Recent Reads: The 21st and 22nd of 2018.

I have been totally on the YA hype recently – what else is new?! – and read 2 particularly excellent novels.

(btw, I’ve realised that my numbering Recent Reads is absolutely off...oops. Let’s carry on as if it’s correct, though. Maths isn’t my strong point. I read novels behind my textbooks and doodled in my homework diary)

My most recent reads were a proof (for the official publication date, see below) and an advance final copy from a few months back. Having been sent these books in no way affects my reviews, etc., etc. 

'Floored', a collaborative novel by Sara Barnard, Holly Bourne, Tanya Byrne, Non Pratt, Mel Salisbury, Lisa Williamson and Eleanor Wood.

When they got in the lift, they were strangers: Sasha, who is desperately trying to deliver a parcel; Hugo, who knows he's the best-looking guy in the lift and is eyeing up Velvet, who knows what that look means when you hear her name and it doesn't match the way she looks, or the way she talks; Dawson, who was on TV, but isn't as good-looking as he was a few years ago and is desperately hoping no one recognizes him; Kaitlyn, who's losing her sight but won't admit it, and who used to have a poster of Dawson on her bedroom wall, and Joe, who shouldn't be here at all, but who wants to be here the most.

And one more person, who will bring them together again on the same day every year.

(via goodreads.com)

I knew I'd love this book. I mean, it has some of my absolute favourite UKYA authors contributing to it! How could I not!? Also it really was like a YA 'One Day' (one of my favourite adult fictions, in case you didn't know). 

So, the book is split into these 6 different characters' stories that intertwine so cleverly; there's also a narrator spelling it out and summing it all up for us at regular intervals. You'd think it would be confusing, and I won't lie, I genuinely did worry about losing track of each voice when I started reading. But really and truly the authors were all so different and distinct in their writing that after the first few chapters, I was totally fine and totally loving it. I cared about each character, and wanted the best for them; I really hoped they'd all reach the end of the story as best friends and their best selves. 

And here's a shocker...I think my favourite character may have been Hugo!? I KNOW!! 

Right, so we don't know (yet) which author wrote which character. I found this frustrating beyond belief, and really wondered why the publisher made this decision; because, while it's brilliant for the super fans and book bloggers, won't it confuse the readers who maybe don't know each author that well individually? I'm really curious to see how they go about revealing everything. I've made my guesses! 

Am I allowed to guess, now I’m halfway through?
👋🏼
Okay, I think Velvet = @NonPratt
Dawson = @saramegan
Kaitlyn = @holly_bourneYA
Hugo = @lisa_letters
Sasha = @tanyabyrne
Joe = @eleanor_wood
And the recap voice is @MESalisbury (because she’s such a wicked puppet master)
?

— Grace Latter (@_gracelatter) June 8, 2018

Floored by Sara  Barnard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I first started this book (after getting the proof in the post and squealing SO LOUDLY) I worried I'd have trouble keeping up with 6 characters, and 6 different writing styles, but it really was *so* easy and *so* readable. I came to love every one of the Lift Six, and care about their stories.

View all my reviews

Oh, you should probably keep an eye out for an upcoming creative collab post on here, to celebrate this fabulous book even more...! 

'The Truth About Alice', by Jennifer Mathieu. 

Rumour has it that Alice Franklin is a slut. It's written all over the bathroom stall at Healy High for everyone to see. And after star quarterback Brandon Fitzsimmons dies in a car accident, the rumours start to spiral out of control.

(via goodreads.com)

I very recently read 'Moxie' by this fabulous author, so diving into her second novel was a nice feeling; a familiar writing style, strong messages brilliantly woven into the plot, perfectly 3D characters. 

This story was written so cleverly, and unfortunately all too realistically. Everything that 'happened' was told by the outside observers; the friend of the football player, the popular girl at the party, the boy next door and the ex-best friend. That's right, the brilliant thing about this story is Alice doesn't tell it. You make your own mind up about her as best you can while the lies distort your view and the truths come out painfully slowly...quite like real life, no? 

Grab this book, and its predecessor, on A Great Read now! 

(aff links)

The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was brilliantly written in that the supposed main character - the one we're all supposed to be speculating about - didn't narrate. Instead, everyone around her told her story and embellished as they pleased. Very different, and I loved it.


View all my reviews

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