The Book Plank

Best Young Adult of 2015 Young Adult the genre that triggers young minds (and old). Writing Young Adult fiction is a league of itself. Though of course each story has it's roots in one or another genre, Epic or Urban Fantasy inspired. They set themselves apart when it comes down to telling the story and more importantly the focus on the protagonist, often these are young heroes or heroines who go through a remarkable transition. For me the combination mentioned above was most notable in the following books. Brandon Sanderson took over the Young Adult world by storm with his novel Steelheart . This year Firefight was released and wow. Storytelling at it's finest. The one sentence I always take into account now when reading the Steelheart series is. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Brandon Sanderson also cleverly questions what it is to be an Epic. Uprooted by Noami Novik really surprised me. It was my first book that I read from her, the synopsis of the s...

Review Round-up February Here are my favorites of February, which books did you enjoy reading the most? Cheers, Jasper --------------------------- 1. Touch by Claire North, Orbit So what finally remains to said is: Read this book! Claire North's is on a sure fire winning streak. Just as with The First Fifteen Lives , Claire North has gone out of her league with the story of Touch . Touch for me was a definite darker tinge story that The First Fifteen Lives , owing to the chasing and also with the body jumping. Kepler is shown as a very interesting and enjoyable protagonist and has his work cut out for him. One thing that I totally forgot to mention was the control that Claire North has with body jumping, it is easy to jump from person to person, but in all case none of the ghosts do this. The details and bigger picture that Claire North shows with body jumping and inhabiting it, an action reaction sequence makes a very nice whole to the story. And let's not ...

Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, Reckoners #2 They told David it was impossible--that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart--invincible, immortal, unconquerable--is dead. And he died by David's hand. Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the answers he needs. Babylon Restored, the old borough of Manhattan, has possibilities, though. Ruled by the mysterious High Epic, Regalia, David is sure Babylon Restored will lead him to what he needs to find. And while entering another city oppressed by a High Epic despot is a gamble, David's willing to risk it. Because killing Steelheart left a hole in David's heart. A hole where his thirst for vengeance once lived. Somehow, he filled that hole with another Epic--Firefight. And he's willing to go on a quest darker, and more dangerous even, than the fight ...

Mitosis by Brandon Sanderson, Reckoners #1.5 An action-packed Reckoners story from Sunday Times Bestseller Brandon Sanderson that bridges the action in Steelheart with the all new adventure Firefight, in a collectible HB edition From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Words of Radiance , co-author of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series and creator of the internationally bestselling Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson, comes Mitosis , a short story set in the action-packed world of Steelheart : the Reckoners series, exclusively available in a HB collector's edition. Epics still plague Newcago, but David and the Reckoners have vowed to fight back. Catch all the action before Firefight , the exciting sequel to Steelheart , hits the shelves.    Last year I read the first installment in the Reckoners series of Brandon Sanderson, Steelheart and was immediately taken by the ideas behind the story. Where most superheroes are always associated with doing good i...

(p)review forecast February part 1 What will you be reading in the coming week? cheers, Jasper ----------------------------- 1. The Dragons of Dorcastle by Jack Campbell, narrated by Macleod Andrews, Audible For centuries, the two Great Guilds have controlled the world of Dematr. The Mechanics and the Mages have been bitter rivals, agreeing only on the need to keep the world they rule from changing. But now a Storm approaches, one that could sweep away everything that humans have built. Only one person has any chance of uniting enough of the world behind her to stop the Storm, but the Great Guilds and many others will stop at nothing to defeat her. Mari is a brilliant young Mechanic, just out of the Guild Halls where she has spent most of her life learning how to run the steam locomotives and other devices of her Guild. Alain is the youngest Mage ever to learn how to change the world he sees with the power of his mind. Each has been taught that the works of the o...

Media Alert: Get Firefight as audiobook Yesterday saw the UK release of Firefight, the second book in the Reckoners series by Brandon Sanderson. Below you can find the synopsis and a teaser of the audiobook released by Audible, as well as the link where you can buy this book. Synopsis: From the #1 "New York Times" bestselling author of Words of Radiance coauthor of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, and creator of the internationally bestselling Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson presents the second book in the Reckoners series: Firefight, the sequel to the #1 bestseller Steelheart. They told David it was impossible--that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart--invincible, immortal, unconquerable--is dead. And he died by David's hand. Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the ans...

Competition Time: Win Firefight and Steelheart One of my current favorite YA series has to be Reckoners from Brandon Sanderson. I markerd Steelheart as one of my favorites of 2014. It really shines a new light on the term of superhero fiction. Firefight is released today in the UK and because of this reason Gollancz is offering you to win both Firefight and Steelheart physical format.  In order for you to be eligible to enter tweet this link to me, RT my own tweet or send me an email at thebookplank [at] gmail [dot] com change the words in the brackets to the symbols. Please note that the competition is only open to UK participants.  I will pick a winner at random after the weekend. Below you can find the excerpts of the books: Steelheart Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire...