Mr Ripleys Enchanted Books: Derek Landy - Demon Road - Book Review

I've taken that path down the Demon Road.... 

Do you dare? 

The reader will hurtle along on a five star horror experience across the supernatural highways and the black roads of America with this book. It all kicks off when Amber Lamont's parents tried to kill her. Yep, the first page begins with them wanting to eat her. Derek Landy grabs you and slowly pulls you by the scruff of your literary neck down the path of the deepest and darkest parts of hell. He never lets the tempo fall; it's a gratuitous adult young horror shocker that will punch you in the fantasy gut. 

You will plunge across the brooding dark landscape of America on an epic road-trip that will captivate you. The imaginative story is filled with the baddest things imaginable: killer cars straight out of a Stephen King novel, vampires that have a sense of humour and undead serial killers that will haunt you to the bone. Then there is the ruthless family of DEMONS that have made a deal with the Shining Demon and so much more. You really need to read this jam packed book running over 500 pages long. 

Everything this plot has to offer is very bold in comparison to the Skulduggery Pleasant series. I feel that this book has actually taken the author out of his comfy writer's pants as everything needed to be worked out from scratch. In doing so, this book has put the writer back on the horror fantasy map. It's full of wit, action and, best of all, dagger sharp dialogue that oozes from the pores of the main characters.

The story is told from the perspective of Amber who is sixteen years old, smart and spirited. She’s just a normal American teenager until the lies are torn away and the demons reveal themselves in more ways than one. Amber is forced to go on the run, hurtling from one threat to another as she reveals a tapestry of terror woven into the very fabric of her life. Her only chance rests with her fellow travellers, who are not at all what they appear to be… can they be trusted?

Milo is very mysterious and brings a big dollop of back story with him, which I really loved. Glen is very amusing and brought a light-hearted side to the story. He is very likeable and yet, at the same time, both annoying and very reckless. He made me smile on a number of occasions with his advances towards Amber - they were very laughable. I'm still grinning thinking about some of the moments in the story. This is a side of the story that teenagers will connect to as it brought a sense of realism to a crazy mixed up world.

The idea is very bullish in my opinion. The action scenes are written exquisitely; full of inventive imagination that is sadly missed in a lot of older reads. The only gripe that I have is that it felt a little predictable in places for me but, nevertheless, it's only a small gripe. 

My favourite part of the book was meeting Dacre Shanks who sounds more like a toilet seat then a serial killer. He is so creepy and delicious to read about. The atmosphere surrounding the dolls house and the shrunken people was really eery and chilling. It will hook you like a prize fighter on the ropes.

This is definitely an amazing start to a trilogy. It is a fresh new world for the author to play with. The backyard has been set and the expectations on the next book have rocketed with this opener. This is easily one of my favourite action horror YA reads this year; fantastic stuff Mr Landy, I look forward to much more.....

  

Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books: Top Children's and Teen Series Picks - August 2014 - UK Published

Derek Landy - Skulduggery Pleasant #9: The Dying of the Light - Published by HarperCollins Children's Books (28 Aug 2014) 

The FINAL shocking, heart-wrenching book in the jaw-droppingly stupendous Skulduggery Pleasant series.

Valkerie. Darquesse. Stephanie. The world ain’t big enough for the three of them. The end will come…

The War of the Sanctuaries has been won, but it was not without its casualties. Following the loss of Valkyrie Cain, Skulduggery Pleasant must use any and all means to track down and stop Darquesse before she turns the world into a charred, lifeless cinder.

And so he draws together a team of soldiers, monster hunters, killers, criminals… and Valkyrie’s own murderous reflection.

The war may be over, but the final battle is about to begin. And not everyone gets out of here alive…

Mark Walden - Earthfall: Retribution - Published by Bloomsbury Children's (14 Aug 2014)

It's been several months since the events of Earthfall, yet Sam's attempts to rouse the enslaved people of London from their trance-like state have frustratingly failed. Worse still, the enormous Voidborn drilling device which Sam and his friends disabled in London was one of hundreds scattered across the planet, all nearing the final stages of construction.

