Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia

Synopsis-

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the people of the small town Gatlin has ever seen. She has wavy black hair, big green eyes and wears a necklace made of junk and carries an old battered journal. She is picked on and neglected because she is the niece of local town shut in- Old man Ravenwood. Lena is struggleing to cope with a power and a curse her family have carried for generations. But as Lena discovers- You cannot hide from your secrets forever.

Review -

This book was full of mystery, drama and emotion. You fall in love with the book when you feel connected to the characters.

Verdict - 5/5

Doctor Who Files: The Doctor

Synopsis-

Who is the 10th Doctor?

Find out all about the Doctor, his friends and enemies, technology and travels, then join him on a brand new adventure in "The hero factor".

Review-

Having read this book myself a few years ago, I enjoyed reading it but met an expected disappointment (as the book's knowlage only goes as far as to the middle of David Tennant's first series as the Doctor). Nevertheless, this book is enjoyable and should not be disreggarded.

Verdict - 3/5

Casino Royale by Ian Fleming

Synopsis-


"Bond... James Bond". MI6 sends distinguished agent 007 to play in a glitzy poker complex known as Casino Royale to recover millions of dollers from a demented madman known as Le Chiffre. Bond then aquires the help of Vesper Lynd who has been assigned to assist him on his mission to retrieve the money. But as events unfold it seems there is a lot more at stake than winning a poker game.. Love, treachery, action and sacrifice are part of this cocktail which Bond prefers "Shaken not stirred".







Review-


This book inspires the 2006 Bond film of the same name. An enjoyable, action packed read based around the card tables of Casino Royale. This book divulges into the concept of the card games and Vesper & 007's love interest more than the movie.Vesper's love affair with Bond is more convincing and moving compared to the film. A great read for any Bond fan!

Review submitted by Mr. MacGregor (Physics)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K Rowling

Synopsis-

It is the middle of the summer, but there is an unseasonal mist pressing against the window panes. Harry is waiting nervously in his bedroom at the Dursley's house in Privet Drive for a visit from Professor Dumbledore. One of the last times he saw the headmaster was in a fierce one- to- one duel with the evil Lord Voldemort, and Harry can't quite believe that Dumbledore is actually coming to the Dursley's of all places. Why is the Professor coming to visit him now? What is it that cannot wait until Harry returns to Hogwarts in a few weeks time? Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts has already got off to an unusual start, as the worlds of Muggle and Magic start to intertwine.

Review-

Harry's sixth year at hogwarts begins with a BANG! And ends with an even bigger BOOM!! This book is a joyride of thrills and spells.

Verdict - 4/5

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K Rowling

Synopsis-

Harry if furious that he has been abandoned at the Dursley's house (yet again) for the summer, he suspects that Voldemort is gathering an army, that he himself could be attacked, and that his so-called friends are keeping him in the dark about the whole situation. Finally rescued by wizard bodyguards, Harry discovers that Dumbledore has reformed the Order of the Phoenix- a secret society that battled against Voldemort and his forces when Voldemort first rose to power. However, the Ministry of Magic is against the Order and has started spreading lies about Harry, Dumbledore and the rest of the Order. As time progresses, Harry begins to wonder if he will have to fight the lurking evil of Voldemort and his Deatheaters... ALONE.


Review-

Rowling may have outdone herself with this book. The characters, the backbone of the story and the big stone halls of Hogwarts and the messy rooms of Grimauld place, not to mention the gleaming green halls of the Ministry of magic. All make this book a magical read. Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix is a really great book and it is no wonder why it is among the shelves of britains best libraries.

Verdict - 4/5

Eagle Day by Robert Muchamore

Synopsis-

Hitler has conquered France. Now he intends to cross the channel and defeat Britain before winter arrives . A group of young refugees led by British spy Charles Henderson faces a stark choice. To head south into the safety Spain, or to go north on a risky mission to sabotage the German invasion plans.

Review-

The book is very exciting, if you start reading it you won't be able to stop. It tells the history of WW2 in a really exciting way plus the children are the heroes!

Verdict - 4/5

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- by J.K Rowling.

