Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - Great New Summer Children's Publications by David Fickling Books

Conrad Mason - The Hero's Tomb - Published by David Fickling - Hardback ISBN:978-1910200346 - Out Now!

Azurmouth! In all the Old World there is no city so vast, so sprawling . . . or so dangerous.

Half-goblin boy Joseph Grubb has come to find the truth about his parents. His friend Tabitha has followed him across the ocean, hoping to protect him from the deadly white-coated butchers of the League of the Light. Meanwhile her guardian Captain Newton is determined to recover an ancient artifact stolen by the League’s sinister Duke of Garran.

But in Azurmouth nothing is as it seems. Old enemies will rise. Long-buried secrets will be uncovered. And the League will awaken an ancient power, threatening the Old World with a terrifying new dawn.

Soon Joseph, Tabitha and Newton will have to face their deepest fears, and a final reckoning, at the Hero’s Tomb . . .

Mal Peet - The Murdstone Trilogy - Published by David Fickling - Paperback ISBN: 978-1910200216 - Out Now! 

Philip Murdstone is a writer.

He writes subtle YA books about sensitive boys. Subtle books which don’t sell.

He does NOT write fantasy. He HATES fantasy - even the faintest whiff of goblins and elves brings him

out in hives. But - his agent Minerva Cinch informs him - his career as a writer is kaput if he DOESN’T

write fantasy.

Luckily for Murdstone, it is at this exact moment that he meets a strange creature from another realm.

What could possibly go wrong?

Jon Walter - My Name's Not Friday - Published by David Fickling - Hardback ISBN: 978-1910200438 - Out Now!

Samuel’s an educated boy. Been taught by a priest. He was never supposed to be a slave.

He’s a good boy too, thought- ful and kind. The type of boy who’d take the blame for something he didn’t do, if

it meant he could save his brother.

So now they don’t call him Samuel anymore.

And the sound of guns is getting ever closer . . .

Jon Walter’s second novel is a beautiful and moving story about the power of belief and the strength of the human spirit, set against the terrifying backdrop of the American Civil War.

For more cracking reads check out the David Fickling Website: http://www.davidficklingbooks.com

Publisher: Chicken House - Clucking New Summer Reads 2013

                                   

Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams - BK 6 - Terminal - 2nd May 2013 - 11+
In this sixth and concluding book of the Tunnels series, the Styx and their cohorts of deadly Armagi have swept across England, leaving death and devastation in their wake. It seems nothing can stop them now. Only a miracle can save the day and, in the inner world at the centre of the earth, Will and Elliott might just have stumbled upon one as they uncover ancient secrets that are fundamental to al human and Styx life.     
      

Rachel Ward - The Drowning - 2nd May 2013 - 14+
What happens if you've done something terrible? But you can't remember what. And you don't know how to put it right ... When Carl opens his eyes on the banks of a lake, his brother is being zipped into a body bag. What happened in the water? He can't remember And when he glimpses a beautiful girl he thinks he recognises, she runs away.Suddenly he knows he must find her - because together they must face the truth before it drowns them.
                                         

Sam Hepburn - Chasing The Dark - 6th June 2013 - 11+
Joe's mum is dead. Killed in a hit-and-run car crash, along with someone he's never heard of. Angry and alone, Joe takes his dog for a late night walk. He finds himself at the gates of an empty mansion: a house of glass belonging to an old movie star. And it's here that Joe unlocks the dangerous mystery of what happened that night ..
        

Dan Smith - My Friend The Enemy - 4th July 2013 - 9+
Summer, 1941. For Peter, the war is a long way away, being fought by a faceless enemy, marching across places he's never seen. Unil the night it comes to him. A German plane is shot down over the woods that his Dad looked after, before he went off to fight. Peter rushes to the crash site to find something exciting to keep. But what he finds instead is someone: a young and injured German airman. The enemy. Here. And in trouble. Suddenly, helping him seems like the right thing to do.

Mr Ripley's Children's New Book Picks: July 2012

                                     
Chris Colfer - The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell - Published by Atom - 17 July 2012 

Alex and Conner Bailey's world is about to change....

Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, twins Alex and Connor leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.

But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.

