerves make him yell obscenities at her causing her to threaten him with violence. Or when Dylan tries to correct racist taunts by pointing out that the two insults are from different ethnicities and therefore can’t be used together.


When Mr Dog Bites is an exceptionally well-written book, observant, clever and engaging, I was completely swept away in the story. Due to its unflinching and vivid portrayal of its wide range of characters with various disabilities, the book is also educational and enlightening and I left the book with a greater understanding of Tourette’s Syndrome. A friend of mine who works in a high school library described this book to me as the best book she couldn’t have in her library (due to the swearing as her school has a no-swearing policy) and I think this realistic language and racism might limit the book’s appeal to the younger choosers of this prize as it’s a more challenging read than many books on the list. However it is a worthy contender for the prize and I would be pleased to see it win as it’s a book that deserves wider recognition. 

Rating: 5/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Sarah Nuttall

Sarah is an active contributor for the YAfictionados blog site. She has written posts for the Waterstones blog and has worked as a bookseller (for 9 years), a Children's bookseller (for 6 years) and is now a manager at her local bookstore. Needless to say, Sarah is a valued member of the YAfictionados team - a true Children's and YA literature expert.

LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #3: 'Only Ever Yours' by Louise O'Neill

'Only Ever Yours' by Louise O'Neill

Review by Sarah Nuttall

Summary:

freida and isabel have been best friends their whole lives. Now, aged sixteen and in their final year at the School, they expect to be selected as companions - wives to wealthy and powerful men.

The alternative - life as a concubine - is too horrible to contemplate.

But as the intensity of the final year takes hold, the pressure to be perfect mounts. isabel starts to self-destruct, putting her beauty - her only asset - in peril.

And then into this sealed female environment, the boys arrive, eager to choose a bride.

freida must fight for her future - even if it means betraying the only friend, the only love, she has ever known...

Review:

Only Ever Yours is the debut novel of the talented Louise O’Neill. A satirical novel on society’s obsession with female beauty and the pursuit for physical perfection, it was well received by the YA community as well as being shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize and winning the inaugural YA Book Prize.


freida and isabel have been best friends their whole lives; born from the same batch of eves they are genetically engineered women designed to be the right standard of physical beauty and perfection. Along with their sister eves for twelve years they have attended The School awaiting the day of The Ceremony, the day were they will finally discover which role they will receive on leaving school – companion, concubine or chastity. The greatest of these is the companion; a role which allows the eve to be owned by a husband and the possibility of having sons. Next, are the concubines; designed for sexual pleasure. And lastly, is the common chastity; remaining at the school to develop the future generations of eves to attain their futures. The chastities teach the eves the rules; be pretty; do as you’re told; don’t be different; and don’t break the rules. They eves are drugged with pills to help them sleep and keep their weight within target. Their classes revolve around learning skills that men will find useful and critiquing the beauty and weight of their fellow eves. The pressure is immense and when the boys arrive to claim their brides the eves descend into the final rounds of their high pressure game of "'win or lose"; for this is what they were designed for; this is why they were made. 


I was absolutely floored the first time I read Only Ever Yours and having read it a second time it still has had a strong emotional effect on me. Although the story is fiction, it comes from such an honest core, using our society’s obsession with physical beauty so that it offers more of a reflection on modern society that, on the surface, may resemble a standard YA dystopian novel. The eves are trained to analyse, critique and manipulate each other all in the name of beauty and by conforming to one type of beauty, the eves are faceless; mere clones encouraged to have no personality. The eves viciously attack each other’s physicality; the eves with the highest beauty rankings setting the standards and implementing a self-perpetual cycle that cannot be broken. The onslaught is relentless.


