Countdown To 7th May: What I Learned Writing for Comics by Jason Rohan

I am really excited to be taking part in this year's Countdown to 7th May blog tour, doing my bit to celebrate all the fab YA and middle grade books that are scheduled to be published on 7th May. Today it is an absolute pleasure to welcome Jason Rohan, the author of the totally brilliant The Sword of Kuromori, and its sequel The Shield of Kuromori (due out on 7th May).

What I learned writing for comics by Jason Rohan

When I first tried out for a career in publishing, after finishing university with an English degree, the fact that I had prior experience working at Marvel Comics went against me. This is 25 years ago when comics were still seen as a juvenile art form unworthy of serious consideration - in the English-speaking world, at least. Nowadays, however, with the massive success of super-heroes on the big screen, the opposite has occurred and comics writers are suddenly a hot property. My timing has never been great!

For almost all of us, our first experiences of reading - and of being read to - came via picture books like The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Gruffalo or The Tiger Who Came To Tea, so the idea of marrying words with pictures is deeply held. Later, readers move on to full text novels but still turn to film and television to get their fix of entertainment in the form of words and pictures.

If you've never seen a comic book script before, here's an example:

And here's a screenplay extract:

Could you spot the difference? Exactly. Words and pictures: one script for an artist and one script for a film crew but essentially the same. Both are visual storytelling media, only in one the pictures move and in the other they don't.

When I worked at Marvel, back in the 80's, I was lucky enough to be assigned to legendary editor Mark Gruenwald who taught me so much about writing in general and comics in particular. The parallels with film writing were driven home to me when he recommended a book called Screenplay by Syd Field. At first, I didn't understand why a comic writer would need to know about screenwriting but I did as I was told, read it, and it all fell into place. To this day, even as a novelist, I still write with a visual, comic-book style and film remains an important reference. 

As you can imagine, my time at Marvel was a fantastic apprenticeship and I came away with many valuable lessons and insights into the writing process, both for comics and for novels, some of which I would like to share here.

The first thing I learned was the importance of the splash page. The first script I turned in had an establishing shot of London as the opening scene and Mark said to me, "Why do you think it's called a splash page?" Duh. I knew enough to know that the splash page is page one of the comic, traditionally a full page, single panel spread, which holds the title and credit box. As Mark explained, it's also supposed to sell the story. A kid picks a comic off the rack, intrigued by the cover. She turns to page one and expects to be wowed. No wow, no sale. Hence, the splash page has to sell the comic.

When it comes to writing novels, the lesson is still valid in that a reader will look at a cover, read the blurb and maybe turn to the first page. That's the bait. You now have one line to dangle the hook, one paragraph to set that hook and, if you're lucky, one page to start reeling in. I also recall the words of famed movie producer Samuel Goldwyn who said, "We want a story that starts out with an earthquake and works its way up to a climax." Since I write action-adventure stories, my approach is to start with the literary equivalent of a pre-credit sequence to set the stage and introduce the characters, before settling in to the main plot.

The second thing I learned is to always know your ending and where you're going next. Comic books were typically 23 pages of story, with soap opera style series continuity. A writer would usually write four series simultaneously so that's 48 issues a year, or one script per week. In that environment, multi-episode story arcs had to be mapped out well in advance and different editors would co-ordinate different titles months ahead to ensure that crossover stories and tie-ins happened at the right time and that the repercussions were felt across the title range. You see this happening with the current slate of Marvel movies and this concept of a shared universe was one of the ideas that historically set Marvel apart. 

Another key lesson for me was dealing with the flabby middle. I tend to think in terms of three act structures and I always know my ending and my beginning. In comic book terms, this is the equivalent of a five page set up, a twelve page middle, and a six page finish. Film-wise, it's 30 minutes, 60 minutes, 30 minutes, for a two hour film. However, when writing a book, I find it a lot easier to come up with a strong hook and a climactic ending than to sustain the mid-section that bridges the two and I used to really struggle with this, getting bogged down and giving up. I finally cracked this particular nut by falling back on my comics and script training and I started to brainstorm dialogue, scribbling down the key character interactions which drive the story from inciting incident to pivot point two. By charting the journey via discourse alone, I was able to hack a path through the jungle and it was much easier to then go back and add in the narrative, a bit like listening to a TV show from another room - you can follow the story well enough even though you can't see the action.

The final thing I learned was the importance of delivering to deadlines and the need for discipline, organisation and professionalism. There is no allowance for Writer's Block when you're scripting four titles a month. While I understand the romantic appeal of waiting for the Muse to visit and sprinkle magical inspiration upon the writer's brow, the reality is that writers write. You plan ahead and hone your creative muscles. Yes, it isn't glamorous but journalists have to write to order daily, and if it was good enough for Shakespeare and Dickens, then I figure it's the least I can do.

As a closing thought, a novelist has to paint pictures with words, to bring images to life in the mind’s eye of the reader. However, a comic book writer can do the opposite and direct the artist to tell a story solely with illustrations - the literary equivalent of a silent movie - which isn’t that far removed from our ancestors daubing paint on walls. 

Words and pictures: the oldest storytelling technique in the world.

Thunderbirds Are Go!