Joining up with another resistance group, they plot to disable a drilling machine in Tokyo and in the process implant viral commands that will cause a catastrophic failure of the entire network. Just as that mission appears to have been successful, Sam and the others are double-crossed by the resistance leader.

Earthfall: Retribution will take the series on to a global stage, as the true scale of the conflict being played out on Earth is revealed.

Rick Riordan - Percy Jackson and the Greek Gods - Published by Puffin (7 Aug 2014)

"If you like horror shows, bloodbaths, lying, stealing, backstabbing and cannibalism, then read on..."

Who could tell the true stories of the gods and goddesses of Olympus better than modern-day demigod Percy Jackson?

In this action-packed tour of Greek mythology, Percy gives his hilarious personal views on the feuds, fights and love affairs of the Olympians. Want to know how Zeus came to be top god? How many times Kronos ate one of his own kids? How Athena literally burst out of another god's head?

It's all here in black and white...

Pittacus Lore - I Am Number Four: Book Five - Published By HarperCollins (26 Aug 2014)

The Revenge of Seven is the heart stopping fifth installment in the Lorien Legacies series by Pittacus Lore.

The worst was supposed to be over. We were reunited after a decade apart. We were discovering the truth about our past. We were training and getting stronger every day. We were even happy. . . .

We never imagined the Mogadorians could turn one of our own against us. We were fools for trusting Five. And now Eight is lost forever. I would do anything to bring him back, but that's impossible. Instead, I will do whatever it takes to destroy every last one of them.

I've spent my entire life hiding from them, and they've stolen everything away from me. But that stops now. We're going to take the battle to them. We have a new ally who knows their weaknesses. And I finally have the power to fight back.

EVENT UPDATE: UK'S FIRST YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CONVENTION - LONDON JULY 2014 - YALC

New York Times Bestseller Rainbow Rowell Completes YA Convention Line Up

Final list of names announced for Young Adult Literature Convention.

Waterstones Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman and the London Film and Comic Convention (LFCC) are delighted to announce the final list of authors joining the UK’s first Young Adult Literature Convention. Heading them is US author Rainbow Rowell, whose first YA title Eleanor & Park spent six weeks in the New York Times Bestseller chart, was voted Goodreads’ best young adult fiction of the year and was chosen by Amazon as one of the 10 best books of 2013. The first draft of her second YA novel Fangirl was written as part of the National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo) and was chosen as the inaugural Tumblr Book Club selection.

There are also a host of other names from the YA writing world joining the line-up, including 18 year old author Beth Reekles, who was recently named by Time magazine as one of the 16 most influential teenagers in the world. Publisher and award-winning author of In Darkness Nick Lake and Heart Shaped Bruise author Tanya Byrne are also announced today. Joining them is Robert Muchamore, whose books have sold in their millions and been translated into 27 languages.

The full list of names announced today:

•                     Holly Bourne

•                     Tanya Byrne

•                     Alexia Casale

•                     Lucy Christopher

•                     Cat Clarke

•                     Steve Cole

•                     Sarah Crossan

•                     Kim Curran

•                     Phil Earle

•                     Ian Edginton

•                     Garen Ewing

•                     Frances Hardinge

•                     Catherine Johnson

•                     Nick Lake

•                     Andy Lane

•                     Julie Mayhew

•                     Sarra Manning

•                     Amy McCulloch

•                     Anthony McGowan

•                     Sarah McIntyre

•                     Robert Muchamore

•                     Beth Reekles

•                     Tim O'Rourke

•                     Bryony Pearce

•                     Non Pratt

•                     Andy Robb

•                     Rainbow Rowell

•                     Lucy Saxon

•                     Marcus Sedgwick

•                     C J Skuse

•                     James Smythe

•                     Emma Vieceli

YALC will form a highlight of Malorie Blackman’s campaign as the Waterstones Children’s Laureate. It will take place at the London Film and Comic Con (LFCC), at Earl’s Court, London on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 July 2014. YALC will bring together all the UK’s YA publishers to provide a host of author events in a dedicated Book Zone, with talks, workshops, signings, a book sales area and publisher stands promoting new and upcoming titles. Blackman will act as a curator for the two-day convention, uniting authors and publishers throughout the UK community. 2014’s YALC event will be the first time a large scale public convention around YA books has taken place in the UK, and its setting among the fans of cultish film and TV will set books at the heart of entertainment for teens and young people.

