ALA16 Book spotlight: the creepy crawlie, heebie jeebie books

I plan on reading/reviewing all of ALA16 Orlando books but it will take awhile to accomplish so I’m planning on giving the books an extra spotlight so the reach those who might be interested in buying or pre-ordering, in the case of arc’s.

I don’t read a lot of horror or thrillers but I’ve heard a lot about The Hatching and Frances Hardinge, an Australian author, was at ALA signing two of her books, with all money going to charity, so I decided to give these three a try.







The Hatching by Ezekiel Boone

Publisher: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Published: July 5th 2016

Goodreads

An astonishingly inventive and terrifying debut novel about the emergence of an ancient species, dormant for over a thousand years, and now on the march.

Deep in the jungle of Peru, where so much remains unknown, a black, skittering mass devours an American tourist whole. Thousands of miles away, an FBI agent investigates a fatal plane crash in Minneapolis and makes a gruesome discovery. Unusual seismic patterns register in a Kanpur, India earthquake lab, confounding the scientists there. During the same week, the Chinese government “accidentally” drops a nuclear bomb in an isolated region of its own country. As these incidents begin to sweep the globe, a mysterious package from South America arrives at a Washington, D.C. laboratory. Something wants out.

The world is on the brink of an apocalyptic disaster. An ancient species, long dormant, is now very much awake.

My quick thoughts/why I want to read it: I’m curious as to whether this will creep me out. I’m not really all that afraid of insects and I actually save spiders all the time. Doesn’t mean I want them crawling all over me of hatching inside of me though so we’ll see how this one plays out for me.



The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge
Publisher: Amulet Books
Published: May 7 2015

Literary awards: Costa Book Award for Children's Book (2015), Carnegie Medal Nominee (2016), Costa Book of the Year (2015),YA Book Prize Nominee (2016)
Goodreads

To earn a secret so profound, I would need to tell momentous lies, and make as many people as possible believe them…

Faith Sunderly leads a double life. To most people, she is modest and well mannered—a proper young lady who knows her place. But inside, Faith is burning with questions and curiosity. She keeps sharp watch of her surroundings and, therefore, knows secrets no one suspects her of knowing—like the real reason her family fled Kent to the close-knit island of Vane. And that her father’s death was no accident.

In pursuit of revenge and justice for the father she idolizes, Faith hunts through his possessions, where she discovers a strange tree. A tree that only bears fruit when she whispers a lie to it. The fruit, in turn, delivers a hidden truth. The tree might hold the key to her father’s murder. Or, it might lure the murderer directly to Faith herself, for lies—like fires, wild and crackling—quickly take on a life of their own.
My quick thoughts/why I want to read it: I’m not familiar with this author but several people I was with told me that I NEEDED to read this. And for some reason everyone seems to have thing for Aussie authors so who am I to resist book pushers?



Cuckoo Song by Frances Hardinge

Publisher: Amulet Books
Published: May 8th 2014

Literary Awards: British Science Fiction Association Award Nominee for Best Novel (2014), Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominee (2016), British Fantasy Award for Robert Holdstock Award (best fantasy novel) (2015),Carnegie Medal Nominee (2015), James Herbert Award Nominee (2015)
The Magnolia Award Nominee for 9-12 (2017), ALA Notable Children's Book (2016)

Goodreads

When Triss wakes up after an accident, she knows something is very wrong. She is insatiably hungry, her sister seems scared of her, and her parents whisper behind closed doors. She looks through her diary to try to remember, but the pages have been ripped out. Soon Triss discovers that what happened to her is more strange and terrible than she could ever have imagined, and that she is quite literally not herself. In a quest to find the truth she must travel into the terrifying underbelly of the city to meet a twisted architect who has dark designs on her family-before it's too late . . .

Set in England after World War I, this is a brilliantly creepy but ultimately loving story of the relationship between two sisters who have to band together against a world where nothing is as it seems.

My quick thoughts/why I want to read it: Out of the three, this looked the creepiest to me. I was already in line for The Lie Tree and thought I would buy this one as well. Then everyone kept telling me that The Cuckoo Song was more mid-grade (The Lie Tree, also by Hardinge, is YA). Whaaaa??? I’m totally intrigued because that cover is scary as hell! lol

Have you guys read any of these books? Would you? Or are they too scary for you?