Social media and TV offer no reprieve to the eves; instead, it is used to reflect back to them the standards and ideals they must achieve. It’s a frightening parable but one which will resonate with most. Who amongst us hasn’t witnessed someone’s physicality described negatively? Hasn’t seen a magazine label a woman too skinny, too fat, or simply labelled a bitch? Read a description of a woman’s age and beauty rather than her profession achievements? A mere glance on the internet can bring up the worst and nastiest comments from faceless commentators, with users hounded off social media by taunts of weight, beauty or accusations of stupidity. The most popular cosmetic surgeries across the world are breast augmentation, nasal surgery and eyelid surgery as women across the world alter their faces and bodies to achieve one goal. Butt implants are the fasting growing surgery. It’s a vicious onslaught and although it’s a personal choice and, for some, surgery may have a positive life change, perhaps some would feel happier with their perceived imperfections if there were more standards of beauty than what’s currently reflected.


The desire for physical perfection is summed up perfectly by O’Neill. The standards don’t make our eves happier or healthier, indeed they make them less so; physically and spirituality they are stupid, dull, insipid and mean. The eves are constantly pulling each other down but are never content or happy. Indeed, our happiest characters are those that have accepted themselves and their bodies. It’s a positive and much needed message and one I hope younger women will see and champion because there is beauty in everyone and to deny your beauty to fulfil another’s standard is a loss to the world.


Only Ever Yours is a truly remarkable book, not only for its positive messages, but for introducing us to the wonderful O’Neill who I’m sure will continue to create wonderful books and interesting books. For a debut author, her writing is exceptional; great dialogue, complex and interesting characters and an uncanny ability to understand and connect with her characters. I understood the motivations and could empathise with the characters in the book; from isabel’s attempt at defiance to freida’s overwhelming desire to be a companion; megan’s drive to be Number One and Darwin’s confusion at the eves' interlocking love/hate relationships. A truly wonderful book and one that deserves to be in every school library.  

Rating: 5/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Sarah Nuttall

Sarah is an active contributor for the YAfictionados blog site. She has written posts for the Waterstones blog and has worked as a bookseller (for 9 years), a Children's bookseller (for 6 years) and is now a manager at her local bookstore. Needless to say, Sarah is a valued member of the YAfictionados team - a true Children's and YA literature expert.

LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #2: 'Thirteen' by Tom Hoyle

'Thirteen' by Tom Hoyle

Review by Megan Winchester

Summary:

THEY’RE DYING ONE BY ONE.

HIS DAYS ARE NUMBERED.

Born at midnight in London on the stroke of the new millennium, Adam is the target of a cult that believes boys born at this time must die before the end of their thirteenth year.

Twelve have been killed so far.

Coron, the crazy cult leader, will stop at nothing to bring in his new kingdom. And now he is planning a bombing spectacular across London to celebrate the sacrifice of his final victim: Adam


Review:

"I have been sent to find this child, and I will not disappoint my master.  You will tell me where he is."  Desperation erupted inside him.  It was nearly 3 p.m.  "TELL ME."  He stepped closer.  "HE. MUST. DIE…

"Thirteen is a dangerous, dangerous book.  The chapters are so short – dangerously short. The plot is fast and exciting and dark.  The writing is so easy to read.  And it is seriously freaking addictive.  I began reading and was instantly hooked.  Thirteen is really plot-based so it's hard for me to write this review without giving anything awa.  I will say that Thirteen is damn near impossible to put down – it is just so gripping, so creeptastic.  I do have some niggles with the book as a whole, but I seriously enjoyed the story.


Everything is set in third-person and you get to watch a few of the characters (including some members of The People – which is terrifying).  But I don't really feel like I knew any of the characters very well, not even Adam: the protagonist.  I found that irritating but, personally, the utter addictiveness of the plot and creepiness of the cult made up for the poor character development.  Also, whilst under-developed, the characters are all so interesting – the bad guys in particular.


Adam was pretty believable – he definitely felt like a thirteen-year-old boy.  He has to deal with some serious stuff, but the way he responds feels real – as real as his unlucky and extreme circumstances allow him to be!  Poor boy.  He's also brave and stubborn, and a quick-thinker.  But, like I said before, I didn't know him.  I liked him: he's an interesting character to read about, but how little I knew about him annoyed me.


Megan is a brilliant character – probably my favourite (and not just because we share a name).  She's the most the most rounded character, mainly because of her loyalty and friendship to Adam, which is so sweet and unshakeable.


