UK Cover Reveals: Revived by Cat Patrick, The Blessed by Tonya Hurley, Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone & More!

Here are some recent UK cover reveals that have caught my eye! I'm especially excited to read Cat Patrick's Revived and The Blessed by Tonya Hurley -- how cool do those books sound!

I've included the US cover counterparts where available, so tell me what your favourites are! Some of these UK covers are very different to the US looks, so I'll be interested to hear what you think!

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Revived by Cat Patrick

Publisher:  Egmont

Release date: July 2012

Ages: 12+

As a little girl, Daisy Appleby was killed in a school bus crash. Moments after the accident, she was brought back to life.

A secret government agency has developed a drug called Revive that can bring people back from the dead, and Daisy Appleby, a test subject, has been Revived five times in fifteen years. Daisy takes extraordinary risks, knowing that she can beat death, but each new death also means a new name, a new city, and a new life. When she meets Matt McKean, Daisy begins to question the moral implications of Revive, and as she discovers the agency’s true goals, she realizes she’s at the center of something much larger—and more sinister—than she ever imagined.

ETA: The UK cover for Revived has changed. Click here to see the new cover!

International Editions:

US and Australian covers of Revived by Cat Patrick

 Other books by Cat Patrick:

Click image to read my review of Forgotten

The Blessed by Tonya Hurley

Publisher: Hodder Children's Books

Release date: August 2012

Ages: 14+

Brooklyn teens Lucy, Cecelia and Agnes find themselves in the emergency room at Perpetual Help Hospital at the lowest point in their lives. Lucy, the superficial party girl; Cecelia, a drop out rock chick; and Agnes, a hopeless romantic. All rebels running from their lives and themselves, plagued by broken hearts and broken dreams. Enter Sebastian. Mysterious, compelling, seductive. He seems to bring each of them what they long for...

But in the battle for his heart, will they lose their souls?

International Editions:

US Cover for The Blessed by Tonya Hurley

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Publisher: Doubleday Childrens

Release date: October 2012

Ages: 12+

Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet: she lives in 1995 Chicago and he lives in 2012 San Francisco. But Bennett’s unique ability to travel through time and space brings him into Anna’s life, and with him, a new world of adventure and possibility.

As their relationship deepens, they face the reality that time might knock Bennett back where he belongs, even as a devastating crisis throws everything they believe into question. Against a ticking clock, Anna and Bennett are forced to ask themselves how far they can push the bounds of fate—and what consequences they can bear in order to stay together.

Fresh, exciting, and deeply romantic, TIME BETWEEN US is a stunning and spellbinding debut from an extraordinary new talent in YA fiction.

International Editions: 

US Cover for Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Publisher: Mira Ink

Release date: June 2012

Ages: 14+

Harper Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.

When her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going, California.

Enter Jake Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what she needs.

Except June wasn’t the only one hiding something. Jake’s keeping a secret that has the power to turn Harper’s life upside down again.

International Editions:

US and Australian covers of Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Spoiler Alert! The next cover is for a second-in-a-series book. You might want to skip reading the synopsis if you haven't read the first book already!

Rage Within (Dark Inside #2) by Jeyn Roberts

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

Release date: August 2012

Ages: 14+

Aries, Clementine, Mason and Michael have survived the first wave of the apocalypse that wiped out most of the world's population, and turned many of the rest into murderous Baggers. Now, they're hiding out in an abandoned house in Vancouver with a ragtag group of surviving teens, and trying to figure out their next move.

Aries is trying to lead, but it's hard to be a leader when there are no easy answers, and every move feels wrong. Clementine is desperate to find her brother Heath, but it's impossible to know where he'd be, even if he is still alive. Michael is still haunted by the memories of his actions during his harrowing struggle to survive. And Mason is struggling with something far worse: the fear that he may be a danger to his friends.

As the Baggers begin to create a new world order, Aries, Clementine, Mason and Michael will have to trust and rely on each other in order to survive.