                                  
Matt Dickinson - Mortal Chaos: Deep Oblivion - Published by OUP Oxford - 5 July 2012
Butterfly effect: The scientific theory that a single occurrence, no matter how small, can change the course of the universe forever. Hannah, homeless and on the run. Gwen and Tehpoe, kidnapped by violent rebels. Todd and Isabella, threatened by piranha attack. Wai Yan, hunted by a cruel dictator. Stian Olberg, fighting to save his vessel from imminent destruction. For them, and many others, things will never be the same again. Some will live. Many will die. All are connected. The action is non-stop in this tense and compelling adventure.

                                    

C . J  Busby & David Wyatt - Icespell (Frogspell) - Published by Templar Publishing - 1 July 2012

Join Max and Olivia for more magical thrills, spills and spells in their third hilarious adventure. Max and Olivia are loving life in Camelot - not only is Max having magic lessons with the great wizard Merlin, Olivia is finally in training for the Squire's Challenge. But disaster strikes when Camelot is frozen inside a magical mountain of ice and it's all Max's fault! Can he and Olivia rescue Arthur and Merlin from their icy prison before evil Lady Morgana gets to Camelot and seals their doom?

                                

David Gatward - Doom Rider - Published by Hodder Children's - 5 July 2012 

Seth Crow has lived a thousand lives, and in each one he's been murdered before he turns thirteen.
And now he's being hunted again. But this time it's different.
Enter Lily, who tells him of his fate: Seth is CONQUEST. The first of the four riders of the Apocalypse. And people want him dead, before he can fulfil his destiny.
Seth's only hope lies in finding the other riders - Strife, Famine and Death.
Together, the fate of the world lies in their hands ...

                                            

Keith Austin - GRYMM - Published by Red Fox - 5 July 2012

Something stirred in the gravelly yard beneath their window . . . A soft slippery nuzzle, the sort of sounds you'd expect a pig to make with its snout in a trough . . .

The small mining town of Grymm perched on the very edge of the Great Desert is the kind of town you leave - but when Dad gets a three-month contract in the mine there, Mina and Jacob, unwilling stepbrother and sister, are reluctantly arriving.

From a grotesque letting agent who seems to want to eat their baby brother, a cafe owner whose milkshakes contain actual maggots and the horribly creepy butcher, baker and candlestick-maker, Mina and Jacob soon realize that nothing in Grymm is what is appears to be.

And then things get seriously weird when their baby brother disappears - and no one seems to even notice! In Grymm, your worst nightmares really do come true . . .

++++ Three Good Books Published in the US in July 2011 ++++

                                    
Shawn Thomas Odyssey - The Wizard of Dark - Published by Egmont - 26 July 2011

Oona Crate was born to be the Wizard’s apprentice, but she has another destiny in mind.

Despite possessing the rare gift of natural magic, Oona wants to be a detective. Eager for a case to prove herself, she wants to show her uncle—the Wizard of Dark Street—that logic is as powerful as magic. But when someone attacks the Wizard, Oona must delve even deeper into the world of magic to discover who wanted her uncle dead.

Full of magic, odd characters, evil henchmen, and a street where nothing is normal, The Wizard of Dark Street will have you guessing until the very end.

Eleven-year-old Neela dreams of being a famous musician, performing for admiring crowds on her traditional Indian stringed instrument. Her particular instrument used to be her grandmother’s—made of warm, rich wood, and intricately carved with a mysterious-looking dragon.

                            

Sheela Chari - Vanished - Published by Hyperion - 26 July 2011 

When this special family heirloom vanishes from a local church, Neela is devastated. As she searches for it, strange clues surface: a teakettle ornamented with a familiar-looking dragon, a threatening note, a connection to a famous dead musician, and even a legendary curse. The clues point all the way to India, where it seems that Neela's intrument has a long history of vanishing and reappearing. If she is able to track it down, will she be able to stop it from disappearing again?

                             

Gillian Neimark - The Secret Spiral - Published by Aladdin - 26 July 2011

It’s just another boring Wednesday in May for ten-year-old Flor Bernoulli of Brooklyn, New York. As soon as school is out she hurries to the popular Sky High Pie Shop down the block, owned by the wonderfully mysterious Dr. Pi. But when she gets there, her life changes forever. Dr. Pi reveals he is actually an ancient wizard, in charge of a very special cosmic fire that keeps nature in balance. Without him, every single thing that has the shape of a spiral—from seashells to galaxies to the inside of your ear—will cease to exist. Flor wonders if Dr. Pi has lost his mind, but then two tall blond strangers from another planet show up, hoping to steal Dr. Pi’s fire for themselves. The adventure of a lifetime has begun. As she travels in time and travels in space, Flor learns that only she has the magic to help Dr. Pi protect the fire, save the spiral, and keep the world spinning just as it should.

