The Hand, The Eye and The Heart Music

Welcome to my stop on The Hand, The Eye and The Heart blog tour! Yes, it's me and am back to doing something I haven't done in quite some time: putting music to the book I was reading. And it was such a joy to do! 

When asked by John at Walker if I wanted to be involved in this tour, I jumped at the chance! So, thank you John for asking me to be involved. 

For those unsure of what The Hand, The Eye and The Heart, it's a reimagining of Mulan in a fantasy world. Ok, I was using that to grab your attention, but OH, this book is much more than that! Zhilan was born a girl. Despite the rare gift of illusions, she is destined to live her life in the confines of what is expected for a women. But when a civil war breaks out in her empire, one man from every family is called to fight. With her father being disabled from the battlefield of his youth, Zhilan is desperate to save him and takes his place, becoming a boy called Zhi to survive army training. But that’s the first challenge as love and betrayal can be two sides of the same coin and soon, the weight of the country is on Zhi’s shoulders. But to win, they have to decide where their heart truly lies as, sometimes, the greatest battle is to be who you are… 

I told you there was more to it than my awful elevator pitch. Anyway, as part of the tour, I was asked to create a playlist via Spotify. Now, I love reading to music and the playlist below has a nice mix of songs I listened to while reading and a few others that I went "This is perfect!" and added on to give it a good mix. But, this is subjective and because these are my music choices doesn't mean they will be yours and I would love to hear your playlists for this book, as well as everyone at Walker and Zoë herself. 

Before I throw my music at you, I want to thank Zoë and if you want to check her out, go say hi to her on her website - zoemarriott.com - or via her Twitter at @ZMarriott. And if you want more info about the book, check out Walker Books or Book Depository. (Special thanks to Luna at Luna's Little Library for going through my playlist and making some suggestions on placement and a few other songs she thought might be good for playlist.

Now, ONTO THE MUSIC!

Book Review - The Hand, The Eye and The Heart

• Title And Author: The Hand, The Eye and The Heart by Zoë Marriott
• Publisher: Walker Book
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Physical
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Gifted by the publisher in exchange for an honest review/reaction
• Length: 448 Pages

Backstory time. A few years back, I was at Walker Books HQ at a blogger event to celebrate the cover reveal to the final book in Zoë Marriott’s urban fantasy trilogy, The Name of the Blade, Frail Human Heart. At the event, Zoë mentioned an idea for a novel she was researching. When she was chatting about it, myself and a few book bloggers got hugely excited and went “You have to write this!” then looking at her editor and people at Walker, going “You’re going to buy this, right?”

And this is the book in question. So, you have no idea how excited I have been for this book… 

No pressure, Zoë. 

Zhilan was born a girl. Despite the rare gift of illusions known as banner-breaking, she is destined to live her life in the confines of what is expected for a women. But when a civil war breaks out in her empire, one man from every family is called to fight. With her father being disabled from the battlefield of his youth, Zhilan is desperate to save him and takes his place, becoming a boy called Zhi to survive army training. But that’s the first challenge as love and betrayal can be two sides of the same coin and soon, the weight of the country is on Zhi’s shoulders. But to win, they have to decide where their heart truly lies as, sometimes, the greatest battle is to be who you are… 

So… what do I think of this?

Zoe Marriott Asks "Are Fairytales Feminist?"

I am delighted very much to welcome Zoe Marriott onto the blog, this fine Bank Holiday Monday!

As some of you know, Zoe is the author of The Name of the Blade trilogy (which I loved), Shadows on the Moon (which I know you guys adore!) and the upcoming Barefoot On the Wind (out this Thursday!). Now, Barefoot on the Wind is a reimaging of Beauty and the Beast set in the same fairy-tale Japan as Shadows on the Moon, but 500ish years prior.

Wet your appetite enough? No? Well, I cornered Zoe by email a few weeks back and asked her a bunch of questions and ideas over possible blog post, if she had time. And, because Barefoot On The Wind was sold to me as a feminist Beauty and the Beast, I asked if fairytales are feminist... And that's what got Zoe writing!

