Faery Tales & Nightmares

Faery Tales & Nightmares by Melissa Marr

Wicked Faery Tales And Lovely Nightmares!

Between these pages lurk beings of harsh beauty and great terror. While one girl is born with Winter within her, another girl will dream the Summer into being. When one girl finds a new life in death another, girl will find a new identity in a woodland creature. And as one girl finds love can be both a blessing and a curse, another girl will learn that love can wait.

Entering a realm that has the potential to be a great nightmare or a fearful faery tale, there may be some familiar faces to guide you on your way. As some beings struggle to break the habits of a lifetime, they may instead find a stolen moment with the one they love. A struggling artist will find new purpose in life, a boy will find a new family and acceptance, and a couple will risk all for a chance at love.

Faery Tales & Nightmares are a mixture of short stories that are romantic, bloody and dreamy in their element. While some stories within are timeless in their faery tale quality, others stories are short tales that are apart of a wider series of books from the authors Wicked Lovely series. Despite having never read any of the Wicked Lovely books, these short stories are an enjoyably unique collection of love, magic and the darkness within.

Melissa Marr Webpage
Melissa Marr @ Harper Collins

On sale: 01 February 2012

Price (AU): $19.99
ISBN: 9780007456871
Recommended age: 13+
In a word: Faery Tales
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: four out of five
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Books of Faerie #1.2

BOOKS OF FAERIE:
The Hounds Of Ulster by Maggie Stiefvater

Always Wanting More!

It used to be enough for him, they used to be enough. Together they were punk Irish gods. Together their music was amazing. It was the one thing that kept them close, but now it seemed it was the one thing pulling them apart, that, and the girl. But it was no ordinary girl coming between them, she was one of them. But with the promise of something more then what he has, more then he could achieve on his own, a sacrifice must be made in return.

The Hounds Of Ulster tells the tale of music, friendship and the girl that came between them. But it is also the story of heartbreak and loss, for it seems that all those who achieve greatness always pass before their time. However it is those left behind who suffer all the more for their loss. A short but poignant prequel story to Balled about a friend, gone but not forgotten.

Maggie Stiefvater Webpage

Maggie Stiefvater @ Scholastic

On sale: n/a
Price (AU): free from authors webpage
ISBN: n/a
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Loss
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: four out of five
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Books of Faerie #1.1

BOOKS OF FAERIE:
Yes Or No by Maggie Stiefvater

On Word Can Change Your Life!

There was so much meaning in words. Words to him we're like a promise, something to stand by and not to be taken lightly. Ordinarily he was nothing, nobody, but once a month when he did his readings he was transformed by his words in someone. Once a month he mattered. But he wanted more then that once a month could offer him, but to get it would cost him everything.

Yes Or No could change his life, would change his life. After meeting a girl who promises Steven the world and a chance to be a better poet, Steven is infatuated with being more, with having his words reach more people. But in order to have that he must answer one question. Is he willing to give up everything to get ? A short but intriguing prequel story to Ballad about a boy and his muse.

Maggie Stiefvater Webpage

Maggie Stiefvater @ Scholastic

On sale: n/a
Price (AU): free from authors webpage
ISBN: n/a
Recommended age: 14+
In a word: Deals
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: four out of five
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Swift #0.5

SWIFT:
Renegade by R J Anderson

Martin's Story!

On the run from the Empress, he never guessed the lengths she would go to in order to bring him back, or if not bring him back, end him. He never realised just how far he would push himself to escape. But pushed too far, Martin almost completes the Empresses wishes for himself. Falling out of the sky, one minute a bird, the next a boy, Martin never hoped to survive. But then a girl appeared.

Renegade is the story of Martin's escape from the Empress and his meeting with a human girl who not only saves his life, but would go on to play a vital role in Ivy's story Swift. With insights into his past and his relationship with the woman he would go on to kill, Renegade is one short story that's long in history, filling in events that have taken place between the old faery series ending with Arrow and the new piskey series starting with Swift.