A thrilling, futuristic volume of 1960s Thunderbirds comic strips. It features The Earthquake Maker, Visitor from Space and The Antarctic Menace. This is the first book in a five volume set of Thunderbirds comic strips.

As I child I was a huge fan of all things Gerry Anderson. Along with Smallfilms (more about this in a future post), Gerry Anderson had a significant impact on me as a child. Fireball XL5 and Stingray were often repeated on mid-morning TV during the school holidays, back in the days when we only had three or four channels to choose from. Captain Scarlet, Joe 90, Space 1999 and then later, Terrahawks on a Saturday morning, were also firm favourites. As a teen I loved watching repeats of UFO, and now own the DVD boxsets. But my favourite of the lot was and still is Thunderbirds. If memory serves me correctly, I even managed to persuade my parents to open the double doors between the lounge and the dining room so I could watch its mid-70s repeat run on TV whilst we ate Sunday lunch! 

Next year is going to be a big year for Gerry Anderson fans. 2015 is the 50th anniversary year of the first screening of Thunderbirds and ITV are currently producing a brand new series. 2015 will also see the release of the first book in the new Gemini Force One series, written by M.G. Harris and based on a concept that Gerry himself was unable to develop fully due to his suffering from Alzheimer's Disease and his untimely death in 2012. It's a great time to be a fan of Gerry Anderson's work.

Egmont currently own the publishing rights to the classic 1960s Thunderbirds comic strips. Last Christmas, my great friend Carol from Windsor Waterstones gave me a copy of Thunderbirds: The Comic Collection, a hefty book of almost 300 pages of the classic comic strips, also published by Egmont. Of course, such a hefty book came with an equally hefty price tag (rrp £25) which some parents may have thought too excessive for what could be a purchase that may not interest their 21st century child, even though it is a fantastic set of comic stories. I was therefore pleasantly surprised when a thin, softback edition arrived in the post a while back (rrp £6.99). It would now appear that Egmont are publishing those same stories from the hardback Comic Collection, but over five softback volumes that are each pretty much the same size as a Tintin book. Bought together, the price will exceed that being asked for the hardback collected edition, but it is a much more manageable layout for parents who are not sure whether their children will like it or not. I would imagine that most kids will also prefer this format.

All three of the strips in this first volume are illustrated by the brilliant Frank Bellamy. If your children are fans of modern, full-colour comics then they are in for a treat here. Bellamy was an incredibly talented comic illustrator, with immense skill at producing vivid and imaginative action scenes for his characters. Eschewing the more formal, even grid format that was popular in other UK comics at the time, Bellamy preferred a layout of panels with cut-outs, zigzag edges and asymmetrical shapes, all of which added greatly to the dynamism of the artwork. The stories themselves are great escapist fun, featuring incredibly daring and exciting rescues; in fact, the writers and artist went to town with the comics, producing scenarios that were either too expensive or impossible to film for the 1960s TV show.

These new softback editions sadly do not contain the fabulous vehicle cutaways from the 1990s Thunderbirds comics that Egmont included in Thunderbirds: The Comic Collection (at least, Volume 1 doesn't). However, I have this morning spotted that Egmont have just published Inside the World of Gerry Anderson, a "complete definitive collection of Graham Bleathman's cutaways includes detailed images from Thunderbirds, Fireball XL5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet and Joe 90, plus less well known craft and locations seen only in the comic strips". I think this may have just found its way onto my Christmas wishlist!

Review: The Sword of Kuromori by Jason Rohan

Kenny Blackwood arrives in Tokyo to spend the summer with his father and is stunned to discover a destiny he had never dreamed of when he finds himself in the middle of a hidden war that is about to explode. Racing against an impossible deadline, Kenny must find the fabled Sword of Heaven and use it to prevent the disaster. But a host of terrifying monsters is out to destroy him, and success will come at a price. With clever, fearless, sarcastic Kiyomi at his side, Kenny must negotiate the worlds of modern and mythic Japan to find the lost sword, before it's too late.

The story opens with Kenny Blackwood on a flight across the Pacific, on his way to spend the summer with his father in Japan. It is a prospect that he is less than happy about, as his relationship with his father is strained to say the least, but Kenny's grandfather has arranged the trip and paid for the flight so he has little choice in the matter. As the plane is nearing Japan a flight attendant delivers an envelope to Kenny, containing a letter written by his grandfather and a small wooden whistle. As if this wasn't odd enough, there is also a separate piece of paper that instructs Kenny to make a copy of the letter, eat the piece of paper, and top only blow the whistle in an emergency. Of course, Kenny being a young teen, he can't help but give a whistle a quick blow, but it makes no noise at all. However, for Kenny it is the moment when the strangeness starts and his life will never be the same again.

Kenny soon discovers that he has magical gifts, inherited from his grandfather who received them in thanks for a noble deed he did following the Second World War. One of these gifts is the ability to see the many monsters and spirits that still exist in modern day Japan. He also finds out, from kick-ass, motorbike-riding Kiyomi and her father, that he is destined to continue the good deed of his grandfather and save the West Coast of the USA from a supernatural act of vengeance that will cause millions to suffer and die. To do this all he will have to do is survive attacks from numerous creatures from Japanese mythology, beat Hachiman, the God of War and destroy a monstrous, earthquake-causing dragon. 