So, before I hand you to Zoe, I must thank her for taking time out of writing that book I REALLY want her to write for this post and Katarina from Walker Books for emailing me and going "Email Zoe. You know you want to..."

ARE FAIRYTALES FEMINIST?

When the title of this post was mentioned to me, I found myself getting a little conflicted in my own mind for a minute. Can fairytales be Feminist, I asked myself? Or is this an unanswerable joke question, like whether Grumpy Cat has a Communist agenda?

Let’s just take a moment to remind ourselves what Feminism actually is – untainted by any of the wonky ideas that society may have about it, or any of the behaviour of individual people who reject or embrace the concept. It’s pretty easy:

Feminism

noun

“The advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes.”

Basically, Feminism is the struggle to ensure that all the sexes (there are more than two, FYI, but that’s a whole ‘nother blogpost) have equal rights. A Feminist individual is someone who believes in equality for all sexes and hopefully works in whatever way they can to bring that about.  

So are fairytales Feminist?

They certainly depict a lot of highly sexist attitudes and Patriarchal societies. Though initially intended as contemporary, evolving narratives, having been written down and ‘finalised’ in Western Europe throughout the 18^th and 19^th century causes them to reflect those historical modes of living – when men wore trousers and girls wore skirts, and if they swapped at all it was for reasons of comedy or in order to preserve female virtue. They’re filled with a lot of ideals that woman are still fighting against, such as the diametrically opposed innocent damsels and wicked ambitious older woman, all desperately hoping to snag a man for the purposes of true love or true power. And there are an awful lot of young, aggressively heterosexual males rushing in to save the day... 

But Fairytales – at least, the earliest versions from which our current, sanitised, Disney incarnations first came – stretch right back to the time when humans were still figuring out what humans even were, when firelight was all that stood between us and the howl of creatures in the dark, and for all we knew a fairy, dragon or young God might be lurking around the next tree trunk any time we went out to cut wood for that fire. They contain archetypes, larger than life characters and quandaries which, while reflecting the politics which was prevalent when they were written down, rise above – or below – that in order to share essential truths about humans and their nature. 

What is love? What is goodness – and evil? What does it mean to be brave? How should we react to injustice? How can we better our own lives, and what are the risks if we try? What makes a monster? What is a hero?

Our individual interpretation of fairytales, the prejudices and perspectives we ourselves bring to these archetypal stories, are what make them either positive or negative. And individual interpretations can vary pretty much to infinity.

For instance, Cinderella may be a vacuous fool who wastes her one chance to escape the miserable drudgery of her life in order to attend a ball in a pretty dress – and lucks out because she happens to be young and lovely enough to catch the Prince’s eye.

OR... she might be a resolute and morally ambiguous young woman, who cunningly uses the ball to leverage her youth and beauty in order to gain the prince’s power for her own ends.

Beauty might be a passive, dutiful girl who allows herself to be sacrificed in order to save her father’s life, and eventually ends up bullied or emotionally blackmailed into marrying the monstrous being who imprisoned her – and lucked out because once he’s freed from his curse he’s not physically repulsive anymore (though his personality may be in question).

OR... she could be a ferocious young hunter who goes after the Beast of her own free will in order to destroy him and the curse, and who chooses instead to save him, in the end, because he has proven to her that despite his beastly exterior, he is truly worthy of love.

But even these ways of re-imagining our familiar fairytales – taken from my books Shadows on the Moon (Cinderella) and Barefoot on the Wind (Beauty and the Beast) – can be very controversial from a Feminist viewpoint. 

The recent Disney live-action Cinderella promoted itself with the motto ‘Have courage... and be kind’. You’d think this was a mild enough statement that no one would get cross about it, but you’d be wrong. Online, many people rose up against the idea that a young woman suffering under injustice and abuse from her family ought to care about being kind – surely survival would be the order of the day? ‘They’re encouraging young women to be weak!’ was the battle cry. ‘Don’t tell them to be kind, tell them to fight!’ 