Series Side-by-Side:

US Covers

UK Covers

And now you guys in the US are in for a treat, because one of my favourite reads of 2011, Velvet by Mary Hooper is getting a US release.  Check out the new US cover look below -- I think it looks great!

Velvet by Mary Hooper

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

Release date: November 2012.

Ages: 12+

Velvet is a laundress in a Victorian steam laundry. With both her mother and father dead, she is an orphan and has to rely upon her own wits to make a living. The laundry's work is back-breaking and Velvet is desperate to create a better life for herself. Then Velvet is noticed by Madame Savoya, a famed medium, who asks Velvet to come to work for her. Velvet is dazzled at first by the young yet beautifully dressed and bejewelled Madame. But soon Velvet realises that Madame Savoya is not all that she says she is, and Velvet's very life is in danger ...A romantic and thrillingly exciting new novel from an acclaimed and much loved historical writer for teens.

Original UK Cover:

Click image to read my review of Velvet

* Please note: These covers may not be final and may be subject to change. Images sourced from publishers websites, Goodreads & Amazon. 

Book Review & Trailer: Velvet by Mary Hooper.

Product details:
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.
Paperback, 320 pages.
Release date: September 5th 2011.
Rating: 4½ out of 5
Ages: 12+
Source: Received from publisher for review.

Velvet is a laundress in a Victorian steam laundry. With both her mother and father dead, she is an orphan and has to rely upon her own wits to make a living. The laundry is scalding, back-breaking work and Velvet is desperate to create a better life for herself. Then Velvet is noticed by Madame Savoya, a famed medium, who asks Velvet to come to work for her. Velvet is dazzled at first by the young yet beautifully dressed and bejewelled Madame. But soon Velvet realises that Madame Savoya is not all that she says she is, and Velvet’s very life is in danger . . .

A romantic and thrillingly exciting new novel from an acclaimed and much loved historical writer for teens.

A stunning work of historical fiction with a fascinating subject matter, Velvet by Mary Hooper is a thrilling exploration of the spiritualist craze that swept through Victorian and Edwardian society.  This is the first book by I’ve read by Mary Hooper, but it certainly won’t be the last as I was entranced by the world and the characters that Hooper created here . A true page turner from start to finish, Velvet is filled with shocking revelations that will keep you reading late into the night as you uncover the secrets of the mysterious Madame Natasha Savoya.

Velvet has not had an easy life.  An orphan, she’s had to make her own way in the world and works day after day in a stuffy steam laundry where conditions are harsh and pay is paltry.  That’s until she catches the attention of Madame Savoya, a celebrated medium who lives in a world of splendour and séances and who invites Velvet to become part of her household where she will tend to Madame’s every need along with  Madame's trusty companion, a handsome valet called George. Velvet soon settles in to her comfortable new life where she lusts after George, greets Madame’s wealthy clients with champagne and makes small talk with them as they wait for Madame to reach their lost loved ones on the ‘Other Side’. To Velvet, Madame is an inspiration, putting her gifts to good use to bring comfort to those in mourning, and if they want to pay extravagant sums of money for the service, then who is she to say no. As readers we are privy to Madame’s private sessions with these wealthy clients, while Velvet is not, and so we see the inner workings of Madame’s profitable business,  as little by little Velvet begins to suspect that things are not all that the seem in the house of Madame Savoya.

The most fascinating element of this book for me was the world and workings of the mediums who took society by storm in the late nineteenth century. With competition fierce amongst rival mediums and with mediums all over London being exposed as fakes and money grabbers, Velvet inhabits a dangerously exciting world. Hooper goes into detail about mediums and their methods throughout the story and in her historical notes, most of which are downright cruel, but nonetheless fascinating to read about. In featuring real mediums from the era as well as prominent members of society such as Arthur Conan Doyle who visits Madame’s house, Hooper has created an addictive story which paints a thrilling and disturbing portrait of life during the spiritualist craze. More disturbing still is the depiction of the horrendous Baby Farms of the time, something which I knew nothing about, and which make me shudder to think about.

