The lovely Choc Lit gang revealed the cover for Jane Lovering’s next novel Vampire State of Mind over on their Facebook page the other day. Isn’t it gorgeous? And such a fab title too. Described as “Choc Lit’s version of Buffy”, I can’t wait to read this one. Vampire State of Mind is out in August – perfect timing for your beach reading list!

Check out One More Page’s Facebook page for more book news and gossip!

In the second part of my ‘hot picks’ for 2012 I’ve chosen the paranormal and fantasy books that I’m most looking forward to reading. Are your favourites on the list?

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood (Razorbill, March)

I love witch stories and am looking forward to this new YA series. I’ve shown the US cover here – isn’t it lovely?

Our mother was a witch too, but she hid it better.

I miss her.

To me, the magic feels like a curse. According to the Brothers, it’s devil-sent. Women who can do magic-they’re either mad or wicked. So I will do everything in my power to protect myself and my sisters. Even if it means giving up my life – and my true love.

Because if the Brothers discover our secret, we’re destined for the asylum, or prison . . . or death.

Romance, magic, and an age-old prophecy.

The Reckoning by Alma Katsu (Century, June)

The second book in The Taker series – no synopsis yet for this immortal love story but the series has undergone a striking cover change for this release!

666 Park Avenue by Gabriella Pierce (Canvas, June)

I’m very excited about this series which definitey falls into the chick lit side of paranormal – it sounds brilliant.

Welcome to New York City, where the socialites are witches Ever since fabulously wealthy Malcolm Doran walked into her life and swept her off her feet, Jane Boyle has been living a fairy-tale. When he proposes, Jane can’t believe her incredible luck and decides to leave her Paris-based job as a fledgling architect and make a new start with Malcolm in New York. But when Malcolm introduces Jane to the esteemed Doran clan, one of Manhattan’s most feared and revered families, Jane’s fairy-tale takes a darker turn. Soon everything she thought she knew about the world-and herself-is upended. Now Jane must struggle with newfound magical abilities and the threat of those who will stop at nothing to get them. What if your mother-in-law turned out to be an evil, cold-blooded witch … literally?

Shadow of the Night by Deborah Harkness (Headline, July)

The long awaited sequel to A Discovery of Witches. Enough said

Together we lifted our feet and stepped into the unknown.

Shortly after Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont timewalk to London, 1590, they discover that the past may not provide a safe haven after all. Reclaiming his former identity as poet and spy Matthew Roydon, the vampire falls back in step with a group of radicals known as the School of Night who share dangerous ideas about God, science, and man. Many of his friends are unruly daemons – the creative minds of the age who walk the fine line between genius and madness – including playwright Christopher Marlowe and mathematician Thomas Harriot.  Matthew, himself, is expected to continue to spy for Queen Elizabeth, which puts him in close contact with London’s cutthroat underworld.

Together, Matthew and Diana scour the bookstalls and alchemical laboratories of London where they follow the elusive trail of Ashmole 782 – and search for the witch who will teach Diana to control her powers.

Wake by Amanda Hocking (Pan Macmillan, Autumn)

Having just read Switched I’m looking forward to reading the first in Amanda’s new Watersong series.

Beautiful. Fearless. Dangerous. They’re the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Thea, and Lexi have caught everyone’s attention, including the eye of practical Harper. But it’s her sister, Gemma, they’ve chosen to be part of their group.

Sixteen-year-old Gemma seems to have it all – carefree, pretty, and falling in love with the boy next door. But her greatest passion has always been the water. She craves late night swims under the stars, where she can be alone yet belong to the sea. Lately she’s had company. Penn, Thea, and Lexi spend their nights dancing, singing, and partying on the cove–and one night Gemma joins them. When she wakes up groggy on the beach the next morning, she knows something has changed.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. As she uncovers the truth about her new mythical powers, Gemma is forced to choose between staying with those she loves or entering a dark world brimming with unimaginable secrets.

The Water Witch by Carol Goodman (Ebury, September)

No synopsis yet for this book which is the second novel in the Fairwick Chronicles series. I loved Incubus and can’t wait to find out what happens to Callie next.

As you probably know by now, A Discovery of Witches was one of my favourite books of 2011 and along with many of you I’m eagerly anticipating the release of the sequel Shadow of the Night in July. I was very excited to see that the cover for Shadow of the Night has been revealed on the official Discovery of Witches website!

