Review: Everless by Sara Holland

So, I read Everless in 2017 and I never reviewed it… until now.

I really loved Everless – it’s set in a world where time is currency, and the poorer folk in this kingdom pay with their blood… literally. They go and have their blood drained and turned into coin. It’s a really interesting concept that I enjoyed a lot. (Does that sound creepy?)

Jules and her father fled from the nearby aristocratic estate (Everless) years ago, but she finds herself back there again after taking a job there to earn some money, to help her dying father. Everless is full of royalty, court drama, mystery, intrigue, secrets and magic.

When you’ve read as much YA fantasy I have, it’s sometimes easy to predict how the story is going to play out – but Everless is full of twists and turns and surprises, and I really loved the world-building. Put simply, Everless was a joy to read.

I’m really looking forward to the next book in this series (at least I think it will be a series?) and if you’re looking for some fun fairytale fantasy, give this one a go.

Review: Animal Farm by George Orwell

Animal Farm by George Orwell

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’m finally on winter break and reading a tonne – I think (fingers crossed) I’m over my reading slump! I have a load of reviews to catch up on and hopefully will be posting more regularly over the coming weeks.

Animal Farm is a novella by George Orwell which was written during World War Two (in 1943, to be exact). What at first appears to be the story of farm animals rebelling against their farmer and setting up their own farm, is underneath a political statement about communism and Stalinist Russia. Really, this book is an education – if only you can understand the metaphors and relate the actions of the characters in the book to what actually happened in Russian history.

I genuinely loved this book – it’s clever and educational as well as being relatively easy to read and understand. I did have to look up who each character is playing (e.g. Napoleon as Stalin, Snowball as Trotsky) and the significance of the events in the book (e.g. the Battle of the Windmill is an allegory to the Battle of Stalingrad).

Animal Farm is a quick read (it’ s just over 100 pages) that is an interesting observation of society and human nature, as well as a statement on Russia in the early 20th century.

Definitely worth a read, especially if you’re trying to read more classics!

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Review: Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard

Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was brave
She was reckless
We were trouble

Best friends Caddy and Rosie are inseparable. Their differences have brought them closer, but as she turns sixteen Caddy begins to wish she could be a bit more like Rosie – confident, funny and interesting. Then Suzanne comes into their lives: beautiful, damaged, exciting and mysterious, and things get a whole lot more complicated. As Suzanne’s past is revealed and her present begins to unravel, Caddy begins to see how much fun a little trouble can be. But the course of both friendship and recovery is rougher than either girl realises, and Caddy is about to learn that downward spirals have a momentum of their own.

A huge thank you to Bea Cross and Macmillan’s Children’s Books/MyKindaBook for the copy of this book!

First things first, the cover is GORGEOUS – it can be hard to tell from the internet, but the cover is a beautiful dark teal, with gold and rose-gold detailing.

Beautiful Broken Things is the story of Caddy (Cadnam), a teenage girl who feels like nothing interesting every happens to her – and desperately wants to be interesting. She’s been best friends with Rosie for years – despite Caddy going to the local private school, and Rosie attending state school. They spend hours on the phone each night, and are virtually inseparable. Then Rosie meets Suzanne at school, and Rosie and Caddy’s friendship starts to change – and Suzanne’s secrets start to be revealed.

I’ve long said that friendships are often neglected in YA – the classic Mary Sue who meets the boy of their dreams at the tender age of 15 and quickly eliminate all other aspects of their lives is a character most of us have probably met more than once. When discussing whether YA is an accurate and realistic reflection of real life, the lack of meaningful friendships is a topic that often comes up. The vast majority of teenagers do not, in fact, meet the love of their life at 15 (who often just so happens to be a vampire/zombie/werewolf). They do, however, usually have at least one friend, whoever that might be. This is a book that focuses on female friendship, and the drama and jealousy that often occurs between teenage girls (and probably teenage boys, for that matter)

It’s not just the topic of female friendship which features in Beautiful Broken Things, the book also features mental health issues and abuse. These topics are becoming more featured in YA, but we still have a long way to go, and BBT treats these issues with care.

One thing I loved is the lack of romance. It seems, nowadays, that a book isn’t complete without an earth-shattering romance, when, realistically, a lot of teenagers (including myself) don’t come face-to-face with one – but complicated friendships are much more common. I’d like to see more books stand without a romance, especially when a romance feels forced or unnecessary. Less romance, please! (If you’re looking for another romance-less YA novel, Radio Silence by Alice Oseman is a great read)

Overall, Beautiful Broken Things is a pioneering, realistic, relatable tale of female friendship, and I can’t wait to read Sara Barnard’s future novels.

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Have you read Beautiful Broken Things? What did you think? Comment below or tweet me at @annalisebooks!

Annalise x