Rob Stevens - Would The Real Stanley Carrot Please Stand Up? - Book Review (Andersen Press)

Book Synopsis: Stanley ‘Carrot’ Harris is ginger, tubby and definitely not cool. And he has a secret: he’s adopted, and this makes him feel like he’s never quite fitted in.

On his thirteenth birthday, he receives the one thing he’s been waiting his whole life for: a card from his long-lost birth mother, asking to meet up. But Stanley isn’t sure: what if he’s a big disappointment to her? So he hatches a plan – and he’s going to need a stand-in Stanley, someone who is handsome, sporty and God’s Gift to Mothers.

What Stanley doesn’t realise is he’s about to have the most confusing time of his life . . . just who is the real Stanley Carrot?

Book Review
I was not expecting to enjoy this book as, at the moment, my reading enjoyment appears to be tuned into the nimbus clouds of fantasy worlds. Everything that I read is filled with magical monsters and based on far flung imagination. I enjoy escaping the real world and, sometimes when I'm sent a book of this nature, my heart actually sinks a little. Looking at the blurb on the back of this book, that sinking feeling washed over me, this was not the type of book that I was expecting from Rob Stevens. It was certainly very different to the other books that I have read by him before. 

The only aspect of this book that swayed me to read it was the tagline on the front of the brilliant book cover 'Laugh-out-Loud Funny'. That spurred me on to open the book, read the first pages and take a chance on the story inside the cover. I'm a sucker for a humorous storyline and this book has it in bucket loads. In summary, this book is based on reality that crashes into a truck load of humour. Stanley Carrot is the character at the heart of everything that goes crazily wrong.....

I would like to say that this book is teenage cool, just like the title. It may even refer to one of your favourite songs. However, it also deals with serious and complex issues which some teenagers may find themselves being able to relate to within this story. The main character, Stanley, has bright orange hair and is incredibly bad at sport. He lives with his adopted parents and generally feels unloved. This is further heightened by him becoming a victim of a group of nasty bullies. The story is written very sensitively and in parts was very moving. It provoked me to think deeply about the main character and to see life from his perspective.  

Another issue briefly explored within this brilliant story focused on dyslexia, which again is another difficult subject to write about. I would normally run away from such elements within a book, so what happened? Well, I actually devoured the story in one sitting, which really did surprise me very much. Sometimes the books that you shy away from become the ones that you love the most.

The contemporary plot is a mixed bag of incidents that go seriously wrong. A story about not fitting in with a crowd and exploring hidden talents that will capture the hearts of other people around you. If you're wanting to explore a book that is different, but has a great message about life this then this book is for you. 

This is a really inspiring read; one minute you will be crying tears of joy and the next minute you be weeping tears of sadness. It's a real rollercoaster of emotions and events that will stay with you for some time. However, it will leave you feeling good about yourself; it will make you smile and hug the other people around you. Like the saying goes 'if you smile, then the world will smile back at you'. If any book can do that then it is definitely worth reading and this book can. Aimed at an audience of approximately 11+, this book will be sort after by everyone, but what do you think? 

Published by Andersen on the 5th February 2015. Thank you for sending this for me to review and for taking me out of my comfort zone.

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Niel Bushnell - Timesmith (The Timesmith Chronicles) - Andersen

MR RIPLEY'S BOOK REVIEW.....
We have moved on from Sorrowline, which is the first book in the exciting series of The Timesmith Chronicles, to the second book called Timesmith by Niel. Jack is now thirteen years old and his adventures have only just begun. He has the ability to travel into the past through Sorrowlines which are the channels that connect every gravestone with the date of the person's death.  Jack needs to travel back again to 1940s London to find his friends and to prevent the evil Rouland from rising from the dead, as the Paladin search for the fabled lost sword, known as Durendal, so it can be used to resurrect the Paladin Master. 

This story takes you on a bone crushing adventure; a race for time with a quest to get to the sword first. It is a fight to save the world, as well as Jack's family, as he is hunted by the undead knights of The Paladin. We are whisked through the plot by the characters as they travel to and from different fantasy worlds. The story is very well written - it has just the right amount of detail without going over the top and letting the imagination run wild. More importantly, it never talks down to or patronises the reader.