Unfortunately, Thirteen carries with it, a real pet peeve of mine: absent, incompetent or unbelievable grown-ups.  Seriously, the parents are worryingly inept. I mean, really!  No half-decent parent would do some of the things that the parents in Thirteen do.  They're irritatingly unbelievable.


But, ooh, now I get to the most exciting (and terrifying) group of characters: The People!  This cult is freaking terrifying.  I mean, all cults are, but this: *shudders*.   Coron, the leader, is so disturbing, but they're all so fanatical; their beliefs so twisted and violent; bloody and elaborate. The children, in particular, freaked me out!  And the punishments.  The killings.  Again: *shudders*.


The writing is so addictive and so easy to read, written in simple, snappy sentences that really commanded my attention. It's a little simplistic at times and the descriptions weren't the best, but it makes the story move so much faster. The author really captures the disturbing elements of the cult, and heightens the ever-building suspense at all the right moments. It's unpredictable too – I never knew what was going to happen next, who was going to die next...  No one was safe!  However, the ending did feel a little rushed but I guess I'll just need to read book two then, won't I?


I found the cult theme fascinating and, as I said earlier (and can’t stress enough) utterly terrifying.  As part of my sociology, I had to research cults and therefore, I know a lot about them.  But my brothers didn't even know what a cult was – obviously they don’t watch as much Criminal Minds as I do.  I think the way Thirteen tackles cults is brilliant – The People are so fanatical and just scary as hell!  Also, what a way for kids to learn all about cults!  And be scared out of their minds.  Yay!


I’m not going to lie to you: I'm really not sure where to place Thirteen on the age spectrum.  On the one hand, Adam and his friends are thirteen and ergo, so young and innocent and un-teenager-y in a lot of ways (which I actually like since there's so little naivety in YA these days).  But on the other hand, there is so very much death and the cult is so dark and scary. It's a really weird mix of middle-grade and young-adult aspects. Odd, but interesting and Adam and his friends' innocence at the beginning does make the darkness of the cult-children even more jarring and terrifying.


Thirteen was definitely a fascinating and exciting read, if a bit inconsistent.  But given that it's Hoyle's debut novel, I forgave the niggles.  Thirteen absolutely gripped me – I read it all in a single sitting, staying up far too late to finish reading.  I am also so desperate to read the next book, Spiders. I really do enjoy (twisted though it might be) dark books like this on cults and I really did adore the fast-paced action, suspense and bloodiness of Thirteen.  


It might not be perfect, but it had this book lover totally addicted for all three-hundred pages. If you liked the Lorien Legacies series by Pittacus Lore, Empty Coffin by Gregg Olsen or the FAYZ series by Michael Grant, you'll love Thirteen.

Rating: 4/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ 
 

LBOY2015 Shortlist Review #1: Louder Than Words by Laura Jarratt

'Louder Than Words' by Laura Jarratt

Review by Christopher Moore

 

 

Summary:

Rafi hasn't spoken for eight years. It's up to her to tell her brother's story now that he can't speak either ...

Rafi idolises her seventeen-year-old brother, who is popular, generous and a borderline genius. Ever protective, Silas always includes her when he's with his friends, so Rafi gets to hear all sorts of things that younger sisters wouldn't normally be a part of. Like the time Silas hacks a gaming site to help out his friend Josie, who has been trashed by her ex.

 With Josie, Rafi finds herself with a proper friend for the first time in her life. As they grow closer, she realises that she wants to find a way back into the world – she wants to learn to speak again. But Silas has found a new interest too – and it’s taking him away from everything that was once important to him. Can Rafi find the words to save her brother?

 

 

Review:

 

I absolutely loved this book. Rafi is a sensational narrator and character, chronicling her story poignantly as she communicates with her brother and Josie through text and hand gestures. Josie, too, is a fantastic, optimistic character that lifts Rafi up whenever she falls and stands by her friend.

