Jo Simmons (Author),‎ Nathan Reed (Illustrator) - I Swapped My Brother On The Internet - Book Review

'I can get a new brother? On the internet?' Jonny muttered. 'Oh sweet mangoes of heaven!' 

Everyone has dreamed of being able to get rid of their brother or sister at one time or another - but for Jonny, the dream is about to become a reality with SiblingSwap.com! What could be better than someone awesome to replace Ted, Jonny's obnoxious older brother. 

But finding the perfect brother isn't easy, as Jonny discovers when Sibling Swap sends him a line of increasingly bizarre replacements: first a merboy, then a brother raised by meerkats, and then the ghost of Henry the Eighth! What's coming next?! Suddenly old Ted isn't looking so bad. But can Jonny ever get him back?

This is another brilliant book published in January 2018 by Bloomsbury Kids. I Swapped My Brother On The Internet by Jo Simmons is just the type of book you need to kick off the New Year. Christmas is over, winter is kicking in and you've gone back to school - do we have to? These are the cries that can be heard. Yes, you do as your parents want some peace and quiet. Therefore, what you need is a cracking good read that will make you laugh your holey, odd socks off regardless of age or sense of humour. This is the book for you (and your holey socks!) Oh, I'm sorry, I hear you got new socks for Christmas, what was I thinking....? 

From the start of the book, you will start to see the input from Nathan Reed the illustrator. The drawings are fun and the typeface changes in places to keep the reader engaged in the story. The book cover is strong, bold, bright and eye-catching. With such a combination it should definitely pull the readers in for a closer look. Do book covers make a difference when choosing a book?

You will be taken on a bizarre journey where everything goes wrong in the most spectacular way. It's a comical story written really well and told through a wild imagination. The plot is brilliant and transports the reader on a carpet of laughter and humour that is both engaging and easy to read.

The book takes a close look at the relationship between brothers and what it's like to have a brother. The concept is a brilliant one which the middle-grade audience will relate to and love. The reality side of the book depicts a typical family and school life background. The subplot heads the reader into the unknown and will keep you guessing until the very end of the book. The characters grow with the story and play a fantastic part. At the end of the book, you may FIND a surprising twist that really makes for a satisfactory conclusion.

This is a brilliantly fun and bizarre read that will wash the New Year blues away with a squeak or two.  Would you dare swap your BROTHER?

Peter Jay Black - Urban Outlaws: Blackout - Book Review - (Bloomsbury)

Book Synopsis: Power is out. Security is down. Computers hacked. The world's most destructive computer virus is out of control and the pressure is on for the Urban Outlaws to destroy it. Jack knows that it's not just the world's secrets that could end up in the wrong hands. The secret location of their bunker is at the fingertips of many and the identities of the Urban Outlaws are up for grabs. But capturing the virus feels like an almost impossible mission until they meet Hector. The Urban Outlaws know they need his help, but they have made some dangerous enemies. They could take a risk and win - or lose everything ...

Book Review: We are zipping straight into the next mission BLACKOUT with the URBAN OUTLAWS: Jack, Charlie, Slink, Obi and Wren. If you have read the first book in this series, then you might remember these bunch of quick-thinking, super-skilled kids who live to right societies wrongs from their secret bunker deep beneath the city of London. This sequel retains all of the great magical ingredients from the first book: action, suspense, surprises, spills and cool gadgets as well as the occasional and exhilarating chase scene.

This story plays like a fast-paced movie vision. It will give you a thrilling and exhilarating read right down to the very last page. However, the plot in this book is more established; the previous story history is only briefly touched upon and, in my opinion, makes this encounter a cracking sequel. 

I really liked the introduction to the new character Hector, who is an extremely talented hacker. He bursts onto the scene with a great deal of cunning moves and gusto actions. An extra element of excitement is added to the plot, which may actually pose more questions and create an air of mystery. 

The story also has a side plot running through it, which is clever, well written and totally absorbing. This makes for good reading and gives another dimension to a kaleidoscope of an adventure that will keep the reader entertained. The other good aspect about this book is that it will appeal to both boys and girls, as the story is written on so many levels. The characters are all different with unique talents enabling children to be able to relate them. 

