On My Radar is a new meme here at Fictional Fantasy – The idea is to showcase a few books that have sparked your interest in the last week. These can be books you have seen in store or from visiting other  Bloggers. For more details head to the On My Radar info page!

Here are a few books that are on my radar this week:

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
Release Date: April 2010
Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Sophie Mercer’s first term at Hex Hall turned out to be quite eventful. First the ghost of her evil grandmother haunted her every move, then her best friend was accused of murder and of course there was the discovery that Archer Cross, aka the boy of her dreams, was actually an undercover demon hunter – which would probably be something she could have worked on, if she hadn’t also discovered that she was actually the demon Archer was hunting…
So, despite their issues, Sophie is actually relieved to be spending the summer in London with her father. But when your father is Head of The Council of Prodigium and your summer is being spent at the headquarters of everything magical, then a quiet holiday isn’t really that likely. And, as Sophie struggles to come to terms with her new found demon powers, she finds herself thrust once again into a world of dark magic and conspiracies. The only thing that could possibly make things more complicated would be for Archer Cross to show up again, which of course he wouldn’t, would he?

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
Release Date: March 2011
Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.
That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.
Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.
But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

Ghost Town by Rachel Caine (Morganville Vampires #9)
Release Date: October 2010

While developing a new system to maintain Morganville’s defenses, student Claire Danvers discovers a way to amplify vampire mental powers. Through this, she’s able to re-establish the field around this vampire-infested Texas college town that protects it from outsiders.

But the new upgrades have an unexpected consequence: people inside the town begin to slowly forget who they are-even the vampires. Soon, the town’s little memory problem has turned into a full-on epidemic. Now Claire needs to figure out a way to pull the plug on her experiment- before she forgets how to save Morganville…

So what’s on your radar this week?

Write a post letting us know what books are on your radar this week, then come back and enter your details into Mr Linky below, so we can all come by your blog and please don’t forget to link back to Fictional Fantasy :)

Title: Burnt Snow
Author: Van Badham
Series: The Book of the Witch (Book #1)
Genre: Fantasy
Age Group: Young Adult
Release Date:  1st September 2010 (Aus)

Author’s Website

Book Summary: These were the facts:

I’d been in Yarrindi for six days.
In that time, I’d met a boy.
I didn’t know who he was, or why a shadow hung over him, but everywhere he went, there was trouble.

When I ignored him, everything was fine.
When I smiled at him, a girl had a violent seizure.
That girl had tried to warn me – she had tried to frighten me into listening, but I had let him breathe on my neck and brush against my hand and glass had shattered.

Sophie Morgan is the new girl at school. Brody Meine is the local loner with a dangerous reputation. The connection between them is intense – explosive. As darkness engulfs Sophie’s world, a fire is being lit within her. And when she and Brody are together, there’s no predicting who will be burned.

This is definitely worth reading a chapter or two before you decide to put it down.
Several reasons I enjoyed is it is set in Australia, before Twilight I was typically a realistic contemporary fiction reader and found it hard to find books that were depicted in Australia.

I find it easier to relate to characters if they come from my own country, and these characters are easy to relate to.
It’s Twilight type romance between Sophie and Brody is certainly what attracted me to the story line, but then found it hard to put down because it never gives you much detail to go on. Eg. What Sophie is??? What is Brody???

Altogether a good read although the school scenario got to me a bit but it is for young adult audience.

I will certainly be reading the next instalment. Definitely left me hanging.

Get your copy from:

The Book Depository (free international shipping)
QBD
Dymocks 

Don’t forget to read my review here!

Title: Burnt Snow
Author: Van Badham
Series: The Book of the Witch (Book #1)
Genre: Fantasy
Age Group: Young Adult
Release Date:  1st September 2010 (Aus)

Author’s Website

My Review:  Burnt Snow is Van Badham’s first novel which tells the story of Sophie Morgan, a Year 11 student at yet another new school. She is tired of her over protective “hippie” mother and when she is invited to join the popular girls she seizes the opportunity to make some changes in her life. Little does she know that her life is going to change in a huge way and in just a short space of time.
Hiding her “nerd” past, keeping up with the popular crowd and negotiating her way around the politics of the “bitch patrol” are, as Sophie finds out, the least of her worries.

Brody Meine is a loner, has a bad reputation and is shrouded in mystery and naturally Sophie is drawn to him instantly. But when bizarre things, like savage storms, flocks of birds, smashing windows and destructive fires start to happen whenever they interact, Sophie is forced to keep her distance, something that she finds very hard to do.

Burnt Snow is an imaginative and exciting story which had me transfixed from the moment I picked it up. Van has created many wonderful characters that all work together perfectly to bring her story to life. Each character brings their own story which is interwoven throughout Sophie’s story.

Burnt Snow mixes the ups and downs of teenage life with paranormal and demonic occurrences perfectly which makes it and entertaining book that is difficult to put down. I can’t wait for White Rain, Van’s 2nd book in the Book of the Witch series which is due for release in 2011.

