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Twelve nights by Andrew Zurcher – cover reveal and giveaway!

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Note, post contains affiliate links.

book cover for Twelve Nights - dark blue night sky with stars, old fashioned hot air balloon, figures in the basket are silhouetted against the full moonPre order at Amazon

Kay and her little sister, Eloise, never imagined that their standard icy Christmas Eve in Cambridge would be the start of a twelve-night odyssey . . .

Kay’s father is working late – as usual. Fed up, her mother bundles her daughters into the car and drives to her husband’s Cambridge college to collect him herself. But when they arrive, the staff claim that nobody by his name has ever worked there . . .

Kay is puzzled by her mother’s reaction – silent tears, not anger and confusion. And what is even more puzzling is the card on her pillow when they return home:

Will O. de Wisp, Gent. F.H.S.P. and Phillip R. T. Gibbet, Gent. F.H.S.P. K.Bith. REMOVALS.

That night, Kay is woken by voices at her window: the voices of Will and Phillip, the Removers. But they are not human. And Kay shouldn’t be able to see them. Except she can . . .

I love getting my reading year off to a magical start, and Twelve Nights by Andrew Zurcher has all the right ingredients to do this. (I confess I haven’t read beyond the first chapter yet, but that was intriguing…) I was very happy to be involved in the cover reveal on twitter (although I’m embarrassed to admit that I forgot to ask who the cover illustrator is when I was dealing with the emails on my phone, so I can’t share that. Will add in when I track them down!) The book is available for pre order on Amazon (and I’m sure other bookshops) and is due out April 5th 2018.

I’m also very happy to be giving away what was described to me as a ‘lovely bespoke, wrapped copy’ of the book – entry through the rafflecopter widget below. The very best of luck to you all. (Full terms and conditions in the widget, but be aware that giveaway is limited to to 18+ with UK addresses, and prize will be sent direct from the publisher.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Inventory 3: Black Knight by Andy Briggs.

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Buy at Amazon (affiliate link)

Dev and his friends are back with more mind-bending tech in this third instalment of the Inventory series. This time they are tasked with training new recruits to defend the Inventory’s incredible inventions. But will they be ready for action before Shadow Helix’s next strike?

First of all, why not catch up on Small’s thoughts on book one and book two of Andy Brigg’s The Inventory series? Now that you’re all set, you’re ready to hear what he thought of book three, Black Knight, aren’t you?

We’re going for a slightly different format this time around. Small is currently up to his neck working on a game for a competition submission so I’m trying a Q & A format on him.

Me: Tell me a positive about the book.

Him:

Me: OK, that was a bit too unspecific wasn’t it? Let’s try a different tack. Is there a sense of continuity from the previous books? Or do they stand alone?

Him: There’s no need to scan back – the required details are explained that you can just pick up and go without reading the previous books.

Me: Would you recommend this book to a friend?

Him: I would, but I would suggest reading the first two first to get the full story, it’s worth it.

Me:

.

. You have coding to do don’t you? Off you go then.

Hm. Not sure that worked an awful lot better than locking him in a room to write a review. Sorry Andy! if it’s any consolation, next child is nearly old enough to take over reading this series… (contemplates trying to get Smallest to write reviews. Cries.)

Anyway, to make it worth your while being here, a giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Harper and the Night Forest – review and giveaway.

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There’s a book for everyone that they remember from when they start to read, I think. For Smallest it looks like it’s going to be Harper.

We’ve had the first Harper book on our shelves for a couple of years, and she’s been completely uninterested, despite the shiny silver cover and the lovely pictures. It wasn’t a picture book you see – illustrated yes, but not in colour, and that didn’t make the grade. But when we were invited to take part in the blog tour for book 3, I decided it was worth another go, and got Harper and the Scarlet Umbrella down and took it into the bedroom.

I was sneaky that night. I started off by reading just one chapter, and they are a little bit cliff hangery and when I stopped, Smallest couldn’t resist and kept reading for herself.

Which led to this wonderful moment, when she read him to sleep. (Apologies for the quality of the photo.)

You don’t get a whole lot better than that to be honest.

Since then, we’ve finished book 1 and we’re on to book two Harper and the Circus of Dreams. The books seem to be the perfect balance of excitement and thrill without any real scariness (Smallest can be a nervous child at times!) and the pacing is perfect for a couple, or three, chapters an evening. They are beautifully illustrated – I would love to see a full colour edition though, I think that would be just gorgeous.

And today I’m actually taking part in the Harper and the Night Forest blog tour, and as part of it I’ve three copies of that book, book 3 in the series to give away.

see at Amazon (affiliate link).

Smallest hasn’t got up to this book, so she can’t review it for you I’m afraid, but I snuck a peek ahead, and I can confirm that it’s just as beautifully written and illustrated, and full of magical, musical, adventure as the previous books. I do have to say that of all the books that Smallest could have fallen in love with, I can quite see what it is about Harper that’s done it. It’s got everything – friendship, a wonderful world, lyrically described and a lovely heroine with her sidekick, Midnight the cat. Excellent books for a 7(ish) year old to enjoy.