Rick Riordan has done Greek, Roman and Egyptian mythology, and is currently writing the first book in a series that will feature the gods of Norse mythology. Francesca Simon has also covered Norse mythology in The Sleeping Army and The Lost Gods. Sarwat Chadda brought the gods and creatures of Indian mythology to us in his brilliant Ash Mistry series. And now writer Jason Rohan enters the fray with The Sword of Kuromori, the first in a series set in Japan, with a heavy focus on the various monsters, spirits and Gods of Japanese mythology.

Other than in Manga, Japan is a country that has so far featured little in books for young people. Of course, there is Chris Bradford's brilliant Young Samurai series and Nick Lake's Blood Ninja trilogy, but neither of these are set in modern day Japan, nor do they focus on Japanese mythology. Most stories for children and teens published in the UK that use a culture's mythology as their foundation focus on western mythologies. Sarwat Chadda started to address this imbalance with Ash Mistry and it is great to see Jason Rohan following on with this.

I am guessing that young Manga/anime aficionados may recognise some of the creatures and Gods in this book, but the mythology of Japan, like India, is a subject I know very little about. However, this did not affect my enjoyment of The Sword of Kuromori at all. In fact, it was exactly the opposite. I was entranced by the various creatures and spirits that Kenny encounters in the course of his quest, and spent a fair amount of time looking them up online to see if they were actual creatures from Japanese mythology or constructs of the author's imagination. And every single one of them exists as a part of Japanese culture. Oni (demons), Kappa (truly bizarre creature), Kitsune (fox spirits), Tanuki (Japanese raccoon dog), the filth-licking Akaname... every single one of them will be as well known in Japan as the likes of Medusa and Pegasus are to British kids. Jason Rohan certainly knows his Japanese culture (hardly surprising as he lived there for five years) and he really makes these ancient creatures come alive for his readers.

If you're looking for a new book that will grab a 9+ reader and not let them go until the the final page this summer then The Sword of Kuromori should be high up on your list. It is a very fast-paced adventure story, with plenty of humour, especially in the interaction and dialogue between the confused and out-of-his-depth Kenny, and his new Japanese friend (and potential love interest), Kiyomi  who is proficient with a host of weapons normally found in then possession of ninjas, and with an extensive knowledge of the monsters that are hidden from all but the handful of people with the gift. I believe this is the first book in a trilogy and I'm definitely signing on for the ride. I do not have a release date for it, but I'm really looking forward to seeing what happens to Kenny next in the sequel, The Shield of Kuromori. In the meantime, it's well worth your time making a visit to The Sword of Kuromori Facebook page over at https://www.facebook.com/swordofkuromori where Jason Rohan gives readers more details about some of the weird and wonderful creatures from Japanese mythology.

Guest Post by Michael Grant (Light Blog Tour)

I am honoured today to welcome Michael Grant to The Book Zone as part of the Light Blog Tour. Michael's here today to tell us what it is like for him on a real world book tour. I was very fortunate to be able to listen to Michael last autumn when we welcomed him in to school to talk to our Year 9s. If you ever get the chance to listen to him then I suggest you grab it!

Thanks to the Book Zone for Boys for letting me blog tour on this blog.  I’ll try not to say anything embarrassing.

So, I am visiting the UK in October on what we like to call “Book Tour.”  I think this will be my sixth or seventh UK book tour, though my first for MESSENGER OF FEAR.  I’ve also done one such tour, for GONE and BZRK, in Australia and New Zealand, one for GONE to Netherlands, a quick dash to Ireland, and of course many such excursions around the States.

My non-US tours are different from my travels around the States.  In the States I know the lay of the land, so to speak, so I fly un-accompanied and generally eschew the offered limousines in favor of renting a car.  In the UK I travel with a publicist, most often by train.  We don’t really do trains in the US, we do cars.  I’m a Californian by birth and we do cars to an even greater extent than other Americans.  California is the birthplace of car culture.

As a part of genus Americanus, species Californius Irascibilus, I am uneasy on trains.  Trains run on schedules and that means I am out of control of my movements.  It means I cannot decide to pull over and go shopping.  It means I cannot park and sleep unobserved.  It means I cannot drive through a fast food restaurant and eat a burger with one hand while driving with the other while adjusting the radio while puffing on a cigar while cursing other drivers and offering useful hand-signals meant to convey my lack of satisfaction with their driving skills.

Being a Californian requires a great deal of eye-hand coordination.  

It seems unsafe somehow to just sit in a train.  God only knows who’s driving the thing and whether he or she is paying attention.  And it’s strange not being on my own.  The publicists are invariably charming, tolerant, bright, tolerant women young enough to be my daughter, who have the unenviable job of guiding a cranky old fart through busy stations and into schools and bookstores where I manage to irritate teachers and administrators by saying things I shouldn’t.  

Did I mention that the publicists are tolerant young women?  One of my favorites sometimes reads religious works.  I like to think she was an atheist before being paired with me and that I drove her to seek the solace of religion.  

Anyway, we careen around the country in trains, stopping here and there so that I can address auditoriums full of kids who’ve escaped math class to hear me ramble on about how much better their lives will be if they’ll only buy my book.  (Which in case you missed it is called, MESSENGER OF FEAR.)  I suppose they should also read my books, but the fact is I’m there to sell books, so, really, what they do with the book is entirely up to them.