++++ Some Great Books Published - July 2011 Book Post++++

                                  
Alex Scarrow - TimeRiders: The Eternal War (Book 4) - Published by Puffin - 14 July 

Liam O'Connor should have died at sea in 1912.

Maddy Carter should have died on a plane in 2010.
Sal Vikram should have died in a fire in 2026.
But all three have been given a second chance - to work for an agency that no one knows exists.
Its purpose: to prevent time travel destroying history . . .

A time wave has struck that alters the entire history of the American Civil War. Abraham Lincoln has followed Liam into the present from 1831 - and now the world is in a dangerous state of limbo . . .
If the TimeRiders can't return Lincoln to the past, the Civil War will never end. Can Maddy persuade two colonels on either side of no man's land to cease fire long enough to save the future?

                                                    

James Rollins - Jake Ransom and the Howling Sphinx - Published by Orion - 7 July 

An ancient and priceless ruby - the Eye of Ra - has been found beneath the Egyptian sands in the Valley of the Kings. Legend has it the jewel holds immense power, but it has fallen into the wrong hands - which means trouble for Jake and Kady Ransom, and a new action-packed adventure as the pair are catapulted into an ancient land of shifting sands, dark magic and dangerous enemies . . . Can Jake and Kady survive and outwit the Skull King himself?

                            

N.M Browne - Wolf Blood - Published by Bloomsbury - 4 July 

A Celtic warrior girl is held captive and enslaved by a rival tribe. When fever takes her only friend she knows she must escape, but she runs straight into the path of two Roman foot soldiers. Thinking they will kill a warrior instantly, the girl disguises herself as a beggar and asks to share their fire. Using her gift as a seer she discovers that one of the soldiers is not what he seems. Celtic blood courses through his veins too, but there is something else. He is a shapeshifter - a Versipellum. He shares his soul with that of the wolf. The girl needs to reach the leader of her dead friend's tribe, and the boy must escape the Romans before they discover his true nature. Their only chance of survival is to help each other. But what will happen when their powers are combined?

                                     

Phillip Webb - Six Days - Published by Chicken House -  4 July 

In a ruined future, an extraordinary artefact from the past lies buried. Everyone wants it. But why? What is it? And how can it save them all? For scavs Cass and Wilbur, slaving to dig it up, there are no answers. But when two strangers from another time turn up claiming to know about the lost relic, their world will change for ever. Six Days. If you thought you knew how the world began ... think again.

                                         

Josh Lacey - The Island of Thieves - Published by Andersen - 7 July 

Buried treasure. Ruthless gangsters. An ancient clue . . .

Our Captayne took the pinnace ashore and I went with hym and six men also, who were sworne by God to be secret in al they saw. Here we buried five chests filled with gold.

Tom Trelawney was looking for excitement. Now he's found it. With his eccentric uncle Harvey, he's travelling to South America on a quest for hidden gold. But Harvey has some dangerous enemies and they want the treasure too. Who will be the first to uncover the secrets of the mysterious island?

                        
Chris Morphew - Arrival (The Phoenix Files) - Published by Scholastic - 7 July
Luke is having a rough year. When his parents split up, his mum drags him to Phoenix, a brand-new town in the middle of nowhere. But Phoenix is no ordinary town. There are no cars, no phones and no internet. Luke thinks this is as weird as it gets. Then he discovers that someone is plotting to wipe out the human race. Phoenix is suddenly the safest and most dangerous place on earth. One hundred days remain until the end of the world ... not something Luke thought would ever be HIS problem.

Picture Book Shop - Picks For July 2010

                                          
 
Kate McKewn  - Nat Fantastic and the Brave Knights of Old - Published by Orchard 15 July 2010
Nat Fantastic - aka miniature superhero - is back! And this time he's taking on the knights... and winning!
A brilliant follow-up to the hugely successful 
Nat Fantastic from bestselling author Giles Andreae.
                                   
Joyce Dunbar & Lara Jones - I Want a Mini Tiger - Published by Macmillian Children's 2 July 2010

This little girl wants her very own miniature wild animal. Anything from a little snappy happy crocodile or a tiny trundle rumble elephant, to a pocket-sized grizzly bear. But as her big brother explains, a real wild animal would make a terrible pet. You can't nuzzle a crocodile, or tickle a wild elephant, and a grizzly bear belongs in a cave not a pocket! But there's one pet, a tiny pet, that loves to be tickled and cuddled. It's like a tiger, only much smaller .  A delightfully rhythmic tale, bursting with imagination, and a playful introduction to a world of wild animals.
                          