But before anyone could blink, an equally strong counter-argument blew up, stating that kindness was a Feminist virtue, that striving for some kind of unrealistic butt-kicking ideal of femininity that eschewed goodness and kindness for macho ideals of ‘strength’ was ignoring the real struggles of real women who had survived – and might still be living with – abuse. ‘Living in a bad situation you can’t get out of isn’t weakness!’ these people declared.

Who’s right? Who knows! Both, most probably.

The fact is that, like magic itself, fairytales can be used for good or evil. 

So whether they are Feminist or not is, like most questions of story, down to the reader themselves to decide.

Book Review - Frail Human Heart

I've had this book, the third and final book of the Name of the Blade trilogy by Zoe Marriott since last summer. Yes, since last June-ish time. And I love this trilogy. If you have read my reviews of The Night Itself and Darkness Hidden, you know how much I love this trilogy. I adore it and compare it to Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunters series.

So why, I hear you ask, did I not read it when I got the book (and got Zoe to sign it and begged her to tell me if there were any deaths so I can brace my soul - yes, I did. I also told her that I trust authors when I read books. I just don't trust the book. [I'm weird. I know this and I accept this]) back in June 2015?

Because, I didn't want to. I love this series and I didn't want it to end. I didn't want to say goodbye to these characters or this world. Plus, what happens if something awful happens to a character I love? Will it be like when I meet Cassandra Clare when City of Glass has just come out and I said to her "If Alec and Magnus don't get together, I don't know if I can forgive you"?

Enough of my panic, let's talk Frail Human Heart. After the devastating events in Darkness Hidden, Mio doesn't want to carry on. How can she is that means putting the people she loves at risk? But she must. With the final battle between gods coming to a head and London being their battlefield, Mio is the only one who can end it. But how far is she willing to go to end this war? What sacrifice is she willing to make?

I am going to say this now: I do love this series. I think this is one of the coolest urban fantasy series I have read in recent years. And because I love this series, I had to numb myself to Frail Human Heart hence my reactions might not be as OTT as you all might be expecting.

It's a strong finale. The world building and the events leading up to the final dramatic conclusion are wonderful. Zoe knows how to write action and keep the pacing strong, while writing small, private moments. There isn't a dull or boring moment in any books within this trilogy. You will keep turning those pages, needing to know what happens next. And because I loved the previous two books, I returned to this world really easily, as if returning to an old friend.

Maybe because I took a long break away from this world, but there was one or two times I think that some people might not like how Zoe wrapped everything up and left things hanging. I fear some of you guys might find this a little too clean compared to other final books in series out there.

But this is a strong satisfying end to a series I love. Fans of Cassandra Clare need to get this series in their lives and I will be reading the two Zoe Marriott's I have on my TBR shelves (The Swan Kingdom and Daughter of the Flames) before the release of Zoe's Beauty and the Beast retelling, Barefoot on the Wind and her rumoured Mulan retelling (which I am VERY excited to read!).

Zoe Marriott Blog Tour - Day 1

I am breaking my blog holiday (again) to take part in this very exciting tour to celebrate the release of the third and final book in the The Name of the Blade trilogy, Frail Human Heart. Now, I am very excited over this trilogy (am putting off reading Frail Human Heart because I'm not sure how heart will be able to cope!) so when Walker Books asked if I wanted to show off an extract from the book, I jumped out the chance! This extract isn't very spoilery, so you guys who haven't read the series, do not fear from me! 

And I'm the first stop on the tour! ... oh heck! Anyway, thank you Walker for asking me to take part in the tour and thank you Zoe for writing this amazing trilogy! And now, off we go! 

I couldn’t see her.

The pearly white flames sheathing the katana illuminated dark streaks of fungus on the concrete walls of the storm drain, the fleeting red gleam of a rat’s eyes further down the tunnel and the murky black water swirling and splashing at my toes. It also lit up a few things floating in the water that I didn’t want to look at closely. But it didn’t show me the one thing I had wanted and expected to see.

Rachel.

“Everything OK down there?” my dad shouted into the manhole over my head.

“I’m fine – hang on!” I yelled back.

I walked along the narrow edge of brick that ran down one side of the tunnel, trying to avoid the splashing water as I moved deeper into the darkness. I lifted the flickering light of the sword higher, squinting against the dark.

