Category Archives: New Books

Nov6

Book Spotlight: The Henge by Devra Robitaille

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The Henge is a new novel by Devra Robitaille.

Away to the north of the Noble Village of the Arts there is, buried in a jade lake at the bottom of a quarry, a stone with magical properties—a stone that sings. Izraziti the Dreamer has seen the stone through the eyes of an eagle as he soars over the quarry at night. Concinnity Song and her twin brothers, along with the council of twelve must mobilize all the hunter-warriors to raise the stone and transport it across the land, and build a henge to protect it, according to the covenant with the ancestors for the future of civilization. To do this they must tap into the true tone that will levitate the singing stone and its companion blue stones out of the quarry. They will have to battle their enemies, not just the human kind, but a cataclysmic flood and catastrophic fire that threaten to wipe them all out. As they travel across the land with the stones, the people come together and create an amazing civilization on a journey that will culminate in one brilliant night, the night of the solstice, when all the stones will be raised together to form…The Henge.

Take a look at the book trailer for The Henge.

And a little about the author….

London-born Devra is a composer, songwriter and keyboardist, as well as an author. She had a successful career as a professional musician in England, playing keyboards and touring with Mike Oldfield of Tubular Bells fame, before moving to America in the nineties. All through the nineties she directed musicals and theatrical productions in Los Angeles. Now living in Florida with her family on the Sarasota Bay, she has written several children’s books and several young adult novels.

Devra has always been fascinated by the stone monuments that litter the countryside in England, so her latest book The Henge is a labor of love; combining her love of music with her love of her culture.

Looking for more information? Check out the other participants of The Henge book blog tour via The Hologram Library. Or take a look at Devra’s Amazon author page and pick up a copy of The Henge.

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Nov6

Guest Post: Danica Davidson

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Danica Davidson is the author of a number of books based around the game Minecraft. Now, I’m not overly familiar with Minecraft, but my ten year old daughter loves playing it, watching videos about it, and reading informational texts and fictional stories set in the Minecraft world. You could say she is a little bit obsessed with Minecraft! And so are many of her friends. So when the opportunity of a guest post by Danica came along, I jumped on it. Now read on to learn a little about Danica’s books!

Millions of people play Minecraft, making the worlds they create come alive for them. I play Minecraft, but I also do something else: I write adventure novels that take place as if Minecraft is real.

It started as a single book, Escape from the Overworld, where an 11-year-old boy named Stevie, who lives in the Minecraft world, accidentally discover a portal to Earth. There he befriends a girl named Maison, and the two go on adventures and journeys throughout the worlds, including the Overworld, the Nether, the End and even Earth. From there, the books Attack on the Overworld, The Rise of Herobrine, Down into the Nether, The Armies of Herobrine and Battle with the Wither were released, and they’ll be coming out as a box set November 7.  Their adventures include stopping a monster attack on the school, saving Minecraft after cyberbullies hack into it and turn it into eternal night, and fighting against the evil Minecraft villain Herobrine. The books have lots of chapter cliffhangers and also discuss real-world things, like friendship and bullying.

On November 7, my spinoff series begins coming out with the book Adventure Against the Endermen, and Stevie and Maison will have new villains to fight and have to discover mysteries from ancient days in the Overworld.

It’s a totally new way to look at Minecraft, but that’s part of what makes Minecraft so fun. It encourages and allows you to create, and to create in whatever way you see fit. I love how this aspect lets kids implement their own creativity. They can literally build not only their own buildings, but their own worlds. I’m kind of doing that with these books, and I hope they can be a fun way for Minecraft fans to enjoy novels that involve their favorite video game. But I also make sure the stories are adventure stories at heart, so even if you’re not a Minecraft fan, you can still read them.  Besides having fun reading adventure stories, I hope these books can encourage kids to find their own preferred creative outlets.

 

And a little about Danica…

Danica Davidson is a a writer that has penned a series of unofficial Minecraft adventure novels. She has also written numerous articles for a range of well known publications, comics and a book on how to draw Manga art.

Her latest series of Minecraft books will be launched this month, and are suitable for primary school students.

Visit Danica on her website or Facebook. Her books can be purchased through Book Depository and Amazon.

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Aug23

July Book Box

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The YA Chronicles July theme was “To the Revolution”. The book was The Waking Land by Callie Bates, which I hadn’t heard of, but which sounds extremely interesting! 

My favourite item in this box is the Readvolution sticker from AnnaOMline. Though I’m sure I’m going to enjoy the super proof, Date A Book from Hachette Australia, containing chapters from some of the YA books hitting shelves in 2017. There was also a Feminist pin from Jubly-Umph, a Rise Up decal from GoldParrotCreations and a magnetic bookmark from ByEpikPage. The smelliest product was a scented Rise Up candle from The Book Hangover (oh I love their candles!).

Want your own YA book box each month? Head over to The YA Chronicles and sign up for one of their subscriptions.

Aug22

June Book Box

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We have had weeks and weeks of illness in our house so I am woefully behind in everything…. so here is the June book box from The YA Chronicles. The mermaid socks went down a treat with my seven year old!

Such beautiful items in this box, including book marks, mermaid socks, a mermaid bath bomb, artwork, an iron on patch and some pirate treasure. The pirate coins disappeared into my kids pockets very quickly and the socks straight onto my daughter’s feet.

The book of the month was Song of the Current by Sarah Tolscer, which I am looking forward to reading.

For your very own book box, pop over to The YA Chronicles!

 

Jul17

May Book Box

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With school holidays, I’ve gotten a little behind with things, but I’m working on getting them done now. I was organising my June book box, when I realised I never posted about the one I got in May. I was so excited by the A Court of Wings and Ruin box that I forgot about the other one! So better late than never, here is what came in the May book box from The YA Chronicles.

 

The May book was Flame in the Mist by Renée Adhieh. 

The other contents of the box included a very cool pair of socks (which I love), a fiery bracelet that my younger daughter swiftly claimed, a cute pack of dragon sticky notes, a Hunger Games figure and a beautifully smelling candle. Plus the usual bookmark and postcard with info about the box.

 

 

 

 

 

To get your very own book box like this one, head over to The YA Chronicles!

 

May2

Unmasking the April Book Box

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Amidst the chaos that is school holidays this little box of joy was delivered. It took me a while to get a quiet moment to open it on my own, but I was thrilled when I finally did.

The YA Chronicles book boxes have gotten even better this month. They have transitioned to a new price that also sees an increase in the goodies included in the content.

It was so much fun unpacking this box! The April book is The Secret Science of Magic by Australian author Melissa Keil. I haven’t had a chance to read it yet, but it was already on my TBR list, so I’m pretty excited!

I love the Cinderella silhouette artwork, it is just gorgeous. It came from Lolie Freta on Etsy. There was also a The Secret Science of Magic playing card, and a ticket to the Night Circus from RedGoldSparks Press. Seriously cute magnetic bookmarks by Read and Wonder, a Harry Potter inspired notebook from Literary Emporium, and a niffler keyring complete the package.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And as always, there is The YA Chronicles bookmark (I am always looking for a bookmark, so thanks TYAC!) and the postcard that contains information about the box’s contents. 

May is a big month for The YA Chronicles book boxes, with the special pre-ordered A Court of Wings and Ruin boxes coming out on the 2nd plus the regular monthly box. I can’t wait for both to arrive!

 

Mar25

A Book Box in March

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I was so excited to find this little package on my doorstep during the week! It’s a small box packed with awesomeness that makes me feel so very happy.

The YA Chronicles are an Australian book box subscription service specialising in young adult literature. Each month, a new release YA book is chosen to develop a book box. It is then accompanied by several themed goodies, which make it a truly fun experience. A subscription would make an excellent gift for a lover of YA.

This month, I opened the box to grassy green tissue paper, which I carefully peeled back and unveiled… A beautiful parcel of literary fun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The book is Frogkisser by Garth Nix! And it came with a signed plate through the publisher, Allen & Unwin. It’s been a hectic week, so I haven’t been able to start reading it yet, but I can hardly wait to get to it (must get kids to bed first!)

Also included was a lovely vinyl sticker from Ink and Wonder Designs, some villainous bath salts from Burning Pages Candles and a delightfully smelling lip balm from From the Page. And of course, The YA Chronicles bookmark and information postcard.

Check out The YA Chronicles to get in on the book box action!

 

 

Aug10

New Library Additions July ’16

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IMG_7880July was a quiet month when it came to book buying. I did pick up some lovely 2 for $30 Australian YA from Dymocks on the last day of the month, and I ordered some books from the kids Scholastic bookclub catalogue, but they haven’t arrived yet.

Physical Books:

 

E-books:

  • Minecat by P.T. Evans (chapter book)
Jul8

New Library Additions June ’16

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More books, more books!

Physical books:

E-books:

Jun3

New Library Additions May ’16

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Added some books to my home library this month!

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Physical Books:

E-books:

What new books did you get in May?