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Blog Tour and Giveaway- Keeper of the Bees @megkassel @entangledteen

Keeper of the Bees by Meg Kassel Genre: YA Paranormal Release Date: September 4th 2018 Entangled Teen Summary: “ Beauty and the beast like you’ve never imagined! ” — New York Times bestselling author Pintip Dunn KEEPER OF THE BEES is a tale of two teens who are both beautiful and beastly, and whose pasts are entangled in surprising and heartbreaking ways. Dresden is cursed. His chest houses a hive of bees that he can’t stop from stinging people with psychosis-inducing venom. His face is a shifting montage of all the people who have died because of those stings. And he has been this way for centuries—since he was eighteen and magic flowed through his homeland, corrupting its people. He follows harbingers of death, so at least his curse only affects those about to die anyway. But when he arrives in a Midwest town marked for death, he encounters Essie, a seventeen-year-old girl who suffers from debilitating delusions and hallucinations. His bees want to sting her on sight. But Essie does...

The Secret

Book Review- Blue is the Warmest Colour by Julie Maroh

Title:   Blue is the Warmest Colour / Le bleu est une couleur chaud Author:  Julie Maroh Published:   April 2010 by Glenat Length:  157 pages Warnings:   graphic sex scenes Source: library Other info: This got adapted into a film, La Vie d’Adele, which won the Palme d’Or. Summary :  Clementine is a junior in high school who seems average enough: she has friends, family, and the romantic attention of the boys in her school. When her openly gay best friend takes her out on the town, she wanders into a lesbian bar where she encounters Emma: a punkish, confident girl with blue hair. Their attraction is instant and electric, and Clementine find herself in a relationship that will test her friends, parents, and her own ideas about herself and her identity. Review : Clementine, age fifteen, sees a blue-haired girl in the street one day. Further meetings with this girl, Emma,  leads to attraction, eventually love. I wanted to read this because a) it's a lesbi...

Theatre Review- Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, performed by Poltergeist Theatre

Title: Much Ado About Nothing   Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Jack Bradfield  Performed by: Poltergeist Theatre Seen at:  The Michael Pilch Studio Review:  Shakespeare’s tale of two schemes concerning lovers – one to get a couple together, one to tear another couple apart- could conceivably happen anywhere. Jack Bradfield sets the action in a house party at the turn of the millennium, when anything might happen. Poltergeist Theatre’s production introduces new perspectives to the characters. I liked how Hero and Claudio, who are traditionally the couple who conform to society’s gendered expectations, are the ones whose genders are played with, keeping the genders and pronouns they have in the text, whilst being played by actors and wearing clothes coded to another gender. The editing of the play blends this all together, as Claudio’s rant at the alter focuses more on the infidelity he believes Hero to be guilty of, and is less directly misogynistic, which mig...

Theatre Review- Macbeth, performed by Act Three Theatre

Title:  Macbeth Writer: William Shakespeare Performed by: Act Three Theatre Major cast:  Josh Beecham, Ned Walkely, Simon Morgan Seen at: Paradise in the Vault, Edinburgh Fringe Summary:  An exciting new take on William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Using the original language but set in a young offenders’ prison, it is bold, fast-paced, and performed entirely with a cast of three. Review: The story of Macbeth is performed by three actors and set in a modern young offender's prison. I wanted to see this show because Macbeth, multiroling, and a vastly different setting to its original-what more could I ask for? We open with Macbeth holding a titlecard/ID card, presumably having a mugshot taken, then an opening physical sequence with some impressive stage fighting to set the scene. Then the play develops in its new setting, where guards are witches and kingship is represented by a dressing gown and a paper crown. The setting works well for the most part, prison hierarchies bein...

Theatre Review: This Much by John Fitzpatrick, performed by Moving Dust

I am aware that my timeliness is terrible. I saw this show eight months ago, I wrote this review eight months ago, I found it again tonight.   I saw it at Edinburgh, and it's now playing at Soho Theatre as part of the Pride festival.  Title: This Much (or A Act of Violence Towards The Institution of Marriage) Writer: John Fitzpatrick Director: Kate Sagovsky Performed by: Moving Dust Cast:  Lewis Hart, Simon Carroll-Jones, and James Parris Seen at: Zoo City Review: Gar is in a long term relationship with Antony, and they're thinking about marriage , but meets Albert on an app. This leads to a romantic drama exploring the meaning and importance of marriage. I saw this in the programme. I loved the title and the picture and thought maybe if I have time. I then saw this being promoted on the Royal Mile- three men in wedding dresses standing on plinths- and thought, yes, I have to see this. I didn't really know about the play though. The drama progresses well. Something's...

