Trailer: Cat Clarke's Undone

I am a massive fan of Cat and her work, regular readers of EoB will no doubt of seen her mentioned somewhere, be is a cover post, review, anything. I love her! She's awesome and her books have such a feel to them, this massive sense of captivation that sucks you right in! Undone is the third book she will publish with Quercus, and it's out on Kindle on 20th December, but physically in paperback at the end of January 2013!

To celebrate the release, and to gear up Cat's fans into a frenzy, Quercus have released this brilliant trailer to give readers a little taster of what Undone has in store for us all!

Jem Halliday is in love with her gay best friend. Not exactly ideal, but she's learning to live with it. Then the unspeakable happens. Kai is outed online ... and he kills himself. Jem knows nothing she can say or do will bring him back. But she wants to know who was responsible. And she wants to take them down.

Cannot wait to read it! Not long now! 

Torn by Cat Clarke [Review]

Written by: Cat Clarke.

Published by: Quercus.

Format: Paperback.

Released: 22nd December 2011.

Rating: 5/5.

Official synopsis: "Four girls. One dead body. A whole lot of guilt. Alice King isn't expecting the holiday of a lifetime when she sets off with her classmates on a trip to the Scottish wilderness, but she's not exactly prepared for an experience beyond her darkest nightmares... Alice and her best friend Cass are stuck in a cabin with Polly, the social outcast, and Rae, the moody emo-girl. Then there's Tara - queen of mean. Powerful, beautiful and cruel, she likes nothing better than putting people down. Cass decides it's time to teach Tara a lesson she'll never forget. And so begins a series of events that will change the lives of these girls forever..."

Last September, I reviewed Cat's first book, Entangled, and the review began with the following sentence: "This book is amazing! There. I've said it. Entangled is amazing." And it's true! And unfortunately, I have to begin the review of Torn in exactly the same way. Because it also is amazing... So...

This book is amazing. There. I've said it. Torn is amazing! (Is this going to become a Cat Clarke tradition?!). I've said before that the pink-ness of the Entangled proof putting me off a bit, and to be honest the use of pink, did again have a little effect on me. Not really a fan of pink, and to be honest, pink doesn't fit the story, but, a cover is a cover, there to get attention, and no doubt, this cover will. But having read Cat's work already, the cover was the least of my worries! I was fretting about what was inside.

Entangled took things to a fantastic new level and I wondered whether Cat could do it again. 

Well...

With masterful skill, Cat takes us on yet another earth-shattering ride as Alice King fights with her conscience and her best friend. Does she do the right thing and compromise her relationship with Cass, or does she keep the secret, despite the fact that it's getting harder and harder to keep?

I knew Cat was amazing, but Torn, for me only proves that even more. The writing is so addictive and one-hundred percent teenage. Cat gets right into the mind of her characters - in particular those of a narrative nature - and never once does the voice of Alice faultier. It's constant and oozes along naturally. It doesn't read like "adult writing for a teenager from a teenagers point of view but obviously not written by a teenager..." If you didn't know Cat, you would think this book had been written by a fifteen year old, no doubt about it. 

The five main characters, Alice - who we've already spoken about.., Cass the best friend, Rae the girl that doesn't really speak to anyone because she's too into her music, Polly the girl that, sadly, rightly or wrongly, we all know - no real friends, a kind of outcast. And then of course we've got Tara. The popular girl. Queen Bee. This book could be real, because it takes five girls who could go to any school, anywhere in the country, no doubt in the world.

To be honest, saying anymore would really spoil the book. It's so finely woven and beautifully crafted that trying to tweaser out tidbits it so freaking hard and anything I say could give the game away, quite literally. Just know that from start till finish, you'll be hooked - addicted to every word from the North London, main setting, and the field trip in Scotland that kickstarts the terrible events that take place... Characters you can actually believe in, fall for, feel for, and at the same time dispse. Twists and turns. This whole book is an experience that should not be missed.