My Rating: (out of 5)

Get your copy from:

The Book Depository (free international shipping)
QBD
Dymocks 

About the Author: Van Badham is the award-winning writer of more than 30 internationally produced plays for stage, music theatre and radio. Her theatre plays have had seasons at the Sydney Opera House, the Wharf studio, the Seymour Centre, the Victorian Arts Centre, Perth’s Blue Room and the Adelaide Festival. She has had plays and musical theatre staged at seven Edinburgh Festivals, in London and on the UK touring circuit, in America, in Iceland, Switzerland, Slovenia, Austria and in Germany. MIT Press in the US published her 2003 Edinburgh hit Camarilla. Her scripts for radio have been broadcast by the BBC World Service, Radio 3 and Radio 4. In 2007, Van’s play The Gabriels became the first Australian play selected for New York’s Summer Play Festival. (Pan Macmillan Australia)

Thanks go to Eliza from Pan Macmillan Australia for sending me a copy to review :)

Have you read this book? What did you think? Leave your review or a comment below telling us what you thought :)

These were the facts:

I’d been in Yarrindi for six days.
In that time, I’d met a boy.
I didn’t know who he was, or why a shadow hung over him, but everywhere he went, there was trouble.

When I ignored him, everything was fine.
When I smiled at him, a girl had a violent seizure.
That girl had tried to warn me – she had tried to frighten me into listening, but I had let him breathe on my neck and brush against my hand and glass had shattered.

Sophie Morgan is the new girl at school. Brody Meine is the local loner with a dangerous reputation. The connection between them is intense – explosive. As darkness engulfs Sophie’s world, a fire is being lit within her. And when she and Brody are together, there’s no predicting who will be burned.

Van Badham is an award-winning playwright, critic and screenwriter. She has written more than 30 internationally produced plays and her theatre plays have had seasons at the Sydney Opera House, the Wharf studio, the Seymour Centre, the Victorian Arts Centre, Perth’s Blue Room and the Adelaide Festival. She has had plays or musical theatre staged at the last six Edinburgh Festivals as well as in London, the US, Iceland and in Germany. Her scripts for radio have been broadcast by the BBC World Service and Radio 4. In 2007 Van’s play The Gabriels became the first Australian play to be selected for New York’s Summer Play Festival.
Van is also a regular guest on 666 ABC Canberra.
Born in Sydney, Van lived in Wollongong for many years and now resides in London with her boyfriend, a spathiphyllum plant and an extensive collection of arty films on DVD.

You can find more on Van’s website or follow her on Twitter!

Burnt Snow is being published by Pan Macmillan and will be available 2 September, 2010
 

Title: Clockwork Angel
Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices Series
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Age Group: Young Adult
Release Date: 31st August 2010 (US) 
31st August 2010 (AUS)

Author’s Website

Book Summary: Magic is dangerous but love is more dangerous still

The Infernal Devices trilogy, a prequel to bestselling The Mortal Instruments trilogy, follows 16-year-old orphan Tessa Fell, whose quiet life is thrown into turmoil when her older brother Nathaniel suddenly vanishes, leaving her alone. Tessa’s search for him leads her to England during the reign of Queen Victoria, into London’s dangerous underworld, where warlocks throw masked balls for half-demon Downworlders and vampires and supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. When the friendless and hunted Tessa discovers that she herself is a Downworlder, she must learn to trust her natural enemies, the demon-killing Shadowhunters, if she ever wants to learn to control her powers and find her brother. Drawn ever deeper into their world, she finds herself fascinated by – and torn between – two best friends; beautiful Will, a Shadowhunter hiding a deadly secret, and the devoted Jem, whose addiction to a demon drug is slowly destroying him. Tessa quickly realises that love may be the most dangerous magic of all and must draw on all her strength to save her brother and keep herself alive in this deadly new world. (Walker Books Australia and New Zealand)

My Thoughts: After having read Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series and loving it, I had very high expectations for this book and Cassandra did not disappoint me! I loved it! I couldn’t put it down and when I was forced away from it by my children and my family duties, I was thinking about the characters and what could possibly happen next.

The plot was very well thought out and took many different twists and turns along the way. There were some surprises that I didn’t see coming which is always a bonus and Cassandra did her research well and took us on a tour of England in Victorian times with perfect detail.

The main character Tessa is an easy character to like and Will is cocky and mysterious while Jem is sweet and very gentlemanly. A perfect combination of characters in my eyes! For those of you that have read the Mortal Instruments, you will see some similarities between Will and Jace (from the MI series) and I really like that. There are also a few familiar characters and a few names that you will recognise throughout the story. Having said that, you don’t have to have read the Mortal Instruments series before reading Clockwork Angel, but I wouldn’t mind betting that you will want to get your hands on the MI series the minute you put down CA.

