Book Wars a weekly feature hosted between two book review blogs – A Life Bound By Books & Much Loved Books!

It’s a fact that book lovers know all about the covers of the books they covet. Often when a title is released here in the UK, it’s sometimes vastly different across the pond in the US. So, Michelle from Much Loved Books and I have come together to create Book Wars to talk about the difference in covers when it comes to the US vs. UK versions.

We hope from time to time authors will chime in with their thoughts as well. We welcome everyone to comment and share their thoughts too! The more the merrier!

Before we get to this weeks Book Wars, we have a winner to announce.The Book Wars winner for Another Day (Every Day #2) By: David Levithan is...!!!!!! Thank you to everyone who voted for both books, and for picking a winner.

Also, there's a poll at the bottom of the post that we'd love to hear your input for the two covers! Tell us which one YOU love the most.

Left: US - Right: UK

Title: This Raging Light
Author: Estelle Laure
Publisher: US - HMH Books for Young Readers, 288 Pages, (December 22nd, 2015), UK - Orchard Books , 320 Pages, (January 14th, 2016)
Add to Goodreads: USA Version | UK Version
Order online here: USA: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository UK: Amazon UK, Waterstones, W H Smith, The Book Depository, Foyles

Synopsis: How is it that you suddenly notice a person? How is it that one day Digby was my best friend's admittedly cute twin brother, and then the next he stole air, gave jitters, twisted my insides up?

Lucille has bigger problems than falling for her best friend's unavailable brother. Her mom has gone, leaving her to look after her sister, Wren. With bills mounting up and appearances to keep, Lucille is raging against her life but holding it together - just.

A stunning debut to devour in one sitting, Laure captures completely the agony and ecstasy of first love.

About the Author:

Estelle Laure is a Vonnegut worshipper who believes in love and magic and the power of facing hard truths.

She has a BA in Theater Arts from New Mexico State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and thinks everyone should have to wait tables or work in a kitchen at least once in their lives. She lives in Taos, New Mexico with her children.

Find Estelle Online: Website | Blog | Twitter| Facebook

Let the Wars Begin: Its now time to make our decision, let's see what we think about the covers and pick our favorite cover.

Lisa This is an easy week for me. Hands down the US gets my vote. It's just so much more colorful and bright that looking at these two side by side it really makes the UK cover so kind of blah looking.

So, for the colors and hombre affect from dark to light, the US gets my vote. Give us your vote below!

Michelle This is an easy pick for me this week. I have the UK copy for review on my iPad, but seeing these covers next to each other just confirms my choice. The UK cover has a nice, big font on it, and I like how it's all styled. But for my, the US one is just that much better. I really like the rainbow effect on the background, how bright and bold the colours are. I also like how it's framed with a white border. I also prefer the font for the US cover over the UK cover. Now that I've shared my vote, don't forget to leave your vote below.

VOTE for YOUR favorite cover of This Raging Light by Estelle Laure NOW!

Title: Frozen (Heart of Dread #1)
Author: Melissa De La Cruz and Michael Johnston
Publisher: Orchard Books, 365 Pages (2nd October 2014)
From: Net Galley preview ARC
Format: e-book
Add to: Goodreads
Order a copy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Amazon UK

Synopsis: Welcome to New Vegas, a city once covered in bling, now blanketed in ice. Like much of the destroyed planet, the place knows only one temperature - freezing. But some things never change. The diamond in the ice desert is still a 24-hour hedonistic playground and nothing keeps the crowds away from the casino floors, never mind the rumors about sinister sorcery in its shadows.

At the heart of this city is Natasha Kestal, a young blackjack dealer looking for a way out. Like many, she's heard of a mythical land simply called "the Blue." They say it's a paradise, where the sun still shines and the waters are turquoise. More importantly, it's a place where Nat won't be persecuted, even if her darkest secret comes to light.

But passage to the Blue is treacherous, if not impossible, and her only shot is to bet on a ragtag crew of mercenaries led by a cocky runner named Ryan Wesson there. Danger and deceit await on every corner, even as Nat and Wes find themselves inexorably drawn to each other. But can true love survive the lies?

Review: 4 stars - America is now a frozen wasteland. Everywhere, including what once were the deserts of California is now covered in thick layers of snow and ice.

Natasha (Nat) Kestal is a blackjack dealer at The Loss casino in New Vegas. Nat used to hear a voice in her head telling her that it had been searching for her and now it was her time to search for it.
Nat is one of the marked. A person who is feared. Some of the marked have special abilities- Nat is not one of them.

A short time ago, Nat received a pendant from her manager at The Loss. Joe had thought it to be a map, but couldn’t get it to work. Nat knew otherwise, the voice in her head telling her it was more. With a bit of persuasion, Joe gave the necklace to Nat. Anaximander’s Map was now in her possession- the way to the Blue and freedom from persecution is in the palm of her hand.

Ryan Wesson (Wes) is a former marine sergeant and the leader of a once sought after mercenary team in New Vegas. Wes and his team are struggling to find work and feed themselves. After turning down a well paid job in the Pacific, a chance encounter with Nat secures him a job. Even if Wes does have his suspicions about the nature of the trip.