R J Anderson Webpage

R J Anderson @ Hachette Children's

On sale: 01 May 2012
Price (AU): free with Swift
ISBN: 9781408312636
Recommended age: 10+
In a word: Martin
Re-read it: possibly
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: four out of five
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Swift #1

SWIFT:
Swift by R J Anderson

A Piskey Like No Other!

There were only a couple of times a year when the piskeys ventures out of the Delve and into the world above, only a couple of times of year when it was made safe for piskeys to leave their underground home. With all the spells and wards in place no one expected danger to find them, but when Ivy's mother disappears there can be only one explanation, the spriggans have caught her.

Five years later and the impossible happens, the spriggans have returned. But as only Ivy alone has seen the creature no one believes her, that is until piskeys start disappearing from the Delve and the creature is caught. But what this spriggan has to say will have Ivy question all that she knows and lead her to betray her kind in search of the truth.

With nothing left to lose Ivy takes the word of a stranger, worse still, the word of a spriggan, over her own piskeys as one choice leads into another and eventually she finds that the truth is not as simple as she believed. With no one to trust and danger closing in around her and those she cares for, time is running out for Ivy and her fellow piskeys.

Swift introduces a new series of magical beings troubled by the past, trapped by their environment and unable to move on from their current situation. Alongside this clan of piskeys and knockers are some familiar faeries from the previous Faery Rebels series, and with this new tale comes some new and exciting adventures. As an added bonus this book includes the free short story Renegade.

R J Anderson Webpage

R J Anderson @ Hachette Children's

On sale: 01 May 2012
Price (AU): $16.99
ISBN: 9781408312636
Recommended age: 10+
In a word: Piskeys
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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Green Monkey Dreams

Green Monkey Dreams by Isobelle Carmody

 

"So, You Seek The Key To The Dream Of Life"

  

The High Path is a road of sorrow. With all good intentions we are led on a path of sacrifice, hardship and loss only to find that in the end we are left alone in the world, separated from those we love through the choices we have made, and left to face the consequences of an unknown future alone. But even when all is lost the will to go on still remains.

The Way Of The Beast speaks to the darker side of our human natures. Beneath the smiles and kind gestures lurks a darkness that is capable of causing great pain to those we care for through broken promises, crushed dreams and shattered hearts. At times there are no answers, no prays heard, only the darkness and the lost innocence of youth.

The Worldroad teaches life lessons, and while some are able to inspire and bring hope, others maybe learned all too late. It is our choices in life that make us who we are, lead us where we are going and teach us what we need to know. There are no right or wrong paths, only choices that must be made.

Green Monkey Dreams is a beautiful collection of short tales that are full of hope, tragedy and bittersweet moments that haunt you long after their reading. A skilfully written collection of magical tales of the fanciful, the quirky and the everyday. Each story is a doorway to another land, another time or anther reality where everything is at once both new and familiar in just the same way that these stories are at once both unique and timeless.

Isobelle Carmody Webpage

Isobelle Carmody @ Allen & Unwin

On sale: 01 June 2012
Price (AU): $19.99
ISBN: 9781742379470
Recommended age: 15+
In a word: Fantastic
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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The Fairy Ring

The Fairy Ring by Mary Losure

"Elsie and Frances Fool The World"

It all began with Frances, a young girl who, being new to England, one day discovered fairies at the bottom of the garden. Unfortunately it seemed Frances was the only one to see these fairies and so without proof no one believed her, that is apart from her cousin Elsie of course. But that didn't stop the teasing that followed.

Elsie, being of kind heart and somewhat mischief nature, decided to put a stop to the teasing of her cousin Frances by providing proof of the existence of fairies. Something that was easier said then done, however with a strong will, an artistic flair and a borrowed camera she had managed to do just that.

The Fairy Ring is a true story told of how two girls, innocently enough, fooled the world and those with the passion enough to believe. As spiritualism was becoming increasingly popular at the time, fairies and nature spirits were a popular talking point, and with so little known about the subject proof of the existence of such beings were highly sought after. But little did Frances or Elsie realise just how seriously their proof would be taken.

Mary Losure Webpage
Mary Losure @ Walker Books

On sale: 01 July 2012
Price (US): $24.95
ISBN: 9780763656706
Recommended age: 12+
In a word: Fairies
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: four out of five
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The Wombles

The Wombles by Elisabeth Beresford

Meet The Wombles Of Wimbledon!