 

 

The story is not one of romance but more an emotional recounting of Rafi's brother and their relationship and the rift that slowly starts to separate her from everything she cherishes. But she has Josie and through Josie, she finds her voice in ways she never could have hoped. Josie buys her a phone so that they can communicate and teaches Rafi that she's good enough as she is; that she's special and the right guy will like her for her; that she's more special than even she realises.

 

 

Jarratt educates the reader about Rafi's progressive mutism (and of selective mutism). She imbues her characters with qualities and personalities that readers will love; allowing anyone who picks up the book to establish an immediate and strong emphatic connection to Rafi.

 

 

I selected this book to review for the Lancashire book of the year award. It is not a book I would have picked off a book shelf. I'm glad I did though as the writing blew me away. The plot is strong but it's largely character-driven and th and it's Rafi (and Josie) that draw you in; it's Rafi's remarkable voice that kept me reading late at night and almost made me late for work more than once.

 

 

It's an emotional, psychological story of a friendship where Rafi doesn't speak at all and Josie speaks too much. It's the story of a brother and sister; the sibling highs and lows. It's everything you want in a summer read. Read it by the beach, in the park, by the pool or on the train. It will grip you, make your heart pound in your chest. You'll feel Rafi's pain, her fear, like a physical cut.

 

 

And one of my favourite quotes: "Don't change yourself for another person."

 

 Rating: 5/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

 

 

Christopher Moore:

 

 

Christopher is a co-founder of the YAfictionados blog and is best known as the YAblooker. He is a twenty-four year old book blogger who has previously worked in marketing and consumer insight for various publishing houses and writes in his spare time. He loves to travel and will read anything YA-related and some general fiction and fantasy.

 

 

Follow Christopher on Twitter: @YAblooker

 

Find Christopher on Goodreads: Christopher Moore

 

'Only Ever Yours' Is A Triumph

'Only Ever Yours' by Louise O'Neill

Review by Sarah Nuttall

Summary:

freida and isabel have been best friends their whole lives. Now, aged sixteen and in their final year at the School, they expect to be selected as companions - wives to wealthy and powerful men.

The alternative - life as a concubine - is too horrible to contemplate.

But as the intensity of the final year takes hold, the pressure to be perfect mounts. isabel starts to self-destruct, putting her beauty - her only asset - in peril.

And then into this sealed female environment, the boys arrive, eager to choose a bride.

freida must fight for her future - even if it means betraying the only friend, the only love, she has ever known...

Review:

Only Ever Yours is the debut novel of the talented Louise O’Neill. A satirical novel on society’s obsession with female beauty and the pursuit for physical perfection, it was well received by the YA community as well as being shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize and winning the inaugural YA Book Prize.


freida and isabel have been best friends their whole lives; born from the same batch of eves they are genetically engineered women designed to be the right standard of physical beauty and perfection. Along with their sister eves for twelve years they have attended The School awaiting the day of The Ceremony, the day were they will finally discover which role they will receive on leaving school – companion, concubine or chastity. The greatest of these is the companion; a role which allows the eve to be owned by a husband and the possibility of having sons. Next, are the concubines; designed for sexual pleasure. And lastly, is the common chastity; remaining at the school to develop the future generations of eves to attain their futures. The chastities teach the eves the rules; be pretty; do as you’re told; don’t be different; and don’t break the rules. They eves are drugged with pills to help them sleep and keep their weight within target. Their classes revolve around learning skills that men will find useful and critiquing the beauty and weight of their fellow eves. The pressure is immense and when the boys arrive to claim their brides the eves descend into the final rounds of their high pressure game of "'win or lose"; for this is what they were designed for; this is why they were made. 


I was absolutely floored the first time I read Only Ever Yours and having read it a second time it still has had a strong emotional effect on me. Although the story is fiction, it comes from such an honest core, using our society’s obsession with physical beauty so that it offers more of a reflection on modern society that, on the surface, may resemble a standard YA dystopian novel. The eves are trained to analyse, critique and manipulate each other all in the name of beauty and by conforming to one type of beauty, the eves are faceless; mere clones encouraged to have no personality. The eves viciously attack each other’s physicality; the eves with the highest beauty rankings setting the standards and implementing a self-perpetual cycle that cannot be broken. The onslaught is relentless.