I'm really pleased to say that this is another sure fire winner. It will engage any reader who loves a great story that is told in a no nonsense way. One strong point to mention are the detailed descriptions, which are all wrapped up in the author's imagination and highlight what it is like to be a kid. The other good point is the humour - the laughs and the crazy friendships between all of the characters is a strength in this plot. It is something that many authors just don't get right, but Peter Jay Black does. 

The book has a modern day hi-tech feel about it, from the cool gadgets, computers and surveillance to capture everyones imagination. Everything is included to keep the reluctant reader hanging on for more and, for me, makes this series one of may favourites that is currently around. 

This book is published by Bloomsbury and is out on February 5th - look out for it, in all cool bookshops.

Guest Post: Peter Jay Black - Urban Outlaws - Published by Bloomsbury

Peter Jay Black....

I’ve spent my entire life daydreaming when I should’ve been doing more important things like, oh, I don’t know. . . learning to cook? Every meal I try to prepare gets exterminated in some glorious fashion or another. I even managed to set fire to an oven grill once, just because I didn’t realise the slab of fish had a foam/plastic thing under it. Apparently, you’re supposed to peel that off. Who knew?

So, as you can probably tell, I get distracted, A LOT. I’m often thinking and daydreaming about all sorts of crazy things.

I’ve dreamt about being able to fly – the places I’d visit, the way I’d feel swooping between buildings and over landscapes.

I’ve imagined being a ninja, sneaking up on nasty people and knocking them out with a swift chop to the neck.

I’ve also imagined inventing a time machine and what I’d do with it. In fact, if I did have a time machine, I think I’d probably travel back to the 21^st of October, 1983 (I was seven). I’d hang around outside my old house until six o’clock in the evening and then I’d storm into the dining room and slap the fork out of my seven-year-old self’s hand, just before I had taken the first bite of the dumplings on my plate. You see, I didn’t know it at the time, but my mum had made those dumplings out of a packet that had been two years out of date. TWO YEARS. I was so sick that it took another twenty years before I could look at dumplings without turning pale.

Anyway, you get my point - I’m a daydreamer. Always have been. Always will be. And, the way that I’ve used that is to write it down. To create secret bunkers, gadgets, to live in a world that’s a lot more fun than this one.

In my late twenties, I decided I wanted to be a writer. Now, because of all the daydreaming, I hadn’t done too well in school, and must have been asleep during English lessons. All of them. So, I taught myself basic grammar, worked on the craft, and eight years later I have a five book deal. Easy, right?

I wish it was.

After a lot of hard work, thousands of hours exploring our wonderful language, millions of muttered swear words, and billions of nuked brain cells later, I had a finished novel. I, of course, thought it was a masterpiece. I sent it to an editor, got torn to shreds, learnt from my mistakes, moved on. . .

Next was book number two. I wrote, rewrote, edited, rewrote again. . . You get my point? Finally ready, I slung the novel out to a few agents and one in particular was VERY keen. She suggested revisions, I worked hard and in two weeks I sent it back with high hopes.

I never heard from her again.

Man, the disappointment.

But, I didn’t give up.

That’s the theme here: Never give up. A cliché, yes. I don’t care – it’s true.

After that, I remember talking to a friend of mine and saying, ‘I want to write about five kids, who are independent, outsmart adults and have a lot of fun. . .’ Basically, something to fight back with. Something to pour every ounce of what I’d learnt into. Something that I hoped I could share with as many people as possible.

"And so, the Urban Outlaws were born: Five cool, clever kids, who are trying to do what they think is right."

Thankyou very much Peter for such a great insight into writing Urban Outlaws. This book is being published by Bloomsbury Children's on the 13th March 2014 - so make sure that you all grab a copy.

Twitter: @PeterJayBlack

Book Review: Peter Jay Black - Urban Outlaws - Published by Bloomsbury

Book Synopsis: In a bunker hidden deep beneath London live five extraordinary kids: meet world-famous hacker Jack, gadget geek Charlie, free runner Slink, comms chief Obi and decoy diva Wren. They're not just friends; they're URBAN OUTLAWS. They outsmart London's crime gangs and hand out their dirty money through Random Acts of Kindness (R.A.K.s).