“You’re very quiet,” I whispered to the blade. “Nothing to say?”

The sword’s energy jumped against my palm like an uneasy heartbeat, but the familiar, metallic voice remained silent.

I still felt the compulsion – a magnetic, physical attraction to the blade – twinned with a deep-down sense of responsibility to protect him, keep him safe. That was apparently hardwired into everyone in my family. It sat alongside my own rational awareness that allowing the sword’s destructive power to fall into the wrong hands would be disastrous for the whole world. But the influence that the katana had exerted on my emotions, the silvery, persuasive whispering that had put such pressure on my mind that I sometimes thought I was going mad? It was gone. For the first time in what felt like forever, I was really and truly alone in my head.

I hated it.

“Rachel!” I called out. My voice bounced around the drain eerily. “It’s me! You can come out!”

There were tiny skittering noises in the shadows as vermin fled from the noise and light, but nothing else.

I strained my ears for any giveaway sounds: a splash, a footstep on the bricks, even a weak cry for help. This was where I’d sensed her, almost seen her, during my vision.

I knew I hadn’t been mistaken. She’d been in this drain.

But not any more. I was too late, again.

Next Stop for Zoë is KitKatsCanRead! Go check it out tomorrow or, if you haven’t already, pick up your copy of Zoë’s The Name of the Blade series at your local bookshop or online at Amazon, Book Depository, Waterstones.com and WHSmith.

Zoë Marriott is the author of many critically acclaimed and beloved books, including The Swan Kingdom, which was long-listed for the Branford Boase award, and Shadows on the Moon, which won the prestigious Sasakawa Prize and was an American Junior Library Guild Selection. Zoë lives in Grimsby, Lincolnshire. Visit Zoë’s blog at thezoe-trope.blogspot.co.uk or her website at ZoeMarriott.com.  Follow her on Twitter (@ZMarriott).

d be disastrous for the whole world. But the

influence that the katana had exerted on my emotion

s, the silvery, persuasive whispering that had

put such pressure on my mind that I sometimes thoug

ht I was going mad? It was gone. For the

first time in what felt like forever, I was really

and truly alone in my head.

I hated it.

“Rachel!” I called out. My voice bounced around the

drain eerily. “It’s me! You can come out!”

There were tiny skittering noises in the shadows as

vermin fled from the noise and light, but

nothing else.

I strained my ears for any giveaway sounds: a splas

h, a footstep on the bricks, even a weak cry

for help. This was where I’d sensed her, almost

seen

her, during my vision.

I knew I hadn’t been mistaken. She’d been in this d

rain.

But not any more. I was too late, again.

Next Stop for Zoë is

[MENTION TOMORROW’S BLOG SITE].

Click here to check it out and, if you

haven’t already, pick up your copy of Zoë’s The Nam

e of the Blade series at your local bookshop or

online at Amazon, Book Depository, Waterstones.com

and WHSmith.

[INCLUDE IMAGES OF BOOK JACKETS]

Zoë Marriott is the author of many critically accla

imed and beloved books, including

The Swan

Kingdom

, which was long-listed for the Branford Base awar

d, and

Shadows on the Moon

, which

won the prestigious Sasakawa Prize and was an Ameri

can Junior Library Guild Selection. Zoë lives in

Grimsby, Lincolnshire. Visit Zoë’s blog at thezoe-t

rope.blogspot.co.uk or her website at

ZoeMarriott.com. Follow her on Twitter (@ZMarriott

).

GoodRead - Shadows On The Moon

This feels like one of those books that EVERYONE has been demanding that I read. I remember at my first Book Blogger event linked to this publisher, I mentioned that I hadn't read Zoe Marriott and the look I got from people... The less we say about that, the better.

That was a few years ago and, since then, I have read three of Zoe's books - Frostfire, The Night Itself and Darkness Hidden (reviews for all three are here, here and here) - but it was when I was at the Zoe Marriott event a few weeks ago at Walker Books HQ (not read my write-up on that? Here you go! ENJOY!) and I told several people that I was going to read it over Christmas. Including the author.