I have a love-hate relationship with Book Tour, but always end up having a lot of fun in the UK.  Once I broke away and drove a rented car across Scotland.  As you know, Scots, like Brits, drive on the wrong side of the road, so it wasn’t perhaps my best driving effort.  (Sorry about the side mirrors, you folks parked in Edinburgh, but the road was pretty narrow and I was on the wrong side of it, after all.)  But generally it’s the train, which I have to say, is almost always on time, usually clean and not always packed to the rafters.  

I know Brits often complain about the trains, but it lacks the conviction of a Californian complaining about traffic.  And with no opportunity for useful hand gestures and the possibility of gunfire in response, it all seems just a bit tame.  

In any event, British folk, I will be there soon.  Or may already be there by the time you read this.  You may want to fold in those side mirrors in case I break free and get my hands on a steering wheel.

It’s still drive on the left, right?

Review: Ant and Bee by Angela Banner

The much beloved Ant and Bee are back! These delightful and much-loved characters are instantly recognisable to many parents and grandparents today. Ant and Bee teach children to read via word recognition and encourage story sharing with siblings and parents. First published in 1950, Ant and Bee were in print for over 40 years.

Back at the beginning of January 2011 I started what I intended to be a new semi-regular feature called My Life That Books Built, in which I would write about the books that I loved when I was younger. As with many of my blogging plans, this quickly became an occasional feature, and more recently something that I have used as a subject for guest posts from visiting authors.  I do still intend to add to this with my own reading memories, but when it comes to my early years as a reader there are very few books I can remember. 

One of these I used as my first My Life That Books Built post, and was Little Jacko and the Wolf People, with words by Margaret Greaves and pictures by Jill McDonald, and I also remember being very fond of Maurice Sendak's classic Where The Wild Things Are. However, the only other books I can remember reading as a small child are Angela Banner's Ant and Bee books. I have been wanting to write a post about these for some time, but the copies I had as a child have been long lost - as the eldest of five children I would guess that most of my picture books got passed down (but not Little Jacko - I still own and treasure my original copy). However, I did not want to write an Ant and Bee post without copies to refer to, as nostalgia can have a funny effect on memory. Imagine my delight when I recently received a press release from Egmont, announcing that they would be releasing new editions of Angela Banner's books, and thanks to the lovely people there I was soon the owner of the first three re-issued volumes.

On 4th February Egmont published Ant and Bee, More Ant and Bee and More and More Ant and Bee. These books were first published in the 1950s, but new editions came out occasionally, even up to the early 1990s I believe. However, you will be forgiven for not having heard of these, although judging by the excited tweets that appeared following Egmont's announcement, there are a huge number of adults out there who learned to read with the help of Ant and Bee.

As a secondary school teacher I know very little about teaching young children how to read, so I'm not really able to judge these books in that respect. The first book focuses on three-letter words, the idea being that "grown-up read the black words, but the shorter, simpler red words are for the children to call out." Each three-letter word is introduced with its own page and accompanying image, and is then built into the story on the next pages. These words then continue to appear throughout the story, with the expectation that children will start to recognise them. And to add another element - the new words are introduced in alphabetical order, starting with Ant and then Bee, and in this first book finishing off with Zoo. This does lend itself to an occasionally surreal nature to the story, but kids will love it anyway. And with nigh on 100 pages in the book there is also a sense of achievement when reaching the end. The book is also wallet sized, so will fit neatly into an adult's pocket, handbag, etc.

Following on from Ant and Bee, we have More Ant and Bee and More and More Ant and Bee, featuring four- and five-letter words respectively. They also include many of the words learned in the previous volume(s), making them great for linking back to the earlier stories.

Egmont have announced that three more Ant and Bee volumes will be published later in the year: Around the World Ant and Bee; Happy Birthday Ant and Bee; and Ant and Bee and the Rainbow, although I'm hoping that there will be even more to come as my personal favourite from when I was little was Ant and Bee and the Secret.

Review: Barry Loser: I Am Not A Loser by Jim Smith

I've never minded that my name's Barry Loser because my coolness has always cancelled it out, but ever since Darren Darrenofski joined school with his horrible little crocodile face he's been completely ruining my life about it. "I Am Not A Loser" is the first of three notebooks belonging to Barry Loser. Follow Barry as he tries throw off his loserness, take revenge on the terrible Fronkle-burping Darren Darrenofski and finally become a winner.

Any phenomenonly successful series naturally leads to a host of imitators. Harry Potter led to a plethora of titles set in magical worlds with witches and wizards. Horowitz's Alex Rider series opened the floodgates to a tide of teen agents. In the last few years we have now seen the same happen as a result of the popularity of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I'm not criticising this at all - if a formula is found to be successful at getting kids to read then shared use of it can only be a good thing as long as quality is maintained.

Barry Loser: I Am Not A Loser is the latest of these Wimpy Kid-style books to hit the market. It is told in the words of the eponymous Barry Loser, a kid who despite his terrible surname has never suffered any problems at school because his "coolness has always cancelled it". However, the arrival of new kid Darren Darrenofski changes all of this, and through one playground incident Barry is instantly stripped of his coolness. The book follows his various misguided attempts to regain his coolness (or keelness as Barry and his best friend Bunky prefer to call it) and thus his popularity, presented as a series of vignettes which are guaranteed to make you laugh and cringe in equal measures.