I just wish I could forget it all to read it again! More please!

My thanks to Quercus for my copy!

Buy from Amazon UK

Cover Art News: Torn by Cat Clark!!! ZOMG!

Now anyone that was skulking around EoB towards the end of 2010 will of seen me rave about Cat Clarke's debut novel, Entangled, which was published this January. It had a looovely cover and now Cat has revealed the cover for her next book, Torn, which is due early next year. I saw this on my lunch break earlier today and had a little freak attack. I loved Entangled and have been counting down to this. Cat just has such an amazing voice in her writing that I cannot help but melt! Cannot wait for this book. Check out the beaut below! And be sure to get Entangled now!!! (Review here). Anyway... beautiful cover!!!!

Entangled by Cat Clarke [Review]

Written by: Cat Clarke.
Published by: Quercus.
Format: Paperback.
Released: 6th January 2011.
Rating: 5/5.


Official synopsis: "'The same questions whirl round and round in my head: 
What does he want from me? 
How could I have let this happen? 
AM I GOING TO DIE?' 

17-year-old Grace wakes up in a white room, with table, pens and paper - and no clue how she got there. As Grace pours her tangled life onto the page, she is forced to remember everything she's tried to forget. There's falling hopelessly in love with the gorgeous Nat, and the unravelling of her relationship with her best friend Sal. But there's something missing. As hard as she's trying to remember, is there something she just can't see? Grace must face the most important question of all. Why is she here? A story of dangerous secrets, intense friendships and electrifying attraction."

This book is amazing! There. I've said it. Entangled is amazing.

When it first came through my postbox I was a bit sceptical. I am not the biggest fan of pink, and seeing so much pink was shocking! But they always say "never judge a book by it's cover" so it didn't affect my reading experience. And boy what an experience! This book is more twisty than any book I think I have ever read. So many times, when little tidbits were revealed, I'd make a guess, connect the dots, and then something else would happen and I'd change my guess. And then again. And again. And by about the fifth time I decided to give up guessing. But I have to say, I didn't guess the ending. Not at all. This book kept me guessing right until the very end. It is very clever and perfectly written.

It's so engaging. Right from the first page I was drawn in. It was annoying whenever I had to put the book down as I just wanted to read on! Why was this girl locked in a room? Why has she been given a seemingly endless supply of pens and paper? Who is Ethan and what does he really want?

Grace's voice is perfect. Absolutely perfect. Some books, when narrated by one person, in first person, the narration is a bit sketchy, not always consistent. But in Entangled it is perfectly clear that Grace is on every single page. The perfect voice of a teenage girl. I know Cat herself was a teenage girl at some point, but to get it into written word cannot of been all that easy. So this is testament to what an amazing writer she is. (Yes Cat, you're amazing!). 

I wasn't that much of a fan of Grace in the beginning however. She was loud, and brash and to start off with, she kind of annoyed me. Every time something good was happening, she spoilt it. But as I read on, I really started to empathise with her, and began to connect with her, to understand her. I understood that her behaviour and attitude has a hidden reason, and that underneath she's just as vulnerable and worrisome as the rest of us. 

I like that the cast for this book is pretty small. It allows us to focus on them all the more rather than have to keep remembering who this person is, what that person did and why this person is where they are. There are 7 characters in total but only 3 main ones. Nat. Sal, and of course, Grace.

One thing that I really liked about this book is that it showcases just how much your opinions on someone can change with the slightest event. Entangled is certainly thought provoking and made me think  a lot about how I view my family and friends.

I cannot stress enough just how much I love this book, and Cat for writing it. It actually touched me. I really don't know what more to say, other than do not miss this. Please! It's just too brilliant to miss! It's out on 6th January (2011) so put that date in your diaries, pre-order it, save Christmas money. Whatever you have to do to get this book. Do it! You will not regret it! A stunning debut that is beautifully and lovingly crafted! I cannot wait to see what Cat writes next!

Thanks to Parul at Quercus for my copy!