Rach’s Reading Challenge 2024

Rachel Price went missing 16 years ago but when the family start filming a documentary Rachel suddenly reappears. Her daughter Bel however isn't convinced, something just doesn't add up and so starts investigating.
It would appear that the Price family are hiding a lot of secrets...
A gripping, fast paced thriller with twists galore and an ending that will leave you shocked. A brilliant book that all fans of Karen McManus and YA thrillers will love.

Set 6 months after the ending of the first book. The "freedom" that the inhabitants from the Acarda ship isn't quite what they were hoping for and Ester and Nik are in hiding. The rebellion seem to have gone very quiet and people are disappearing. With no idea of where Nik has vanished to Esther takes matters into her own hands - she will be free, but at what cost. Conclusion to The Stranded, The Exiled was everything I hoped it would be and more.

Zed has always dreamed of making his dad proud and following in his as Hunter, catching Demons and proctecting humans. But then one night Spark appears and disrupts everything Zed thought he knew. Because this Demon is nothing like the stories...He's, well nice. And so a remarkable adventure begins and gorgeous friendship bloosoms.
Full of heart this is a really lovely novel about friendship, family and standing up to what you believe in. I have a lot of love for this book.

I already cannot wait for the sequel!
On the Isle of Rosevear, Mira is one of the seven who swim out and plunder wrecked smuggler ships. It's the only way for them to survive. One stormy night, it all goes wrong. The Watch descend and take her father away.
With only 1 week until his hanging and clues her late mother has left her, Mira sets out on a journey to win his freedom. When her journey leads to dark family secrets, Mira must learn who she can trust and finds that securing her future, her fathers and that of her island will come at a high price.
I couldn’t put this book down! A really exciting fantasy perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows

Perfect for new readers moving up to longer books. Frank the Alpaca lives in a petting zoo. He’s tense and anxious and would rather spend the day on his own than being laughed at by visitors because of what he looks like. Then one day Frank finds a book about unicorns and when an ice cream lands on his head all his dreams come true…He’s a UNICORN, he can be brave, bold and happy, Frank loves being a unicorn, until Frank realises, he’s already all of these things. A really sweet rhyming book about loving who you are.

When Marnie Midnight starts at the Minibeast Academy she is most looking forward to learning all about the moon and finding out if Moon magic is real. However, when she finds out that moon classes have been cancelled, her and her new friends, Star and Floyd (who is fabulous!), start investigating. Their discovery leads to an out of this world adventure. A really lovely story, I even learnt lots of bug and moon facts that I never knew bwfore. Cannot wait for the next Marnie adventure.

If you thought Ace of Spades was good then I can assure you that Faridah Abike-Iyimide's new novel will not disappoint.
After her father dies, Sade starts at the prestigious Alfred Nobel Academy, an institution steeped in tradition and secrets. After just one day her roommate vanishes, but something about it just doesn't sit right with Sade and why have the police just closed the investigation? But it's not just the school that has secrets, Sade has a lot of her own.
A fantastic twisty thriller that brings to light the darker side to Fraternities and sororities. I got so obsessed with this novel, addictive doesn't cover it! A must read!
Some of the themes covered in this novel such as, drugs, rape and suicide make this book unsuitable for younger readers

After one of the creepiest first chapters of any middle grade novel I have read, I was convinced that The Whisperwicks would utter terrify me (I am not great with horror) However, it is not as scary as one first thinks. Instead, it's an incredibly exciting adventure.
Benjamiah does not believe in magic, he is a child of science - everything has an explanation. So when a strange doll arrives in the post, comes to life and leads him through a hidden door in his basement, into a parallel world, he surely must be dreaming.
It is in this world called Wreathenwold that Benjamiah meets Elizabeth (she's fabulous). The two set out on a dangerous quest to find Elizabeth's brother and find a way to get Benjamiah home and in this world, there is definitely magic!

