'A Fierce and Subtle Poison' by Samantha Mabry Review

'A Fierce and Subtle Poison' by Samantha Mabry

Review by Christopher Moore

Summary:
 

In this stunning debut, legends collide with reality when a boy is swept into the magical, dangerous world of a girl filled with poison. Everyone knows the legends about the cursed girl - Isabel, the one the senoras whisper about. They say she has green skin and grass for hair, and she feeds on the poisonous plants that fill her family's Caribbean island garden. Some say she can grant wishes; some say her touch can kill. Seventeen-year-old Lucas lives on the mainland most of the year but spends summers with his hotel-developer father in Puerto Rico. He s grown up hearing stories about the cursed girl, and he wants to believe in Isabel and her magic.

When letters from Isabel begin mysteriously appearing in his room the same day his new girlfriend disappears, Lucas turns to Isabel for answers - and finds himself lured into her strange and enchanted world. But time is running out for the girl filled with poison, and the more entangled Lucas becomes with Isabel, the less certain he is of escaping with his own life.


Review:

 

It was the combination of title and cover that brought A Fierce and Subtle Poison to my attention on Net Galley. I read the synopsis and seriously, how could I not read it? It took a single page to hook me on its lyrical, magical prose that delights and excites. Though dissimilar in theme to E. Lockhart's We Were Liars, I couldn't help but feel echoes of its style in Mabry's work. It's very readable with the words painting a visceral and vivid picture in the mind.

I adore the Puerto Rican setting; a breath of fresh air from the city settings of so many YA stories. I swear, either Mabry has lived a significant period of her life in Puerto Rico or she researched it thoroughly and infused it seamlessly into her plot and characters. The protagonist is likable though I don't think he's the most interesting part of the story. Isabel is an incredible character; she's dark and dangerous, the monster that haunts the island but is she really? There's so much more to her and her story than meets the eye that will have you tearing through the pages into the early hours of the morning.

I don't want to spoilt the story for anyone so I'm going to park this review here. It's a sensational debut; a murder-mystery meets magical realism; a balance of light and dark. Not only is  it the best book I've read so far this year, it's one of the best I've read in the last twelve months. A must for fans of E. Lockhart's We Were Liars and Moira Fowley-Doyle's The Accident Season.

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-five 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.

'How Not to Disappear' Sets the Bar for YA in 2016

'How Not to Disappear' by Clare Furniss

Review by Chris

Summary:

Our memories are what make us who we are. Some are real. Some are made up. But they are the stories that tell us who we are. Without them we are nobody.

 

Hattie's summer isn't going as planned. Her two best friends have abandoned her: Reuben has run off to Europe to 'find himself' and Kat is in Edinburgh with her new girlfriend. Meanwhile Hattie is stuck babysitting her twin siblings and dealing with endless drama around her mum's wedding. Oh, and she's also just discovered that she's pregnant with Reuben's baby.

 

Then Gloria, Hattie's great-aunt who no one even knew existed, comes crashing into her life. Gloria's fiercely independent, rather too fond of a gin sling and is in the early stages of dementia. Together the two of them set out on a road trip of self-discovery - Gloria to finally confront the secrets of her past before they are erased from her memory forever and Hattie to face the hard choices that will determine her future.

 

Non Pratt's Trouble meets Thelma and Louise with a touch of Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey. Clare Furniss' remarkable How Not To Disappear is an emotional rollercoaster of a novel that will make you laugh and break your heart.

 

Review:

There is so much to love about this story: the relationship between Hattie and her great-aunt, the exploration of her rollercoaster relationship with her best friend Reuben, how she grows, develops and deals with her pregnancy, the physical journey (echoed in the mental and emotional journeys Hattie and Gloria undergo) and Hattie's twin siblings. And Gloria - let's not forget Gloria and her gin slings.

 

At first, I found the story to be a little bit slow but once it gets going, once Hattie meets Gloria, the story really begins and the characters jump off the page with so much life and warmth. I don't want to divulge too much but there's plenty in here with the pregnancy, Gloria's story and Hattie's only family. If you're going to pick up one YA book this Spring, make it How Not to Disappear.

 

Furniss played my heartstrings; at times, with a bow but more often, with a hacksaw. I'll never be the same again. I can't recommend this story enough. Comfortably falling into the category of #diverseYA (for its exploration of mental health and the often under-represented third generation-first generation relationship among other issues), this story will emotionally sucker-punch you over and over again and it's chock full of compelling characters. If Furniss was worried about one-off success (with The Year of the Rat), she need not fear; How Not to Disappear is, without doubt, a 2016 YA highlight.

 

 

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-five 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.

#YAtakeover Literary Classics and YA Lit Chat

Join us this Friday the 18^th December 2015 when we will be discussing literary classics and Young Adult literature using the #YAtakeover hashtag. From 7.30-9.00pm GMT, we will be hosting a discussion on the importance of literary classics and their impact and influence on YA lit. Whether it’s Jane Austen or Charlotte Bronte, Mary Shelley or Sylvia Plath, tweet us your thoughts and network with bloggers, authors, readers and more!

Please note: The day has been amended from Thursday to Friday due to unforeseen circumstances.

 

The #YAtakeover Author Line-Up

The author line-up for the #YAtakeover:

1.   C. J. Skuse (Monster)
2.   Frances Hardinge (The Lie Tree)
3.   Siobhan Curham (True Face)
4.   E. R. Murray (The Book of Learning)
5.   Matt Whyman (The Savages)
6.   Melinda Salisbury (The Sin Eater's Daughter)
7.   Becky Albertalli (Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda)
8.   Virginia Bergin (The Rain)
9.   MG Harris (Gemini Force One)
10. Cat Clarke (The Lost and the Found)
11. Non Pratt (Remix)
12. Lisa Heathfield (Seed)
13. Sarah Mussi (Siege)
14. Alexia Casale (The Bone Dragon)
15. Holly Smale (Geek Girl)
16. Rachel McIntyre (Me and Mr J)
17. Clare Furniss (How Not to Disappear)
18. Jana Oliver (The Demon Trappers)
19. Andrew Smith (Grasshopper Jungle)
20. Jess Vallance (Birdy)
21. Anna McKerrow (Crow Moon)
22. Jess Vallance (Birdy)
23. Louise O'Neill (Asking For It)
24. Marcus Sedgwick (The Ghosts of Heaven)
25. Jennifer Niven (All the Bright Places)
26. Ryan Graudin (Wolf by Wolf)
27. Kendare Blake (Mortal Gods)
28. Sally Green (Half Wild)
29. Samantha Shannon (The Mime Order)
30. Keren David (This is Not a Love Story)
31. Liz Kessler (Read Me Like A Book)
32. Alice Oseman (Solitaire)
33. Lu Hersey (Deep Water)
34. Lynn Weingarten (Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls)
35. Taran Matharu (The Novice)
36. C. J. Daugherty (Night School)
37. Robin Stevens (Murder Most Unladylike)
38. L. A. Weatherly (Angel)
39. Christi J. Whitney (Grey)
40. Eve Ainsworth (7 Days)
41. Jenn Bennett (Night Owls)
42. Jasmine Warga (My Heart and Other Black Holes)
43. Tabitha Suzuma (Forbidden)
44. Teri Terry (Mind Games)
45. Lauren Kate (Fallen)
46. I. W. Gregorio (None of the Above)
47. Darren Shan (The Vampire's Assistant)
48. Lisa Williamson (The Art of Being Normal)
49. Laura Jarratt (Louder Than Words)
50. Brian Conaghan (When Mr. Dog Bites)
51. Charlotte Eyre
52. Jake Hope
53. Katie Webber
54. Joy Court

The #YAtakeover

 

The #YAtakeover is an event unlike any other. For 24 hours, we're taking Twitter by storm. Authors from around the word will be interviewed live on Twitter where you, yes YOU, will get a chance to ask your burning questions. Join us on the 8th January 2016 at 9pm right through until 9pm on the 9th January  for the first ever, 24-hour, global YA event. Authors, bloggers, readers, booksellers, librarians, YA readers: mark this date in your calendar but I guarantee you, this is something you will NOT want to miss.

Twitter interviews will be themed and include anywhere between one and three authors. This will be hosted by a blogger on the day so share your thoughts with the authors involved by tweeting them (don't forget the #YAtakeover hashtag though!). They will take questions for the last ten minutes of their interview.