So what do you think? I’m loving the blue! There is also a tiny peek at what’s to come with an extract from the new book. Check it out at: http://www.adiscoveryofwitches.co.uk/news.html

Wendy Everly knew she was different the day her mother tried to kill her and accused her of having been switched at birth. Although certain she’s not the monster her mother claimed she is – she does feel that she doesn’t quite fit in . . .

The new girl in High School, she’s bored and frustrated by her small town life – and then there’s the secret that she can’t tell anyone. Her mysterious ability – she can influence people’s decisions, without knowing how, or why . . .

When the intense and darkly handsome newcomer Finn suddenly turns up at her bedroom window one night – her world is turned upside down. He holds the key to her past, the answers to her strange powers and is the doorway to a place she never imagined could exist. Förening, the home of the Trylle. Everything begins to make sense to Wendy. Among the Trylle, she is not just different, but special. But what marks her out as chosen for greatness in this world also places her in grave danger. With everything around her changing, Finn is the only person she can trust. But dark forces are conspiring – not only to separate them, but to see the downfall everything that Wendy cares about. The fate of Förening rests in Wendy’s hands, and the decisions she and Finn make could change all their lives forever . . .

My new year has started with cover love; Amanda Hocking’s Trylle Trilogy has been beautifully packaged with two sets of covers to choose from (Adult and Young Adult versions), all of which are gorgeous. Many of you will have already heard of Amanda Hocking but for those who haven’t; she self-published her first book less than a year ago and has now sold over a million ebooks so I was very intrigued to see what all the fuss is about!

Switched is the story of seventeen year old Wendy who lives with her Aunt Maggie  and brother Matt after her mother tried to kill her when she was six. Not surprisingly, after a traumatic childhood, Wendy has ‘issues’ and finds it hard to fit in. As a consequence, her family has moved around a lot and as we meet her, she is once again the new girl in school. The story is told from Wendy’s point of view and I enjoyed that she knows she’s different but as the novel starts, doesn’t really understand why although she’s beginning to notice that she has some special abilities. Wendy finds herself drawn to mysterious new boy Finn and it soon becomes clear that he holds the key to finding out who she really is.  Switched is predominantly the story of Wendy’s discovery that she is a Trylle and what this means for her future. I enjoyed following Wendy on her voyage of discovery and despite her supposed ‘issues’, I found her a likeable character, if a little immature for her almost eighteen years.

If you’d told me I’d be so gripped by a book about Trolls I probably wouldn’t have believed you but I couldn’t put this book down. I can certainly see why it has been a huge hit. The story gives an original spin to the Troll folklore and feels fresh and magical at the same time. As a mum I wondered if I could enjoy a story about babies being switched at birth and if I’m completely honest, that part of the story didn’t sit very well with me at the beginning but as the book progressed the ‘switch’ element was explored from a number of angles with Wendy often voicing my thoughts about the changeling practice and and I found myself more intrigued as to how it would all play out than anything else.

The romance element to the story is good with several possible love interests popping up and dramatic events when Wendy realises who she really wants to be with! Hocking has created a detailed fantasy world in the Forening, with its own royalty and strict hierarchies. She has also created the requisite darker Trylle, The Vittra who are determined to use Wendy to thier own ends. Switched is fast paced and at just under 300 pages, the story has a huge amount packed into it meaning that I didn’t want to put it down. Amanda and the Trylle have a new fan in me and I can’t wait to add Torn and Ascend to my shelves in March and April!

4/5

Switched is released today and I’d like to thank Bea at Thinkjam for sending me a review copy.

You can find out more about Amanda Hocking and her books on her blog at: http://www.amandahocking.blogspot.com/ and at http://www.panmacmillan.com/author/amandahocking where you can find an extract from Switched.

This year I read 76 books  – that’s two more than last year! To end the year, I’ve chosen my ten favourite books that were published in 2011 and have provided links to my reviews where possible. I found it really hard to narrow my choice down to just ten books this year and even more impossible to pick an absolute favourite as I enjoyed different novels at different times for very different reasons. This year I’ve expanded on the top ten with some ‘favourites’ categories and a ‘readers’ choice’ section for the most popular (most visited) reviews this year. So without further ado, my books of the year, in release date order are:

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (published in January by Headline)

Vampires, witches and daemons; a magical manuscript, rich historical detail and fascinating characters. This was a brilliant paranormal romance to start the year with and  I can’t wait for the follow up Shadow of the Night to be released in July 2012.

The Taker by Alma Katsu (published by Century in April)

A dark and gripping paranormal romance with no vampires! The Taker is a very original take on the immortal love story with the driving force behind most of the action being unrequited love. I’m eagerly awaiting the sequel The Reckoning in June.

