Report & Pics: Puffin New Talent Night & My Bookish Days in London

On Monday, I travelled down to London for the Puffin New Talent night. It was my first time in the city, and I loved it! It's very different to Manchester, but in a good way. I saw a few cool things, including the Narnia staircase at Hamleys toy shop (amazing!), the view from the 10th floor of the Strand building (where Churchill stood to watch the bombs fall in WWII - thanks for this H!), Foyles bookshop (wow!) and Paloma Faith (I walked past her on Oxford Steet!).

Anyway... back to the books. Four authors attended Puffin's New Talent night, and presented their books for 2010: Helen Grant (The Glass Demon), Alex Scarrow (Time Riders), Jason Bradbury (Atomic Swarm) and David Yelland (The Truth About Leo). I didn't take any pictures of the authors (didn't take my camera!), but Liz from My Favourite Books did, and you can see them on her blog here. It was great to finally meet Liz and Mark... hi guys! I also got to meet some Puffin people who I've chatted to over email, which was great. They were all lovely!

Each author spoke about their upcoming books, then chatted to all the attendees afterwards. I spoke to Alex, Jason and Helen, and they were all kind enough to sign my books. David Yelland had to run off, so I didn't get chance to meet him, but maybe next time. I must say, his book, The Truth About Leo, sounds amazing, and his presentation almost had us all in tears. It's also the first time I've ever come across an embargoed press release.. we weren't allowed to talk about it until Tuesday!

So, that was Monday over. On to Tuesday, or what will now be known as my best book day ever.

We (me and my friend Charley, who I asked to come with me) started off with a meeting back at the Puffin offices, where we talked about everything from Vampire Academy, Beautiful Creatures and Sarah Dessen. It was so much fun, all the Puffin people are so enthusiastic about the books they work on, and are all generally amazing. I met the UK editor of Love, Aubrey and Sarah Dessen which, believe me, was pretty exciting!

After leaving the Puffin offices, we then went to lunch with Nina from Orion Children's Books, where I had a lovely tuna salad and got to hear all about their 2010 books. They've got some brilliant stuff coming up, and I can't wait to read it all. Just the mere mention of Marcus Sedgwick made me squee slightly... I do love everything he writes!

From there we went to the UK Simon & Schuster offices, where me and Charley got very over-excited and just kind of repeated how much we love S&S and their many YA books. Seriously, these guys publish Hush, Hush, which I love, so you can imagine my over enthusiasm for this little trip. Kat (who, by the way, is ace), went through their 2010 schedule with us, and gave us many press releases and finished covers. 2010 is going to be fantastic in S&S land -- I'm excited about every single YA book they're publishing, especially Hex Hall and the new editions of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series. I can't wait.

That pretty much wrapped up our one and a half days in London. We came back with many books, exciting information and a cool green Puffin bag. It was amazing to see the publishing houses and meet my online publicist friends, and I'm so glad I decided to go and brave London. Thanks to Kat, Nina, H & all the ladies at Puffin for a great two days. Roll on 2010!

News: New Uglies, Pretties & Specials UK Covers!

When Kat at Simon & Schuster UK showed me these new Uglies, Pretties and Specials covers a few days ago, I was excited. Really excited - I LOVE them!

I haven't read the series, but I definitely will do as soon as I get these new editions. They're amazing, and even nicer in person -- the colours stand out more (Specials is more green), and they're very eye-catching. All three books are released in the UK on March 4th, 2010, in paperback format.

What do you reckon'? Do you like them?

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

From Amazon: Greg Heffley finds himself thrust into a new year and a new school where undersize weaklings share the corridors with kids who are taller, meaner and already shaving. Desperate to prove his new found maturity, which only going up a grade can bring, Greg is happy to have his not-quite-so-cool sidekick, Rowley, along for the ride. But when Rowley's star starts to rise, Greg tries to use his best friend's popularity to his own advantage. Recorded in his diary with comic pictures and his very own words, this test of Greg and Rowley's friendship unfolds with hilarious results.

For some unknown reason, Diary of a Wimpy Kid is one of those books I've always heard about, but never had any interest in. Still, it's never too late to catch up!

Greg is an instantly likeable character, and is trying to navigate his way through adolescence as best he can. He has some hilarious ideas, and though most unfortunately backfire, they're fun to read about all the same. Although Greg's little brother Manny doesn't play a huge part in the story, he's one of my favourite characters. He just looks so cute in the cartoons, and is like a smaller version of Plug from the Beano's Bash Street Kids strip. Plus, he gets my sympathy vote -- I felt really sorry for him when Greg destroyed his tiny snowman.

I love how this book is divided between text and cartoons. The cartoons are well drawn and stylish, and are a great compliment to the story. They illustrate Greg's life in a hilarious and exciting way, and are no doubt part of Diary of a Wimpy Kid's worldwide appeal. I can understand why younger teenage boys love this series, and Jeff Kinney has certainly done well for himself.

This book is like the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series for boys, and while not quite as laugh out loud funny, it's brilliant if you want a quick, entertaining read. I'll definitely be buying the rest of the series, and luckily for me, I'm not too far behind.

