Michelle

I love the way the bad stuff builds up nicely to 'amazing'!

I'm really looking forward to your thoughts on Hex.

Kit has been projecting into other species for seven years. Longer than anyone else at ShenCorp. Longer than any of the scientists thought possible. But lately she has the feeling that when she jumps she isn't alone… I have to admit, I first noticed this because of the cover, and then the intriguing blurb. Although I'm not doing much reviewing at the moment, when the publisher noticed me tweeting about it, and offered me a copy, I couldn't resist. Set in the near future, Kit is an phenomenaut, which means she is able, with the aid of technology, to project her consciousness into the body of a lab grown animal. In this state, she is able to fully experience how it feels to become that animal, including it's thoughts and instincts, as well as the physical sensations. I admit, for some, this concept may not work.. I did find myself wanting to know more about the process itself, the science behind it etc, and that is never really explained in detail. However, once the story began to take hold, I could forgive it for that, and enjoyed just experiencing the story telling. Kit's experiences of projection are the heart of this book, and the descriptions of living as another animal were quite stunning, and it's something I could have read a lot more of. I also liked the insights into Kit's character - the way she felt attached to the animals, but also how she questioned her own humanity the longer she spent as part of them. There's also a mystery and thriller aspect to the story, as Kit starts to question those around her, and her own safety. I'm not going to go into any details here, but I was glad how one aspect was resolved. From loving the cover, I found myself falling for the concept, the story, and most of the characters. So much so, I've ordered a signed copy to sit on my shelf. I'm preparing myself for the fact that not everyone will feel that same, but for me, it's a strong contender for my book of the year.

We seem to have similar feelings over this one Noll.. good concept, maybe not presented in the best way, but an intriguing ending which means needing to read the next book!

I think when I looked it up that it said that Windows 10 had been added to the list of updates, so it would therefore install automatically. I always have mine set to download but ask before installing, so I can see what's going on. I have a few laptops floating around at home, and I've upgraded 2 of them from 8 to 10, with only minor problems. I'd be very cautious going from 7 to 10 though, which is what my mum would do.

That's a good idea to get from the library. If it helps, I soon gave up on World War Z, but this is incredibly 'readable'.

I've heard of this happening to others, so I warned my mum, who's using Windows 7. She's been worried about it, but it hasn't happened to hers. Do you have automatic updates one, by any chance?

I usually give up very quickly, but I did have a strange one last year.. I loved Mr Mercedes, by Stephen King, and read quite a bit of the 2nd book, Finders Keepers.. but I suddenly reached a point where I couldn't bring myself to pick it up and finish it! One of the characters was grating on me, there wasn't enough of another character, and it started to feel predictable.

I wanted to write a review for this one, but I'm not really sure the best way to do so, so this is more a collection of some thoughts. The author explains that this started as a shorter novel, in Dutch, and it has been edited, moved to a US setting, and expanded. I think I'd really like to read the original version. Hex is not going to be liked by everyone, and different readers are going to take different things from it. I've already see a selection of reviews, with readers liking and disliking differing aspects of the book, and it's understandable. For me, it worked, although not in the way I expected... From the description, cover etc I was expecting something a little different.. maybe a more isolated, dark village, more obvious scares, etc. Instead, we are greeted with a town which has accepted it's witch into their everyday lives, has cameras everywhere to observe her, and even an app where people can report in when they spot her! The witch herself is an actual person, and yet she can come and go like a ghost. She can turn up anywhere, and when she turns up in people's houses, they simply have to leave her alone until she goes again. It's the strangest thing, and rather creepy.. can you imagine?! We are introduced to the idea of the witch pretty much straight away, and yet the story has a slow build up.. we learn more about her history, the grip of fear over the town, and the lengths they go to keep her hidden from the outside world. It comes down to a group of teenagers to start off a change, by starting to fight back a little.. against the witch herself, but also the town, and the people in charge. Small acts of rebellion however, have deadly consequences. I had built up my expectations a bit for this, with comments that it had kept people awake at night etc. This is all going to depend what you've read before, I guess, and on exactly what scares you. For me, the thought of living under those circumstances in the town was rather chilling, and it's the actions of others which scared the most, rather than the witch. It's not going to keep me awake at night, but it has kept me completely hooked.. and I'm really looking forward to discussing it with others. A strong contender for my book of the year!

My review of Sleeping Giants is here.. http://www.bookclubforum.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/14114-sleeping-giants-by-sylvain-neuvel/. Reading it back, it sounds a bit more negative than I meant it to.. it was a good book, and it kept me hooked, I just wanted to talk about the disappointments. I'm looking forward to seeing what others think. I've now started to take a look at some go the authors going to YALC this year, and a couple jumped out at me. One was Monkey Wars by Richard Kurti, which I have ready to read, and the second was A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab, which I picked up, and got straight into. I finished it last night, and it's probably now my favourite book of the year. I loved the characters, and the worlds were so well written. It has a great mix within, and I was sad to finish it.

