The Wood at Midwinter

 By: Susanna Clarke

Location: FIC CLA

Genre: Fantasy

From the internationally bestselling and prize-winning author of Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, an enchanting and haunting Christmas short story

“Sometimes new stories are just old stories badly remembered.”

A church is a sort of wood.
A wood is a sort of church.
They’re the same thing really.”

It may take a couple of hours to warm up after delving into this enthralling, chilling tale. Merowdis is an unusual young woman, caught at the gates of indecision. A life devoted to the church? To George, who proposed? To the woods, where her soul resides? It's a fascinating tale that ties Christian elements with ancient natural folklore. I recommend this to my friends who are mood readers to read on one of the cold, dark, short days of winter.

Mirror Mirror

 By: Disney 

Location: FIC DIS

Genre: Fantasy- Retelling

DISNEY TWISTED TALES!

Review by Gav

My first Disney Twisted Tales book and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

In this, we follow the well-known Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs story from the original 1937 animated classic - but with several deviations. Firstly, Snow is 17 in this, and she is way more three-dimensional. The Evil Queen receives a name and a backstory, as did the Magic Mirror. One of the things I loved about this is the story behind the Magic Mirror and its influence.

Even though I thought this was too easily wrapped up, it was a good twist on the tale and it pleasantly surprised me. I can’t wait to read more Disney Twisted Tales now!

What if the Evil Queen poisoned the prince?

Following her beloved mother's death, the kingdom falls into the hands of Snow White's stepmother, commonly referred to as "the Evil Queen" by those she rules. Snow keeps her head down at the castle, hoping to make the best of her situation.

But when new information about her parents resurfaces and a plot to kill her goes haywire, everything changes for Snow. With the help of a group of wary dwarfs, a kind prince she thought she'd never see again, and a mysterious stranger from her past, Snow embarks on a quest to stop the Evil Queen and take back her kingdom. But can she stop an enemy who knows her every move and will stop at nothing to retain her power... including going after the ones Snow loves?

The Miraculous Sweetmakers

 By: Natasha Hastings  

Location: FIC HAS

Genre: Fantasy

A bewitching and powerful tale of sparkling magic, spellbinding mystery and a friendship worth risking everything for, perfect for fans of Tamzin Merchant, Abi Elphinstone and Anna James. Thomasina and Anne are looking for adventure when their friend, Henry, disappears – snatched by a mysterious creature, and dragged into the depths of the River Thames. Determined to save him, the girls venture into the deep, and discover the enchanting Free Waters: a vast, glittering underwater city, home to mermaids and sirens. But the Free Waters are threatened by an evil Sea Queen. It is she who has Henry – and the girls must complete three treacherous and impossible magical tasks if they are to save his life … An unputdownable and exciting new tale from the bestselling author of The Miraculous Sweetmakers: The Frost Fair.

The Last Word

 By: Patricia Forde  

Location: FIC FOR

Genre: Dystopia

A world devastated by climate change. A society ruled by fear. And a girl brave enough to take a stand.

Now an outlaw, Letta's world is more dangerous than ever. The new ruler of Ark has limited language to under five hundred words and there are terrible whispers of babies disappearing in the night.
Letta devotes herself to keeping language alive, teaching in secret illegal schools, but at great risk. And when disaster strikes, she takes the blame. Haunted by grief and hunted by gavvers, she and Marlo are forced to flee, in the process discovering the terrible plan to wipe out language for good.

I was a Teenager Slasher

 By: Stephen Graham Jones

Location: FIC GRA

Genre: Horror

1989, Lamesa, Texas. A community driven by oil and cotton – a town where everyone knows everyone else’s business.

Tolly Driver, seventeen, a good kid with more potential than application, exists on the outskirts with his best friend, Amber. They navigate the hellscape of the teenage social scene, sticking together in a place that doesn’t know how to be different.

But when they go to a fateful party at Deek Masterton’s house – a party that ends in a series of gruesome, brutal and extravagant murders – Tolly’s world gets flipped upside-down. Because some slashers are born in violence and retribution, some were born that way – and some were just in the wrong place, at the wrong time…

Review by Esta

Trigger warnings abound—Extreme gore, blood, murder, bullying, suicide contemplation, animal deaths and more—so be aware and mind your triggers.

Ultimately, this book is a humorous, heartfelt, and surprisingly poignant love letter to the slasher genre. I really think it deserves 5 stars for how creative, original and brilliant it is and I’m looking forward to getting way more familiar with more of SGJ’s stories.

Walk of the Whales

 By: Nick Bland  

Location: PIC BLA

Genre: Whales of fun

When all of the whales in the ocean leave their home to walk around on land, people don’t quite know what to think.

When all of the whales in the ocean leave their home to walk around on land, people don't quite know what to think. But soon shopkeepers go out of business, farms are flooded with water and salt, and people shout horrible, anti-whale words. That is, until, a smart little girl decides to ask the whales what everyone can do to help. A powerful and entertaining story about the environment from best-selling author, Nick Bland.

Alice with a why- REturn to Wonderland

 By: Anna James   

Location: FIC JAM

Genre: Fantasy

Sue: This story is light and entertaining. It feels like it’s been ages since I last read something that actually reignited my love for reading. A quick and easy read!

Return to Wonderland in this extraordinary reimagining of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by one of our most brilliant storytellers
England, 1919. Alyce – with a Y – lives with her grandmother, the original Alice, having lost her father during the great war. When a mysterious invitation to a tea party hits her square in the face, Alyce realises her grandmother’s strange stories of a place called Wonderland might have some truth to them after all.

But the land Alyce finds herself in feels different to the Wonderland of her grandmother’s stories – for it is trapped in its own war. The Sun King and the Queen of the Moon are fighting over a stolen hour, and soon Alyce is tasked with setting it right. With the help of the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat and a Sailor Fox, Alyce will have to solve Wonderland’s problems and, eventually, find her way back home.
enchanting adventure through Wonderland, and featuring new characters as well as old favourites, Alice With a Why is both a celebration of Lewis Carroll’s beloved original story, and a modern masterpiece.