REVIEWED BY F MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

OPINION: Russia in 1825 is the setting for this historical horror thriller.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

Monsters of Men wraps up Patrick Ness' debut Young Adult Chaos Walking trilogy, begun in The Knife of Never Letting Go, and continued in The Ask and the Answer.

REVIEWED BY NAIDA MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

This is a bit of science fiction for young readers. Tom is the new owner of his grandfather's magic stopwatch, a watch that takes the wearer to new and strange lands. Tom has had one adventure with the watch already, in the land of Kur, from where he returned home with a catlike pet who talks and thinks, called Bilby.

REVIEWED BY MURRAY ALLISON - © Fairfax NZ News

Having read and enjoyed Stuart MacBride's DS Logan series I had initial doubts about his latest offering. But those initial doubts didn't last long as his latest thriller set in Glasgow in the near future drags you along at breakneck speed.

REVIEWED BY JILLIAN ALLISON-AITKEN - © Fairfax NZ News

James Paterson must be the most prolific writer out there, this time coming up with Witch & Wizard, a fantasy novel for younger readers.

REVIEWED BY F MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

Mr Raymond Feist has obviously created an amazingly large fantasy world, judging by the amount of novels he has written. This one comes across as a mix of Tolkien's Middle Earth and Stargate, complete with other worlds, portals, elves and magicians.

REVIEWED NAIDA MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

The cover of Bute View is eye-catching but the blurb of this latest childrens sci-fi from Janice Marriott just did not make the novel appeal to me. However, I remember feeling the same about Marriott's first novel in the series and then thoroughly enjoying it. There is something in the voice of first-person narrator Arlo that draws the reader in and makes the story a rollicking good read.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

Unseen Academicals is the latest offering in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series of novels.

REVIEWED BY F MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

In a land in peril from invasion a young woman discovers that she is the chosen one who is supposed to save her world.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

This trilogy sits quite happily in the young adult/urban fantasy niche, cosying up to other series like Twilight, Harry Potter and, oddly, Star Wars.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

This is a great little book, and a fantastic idea.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

Terry Pratchett's comedy fantasy novel series, The Discworld, now consists of more than 30 books.

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The cover of this book claims the author is a European superstar. Well, if you like fantasy books then perhaps he might be.

REVIEWED BY F MULLIGAN - © Fairfax NZ News

This is the concluding part of the epic Troy trilogy begun by David Gemmell, yet it has the ability to stand alone as a novel.

REVIEWED BY MAREE FIELD - © Fairfax NZ News

Bod is a very unusual boy. Having survived the murder of his family as a toddler, he is now being raised in a very old graveyard by the inhabitants: ghosts.

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The Sky Village is the first in a projected series of five books by brothers Monk and Nigel Ashland.