Synopsis-

Harry, Hermione and Ron have found themselves leaving Hogwarts and are now tasked with locating and obtaining all of Lord Voldemort's remaining horcruxces. This task is found to be difficult for the three as the horcruxces are disguised as everyday objects (a goblet and a locket for example) and in the most unlikely of places. After almost all horcruxces are destroyed, Harry, Hermione and Ron participate in the "Battle of Hogwarts". During this climaxtic assult, Harry is able to conjure up the courage to destroy the final horcrux. With the final horcrux destroyed, Voldemort is finally killed and the wizarding world is safe.

Review-

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the last in the iconic "Harry Potter series" and is probablly J.K Rowlings greatest writing accomplishment.

The book allows the readers to understand why "YOU-KNOW-WHO" is such a devastating and dangerous foe and also why he was not able to kill Harry when Harry was an infant. The book also divulges into Dumbledores past and how this information affected the very future of the wizarding world.

Verdict-

This book is a "Cauldron cocktail" of action, romance, adventure and brilliance, which any Potter fan would see as an absoloute requirement in the vastly popular Potter collection.

Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone by J.K Rowling

Synopsis-

Harry Potter believes he is an ordinary boy - until he meets a beetle-eyed giant of a man, is enroled to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, learns to play the popular wizarding sport of Quidditch and proves himself as he does battle in a deadly duel with the most dark wizard of our time. The reason.... Harry Potter is a wizard!

Review-

I enjoyed this book because I felt like I was glued to it and I could relate it to the current world.

Verdict - 4/5

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

Synopsis -

STAY BACK, HUMAN. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DEALING WITH.

Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is a brilliant criminal mastermind. But even Artemis doesn't know what he's taken on when he kidanps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit. These aren't the fairies of bedtim stories. These fairies are armed and they're dangerous. Artemis thinks he's got them just where he wants them, but then they stop playing by the rules...

Review -

I like the fact that this book is different from the rest and it is mainly due to Artemis Fowl being the bad guy rather than the hero. It has a really good adventure plot which carries the story in a fast pace. Totally would recommend the book to friends.

Verdict - 5 out of 5.

Shade's Children by Garth Nix

Synopsis -

In a furturistic urban wasteland, evil Overlords have decreed that no child shall live past the age of fourteen. Ella, Drum, Gold-eye and Ninde have all escaped this terrible fate and are recruited into a resistance movement by the mysterious Shade. Hunted ceaselessly bt savage, mutant creatures, Shade's children work together to discover the source of the Overlords' power. But as they get closer to their goal. they begin to question Shade's motives and objectives.

Review -
I thought this book was very good. It wasn't my usual type of book but I thoroughly enjoyed it! It has encouraged me to pick up another one of Garth Nix' books.

Verdict - 4 out of 5.

Young Bond: Blood Fever by Charlie Higson

Synopsis -

An Eton boy's family disappear at sea. James uncovers a shadowy society operating in a hidden corner of the school. And far from England, in the bandit-infested interior of Sardina, a sinster Italian count has built himself a mountain fortress. Is there a connection?

Review - 

Blood Fever is the second book of the Young Bond series and is my favourite one! Count Ugo Carnifex, is a true Bond villain with an elaborate lair and scheme reflecting every inch of his megalomania. There are flashes of the 007 agent in James as he coolly defies the Count, finds allies that are bandits, and gets an adrenaline buzz by diving off high cliffs and driving fast cars. But the best part of the book is the whole scene with James being tortured with the deadliest animal in the world: mosquitoes.

Verdict - 5 out of 5.

Eragon by Christpher Palini

Synopsis -

When Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself.

Overnight he is thrust into a perilous new world of destiny, magic, and power. With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and the fledgling dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds.

Can Eragon take up the mantle of the legendary Dragon Riders? The fate of the Empire may rest in his hands.

Review -

A book filled with destiny, dragons, sword fighting and a hero faced with an impossible task should have been a good read but I found something lacking in the pages. It didn't have the the ability to draw you right into Eragon's world. Maybe because I was a little distracted from certain words being spelt the American way or that I could see a number of plot twists ahead of time.

Verdict -  3 out of 5.

It was enjoyable but it didn't pursue me to read the sequel.

Synopsis -
Summer, 1940.

