The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey
Yorkshire, 1979. The threat of the Yorkshire Ripper looms over the entire county. After overhearing her dad and Aunty Jean talk about moving, eleven-year-old Miv decides the only way to convince her family to stay is to catch the killer. So with the help of her best friend Sharon, Miv creates a list of anything she deems suspicious and sets out to investigate them. But the girls soon discover that sometimes, ‘suspicious’ behaviour is simply a cry for help.
What begins as a slightly naive investigative journey quickly becomes an incredibly moving coming-of-age story about the power of community and kindness. (Nethmi)
Faebound by Saara El-Arifi
Yeeran is an elven warrior and has never known anything other than violence her whole life. Her sister Letter on the other hand, is a diviner, with the power of prophecy.
When a monumental mistake leads to Yeeran’s exile, Lettle follows her into the vast unknown wilderness beyond their borders, where they discover the impossible – the existence of the fae. The fae haven’t been seen for hundreds of years, and it forces them to question everything they’ve ever been told, whilst testing their loyalty to their elven homeland, and each other.
I was completely swept up in this and couldn’t put it down! (Emma)
The Voyage of the Damned by Frances White
A delicious stew of murder mystery, gay romance, political thriller and high fantasy, Voyage of the Damned is a moreish read.
Narrated by Ganymedes Piscero, the only powerless heir on a cruise ship full of his magically blessed peers from other regions of Concordia, the novel follows twelve sacred heirs on their pilgrimage to the Goddess’s mountain. They’ve barely set off before one of the heirs is murdered; with the fragile political balance of Concordia and the lives of the other passengers at stake, it’s up to Ganymedes to find the murderer. Ganymedes is a wonderfully sassy, horny, warm-hearted and voracious narrator, and the plot is playfully intricate without overshadowing the finely drawn characters; this is a highly recommended read. (Sam)
The Colour of Hope by Ross MacKenzie
The Dominion has been cursed by the Emperor and the Necromancer. They have stolen all the colour from the world and drained the Kingdom of light and joy. Now they keep it for themselves, enjoying its enchanting powers while everyone else exists in cold, dark shades of grey and black. That is until a young boy makes a wish- a simple wish on a star which changes the course of history forever. A miracle baby is born and she is bright, bold and engulfed in colour, but her life is in danger as the Emperor’s murderous ripper dogs and black coats hunt her. Rumour of ‘The Rainbow Child’ spreads, igniting a fire to fight the evil and restore all that once was lost.
An evocative and magical fantasy novel that I simply couldn’t put down! (Becky)
