Mortal Engines

Mortal Engines

By Philip Reeve

Tom Natsworthy is a Third Class Apprentice in the Guild of Historians in a futuristic London.  But this London is like nothing you’ve ever imagined.  It’s one of the great Traction Cities – a city on wheels – that moves about feeding on smaller towns in the Great Hunting Grounds.  No longer does the “civilized world” stay in one place – 1000 years in the future, “Municipal Darwinism” dominates in a “town-eat-town world”. (p.58)

Despite being considered a low-class citizen, Tom believes that London is the greatest city in the world.  But when he is betrayed by his hero, Thaddeus Valentine, Head Historian of London, Tom begins to see the world differently.

Dumped into the Great Hunting Grounds, Tom gets stuck with fellow survivor, Hester Shaw.  As the two of them try to make their way back to London, they are swept up in an all-out war between the Traction Cities and static settlements.

London, it seems, has revived a weapon of mass destruction from ancient times.  With the help of Anna Fang, aviatrix, Hester, and a number of other surprise allies, Tom must battle the city he loves.

Full of dashing heroes, striking landscapes, fierce battles, suspense and tragedy, Philip Reeve’s Mortal Engines doesn’t disappoint.  This is the first book in the Mortal Engines quartet.  Make sure you read it before you see the movie!

Words in Deep Blue

Words in Deep Blue

by Cath Crowley

This is a beautiful book made even more lovely by the fact that I listened to it as an audiobook, the Australian accent putting me right in Australia, the setting for this tale. Rachel Sweetie and Henry Jones grew up together in Gracetown until Rachel moved to Sea Ridge with her family to help her grandmother. Three years have gone by, so much has changed and Rachel is moving back to escape the death of her brother, Cal, the failure of her last year at school, and essentially, her life.

Henry's family owns Howling Books, a used bookshop in Gracetown, known throughout Australia as the home of the Letter Library, a collection of books in which people leave notes for each other. Before Rachel moved to Sea Ridge, she left a note for Henry, declaring her love for him, hoping he would choose her over the perfectly perky Amy. He never answered it. Rachel has since ignored all letters from Henry, and he does not understand why. 

Their avoidance is about to come to an end when Rachel begins work at the bookshop. As Rachel catalogues the Letter Library in preparation for the sale of the shop, she begins to open up about her life and she and Henry slowly begin to rebuild their friendship. 

This book is written in alternating chapters from the point of view of Rachel and Henry, so you really get inside their heads. The story is also interspersed with quotes from books, both classics and contemporary, and the notes left inside them in the library. It is such a great way to tell the story, I absolutely loved it! 

If you want a good story about friendship, love, loss and books, this is the read for you!