I was in a position to buy a couple of signed books from Goldsborough Books, and for a few reasons, this one caught my eye. It's a gorgeous book, and this is a limited special edition. I do have some disappointments, but overall, it's ended up intriguing me, and I'm so frustrated I have to wait for the next book! It's a difficult book to explain, and it's style won't suit everyone. It's mainly written as a series of interviews, between the characters involved, and an unknown, obviously very secretive and powerful, interviewer. There are also a few personal entries and reports included. To be honest, this was one of the main reasons for choosing the book, as I've loved books with similar ideas (Illuminae is marketed as YA, but I wouldn't limit it as that, and the format works unbelievably well) but I was a little disappointed that there wasn't more variety.. I wanted a break from the interviews, and think other formats may have given an even deeper insight into the characters. Saying that, despite the format of an interview, which you would expect to not give much away, the author does manage to bring out the characters well. I particularly liked Kara, and I think she's the one I would have liked even more insight into. The story itself starts with the discovery of a giant metal hand.. it's made of rare alloys, and yet doesn't weigh as much as it should, and it's dated as being there before civilisation. From here there is the search for further body parts, and the obvious questions of what does it do, where did it come from, and what will humanity do with it. Although an intriguing book on it's own, it feels as if it's simply setting up for a far bigger story.. and combined with a fascinating twist at the end, this is where my frustration for the next book comes from. The format of interviews does mean that this is actually a shorter story than if it was straightforward prose, which was another slight disappointment. I'm going to upset the publisher and author here and say this may be one for the cheaper paperback.. although the hardback is lovely! I also read a review of the audio version which says that the format works really well as audio, so that's another option. I think this is the first time this year I've attempted any sort of review, so it must have had an impact on me. Hurry up book two - there's so much potential here!

I've updated it with the full list of authors - I'm so excited that Patrick Ness will there again.

Gaiman is the editor, and only one of the stories is his.

I love short story collections.. but then I do find they work well for me when reading time is limited.. for example, with the last two collections, each story was just the right length for a bath.. perfect for me! Have you ever read Stories.. it is my favourite collection, and has quite a bit of variety in it.

Barricade started really well, but kinda lost me towards the end. Mort(e) was an excellent read.. I'm sure I missed lots of deep underlying issues etc, but for me it was a fun, enjoyable read. I'm not sure it will be to everyone's taste, but there was certainly something about which I ended up loving. Favourite read of the year so far!

It's hard to tell from a short clip, but I was disappointed, and I think she's going to annoy me. I picked up an 80s feeling to her, as did some others, so it could be interesting if he meets her then. I also immediately thought of Ace, but I haven't seen much of her. Basically Chrissy, I agree with your fears.

Janet picked this up in Waterstones today - looks like we should have both picked up a copy!

It's always lovely Janet, already looking forward to next time. Sorry Waterstones weren't able to tempt you with a book today!

I think this tends to be true of most electronics, doesn't it? That is we bought at the US rate, it would be much cheaper.

YALC is back.. the YA Literature Con will be part of the LFCC (London Film and Comic Con) 29th - 31st July 2016. The authors so far are as below, with plenty more to be announced. I've been every year, and will go again this year.. although maybe not for the full 3 days this time. Anyone else interested? Updated for full list... http://www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com/index.php/allguests/authors Ben Aaronovitch Sara Barnard Sophia Bennett Katy Birchall Malorie Blackman Holly Bourne Melvin Burgess Nicole Burstein Neill Cameron Katy Cannon Honor & Perdita Cargill Natasha Carthew Cat Clarke Sarah Crossan Keren David Ben Davis Juno Dawson Jenny Downham Catherine Doyle Tom Ellen Natasha Farrant Emerald Fennell Natalie Flynn Michael Grant (Friday 29 July) Sally Green Julia Gray Alwyn Hamilton Frances Hardinge Lisa Heathfield Claire Hennessy Lucy Ivison Rhian Ivory Lauren James Rosalind Jana Dr Christian Jessen Pete Kalu Sophie Kinsella Dawn Kurtagich Richard Kurti Nina LaCour (Saturday 30 July) Eugene Lambert Tanya Landman Derek Landy Patrice Lawrence David Levithan (Saturday 30 July) Nat Luurtsema Sarra Manning Taran Matharu Julie Mayhew Simon Mayo Anna McKerrow Jenny McLachlan Meredith Miller Patrick Ness Louise O’Neill Alice Oseman Sarah Pinborough Annabel Pitcher Jeff Povey Non Pratt Philip Reeve Harriet Reuter Hapgood Chris Russell Chris Riddell Melinda Salisbury Manuela Salvi Lucy Saxon Alex Scarrow V E Schwab Darren Shan Samantha Shannon CJ Skuse Holly Smale James Smythe Keris Stainton Maggie Stiefvater (Sunday 31 July) Martin Stewart Will Sutcliffe Chris Vick LA Weatherly Alex Wheatle Lisa Williamson Eleanor Wood

Down Station is another one which was ok.. good enough for me to finish (which is a biggie these days!) but not as outstanding as some of the reviews. I think that maybe it was partly due to the synopsis on audible being a little different to what I actually read.. I would recommend it as an interesting fantasy tale. Blackfin Sky is one I've had for a while, and I managed to get it signed at YALC.. and yet I've only just picked it up. I had no real idea what to expect, and it turned out to be a rather good, twisty YA read. Actually one of my favourite reads so far!

Wow - I quite liked The Ice Twins! We do seem to disagree on books quite often!

Barricade was going quite well, then it just sort of faltered for me - I must try to finish it soon. I also have 2 audiobooks, both by the same author, which I've stalled on. The first, A Head Full of Knives started to get a bit strange and complicated, but being an audiobook, I kept falling asleep, and missing bits. The second, In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You is good, and intriguing, but one of the characters is very difficult to read. I don't know if he's just very well written, or over the top, but it's quite disturbing. Nod, by Adrian Barnes is apparently a re-release.. it was the cover which caught my attention, and then the synopsis. It starts off really good, but does become a bit strange in places. However, it kept me hooked, and I did like it. Slasher Girls and Monster Boys is a short story selection.. all were good, but a couple were really outstanding. These are from YA authors, but they didn't hold back! Loved it!

Sigh - me too - well into my 40s now.

Abby, Alwyn is on Twitter, and I met her briefly at YALC last year, and she is the loveliest person! I've started her book, but haven't gotten back to it, because I'm not in the right frame of mind for it.. but it started well.