Accompanied by Shakes, Daran, Zedric and Farouk; Nat and Wes set off for The Blue. What follows can only be described as an action packed adventure across treacherous wasteland, frozen forgotten seas and against ‘pirates’.  Who knows what magic will unearth itself.

I can’t say too much without giving away the entire plot. What I can say is I enjoyed the story overall. I’ve not read anything similar- dystopian fantasy but set in our own world.
What made the book better for me is that I’ve not long come back from California and can still picture the lights of Vegas appearing from the dark night sky. Imagining it amongst a frozen waste land is something almost magical to me.

There were a few moments where I got confused as to what was happening and had to re-read. The end seemed to be wrapped up very quickly. The journey there was long and the end was so quick; I read that a few times to make sure I hadn’t missed anything.

In my opinion Frozen could be thought of as an allegory for today’s environmental, cultural and political climate. There are a lot of similarities to what is going on in the world with global warming, racism and a constant struggle for power. Frozen brings these subjects to an accessible platform for younger people to understand in the form of a fun to read YA novel.

Well done to Melissa De La Cruz and Michael Johnston if this was your plan. If not, it worked anyway and I highly recommend reading it. My only advice to readers is to take your time with it so you don’t miss anything.

Title: Dead Silent
Author: Sharon Jones
Publisher: Orchard Books, 336 pages, February 6th 2014
From: Review e-book from Netgalley.com
Format: e-book
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis: A snow angel etched in blood. An elite society. A secret dying to get out.

The second Poppy Sinclair Thriller.

When Poppy Sinclair and her boyfriend visit snowy Cambridge, she doesn't expect to discover the body of a student - arms outstretched in the act of smearing bloody angel wings on the chapel's floor.

Suddenly, Poppy is faced with the possibility that the one closest to her heart might be the one committing the most malicious of crimes.

Dodging porters and police, dreading what she might find, Poppy follows the clues left by a murderer bent on revenge...

Long-hidden secrets are chillingly revealed, an avenging angel seeks forgiveness and red-hot vengeance must be quelled in the amazing new Poppy Sinclair thriller.

Review: 5 stars - ***Review contains spoilers.*** 

First off I will say I have read Sharon Jones’ Dead Jealous and I loved it. When I found Dead Silent on NetGalley, I had to request it. Luckily for me my request was granted.

Poppy Sinclair and her boyfriend Michael visit Cambridge; Michael has a university interview at King’s College. Poppy has her own reasons for joining Michael on this visit- she’s being reunited with her father, the chaplain at Cambridge’s Trinity College.

Things are a little strained between Poppy and her father and unfortunately they take a turn for the worst. On the morning of her second day in Cambridge, Poppy walks into the chapel to find her Dad covered in blood and a dead body on the floor. Poppy soon finds herself immersed in a world of secret societies, deceit and at the mercy of one person’s need for revenge.

The setting for this book is perfect. The architecture of Kings and Trinity colleges themselves makes them a little scary and daunting for a newcomer. I’ve never been to Cambridge but when I started reading Dead Silent I searched on the internet for photos of both places. WOW! Definitely imposing. Their heritage and years of history makes the possibility of secret societies even more likely. Who knows what’s hidden behind those walls.

A layer of snow adds to the atmosphere of this book. I’ve never really thought much about weather being mentioned in books before and the influence it may have on a story. It’s like a white sheet has covered the world we know, everything changes, a sense of peace and yet somehow makes everything seem more sinister. If I was already feeling scared about the events mentioned in Dead Silent; then snow and the quiet it brings with it would definitely have me running for the hills; but not Poppy.

Poppy must have an in-built radar for finding trouble- or maybe it finds her. Maybe there’s something more to Poppy than meets the eye. You’ll have to read the book to find out.

Dead Silent is written in dual or two person POV, meaning we see both Poppy and Michael’s reaction to things. This helps us understand their relationship a bit better. They have been friends from a young age; can tell when the other is unhappy and above all their concern and love for each other is paramount to their other emotions. Michael wants Poppy to be safe, even if it means risking his life for her.

I will briefly mention one other thing about their relationship. There is something mentioned a few chapters in and it was one of the most adorable things I’ve ever read in a book. I could completely imagine the characters as children in this part of the book. I won’t go into detail about this because I want readers to experience it first hand when they read it- prepare for the melting of your heart.

Not far from the end of Dead Silent I nearly couldn’t bring myself to read on. I was brought to tears. An unexpected event nearly ruined the whole book for me. After much internal screaming, I decided that Sharon Jones couldn’t be that evil; so read on and was not disappointed by the ending. I was surprised by who the “bad guy” was in this book. I had not suspected them in the slightest.

Dead Silent, is a fast paced Young Adult thriller that didn’t fail to surprise me. I read it in about 6 hours as I was engrossed by the mystery and like Poppy; I wanted to get to the bottom of what was happening.

I’m looking forward to seeing what mischief and mystery will unfold in the yet untitled book 3 in the Poppy Sinclair series.