Library Loot: Family, Dreams and Secret Agents
Viper by Bex Hogan
Marianne has been training to be the Viper for her entire life – to serve and protect the King and the citizens of The Twelve Isles – but to become the Viper and protect the islands she loves she must find the strength to defeat her father. A new fantasy trilogy perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas.
He will make me a killer.
Or he will have me killed.
That is my destiny.
Seventeen-year-old Marianne is fated to one day become the Viper, defender of the Twelve Isles.
But the reigning Viper stands in her way. Corrupt and merciless, he prowls the seas in his warship, killing with impunity, leaving only pain and suffering in his wake.
He’s the most dangerous man on the ocean . . . and he is Marianne’s father.
She was born to protect the islands. But can she fight for them if it means losing her family, her home, the boy she loves – and perhaps even her life?
A brave heroine. An impossible dilemma. An epic new fantasy trilogy set on the high seas.
The Curses by Laure Eve
Picking up the pieces after the chilling events of the previous year isn’t easy, but the Graces are determined to do it. Wolf is back after a mysterious disappearance, and everyone’s eager to return to normal. Except for Summer, the youngest Grace. Summer has a knack for discovering the truth—and something is troubling her. After a trail of clues leads her to what could be the key to both her family’s mysterious past and the secret of Wolf, she’s determined to vanquish yet another curse. But exposing secrets is a dangerous game, and it’s not one Summer can win alone.
At Summer’s behest, the coven comes back together, reluctantly drawing their erstwhile friend River back into the fold. But Wolf’s behavior becomes unpredictable even as Fenrin’s strength fades, and Summer must ask herself whether the friend she so loves is also planning her family’s ultimate, cursed demise.
This riveting sequel to The Graces is saturated with magic, the destructive cost of power, the complications of family, and the nature of forgiveness.
I loved the first book, The Graces, so have to rad this to find out what is going to happen!
On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least make it out of her neighborhood one day. As the daughter of an underground rap legend who died before he hit big, Bri’s got big shoes to fill. But now that her mom has unexpectedly lost her job, food banks and shutoff notices are as much a part of Bri’s life as beats and rhymes. With bills piling up and homelessness staring her family down, Bri no longer just wants to make it—she has to make it.
On the Come Up is Angie Thomas’s homage to hip-hop, the art that sparked her passion for storytelling and continues to inspire her to this day. It is the story of fighting for your dreams, even as the odds are stacked against you; of the struggle to become who you are and not who everyone expects you to be; and of the desperate realities of poor and working-class black families.
This is one that I have been meaning to pick up for a while, after reading The Hate U Give, which is brilliant in so many ways. I am always interested to see representation of poor or working-class protagonists as it is something that I don’t feel is common enough in middle-grade and YA fiction.
The Recruit (Cherub #1) by Robert Muchamore
The first title in the number one bestselling CHERUB series! James hits rock bottom before he’s offered a new start in an intriguing organisation … A terrorist doesn’t let strangers in her flat because they might be undercover police or intelligence agents, but her children bring their mates home and they run all over the place. The terrorist doesn’t know that one of these kids has bugged every room in her house, made copies of all her computer files and stolen her address book. The kid works for CHERUB. CHERUB agents are aged between ten and seventeen. They live in the real world, slipping under adult radar and getting information that sends criminals and terrorists to jail. For official purposes, these children do not exist.
Praise for the CHERUB series:
‘Punchy, exciting, glamorous and, what’s more, you’ll completely wish it was true’ – Sunday Express
‘Crackling tension and high-octane drama’ – Daily Mail
‘A really good book that you could re-read over and over again’ – Guardian
‘Pacy writing, punchy dialogue and a gripping plot, it’s got it all’ – Daily Express
‘Fast-moving action … and cool gadgets!’ – The Times
Based on the cover and the description, I probably wouldn’t have initially picked this up. Yet, after being lucky enough to meet the author a few weeks ago and hear lots of people talking about this series, I’ve decided to give it a go!
What did you think of my choices this week?
Did you spot any you might read?
Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Linda from Silly Little Mischief that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.
See my previous library loots here:
Feminism, Folklore and Body Positivity
Gymnastics, Mermaids and Achieving Your Dreams
Fantasy, Intrigue and Misunderstandings
What do you think of the books I have chosen?
Would you like to read any of them?
Or are there any you would recommend me moving straight to the top of the TBR list?
Do you have a library near you?
How often do you borrow books?
Do you ever buy books after having already read them?
Find me on Twitter , Goodreads or Instagram
Thanks for reading!
Chrikaru Reads 
The Curses is AMAZING! Even better than the Graces! I’m going to pick up Midnight at Moonstone from my library today 😊
Amy x
LikeLiked by 1 person
I feel a bit self-conscious about requesting so many books after the librarian commented on it, lol. I loved The Graces so am really looking forward to The Curses! Is that the end of the series or will it be a trilogy (or longer)? Hope you enjoy Midnight at Moonstone! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve had that before- I always feel mortified! 😂🙈
I think it’s only going to be a duology from what I’ve heard. It ends it really well I thought, though in an ideal world I’d want a quartet so Fenrin and Thalia could both have their own book too! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
That would be brilliant! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oooh interesting choices!!!
I have read Viper and On the Come up- they actually cross over with some themes especially the underestimation/undervaluing of young women and control or silencing of expression.
on the Come up is a book at its heart about anger and how the healthy expression of anger is really denied to women, to people of colour but especially to black women as the anger is not just treated as uppity or above their stations but it is elevated to distasteful or criminal when the anger erupts- and how some abuse this for financial gain. Very powerful book I recommend read that first.
And Viper- oooh read that absolute celebration of overcoming the limitations of rank, gender and background to find ones true self. Marianne goes from seemingly timid but impotent in fury to a force of nature by the end!! 💜
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wouldn’t have expected them to have overlaps at all, except perhaps that family ties are very important in both (guessing from the summaries), but it sounds like they do overlap in really interesting ways. I wish I could just stay at home and read sometimes, lol! I hate that anger in men can be seen as powerful, but women are often accused of becoming hysterical, especially in professional situations.
LikeLike
Please read Viper. It’s my favourite fantasy of the year. I haven’t read the others though yet. I have them, but just need to get through some of my TBR to get to them. Great post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I keep hearing such great things about Viper so I will try to read it soon!
LikeLiked by 1 person