Chasing Embers certainly gets off to a very promising start, in fact you barely crack the book open before there’s an explosion of action that leaves you anxious to read quickly on. I’m not sure how many books are planned but I can see that this has the makings of a very entertaining urban fantasy series where a world of mythology lives alongside our modern world and a whole host of fantasy creatures hide in plain sight. Basically, and without giving away too much of the plot, long, long ago an ancient pact was formed between the fantastical beasts that roamed the earth and the humans. This pact was formed to prevent large scale war and bloodshed and the stipulations of the pact must be closely observed in order for it to remain intact. I’m being a little bit mysterious here because you need to discover the history as you read. Anyhow, at the start of the story, our central character, Ben, finds himself in a couple of close encounters that leave him seriously questioning whether or not the agreement still stands and with his life under threat he finds himself in a desperate chase, following in the wake (or…

Speak by Louisa Hall is a very unusual book.  I admit that my curiosity was piqued by the cover and I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I picked it up.  As it is I found this a totally fascinating and thought provoking read.  It certainly isn’t an action book and I’ll just make that perfectly clear from the outset but in spite of the lack of any action this was a compelling read that drew me in. This is a combination of five stories that intertwine.  I’ve heard comparisons to Cloud Atlas and whilst I can see where those comparisons are coming from this is a story that stands on it’s own two feet.  Each story is told in a certain style, so we have a diary, letters, court transcripts, a memoir and also direct communication to us through one of the characters. The main threads are told as follows: We follow a young woman called Mary whose family take the decision to uproot and relocate to America during the 1660s.  Mary’s tale is told in the form of a diary.  It’s a somewhat sad tale but told in a fascinating voice and a style that I really…