Good morning! It’s time for another Six for Sunday post! I actually found this week’s prompt kind of difficult! I was wracking my brain for books with nature themes and I’m not going to lie, some of the prompts are pretty tenuous!
Six for Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely Steph at ALITTLEBUTALOT. You can find a list of prompts for January, February and March here
Books With Nature Themes
Rumblestar by Abi Elphinstone
Eleven-year-old Casper Tock hates risks, is allergic to adventures and shudders at the thought of unpredictable events. So, it comes as a nasty shock to him when he accidentally stumbles into Rumblestar, an Unmapped Kingdom full of magical beasts. All Casper wants is to find a way home, but Rumblestar is in trouble.
An evil harpy called Morg is sending her followers, the Midnights, into the kingdom to wreak havoc and pave the way for her to steal the Unmapped magic for herself. But Casper cannot turn a blind eye because the future of his own world, he discovers, is bound up with that of the Unmapped Kingdoms.
And so, together with Utterly Thankless, a girl who hates rules and is allergic to behaving, and her miniature dragon, Arlo, Casper embarks upon an adventure full of cloud giants, storm ogres and drizzle hags. Can he, Utterly and Arlo, the unlikeliest of heroes, save the Unmapped Kingdoms and our world from the clutches of Morg and her Midnights? Live a life filled with adventure with Abi Elphinstone in this brand new series where a whole new world is waiting to be discovered…
Rumblestar and the rest of the books in Abi’s The Unmapped Chronicles series take place accross the different realms of the Unmapped Kingdoms. These are the lands where all of the Earth’s weather is formed so there’s my nature link! I adored Everdark, Rumblestar and Jungledrop and now I’ve come out of my reading slump I’m looking forward to reading The Crackledawn Dragon!
Rainbow Grey by Laura Ellen Anderson
Ten-year-old Ray Grey lives in the magical Weatherlands, high in the sky! Ray is surrounded by Weatherlings with astounding weather power at their fingertips . . . but she doesn’t have ANY magic!
Then, after a trip to Earth, Ray’s life changes forever. She is transformed from Ray Grey intro RAINBOW GREY! With the help of her best friends (and exploding cloud cat, Nim) now all Ray has to do is master her powers AND save the world from a mysterious, powerful enemy…
Rainbow Grey is the first in another series about weather magic. I think Rainbow Grey is aimed at a slightly younger audience than The Unmapped Chronicles the first book was a joy to read and I’m looking forward to catching up with Ray and her pals again in the sequel!
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The plot centers round Mary Lennox, a young English girl who returns to England from India, having suffered the immense trauma by losing both her parents in a cholera epidemic. However, her memories of her parents are not pleasant, as they were a selfish, neglectful and pleasure-seeking couple. Mary is given to the care of her uncle Archibald Craven, whom she has never met. She travels to his home, Misselthwaite Manor located in the gloomy Yorkshire, a vast change from the sunny and warm climate she was used to. When she arrives, she is a rude, stubborn and given to stormy temper tantrums. However, her nature undergoes a gradual transformation when she learns of the tragedies that have befallen her strict and disciplinarian uncle whom she earlier feared and despised. Once when he’s away from home, Mary discovers a charming walled garden which is always kept locked. The mystery deepens when she hears sounds of sobbing from somewhere within her uncle’s vast mansion. The kindly servants ignore her queries or pretend they haven’t heard, spiking Mary’s curiosity.
My teacher brought me in her copy of The Secret Garden to read when I was seven and I absolutely adored it! My mum bought me the a copy of the film on video (really aging myself now) there’s a scene where Dickon talks to Mary about nature and shows her new growth. I may have to find the more recent version of the film to watch!
Viper by Bex Hogan
Marianne has been training to be the Viper for her entire life – to serve and protect the King and the citizens of The Twelve Isles – but to become the Viper and protect the islands she loves she must find the strength to defeat her father. A new fantasy trilogy perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas.
He will make me a killer.
Or he will have me killed.
That is my destiny.
Seventeen-year-old Marianne is fated to one day become the Viper, defender of the Twelve Isles.
But the reigning Viper stands in her way. Corrupt and merciless, he prowls the seas in his warship, killing with impunity, leaving only pain and suffering in his wake.
He’s the most dangerous man on the ocean . . . and he is Marianne’s father.
She was born to protect the islands. But can she fight for them if it means losing her family, her home, the boy she loves – and perhaps even her life?
A brave heroine. An impossible dilemma. An epic new fantasy trilogy set on the high seas.
I absolutely love the Isles Of Storm And Sorrow trilogy! I’m counting as nature themed as the sea plays such an important part within the books. Also there’s so much thought that’s gone into the backstories and the differences between each of the twelve isles, including the gorgeous (in my mind) Flower Isle
These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling
Hannah’s a witch, but not the kind you’re thinking of. She’s the real deal, an Elemental with the power to control fire, earth, water, and air. But even though she lives in Salem, Massachusetts, her magic is a secret she has to keep to herself. If she’s ever caught using it in front of a Reg (read: non-witch), she could lose it. For good. So, Hannah spends most of her time avoiding her ex-girlfriend (and fellow Elemental Witch) Veronica, hanging out with her best friend, and working at the Fly by Night Cauldron selling candles and crystals to tourists, goths, and local Wiccans.
But dealing with her ex is the least of Hannah’s concerns when a terrifying blood ritual interrupts the end-of-school-year bonfire. Evidence of dark magic begins to appear all over Salem, and Hannah’s sure it’s the work of a deadly Blood Witch. The issue is, her coven is less than convinced, forcing Hannah to team up with the last person she wants to see: Veronica.
While the pair attempt to smoke out the Blood Witch at a house party, Hannah meets Morgan, a cute new ballerina in town. But trying to date amid a supernatural crisis is easier said than done, and Hannah will have to test the limits of her power if she’s going to save her coven and get the girl, especially when the attacks on Salem’s witches become deadlier by the day.
These Witches Don’t Burn is set in Salem and follows Hannah who is an elemental witch and part of the local coven. The book had an ending I didn’t see coming and I really need to read the follow up!
Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs
The meticulously dismembered body of a woman is discovered in the grounds of an abandoned monastery.
‘Too decomposed for standard autopsy. Request anthropologic expertise.’
Enter Dr Temperance Brennan, Director of Forensic Anthropology for the province of Quebec, who has been researching recent disappearances in the city.
Despite the cynicism of Detective Claudel who heads the investigation, Brennan is convinced that a serial killer is at work. Her forensic expertise finally convinces Claudel, but only after the body count has risen…
Tempe takes matters into her own hands, but her determined probing places those closest to her in mortal danger. Can Tempe make her crucial breakthrough before the killer strikes again?
Here’s my tenuous link for this week! Tempe Brennan is a forensic anthropologist and one of the things they specialise in is identifying and understanding what has happened to a body after nature has had their way with it over a period of time…
They were my #SixforSunday! If you’ve taken part leave a link to your post below and I’ll be sure to check it out!
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