young adult – Page 2 – Aussie Reviews

Vinnie's War, by David McRobbie

Vinnie didn’t want to be in this place, not with hundreds of miserable kids crowding around him. Everywhere he looked they were sobbing and carrying on as if their hearts would break. Their mums, too, were upset, and who could blame them: It wasn’t every day a mother had to say goodbye to her children, then send them away on a train to wherever.

Vinnie’s life has been tough for a long time. Even before World War II. He never knew his father and his mother struggled to survive then died when he was eleven years old. Then there was only Aunt Vera. Aunt Vera who burnt his clothes and made him wear too-big green velvet trousers and night-shirts. They fought continually until finally she threatened to send him to an orphanage and he ran away. He finds kindness and work and even a piano teacher in a local pub for a short while. When London is bombed, he too is evacuated to the country with thousands of other children. The villagers, adult and children, are not all welcoming of the ‘vaccies’, and life in the country has its challenges. But Vinnie and the other ‘vaccies’ look after one another and he develops strong friendships. He also continues and extends his recently-discovered love of music.

It’s hard to imagine being sent away from your family for an unknown duration to places where you may be unwelcome. Add suspicion, shortages, blackouts and the threat of being bombed, and life would have been very tough for children evacuated from London during the Blitz. For main character Vinnie, it’s a continuation of an uncertain life, where he has to prove himself to everyone. He’s strongwilled but hardworking, rough around the edges but honest. And not everyone around him is evil or mean. ‘Vinnie’s War’ portrays a difficult time in England when tough decisions were made. Villagers were often suspicious of the ‘vaccies’ and some were less than kind. But there were good people too. Themes include family, making your own luck, honesty and opportunity. Vinnie is a gutsy character and will have the reader hoping that he gets the lucky break he so deserves. Recommended for upper primary readers.

Vinnie’s War, David McRobbie
Allen & Unwin 2011
ISBN: 9781742375762

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased in good bookstores or online from Fishpond.

The Ivory Rose, by Belinda Murrell

Jemma pushed the ornate front doorbell nervously. It was the first day of her first job. The bell jangled somewhere deep in the house. Jemma glanced up. the house towered over her, covered in a mass of purple, flowing wisteria, its tall turred roof spotted with lichen. Once it had been a grand house, a mansion really. But now the sandstone was cracked, the paint on the windows and door a dull, flaking grey.
Rosethorne was one of the famous Witches’ Houses of Annandale – a row of creepy old mansions on Johnston Street, built with towers and gargoyles, turrets and crenellations, gables and conical spires. Many of them had been renovated over the years to reflect their former glory, but not Rosethorne. People said that Rosethorne was haunted.

Jemma loves her beautiful, perfect home and her loving if overworking and high-expectation parents. But she’s keen to take the first steps to independence when she lands the job of babysitting seven-year-old Sammy a few afternoons a week. But nothing could have prepared her for the secrets in the big old house, Rosethorne. Jemma falls down the stairs and wakes up in 1895. She has no idea how she got here or how she’ll get home. But here she is, outside Rosethorne, the grand house in its heyday. Jemma finds herself employed in Rosethorne, but although the house is in better condition, there’s something very wrong inside. It seems that Georgiana, the daughter of the house may be being poisoned. The race begins to not only discover a way back to her own time, but to help a friend.

The Ivory Rose is a persuasive time-slip mystery. Jemma discovers that there are many differences in the world of 1895 and many of the things she takes for granted, like caring parents/guardians, a childhood and health are not automatic. She is a practical and intelligent character with the ability to quickly process information and make decisions. She’s also friendly, resourceful and inquisitive. While trying to find her way home, she also discovers unkind and criminal behaviours. With the help of her friends she’s able to impact positively on the environment and the lives around her. Readers are introduced to a tangible 1895 via Jemma’s eyes. Themes include friendship, bravery, trust and family. The Ivory Rose introduces the opportunity to compare then and now as seen through this young teenager’s eyes. Recommended for upper-primary and early-secondary readers.

The Ivory Rose, Belinda Murrell
Random House 2011
ISBN: 9781742750712

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased in good bookstores or online from Fishpond.

Changing Yesterday, by Sean McMullen

A prince was coming to Albury. He would not be there long; in fact, he would just be passing through, but he was heir to the British throne. One day he would become the most powerful king in the entire world. Nobody so important had ever visited Albury, so everyone wanted the town to look its best.
…
The last day of May 1901 was like the end of any other school week for Daniel Lang. He was in his second-last year at an expensive private school, and life was going very well for him. For the first time in his life he had acquired a sweetheart in the form of Muriel Baker, a beautiful classmate of his sister’s. For Daniel, this was even better than getting a medal. Muriel knew that Daniel was a hero, and for Daniel her opinion was the only one that mattered.

