Man Booker Prize 2011

The longlist for the 2011 Man Booker prize has been announced:

• Julian Barnes The Sense of an Ending (Jonathan Cape - Random House)
• Sebastian Barry On Canaan's Side (Faber)
• Carol Birch Jamrach's Menagerie (Canongate Books)
• Patrick deWitt The Sisters Brothers (Granta)
• Esi Edugyan Half Blood Blues (Serpent's Tail - Profile)
• Yvvette Edwards A Cupboard Full of Coats (Oneworld)
• Alan Hollinghurst The Stranger's Child (Picador - Pan Macmillan)
• Stephen Kelman Pigeon English (Bloomsbury)
• Patrick McGuinness The Last Hundred Days (Seren Books)
• A.D. Miller Snowdrops (Atlantic)
• Alison Pick Far to Go (Headline Review)
• Jane Rogers The Testament of Jessie Lamb (Sandstone Press)
• D.J. Taylor Derby Day (Chatto & Windus - Random House)

Read more at http://tinyurl.com/4yubhlh

Wondrous Reads: The Immortals Blog Tour

Win an Immortals (Alyson Noel) goodie bag courtesy of the fantastic Wondrous Reads blog at http://tinyurl.com/63okesa

UK Book Giveaways: The Memory Cage

UK Book Giveaways: The Memory Cage

The Memory Cage - Ruth Eastham

End Date: 31st August 2011

Open to: UK Only

Requirements: None

How To Enter: Fill Out Form

UK Book Giveaways: Kay Woodward Giveaway

UK Book Giveaways: Kay Woodward Giveaway
End Date: 5th August 2011
Open to: UK Only
Requirements: None
How To Enter: Fill Out Form

UK Book Giveaways: A Beautiful Lie by Irfan Master

UK Book Giveaways: A Beautiful Lie

A Beautiful Lie - Irfan Master

End Date: 31st August 2011

Open to: UK Only

Requirements: None

How To Enter: Fill Out Form

UK Book Giveaways: Six Days by Philip Webb

UK Book Giveaways: Six Days by Philip Webb
End Date: 31st August 2011
Open to: UK Only
Requirements: None
How To Enter: Fill Out Form

Whichbook Website

The website Whichbook has been re-launched after undergoing a major overhaul and offers a fun way to help you choose your next book. You can receive suggestions on what to read depending on your mood or what you are looking for in characters, plot and setting. This site always throws up books I haven't yet come across so if you are looking for more diverse suggestions for your next read it's well worth a try!

Branford Boase Award Winner

Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace has won the 2011 Branford Boase Award:

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...

Recommendations Round-up

Since it's the summer holidays and I have a bit of extra time I thought I'd do a brief round-up of some of my recent recommended reading. To save space I haven't included a blurb or synopsis but please click on the titles for more details on the story.

Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter

I've just caught up with this series, which I've been meaning to read for a while, and I absolutely love it! A great combination of a boarding school story, spies, action and adventure, with even a little bit of romance thrown in. Highly recommended for a quick, fun read.

Out for Blood by Alyxandra Harvey

The third book in the Drake Chronicles series and I think my favourite so far. If you like vampires, some evil and some not, working alongside vampire hunters with a dash of humour and romance this series is for you. I'd also recommend the Evernight series by Claudia Gray.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Another YA book which focuses on a future world where society is very different. There is a bit of a fashion for dystopian YA books at the moment but I think this one stands out. Also recommended on this theme The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Matched by Ally Condie, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld.