Her story begins on a train. The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule. To commemorate their Great Victory, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor’s Ball in Tokyo. Yael, a former death camp prisoner, has witnessed too much suffering, and the five wolves tattooed on her arm are a constant reminder of the loved ones she lost. The resistance has given Yael one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year’s only female racer, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin’s brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael’s every move. But as Yael grows closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission? Synopsis from Goodreads. ✱ Pages: 388 (hardcover) ✱ Publication date: October 2015 ✱ Series: Wolf by Wolf #1 ✱ Provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review ✱ Amazon UK | Amazon US

I went in only knowing that this was an alternate history where Hitler lived. Pretty interesting (and scary) premise, right?

The Plot

I can't believe I actually read a book that's basically about motorcycle racing. I have absolutely no interest in motorcycles or racing... or motorcycle racing. But Wolf by Wolf is so good. I got really caught up in the plot, especially because the story-telling happens in the 'then' and 'now' - describing Yael's childhood and the horrors she has seen, as well as the deadly race she is caught in, in the present. Wolf by Wolf keeps moving at a fast pace (literally and figuratively), and there's something really original about this alternate history.

Yael

A superb protagonist who faces her problems head on and struggles to do what she thinks is right,Yael is interesting and relatable. Because of her peculiar ability to skinshift ( - to change her looks at will), she takes on what could be the most important task in the resistance against Hitler, and she concentrates on that mission in a way that really makes you respect her. The rest of the resistance is easy to side with too, and the other characters who take part in the Axis Tour get more and more interesting as the story progresses and we learn about them, little by little.

Important Themes

Graudin's brilliant writing brings the story to life and makes us wonder about questions of morality and identity. These are pretty big themes to grapple with, but it's done extremely well: Yael's ability to skinshift makes you wonder what it is that makes a person who they are. If you can change the way you look, who does that make you? Questions of morality come up too - is it right to do things that are wrong if it's for the greater good? Important things are explored in a very smart way in this story, and I couldn't help but appreciate that.

Exciting and exceedingly enjoyable, Wolf by Wolf is an amazing work of alternate history.

Have you read this one or other books that focus on alternate history?

Young Adult fiction is one of my most favouritest things ever.

You might be thinking, 'Annika, that's not really even a confession. We all knew this already.' Well, I don't blame you. I have been reading a lot of YA lately. But why do I feel like (non-bookish) people will judge me for reading YA? Do you feel the same way?

My Favourite Things About YA ✱ Not overly complicated with metaphors - it's acceptable to talk about things in a straightforward, understandable way. ✱ Works in any genre. YA sci-fi? Awesome! YA romance? So cute! YA fantasy? I'm already hooked.  ✱ Novel length tends to be towards the smaller side. You can easily binge a book in a day! It's a pretty wonderful thing. Why YA is so important ✱ I'm pretty firmly of the opinion that every single person can benefit from reading. I give a lot of credit to books for having a big part in raising me - I lived in books growing up! The things is, so many things can be seen in, and taught through the pages of a book. I learned about morality, equality, compassion. You can't help but think and learn when you read. ✱ Moving slightly away from that tangent, YA fiction has a part to play in getting kids to read. So it's exciting that it's such a big thing, such a big market right now. It also means that YA authors have a lot of responsibility: it's really important to get these books right. Maybe that's why we talk about diversity in YA so much? The Drawbacks ✱ Sometimes YA can seem too formulaic. There's the heroine, there's the love interest, introduced in the first few pages... But I suppose every book is formulaic, so maybe that's a bit of a stupid thing for me to say?  ✱ People are judgy! Did you see Ezrah's post related to this? She talks about how every romance and YA reader will sometimes get weird looks for their reading choices. Focusing on YA: I get it, people. Young adult fiction is often put on the same shelf as children's literature. This does not mean that adults can't read it. I find YA often has more important things to say than a lot of 'adult' literature.

What do you think about YA? Do you read a lot of it? Do you think YA is important? Let me know! xx

Hello lovelies! It's MAY!

This means I have a few ARC reading challenge updates to do, but firstly:

I've looked through everything I read in April, and I've picked a top 5, so here are some books I would definitely recommend for your TBR. Turns out they're all YA this month...!

{Click covers for Goodreads & titles for my reviews} Radio Silence by Alice Oseman.   Absolutely adored this one! Contemporary YA awesomeness. Alice Oseman understands what being a teenager is like and writes about it in a really relatable way. When We Collided by Emery Lord.   Another contemporary YA story, this one features two lovely protagonists, Vivi and Jonah. Possibly my favourite YA book that talks about mental illness. The Sign of One by Eugene Lambert.    YA sci-fi, with a really cool premise relating to all identical twins being separated at a young age because one of them is 'evil.' Obviously, the evil ones are hanged at a yearly celebration... Slightly morbid? Maybe. But super interesting! The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury.   An Aladdin retelling that features an adorable romance and some pretty kick-ass female characters. That is basically all you need to know. Definitely worth a read! Passenger by Alexandra Bracken.   A YA novel about time travel. I had some issues with this one, but still enjoyed it thoroughly. Passenger seems to divide people into two camps: the not-impressed and the absolutely-loved-it. Give it a shot and let me know what you think!

During the month of April, I actually managed to read a surprising amount of ARCs. My goal was six, but I ended up finishing ten! I've linked the covers to my reviews either here on the blog, or on Goodreads.

  

  

  

As for the month of May... I'm taking part in another ARC Challenge.

You can check out the details here.

My goal is to read about 8 of these in the next month... Hopefully more than that though, honestly.

  

  

  

    

Must stop requesting review copies until I'm caught up.

How was April? Do you have any big plans (reading or otherwise) for May? Let me know!

Hi lovelies!

Today we're talking about Pam Brondos' Fourline trilogy which I'm a tiny bit obsessed with. I'll talk about the series as a whole, and then expand on the final book, the Last Remnant, specifically a little bit towards the end of this post,  We'll keep this as spoiler free as possible!

For the first book in the trilogy, Gateway to Fourline: Years before, a gateway opened between their world and ours. Sending one young woman through may be the key to survival for the kingdom of Fourline. Strapped for cash, college student Natalie Barns agrees to take a job at a costume shop. Sure, Estos—her classmate who works in the shop—is a little odd, but Nat needs the money for her tuition. Then she stumbles through the mysterious door behind the shop—and her entire universe transforms. Discovering there’s far more to Estos than she ever imagined, Nat gets swept up in an adventure to save his homeland, an incredible world filled with decaying magic, deadly creatures, and a noble resistance of exiled warriors battling dark forces. As she struggles with her role in an epic conflict and wrestles with her growing affection for a young rebel, Soris, Nat quickly learns that nothing may go as planned…and her biggest challenge may be surviving long enough to make it home.  ✱ Pages: each book is about 300 to 350 pages ✱ Publication date: the Last Remnant will be out 10 May 2016 ✱ Series: Fourline ✱ Amazon UK | Amazon US

  

What do you think of the covers? I love them for their simplicity, and I think they actually fit the books really well. I read the first two over Christmas break, and I've been waiting for the release of the Last Remnant since then. When I saw it up on Netgalley I squealed a little and then read it immediately.

The Kingdom of Fourline

Danger lurks in Fourline, and those who've escaped from that danger to our world cannot return for fear of being caught immediately. Enter Natalie Barns. A college student in need of funding for her studies, she agrees to a small mission to Fourline - enter the kingdom, finish the mission, then return home. But nothing is ever that simple.

Fourline is an enchanting world. The evil Nala are kind of terrifying, and pose a continuing threat. The warriors who could fight them are either dead or in hiding. These warriors are women known as Sisters. It's time for Nat to pretend to be one long enough to survive Fourline and make her way back home.

The Protagonist, Natalie

I think the reason I'm so into this story is Nat. She is so likeable. She's a student who worries about her family, worries about paying tuition, worries about being a burden. Pretty easy to identify with, at least for me. Also, she's kind of a geek and likes to spend her time in the lab. She's smart and resourceful and those are qualities I really like in a main character. She also does what she has to, without feeling sorry for herself or blaming others.

The Other Characters in the Story

Well-rounded and more and more detailed with every book, the characters of the trilogy have very distinct personalities. I love the dynamic between Natalie and her room-mate Viv, as well as the good old sisterly hatred that Nat and her little sister Cal have going on.

The characters from Fourline are intriguing too: there's Estos - the student Nat meets and agrees to help; Annin, who wears an eye-patch and gets made fun of but doesn't really care about what people say; Soris, who ends up helping Nat on her mission. The way we learn more about each character as the story goes on is wonderful.

The Final Chapter: the Last Remnant

As the last book in a trilogy, I think the Last Remnant worked very, very well. It had everything I wanted in it - danger, adventure, a bit of romance. Things really escalate towards the end of the second book, and in the Last Remnant, the stakes are high for everyone involved. Natalie and her friends' journey and their mission to save Fourline has had its effect on all of them, and it's wonderful to witness the character development that's happened during the course of the trilogy, and even just during the Last Remnant.

A thrilling, satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy!

Awesome characters, interesting world-building, and a thrilling plot. And the best thing? All three books are out (or will be on the 10th May) so you can easily binge them!

What do you think - are you willing to give this YA fantasy trilogy a go? What do you think about the whole travelling from our world to a high fantasy one?