Theatre Review- Richard III and Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, performed by The Handlebards

Review written with input from two of my friends who saw it with me, Lottie and Amy. Their opinion is reflected here too.  Title: " Richard III" and "Much Ado About Nothing" Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Emma Sampson  (Richard III), Nicola Samer (Much Ado) Performed by: The Handlebards Major cast: Liam Mansfield, Matt Maltby, Paul Hillar, and Stanton Plummer-Cambridge Seen at: The Museum of the Order of St. John Review:  In Richard III, Richard, Duke of Gloucester murders his way to the throne and doesn't stop once he's there. In Much Ado About Nothing, plots to set up and break up pairs of lovers happen with varying degrees of success. The Handlebards, four actors who cycle with set, props and scenery to wherever they're going, are taking these shows on a tour. I was incredibly looking forwards to seeing these. The comedy of the Handlebards that I'd seen before, plus one of my favourite shows (Much Ado) plus one of the plays I knew had man...

Book Review- This Is Not a Love Story by Keren David

Title: This Is Not A Love Story Author: Keren David Series:   N/A Published:   7 May 2015 by Atom Length: 352 pages Source: library Other info: Keren David has also written the When I Was Joe series (When I Was Joe, Almost True, and Another Life), Salvage, Lisa's Guide to Winning the Lottery, and Cuckoo.  Summary :  Kitty dreams of a beautiful life, but that's impossible in suburban London where her family is haunted by her father's unexpected death. So when her mum suggests moving to Amsterdam to try a new life, Kitty doesn't take much persuading. Will this be her opportunity to make her life picture perfect? In Amsterdam she meets moody, unpredictable Ethan, and clever, troubled Theo. Two enigmatic boys, who each harbour their own secrets. In a beautiful city and far from home, Kitty finds herself falling in love for the first time. But will love be everything she expected? And will anyone's heart survive? Review:  Kitty and Theo have recently moved to Amsterd...

Theatre Review-A Midsummer Night's Dream, performed by the Arcola Queer Collective

Title:  A Midsummer Night's Dream Writer: William Shakespeare and Patrick Cash and company Director: Nick Connaughton Performed by: Arcola Queer Directive Cast:  Sheena Anyanwu, Diego Benzoni, Miss Cairo, Daniel Correia, Anthony Cranfield, Vickie Dillon, Rudi Douglas, Camilla Harding, James Hartley, Stuart Honey, Damien Hughes, Krishna Istha, Rubyyy Jones, Damien Kileen, Bex Large, Phil Rhys Thomas. Seen at: Arcola Theatre Review: Hermia and Lysander are a happy couple, much to the protests of Hermia's homophobic mother Egeus. Helena is a young man in love with Demetrius, who pushes him away. The couples all get mixed up at a nightclub, La Forêt, when the owner Oberon uses Puck to matchmake. Meanwhile, Oberon's relationship to his wife Titania is breaking down over the care of an abducted Irish musician, while the backstage team of La Forêt prepare for their turn in the spotlight. Through Shakespearean verse and contemporary additions, A Midsummer Night's Dream is a t...

Book Review- Because You'll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas

First post of 2016! I'm starting as I hope to go on, with a review. Enjoy! Title : Because You'll Never Meet Me Author : Leah Thomas Series : N/A Published : Bloomsbury Children's Books Length : 344 pages Source: Publisher Other info : This is Leah Thomas's debut. A sequel,  currently Nowhere Near You, should come in 2017. Summary : Ollie and Moritz are best friends, but they can never meet. Ollie is allergic to electricity. Contact with it causes debilitating seizures. Moritz’s weak heart is kept pumping by an electronic pacemaker. If they ever did meet, Ollie would seize. But Moritz would die without his pacemaker. Both hermits from society, the boys develop a fierce bond through letters that become a lifeline during dark times—as Ollie loses his only friend, Liz, to the normalcy of high school and Moritz deals with a bully set on destroying him. A story of impossible friendship and hope under strange circumstances, this debut is powerful, dark and humorous in equal ...