Changing Yesterday is set in 1901, but main character Liore has come to Melbourne and Victoria from a century in the future, determined to change history. Her co-conspirators are variously motivated but necessary to help her achieve her goal. But it seems that each time they alter the events that lead the 100 Year War, chance and Lionhearts conspire to find another way to ensure the war happens. So begins a race across Australia and beyond to Europe – a cat and mouse chase that has the protagonists jumping on and off ships, changing gender, arming and disarming fellow travellers and various weapons and just generally causing chaos. None of these diversions are listed in any of the ocean liner brochures! There’s a boy, a girl, a thief, some plotters and some work-for-whoever-pays extras. There’s adventure, fighting, flights, love, hate, pick-pocketing and lock-picking. And there’s plenty more besides.

Changing Yesterday is a riot. It’s high camp adventure and penny-dreadful pulp romance. It’s egads-melodrama with high tech weapons. Lead character Daniel is a mere schoolboy when he participates in history-altering espionage, his ideas noble and pure. His friend, Barry (the bag) has his eye on a different prize although he convinces himself of similarly pure ideals. Liore, a girl who masquerades mostly as a boy, has a mission. The action of others is often off stage (as it were) and it is the consequences that affect Daniel, Liore and a detective-in-waiting. The stakes are high – the fate of the world is dependent on their success. Most of the characters grow and mature across the novel – but not all. A few remain resolutely bad, or just plain incorrigible. There are of course, steam engines. Plenty of them. Changing Yesterday is the sequel to Before the Storm and the way forward has been flagged. It also reads well as a stand-alone novel. Recommended for early secondary readers and beyond.

Changing Yesterday, Sean McMullen
Ford St Publishing 2011
ISBN: 9781921665370

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased in good bookstores or online from Fishpond.

Horses for King Arthur,by LS Lawrence

The woods were tangled, lush with summer. Poor going, but if she rode across open land, Alexa would have to comply with her father’s dreary order not to gallop. Somebody would see her. There’d be a lecture. Maybe even an order not to ride at all.
Here, beyond the fields, there was no one to carry tales. What Papa said about low branches and treacherous going was the greatest nonsense. Alexa had used the bridle path only the previous week. It was perfectly safe.

Alexa is the teenage daughter of a landowning family in 475 England. Although her life is comfortable, it is built on a fragile stability. She soon discovers just how fragile. It now seems very unlikely that she will be ever be able to follow her heart. She wants to breed fine horses, but her mother has other plans. But Alexa is her mother’s daughter, determined and headstrong. She meets Artorius, a boy of her age who has a vision for fighting from horseback, not the ponies that are native to England. Like Alexa’s mother, Artorius’ father gives his child’s ideas very little attention. Alexa needs all her skills, and support from others, to extricate herself from her mother’s plans without putting herself in undue danger.

L. S. Lawrence says he was inspired by the legend of King Arthur and some surprising archaeological finds to create this story. England, and Europe, of the time (475) were lawless and unstable places, where battles were constant and safety and peace were fleeting. Women were not much more than possessions and/or servants to their husband/masters. Into this era, he introduces a feisty girl who loves horses and is definitely not interested in being someone’s chattel. Though intelligent, she has been sheltered and must learn quickly if she is to survive. From her secure early existence, she is thrust into an uncertain and bloodthirsty world where life has little value when measured against power and wealth. Trust is not given easily. This is a grand adventure in an uncertain time, full of mystery and intrigue. Recommended for secondary readers, particularly girls who want to be free to create their own destiny.

Horses for King Arthur L. S. Lawrence
Omnibus Books 2011
ISBN: 9781862919198

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book is available in good bookstores or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Phoenix, by Alison Ashley

I tried to respond but my mouth wouldn’t form words and the letter said it all anyway. I felt like meringue floating in an ocean, like I was dissolving, hot like molten sugar, cold like the sea. Fighting the inevitable was futile. I tried to extract the note from my pocket but my strength had gone. I closed my eyes and let my body drift on the bobbing tide.
Something from my past was calling me, some family secret or tragedy that I had to resolve. I didn’t know what it was – all I knew was that I had to go back; the letter had made that very clear. And in all honesty, I didn’t feel like I belonged here anyway.

Katie is half a world away from her old life. She’s grown up in Australia but now her whole family has moved to England to be with her grandad, who needs care. But here in England Katie will have to face her past in a way few would believe. Haunted by the events of a former life, Katie knows she must go back to put something to rights – even if she doesn’t know what that something is, or how she can fix it. Her twin sister, Ally, doesn’t believe in Kate’s talk of past lives, but to fulfil her destiny, Kate will need Ally’s support.

