@Frannyisreading- 8 Days of Luke is one of the DWJ books I particularly remember from reading as a child. I really like how David’s relationship with Astrid develops & working out the real identity of the characters. I also like Archer’s Goon of her standalone books although I think The Homeward Bounders might be the best realised one. (I find for me with DWJ there is a difference between the ones I would judge as best if reading it critically - eg Charmed Life - and the ones that might not be so perfect in plot etc but there is something about the characters / setting that is immensely appealing -eg The Magicians of Caprona).
@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupieI like A Wizard of Earthsea - I first read it as a child and found it quite challenging, which I later reasoned was due to it feeling quite a cold book as you feel at a distance from the characters. I preferred the sequel The Tombs of Atuan (also read as a child) as I liked the underground setting & how the characters had to learn the routes through the passages. I was less keen on the 3rd book. I haven’t read the later books (although I probably should as a RWYO as the omnibus edition is on my Kindle). There has just been a graphic novel of The Wizard published, but I’m not too sure how I feel about that. It’s probably very beautiful (good) and makes the story accessible to less fluent readers - but 10 year old me would have felt very short-changed by the lack of words.
17 . Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin - Sadie and Sam make friends as children through playing computer games and as adults work together as games developers. I ordered this from BorrowBox when the author was discussed on this thread last year. I liked the writing style, which felt light and fun, and I thought that the description of the characters’ work was well-realised as there was enough details of the programming so you could understand the challenges of the work, but not enough to be boring. Not a bold as I wasn’t completely convinced by the angle that this was only a work relationship (it felt as if both Sadie and Sam would have been easier to work with if they had just got together) and because Sadie’s uni tutor was absolutely vile.
18 . Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell - during the hot summer of 1976 a man goes missing and his children - all facing their own personal crises - return to the family home to help search for him. This was a RWYO and was very similar to This must be the place, which I read last month (also about a man going missing from his family). This was a bit better as it wasn’t so sprawling or improbable, but all of the children having crises at once seemed fairly contrived and I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable or interesting.
19 . Young Rachel Young by Gabrielle Zevin - the stories of 5 women all linked through a political scandal involving a congressman’s relationship with a much younger intern. This was a very frothy and readable book about how women get blamed (and suffer) whereas men get excused. Kindle deal that I read because I’d enjoyed Tomorrow I liked it as it got its points effectively and enjoyably and I liked the women (but I’m not a fan of preachy, didactic books). Not a bold as I wasn’t so keen on the bit written like a “Choose your own Adventure” book.
20 . Bluff by Francine Toon - a man returns to his home town in Fife and tries to track down an old school friend who has gone missing. This was a Kindle Deal, which I wanted to read as Pine by the same author was a bold for me last year. This was also evocatively written and I enjoyed the initial chapters. I found the later chapters less satisfying as not enough information was revealed through the search so that the ending felt quite abrupt and quite a change of direction for the focus of the novel.