I love the carefree flow of the storyline. In my opinion, this is an easy to read, and easy to follow, book which would be a great read for both young and reluctant readers.  Reading this book, it is easy to recognise how the author has really enjoyed writing about and introducing the colourful characters and the time travelling theme. The characters can just about do anything so you never know what's going to happen as the adventure unfolds. There are some amazing cinematic battles, some spilt blood, a sprinkling of death and a sting in the tale. However I'm not going to say anymore about this as I want to keep my review spoiler free.

I  thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I think that the author has really added to and developed the story from where the first book left off. Although, I would have perhaps loved to have seen more of the 1940s London being infused into the super plot line. Nevertheless, I loved the mysterious side of the Grimnire, always standing in the shadows and casting a dark atmosphere to the story - it felt very Pratchett-esq. I look forward to reading more about them in the next book.

The ending of this book was much better than the first story; it delivered a cracking finale for the next installment. This series is growing from strength to strength  and one that I would definitely recommend anyone and everyone to read who loves a good magical fantasy story.

SMALL EXTRACT - THE SCREAM

The man buried in the cold earth screamed a motionless

scream.

He had long since given up trying to move; his body

was rotten and useless. Every message his angry brain

threw out went ignored by his wasted, pathetic frame.

Yet he felt everything.

Worms moved through him, wriggling, feeding,

persistently tearing at his human remains. Moisture

formed about his darkened flesh, seeping in with needles

of ice-cold indifference that cracked his calcified bones.

And the sword; even after all this time he felt the mocking

metal of the sword impaling his inert heart. In the

age since his demise the pain had not diminished.

Unimaginable, never-ending pain.

Nothing worked any more. Only his soul, his very

essence, prevailed somewhere deep within. He felt the

passing of time like the slow, maddening drip, drip, drip of

a frozen waterfall. Seconds laughed at him for decades.

Decades scorned him for an eternity. He was buried in time.

And yet Rouland endured it all.

One burning thought kept him going. It was a thought

about a boy, a boy who had beaten him. Rouland was

immortal, unstoppable. He had never been beaten before.

The boy’s face came into his mind and a new wave of

hatred consumed him.

Jack Morrow.

He had bested Rouland. He had plunged a sword

through the centre of his heart and suspended his eternal

existence. He had buried him in this patch of earth and

left him to rot, to die like a mortal man.

But Rouland was not mortal, and his rage sustained

him through the lonely, dark years. He waited, and plotted

and schemed. He knew his day would come. His followers

would find him and restore him and he would have his

revenge on Jack Morrow.

Rouland pictured his victory, and he forgot about the

pain. He was satisfied. Then as the notion subsided

the hurt returned, stronger than ever. Inside the prison

of his mind, hate condensed into pools of agony and

Rouland’s soul screamed . . .

Captain Alda de Vienne screamed.

Niel Bushnell - Sorrowline (The Timesmith Chronicles) - Book Review

This is the second book on the bounce that I've really enjoyed from a debut author. Looking ahead to 2013, I feel that we might be in for a very good year. One where the imagination flows and the stories do the talking - just like this book. 

I was very happy to receive this book, directly from the author, after the cover had been featured in the book cover wars. I was looking forward to reading it from the cover alone, and it certainly did not disappoint me. It's a rapid page turner which is full of great ideas. The main character, Jack, is a Yard Boy and someone with the ability to travel through Sorrowlines (the channels that connect every gravestone with the date of the persons death).  When Jack visits his mum's grave, he falls head first into an unimaginable adventure that will leave you gasping for breath by the end. 

This book incorporates a superb slice of history - paying a visit to war torn London in the forties. In my opinion, this has been very well written and certainly added a good slice of reality to a book packed full of fantasy. It's so easy to get lost in parts that have a time travel theme, but in this book the author kept it very clear as to what was going on.

Along the way you will meet some very interesting characters. The Boagymen and their secret underground system and the army of Paladin, who would easily fit into a Tolkien novel. However, at the centre of every good book there needs to be a particularly evil or power-hungry, mad character. In this case his name is Rouland. I would have liked to see him feature a little bit more as he was deliciously dark - just what I wanted to read!

This book is a fantastic read, although I wasn't quite sure about the ending. I was hoping for something different perhaps a few more incidents and surprises to spice it up. However it is a high octane journey that is full of adventure and will keep you on your toes until the very last page. A must read for 2013 - it leaves you thinking about what might be coming in the next book.

Published by Andersen - 3rd January 2013