NO PRESSURE AT ALL FOR ME TO READ THIS, THEN?!

But the impulse to read it came sooner than I expected so I just grabbed my copy and began to read.

In this re-imagining of Cinderella set in fairy-tale like Japan, Suzume saw her father and cousin murdered before her eyes. She was meant to die to, but she escaped with a gift she didn't know she had - shadow-weaving. But when her mother remarries, Suzume find herself unable to cope and soon, she finds out the depth of the betrayal against her family and, fleeing for her life, she vows revenge...

I really REALLY like this book and this retelling of Cinderella where our lead wasn't some "weak female lead". Yes, Suzume is flawed but she is relateable and you root for her. You might not agree with what she's doing or how she reacts at times, but you're with her and you understand why she's doing the things she does.

I really liked the world Zoe built. The world of ancient Japan which has a slight tilt to it. And learning about the culture (which Zoe must have researched for hours) came across beautiful. It felt like something out of a movie. I could imagine this translating very well into film - if that happens, can we have it like House of Flying Daggers? (This has to happen! I will champion this! LET'S MAKE SHADOWS ON THE MOON A MOVIE. AND NOT AN ENGLISH-SPEAKING MOVIE BUT A JAPANESE SPEAKING MOVIE!

One of the things I adore about this book was how diverse the book's characters were and their attitudes. All the characters were non-white (nearly all the characters were Japanese with several characters were black) and the book has a strong mix of LGBT characters (one of these happens to be my favourite within this book. I love her more than I do Suzume and Otieno, and I kinda want Zoe to write more about her!). While the tide is turning in YA to have strong and interesting characters tackle the issues of race and sexuality, -It's still rare to have a book tackle these in the way Zoe did. And this was first published in the UK in 2011 so this was a brave move for the publisher back then...

Another thing I am very pleased over was the issue of self-harming. Now, I normally stay away from books in which self-harming is involved, but Zoe handled this topic with sensitivity and the respect it deserves.

This book isn't perfect - it took it's time to get to where I thought it would be (but that's due to character developement and I never felt bored by this, unlike other books I have tried to read in the past) and there was a few occasions that I felt that things were a tad too convenient for Suzume and Otieno

But yes, this book is very important. I like it a lot and I sense I shall be forcing it into people's hands in the near future. Soon, I shall read all Zoe Marriott's books... That's the plan.

Zoe Marriott Event and COVER FOR FRAIL MORTAL HEART REVEAL!!!

I'm not sure how this happened but I was invited to got to a special event via Walker Books in connection with Zoe Marriott.

In case you are not aware, I ADORE Zoe's The Name of the Blade trilogy. So, of course, I had to go to get titbits! ANY INFORMATION WOULD DO!

So, last Saturday, I went to London and it was a weird day from the word go as, walking through a train station to get to the London Underground, I walked past Rob Lloyd Jones (author of Wild Boy - another Walker Book that I LOVE!). But as I wasn't sure if it was him and I didn't want to make myself look like a fool infront of a stranger, I tweeted Rob to check and - yep. It was him.

Damn it.

After meeting Luna from Luna's Little Library (who has lent me a book and dragged me into an awesome charity bookshop [the same that Stevie from SableCaught took me to! Completely forgot its existence!] and made me buy 3 books that sound interesting), we went to Walker Books to meet Zoe and other book bloggers I haven't seen in AGES! I missed you all and we need to meet up more often!

Zoe and everyone at Walker Books were lovely as we talked about Zoe's inspiration, Japanese mythology (something I really want to read more about!) and future novel ideas. Maybe. All of which sounded exciting and awesome. Laura from SisterSpooky and I got very excited over one idea which I hope does get written!

And while Walker very kindly offered mugs of tea (in Where's Wally? mugs), sandwiches and chocolate cake, Zoe read a tiny scene from the third and final book in the Name of the Blade trilogy, Frail Mortal Heart. And I think we were either clapped when she finished, shouted at her to keep reading or sat there in stunned silence, I can't remember.