Social media and TV offer no reprieve to the eves; instead, it is used to reflect back to them the standards and ideals they must achieve. It’s a frightening parable but one which will resonate with most. Who amongst us hasn’t witnessed someone’s physicality described negatively? Hasn’t seen a magazine label a woman too skinny, too fat, or simply labelled a bitch? Read a description of a woman’s age and beauty rather than her profession achievements? A mere glance on the internet can bring up the worst and nastiest comments from faceless commentators, with users hounded off social media by taunts of weight, beauty or accusations of stupidity. The most popular cosmetic surgeries across the world are breast augmentation, nasal surgery and eyelid surgery as women across the world alter their faces and bodies to achieve one goal. Butt implants are the fasting growing surgery. It’s a vicious onslaught and although it’s a personal choice and, for some, surgery may have a positive life change, perhaps some would feel happier with their perceived imperfections if there were more standards of beauty than what’s currently reflected.


The desire for physical perfection is summed up perfectly by O’Neill. The standards don’t make our eves happier or healthier, indeed they make them less so; physically and spirituality they are stupid, dull, insipid and mean. The eves are constantly pulling each other down but are never content or happy. Indeed, our happiest characters are those that have accepted themselves and their bodies. It’s a positive and much needed message and one I hope younger women will see and champion because there is beauty in everyone and to deny your beauty to fulfil another’s standard is a loss to the world.


Only Ever Yours is a truly remarkable book, not only for its positive messages, but for introducing us to the wonderful O’Neill who I’m sure will continue to create wonderful books and interesting books. For a debut author, her writing is exceptional; great dialogue, complex and interesting characters and an uncanny ability to understand and connect with her characters. I understood the motivations and could empathise with the characters in the book; from isabel’s attempt at defiance to freida’s overwhelming desire to be a companion; megan’s drive to be Number One and Darwin’s confusion at the eves' interlocking love/hate relationships. A truly wonderful book and one that deserves to be in every school library.  

Rating: 5/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Sarah Nuttall

Sarah is an active contributor for the YAfictionados blog site. She has written posts for the Waterstones blog and has worked as a bookseller (for 9 years), a Children's bookseller (for 6 years) and is now a manager at her local bookstore. Needless to say, Sarah is a valued member of the YAfictionados team - a true Children's and YA literature expert.

 

Louise O'Neill Talks Inspiration, The YA Book Prize and What's Next

Louise O'Neill is the phenomenal debut author on the lips of YA readers nationwide. Her debut, 'Only Ever Yours', has claimed the inaugural YA Book Prize, an Irish Book Award and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize. We can expect big things from Louise and her hotly-anticipated follow-up, 'Asking For It, publishes in September.


Follow Louise on Twitter: @oneillo

Buy 'Only Ever Yours':

- Amazon

- Waterstones

- Foyles

The interview

1.For those that haven’t read Only Ever Yours, could you sum it up in 140 characters? 

The Handmaid’s Tale meets Mean Girls. (With a side of Heathers for good measure.)


2.Where did the premise for the novel come from? 

 On a very cold January day in New York, I was waiting in a Starbucks for the subway to start running again. I was reading one of those terrible gossip magazines that had red circles of shame drawn around the body parts of female celebrities deemed to be somehow unacceptable. All of a sudden, a vision flared in my mind. It was of a young girl in a bikini, standing in front of a classroom of other girls while a teacher in long black robes drew circles around her ‘defective’ body parts in red marker. The other girls were pounding their fists on their desks, shouting FAT, FAT, FAT. 

And I thought to myself – a world in which women are bred for their beauty.

 
3.How long did it take to pen it and how difficult was it to build and develop the world in which it is set? 

