Touch #2

TOUCH:
Deadly Little Lies by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Untouchable!

Ben has been out of Canelia's life for the past few months but he has never been far from her thoughts. However, along with her broken heart Camilia has been dealing with some very strange occurrences. This has led Camelia to wonder if it is at all possible that Ben's gift of psychometry could of been somehow transferred to herself, the alternative being that she going crazy. But at this point she is not sure which is worse.

Finally Ben has returned and Camelia could not be more happier, even if others are less then pleased to see him. But things between Ben and Camelia do not go smoothly and while Ben is doing his best to keep his distance from Camelia, someone else is doing there best to get her attention. The notes have started again, along with the phone calls. Camelia is assured that Matt is far away and to her dismay it is looking more and more likely that Ben is responsible.

Deadly Little Lies is a pacey mystery that mixes the paranormal with romance and dangerous stalkers. Camelia's story of broken hearts, new romances, creepy death threats and voices that exist only in her head, is bisected with the diary entries of an aunt who all believe crazy but who has more in common with Camelia than anyone would believe. This second Touch story is just as thrilling as the first and equally as impossible to put down.

Laurie Faria Stolarz Webpage

On sale: 06 November 2009
Price (US): $15.99
ISBN: 9781423111993
Recommended age: 12+
In a word: Psychometry
Re-read it: probably
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: three out of five
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Sookie Stackhouse #11

SOOKIE STACKHOUSE:
Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris

If You Had Just One Wish!

Sookie is a girl who over a short period of time has managed to collect many enemies, but while some will go all out to get her or die trying, others are already dead. Living in this state of constant danger, knowing that at any moment someone could strike her down, is taking its toll and as Sookie's enemies move against her and those she loves, Sookie and the gang decide it time to take matters into their own hands.

As a telepath Sookie is used to keeping secrets, many of them not even her own; however she is not so used to having secrets kept from her. Now it seems that all those closest to her, all those whose thoughts she can't hear, are keeping things from her. But meanwhile Sookie is distracted with the discovery of the truth of her past, her realization of her true feelings for her vampire husband and her admitting to herself what she truly wants from her life.

Dead Reckoning is less the murder mystery that we have come to expect from this series and more a murder plot, with the one exception of a spur of the moment killing. There is plenty to sink your teeth into in this book, killers on the loose, vampire politics, treasures revealed, fairy plots and a baby showing to throw. But underneath it all is the continuing story of Sookie that is just as amazing, horrible and addictive as ever. Also look out for an appearance from Charlaine's other heroine Lily Bard.

Charlaine Harris Webpage
Charlaine Harris @ Hachette

Sookie Stackhouse

On sale: 01 May 2011
Price (AU): $29.99
ISBN: 9780575096530
Recommended age: 18+
In a word: Secrets
Re-read it: probably
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: four out of five
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Books of Faerie #2

BOOKS OF FAERIE:
Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater

'A Gathering Of Faerie'

It was a song of the dead and for the dead; a lament played over and over again calling to the damned. While on the breeze a slow ballad played of dancing, belonging and the end of a life. This ballad was hers, but to him she gave the sounds of golden music to fill his dreams and the promise of greatness whispered in his ears. It was intoxicating the way the notes filled him yet still left him unfulfilled with a longing that tormented him.

For James music is his life, but for Nuala music is life. A leanan sidhe is a muse living on the years of those she inspires and no one has ever said no to a muse. James however is determined to have nothing to do with the leanan sidhe haunting him, despite the wanting and the anguish it is causing him. But it is not possible to accept a deal with a faerie without selling a piece of yourself.

Ballad is a tale of death shaped by moments of tenderness, enchantment and song, a sweet yet humorous poetic romance that is sentimental and at the same time perilous. This urban story of music, magic and mayhem is threaded through with the traditionalism and timelessness of faeries creating a world that is wondrous, dark and truly a delight to read. A stunning squeal to the beautiful Lament.

Maggie Stiefvater Webpage

Maggie Stiefvater @ Scholastic
Books Of Faerie

On sale: 01 May 2011
Price (AU): $19.99
ISBN: 9781407121123
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Leanan Sidhe
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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the dead I know

the dead I know by Scot Gardner

'Another One Bites The Dust'

Aaron Rowe has just started his first day at his new job as a funeral director. He is grateful for the job in more ways then one, primarily because it gets him out of going to school but the bonus is he'll get payed. There are some obvious draw backs to the position, though it is not the dead bodies as one would expect, it is the living that are left behind and their grief that has stirred something in Aaron.

It has been years since Aaron has had trouble sleeping, but now the nightmares have returned. But just as bad as the dreams is the sleepwalking. So now it's not only the dark disturbing images that fill his sleeping mind that frighten him, it's the fear that he could wake anywhere, at the beach, outside a cafe, at the lookout. But scarier is the possibilities of what Aaron has done in his sleeping state.

the dead I know is about a tough yet vulnerable boy who is struggling with his hidden past and his current circumstances. Although a book about death the meaning behind its pages is life. A story that speaks to all those who have been left behind to pick up the pieces in the wake of a death of a loved one. Aaron's tale is an urban mystery that is shaded in tragedy, death, dreams and crustless sandwiches.

Scot Gardner Webpage

Scot Gardner @ Allen & Unwin

On sale: 01 May 2011
Price (AU): $19.99
ISBN: 9781742373843
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Death
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: four out of five
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The Birthmarked Trilogy #1

THE BIRTHMARKED TRILOGY:
Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien

'Life First'

At only sixteen Gaia is following in her mothers footsteps as a midwife. There are parts of her job that are secret, such as the freckles and the tea, then there are parts of the job that are necessary, such as the advanced babies that are handed over to the Enclave to which all serve. Gaia has always blindly followed the rules of her society, never once questioning her part. That is until the night she delivers her first baby unassisted, the same night her parents are taken from her.

Inside the walls of the Enclave people live in luxury, a stark contrast to those living outside like Gaia. Only those born within the walls, or those advanced, are permitted among the privileged and for an outsider to enter is suicide. Gaia however is determined to enter the walls to save her parents, but what she finds under the surface of this idealistic society is dark and dangerous and try as she might she cannot escape without leaving someone she loves behind.

Birthmarked is a terrifying look into a future where the individual is insignificant when compared to the needs of society, where even babies are traded for resources and where among the elite love is only allowed to those genetically compatible. An outsider, a girl marked as undesirable, will create chaos in a dystopian society, waking people from their complacencies and getting them thinking about just what it means to serve a 'greater good'. Very excited to discover this is just the first in a series, with a lot more adventure to come.

Caragh O'Brien Webpage

Caragh O'Brien @ Simon & Schuster

On sale: 01 May 2011
Price (AU): $16.99
ISBN: 9780857071392
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Gaia
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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Entangled

Entangled by Cat Clarke

He'd Be A Great Boyfriend, If Not For The Kidnapping!

Grace is impulsive, reckless, selfish and a flirt. Just your typical seventeen year old with a fiery temper and hair to match. She doesn't believe in turning down a drink or a kiss from a boy if he's not half bad looking, actually there isn't much she wont say no to, except her mum of course. But while on the outside Grace is doing her best to hide the hurt, on the inside she is desperately trying to hold on to the only two people who mean anything to her.

When Grace left home for the park with a knife in her bag and bottle under her arm she wasn't expecting to ever return, but nor was she expecting to wake, especially not to a white room with white furniture and dressed in a strange white surgical gown. With an abundant of pens and paper available Grace finds little else to do with her days then write. As her story flows the reason behind her kidnapping becomes clear, but when it comes to her life, can she find anything that's worth living for?

Entangled is a unique and intriguing story of a girl struggling with the tangled mess her life has become. A raw yet vibrant story that pulls you in, all the time wondering how a girl could come to be trapped in a white room and how it will ever be possible for her to ever escape. Through the complexities of life, where friendships are destroyed by secrets and relationships are broken by betrayal, the lies holding her life together begin to unravel leaving behind a girl with nowhere left to hide from the truth or from herself.

Cat Clarke Webpage

Cat Clarke @ Pan Macmillan

On sale: 01 March 2011
Price (AU): $16.99
ISBN: 9781849163941
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Grace
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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