Jan Fearnley - Arthur and the Meanies - Published by Egmont  5 July  2010                  How do you play with an elephant? Well, if you're Tiger, Cheetah, Monkey and Peacock, you don't. Tiger growls that Arthur is too heavy for hopping, and Cheetah is very unkind when Arthur asks to hold the string on his beautiful new kite. But when it starts to rain, suddenly everybody wants to be Arthur's friend - as long as he will do as he's told and shelter them from the storm. This is a beautifully crafted picture book that is complete with a gentle and satisfying moral.

New Children's Book - Picks For The Month Of July 2010 - (Unreviewd Books)

Eoin Colfer - Artemis and the Atlantis Complex - Published by Puffin - 20 July 2010
ARTEMIS FOWL’S CRIMINAL WAYS HAVE FINALLY GOT THE BETTER OF HIM . . . Young Artemis has frequently used high-tech fairy magic to mastermind the most devious criminal activity of the new century. Now, at a conference in Iceland, Artemis has gathered the fairies to present his latest idea to save the world from global warming. But Artemis is behaving strangely – he seems different. Something terrible has happened to him . . . Artemis Fowl has become nice. The fairies diagnose Atlantis Complex – that’s obsessive compulsive disorder to you and me – dabbling in magic has damaged his mind. Fairy ally Captain Holly Short doesn’t know what to do. Because the subterranean volcanoes are under attack from vicious robots and Artemis cannot fight them. Can Holly get the real Artemis back before the robot probes destroy every human and life form.

Sophie Mckenzie - The Rescue ( The Medusa Project) - Published by Simon & Schuster - 8 July 2010
Fourteen years ago, four babies were implanted with the Medusa gene - a gene for psychic abilities. Now teenagers, Nico, Ketty, Ed and Dylan have been brought together by government agents to create a secret crime-fighting force: The Medusa Project. Since their existence became known to members of the criminal underworld, they have been hidden away in a secluded training camp in Spain, where their identities are being kept secret. Life in camp is hard enough, but then things take a turn for the worse. Ed is blackmailed into using his mind-reading powers - and in doing so he threatens to endanger the whole Medusa Project...

F E Higgins - The Lunatic's Curse - Published by Macmillan Children's - 2 July 2010

Deep within the heart of the Moiraean Mountains lies the town of Opum Oppidulum - home to the freezing Lake Beluarum and it's rumoured monster. An inescapable asylum stands in the centre of the lake, enclosed by the sheer cliffs of Drop Rock island. When Ambrose Grammaticus, famous inventor and master engineer, viciously attacks his own son, Rex, he is hauled to the island and imprisoned. Rex knows his evil stepmother, Acantha, is behind his father's 'madness', but how can he prove it? Only the asylum holds the answers . . .

A savage story of treachery, lunacy, greed, revenge and pure unadulterated wickedness.

Alan Gibbons - Hell's Underground 4:Witch Breed - Published by Orion Children's - 1 July 2010

When Paul arrives in 17th century London, he expects to be thrown into a life or death struggle for the three gates that imprison the ancient King Lud. But the battle doesn't come. Instead, Paul roams alone, learning how to survive in a city where all the talk is of the savage civil war that rages beyond its ramparts. Somewhere underground, Lud is waiting in his crypt, preparing to rise again. War, fear and want are his tools. But Paul too has his own weapons and is gaining strength and losing inhibitions about using it. Meanwhile, beyond the city, innocent women are being killed for it is so easy to claim that they are witches. One woman - whether innocent or guilty - possesses the only power available that can help Paul in his quest.

Catherine Webb - The Dream Thief:V4 (Horatio Lyle) - Published by ATOM - 1 July 2010

London, 1865, and young Theresa Hatch (Tess, to her friends) receives a nast surprise late at night. When Horatio finds a young girl on his doorstep, passed out, dying - apparently poisoned - he's appalled. Investigations lead to Tess's old workhouse, but a surprise visit to that sorry establishment yields more questions than answers. Only one thing is clear: something very, very bad is happening to the children in the East End. There's a mystery to be solved, sending Lyle, Thomas, Tate and - naturally - Tess out into the wilds of east London and a certain former thief's old stamping grounds. What they find is terrifying: Tess's old crowd of artful dodgers and ace pickpockets are now wandering the streets like zombies, drooling in the workhouses or plain mad in the asylum. And it isn't just affecting Tess' old crowd; children all over the area are turning up with their memories in tatters and their minds all but gone. The only clue is a name, half-whispered in fear: Old Greybags.

Garren Ewing - The Rainbow Orchid: Adventures Julius Chancer V.2 - Egmont Books - 5 July 2010

In Volume Two, the heroic Julius Chancer journeys from Europe to the Indian sub-continent as he steps up his quest for the rainbow orchid. He soon discovers that he's not the only one seeking the mystical flower: he has enemies more dangerous than he could ever have imagined. "The Rainbow Orchid" is an ambitious blend of classic storytelling, and cinematic artwork, in which adventure, historical drama and legend are seamlessly intertwined.

Daniel Finn - Two Good Thieves - Book Review

Mr Ripley's Review

The city is burning in the South American sun. The river is baked to a trickle of brown water. And a gang of child thieves are out lurking in the city looking to relieve unsuspecting passersby of their valuables. When Demi and Baz steal something big the story takes a turn. The story tells the hardship and living the rough life of Barrio where they are always looking over their shoulder.
I loved reading this book as I was drawn into the children's lives and the journey of the characters throughout the book. A great story adventure with great bouts of action moments layered alongside tension. Some great emotional parts which add to the story, such as when the gangster-type bad guys 'come out to play' all fighting for top dog.
A great debut story and a well crafted plot; building a world where people struggle to live a life without crime. Perhaps not the most original plot but still interesting. I give this book four out of five. I will be interested to see what the author produces next.

Published By Macmillan Children's Books 3 Jul 2009


Book Synopsis

In the searing heat of an unnamed South American city, a gang of child-thieves runs wild. Demi has the gift of speed - he can pick a pocket and be gone before his victim has even noticed he was there. Baz is his lookout - no one sees her unless she wants them to. It's like a game: dodging the law, keeping one step ahead, being the fastest, the cleverest, the best. But one day, almost by accident, they steal a dazzling, beautiful, priceless jewel - and make a very dangerous enemy. Suddenly they're sucked into a world where children's lives are worthless, where the rich and powerful are just adults who steal on a much grander scale, and where secrets are traded like gold. Their only hope is to make a brave bid for freedom - to head upcountry, away from the unrelenting heat, the dried-up river, the only home they've ever known. When good and bad are meaningless, two child thieves become the beating moral heart of an unputdownable thriller.

About the Author

Daniel Finn is a well-travelled teacher and writer who has written several books for younger readers, published under another name. When he started to write Two Good Thieves, he knew it was different from anything else he'd done - so he started to lead a double-life, with two names and two very different writing styles. He lives and works in Surrey, with his wife and two grown-up children. He is currently writing a second book, set in the same country as Two Good Thieves, which will be published by Macmillan in 2010.

More Books For The Busy Month Of July 2009

Mr Ripley has some more great books to bring to your attention for the busy month of July. Also Some recommended U.S titles for May to get your teeth stuck into.

J.C Bemis - The Mystifying Medicine Show - Oxford University Press - 2, July 2009 Paperback

Orphan Ray has been separated from his sister. The only clue to finding her is a lodestone, left to him by his father before he vanished. The lodestone tugs Ray towards a train bursting with astounding characters. Soon Ray is hurtling across the Wild West, joining in as they perform their enthralling medicine show. But something dark is following the train. Something that wants to steal people's souls. How long before Ray realizes it? And can he and his new friends do anything to stop it?

Michelle Lovric - The Undrowned Child - Orion Children's Books - 2, July 2009 Paperback

It's the beginning of the 20th century; the age of scientific progress. But for Venice the future looks bleak. A conference of scientists assembles to address the problems, among whose delegates are the parents of eleven-year-old Teodora. Within days of her arrival, she is subsumed into the secret life of Venice: a world in which salty-tongued mermaids run subversive printing presses, ghosts good and bad patrol the streets and librarians turn fluidly into cats. A battle against forces determined to destroy the city once and for all quickly ensues. Only Teo, the undrowned child who survived a tragic accident as a baby, can go 'between-the-linings' to subvert evil and restore order.

