Title: Night School
Author: C.J. Daugherty
Published: January 2012
Publisher: Atom
ISBN: 978 1907411212
Price: £6.99
Rating 5/5 with merits
I like the colours used on this cover – which shows Allie (or how I think of her anyway!) looking down. The spine is a lush red with white fancy scroll for both the title and author credit, and is very eye catching.
Allie is a girl with attitude. The story starts with her and a ‘friend’ getting caught whilst they were doing graffiti inside the school – outside of school times. After the disappearance of her brother, Allie has gone off the rails. Her parents take drastic measures and place her in a boarding school where Allie tries her best to fit in. As she struggles to come to terms being in a completely cut off environment and her feelings for two of the students,she must also find her place in a school were more is going on than meets the eye.
I really enjoyed Allie’s character, as well as Carter, who comes across as broody and know-it-all. The friction between Allie and other characters in the book is palpable. It added to the thrill element of reading as we are taken on a journey with Allie to discover exactly what Cimmeria Academy
This held a lot of surprises which I didn’t think of, and had me guessing most of the way through. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next instalment. I also think parts of this ring true (intentional or not) regarding conspiracies and power struggles with those with the means. It kind of reminded me of Occupy in that way, and the reason why so many across the world are standing up against it peacefully.
A really brilliant read which had me gripped from the beginning. It has relationships down to a fine art, petty struggles, how we perceive others and how we are perceived, and also the feelings that come with being a teen and knowing who to trust. It also has multi-layers, making this a page turning read. I’m surprised this is C.J. Daugherty’s first novel…normally I’m fairly good at sniffing out the plot…but I couldn’ predict what was going to happen….I’m looking forward to more, so this is another author added to my must read list!
Book trailer:
When everyone is lying, who can you trust? Allie Sheridan's world is falling apart. She hates her school. Her brother has run away from home. And she's just been arrested. Again. This time her parents have finally had enough. They cut her off from her friends and send her away to a boarding school for problem teenagers. But Cimmeria Academy is no ordinary school. It allows no computers or phones. Its students are an odd mixture of the gifted, the tough and the privileged. And then there's the secretive Night School, whose activities other students are forbidden even to watch. When Allie is attacked one night the school begins to seem like a very dangerous place, Allie must learn who she can trust. And what's really going on at Cimmeria Academy.
Source - Many thanks to Atom, a copy was received in return for an honest review.
1 comment:
I've just started reading this book. Sounds really good :-)
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