YALC is supported by Prudential plc and the Authors Licensing and Collecting Society.

For more information about the London Film and Comic Con, visit their website here: http://www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com/ and follow @YALC_UK on Twitter for all the YALC news.

Names previously announced:

•                     Holly Black

•                     Malorie Blackman

•                     James Dawson

•                     Sally Gardner

•                     Sally Green

•                     Matt Haig

•                     Isobel Harrop

•                     Will Hill

•                     Charlie Higson

•                     Derek Landy

•                     Sophie McKenzie

•                     Patrick Ness

•                     Natasha Ngan

•                     Meg Rosoff

•                     Darren Shan

•                     Holly Smale

•                     Jonathan Stroud

•                     Ruth Warburton

EVENT: UK'S FIRST ADULT LITERATURE CONVENTION - LONDON JULY 2014

                       

Big names announced for UK’s first Young Adult Literature Convention

Waterstones Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman and the London Film and Comic Convention are pleased to announce an initial list of authors who will be appearing at the UK’s first ever Young Adult Literature Convention (YALC). Among them are bestselling Skulduggery Pleasant author and self-confessed movie buff Derek Landy, double Carnegie Medal winning Patrick Ness, and Red House Book Award winner Sophie Mackenzie. Also on the bill is previous Booktrust Online Writer in Residence Matt Haig, 24 year old debut Natasha Ngan, publisher-turned-author Ruth Warburton and bestselling horror writer Darren Shan. Completing the list announced today is Being a Boy author James Dawson, and of course Malorie Blackman herself. Further names, as well as days and times of authors’ appearances will be announced in due course.

YALC will form a highlight of Malorie Blackman’s campaign as the Waterstones Children’s Laureate. It will take place at the London Film and Comic Con (LFCC), at Earl’s Court, London on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 July 2014. YALC will bring together all the UK’s YA publishers to provide a host of author events in a dedicated Book Zone, with talks, workshops, signings, a book sales area and publisher stands promoting new and upcoming titles. Blackman will act as a curator for the two-day convention, uniting authors and publishers throughout the UK community. 2014’s YALC event will be the first time a large scale public convention around YA books has taken place in the UK, and its setting among the fans of cultish film and TV will set books at the heart of entertainment for teens and young people.

The full list of names announced today:

·         Malorie Blackman

·         James Dawson

·         Matt Haig

·         Derek Landy

·         Sophie McKenzie

·         Patrick Ness

·         Natasha Ngan

·         Darren Shan

·         Ruth Warburton

More names will be announced as they are confirmed. For more information about the London Film and Comic Con, visit their website here: http://www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com/ and follow @YALC_UK on Twitter for all the YALC news!

Book Reveal: Derek Landy & Tom Percival - Tanith Low in the Maleficent Seven

This is the new book cover that was unveiled yesterday by Tom Percival and Derek Landy. It's a stand alone novel set in the Skulduggery Pleasant world. Starring Tanith Low it will be published by HarperCollins on the 28th March 2013. This version (see link below) is missing both the words and the title. However, it still shows the full impact of Tom's brilliant work. You can also see both versions over at http://dereklandy.blogspot.co.uk/

Here is the released synopsis for the book:


This time, the bad guys take the stage.
Tanith Low, now possessed by a remnant, recruits a gang of villains – many of whom will be familiar from previous Skulduggery adventures – in order to track down and steal the four God-Killer level weapons that could hurt Darquesse when she eventually emerges. Also on the trail of the weapons is a secret group of Sanctuary sorcerers, and doing his best to keep up and keep Tanith alive is one Mister Ghastly Bespoke.
When the villains around her are lying and scheming and plotting, Tanith needs to stay two steps ahead of her teammates and her enemies. After all, she's got her own double-crosses to plan – and she’s a villain herself…