Phoenix is the first in a new paranormal series from debut author Alison Ashley, The Fifth Shadow. Sixteen year old Katie is a likeable first person narrator, and the blend of time shifts, personal and family development and a little history make a highly attractive blend for teen readers, with the paranormal elements not overdone or overwhelming. Whilst the story is self-contained, it is absorbing enough that readers will eagerly look forward to the next instalment.

Excellent.

Phoenix, by Alison Ashley
Warrambucca Books, 2011
ISBN 9780646555065

Available online.

Ishmael and the Hoops of Steel, by Michael Gerard Bauer

That’s right, Ishmael and the Fab Five are back in another thrilling adventure as he makes his way through Year 11 and 12. There are shocks, laughs and even romances. Without giving too much away- it can be said that the story involves feminism, debating, a very… interesting band and a thrilling game of volleyball.

There’s no easy way to put this, so I’ll just say it straight out. It’s time I faced up to the truth.

My name is Ishmael Leseur. I am seventeen years old. I have Ishmael Leseur’s syndrome. There is no cure.

For those who have read the first two Ishmael stories, this is a really satisfying conclusion to the series. And to those who haven’t – you don’t know what you’re missing. You could read this one by itself, but do yourself a favour and go back and read the first two.

Teenagers, join Ishmael’s adventures in this 10/10 novel by Michael Gerard Bauer.

Ishmael and the Hoops of Steel, by Michael Gerard Bauer
Omnibus Books, 2011
ISBN 9781862919174

You can buy this book in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Dress Rehearsal, by Zoe Thurner

‘This term we’ve had a bank robbery, an abduction and this crazy show. You kids are running wild, Lara. It’s too much.’

Lara Pearlman is a teenage girl with a busy life. She loves shopping for retro clothes, eating anything loaded with cream and chocolate and a boy called Blake. Her best friend Oggy likes some of those things – which can, at times be a problem. Add to that the complication of her other friend, Nathan, seeming to want to kiss her, and life is pretty complicated.

At school, Lara’s drama class is preparing for a production – but the drama isn’t all on the stage. There are relationships starting and finishing, friendships in trouble, and cast members coming and going. Oggy and Lara witness a bank robbery, and are part of an abduction, both of which have ramifications they don’t foresee.

Dress Rehearsal is a funny, turbulent story full of highs and lows as the likeable Lara shares her journey in an honest first-person voice. At times the reader will want to shake her, but this is part of her appeal – the feel that she is a real, flawed teenage girl.

Dress Rehearsal is an outstanding debut novel for West Aussie author Zoe Thurner.

Dress Rehearsal, by Zoe Thurner
Fremantle Press, 2011
ISBN 9781921696671

This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Mole Hunt, by Paul Collins

omeone was going to die. And it wasn’t going to be Maximus Black.
…
The terrain lost its shadows as darkness came down like a fire blanket. None of the moons had risen yet and the toxic evening wind of the acid ocean had not yet begun to bite. But the stillness did not fool Special Agent Maximus Black, who seemed too young to be suspicious when things were going exceedingly well. But he knew that it was not how much you experience but how you experience it.
Maximus came from a long line of madmen, murderers and megalomaniacs, but the Regis Imperium Mentatis – the galactic law enforcement agency known as RIM – seemed not to car about his ancestry.

Maximus Black is a man with a mission. He’s determined to impress RIM management with his skills and abilities. If he can do that, it opens up all sorts of opportunities that RIM may not have intended or even be aware of. Anneke Longshadow is another brilliant young RIM agent and she’s discovered a mole within the organisation. And so the whirlwind begins. A chase, a cat-and-mouse game across many worlds and all the spaces in between. There are more enhancements and gadgets than ever graced any James Bond film. There are gadgets to gather intelligence, weapons more diabolical than seems possible, gadgets to promote healing, programs that create the illusion of a disguise and if they’re not adequate, then there are ‘renovators’. The plot? To take over the world, of course!

Mole Hunt is a science fiction novel for young adults that hurtles through space at dizzying speed. Protagonist, Maximus Black, is singleminded in pursuing his self-set mission, whatever the consequences. His motivation is subtly hinted at, but readers will need to wait for further instalments in this three-part series to fully understand what drives him. Anneke Longshadow’s motivations are clearer as she sets out to pursue Black. The two are stars in the RIM organisation, and more alike than either could imagine. While the worlds spin around them, all their ingenuity and skill are tested in their pursuit of each other. No romance at all, this is a battle of high stakes, that both are determined and confident of winning. Recommended for mid-secondary and beyond.