Their latest mission - hacking the bank account of criminal mastermind Del Sarto - has landed them in serious trouble. Del Sarto is going head-to-head with MI5 for control of Proteus, an advanced quantum computer able to crack any code and steal top-secret documents in nanoseconds. It's down to the URBAN OUTLAWS to use their guile, guts and skill to destroy Proteus, avert world domination . . . and stay alive.

Book Review: I was really happy to receive this book out of the blue. The synopsis sounded too exciting to wait, so I got stuck into reading it straight away. I absolutely loved every minute of this book - it was a top class journey into an amazingly fresh, fantasy world. Daydreaming at its very best in my opinion. It's definitely a book that small boys will love and where 'bigger' boys will find themselves being transported back to their childhood.  

This book gives an insight into the cool, fresh world of gadgets and computers. Following the hacking and the hi-tech surveillance world, the geek in me was definitely unleashed within this book. I particularly loved the deployment of the spring-heeled, free-running shoes in this adventure. This was a fantastically crazy but very inventive element of the story. I also enjoyed the idea and development of the Random Acts of Kindness which can be found within the book. These are very thought provoking as they strike elements of the modern day Robin Hood theme into the heart of the story.

The story features five savvy children, each with their own special skills, who are very likeable. They take on the government, as well as some unsavoury characters, in order to act on what they think and believe is right. This belief leads to a high-octane adventure which is explosive to read. 

The author has written a great debut book encompassing a child's dream and the author's IT experience to create a blockbuster read. I would highly recommend this book for all readers. However this could really capture the imagination of any reluctant reader - they would never get bored whilst reading this adventure and would be hooked until the very end. With at least four more books to be published, we are in for a real treat.....

Published by Bloomsbury 6th March 2014

Similar authors; Eoin Colfer, Andrew Lane, Robert Muchamore, Anthony Horowitz.

Book Review: Oisin McGann - Rat Runners

After reading and enjoying other Oisin McGann books previously, I always knew that he was capable of writing such an epic adventure in his career. This new book, to me, has really delivered an all time great fantasy that even Eoin Colfer would be proud of writing. In fact four of the main characters each have Artemis traits about them that you will probably recognise - they certainly work well within the plot. Each has been brought together based on different personalities, goals and ways of working that impact on the adventure. 

Nimmo, Scope, Mankin and FX are all criminal-minded. They work in the blindspots of the city's shady underworld. However, they are soon caught up in a Hi-tech maze of deception, treachery and murder. If they were cats then their nine lives would be an advantage, but being Rat Runners they only have the one. Therefore the question is . . . will they need it? 

They have one simple task to complete which is to steal a mysterious box from a daughter of a dead scientist. This may sound simple, but first they have to invade the army of the "WatchWorld". These are masked, uniformed figures who run the city. They watch you and listen to you from every street corner using their well-equipped cameras, X-ray scanners, microphones and other hi-tech gadgets that we can only dream about. These terrifying SafeGuards can see through walls, hear your heartbeat, even analyse the smell of your sweat and that's just for starters. 

The main course involves the very controlling and evil BOSS guy, Move-Easy, who lives his life of crime hidden underground. With his army of controlled thugs, he deploys them to cause havoc. Then there's pudding - two rival gangs who all want a slice of the cherry pie. This brings an added dimension and a complex driven plot that will have you hooked to the last page. It is certainly a fast-paced, action-packed ride which is full of adrenaline. The imaginative ideas are, at times, slightly over complicated but they are used to good effect and definitely keep you on your paws!  

The attention to detail is phenomenal -  everything has been thoroughly researched from the gadgets, the computer hacking, the undercover surveillance and genetics. All make the reading both fascinating and inspiring. Nevertheless, he has been able to balance this technological combination to create an amazing interactive thriller which is a winner.  This is the best fantasy based book that I have read this year; I loved reading every single page. What can we expect next from Oisin?

Published by  Corgi Childrens (7 Mar 2013)