Theatre Review: Willy's Bitches

  I'm sorry for taking so long to get this up!  Title : Willy’s Bitches Written By: Shannon Thurstone Performed by: Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Director: Philip Howard Music: Tamara Saringer  Seen at:  Assembly Checkpoint, Edinburgh Fringe Review : Willy’s Bitches is a cabaret show featuring various women of Shakespeare. A variety of characters are used, selected from tragedies, comedies, and histories, and they take you on a journey of classical dialogue and modern music.  So, there’s a joke in my family that anything I read/watch is gay, feminist, murderous, or Shakespeare. I was looking through the giant list of shows at Edinburgh and I came across this, which promised to be three of these things...I had to go and see it! My favourites were Rachel Graham as a cold, distant, creepy Lady Macbeth, and Hannah Kerbes and Samantha Taylor Burnes as Beatrice and Kate, drinking and singing a bawdy song. Jenny Douglas was a really strong Julia, who is p...

Snapshot reviews- Firestarter, Only Ever Yours, Firewallers, The Crane Wife

Hi everyone! Firstly, I had a brilliant time at the Sunday of YALC. I got more books than I should have done, and met so many wonderful people. Thank you everyone for a great day! Second, Rebecca is the winner of a signed, unpersonalised copy of The Lost and the Found! I will post it some time this week/  There’s still one unsigned copy to be won... if you're reading this on Saturday 25th, there's a twitter giveaway going on...   Third! I have a giant pile of books I’ve read that I don’t feel I can write fully about.  So I asked Georgia, aka the Bibliomaniac , if I could use her format of very mini reviews (such as here ) and she said yes! Thank you, Georgia!  Here’s a very quick snapshot at some things I’ve been reading...

Book Review: The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson

Title:   The Art of Being Normal Author:  Lisa Williamson Series:   N/A Published:     1 January 2015 by David Fickling Length:  368 pages Source: library Other info: This was Lisa’s debut Summary :  Two boys. Two secrets. David Piper has always been an outsider. His parents think he’s gay. The school bully thinks he’s a freak. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl. On the first day at his new school Leo Denton has one goal – to be invisible. Attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan. When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. But things are about to get messy. Because at Eden Park School secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long… Review: David, seen by everyone as a boy, really a girl, is continually teased and misunderstood by everyone bar his best friends, from parents to bullies. Leo is the new guy, with rumour...

Theatre Review- Luck of the Draw

Title: Luck of the Draw Writer: Michael Smith Director: Matthew Dye Performed by: Renegade Theatre Company and VF Cast: Neil Brown, Claire Deards, Tom Hurst, Niven Willett, Grace J. Willis, Hayley White, and Zac Abbott  Seen at: Duke Street Theatre Review:  Six friends, getting ready for a night out, with Papa John's pizza, waiting for the lottery results, and plenty of alcohol. It's funny, it's dirty, it's crazy. But then there's an accident which throws suspicion into the group, and by the end, the night has gone horribly wrong. I wanted to see this because I love the  Renegade Theatre crew, and this was being advertised as a black comedy, which is definitely my cup of tea. The humour was just as good as I'd hoped. Yes, you can think badly of me at laughing at various parts of it, because, as I said on the night, the majority of jokes are centered around things that cause people to go to hell (the effect of sexual favours for animals on a career in TV,...

Theatre Review- Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare, performed by Smooth Faced Gents

Title:  Titus Andronicus Writer:  William Shakespeare Director:   Yaz Al-Shaater Performed by: Smooth Faced Gentlemen Cast:  Ariane Barnes, Olivia Bromley, Anita-Joy Uwajeh, Ely Condron, Lia Burge, Ashlea Kaye, Helen Coles, Emma Nixon Seen at:   Greenwich Theatre Review: Following a bloody war with the Goths, Romans return home with prisoners but without an emporer. Titus Andronicus is appointed, but he refuses. Saturninus is appointed emperor, and he says he wants to marry Titus’ daughter, Lavinia. Lavinia and her lover/Saturninus’ brother object, so Saturninus takes Tamora, the queen of the defeated Goths, as his empress. Throw in her two sons, her lover, and her desire for revenge (fair enough, considering within the first five minutes of the play, her eldest son is cut up, despite her pleadings), and you have Shakespeare’s bloodiest play... here performed with an all-female cast and a lot of red paint. I was very excited to see this. I read Titus a few year...

Book Review-The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks

Title:   The Bunker Diary Author:  Kevin Brooks Series:   N/A Published:   7 March 2013 by Penguin Length: 268 pages Warnings:   many things. Highlight [start] suicide, murder, quite extreme cruelty [/end] Source: library Other info: The Bunker Diary won the Carnegie Medal in 2014. Summary :  Room meets Lord of the Flies, The Bunker Diary is award-winning, young adult writer Kevin Brooks's pulse-pounding exploration of what happens when your worst nightmare comes true - and how will you survive? I can't believe I fell for it. It was still dark when I woke up this morning. As soon as my eyes opened I knew where I was. A low-ceilinged rectangular building made entirely of whitewashed concrete. There are six little rooms along the main corridor. There are no windows. No doors. The lift is the only way in or out. What's he going to do to me? What am I going to do? If I'm right, the lift will come down in five minutes.  It did. Only this time it wasn't em...

Book Review: The Bubble Wrap Boy by Phil Earle

Title:   The Bubble Wrap Boy Author:    Phil Earle Series:     N/A Published:   1 May 2014 by Penguin Length:    272 pages Source: library Other info: Earle has also written Heroic, Being Billy, and Saving Daisy Summary :   All my life I've been tiny Charlie from the Chinese Chippie, whose only friend is Sinus, the kid who stares at walls. But I believe that everyone's good at something. I've just got to work out what my something is... Charlie's found his secret talent: skateboarding. It's his one-way ticket to popularity. All he's got to do is practice, and nothing's going to stop him - not his clumsiness, not his overprotective mum, nothing. Except Charlie isn't the only one in his family hiding a massive secret, and his next discovery will change everything. How do you stay on the board when your world is turned upside down? Review: Charlie Han is the boy from the Chinese takaway shop, with an overprotective mother and only one...

Book Review- The Bullet Catcher's Daughter by Rod Duncan

Title:   The Bullet Catcher’s Daughter Author:  Rod Duncan Series:     The Fall of the Gaslit Empire #1 Published:   August 2014 by Angry Robot Length:    364 pages Source: netgalley Summary :  Elizabeth Barnabus lives a double life—as herself and as her brother, the private detective. She is trying to solve the mystery of a disappearing aristocrat and a hoard of arcane machines. In her way stand the rogues, freaks and self-proclaimed alchemists of a travelling circus. But when she comes up against an agent of the all-powerful Patent Office, her life and the course of history will begin to change. And not necessarily for the better… Review: The United Kingdom has been split in to two, the Kingdom and The Republic.  In the Republic, Elizabeth Barnaby lives as herself by day, and as her brother Edwin at night, who works as a detective to pay her debts. One case she picks up is to find a missing aristocrat. This leads her on yet another adventur...

Book Reviews: Frozen Charlotte by Alex Bell and Sleepless by Lou Morgan

So, Stripes Publishing have a little imprint called Red Eye where horror stories are being published. I don't read much horror, but I tend to enjoy what I do. Here's a review of the first two books out from Red Eye. Title :   Frozen Charlotte Author : Alex Bell Series :   Red Eye   Published :   5 January 2015 by Red Eye/ Stripes Length :   368 Source :   Publisher Review :Sophie is playing with her best friend when they recieve an ominous message through a Ouija board. A few days later, Sophie is sent to a schoolhouse to live wirh her cousins: Cameron, whose hand was badly burned, Piper, who seems perfect, Lilias, who's terrified of bones, and Rebecca, who has the dolls in the house. And is dead. When I first heard of the Red Eye series that Andersen Press were bringing out, I was very excited. Because I enjoy horror and there should be more YA. Oh, and Lou Morgan (see me profess undying love for her adult series here). So, yes. A series with snazzy covers...

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