Hitler’s army is advancing towards Paris, and millions of French civilians are on the run. Amidst the chaos, two British children are being hunted by German agents. British spy Charles Henderson tries to reach them first, but he can only do it with the help of a twelve-year-old French orphan. The British secret service is about to discover that kids working undercover will help to win the war.

For official purposes, these children do not exist.

Review -

I thought this book was excellent. It had a great story line and if you are a Cherub fan then it will tell you how Cherub was made and answer a few questions bout how it was founded and why. It is a good book and I would highly recommend it.

Verdict - 5 out of 5.

Warriors into the Wild by Erin Hunter

Synopsis -

Fire alone can save our Clan...

For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by the powerful ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying -- and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty . . . Who may yet turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.

Review -

This is a very exciting and awesome book about a domestic cat that wants to go further than his back garden and ends up joing the Thunderclan.

Verdict -  4 out of 5.

Synopsis -

With Serpine dead, the world is safe once more. At least that's what Valkyrie amd Skulduggery think, until the notorious Baron Vengenous makes a bloody escape from prison, and dead bodies and vampires start showing up all over Ireland.

With Baron Vengeous after the deadly armour of Lord Vile, and pretty much everyone out to kill Valkyrie, the daring detective duo face their biggest challenge yet. But what if the greatest threat to Valkyrie is just a little closer to home...

Review -

I thought this book was exciting because it was adventurous and the nightmares came true. Ending was a bit stop and start.

Verdict - 4 out of 5.

Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief

Synopsis -

My name is Percy Jackson. Until a few months ago I was at a private school for troubled kids in New York. Am I troubled kid? You could say that...

Does six schools in six years count as troubled? Does finding out that the Greek gods are alive and living in America count as troubled? Does being no.1 on their hit list count as troubled? And does discovering that you're the only half-blood alive who can stop a war fo the gods count as troubled?

If Percy fails in his quest, forget trouble - there's going to be Hades to pay...

Review -

Totally a cool book! It's about an American boy that finds out that his father is a Greek god and that all the myths around the gods are true! I also liked that Percy's dyslexia and Attention Deficit Disorder were put down to his subconscious familiarity with ancient Greek and his need to be ever ready to fight off hoards of deadly monsters.

Verdict - 4 out of 5

Defintely going to read the rest of the series.

Nemesis: Sinster Intent by Catherine MacPhail

Synopsis -

Strange lights in the night sky, people disappearing, a mysterious man calling him Destiny - Ram has run straight into another mystery. But the people who go missing are people no one will miss, except Ram and the dotty old woman who rescues him...

And the Dark Man finds Ram again - but how? Just when Ram thinks it is safe to run he discovers another terrifying truth. Something that means he will never be safe again. Not him. Not anyone.

Review -

This book is the third in the series. In the book you get a lot more hints about Ram's past and what he is searching for but my favourite character in the story was Catman - brilliant! Its fast paced, adventurous and still keeps you guessing!

Verdict - 4 out of 5.

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Synopsis -

Harvard professor Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call while on business in Paris: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been brutally murdered inside the museum. Alongside the body, police have found a series of baffling codes. As Langdon and a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, begin to sort through the bizarre riddles, they are stunned to find a trail that leads to the works of Leonardo Da Vinci - and suggests the answer to a mystery that stretches deep into the vault of history. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine code and quickly assemble the pieces of the puzzle, a stunning historical truth will be lost forever...

Review -

I enjoyed this book because the chapters were so short and I felt like I was racing through it! An interesting plot with many twists - much better that the film.

Verdict - 3 out of 5.

Nemesis: Into the Shadows by Catherine MacPhail

Synopsis -

Ram has no memory of who he is. He wakes up in a darkened corridor of a tower block with no idea of how he had got there. And then the lift doors nearby open and inside is a man, lying in a pool of blood, desperately trying to tell him something...

Ram is now the murder suspect and on the run. But it isn't just the police he has to worry about. Something is moving in the shadows. Could it be connected with the dying man's last words? Or is he past catching up with him?

Review -

This book was recommended by a friend and it's really good! The book is fast paced and there are loads of twists that keep you guessing what is actually happening! Ram is so confused about who he is that you feel sorry for him. The other characters in the book are strong and believable. I'm going to keep reading the series.

Verdict - 4 out of 5