Rob Stevens - The Mapmaker's Monster:Vampanther Attack! No 2 - Macmillan Children's Books - 3, July 2009 Paperback

In their next hilarious adventure, Hugo and Savage travel to the unchartered mountains of deepest Transylvania, where nothing is as it seems. With a fortune telling cat, an anxious wolf-man and some seriously angry rabbits to deal with, can Hugo rescue Uncle Walter from the clutches of the evil vampanther lord before it's too late?


Picture book recommendation from a great team must check this out.

Julia Donaldson Author and David Roberts Illustrator - The Troll - Macmillan Children's Books - 3, July 2009

Trolls are supposed to lurk under bridges, ready to eat billy goats, and pirates should always dig where 'X marks the spot. But what happens when goats are hard to come by, map reading skills aren't up to scratch and everybody has rumbling tummies? This is a rib-tickling tale, brilliantly woven together by a winning picture book team.


The U.S Book Picks for May 2009 is:

Book One:

Patrick Carman's third book in the Atherton series entitled The Dark Planet Published by Little, Brown Young Readers - May 1, 2009


In the dazzling conclusion to the epic story of Atherton, Patrick Carman takes readers on the most rewarding journey of all, to the perilous realm of The Dark Planet: Earth.

When Edgar discovers a way to leave the mysterious satellite world of Atherton, he couldn't have imagined the gloom that awaited him on the dark planet, where the oceans are toxic, the forests are full of mutant monsters, and children toil in darkness, controlled by ruthless maniacs. Max Harding, an orphan of the Silo, the maker of Atherton, and the last hope of a dying world, left this place behind, and now Edgar is determined to complete the mad scientist's spectacular plan, revealing Atherton's true purpose.


Book Two:


Michael Grant second book Hunger:A Gone Novel Published by HarperTeen - 26, May 2009 Hardback


By It's been three months since everyone under the age of fifteen became trapped in the bubble known as the FAYZ.

Three months since all the adults disappeared.

Gone.

Food ran out weeks ago. Everyone is starving, but no one wants to figure out a solution. And each day, more and more kids are evolving, developing supernatural abilities that set them apart from the kids without powers.

Tension rises and chaos is descending upon the town. It's the normal kids against the mutants. Each kid is out for himself, and even the good ones turn murderous.

But a larger problem looms. The Darkness, a sinister creature that has lived buried deep in the hills, begins calling to some of the teens in the FAYZ. Calling to them, guiding them, manipulating them.

The Darkness has awakened. And it is hungry.


Thanks for reading!

And please email us if you have anything you would like to see on this blog or just pass on some information.

New Children's Books For July 2009 (Hardbacks)

This is some of the best Hardbacks to be released in the month of July. Next post will look at U.S book releases from May-July 2009.

Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell Barnaby Grimes:Phatom Of Blood Alley Doubleday 2 July 2009 (Book Four in a great Series of books by the award winning Duo)

Barnaby Grimes is a tick-tock lad, high-stacking his way across the rooftops of his city in search of adventure and mystery. In each tale, he encounters a supernatural force and must battle the horrors that await him. In the fiercely competitive world of early photography, the rewards are immense but so are the risks. After an experiment goes disastrously wrong, Barnaby finds himself on the trail of a mad chemist with a talent for disappearing into thin air...


James Patterson - Daniel X:Watch the Skies (Daniel X Children Edition) Doubleday 2 July 2009

Daniel X has his work cut out for him. A teenage alien hunter, he has a deadly list of evil predators to eliminate and while he's made it all look easy so far, much darker days await him. Next on his list is number five, an unsightly and terrifying alien who is watching Daniel as intently as Daniel has been tracking him. Number Five kills for thrills but not just for his own. He is operating a sinister entertainment network and innocent people are unknowingly the stars of the show. But while Number Five may have managed to brainwash the public, is he cunning enough to outwit the alien hunter? As the two seek to destroy one another, who will be the ultimate winner? And will Daniel X live to see who is next on his list?


Chris D'lacey - Dark Fire (David Rain) - Orchard 2 July 2009( Book Five in the Happy clay Dragon saga.)


With the Earth on the brink of recolonisation by dragons, David Rain is sent on an important mission: to seek out and destroy a trace of dark fire, the deadliest force in the universe. But with success could come a terrible price, the sacrifice of a beloved clay dragon. How much does the life of one small dragon count, when the alternative is the birth of a darkling...?