And then, Zoe revealed the cover for Frail Mortal Heart. And Walker have sent a high-def photo to us to show on the blog, hence why I didn't write this Saturday night/Sunday. I wanted it here to show you! (Will keep you waiting for a paragraph or two. Hang in there!)

After that, Zoe were very kind to sign books (I had to get her to sign my copies of Name of the Blade. I'm sorry, but I HAD to!) and Walker very kindly offered some of her books to us. Which is lovely as I have plans to try and read at least ONE of Zoe's books. I hope it will be Shadows on the Moon. Well, I've told people I will have that read by Christmas and they will tell me off if I don't, but I hope to read that and one other before my next blog break!

Before I reveal the cover of Frail Mortal Heart, I just want to say thank you to Walker Books for inviting me to this event. Thank you for Zoe for reading, answer questions and making me both love/hate her. Thank you to all the bloggers who turned up - it's been so long! And thank you to Rob who I was too afraid to say hi to. Next time...

Anyway, the cover of Frail Mortal Heart. Are we ready? Three, two, one...

ISN'T IT BEAUTIFUL?! THIS IS MY FAVE COVER OF THE WHOLE TRILOGY!!! LOOK AT IT!!! We have swords, kickass leads and A DRAGON!!! WE GOING TO HAVE A DRAGON IN THIS BOOK, PEOPLE!!! (I kinda love dragons).

But yes, I can not WAIT to read this! But July 2015 is SO FAR AWAY!!! And because of this, all the bloggers who came to the event was given an advance chapter sampler of the very first chapter in this book.

I won't read it. I won't. I - SOD IT! AM READING IT.

*reads advance chapter sampler*

I hate myself.

GoodRead - Darkness Hidden

Just before I go any further, I have to state two things. One, the first book in Zoe Marriott's Name of the Blade trilogy, The Night Itself, was one of my favorite reads of last year. So, very high expectations for this book. And second, when Victoria at Walker Books sent me this, I squealed and started reading this that night.

No pressure, then.

After the terrifying ending of The Night Itself, Mio, Jack and Shiobu bet all the odds and defeated Nekomata. But Mio is still compelled to protect the katana, her family's ancestral sword. And now the katana's voice is in her head, trying to turn her into its puppet.

And when things can't get worse, a plague is sweeping through London and there's something very wrong with Jack's sister, Rachel...

With all this pressure piling on Mio, she soon begins to wonder a horrible truth: she might not be able to save all the people she love. A sacrifice might have to be made... But will she go through with it?

I adore The Night Itself and Darkness Within lived up to every expectation I had. It was gripping, fast paced and had so many twists in it, I never felt bored when reading this. So much so, I kept tweeting the author going "It can't get worse than this, can it?".

I just fell into this world almost as quickly as I did when I read The Night Itself.

This is Zoe's most personal book (she says so in the acknowledgements) and you can feel how much this book means to her.

But yes, this book! THIS BOOK! THIS SERIES!!! I adore this trilogy and I need to read the third and final book, Frail Mortal Heart, when it comes out next year. I NEED to know how this trilogy is going to end (That and read Shadows on the Moon)! If you haven't read this trilogy, you really should.

Cover Reveal for THE NIGHT ITSELF & DARKNESS HIDDEN

I HAVE A COVER REVEAL FOR YOU GUYS! Well, that, a question/answer and a sneaky peek of Zoe Marriott's newest book, Darkness Hidden.

So, Walker is changing the covers to The Name of the Blade series. And as you guys know, The Night Itself was one of my fave books of last year. I adore it SO MUCH!!! So, I had to be involve with this reveal. IT WOULD BE A CRIME IF I DIDN'T!!!

So, without any further ado, here are the new covers to The Night Itself and Darkness Hidden!

TA-DAH!!! What do you guys think? I can't help but LOVE them! I now want to sit and nitpick over them for clues within the book/series.

BUT WAIT!!! I have more goodies for you. Zoe was very kind and answered one question for the blogs involved in this reveal (aka the awesome Winged Reviews, Serendipity Reviews, Readaraptor & Book Angel Booktopia!) and here is mine.

