Fifteen books I want to read in 2015: By Catherine Doyle
Here is an oh-my-god-I-need-this-in-my-life-right-now
compilation of books being published in 2015.
1. Hook’s Daughter by Heidi Schulz (US version: Hook’s
Revenge):
“Captain Hook's feisty daughter hits the high seas to avenge
her father's death at the jaws of the Neverland crocodile.”
Eh, I’m sorry, book, but could you be more awesome? I don’t
usually read MG but when an exciting plot calls out to me, who am I to ignore
it? This one is no exception.
2. Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
“A sweeping tale of seventeen-year-old Mare, a common girl
whose once-latent magical power draws her into the dangerous intrigue of the
king's palace. Will her power save her or condemn her?”
Well? Will it? I don’t know but I’m sure as hell going to
find out. I’ve been anticipating this for what feels like a hundred years so I
can’t wait to get my hands on it.
3. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas.
“A thrilling, seductive new series from New York
Timesbestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with
faerie lore.”
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I would read
Sarah J. Maas’ shopping lists. She is an insane talent with incredible
world-building skills. As the author of one of my all-time favourites series,
she definitely deserves a place here.
4. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
“Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in
the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and
a soldier fighting for his freedom. It’s a story that’s literally burning to be
told.”
The second this book is released there will be a cloud of
dust where my body was, and I’ll be in the nearest book shop buying it. I have
a feeling I’m going to adore it.
5. The Wanderers by Kate Ormand
“A story about a sixteen-year-old traveling with a
shapeshifter circus, and a betrayal in camp that threatens the lives of them
all.”
Kate is a fantastic person so it’s no surprise the premise
for this novel is equally wonderful. I cannot wait to get my hands on it!
6. We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach
“Four high school seniors put their hopes, hearts, and
humanity on the line as an asteroid hurtles toward Earth in this contemporary
novel.”
I’ve been looking forward to this since I saw the epic cover
and heard some of the original songs penned by the author to go along with the
book. Everything about this upcoming release is so fresh and exciting.
7. The D’evil Diaries by Tatum Flynn
“Twelve-year-old Jinx is hopeless at being evil. Which is a
bit of a problem when you're Lucifer's youngest son. But when Jinx runs away
from Pandemonium, the walled city he's lived in all his life, he bumps into
dead girl Tommy - who's been sent to Hell for accidentally feeding her nasty
uncle to a circus lion - and unearths a conspiracy that could up-end the entire
underworld.”
Another MG novel with a lot of promise, I have a feeling
this is going to be a hilarious read. I’m really looking forward to seeing how
Lucifer’s son comes across in this… because, y’know, his dad is the freaking
devil!
8. This Monstrous Thing by Mackenizi Lee
“A reimagining of Frankenstein set in an industrialized 1818
Geneva, where a teenage mechanic must rediscover the line between man and
monster after he uses clockwork to bring his murdered brother back from the
dead.”
I love a good reimagining of a classic story, and there’s
just something so original about this version that makes me antsy to delve into
it.
9. The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle
“The accident season has been part of seventeen-year-old
Cara's life for as long as she can remember. Towards the end of October,
foreshadowed by the deaths of many relatives before them, Cara's family becomes
inexplicably accident-prone. They banish knives to locked drawers, cover sharp
table edges with padding, switch off electrical items - but injuries follow
wherever they go, and the accident season becomes an ever-growing obsession and
fear.”
Moira is a fellow Irish author, and we share the same agent
at RCW, which means I’m most definitely going to read this when it comes out.
Of course, it helps that the premise is so intriguing. I mean, an accident
season? Come on. How can I not read this?
10. Weightless by Sarah Bannan
“Before Carolyn Lessing arrived, nothing much had ever
happened in Adamsville, Alabama. All Carolyn’s social media could reveal was
that she had moved from New Jersey, she had 1075 friends – and she didn’t have
a relationship status. In beach photos with boys who looked like Abercrombie
models she seemed beautiful, but in real life she was so much more. She was
perfect. This was all before the camera crews arrived, before it became
impossible to see where rumour ended and truth began, and before the Annual Adamsville
Balloon Festival, when someone swore they saw the captain of the football team
with his arm around Carolyn, and cracks began to appear in the dry earth.”
The cover for this novel is STUNNING and the story promises
a different take on high school, friendship and bullying. PLUS, it’s narrated
in the collective first person by a group of girls at the high school where the
story takes place. I love different narrative techniques and this one is right
up my street.
11. Arsenic for Tea by Robin Stevens
“Schoolgirl detectives Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are at
Daisy's home, Fallingford, for the holidays. Daisy's glamorous mother is
throwing a tea party for Daisy's birthday, when one of their party falls
seriously, mysteriously ill - and everything points to poison. With wild storms
preventing anyone from leaving, or the police from arriving, Fallingford
suddenly feels like a very dangerous place to be. Not a single person present
is what they seem - and everyone has a secret or two. And when someone very
close to Daisy looks suspicious, the Detective Society must do everything they
can to reveal the truth . . . no matter the consequences.”
I loved the first book in this MG detective series – Murder
Most Unladylike was so charming and fun, and I have high hopes for the sequel.
12. The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey
“Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an
ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their
veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is
a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black
market, and the Avicen are the only family she's ever known. Echo is clever and
daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she's fiercely loyal.
So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it's
time to act.”
The Girl at Midnight has been likened to Laini Taylor’s
Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and that really is all I need to hear. I absolutely
loved that series and if this is anything like it then I’m all in! Gimme gimme!
14. Mosquitoland by David Arnold
“A story of the difficulties we face and the strength we
find to overcome them. For those who loved LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, THE FAULT IN
OUR STARS, and JUNO. Brutally honest and habitually snarky, Mim Malone lives in
a medicated milieu with her dad and new stepmom. But when Mim learns that her
mother is sick, she must confront her own demons on a thousand-mile odyssey
that will redefine her notions of love, loyalty, and what it means to be sane.”
This sounds quirky and charming, and has been receiving rave
reviews from both trade and early readers. It’s going to be a good ‘un. I can
feel it.
14. The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
“The book, the first of a duet, is a reimagining of The
Arabian Nights, where the wits of one girl are the only thing standing between
a vulnerable kingdom and its ruthless boy-king…”
Billed as a “sumptuous and epically told love story”, this
book has me hooked already. I read the first chapter on bustle.com and fell in
love with the world and the beautiful narration.
15. The Witch Hunter by Virginia Boecker
“The Witch Hunter is set in an alternative 16th-century
London, in which the only girl in the king's elite group of witch hunters,
Elizabeth Grey, is framed for being a witch herself, finding freedom at the
hands of the world's most wanted wizard… As she's thrust into the world of
witches, ghosts, pirates, and all-too-handsome healers, Elizabeth is forced to
redefine her ideas of right and wrong, of friends and enemies, and of love and
hate.”
This has been billed as Shadow and Bone meets The Tudors,
which is a magic combination and a definite reason to go buy this when it’s
released later this year. *grabby hands*
I also already read a few INCREDIBLE 2015 novels last year,
and will most definitely be running out and buying the following titles when
they’re released: The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury, The Next
Together by Lauren James, The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall and The One Thing
by Marci Curtis.
Vendetta by Catherine
Doyle out now in paperback (£7.99, Chicken House). Find out more about the
author at http://catherine-doyle.tumblr.com and
http://www.catherinedoylebooks.com.
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