Daniel Finn - Two Good Thieves - Macmillan Children's Books 3 July 2009
(Ripley's Recommended Read)
In the searing heat of an unnamed South American city, a gang of child-thieves runs wild. Demi has the gift of speed - he can pick a pocket and be gone before his victim has even noticed he was there. Baz is his lookout - no one sees her unless she wants them to. It's like a game: dodging the law, keeping one step ahead, being the fastest, the cleverest, the best. But one day, almost by accident, they steal a dazzling, beautiful, priceless jewel - and make a very dangerous enemy. Suddenly they're sucked into a world where children's lives are worthless, where the rich and powerful are just adults who steal on a much grander scale, and where secrets are traded like gold. Their only hope is to make a brave bid for freedom - to head upcountry, away from the unrelenting heat, the dried-up river, the only home they've ever known. When good and bad are meaningless, two child thieves become the beating moral heart of an unputdownable thriller.

Linda Buckley-Archer - Time Quake (Gideon) Simon & Schuster Children's 6 July 2009
(Book three in the enjoyable time travel books)
The catastrophic consequences of time travel are now impossible to ignore. Lord Luxon has set his sights on the ultimate prize: America, while, abducted to 1763, Peter and Kate begin to understand that history has arrived at a tipping point. Transformed into an oracle, Kate is able to see the future as easily as the past. Gideon does all he can to help, but he is tormented by the knowledge that The Tar Man, his nemesis, is also his brother. As they pursue him through the dark streets of eighteenth-century London, and the time quakes begin, Peter realises that this monster may hold the fate of us all in his hands.


Marcus Sedgwick - Revolver - Orion books 16 July 2009 A gritty real life adventure.

1910. A cabin north of the Arctic Circle. Fifteen-year-old Sig Andersson is alone. Alone, except for the corpse of his father, who died earlier that day after falling through a weak spot on the ice-covered lake. His sister, Anna, and step-mother, Nadya, have gone to the local town for help. Then comes a knock at the door. It's a man, the flash of a revolver's butt at his hip, and a mean glare in his eyes. Sig has never seen him before but Wolff claims to have unfinished business with his father. As Sig gradually learns the awful truth about Wolff's connection to his father, Sig finds his thoughts drawn to a certain box hidden on a shelf in the storeroom, in which lies his father's prized possession - a revolver. When Anna returns alone, and Wolff begins to close in, Sigs choice is pulled into sharp focus. Should he use the gun, or not?

New Children's Books For July 2009 (paperbacks)

It's a busy old month for July. I have picked some of the best U.K Paperback books to be published over the summer month of July.
I will also follow up this post with the more interesting hardback releases. I will also cover some of the best ones to be released in the U.S.



Ali Sparkes - Dark Summer - Oxford Children's - 2 July

It's the summer holidays, and Eddie finds himself strangely drawn to the famous caves at Wookey Hole. He makes friends with the ticket seller there, and before long is allowed to roam wherever he wants. He loves it . . . until the day he gets lost. Just as panic sets in, his hand is taken by a strange girl, about his own age, who guides him to the surface. Gwerren is weird. She's extraordinarily pale with huge violet eyes and white hair - what's more, she won't come out of the caves. As she and Eddie become friends he starts to wonder if she's a ghost. Then Eddie nearly dies in a pothole - and discovers not only the truth, but life where nobody thought it could be . . . A thrilling new novel from the author of the popular 'Shapeshifter' series.

Toby Forward - Travelling Backwards - Anderson Press - 2 July

Franny is upset. Her grandfather is very ill and she realises that he will soon die. She begs her friend Mrs May to give her something to make him better. Mrs May gives her a potion with the warning that Grandfather must not drink too much. The effect is startling. Grandfather becomes much younger and more vigorous with each sip. Of course, he pays no heed to Mrs May's warning until the process of getting younger becomes a little too extreme! He and Fanny are faced with the dilemma: is this really how life should end?

Chris Bradford - The Way of the Sword (Young Samurai) - Puffin - 2 July (Recommended read for boys)

One year of training in samurai school and Jack is in real trouble . . . He’s busy preparing for the Circle of Three, an ancient ritual that tests courage, skill and spirit to the limit. And, at the same time, Jack is caught in a running battle with fellow student Kazuki and his gang. But these are the least of Jack’s problems. He knows his deadly rival – the ninja Dragon Eye – could strike at any moment. Jack possesses the very thing he will kill for. Can Jack master the Way of the Sword in time to survive a fight to the death?