What I loved most about this book is that Barry is not a particularly nice child. In fact, he is very much like a large number of pupils I have taught over the years. Kids who act very silly and annoying, and occasionally mean, but become popular because they make other kids laugh (often at the expense of others). And like in this book, sometimes another cooler kid has come along and suddenly the tables are turned. As such I didn't find myself sympathising with Barry's situation, but instead could laugh along at his cringeworthy attempts to be cool again. Stuff like going to school stilts, and wearing a bright yellow knitted woollen nose piece (supposedly in tribute to his favourite TV character, Future Ratboy).

As with other books like this Barry Loser is made a much easier read by the number of Jim Smith's illustrations throughout. In fact, there is a drawing on just about every page, and not a great deal of text either, and so even the most reluctant of readers can fly though the 230+ pages relatively quickly. I see how popular the Wimpy Kid books are with our reluctant reader 11 and 12 year olds at school, and therefore even though this is aimed at the 7+ age group I will be ordering a copy for the school library. I feel the level of toilet humour will make it a sure fire hit (oh how they love to read about poos, farts and bogies).

Barry Loser: I Am Not A Loser is published by Egmont today and my thanks go to the publishers for sending me a copy to review.

Review: Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber

It's prom night and Perry just wants to stick to his own plan and finally play a much anticipated gig with his band in the Big Apple. But when his mother makes him take Gobija Zaksauskas, their quiet, geeky Lithuanian exchange student, to the prom, he never expects that his ordinary high school guy life will soon turn on its head. Perry finds that Gobi is on a mission, and Perry has no other choice but to go along for a reckless ride through Manhattan's concrete grid with a trained assassin in Dad's red Jag.

In my mid-teens I suddenly discovered adult thrillers. I have a feeling the first may have been Robert Ludlam's The Bourne Identity, after which I flew through the whole back catalogue of his books, with The Matarese Circle, The Holcroft Covenant and of course The Bourne series emerging as favourites that I would go on to re-read many times in subsequent years. There were several elements that I loved about these books (and also at the time Jeffrey Archer's A Matter of Honour): the level of action (guns, bombs, etc), the complicated, twisting plots and most of all, the 'innocent' man being drawn into a conspiracy and watching how they cope and grow as events spiral out of their control. I do not read anywhere near as many adult thrillers of this ilk these days, nor have I read any of the more recent Jason Bourne books, but reading Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber was like a blast from the past, and brought back many fond memories of my teen years.

Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick is like a Robert Ludlum thriller for young adults, but with added humour. Lots of humour. It also has guns, bombs, car chases, blood, a hot, totally badass girl on a mission, and of course that 'innocent' man boy pulled kicking and screaming into a the world of crime, violence and assassination. Said 'innocent' then has to very quickly learn how survive and grow in a world that is very, very different from his cosy, although not particularly happy, home life.

Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick introduces us to Perry, a teenage boy who is applying for university places, with huge amounts of pressure and expectation being piled on him by his high-earning, demanding father. Perry is saddled with looking after Gobi, a seemingly shy, frumpy Lithuanian girl who is spending some time in the US to study and learn the language. Gobi rarely talks to anyone, and as the day for her departure nears, the only thing Perry is looking forward to more is a gig he has managed to secure for his band at a club in Manhattan. Unfortunately for Perry, the gig is on the same night as the school prom, an event he was intending to miss until Gobi makes it very clear to Perry's parents that she would very much like to spend one of her last nights in the USA as Perry's date at the prom. It isn't long before Perry discovers there is a lot more to Gobi than he and his friends initially thought, and as the action unfolds he finds that he too has hidden depths.

If you want lengthy passages of exposition and detailed character development in your stories then this may not be the book for you. However, I would trade both of those for this kind of wham-bam action story any day of the week, as would the majority of reluctant teen readers I come across at work. Gobi is a great character, and Perry's complete and utter naivety as her true nature is revealed is hilarious, as well as slightly tragic at times. I would love to see this made into a comic, as the violence of the story fits in quite nicely with recent tongue-in-cheek but fill of blood splatter titles such as Jennifer Blood and Kick-Ass.

I can't finish this review without mentioning the cover, as it was this that first brought Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick to my attention. I was at an event organised by the lovely people at Egmont where they were launching their YA imprint, Electric Monkey. Joe Schreiber was not one of the authors they had present that evening, but his book was on display. How could I not be drawn by the great title, and the Kill Bill like cover design of black on yellow, with blood splatters? I asked if I could be added to the list of a review copy and instead one of the display copies was forced into my hand (it didn't take much persuasion). I started reading it on the train on the way home, and it turned into another one of those 'nearly missed my stop' moments as I was completely hooked by the fast pace of the story. When I got home I continued reading it, not wanting to go to sleep until I had reached the end. Fortunately it is quite a lot slimmer than many YA books around at the moment!

My thanks go to Egmont for so kindly allowing me to take a copy away from their event. I'm now impatiently awaiting the sequel, Ciao For Now, Crazy European Chick, due out in October.

Review: Oliver Twisted by JD Sharpe (and Charles Dickens)

"Flesh," the woe-begotten moaned at Oliver, baring teeth which were ragged and black. "Flesh" came another moan, and he turned to see two more behind. They began to shuffle towards him, barefoot.