Follow our blog for the latest. Check us out on Twitter and Instagram where we'll announce news and updates. We have tons of giveaways and games planned, a book-tubing event with a twist, Twitter interviews and chats, a literary YA week and a whole lot more. Watch the skies for our YAF signal or, you know, you can always just check Twitter if it's a cloudy night.

Our giveaways will be done on Twitter AND Instagram so make sure you follow us on both to double your chances.

A list of the authors involved will be posted on the 12th November and updated as the month goes on. Follow us on Twitter to hear the daily author reveals first. The #YAtakeover schedule goes live from the 17th December 2015. I've already got that Friday feeling!

'The Art of Being Normal' Review

 

'The Art of Being Normal' by Lisa Williamson
Review by Sarah Nuttall

Summary:

David Piper is a fourteen-year old boy who has kept a secret for years. A secret that makes him feel different, scared and alone, yet the implications of revealing the secret could shatter David’s world. For David knows that he is a girl in a boy’s body, he has known for years and the secret is slowly weighing him down to the point where he feels he is drowning. Leo also has a secret, one that he would prefer to keep hidden from the world and has switched schools to hide. Leo knows this secret could shatter his new life so he keeps people at bay. However, when the mysterious Leo befriends David to protect him from being bullied, they both recognise that each is holding onto a secret. This friendship allows both David and Leo to take the first steps into the adult world allowing them to understand themselves and offering them acceptance, independence, love and happiness. 

Review:

The Art of Being Normal is the debut novel from Lisa Williamson and based simply on the quality of this debut, I have high expectations of what wonders she will bring to the YA genre. Although this book wants to discuss the wider issues of the LGBT community, it is secondary to creating memorable, original and well-crafted characters that I loved spending time with. I felt like I could identify with all the characters in the book despite not facing the same challenges and obstacles in my life. The book is so beautifully written that I cried several times and for days afterwards, I thought about the characters and the world they inhabited. I raved about this book to anyone who would listen that that they needed to read this book as I wanted to share the brilliance with everyone and discuss the issues raised.

I absolutely adored this book and think it is one of the most important YA books of the last ten years and marks a milestone in the understanding and reflection of an important issue in the LGBT community. Its central character is aware he is transgender and is viewing his options for transitioning to become, on the outside, a reflection of who David is on the inside. It is the first book I’ve read in YA that contains characters that are transgender and are at different stages of their transitioning and I hope it opens a door for further books on the subject. It eloquently depicts the wide-ranging issues that the transgender community face and how challenging this can be in the context of high school.

I find the high school setting to be one of the book's greatest strengths. There is nothing scarier in the world to a teenager than the loss of routine (school-life and home-life), friends and family and David’s secret has the potential to shatter them all. The fear that to become who David truly is, might cause those he loves to turn their back on him and destroy not only his home-life but also school-life, is a truly terrible possibility; one that would strike fear into the hearts of all teenagers and a fear David lives with daily. It is incredibly difficult to be unique in high school where the pressure to conform to the status quo is overwhelming. David’s choice is incredibly brave and moving and it is a pleasure to follow David on his journey. I do not want to go too deeply into the challenges David faces as the route David takes is unexpected and thrilling and I found the book was far more emotionally thrilling and unpredictable the less I knew. What I can say about this book is that it is a character-driven story and rich in plot with unexpected twists and turns that are believable and allow our characters to discover more about themselves.

The transgender/transitioning is a major plot point of The Art of Being Normal and it is treated with the upmost respect, love and understanding rather than being used for shock value or to sensationalise. The book is also realistic in portraying that there is still ignorance within society with the concept of transgender and transitioning and that this is not the end for David; there will be more challenges to face; more adversity to overcome. It is for this reason alone thatThe Art of Being Normal deserves the acclaim it has received. It has shined a light into a community that is under-represented by the media and society at large and often misunderstood. It also highlights the dangers the community faces from this ignorance, even though this year has seen several high-profile members of the transgender community speak out about their experiences such as Caitlyn Jenner and the development of the first Miss Transgender UK however there is still too much work to be done.

In the US alone this year, 17 transgender women have been murdered which is more than the entirety of the previous year. Acts of violence against the transgender community are not rare. Transphobia is real. According to the American Psychological Association, transgender children are likelier to face harassment and bullying than their peers and ¾ of transgender children reported feeling unsafe. It is a sobering thought that children can feel unsafe simply because of their sexual identity. The Art of Being Normal is therefore not only a well crated novel with a message but a book that can provide a little hope for the future whether it is allowing transgender children to feel less alone or providing non-transgender children a glimpse into a world they don’t know but the more we understand, the better a world we can make for everyone.

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.

Why We Need Diverse Books #DiverseYA

"We need diversity in YA books as books themselves represented life, they reflect our worlds around us whether the setting is dystopian, fantastical, historical or real-life through the characters, their emotions and their choices. Books that choose to ignore diversity despite relevance to their story do not reflect life but a diluted, unrealistic and forced perspective that limits characters and their choices not allowing the characters the chance to fulfil their potential. Instead the story becomes secondary to the authors own personal beliefs and attitudes. It becomes a sermon rather than a story allowing neither reader nor author to develop from the book. As reflecting diversity can be challenging and challenging books are not always popular, high-grossing or beloved it’s not always the obvious choice to reflect diversity even though it is the right choice.

Books that do embrace diversity allow their characters a rich character arc and emotional connection, whilst also bringing to light issues that affect the world and society. They allow us to empathise, learn and understand the characters and their situation and develop from an experience we may otherwise have little understanding of. Diversity allows books to reflect the world and from that we can understand the world embracing the differences that make us great and increasing our understanding of this complex and beautiful world."

Sarah Nuttall (@CapturingSarah)

 

 

"Diversity is about representing our generation. There's strength in all of us and we deserve to see that in characters that we will love but ones that will also challenge our perceptions of the world we live in. I deserve to be represented; you deserve to be represented; we all deserve to be represented. Race, age, sexuality, gender, taboo issues (rape, suicide, depression etc.) should all be talked about. They are real issues, often real problems, and they need to be highlighted. Without diversity, we will be left with husk stories and vapid characters. We not only need diverse books, we DESERVE diverse books. The most important thing is that, you, YES YOU, reading this: if you want to see diverse books then you need champion and support them.

 

Christopher Moore (@yablooker)



 

 

"I think it's important to have #DiverseYA so that people from all races, sexualities, genders etc. can feel represented and confident in themselves that they are accepted. Diverse books help diverse people to realise that, despite what anyone says, they are normal. And that it's okay to be who you are. I think without diverse books, particularly in YA, where teens struggling with various problems will look for comfort, the social situation would be very much worse. Books help us to understand one another and without them, I really don't know where we'd be."

 

Georgina Howlett (@thereaderrunt)

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

'Because You'll Never Meet Me'

'Because You'll Never Meet Me' by Leah Thomas

Review by Christopher Moore

 

Summary:

 

Ollie and Moritz are two teenagers who will never meet. Each of them lives with a life-affecting illness. Contact with electricity sends Ollie into debilitating seizures, while Moritz has a heart defect and is kept alive by an electronic pacemaker. If they did meet, Ollie would seize, but turning off the pacemaker would kill Moritz.

Through an exchange of letters, the two boys develop a strong bond of friendship which becomes a lifeline during dark times - until Moritz reveals that he holds the key to their shared, sinister past, and has been keeping it from Ollie all along.

 

Review:

 

Because You'll Never Meet Me is an incredibly touching story told between two boys who will never meet because Ollie, repels electricity and it repels him, and Moritz requires a pacemaker to live. The story is told in a letter narrative, mostly, between the two boys and is an intimate form of writing that lets us see both characters, their relationship and so much more.

 

I would have liked a little more character differentiation between Ollie and Moritz. Sometimes the lexicons feel quite similar but overall, Thomas has produced a magnificent story with endearing characters (admittedly, Ollie being the most charismatic and bubbly) that reveals so much about human nature, love, friendship and family. It's not without its highs and its lows but ultimately, it's a long-distance journey that changes both boys for the better.

 

The LGBT element is subtle and this is a perfect example of where LGBT representation can be prominent without it being centre-stage and completely taking over the story. Yes, the story does cover LGBT issues but it's not a LGBT story. It cannot be pigeon-holed as such because it is a compelling and deeply touching story that encompasses this but is so much more than JUST THIS. This is exactly the sort of story that we need. I would class it as a diverse book and as James Dawson commented this year at YALC, we have diverse books around us already but we need to champion and support them in order to push publishers to produce more wonderfully diverse stories. We don't just need DIVERSE books, we DESERVE them.

 

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

Follow Christopher on Instagram: @yablooker