The books are written by Cerrie Burnell (twitter), she until recently of CBeebies fame, and illustrated by Laura Ellen Anderson (Website / Twitter)

Book info

Title: Harper and the Night Circus

Author: Cerrie Burnell

Illustrator: Laura Ellen Anderson

Release Date: 2 nd March 2017

Genre: MG Adventure

Publisher: Scholastic UK

Format: Paperback

Harper and her friends get to visit the City of Singing Clocks right by the mysterious Night Forest. It is rumoured that a magical Ice Raven whose song can melt hardened hearts lives amongst the ebony trees. With the children’s help The Wild Conductor plans to capture the mythical bird and create the greatest orchestra ever known. But Harper soon needs to decide who actually needs their help the most…

If you’d like to win your own copy of Harper and the Night Forest, enter via the rafflecopter widget below – don’t forget to comment on the blog as the mandatory entry. (Please don’t panic if you’re a first time commenter and your comment is moderated, it’s an anti spam measure, and I’ll be along to fish it out of moderation in a bit 🙂 Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Fingerlings – win your own interactive toy monkey.

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As far as my kids are concerned, the best bit about me blogging is that every now and then fun stuff arrives in the post. Given that the Fingerling arrived the day after Smallest had to have a tooth extracted (there’s a fab way to feel like a failed parent if ever there was one).

Given that Fingerlings Baby Monkeys love hanging onto your finger and know when they’re being touched, spoken to, and even hung upside down, they’re great fun and ideal for cheering up a slightly sad girl! These perfect primate pets come to life with 40 ways to play and 50 sounds to let you know how they are feeling.

Fingerlings are the ideal pet from a parent point of view – no tidying up, stay where you put them, and pretty sturdy too. You can swing them, pet them, kiss them, AND rock them to sleep!

There are six different Fingerlings to collect.

1. MIA – Purple Fingerlings

Hi – I’m Mia! I’m a purple monkey with white hair and I’m curious about the giant world around me!

2. SOPHIE – White Fingerlings

My name is Sophie and I’m full of loving monkey hugs, with a white body and purple hair!

3. BORIS – Blue Fingerlings

I’m called Boris. Laughter is my game! You’ll love my blue and orange color combo.

4. FINN – Black Fingerlings

Call me Finn is my name. I’m black and blue and I swing to the beat of my own drum!

5. BELLA – Pink Fingerlings

My name is Bella. My bright yellow hair complements my oh-so-pink skin. I express how I feel with cute monkey babble!

6. ZOE – Turguoise Fingerlings

I’m Zoe and I love life upside down! My perfect purple hair stands out against my turquoise blue skin.

Want to know more? check out the video.

Suitable for ages (5+). Available for pre-order now for £14.99rrp through: Amazon.co.uk (affiliate link), The Entertainer and Smyths. Also available through some Tesco stores.

And don’t forget to enter to win your own Fingerling, via the Rafflecoptr widget below. Please note – there’s only one prize, and I can’t guarantee which Fingerling you’ll get.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Everything Machine by Ally Jennen – review and giveaway

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What would you do if you accidentally acquired an intelligent machine that could print anything? (I’m thinking robot cleaner. Or an extra storey for the house, maybe a dozen extra bookcases…)

The Everything Machine

From Ally Kennen

(twitter, web, facebook)

Release Date: 2nd February 2017

Genre: MG

Publisher: Scholastic UK

Format: Paperback

Cover illustration Chris Jevons

(twitter)

Buy at Amazon (affiliate)

Eleven year old Olly has a very special delivery – a 3D printing machine, stamped with PROPERTY OF M.O.D and BRITISH SPACE AGENCY. WARNING. DO NOT TAMPER, which has magical powers… It has a name, it speaks, and it can print ANYTHING Olly asks it to – a never-ending supply of sweets, a swimming pool in the shed – but what Olly really wants is… his dad, who has separated from his mum and moved out of the family home. Cue the creation of Dad-Bot – he looks just like Dad (on a good day) but is totally chaotic – and his antics tip Olly and co into a heart-racing and heart-warming adventure!

The Everything Machine is a great example of middle grade fiction – a romping yarn that draws in newly independent readers. Or passing parents for that matter – I started reading it so that I could talk about it and entice in the aforementioned newly independent reader 7 year old, and discovered I’d devoured three chapters and was desperate to know what happens next…

You have been warned. It’s a *very* readable book. I’m a particular fan of Bird, the 14 year old sister to our main character, who “knows how to fix the internet, debug computers, build crazy websites and put up firewalls. She’s got this very cool sideways haircut and seems to know about everything before it happens.” Definitely my kind of teen. (Also, cool sideways haircut? Would that suit me?) All the characters are well drawn, even the machine itself – a huffy printer sounds about spot on for the ones I’ve met day to day. Of course, there’s more to the story than the interactions between children and machine, but this is, as ever, a spoiler free review.

If you’d like to check out the Everything Machine for yourself, you’re in luck, because I’ve got three copies to giveaway – entry via the easy Rafflecoptr widget below. Mandatory entry is by comment, UK addresses only. What would you make with an Everything machine?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don’t forget to check out the other blogs on the tour, and good luck!

Listed on the Prizefinder