The world according to Oliver Twisted is simple. Vampyres feed on the defenceless, orphans are sacrificed to hungry gods and if a woe-begotten catches your scent it will hunt you forever. On the advice of a corpse, Oliver flees his ghastly orphan life to seek his destiny in the dark streets of old London Town, despite the perils of the woe-begotten zombie-infested journey. There he meets the shadowy Dodger, the evil old soul-stealer Fagin, and the menacing Bill Sikes, who is more beast than man. But will Oliver Twisted be the world's salvation, or its downfall?!

Confession #1: I am not a particularly big fan of Charles Dickens books. I know that by admitting that I run the risk of being burned as a heretic, but I have to be true to myself and my readers.

Confession #2: The only Dickens book I have read is Oliver Twist. I have read this one and a half times. The half was the abridged version when I was at school (Year 8 or Year 9 I believe); the other time was as an adult. I think I much preferred the abridged version.

Despite it being a great story, with many fantastic characters that have become an integral part of our national culture, I simply did not enjoy the reading experience. It was simply far too wordy for my liking, and having slogged through it I didn’t have the motivation to try another of his many books. I’m sure it is to my loss, but c’est la vie.

If you are still reading this and haven’t closed your browser in disgust then please now let me tell you about Oliver Twisted, a book I found hugely enjoyable. I first heard about the book last year when I was at a bloggers’ event held by OUP. Jasmine Richards (aka JD Sharpe), one of their senior editors, told me about one of her own books due out in 2012, and I was sold on the idea immediately. Oliver Twist with vampires and zombies? Of course it appealed to me.

If you are a Dickens fan, and you are still reading this, perhaps now feeling more than a little horrified that someone has ‘messed’ with yet another classic by doing a “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” on Dickens’ much loved story then have no fear. I gave up on P&P&Z after only a couple of chapters – Oliver Twisted is infinitely better. First of all JD Sharpe is herself a huge, huge fan of the works of Charles Dickens and this is evident from the way she treats the well known characters that given a new lease of life (or in some cases death) in her version of the story.

Secondly, unlike P&P&Z where Jane Austen’s original words are used with various changes and additions, this is a rewrite of the Oliver Twist story. By this I mean that Ms Sharpe has taken the basic plot of the original Dickens story and turned it into an action horror story to rival the likes of Darren Shan and David Gatward. In this story Oliver’s mother dies shortly after giving birth to him, but her death is far from natural – she takes her own life rather than give into the change that she faces having been bitten by a woe-begotten (Victorian for zombie). We then see Oliver progress through orphanage, onto workhouse, and then into the employ of Mr Sowerberry before finally running away to London, with each of these episodes in his life twisted to make the storyline far more horrific than the original. Once Oliver arrives in London he goes on to meet all the familiarly named characters, although some of them are as you have never seen them before.

I’m not going to go into any more detail as I don’t want to spoil the reading experience for anyone. Part of the enjoyment of this richly imagined story is each discovery of what the author has done to tweak a well known character to make them fit her new vampire and werewolf populated Victorian world. To call the story a mash-up would be doing a great disservice to the author; I feel that she has managed to fuse the original story with her own twisted take on Victorian England in a way that Seth Grahame-Smith never even came close to, and in doing so has created a story that will have appeal to adult lovers of the original, and young readers who are yet to pick up a Charles Dickens novel for the first time. I am looking forward to passing this on to the English staff at school to see their reactions to it.

Oliver Twisted is published today and my thanks go to the good people at Electric Monkey for sending me a copy of the book to review. You can also head on over to http://www.olivertwisted.co.uk/ and read an extract of the book.

Review: Candle Man: The Society of Dread by Glenn Dakin

When Theo defeated his old guardian, Dr Saint, in a fierce, fiery battle, he thought his enemies were routed and the bad old days were over for good. But now the terrible slithering, seething crelp are bubbling up from below ground to snatch people and harvest their bones. Deep beneath the city, an ancient force – one that could threaten even Theo the Candle Man’s power – is getting ready to burn, burn, burn. Twisted, charred, faceless Dr Pyre has a plan, and a secret that will shock Theo to the core. Theo will have to descend once more into the dark, slimy tunnels to fight strange creatures and ally with old enemies. Can the Candle Man find a way in the dark this time?

Back in November 2009, in the dark, early days of The Book Zone, I posted a review of the first book from Glenn Dakin featuring his young hero, and subtitled The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance. It was a book that I loved for its dark humour, fast pace and colourful characters, and I waited impatiently for the sequel. Unfortunately patience is not a virtue I possess in bucketfuls when it comes to books, and my willpower weakened to the point where I ordered the sequel from the US, as for some reason the books have been published over there some time before they are unleashed on the UK. I read it at a time when things were really busy at work and so I just never got around to writing a review, and then a copy of the UK paperback edition arrived from the generous people at Egmont, and has sat on my desk as a reminder to post that review ever since.

I have just re-read the sequel, subtitled The Society of Dread, so that it is fresh in my mind for writing this review, and please me when I say that it is just as good second time around. I loved this book, possibly even more than I loved the first in the series, as it has all the great elements of the first book plus more. More great characters. More horrible creatures. More dark, dark humour. And best of all, more of Theo, a main character with flaws, and one of the great underdogs of modern children's literature.