I had the idea in January 2011 but I didn’t start writing it until March 2012. At that point, I had all of these ideas for the world and the characters so when I actually started putting words down on the paper, it seemed to flow easily. I had a first draft written by the 31st of August 2012

 
4.Who was your favourite character to write? 

megan was always fun to write because she could be such a bitch. I had an entire back story created for her in my mind so I always felt she was more sympathetic than perhaps she was perceived. She’s so different to me and that forced me to give more thought and consideration to her motivations.

 
5.If you had to write from the perspective of one other character, which character would you pick and why? 

I would have been interested in writing this story from megan’s perspective or Darwin’s point of view. I deliberately kept isabel as quite a shadowy character in the narrative so I think it would be strange giving her a voice in that way.

 
6.You explore sexuality and gender (and even touch on race) and force the reader to face a very dark and twisted world. The most frightening aspect of the world you’ve created is that it holds some kernels of truth that are relevant to our society. How conscious were you of this in the writing process? 

Every single thing that I write about in Only Ever Yours was inspired by something that happened in real life. Every day, I would look at my Twitter feed, or read an article on the Vagenda or Jezebel, or see a post on the Everyday Sexism Project and I would instantly want to include that in my novel. It was about 140,000 words when I initially finished it and the book in its present form is approximate 92,000 words. We cut a lot – not everything I wanted to include was helpful to the pacing!

 
7.The novel is very intimate and personal. I know you’ve suffered from an eating disorder in your personal life and you share this in the love through frieda. What elements of frieda’s character mirror your experiences?  
 
freida is a work of fiction and she isn’t based on me. Writing is like acting in a way, you try and figure out a way into each character’s head, try and figure out what it is that makes them behave in the way that they do. Everyone has experienced grief, shame, fear, love, hope, sadness... It’s about remembering how that felt and then thinking about how a particular character would see those emotions.

 
8.How did you find the publication process? 
 
I’m very, very busy! There are a lot of invitations to events and speaking engagements and literary festivals.

I’m lucky enough to have incredible people working with me. From my agent and my editor to all the team at Quercus shouting about Only Ever Yours on my behalf, I’ve felt encouraged and supported from the very beginning.

 
9.The novel has achieved tremendous success in both Ireland and the UK. Were you surprised by this? How did you react when you discovered you won the Bookseller YA book prize? 

While I was writing the book, I remember telling a friend that I thought if I managed to do justice to the idea, that I thought the book could be important. She looked at me like I was crazy! I didn’t think I was the best writer in the world but I believed in the story, in the message. I was hungry for something like Only Ever Yours to exist and I hoped that other people might feel the same way.

As for the awards... well, I think I’m a bit psychic. I had the strangest feeling with both the Irish Book Awards and the Bookseller prize that I had won, whereas when I woke up on the morning of the Waterstones Book Prize, I knew that I had not. 

It was a huge honour to win the YA Book Prize because the shortlist was so incredibly strong and the judging panel was made up of people whose opinion I truly respected. The entire event was so well organised – it was a pleasure to be involved.

 
10.Now that Only Ever Yours has been published, what’s next?

Only Ever Yours is going to be released as an adult book in July 2015 which I’m very excited about. My second book, Asking For It, will be published on the 3rd of September. It’s about a young girl, Emma, who wakes up the morning after a party to find images of her sexual assault all over social media. It deals with issues of consent, rape culture, and victim blaming.

 
11.Do you have any unusual habits when you write?
 
I meditate for about ten minutes beforehand, then I invoke all the angels, saints, gods and goddesses that I can think of to surround me and to help me connect to the greater consciousness from which all the best ideas come from.

Yes, I’m a bit weird.


12.You’re on Mars and you have meagre food reserves. You have no communication with Earth and you’re down to your last two canisters of oxygen. You have just enough time to read five books. What five would you choose? 
 

THIS IS SO HARD. God. 

Amongst Women – John McGahern

Skippy Dies – Paul Murray

The Secret History – Donna Tartt

Oryx and Crake – Margaret Atwood

Are you there God? It’s Me Margaret. – Judy Blume.
 

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions. I have so much respect for any author that puts so much of themselves into a novel; the good parts and the dark and you certainly don't hold back. Congratulations on your success and good luck for what lies ahead (though I doubt you'll need it).