The Beauty Chorus by Kate Lord-Brown (published by Corvus in April)

I love the title for this book which was the nickname given by fighter pilots to the women who volunteered to fly planes like Spitfires from factories to British airfields during World War Two. In The Beauty Chorus Kate Lord Brown skillfully combines the true historical facts (166 women joined the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) risking their lives to ferry planes across the country) with the fictional story of three very different women to create a thoroughly enjoyable and thought provoking novel.

From London With Love by Jemma Forte (published by Penguin in July)

A fun summer chick lit read that had me gripped and one of my favourite covers of the year too. The Bond theme adds a touch of A-list glamour to the story and as Jessica ties herself in knots trying to keep her identity a secret, From London with Love has a great message about not judging a book by its over and being who you really are.

The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield (published by Harper in July)

Jenny Wingfield’s debut is one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve read it and 11 year old Swan Lake is one of my favourite characters of the year. Set in 1950′s Arkansas, the story is heartbreaking and heartwarming in equal measures and beautifully written following the trials and tribulations of the wonderful Moses clan. My full review will be coming in January.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline ( published in August by Century)

A suprise hit for me! Ernest Cline has created a brilliantly thought out and detailed future dystopian world; combined it with a fantastic virtual reality treasure hunt based on music, film and gaming nostalgia from the 1980′s and underlined it all with (the biggest surprise for me as I read) a really sweet coming of age love story.

Netherwood by Jane Sanderson (published in September by Sphere)

Netherwood is a thoroughly enjoyable historical saga and a fantastic debut from Jane Sanderson. I was completely drawn in to the world that Jane has created, loving both the historical detail and the variety and depth of characters that populate this book.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (published by Harvill Secker in September)

A gorgeous book and an amazing debut from Erin Morgenstern. I loved the story of the mysterious black and white Circus which only opens at night. The book is packed with magic and intrigue. I’ve only just finished reading this one but it shot straight into my top ten!

Miracle on Regent Street by Ali Harris (published in October by Simon and Schuster)

Another of my favourite covers of the year. A classy story filled with vintage glamour. Miracle on Regent Street is Ali Harris’s debut novel and what a debut. Heartfelt, warm, romantic and a lovely Christmassy story too.

It Started with a Kiss by Miranda Dickinson (published by Avon in November)

Last but by no means least, Miranda Dickinson’s third novel is Chick lit perfection from the sparkly pink cover to the brilliantly romantic ending and I thoroughly enjoyed every page in between as Romily Parker goes on a year long search for the handsome hero who kissed her and vanished!

2011 Favourites …

The whole package: The Night Circus

Although I love my Kindle, it will never replace physical books for me and books like this are the reason why. I splashed out on the gorgeous hard back when it was published and I love the book design as much as the story!

Cover love: Miracle on Regent Street by Ali Harris

The cover for this book is really striking and picks up the tone of the book perfectly.

Heroine: Gracie Flowers from (Un)like a Virgin by Lucy-Anne Holmes

Gracie had me smiling from the first page with her wry observations on her job, her boyfriend, friends and family and she’s one of my favourite leading chick it ladies of all time!

Hero: Prince Richard from To Marry a Prince by Sophie Page

I thought this book was a real gem of a romantic comedy and I loved Prince Richard who comes across as a fab leading man – by no means perfect, he has some brilliantly funny and romantic scenes but never seems over the top.

Support: Uncle Dudley and Auntie Mags from It Started With a Kiss by Miranda Dickinson

Dispensers of love, wisdom and support from their narrow-boat home to Romily as she undertakes her quest. They are instrumental in keeping Romily going but are also responsible for much of the book’s warm humour and I loved Aunty Mags’ ‘Cake Therapy’!

The perfect ending: Breakfast At Darcy’s by Ali McNamara

Ali McNamara retains her crown for queen of the romantic ending with a beautiful finale to her latest novel that left me with a big smile on my face.

Readers’ choice: Top five most read reviews of 2011

1. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

2. To the Moon and Back by Jill Mansell

3. The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

4. The Taker by Alma Katsu

5. Beautiful Creatures by Lulu Taylor

So that’s my year in books; are your favourites on the list? I’m looking forward to sharing many more reviews with you during 2012 and wish you all a very happy and bookish New Year! x

The winner is …

Revd Frank Julian Gelli

Congratulations! I have sent you an email. Thanks to everyone who entered.  Please check out the ‘Giveaways’ link at the top of the page for lots more chances to win as part of my Countdown to Christmas.