Mole Hunt , Paul Collins
Ford St Books 2011
ISBN: 9781921665264

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews. is book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Tantony, by Ananda Braxton-Smith

We found my brother in the skybog.
It was me that found him.
His body upright in the black water of boghole and his white face upturned to the dawn-pearl sky, like one moon watching another.
Skybog ground is dabbled with sinks of standing water as flat and shining as looking-glasses. When the bog mists curl away the pools show only white cloud or silver moonrays, lightning or stars, like bits of the sky have fallen right into the black earth. those sinks fill with falling rain or rising groundwater. Some are tiny, hardly big enough to hold even one star; some are deep as two men laid down end-to-end.

Fermion Quirk has just lost her ‘soft’ twin brother to the bogs that provide their family with a living. It’s true that Boson was always ‘soft’, but he became so much worse in the last years, since he went missing and was found. From then on, his talk was all of lonely people, voices in his head, and of being a bird. Fermion knows it is the reason that the townsfolk avoid them. Boson’s death threatens to tear Fermion’s family apart and she struggles to find a way to get through to them. Because it’s very soon clear that her mother is too lost in grief, and her father is lost without her mother to keep him on track. Fermion has lost her brother, her twin, and it seems that there is no room at all for her grief. Then the voices begin…

Tantony is set on Carrick, an island in the Irish Sea, in a time long ago. Superstitions and religion fight to explain variations in weather, in harvest, even the birth of ‘different’ children. Anyone different in anyway may be blamed for the sun not shining, the rain not falling and any manner of misfortunes that may occur. Tantony recalls another time, another place, but timeless issues. Fermion, who tells her own story along with that of her brother, her family, her community has a wonderful mix of practicality and openness to new ideas. She loved her brother deeply, but also loves her family too. She exposes the bullying, ignorance and more of the community and comes to understand other outcast community members. With a resoluteness that often appears to border on stubbornness, she saves the family she can. Tantony includes some words from the almost extinct Manx language, but also includes very poetic language. It is a potage of history and wonder. Recommended for secondary school readers.

Tantony, Ananda Braxton-Smith
Black Dog Books 2011
ISBN: 9781742031668

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond.

Opal Dreaming, by Karen Wood

‘WOOHOO!’ Jess slid down the front stair rail, her arms out wide, and landed expertly on the driveway. ‘Today’s the day!’
For the first time in weeks, the sky was a clear blue, and the air was still, not a breath of wind. The sun was warm on Jess’s face and everything about the day seemed perfect. She skipped to the feed shed, hauled out some hay and threw it over the fence. ‘Come on, Dodger, it’s time to go and get Opal!’
Dodger nickered to her and began snuffling at the hay. Jess stepped through the fence and gave the old stock-horse a big hug. ‘Eighteen months we’ve been waiting,’ she said, running her hands through his shaggy brown coat. ‘I can’t believe I can finally bring her home!’

Jess has been waiting for her new foal for so long, even before she was born and finally the day arrives. But a storm on the way home starts a whole chain of trouble for Opal. No matter how she tries, Jess cannot help but see what everyone else can see – there’s something wrong with the little filly. But as time for droving comes, no one can work out quite what the trouble is. Jess refuses to give up, even when it seems there is no hope. Meanwhile she gets a chance to join the drovers with her friends, even if it’s only as assistant camp cook and washergirl. It’s wonderful being out in the bush, droving the cattle and proving that she’s as good as the boys, but Jess can’t stop thinking about Opal and whether she’ll survive. Even when there are distractions like Luke…

Opal Dreaming is the third in the Diamond Spirit series and the second in Jess’s voice. The middle novel, ‘Moonstone Promise’ is told from Luke’s point of view. All the characters have grown and matured in the two years that have passed. Jess is just as horse-focussed as she was in ‘Diamond Spirit’, but her world is growing. She still longs for her ‘once in a lifetime’ horse, but she’s beginning to be aware of the personalities around her, their challenges and struggles. She’s always liked Luke, but from afar. Now’s she’s getting to know him properly. Lawson’s mare Marnie is mother to Opal, and technically Lawson still owns Opal. Jess and Lawson seem at loggerheads, and Jess begins to realise that he’s not just being difficult about handing over Opal. He’s concerned for her too. There are themes of family and trust and connection with land. The aboriginal characters in Opal Dreaming are not caricatures or conveniences, and help to communicate their deep connectedness with the ground. Recommended for secondary readers and anyone who loves horses.

Opal Dreaming , Karen Wood
Allen & Unwin 2011
ISBN: 9781742373171

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews