Publisher Spotlight: Oxford University Press - January - March 2012

I thought it would be fun to start spotlighting new releases that different publishers have coming up over the next few months for us to look forward to.  I'm constantly looking for new books to add to my wish list and thought it would be a nice way of spreading the bookish love with other bloggers.  So stepping into the spotlight today we have . . .

Today I'm going to be talking about some fabulous books that Oxford University Press will be releasing early in 2012.  Trust me these books are ones you're going to want to add to your wish list!  Visit the Oxford University Press website for more information.

The first book I'm going to tell you about is 15 Days Without A Head a 2012 debut novel by Dave Cousins.  This is being released in January 2012 and I can already tell you that this one is a MUST read!  I was lucky enough to meet Dave at an OUP blogger event in September and the reading he did from 15 Days Without A Head had me in tears of laughter.  Although the story is obviously full of humor it also touches on some really difficult issues and I literally can't wait to start reading it.  I already know I'm going to love it!  You can find out more by visiting Dave Cousins' website.

Fifteen-year-old Laurence Roach wants a normal life.  But that's not easy when is Dad is dead, his Mum is a depressed alcoholic, and his six-year-old brother - Jay - thinks he's a dog.  (Scooby-Doo, to be exact.)  When Mum fails to come home one night, Laurence and Jay are left alone - with no head of the family.

Terrified that he and his little brother will be taken into care, Laurence tells nobody.  Instead he single-handedly attempts to keep his family together, spinning an increasingly complicated web of lies, and even dressing up as his Mum in an elaborate act of deception . . .

To top it off, each evening Laurence calls his local radio station from a telephone box, impersonating his dead father in an attempt to win an all-expenses-paid luxury holiday in the sun.  Surely that would be enough to cheer Mum up, stop her drinking so much, and make her come back home?

After two weeks on their own, running out of food and money, and with suspicious adults closing in, Laurence finally discovers where his Mum has been.  And that's when the trouble really starts . . .

Disillusioned with her ability to cope, will the boys be able to convince their Mum to come back home?

The next book I want to tell you about is Matt Dickinson's novel Mortal Chaos which will be released on the 2nd of February 2012.  Matt has already written several books for adults - The Death Zone which is an account of his climb to the summit of Mount Everest and two fictional novels High Risk and Black Ice - but Mortal Chaos is his YA debut and the first book in a new trilogy.  This looks like an action packed adventure story and I'm really looking forward to reading it.  For more information visit Matt Dickinson's website.

The Butterfly Effect: the scientific theory that a single occurrence, no matter how small, can change the course of the universe forever.

Jamie and Will have bunked off school to go hunting.  Kuni, an 18-year-old Japanese climber is approaching the summit of Mount Everest.  Tina is piloting a troublesome flight from Heathrow to Moscow.  Six-year-old Bakili is desperately guarding his family's crops from bloodthirsty baboons in Malawi.  Shelton, an unhinged father in Washington DC, is hooked on revenge and building a bomb . . .

Flashing between characters around the world, Mortal Chaos is a heart-stopping adventure that will leave readers breathless.  Though the action starts with an innocent beat of a butterfly's wings in sleepy Wiltshire, this sets in motion a global chain of events that build to a nerve-jangling climax of mayhem and destruction.

Some will live.  Some will die.  All are connected.

Now we have Blade: Enemies by Tim Bowler, this is a bind up of the first two stories in the Blade series and looks like it will be a gripping read.  You'll be able to grab your copy from the 2nd of February.  Visit Tim Bowler's website for more information.

So what am I going to tell you?  Not much so don't get excited.  You probably want to know my name.  Well, that's a bit of a problem.  I got loads.  But there is one name I like.  Everybody called me it in the old days.  No one does now cos no one in this city knows it.  And that's fine.  I don't like to remember.  But I do like the name.  You can use it if you want.
BLADE.

Previously published in two parts as Blade: Playing Dead and Blade: Closing In, this is a stunning new package for this groundbreaking series.  Narrated by Blade himself, be prepared to enter his world.  It's not pretty . . . it's urban, real and dangerous.  As Blade's story unfolds, readers will become completely hooked by this unforgettable character.

Last but not least we have The Girl in the Mask by Marie-Louise Jensen that is due to be released on the 1st of March.  I've been really enjoying my historical fiction recently so I have to say this one really appeals to me.  I love the idea of a young girl who dresses up in ball gowns by day and sneaks out at night to commit robberies!  You can find out more by visiting Marie-Louise Jensen's website.

Set in Georgian England, fifteen-year-old Sophia is trapped by the limitations of living in a man's world.  Forced by her father to give up everything she loves, Sophia is ordered to make a new life in Bath.  By day, she is trapped in the social whirl of balls and masquerades.  By night, she secretly swaps her ball gowns for breeches, and turns to highway robbery to get her revenge . . .

When one man begins to take a keen interest in her, Sophia must keep her distance, or risk unmasking her secret life.








So what do you think of the upcoming Oxford University Press titles?  Are you adding them to your wish list?