I would have liked to learn why Will acts as he does and more about his family, as well as Tessa’s parent’s story but I’m quite sure that all that will be revealed in later books which I am eagerly anticipating. 

Fans of The Mortal Instruments Series will not be disappointed with the first book in the Infernal Devices Series and I am very happy that I have found another series to fall in love with.

My Rating: (out of 5)

Read an excerpt of the book here!

Get your copy from:

Fishpond
The Book Depository (free international shipping)
Amazon

Books in the Series:

1. Clockwork Angel
2. The Clockwork Prince (coming September 2011)
3. The Clockwork Princess (coming December 2012)

Have you read this book? What did you think? Leave your review or a comment below telling us what you thought :)

Title: Carnal Sin
Author: Allison Brennan
Series: The Seven Deadly Sin Series
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Age Group: Adult
Release Date: 22 June 2010 (US) 
1st July 2010 (AUS)

Author’s Website

Book Summary: The small Californian town of Santa Louisa is still reeling from the lethal rampage of the demon Envy, one of the Seven Deadly Sins released from Hell by black magic. But when more bodies bearing satanic marks surface in Los Angeles, former witch Moira O’Donnell knows the terror is beginning again.

For a trendy LA nightclub has become a hot spot of lustful demonic activity. And as a supernatural war erupts, Moira and Rafe, her tortured and indomitable ally, are caught in the crossfire.

Cornered by mortal and unearthly enemies, they must conquer their greatest fears to survive.

But their growing passion for each other gives the demon Lust exactly what it needs to defeat them both. (Random House)

My Thoughts: While I found the story line quite fast paced and interesting, I just didn’t get sucked in to this series the way I do with other books. When I read Original Sin, I couldn’t put my finger on what it was that I thought was lacking but now I have realised that I just don’t feel a connection with Allison’s characters. I don’t really like the main character Moira, there is no obvious reason why I dislike her and I found that she did have some redeeming qualities but there was just no connection there. It’s very disappointing because I really, really want to like this series. I love the idea of each of the 7 books revolving around one of the seven deadly sins.I will persevere though because I really enjoyed the progression of Rafe and Moira’s relationship and am interested to see how that plays out in the rest of the series.

My Rating: (out of 5)

To be fair to the author, I have rounded up some reviews from a few of my favourite blogs:

Anna’s Book Blog
Smexy Books

Read an excerpt of the book here!

Get your copy from:

Fishpond
The Book Depository (free international shipping)
Amazon
Audible 

More Books in the Series: 

1. Original Sin
Thanks to Tobie from Random House Australia for sending me a copy to review :)

Have you read this book? What did you think? Leave your review or a comment below telling us what you thought :)

My book blog is only very new but in that time I have been lucky enough to be sent two books to read and review.

The first is Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel, sent to me by Eliza from Pan Macmillan. Infinite Days has been published in the US but is not due out until the 1st of September here in Australia.

I am already most of the way through the book so far and I am really enjoying it. Keep you eye out for my review in the next couple of days.

The second book I have received was Carnal Sin by Allison Brennan, which was sent to me by Toby at Random House. Carnal Sin is the second book in the Seven Deadly Sins Series. You can read my review of Original Sin (the first book in the series) here! I will be reading and reviewing it as soon as I am finished with Infinite Days.

The Story Siren runs a meme called In My Mailbox where Book Bloggers can interact and talk about the books they have recieved in their mailbox. Go and check it out!

Title: Original Sin
Author: Allison Brennan
Series: The Seven Deadly Sins Series
Genre: Science Fiction and Fantasy
Audience: Adult
Release Date: 26th January 2010 (US) 
10th February 2010 (AUS)

Author’s Site


This is the first book in Allison Brennan’s Seven Deadly Sins Series.



Book Summary:  Haunted by chilling memories of demonic possession and murder, Moira O’Donnell has spent seven years hunting down her mother, Fiona, whose command of black magic has granted her unprecedented control of the underworld. Now Moira’s global search has led her to a small California town that’s about to become hell on earth.

Together with a demonologist, a tough female sheriff, and a pair of star-crossed teenagers, Moira and Rafe are humanity’s last chance to snatch salvation from the howling jaws of damnation.(Amazon)

My Thoughts: I found this book a little hard to get in to at first. I read a couple of chapters and put it down, when I came back to it though I found it easier to get in to, and was quickly immersed in the story and was unable to put it down . It is very heavily based on witchcraft and demons with just a little bit of romance thrown in. While I tend to like more romance in the novels I read, the hint of a romantic connection between Moira and Rafe was enough to keep me interested. The storyline was interesting with a few little twists and turns here and there and I found it an easy book to read.

If you’re not a fan of witchcraft and demons then this is not the book for you!

Read the first chapter here!

Get the Books:

Fishpond
The Book Depository (free international shipping)
Amazon

More Books in the Series: 

2.  Carnal Sin