'Seed': A Phenomenal Debut

'Seed' by Lisa Heathfield

Review by Christopher Moore

Summary (from Amazon): Seed loves you. Seed will never let you go.  

Fifteen-year-old Pearl has lived her whole life protected within the small community at Seed, where they worship Nature and idolise their leader, Papa S. When some outsiders arrive, everything changes. Pearl experiences feelings that she never knew existed and begins to realise that there is darkness at the heart of Seed.  A darkness from which she must escape, before it's too late.

A chilling and heartbreaking coming-of-age story of life within a cult, Seed will take readers on a journey of gripping self-discovery reminiscent of The Handmaid's Tale.





Review:

Seed is an exceptional, read-between-the-lines YA debut by the very talented Lisa Heathfield. It tells the story of Pearl and her life at Seed with her family as they worship their leader, Papa S. (and Mother Nature).

There are four things, in particular that I loved, and that I feel you should know. The first is the unpredictability. I really had no idea what was going to happen next (and if you check out our interview with Lisa Heathfield on the site, you'll see that she didn't either). I held Seed with one hand as I bit nervously at my nails while tearing through the pages. A compulsive page-turner indeed.

The second element I loved is the twisting of the beautiful and the downright eerie. Seed is meant to be an idyllic community and we see this in some of their rituals; their working together as a family in their everyday life and their treks to Dawn Rock where they watch the Sun rise together. These images are punctured with more disturbing rituals like tasting each other's blood. It's a book that doesn't also spell things out for you and when you dig a little deeper, you'll find the creepy elements to this cult. If you can imagine looking at a beautiful portrait only to find out it has been painted in blood. Unnerving. Creepy. Disturbingly addictive (Seed, that is)

The third standout element of the book is Seed itself. It's infused in the characters and the landscape, it features in the rituals and practices of their cult religion and it's always in the reader's mind. It's a place of beauty and community; of nature and family; but it's also a dangerous place and Pearl, Kate and her family are pawns in a very dangerous game.

The last and most interesting element of the book, for me, was Pearl's psychological balance. She's been raised to love Papa S but some of the events in the book cause her to question his motives and his love and slowly, she starts to discover he's a flawed man and it's this oscillation between Pearl's sense of right and wrong - her sense of what she's been taught to believe versus the hard truths that have been put before her - that make her a fascinating character.

Seed is a must-read for readers who are growing bored of predictable YA stories; readers who are searching for something new and fresh. It offers something I've never seen before - life lived in a cult - and it is executed with the pen of a very talented writer. Be warned though, it's an eerie read that will bury deep under your skin. Pearl's story and her community's traumas, will stick with you long after you finish the last page. I would highly recommend this to all YA readers, particularly those that like darker themes (and dystopian lovers).

Bring. On. Book. Two.

Rating: 4/5 Stars  ★ ★ ★ ★ 

Author Interview: Lisa Heathfield

Lisa Heathfield is the incredible, debut author of Seed - a standout YA title, this year, for its beautifully eerie and chilling portrayal of life lived in a cult. Lisa lives in Brighton with her husband and three sons. Before becoming a mum, she was a secondary school English teacher and loved inspiring teenagers to read.

Follow Lisa on Twitter: @LisaHeathfield

Buy 'Seed':

- Amazon
- Waterstones

- Foyles

The Interview

For those that haven’t read Seed, could you sum it up in 140 characters?

An idyllic community. Innocent teenagers, vulnerable to the abuse of power. The unravelling of secrets. And a darkness threatening to destroy them all.

Where did the premise for the novel come from? Have you drawn the inspiration and emotion for Seed from a personal place?

Pearl appeared to me one day, when I was writing another book. I wouldn't say she was demanding, as that's not what she's like, but she was quietly persistent that I should write her story instead. As soon as I picked up my pen, the community of Seed was there. I wrote it as though I was reading it - I had no idea what was going to happen next, so it was really exciting to write.

How long did it take to pen Seed and how difficult was it to develop Pearl’s see-sawing, psychological balance?