Richelle Mead - Vampire Academy ( book one ) - Puffin - 2 July

St Vladimir's Academy isn't just any boarding school - hidden away, it's a place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They've been on the run, but now they're being dragged back to St Vladimir's where the girls must survive a world of forbidden romances, a ruthless social scene and terrifying night time rituals. But most of all, staying alive.

Paul Adam -Escape From Shadow Island (A Max Cassidy Adventure) Corgi Children's 2 July (See review for this book)

Max is an ordinary north London schoolboy by day, but at night he performs sell-out public shows as an escapologist - nicknamed The Half-Pint Houdini by the tabloid press. His father, Alexander, was also a world-renowned escapologist, who disappeared two years earlier in the Central American state of Santo Domingo. His body was never found, but Max's mother, Helen, was convicted of murdering her husband by a Santo Domingan court. One evening, after his show, Max receives a visit from a mysterious man from Santo Domingo - Lopez-Vega tells Max that his mother's trial was rigged and, if Max comes to his hotel room the following night, he has something to give him.When Max goes to the hotel, he finds Lopez-Vega dead, shot through the head. The room has clearly been searched by the killer, but what was he looking for? By chance, Max finds a piece of paper hidden under Lopez-Vega's wig. Written on the paper is a sequence of eight numbers - 83521113. What do the numbers mean? Are they a code, or maybe the combination for a lock or a safe? Could they be the key to unlocking the mystery of his father's disappearance and getting his mother out of prison?

L J Adlington - The Glittering Eye - Hodder Children's Books 2 July ( Great local author need to get a copy of this book)

Shabti wakes in a barley field with nothing but a hoe in his hand and a head full of fragmented memories. A vicious master torments his days, working in the fields with no way of escape, until a hole suspended in mid-air, leads him to a room. Two shiny gold eyes glitter back at him. Questions. Who is he? And to where does this room lead?

Amy arrives in Egypt to join her archaeologist father on an excavation. All around her tombs are unearthed, opened, entered. Left to her own devices, Amy discovers a rock. But not just any rock. A great tawny cat stares back at her from its smooth surface, its shiny gold eyes glittering. Questions. Where did it come from? And what should she do now?

When past, present and future collide, it's clear that some things are best left buried ...

Emma Kennedy - Wilma Tenderfoot and the Case of the Frozen Hearts - Macmillan Children's Books - 3 Jul 2009

(One to look out for and a great book cover)

Somewhere between France and England there is an island that no one has ever bothered to discover. On it, lives Wilma Tenderfoot, a determined ten-year old girl who dreams of one day becoming a World-Famous Detective. So she can't help thinking it's destiny when, dispatched from the Institute for Woeful Children to her new home as a live-in skivvy, she discovers that the genius gentleman detective Theodore P. Goodman lives next door. A ten-year-old girl of great determination (and her pet beagle, Pickle) and a World-Famous Detective of great repute might not be the most obvious crime-solving duo - but Wilma Tenderfoot is not about to let that put either of them off! And it looks like their first dastardly case is about to begin ...Feisty but funny, cheeky but charming - Wilma Tenderfoot and her unique mystery-solving methodology is hard to resist!


Sophie Mckenzie - The Set Up (Medusa Project) - Simon & Schuster - 6 July (See review for this one)

Fourteen years ago, scientist William Fox implanted four babies with the Medusa gene - a gene for psychic abilities. But Fox died and the babies were hidden away for years. Now the children are teenagers - and unaware that their psychic powers are about to kick in. Cocky, charismatic Nico thinks his emerging telekinetic abilities will bring him money, power and the girl of his dreams. He's about to find out just how wrong he is...


Cassandra Clare - City of Glass (The Mortal Instrument) book three - Walker Books - 6 July ( already published in the U.S getting great reviews)

In search of a potion for her dying mother, Clary sneaks into the City of Glass and is immediately caught up in a life-and-death battle. As the children of the Moon (werewolves), Night (vampires), and Faerie gather for a war that will rend the heavens, Clary calls upon her untrained powers to control an angel who will save or destroy them all. Readers should be familiar with the first two installments in the Mortal Instruments series, but there is nevertheless plenty of romance, loss, honor, and betrayal to make the journey worthwhile. An experienced storyteller, Clare moves the plot quickly to a satisfying end.

Thanks very much for reading!