In preparation for writing this I also re-read my review of the first book in the series. At the time I wrote that I had struggled to get a feel for the place in which the story was set, and that I was a little confused about it. I wonder whether that was just the mood I was in at the time, as there was certainly none of that in this book, and the setting was this time a stand-out element of the story for me. If you haven't read the first book (you really should), the story is set in a modern day London, but there are many elements that give the reader a feeling that some of its characters are firmly rooted in the traditions of the Victorian era, and it certainly has the feel of some of the classic crime and adventure books from the beginning of the 20th Century. It is the kind of book that I would really love to see turned into a film, directed by the likes of Terry Gilliam or Jean-Pierre Jeunet, directors who would lavish care and attention on creating the perfect setting, down to the smallest detail. Although perhaps the scenes where Theo uses his powers might be a little too icky for this, so maybe an animated films by someone like Sylvain Chomet (creator of the totally brilliant Belleville Rendez-vous).

To tell you more about the plot than is mentioned in the publisher's blurb at the top of this post would be risking giving away spoilers from the first book, so instead you should read my review of that first book and then go out and get your hands on the book, in the knowledge that there is an even better sequel already waiting in the wings. If you have already read the first book then you probably don't need to read my waffling about the plot of the sequel anyway. What I will say is that the ending of The Society of Dread leaves us with a number of hints that suggest that there will hopefully be a third Candle Man book some time in the future, although I am not privy to when that may be. If I get any more information about this I will be sure to let you know.

Review: The Shadowing: Hunted by Adam Slater

Once every century, the boundary between the demon Netherworld and the human world weakens. Legions of creatures gather, preparing to cross over, to bring death and destruction. This time is called The Shadowing. Callum has always known that there is something beyond the mortal world - he can see ghosts. Lately, he's started to have horrific visions of children murdered by some terrible, unseen creature. And then the visions start to come true - and Callum realises he is being hunted too. But Callum must stay alive. He is bound by a dark destiny, and must stand against the demon forces that threaten our world forever. For it is nearly time. The Shadowing is coming...

Back in December I wrote on post about the cover of Adam Slater's debut horror book Hunted, the first in his The Shadowing series. At the time I asked whether it was possibly the most gruesome YA horror cover so far. Then in January Adam very kindly wrote a short piece about his book as part of my Coming Up in 2011 feature. I had been fortunate by then to have been sent a copy by the generous people at Egmont and reassessed this initial judgement - taken in context the cover is a lot less gory, although still not one for the squeamish. Let me remind you what Adam said about his book for me back in January:

What would you do if you found out that not only could you see ghosts, but a load of demons were about to cross over into our world, and you were the only person who could stop them? That’s exactly what teenager Callum Scott faces in my new horror series, The Shadowing. His only backup is ghost boy Jacob and his giant spectral dog, Doom. And those demons aren’t going down without a fight. Soon Callum’s being hunted, and by something you wouldn’t want to encounter in your worst nightmares… If you like skin-crawling horror fiction, you’ll love The Shadowing!

There have been some great new horror series over the past year and this book is up there with the best of them. Horror loving boys and girls will be hooked from the very first paragraphs - as prologues go this one is a beauty as it gives the reader an idea of the extreme peril our hero might find himself in, even before we have met him. The final paragraph of the prologue is more than a little gory but even the squeamish should stick with it past this point as it is not a true reflection of the rest of the story's tone.

The story's main protagonist is Callum Scott, a normal teenage boy except for one key factor - he can see ghosts. He has always possessed this ability, not that he would ever tell anyone else, but more recently their numbers have increased and he can hardly go anywhere without seeing them. The only place he feels he has real peace and quiet from these ghosts is in the small country cottage he shares with his grandmother, a rather eccentric lady who has a secret she wants to keep from Callum. Being able to see ghosts is not exactly pleasant, but Callum has come to terms with it over the years. However, all of a sudden he also starts having visions of events in the very near future, events that he can alter by taking action. Couple this new development with a number of pretty grisly murders that seem to be getting closer and closer to home and life is suddenly turned upside down for Callum.

Last year I was raving about the first of David Gatward's The Dead books, and what a series that has turned out to be. On the strength of this first offering I think I will be singing the praises of this series in the future as well. Hunted is fast-paced and exciting, but not so frantic that it goes from action scene to action scene. Adam Slater knows when to draw his audience in with small morsels of information that build the background to his characters, and then BLAM, he hits you in the face with a tense chase scene or he cuts to a grisly scene featuring his monster as it gradually gravitates towards Callum's area, leaving a bloody trail in its path.

At the end of my proof copy that Egmont sent me there is a chilling teaser chapter for the next book in the series, gruesomely titled Skinned, which according to Amazon is due to be published at the beginning of August this year. It is certainly a series I intend to follow based upon this book, which was published at the beginning of April and should be in most book shops by now. I must reiterate that if you like horror but are a little squeamish when it comes to gore I think you will still love this book as much as I did, as gore is not the main element of horror on show here; that honour goes to something far more creepy.   

Review: 0.4 by Mike Lancaster

'My name is Kyle Straker. And I don't exist anymore.' 