I think the first draft took about six months. Then I edited it a bit with my agent, before it went on submission and then I edited it again with Ali Dougal, at Egmont.

Pearl actually swung back and forth, between loving and questioning Papa S, far more in the initial draft. It was under Ali's brilliant guidance that Pearl found a stronger footing in realising that Seed was actually a really dark place. It was very hard for Pearl to see and accept, though. She has been raised at Seed her whole life - it is all she's ever known. She's never had any reason to doubt in Papa S and it's very tough for her to realise that the man she adores is actually very flawed.

If you had to write from the perspective of one other character, which character would you pick and why?

I love Kate - her growing defiance, yet her stark vulnerability. Although, I think it would be really gruelling writing from her perspective, bearing in mind what's happening to her. I'd also be intrigued to write from Papa S' perspective. I'd like to see what makes him tick.

Seed exhibits a lot of taboo, behavioural moments. I found it a compulsive read but deeply unsettling. What was the most unsettling moment, for you, to write?

Pearl going to Papa S' chamber, having been chosen to be his Companion, was pretty horrible. And when she has to wear a blindfold and is in the corn field. Thankfully I kind-of 'zone out' when I write. It sounds strange, but I often don't even know what I've written, until I type it up at the end.

There are some strange, sick rituals at Seed. Where did these ideas come from?

I think the cutting of their palms and tasting blood must come from the more innocent 'blood-sister/brother' thing we used to do as children. The women being confined underground when they first get their period was, I'm sure, influenced by Natascha Kampusch's incarceration in 3,096 DAYS, which I had just read.

But not all the rituals are sick! I love it when they go to Dawn Rocks, to watch the sun rising. And when they kiss their palms and face them to the sky, there are echoes of the women in Margaret Atwood's THE HANDMAID'S TALE (not that I'd ever in a million years compare myself to Margaret Atwood, but I think that so much of what I read seeps into my subconscious and comes out in my writing).

At what point did you decide that there would be a sequel? What can we expect from the sequel?

I actually wrote SEED as a standalone, so it was a surprise to me when my publishers asked for a sequel! I think a lot of people are expecting and hoping for different things! It will be interesting to see where Pearl takes me.

Pearl narrates much of the story but there is also another story. You never explicitly state who that is and I think it is unlikely that you will tell us before the sequel. I would like to ask, though, if we’ll get to see more of the backstory for this character in the next book? And why did you decide to write a from this second point of view? Did you begin the story writing this way or did it develop at some point during Seed?

It's interesting that you've asked this, because when I began writing SEED, there wasn't this second view point. Then one day, I was walking our boys back from school and out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw someone looking out of a top window as we went past. And it was instant - I realised then that there was someone else, hidden away at Seed.

How did you find the publication process?

It's been amazing! Everyone at Egmont is so lovely and welcoming. It's been incredible having such an experienced editor work on my book with me. And all the build-up to publication was so exciting. And of course, SEED was paired with the super-talented Ben Hughes, who designed the cover. I feel VERY lucky.

Was Seed the first book you’ve ever written?

It was my second book. My first got as far as the submission process, but didn't quite get picked up. I'd like to work on it again one day and see if it gets further.

You’re on Mars and you have meagre food reserves. You’ve used up your last Kindle battery. You have no communication with Earth and you’re down to your last two canisters of oxygen. You have just enough time to read five books. What five would you choose?

Two would be re-reads: Markus Zusak's THE BOOK THIEF and William Faulkner's AS I LAY DYING. Both of these are beyond extraordinary and I just have to read one sentence from either of them and I'm gone! The other three would be books I haven't read. The first one I'm totally ashamed to admit - I really have been meaning to for years and years and I'm not quite sure why I haven't got round to it: Emily Bronte's WUTHERING HEIGHTS. I loved Stephanie Kuehn's CHARM AND STRANGE, so I can't wait to read DELICATE MONSTERS which is almost out. And I've just bought Jandy Nelson's I GIVE YOU THE SUN, which looks amazing.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions.

Thank-you for writing them for me!