US Vs. UK: Leviathan Covers

US // UK

I don't mind either of these covers, though I do prefer the UK one, if only for the colours and overall design. Both are relevant to the story, with machinery and technology featuring quite prominently. My only criticism of the US cover is that it looks a bit dull... is it better in person?

Waiting On Wednesday: Dark Life

Waiting on Wednesday idea from Jill at Breaking the Spine.

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Dark Life by Kat Falls

* Published by: Scholastic Press (US), Simon & Schuster (UK)
* Format: Hardcover (US), Paperback (UK)
* Release Date: May 1st, 2010 (US), April 29th, 2010 (UK)
* On Amazon: here.

From Amazon: Ty has lived under the ocean for his entire life. Following global warming and the rise of the seas, his family joined an underwater community in hopes of living in the new frontier of the ocean floor. But When Ty meets Gemma, a girl from "topside", who is searching the seas for her brother, she quickly makes his life very complicated. Together Ty and Gemma face dangerous sea creatures and venture into the frontier town's rough underworld as they search for her missing brother. But the deeper they dig, the more attention they attract, and soon Ty and Gemma find themselves being hunted by a gang of outlaws who roam the underwater territories causing havoc, and who seem to have eerie abilities. But Ty has a secret of his own, living underwater for his entire life has meant he has also developed a "special" power. Can he keep it a secret from Gemma and his family or is it time for him to finally tell everyone the truth?

I didn't know if I was allowed to post the UK cover, so I used the US one instead. Sounds cool, eh?

The It Girl: Devious by Cecily von Ziegesar

From Amazon: The ninth book in the New York Times bestselling IT GIRL series. Jenny Humphrey could have lost everything she'd worked so hard for when the reality show her adoring freshman fans were filming backfired on her in the most publicly humiliating way...but it meant she found out who her friends were - maybe Waverly is big enough for four IT girls?

Devious shakes things up for Jenny and Co., and after eight books, it's just what the series needed.

Isla and Isaac are two new characters introduced, and immediately make the whole of Waverly talk, gossip and speculate. While Isaac and Jenny hit it off, sister Isla befriends party girl Tinsley. They're both pretty unlikely pairings, and do nothing but stir up trouble in true It Girl style.

If i'm honest, I thought this series would be winding down and getting worse by now. Instead, it just gets better and better, and each book surprises me. They're the most fun reads, and although they aren't the most popular, they are, without a doubt, in my top five series. All this coming from someone who has no interest in clothes, brands or fashion -- if that doesn't give you an idea of how addictive this series is, I don't know what will!

It'll be a sad day when The It Girl is no more, but I'm hoping there are at least a couple of books to go. They're consistently entertaining and, at the end of the day, that's what a good book is all about.

In My Mailbox #42: New Books This Week (+ vlog)

In My Mailbox idea from Kristi @ The Story Siren, and all descriptions from Amazon.

Hey guys! I've done a vlog to go along with my post this week, because I suddenly got an urge to try it. I don't think it will be a regular thing, but I might do a few. Please don't laugh at me! (But you can if you want to - I won't mind!) :)

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For review:

Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace (UK proof/ARC. Apparantly this is amazing!)

Zimbabwe, 1980s The war is over, independence has been won and Robert Mugabe has come to power offering hope, land and freedom to black Africans. It is the end of the Old Way and the start of a promising new era. For Robert Jacklin, it's all new: new continent, new country, new school. And very quickly he learns that for some of his classmates, the sound of guns is still loud, and their battles rage on ...white boys who want their old country back, not this new black African government. Boys like Ivan. Clever, cunning Ivan. For him, there is still one last battle to fight, and he's taking it right to the very top.

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Private: Revelation, Paradise Lost & Last Christmas by Kate Brian (I was so excited when I opened this package!)

Private begins with the introduction of Reed Brennan, a savvy and ambitious honors student who enters the prestigious Easton Academy private school. Coming from a shaken family and a mundane everyday life, she is eager to explore the brand new setting that awaits her in Connecticut. Unexpectedly, the center of her fascination soon becomes a famed sorority known as Billings House and the posh girls who reside there—Noelle, Ariana, Kiran, and Taylor.

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Willoughby's Return by Jane Odiwe (Thanks Jane! I loved Lydia Bennet's Story, so can't wait to read this!)

In Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, when Marianne Dashwood marries Colonel Brandon, she puts her heartbreak over dashing scoundrel John Willoughby in the past.

Three years later, Willoughby's return throws Marianne into a tizzy of painful memories and exquisite feelings of uncertainty. Willoughby is as charming, as roguish, and as much in love with her as ever. And the timing couldn't be worse—with Colonel Brandon away and Willoughby determined to win her back, will Marianne find the strength to save her marriage, or will the temptation of a previous love be too powerful to resist?

Bought:

• Burned by Ellen Hopkins

• Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

• Identical by Ellen Hopkins

• Ex-Mas by Kate Brian

• The Ex Games by Jennifer Echols

• Pretty Little Liars books #1-4 boxset by Sara Shepard

• Wicked by Sara Shepard

• Splendor: A Luxe Novel by Anna Godbersen

• House of Night: Tempted by P.C. & Kristin Cast

• Hold Still by Nina LaCour

People/blogs mentioned:

• Adele at Persnickety Snark

• Sammee at I Want to Read That