So begins the story of Kyle Straker, recorded on to old audio tapes. You might think these tapes are a hoax. But perhaps they contain the history of a past world...If what the tapes say are true, it means that everything we think we know is a lie. 

And if everything we know is a lie does that mean that we are, too?

Over the past year or so I have occasionally had a little moan regarding the lack of intelligent science fiction stories written for young people these days. Keith Mansfield has produced two fine 'space opera' novels as part of his Johnny Mackintosh series, A.G. Taylor is flying a sci-fi flag with his brilliant Superhumans books and over in the US Douglas E. Richards has also produced a trio of cracking books for the 10+ involving alien worlds. But where are the John Wyndhams of the new millennium? Well there just might be a chance that Mike Lancaster is ready to step in and apply for the position. Yes, I know that John Wyndham is a legend in science fiction circles, and books like Day of the Triffids, The Chrysalids and The Midwich Cuckoos are true classics of the genre, but young readers just developing a thirst for science fiction often prefer something a little more modern in writing style before progressing on to the classics, and they could do a hell of a lot worse than start off with 0.4.

The opening pages of 0.4 inform the reader that the item in their hands is a book, and we very quickly work out that this future society no longer reads as we do, and the written word has been obsolete for many years. The book goes on to tell us that the story is a transcript taken off some old analogue cassette tapes, and if what is dictated on the pages is genuine then it could have a huge impact on how these people view their society. The bulk of the story is then written in the first person, that being Kyle Straker, an average teenage boy who lives in a typical small town British village. He goes to school, he has friends, his family situation has been happier, but everything goes on as normal.... until the day he volunteers to be hypnotised at the annual village talent contest. One minute he, and three other volunteers, are being put into a state of hypnotic sleep, and the very next they are 'waking' to discover everyone else in the village has become a living statue, frozen doing whatever they were doing at that single moment in time. The mystery, and their terror, intensifies as the foursome discover that the phones are also dead, and there is nothing but static on the radio. However, this terror is nothing compared to what they feel as the villagers suddenly 'awaken'.......

I really don't want to say any more about the storyline as to do so would create spoilers. All I will say is that older science fiction fans will probably feel that the author was partly inspired by Invasion of the Bodysnatchers, but there are also parallels to be drawn with the previously mentioned The Midwich Cuckoos. I certainly experienced the same sensation of eeriness and creeping dread that I felt when I first saw both Invasion films and first read Wyndham's classic; and it is the kind of feeling that meant I just did not want to put the book down. Usually this only happens with books that I have long been anticipating, but I had not heard of 0.4 until the kind people at Egmonst sent it along with a copy of The Shadowing, and so having started this as I went to bed I found myself reading well into the night.

The engaging and fast moving plot is aided admirably by the author's main character. Kyle is a long way from being the kind of boy we find in many books for the 12+ age group these days - he is certainly no Alex Rider. As I said before, he is an average teenage boy, and it is his very ordinariness that makes the story that much more believable. As I have said before in reviews, children often like their heroes to be normal kids, as they find it much easier to relate to the actions they take when placed in extremely difficult situations.

Throughout the book the narrative is occasionally broken up with editor's notes (Mike Lancaster being named as the editor of this future society). He uses these notes to clarify certain cultural references that Kyle makes, a device that  adds to the concept of this being a transcript of tapes recorded long ago. Let's face it, a society that no longer reads would hardly be expected to know the meaning of terms such as 'Coldplay', 'Britain's Got Talent' and 'Teletubbies'. I say this adds to the concept, but I personally found these notes a little intrusive and distracting at times. Perhaps they would have been better placed at the rear of the book as a glossary? That minor gripe aside this is a thoroughly enjoyable read, and I will certainly be looking out for more from him in the future.

Coming Up in 2011 #2 - The Shadowing: Hunted by Adam Slater

The second book to appear in my "Coming Up In 2011" feature is by Adam Slater, an author I very much doubt many of you have heard of, but believe me when I say that this will not be the case for much longer. I first heard about his debut horror book, The Shadowing: Hunted, a few weeks before Christmas when I stumbled across a Twitter conversation between by good friend Liz from My Favourite Books and a representative from Egmont Books. I mentioned the conversation in a blog post at the time, as part of their chat included the awesome cover art for this book. At the time I only provided a link to the cover as I was asking the question "Is this the scariest, goriest YA horror book cover yet?". Now that we are into a new year I have decided what the hell.... might as well have this on the blog now:

Since writing that blog post I have now had the chance to read the book, and it is brilliant. I thought that 2010 had been a good year for horror books, but at this rate 2011 could beat it hands down! And now that I have read the story, for some reason the cover seems less gory to me, as I now know exactly how the image fits into the story, and the image fits the story perfectly. My review will appear in a couple of months time, nearer to publication date, but in the meantime this is what Adam Slater has to say to readers of The Book Zone about his new book:

What would you do if you found out that not only could you see ghosts, but a load of demons were about to cross over into our world, and you were the only person who could stop them? That’s exactly what teenager Callum Scott faces in my new horror series, The Shadowing. His only backup is ghost boy Jacob and his giant spectral dog, Doom. And those demons aren’t going down without a fight. Soon Callum’s being hunted, and by something you wouldn’t want to encounter in your worst nightmares… If you like skin-crawling horror fiction, you’ll love The Shadowing!