Weekly Highlights: the 'YALC Haul' edition

Weekly Highlights is a feature borrowed from Faye of A Daydreamer's Thoughts, where I get to highlight my posts of the week, show you my new books and talk about bookish things!

Yep, as promised, here are all the books I've aquired at and since YALC. Surprisingly, I only bought 5 and 3 of those was a trilogy, which basically counts as one! At Comic Con, I also bought a Toothless plushie, 3 Pop Vinyl's, a time turner necklace and a Deadpool t-shirt. So yeah, quite a bit of shopping! 

On The Blog

Review of Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers (4 stars)

Review of Nobody's Girl by Sarra Manning (5 stars)

Blog Tour: Killer Game's Playlist by Kirsty McKay

Review of Hollow Pike by James Dawson (4 stars)

Currently Reading

I've been making my way slowly through The Diviners and finished it yesterday morning - it was amazing! I'm now on Am I Normal Yet?, details below. I am completely in love with Bourne's writing so I have high hopes for her latest!

On My Bookshelf

Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne
All Evie wants is to be normal. She’s almost off her meds and at a new college where no one knows her as the girl-who-went-crazy. She’s even going to parties and making friends. There’s only one thing left to tick off her list…

But relationships are messy – especially relationships with teenage guys. They can make any girl feel like they’re going mad. And if Evie can’t even tell her new friends Amber and Lottie the truth about herself, how will she cope when she falls in love?

I couldn't not pick this up at Waterstone's stall! I am beyond excited for what Bourne has in store next!

The Baby by Lisa Drakeford
When Olivia opens the bathroom door, the last thing she expects to see is her best friend Nicola giving birth on the floor – and to say Nicola is surprised is an understatement. She’s not ready to be a mum, and she needs Olivia’s help. But Olivia has her own problems – specifically her bullying boyfriend, Jonty, and keeping an eye on younger sister Alice. And then there’s Nicola’s friend Ben, who’s struggling with secrets of his own …

A pick-me-up sort of read, I bought this from Chicken House's booth based on Sophie's recommendation. Already read it, it was awkward and heart warming and lovely. Also, great to meet Jazz in person, Chicken House's publicity assistant! 

The Night Itself by Zoe Marriott
When fifteen year old Mio Yamato furtively sneaks the katana - an ancestral Japanese sword - out of its hiding place in her parent's attic to help liven up her Christmas party costume, she has no idea of the darkness she is about to unleash on modern day London, or the family secrets that she is going to uncover.

The paralysing paranoia that descends on her before she gets to her friend's party is her first clue. The vivid and terrifying visions that nearly get her killed are a pretty good warning too.

The giant nine-tailed cat demon that comes after the sword and tries to rip her throat out? Overkill.

Seconds away from becoming kitty-food, Mio is saved by Shinobu, a mysterious warrior boy. But it's already too late. Mio has ruptured the veil between the mortal realm and the Underworld, and now the gods and monsters of ancient Japan stalk the streets of London, searching for her and the sword. 

With the help of her best friend Jack, a fox spirit named Hikaru - and the devoted protection of the betwitchingly familiar Shinobu - Mio attempts to discover the true nature of the sword and its connection to the Yamato family. Because if she doesn't learn how to control the katana's incredible powers, she's in danger of being overwhelmed by them. And if she can't keep the sword safe from the terrible creatures who want it for their own, she'll lose not only her own life... but the love of a lifetime.

I've been eyeing this series up for literally years and when the Walker booth had the entire trilogy, I didn't even hesitate!

Fans of the Impossible Life by Kate Scelsa

Mira is starting over at Saint Francis Prep. She promised her parents she would at least try to pretend that she could act like a functioning human this time, not a girl who can’t get out of bed for days on end, who only feels awake when she’s with Sebby.

Jeremy is the painfully shy art nerd at Saint Francis who’s been in self-imposed isolation after an incident that ruined his last year of school. When he sees Sebby for the first time across the school lawn, it’s as if he’s been expecting this blond, lanky boy with mischief glinting in his eye.

Sebby, Mira’s gay best friend, is a boy who seems to carry sunlight around with him. Even as life in his foster home starts to take its toll, Sebby and Mira together craft a world of magic rituals and impromptu road trips, designed to fix the broken parts of their lives.

As Jeremy finds himself drawn into Sebby and Mira’s world, he begins to understand the secrets that they hide in order to protect themselves, to keep each other safe from those who don’t understand their quest to live for the impossible.

This was something of a fluke find on Netgalley. I saw a few people raving about it on Goodreads and Twitter so I've downloaded it. Compared to Looking For Alaska and I'll Give You The Sun, I'm really looking forward to this! Thank you Macmillan and Netgalley!

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.

I was offered this for review and after a quick look around online, I knew I couldn't turn it down. Told through documents, emails and schematics, this sounds just amazing! Thank you OneWorld!