A born storyteller, Hooper’s skills are such that even though I read this without knowing all that much about the spiritualist craze, I found myself immediately invested in the story.  So engaging is Hooper’s writing and so evocative her characters  that I felt as though I was right there with Velvet uncovering the secrets of the mysterious Madame Savoya. A beautifully written and researched historical fiction, this one comes highly recommended from me.

Blog Tour: Velvet by Mary Hooper - Guest Post, Extract & Giveaway!

Velvet by Mary Hooper is one of my favourite books of 2011.  A historical fiction with a fascinating subject matter, Velvet explores the spiritualist craze which spread during Victorian times. If you like historical fiction and really great storytelling, then this one is for you!

I'm on the look out for further reading, so if you know of any historical fictions that deal with mediums or the spiritualist craze of the late 19th and early 20th centuries do let me know!

In the meantime, enjoy this guest post from Mary Hooper in which she talks about who she would contact at a séance.  I've also attached the first chapter of Velvet for you to read, and there's a great giveaway further down the page where you can win EIGHT of Mary's historical fiction titles (UK only comp!). You can thank the ever lovely Emma at Bloomsbury for the giveaway! 

Velvet by Mary Hooper

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Release date: September 5th 2011

Velvet is a laundress in a Victorian steam laundry. With both her mother and father dead, she is an orphan and has to rely upon her own wits to make a living. The laundry is scalding, back-breaking work and Velvet is desperate to create a better life for herself. Then Velvet is noticed by Madame Savoya, a famed medium, who asks Velvet to come to work for her. Velvet is dazzled at first by the young yet beautifully dressed and bejewelled Madame. But soon Velvet realises that Madame Savoya is not all that she says she is, and Velvet’s very life is in danger . . .

A romantic and thrillingly exciting new novel from an acclaimed and much loved historical writer for teens

 Mary Hooper on who she would contact at a séance

One of my favourite historical characters is not famous for being clever, or writing books, or using great power wisely or trying to save the world, but for being a king’s mistress. Not much to that job, you might think, but if you were Nell Gwyn and mistress to Charles II (“The Merry Monarch”) then you had to tread carefully. All around you were other mistresses or would-be mistresses (Charles II had thirteen illegitimate children) every one of them trying to outdo each other in style, beauty and vivacity. Nell had something special, though: she did not give herself airs and graces and was the only one of his mistresses not to nag Charles to give her jewels and titles and footballer’s-wives type possessions. She was also fully aware of the precarious – and rather ludicrous - position she held at court. Best of all, she made Charles laugh.

Everyone seems to have liked Nelly, even her great rivals. She was right at the top of the celebrity A List and admiring crowds gathered around her carriage whenever she appeared in public. Pepys referred to her in his Diary as “pretty, witty, Nell”. Charles II’s doings are all recorded in history books, but from Nell I would get all the very latest tittle-tattle, the palace back-stairs gossip, and enough anecdotes to last me for several books.


Find out more about Mary Hooper:

www.maryhooper.co.uk   

www.facebook.com/MaryHooperFanPage

Velvet by Mary Hooper - chapter one.


Bloomsbury publishing have generously provided a Mary Hooper historical fiction prize pack to go along with this post.  All the stops on the Velvet blog tour will be hosting a giveway, so you should  check out the rest of the stops on the tour. I know you were totally planning on doing that anyway. :)
Competition is open to UK only and closes September 18th.
Below are all the books you could win. Just fill in the form below and you're good to go.

Win all these books: The Remarkable Life and Times of Eliza Rose, At the House of the Magician, At the Sign of the Sugared Plum, By Royal Command, Fallen Grace, Petals in the Ashes, The Betrayal, Velvet

COMPETITION CLOSED! WINNER ANNOUNCED SOON!

Pay me another visit later today when you'll be able to read my review of Velvet and take a look a the book trailer.
The Velvet blog tour continues tomorrow at Heaven, Hell and Purgatory Book Reviews.