Today I’m giving away a copy of possibly my favourite book of the year (I say possibly because there are still a few weeks of the year left and you never know!)  I read this book way back in January and loved it straight away. You can read my review here.

I’ve been lucky enough to end up with two copies of the book so I’m offering one lucky reader the chance to win a copy of the paperback edition which was released at the end of September. A Discovery of Witches was a Sunday Times bestseller and Warner Bros has acquired the film rights. The sequel Shadow of the Night will be out in July 2012 so enter now to find out what all the fuss is about!

It begins with absence and desire. It begins with blood and fear. It begins with a discovery of witches.

When historian Diana Bishop opens an alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, it’s an unwelcome intrusion of magic into her carefully ordered life. Though Diana is a witch of impeccable lineage, the violent death of her parents while she was still a child convinced her that human fear is more potent than any witchcraft. Now Diana has unwittingly exposed herself to a world she’s kept at bay for years; one of powerful witches, creative, destructive daemons and long-lived vampires. Sensing the significance of Diana’s discovery, the creatures gather in Oxford, among them the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, a vampire genticist. Diana is inexplicably drawn to Matthew and, in a shadowy world of half-truths and old enmities, ties herself to him without fully understanding the ancient line they are crossing. As they begin to unlock the secrets of the manuscript and their feelings for each other deepen, so the fragile balance of peace unravels…

To enter just leave a ‘pick me’ comment in the box below and I’ll draw a winner using random.org after the closing date.

UK entries only please. Entries will close at midnight on Monday 5th December. Good luck!

October – another quick month and another six books read. Interestingly, I’m reading a lot more on my Kindle these days as I find it much easier to hold the Kindle than a book at the same time as holding baby! Four of the books I read were new releases for October.

The books I read were:

October book of the month

An Autumn Crush by Milly Johnson

The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

Trade Winds by Christina Courtenay

Renovation, Renovation, Renovation by Nell Dixon

Wrapped up in You by Carole Matthews

Highland Storms by Christina Courtenay

My book of the month for October is An Autumn Crush by Milly Johnson because Autumn is my favourite season and I loved the emphasis on family. I found it to be a really emotional and enjoyable read perfect for this time of year.

The three most popular posts in October were:

My review of The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks; Carole Matthews’ guest post on researching her new book and my review of Netherwood by Jane Sanderson.

Searches bringing most people to the blog were:

1. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
2. The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks
3. Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes by Sue Watson

In other October news, I took part in my first blog tour for Carole Matthews lovely Christmas book Wrapped up in You; gave my thoughts on my favourite books from the World Book Night 2012 list, hosted a fab Nicholas Sparks giveaway and made it to 900 followers on Twitter

I also began planning for my Countdown to Christmas in detail in October and am excited to say that I have some fantastic guest posts, guest reviews and giveaways lined up for December!  Countdown to Christmas is my book blogger version of an advent calendar with a Christmas-themed post every day from December 1st to 24th. I did the countdown last year and it was great fun but I’m making it bigger and better this year! There is still time to take part so if you are an author, publisher or fellow blogger and you’d like to contribute a post; be interviewed about Christmassy things, do a guest review or a giveaway or have another fab Christmassy idea, drop me an email at: onemorepageamanda@gmail.com

Coming up in November I’ve got a fab pile of wintry chick lit books lined up with reviews of Maria Duffy’s debut Any Dream Will Do, Miranda Dickinson’s It Started With a Kiss and One Minute to Midnight by Amy Silver. I’m taking part in Ali McNamara’s blog tour to celebrate the release of Breakfast at Darcy’s and I’m also looking forward to reviewing the first in a new paranormal series; Avenger’s Angel by Heather Killough-Walden.

Happy November reading!

The 25 titles for World Book Night 2012 were announced on Monday and there are some brilliant reads amongst them. The full list is below but I thought I’d highlight five of my favourites (synopses taken from Amazon)

Pride and Prejudice

My favourite Jane Austen novel – you can’t beat Elizabeth and Darcy as the ultimate romantic couple. One of the few books I’ve read more than once and I love it every time!

When Elizabeth Bennet first meets eligible bachelor Fitzwilliam Darcy, she thinks him arrogant and conceited; he is indifferent to her good looks and lively mind. When she later discovers that Darcy has involved himself in the troubled relationship between his friend Bingley and her beloved sister Jane, she is determined to dislike him more than ever. In the sparkling comedy of manners that follows, Jane Austen shows the folly of judging by first impressions and superbly evokes the friendships, gossip and snobberies of provincial middle-class life.