Question: Does the series has a theme song or several songs that really strike Zoe as perfect for the series as a whole?

Answer: The Name of the Blade series has its own weird and wonderful playlist. I create playlists for everything that I write and most of them are at least a couple of hours long. But because this is the first story I've written with a contemporary setting, it's very different. It's the first time that I've written to lots of contemporary, electronic music (rather than more high fantasy sounding, classical stuff). I was really trying to find a strong, modern voice for Mio and the right music helped with that. The main theme song for the series is The Girl in Byakkoya/White Tiger Field by Susumu Hirasawa from the anime film Paprika. When I was writing the first book I always sat and listened to it for a bit before I started work because it summed up the manic, intense, but slightly whimsical mood I was going for. Other songs that are significant are Vertical Storm - also by Susumu Hirasawa - Robyn's With EveryHeartbeat, and Alibi by 30 Seconds to Mars. The last two will make sense when you read the second and third books... *Evil Laughter*

BUT WAIT! I have one more thing! A tiny sneak peek, remember. And as all the blogs are doing a sneaky peek, if you want to read the sneaky peek in full, go to Winged Reviews first, then Serendipity Reviews, then Readaraptor then myself followed by Book Angel Booktopia. Got that? Good. Now, the sneaky peek! ENJOY!!!

“I was ready an hour ago,” Rachel said as she stomped forward.

Jack moved past me with Hikaru. They weren’t looking at each other, and Hikaru’s expression was forlorn. Shinobu and I followed, walking side by side but with a careful distance between us.

We’re all pathetic.

I could see the rift into the mortal realm taking shape on the grassy side of the little hill. Long streamers of blue lightning blew out of the earth, dancing in the air and then catching hold of others as they emerged, entwining to form a glowing wreath. When the ring of electricity was complete, the grass it encircled faded out of existence, leaving a gaping black hole in the slope.

Rachel walked right into the rift, leaving the bright light of the spirit realm for the darkness of Between without a backward glance.

Jack bit her lip. “This never gets any easier. I wish I could make my own fox lights.”

“You’re not the only one,” Hikaru whispered, so low that I thought only I heard him.

Did he mean that he wished Jack was a fox spirit, like him? Or just that he wished he were older and more powerful, able to control his lightning the way the others did? I had no way of knowing, and somehow I didn’t think he’d appreciate being asked.

Jack nodded a respectful goodbye to Araki, squared her shoulders, and stepped after Rachel. I moved forward, hyper-conscious of Shinobu silently shadowing me. My instincts were begging me to sneak a quick look at his expression, but the rest of me shied away in sheer embarrassment. I couldn’t understand why this was so hard.

“Farewell, sword-bearer,” the king said, appearing again – OK, that was getting freaky – on the crown of the hill overhead. “I wish you good fortune, and offer a piece of advice. Keep a close eye on your friend’s sister. She may have trying times ahead of her.”

Before I could ask what he was getting at, the king’s head snapped up. A deep shudder worked through his body, making his vast fan of tails lash the air; their white tips blazed into jagged blue cones of lightning. Araki took a step back, one hand flying up to cover her mouth.

“Grandfather?” Hikaru began uncertainly.

My katana shrilled – a fierce, high-pitched tone that vibrated along my vertebrae. Without thinking I reached back to grab the hilt, ready to draw the blade. My blood tingled and my heartbeat surged as my palm made contact with the silk wrappings. Then I froze. What am I doing? I whipped my hand away and stared at it for a moment as I flexed my fingers to confirm that they were under my control.

The ground jumped under my feet. Beyond Araki, the other side of the throne erupted with electricity. A new rupture. A small crowd of Kitsune – four of them, none older than a two-tails – stumbled out. They were ashen-faced and covered in dirt; one of them, splattered with blood, was clutching at her arm. She collapsed face-first into the grass and lay there, gasping for air and shaking with what looked like agony. The others hastily drew away from her.

Araki darted forward, falling to her knees beside the Kitsune girl. I saw with horror that the girl’s twin tails were withering, the lush reddish fur turning powdery grey and shredding off before our eyes. Horror turned to disbelief when the dignified Araki threw back her head and let out a terrible wail.

