Beauty Sleep by Kathryn Evans

review by Maryom


Like a real life sleeping beauty, Laura has been sleeping for forty years. She and her little brother Alfie were seriously ill and cryotherapy, suspending them in a deep-freeze-like state, was seen as the only way they could survive. Now a cure has been found for her illness, and it's time to wake up.

For a 1980s girl, 2028 is a shock. For one thing, she's a celebrity  -  everyone knows of her ground-breaking treatment, they want to see her, talk to her, copy her '80s fashion - and the world has changed so much -  tiny computers, cashless payments, data imprints, and everyone's flawless complexion and brilliantly perfect teeth.
Befriended by Miss Lilly, the owner of the clinic which pioneered her treatment, Laura soon has a new life - new school, new friends - but nothing can replace her family or her old friend Stacey.
There's another side though to this bright future in which Laura finds herself. Children are living rough on the streets, homeless people being classed as vagrants and taken away - but to where? Shem and his dog are trying to stay one move ahead of those tracking them down, but his sinister pursuers aren't so easily shaken. When his story and Laura's collide, an unthinkable, horrific crime is exposed.

Kathryn Evans' debut novel More Of Me was a real knock-out of a read, and with Beauty Sleep she's done it again, mixing the personal problems of a teenager coming back to life after 40 years of 'sleep' with unscrupulous science that belongs in a horror film.
The story is fast-paced and compelling. I read the sample first chapter (here on the Usborne website) and knew I HAD to read the rest. Laura's confusion and lack of memory grabbed my sympathy and intrigued me, at the same time. As her past story is slowly revealed, I couldn't help but wonder how much was being withheld or distorted by people who claimed to care for her. Which of the conflicting versions of events should Laura (and the reader) believe? 
Her story intertwines with Seth's, and it's hard to see how the two will join. Laura's new life is a privileged one of a luxurious apartment, servants, and private school. Seth's is one of living hand-to-mouth, and having no permanent home. Society doesn't seem to have become any fairer in the next decade!
A truly imaginative thriller for teens/young adults, though maybe some will find some 'medical' aspects somewhat horrific - the true horror of it though is that perhaps it isn't ALL that far-fetched!


Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Usborne
Genre - Thriller, Teen, sci-fi, YA 

More Of Me by Kathryn Evans

review by Maryom

To her friends and teachers, Teva seems a perfectly normal 16 year old, but at home there are eleven younger versions of herself who will never grow up. Each year Teva separates into two - the previous version stays that age forever, the new one continues to grow for a year till she too is replaced. While her toddler-self knows nothing different, and the younger girls seem happy to stay locked in childhood or their early teens for ever, the last version, now known as "Fifteen", isn't happy. She had friends, a boyfriend, had worked hard for her GCSE grades - and doesn't want to hand all this over to Teva. Teva equally has realised that at the end of the year she will be cast off and become "Sixteen", virtually imprisoned in the house while another 'self' becomes Teva and moves on. 
Why are her family so different? Can Teva stop this process and begin to live life fully? This mix of real-life problems and scary science will have you on the edge of your seat wanting to find out!

More of Me is an absolutely brilliant YA debut from Kathryn Evans; part thriller, part science fiction, part romance, part everyday growing-up problems - and totally fab!
The concept of a body that splits each year is weird, but it's treated in such a way that I found it easy to believe in - and when all is revealed at the end, there's enough scientific basis that it doesn't all fall apart  (though I hope no one would ever pursue such ideas in the name of Science!) It isn't just a book about a scientific conundrum though - Teva and her younger, stroppier version Fifteen are believable characters you can easily empathise with - they put in all the effort at school, do the homework, revise for and sit exams, and then someone else benefits; make friends to lose them at the end of the year; they fall in love, only to hand their boyfriend over to a new self - who wouldn't be angry? 
I just loved it from the first page, and it had me hooked till the last. 


Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Usborne
Genre - Thriller, Teen, sci-fi, YA 

Blood Tracks by Paula Rawsthorne

review by Maryom

When her dad dies, 16 year old Gina is the only person to doubt the 'accepted' version of events. Family and friends feel she is too obsessed and in need of help to get over events and move on. Gina won't accept this and believes there has to have been something suspicious about it - and that the person her mum trusts most is somehow responsible. Will her new friend Declan help her uncover the truth or is he hiding more secrets and using Gina for some purpose of his own?

Blood Tracks is another unputdownable teen thriller from Paula Rawsthorne, author of the award-winning The Truth About Celia Frost
When an author writes an enthralling debut, I often wonder how they'll manage to follow it up. Well, however it's done, Paula Rawsthorne has pulled it off!
Blood Tracks is told mainly from Gina's point of view and the story captures how it must feel to believe something is wrong when no one else does. The reader naturally shares Gina's disbelief and her frustration that no one will listen.
Gina is a very determined teenager; she's not going to shut up and pretend everything is ok just because that's more comfortable for others but is desperate to find out what happened and, most importantly, why, despite the danger she might be heading into.
The plot is cleverly constructed and full of twists and ends but with clues and pointers along the way if you're smart enough to spot them. All in all, another cracking read.

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Usborne
Genre - Thriller, Teen

Buy Blood Tracks from Amazon

Christmas Things to Stitch and Sew - Usborne Activities

Children off school for Christmas (or snow day)? Can't do all the things you'd planned because of the weather? Didn't buy decorations/cards before the snow hit? You need a book like this! One of Usborne's many activity books just right for this time of year.

I know this is a re-post but it seems appropriate for this week.
Ready for Christmas
Review by Maryom

Yet another wonderful children's craft book from Usborne - this time with the emphasis being on stitching and sewing things for Christmas - like the DIY stuff, Usborne books do what they say on the tin (or cover).
As always, there's a wide variety of projects, aimed at a range of skills and ages. There are gift tags, christmas stockings, cute stuffed penguins and snowmen. Projects for decorations, or to give as presents to family and friends. Some of the simpler ones - tree cards or sparkly decorations - have very little sewing involved, so are good for beginners. Others - gift bags or snowflake chains - offer something slightly more challenging for those with more experience.

Don't worry if you feel unsure about your own sewing skills, there's a guide to stitches and sewing on buttons and sequins at the back of the book so, if necessary, you can brush up your skills first before involving the children.

I love Usborne craft books - Christmas Fairy Things to Make and Do, bought when my teenager was much smaller, still comes out regularly when we're in need of inspiration. Christmas Things to Stitch and Sew is an absolutely brilliant craft book which I'm sure you'll find just as useful for many, many years!

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Usborne Chilren's Books
Genre - Children's Craft Activity

Buy Christmas Things to Stitch and Sew (Usborne Activities) from Amazon

Summer Things to Make and Do - Usborne Activities

Keep the kids busy
Review by Maryom

The title really speaks for itself - an art and craft book of summer-related things to draw, paint and make. It's absolutely full of a variety ideas to keep children occupied throughout the school holidays Printing, collage, paper-crafting - whichever your child prefers, they're sure to find something.
There are simpler ideas, such as collage flowers or fingerprint seahorses, that would suit fairly young children, particularly if helped by an adult or older child, and more complex ones, such as the fishing boat mobile, for older children to make on their own. Each activity comes with easily-followed, illustrated step-by-step instructions.
Although inspired by summer things - seaside, flipflops, ice cream - this isn't a book that will be used only in summer. There are projects in it to inspire a child's imagination at any time of year.
I mustn't forget to mention the most important bit in so many children's eyes - over 250 stickers!! Kites and ice creams, fishing boats and seashells, flowers and insects... lots and lots to decorate paintings, cards, notebooks..
All in all an excellent book filled with hours of creative fun.

Maryom's review - 5 stars

Publisher - Usborne

Genre - Children's Non-Fiction (Craft)

Buy Summer Things to Make and Do from Amazon