The ending worked very well for me. It didn’t force a perfect solution; rather, the plot led itself to a believable culmination. There are several layers to the book, that I thought deserved further exploration than we were given, but I feel this is admirable on the author's part- to leave things open-ended and mysterious. October 1840. A young woman staggers alone through a forest in the English countryside as a huge pair of impossible wings rip themselves from her shoulders. When I began reading I, like a number of other readers, took time to adjust to the phonetic style of writing used to mimic our main character's voice. Initially this meant the reading felt slower than I'd like, but it certainly became one of the features of the book that I really enjoyed. The voice of Newt changed as they developed in confidence, and I enjoyed seeing the shifting patterns of language as they grew in awareness of the world around them. The Illusions is the captivating new novel from the much-lauded author of The Gifts. Inspired by real-life illusionists and early film pioneers, this astonishing story of women and talent, magic and power, sweeps you into a world where anything is possible and nothing is quite as it seems...

Bearmouth was one of the books recommended to my students by our Book PenPal Holly Race, so I couldn't resist reading it before I passed my copy round to those interested.Life in Bearmouth is one of hard labour, the sunlit world above the mine a distant memory. Reward will come in the next life with the benevolence of the Mayker. Newt accepts everything, that is until the mysterious Devlin arrives. Newt is soon looking at Bearmouth with a fresh perspective – questioning the system and setting in motion a change of events that could destroy their entire world. The story is narrated in short vignettes, alternating between the voices of the two women with wings, a feisty would-be female journalist, and the wife of the surgeon who sees an opportunity to achieve fame and fortune by exploiting the winged women, the ‘gifts’ of the title, sent to him by God. The author of acclaimed YA book Bearmouth on striking gold in a slate mine – and what you can’t learn from other writers The book is well paced with short chapters and is written from five different points of view - four women and one man who is a doctor with very high and dangerous aspirations. These five people have their paths all intertwine as you delve deeper into their stories as these women grow and spread their wings - literally! Reading all about these strong, intelligent women battling against the patriarchy and societal pressures that were part of Victorian life was so thrilling and empowering!

I finished reading Everything Under by Daisy Johnson the other day and I was totally blown away by it. I felt like I was swallowed up: you are there in that world, it’s utterly immersive. I loved it and I can’t wait to read what she does next. Liz Hyder sold the film rights to her YA debut, Bearmouth, a dystopian thriller about child miners fighting injustice, before it had arrived in the bookshops. In The Gifts, a Victorian novel for adults, four feisty women struggle against the constraints of a patriarchal society. When two of them grow wings, they are exploited by a ruthless surgeon, Edward Meake, who believes he is serving science and God’s purpose. Etta: A young woman of mixed parentage, Etta is dealing with the grief of her pet dog’s passing when two huge wings suddenly rip themselves from her shoulders. Our first encounter with Newt was intriguing. We are told, very early on, that Newt is 'not a boy nor yet a wimmin' and though this becomes important later, it is their life in the Bearmouth mine that grips us. Newt has worked in the mine for many years, and is looked after by his team. There's a grim sense of camaraderie to the team as they risk their lives on a daily basis to dig for coal, and to earn a living for others. I fell in love with ‘The Gifts’ from the opening in the Shropshire woods through to its dramatic conclusion. I found Liz Hyder’s writing beautiful and loved the imagery of these mysterious transformations.It’s a YA (young adult) thriller set down a working coal mine and told first-person from the point of view of Newt Coombes, a young person who works and lives down the mine. In it, intrigue, exploitation, suspicion and violence combine, threatening to destroy not just the mine but the society around it.