Steve P

Great sense of atmosphere and sees Crusades from Christian, Moslem and Jewish perspectives. A little didactic (but he's just like me, but he's a Christian/Moslem/Infidel) but the characters are real enough and engaging.

Fun romp through Medieval China

A good read but stretches the bounds of credulity. Teenager finds an urn of ashes in a taxi waiting room and uncovers who the resident was and how she is entwined in his own family's secrets.

A beautiful tale of a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the 13th Century by a 12 yr old girl who has never been further than Ludlow. Crossley-Holland brings the to life the dirt and difficulties of the age and shows Gatty's wonder at the new experiences and wonders of the wider world.

Sod Will Self, I loved it. A great story, as ever, well told. Yes the epilogue was a little twee but you can see why she would want to do it. Or is it time for the Next Generation?

Loved it, still can't find God.

Lauren knows shes adopted but then suspects she was stolen and sold. Her search to the US answers her questions but opens up many others. A great adventure read as well as thought provoking on issues around adoption, families and belonging. Best read of the year so far.

Continues the series in same humourous vein as before. I liked the goddess Circe running a health resort to release the inner male guinea pig.

I enjoyed a lot of the elements of this - Agnes the 'older' woman with a head turning choice of fashion, the imaginary (or is it) greyhound, baby Charlie's view of the world and his brother's crisis. Harder to care about Justin. Strange but readable, though want to read something light and frothy as an antidote.

The desperation of being alone with a problem and the adult world's almost complete lack of understanding of the potential timebomb ticking away under their noses should appeal to many a teenager.