The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

I’m really pleased to see a chick lit novel on the list! I confessed that I’d never read a Sophie Kinsella novel last year but made up for it by running a Shopaholic challenge on the blog and have now read the entire series so far. Becky Bloomwood is such a fun character and the Shopaholic novels great escapist reads – needless to say, I’m a fan! You can read my review here.

Meet Rebecca Bloomwood.  She’s a journalist. She spends her working life telling others how to manage their money.
She spends her leisure time … shopping. Retail therapy is the answer to all her problems. She knows she should stop, but she can’t. She tries Cutting Back, she tries Making More Money. But neither seems to work. The stories she concocts become more and more fantastic as she tries to untangle her increasingly dire financial difficulties. Her only comfort is to buy herself something – just a little something… Can Becky ever escape from this dream world, find true love, and regain the use of her Switch card? The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic … the perfect pick me up for when it’s all hanging in the (bank) balance.

Small Island by Andrea Levy

I’ve read all of Levy’s books but this is still my favourite and also one of my favourite historical fiction novels of recent years.

It is 1948, and England is recovering from a war. But at 21 Nevern Street, London, the conflict has only just begun. Queenie Bligh’s neighbours do not approve when she agrees to take in Jamaican lodgers, but Queenie doesn’t know when her husband will return, or if he will come back at all. What else can she do? Gilbert Joseph was one of the several thousand Jamaican men who joined the RAF to fight against Hitler. Returning to England as a civilian he finds himself treated very differently. It’s desperation that makes him remember a wartime friendship with Queenie and knock at her door. Gilbert’s wife Hortense, too, had longed to leave Jamaica and start a better life in England. But when she joins him she is shocked to find London shabby, decrepit, and far from the golden city of her dreams. Even Gilbert is not the man she thought he was.

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

I loved this time-travelling paranormal romance. A beautiful and heartbreaking story that stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it.

This is the extraordinary love story of Clare and Henry who met when Clare was six and Henry was thirty-six, and were married when Clare was twenty-two and Henry thirty. Impossible but true, because Henry suffers from a rare condition where his genetic clock periodically resets and he finds himself pulled suddenly into his past or future. In the face of this force they can neither prevent nor control, Henry and Clare’s struggle to lead normal lives is both intensely moving and entirely unforgettable.

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell

Another of my favourite authors. A really gripping and haunting tale of past and present colliding mixing historical fiction with modern day mystery and drama.

Esme was a woman edited out of her family’s history, and when, sixty years later, she is released from care, a young woman, Iris, discovers the great aunt she never knew she had. The mystery that unfolds is the heartbreaking tale of two sisters in colonial India and 1930s Edinburgh – of the loneliness that binds them together and the rivalries that drive them apart, and lead one of them to a shocking betrayal - but above all it is the story of Esme, a fiercely intelligent,  unconventional young woman, and of the terrible price she is made to pay for her family’s unhappiness …

The full list is below and there are a lot of books that I haven’t read so I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on the selection. Will you be applying to be a ‘giver’ this year? Are your favourites on the list?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (Vintage)
The Player of Games by Iain M Banks (Little, Brown)
Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham (Little, Brown)
Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson (Transworld)
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Harper Collins)
The Take by Martina Cole (Headline)
Harlequin by Bernard Cornwell (Harper Collins)
Someone Like You by Roald Dahl (Penguin)
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (Penguin)
Room by Emma Donoghue (Pan Macmillan)
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier (Little, Brown)
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (Faber)
Misery by Stephen King (Hodder)
The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella (Transworld)
Small Island by Andrea Levy (Headline)
Let the Right One In by John Ajvde Lindqvist (Quercus)
The Road by Cormac McCarthy (Pan Macmillan)
The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (Vintage)
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell (Headline)
The Damned Utd by David Peace (Faber)
Good Omens by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman (Transworld)
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (Penguin)
Touching the Void by Joe Simpson (Vintage)
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (Vintage)
The Book Thief by Markus Zuzak (Transworld)

I loved the cover for Amy Plum’s debut Die for Me and I like this one even better (sapphire blue is my favourite colour!).

Until I Die is released on 3rd May 2012. The synopsis hasn’t been released yet but check out Amy’s gorgeous blog for news as it is released: http://www.amyplumbooks.com/