If you are looking for a fast-paced thriller this is the book for you. How fast paced you say? well by page 106 we have 4 dead bodies!!
Bex, Zane and Raya, along with 7 others, receive an invitation to take part in The Pinnacle - a reality tv show with a prize of £5,000,000 Each are desperate to win to turn their lives around.
As soon as they arrive on a mysterious island the contestants start dying one by one, surely this isn't part of the game. Everyone has a secret, no one trusts anyone and will they ever get off the island alive?
Loved it! Great characters and a great story. For the first time in quite awhile this YA thriller beat me – I did not guess the murderer!

Published 2nd May
Seb and the fellow elite group of HappyHead participants now find themselves on a remote island. In their "perfect" couples they continue the controversial retreat to ultimate happiness. But where is Finn? and why hasn't Dr Stone been in contact? But he can't do it on his own, will he ever get the other participants, including Elenor to see the light about whats really going on here and finally bring Manning down?
A nail bitting sequel to Happy Head. This dark and thrilling read is so good and the perfect conclusion I wanted to Happy Head.

What a great book! The Casimir’s, Arthie and Jin are criminal masterminds and collector of secrets. At night their tearoom Spindrift transforms into an illegal bloodhouse catering to the vampires of White Roaring. But when the survival of the tearoom comes under threat, they will need to use the secrets they have accrued to get the best team together (who are all great characters) and pull off what is potentially the deadliest and greatest heist of all time. An absolutely riveting read that I loved! Perfect for fans of Six of Crows and Peaky Blinders (if Peaky Blinders had Vampires)

Big Brother meets The Traitors in this edge of your seat, heart pounding thriller.
10 teenagers all desprate for fame and fortune are selected to participate in a new reality show, Lie or Die for a cash prize of £50,000. The rules are simple. Within the 10 players, 2 have secretly been selected as Agents. The agents must kill 1 player within the "kill time" without being caught, that player is then eliminated from the game. After the kill time the players have 1 hour to accuse who they think are the agents. Whoever is then found guilty is then eliminated. If both Agents are found out the game is over and the players win. What the players don't realise is the killing just got very real and the game is to survive.
An addictive and chilling read.

Published 15th August
A thriller with a (huge) twist! Grace wakes up in hospital with no memory of what happened the night her sister Maddy disappeared on an exclusive senior trip. Her friends are acting strange and no one is willing to talk to her. Even the police think she’s hiding something. Who did kill Maddy? Was it her? She’ll have to find out herself if she wants to clear her name.
An unputdownable mystery that will have you guessing until the very end and a twist of epic proportions

The next book in the fabulous Skandar series and it's EPIC

In a world where social media is the key to money and the means to live, 50 teenagers all facing life imprisonment are invited to compete in a social media reality show in a bid to win their freedom. Put through various trials that are aimed to "reform" them, those that are least popular with the public are "eliminated" This terrifying novel shows the more sinister side to social media and just how far are people are willing to go to be popular and save themselves.
Survivor meets The Squid Games. I absolutely loved this spine-chilling, gory edge of your seat thriller. Perfect for fans of Happy Head and The Loop.

The exciting sequel to A Game of life or Death. At the end of book one, Asha Kennedy uncovered the dark secret at centre of Virtual Reality game 'Shackle' - You don't play the game, it plays you. - Now Asha and her team must go deeper into a dangerous world of corruption and greed to find who is the master of the game and what is their ultimate goal?
An addictive fast paced thriller perfect for gaming fans.

Liska has been raised in a tiny village, where magic is feared. Desperate to rid the magic she has been trying to hide her whole life she sets off on a mission for a flower that will grant her wish. While travelling through the enchanted woods she is caught by the demon warden - the Leszy - who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for her wish.
If Liska wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host's spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Those who enter the wood do not always return. With a loveable host of characters and witty humour I really enjoyed this enchanting gothic reimagining of Beauty and The Beast. Be warned, not all fairytales have happy endings.