Living under Wimbledon common and keeping the greens clean and tidy are a family of Wombles. For years it has been their duty to collect, clear and recycle any and all manner of things we messy humans leave behind. Form scarves and umbrellas to buses and cement trucks, the Wombles have managed to reuse and borrow all that they need. But it's not just at Wimbledon where Wombles can be found.

The Wombles introduces these much loved creatures to a new generation of young readers. With their mini adventures, various foods and capacity for finding the lost and discarded, these delightful Wombles will have you laughing along with them in their various antics. A much loved story that children of all ages will adore.

Elisabeth Beresford @ Bloomsbury Australia
The Wombles

On sale: 11 December 2010
Price (AU): $13.99
ISBN: 9781408808375
Recommended age: 4+
In a word: Womble
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: four out of five
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Sookie Stackhouse #12

SOOKIE STACKHOUSE:
Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris

What I Did, Or Didn't Do, For Love!

Having watched friends and loved ones marry, have children, and lead reasonably normal lives, at least for the most part, Sookie has often wondered what it would be like to have those things for herself. Yes, technically she is married to Eric, but a marriage to a vampire is not exactly legal, nor ideal when you only get to see your husband for a few hours a couple of nights a week. Not too mention the added stress of a vampire Queen out to claim your husband for her own.

But, as always, Sookie has other matters to tend to. Eric has been framed for a murder she is not entirely sure he is innocent off, having caught him feeding from the victim only minutes before her murdered body was found. The fae left behind on this side are becoming increasingly restless and dangerous, not just to each other but the wider population. There are also complications with the weres, or at least one were in particular who would like to see the end of Sookie. Then there is the cluviel dor.

Deadlocked sees Sookie trapped between a rock and a hard place. While it is true the fae cannot lie that does not mean they cannot deceive and being family the betrayal will cut deep. Meanwhile her relationship with Eric is strained at best and while both are looking to the other for an act that will prove their love, neither are willing to act themselves. However the sacrifice Sookie makes for love is not the one anyone would have expected and despite how much she cares, in the end love will break her heart.

Charlaine Harris Webpage
Charlaine Harris @ Hachette

Sookie Stackhouse

On sale: 01 May 2012
Price (AU): $29.99
ISBN: 9780575096585
Recommended age: 18+
In a word: Cluviel Dor
Re-read it: probably
Recommend: to those reading the series
Star rating: four out of five
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Shyness #2

SHYNESS:
Queen Of The Night by Leanne Hall

A Night Of Dreams!

The endless night that once brought Wildgirl and Wolfboy together is now the one thing holding them apart. The suburb of Shyness is changing, no longer filled with its dark creatures and strange happenings; it is now a place for the lost and the dreamers. But it is not just Shyness that has changed. Wildgirl has lost her spirit, her fearlessness that once brought her to Shyness and to Wolfboy. But Wolfboy too is changing, losing his howl and his identity along with it.

After six months Nia has given up on returning to Shyness, to Wolfboy and to her identity as Wildgirl. Jethroh too is moving away from his Wolfboy identity, spending more and more of his time out of Shyness and the dark endless night. But neither can run from the darkness of Shyness, nor the darkness within. For the darkness hides dreams and in dreams nightmare become more real then life, and in a place like Shyness where the night is endless who can tell the difference between a dream and what is real.

The Queen Of The Night takes you back to a place were fantasy and reality merge. In a dreamy landscape of endless night there are those that will sleep their lives away and others who use the dark for their own ends. As Wolfboy and Wildgirl once again reunite under the darkness of a Shyness endless night they are once again drawn into the strange and the extraordinary and drawn together by the light of each others warmth. And just as light is returning to their lives, Shyness is beginning to see an end to a very long night.

Leanne Hall Webpage

Leanne Hall @ Text Publishing

On sale: 27 February 2012
Price (AU): $19.95
ISBN: 9781921758645
Recommended age: 13+
In a word: Shyness
Re-read it: yes
Recommend: yes
Star rating: five out of five
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