The Kitsune who had come through the rupture with the injured fox spirit picked up the note, their voices joining into a low, wavering keen of sorrow. The noise spread through the amphitheatre, celebrations dying away as the whole assembly of fox spirits fell still in the aching song of grief.

“What’s happening to her?” I cried out over the wailing. “Can’t someone help her?”

Hikaru didn’t even look at me. He lifted his face to the canopy of trees above and howled.

I felt Shinobu’s hand grasping mine, trying to pull me towards the rift. I shook my head, yanking free. I couldn’t leave. They needed help!

The king’s tails flicked in my direction. It was as if a massive hand had scooped me up and tossed me straight at the waiting blackness of the open rupture. I tumbled inside. Shinobu landed half on top of me with an Oof.

“Wait!” I shouted, struggling to get up.

It was too late. The light had vanished and the rupture closed.

The Kitsune Kingdom was gone.

BOOK TRAILER FOR THE NIGHT ITSELF

Of which, I took part in. Yes, I am cringing inside as I type this (but when Walker [aka Hannah and Sean] emailed me and other bloggers about this idea, I loved it and knew I had to be involved. I don't think I have seen any other publisher involve bloggers & vloggers in this way before!)

Anyway, here is the video. Watch (and laugh at our uncomfortableness!)



And for those of you wondering which blogs took part, here is the list for you!

http://www.mountainsofinstead.com/
http://www.flutteringbutterflies.com/
http://www.serendipityreviews.co.uk/
http://www.books4teens.co.uk/
http://www.readaraptor.co.uk/
http://yabluewater.blogspot.co.uk/
http://www.bigbooklittlebook.com/
http://thepewterwolf.blogspot.co.uk/
http://www.sisterspooky.co.uk/
http://www.ink-slingers.co.uk

GoodRead - The Night Itself

I have to let you guys into a secret. Earlier in the year (late March, early April), I (along with a few other very lucky book bloggers) received a very early and very exclusive ARC from Hannah from Walker Books. She asked, nicely but firmly, to keep this book a secret till we were given the OK to share. A month later, she said "Ok, share. But no reviews". And we did. And now, if you are reading this, she's given the OK to share our thoughts with you guys.

And that book was The Night Itself, the first book in Zoe Marriott's new trilogy, The Name of the Blade. And I read it within days of me receiving it. 

I know. I am THAT bad a person. 

So, the book. When Mio steals her late grandfather's katana - a priceless sword that is meant to be keep hidden at all times - all she was doing was livening up her fancy dress costume. Not unleash an ancient evil, determined to get it from her at all cost, onto modern day London! And now, not only has Mio started to be stalked from creatures from mythical Japanese myths, she somehow unleashed a mysterious warrior that wants to save her and keep her safe. But Mio has to figure it out. Figure out the katana's strange powers. But lives are on the line, and she seems to be only one worthy enough to save them... 

Am going to get straight to the point on this: I ADORE THIS BOOK! 

I just fell for it, hook line and sinker. I kinda guess I would but I didn't expect I would so quickly and get so addictive over it till I did. There was one point I took this book out to my local coffee shop with my other half (he had his iPad). I got so sucked into the chapter I was reading, I didn't hear him ask me the same question several times before he had to poke me in the arm. That was how absorbed I was in this book and I don't think I've had that feeling with a book for quite a while. To vanish from the world. 

As I read this back in April and several months have passed, I can't remember if I had any issues with this book, but OH! The Questions! I have questions which I hope will be answered in the next two books in the trilogy. And AT LAST, we see characters that the author didn't have to spell out the sexuality or skin ethnicity. She didn't have to use a sledgehammer and drum the point home! She treated her readers with respect and for that, Zoe, I thank you. 

I thought while read it back in April (and still do now) that if you are a fan of Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments and/or Infernal Devices series, that you might want to check this book out. Just... trust me on this, ok?

PS - I'm sorry but whenever Mio thought of her katana as "Mine", I always imagined Gollum saying it in my head. Preciousssss....