I am delighted to welcome a new-to-me author to damppebbles today.  Chantelle Atkins is the author of the intriguing The Tree of Rebels, a YA dystopian adventure.  I’m not normally one to go for dystopian novels but The Tree of Rebels sounds wonderful and I’ve added it to the wishlist.  The cover is very striking as well (scroll down to the end of this post for a peek).

Chantelle has kindly joined me today to reveal her #R3COMM3ND3D2017 choices.  #R3COMM3ND3D2017 is a chance for authors and bloggers to share three 2017 must-read books.

Here are Chantelle’s recommendations…

Maria in the Moon by Louise Beech
One of the best books I have read this year. It has everything I long for in fiction. Dark, gritty, contemporary themes. Gripping, page turner, but ultimately character driven, and what a character! All of the characters are believable but the protagonist Catherine is just brilliant. It’s the characters that make a book for me and I wanted to be her friend! Moving, unique, cleverly written. Just read it.

Little Gold by Allie Rogers
Another book that ticked every box for me as a reader. Characters I totally believed in and wanted to know. Moments that made me cry, moments that made me laugh. A dark theme, a growing sense of unease and an uplifting ending.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Blew me away. Gripping from the start. Believable. Tragic. Eye opening in more ways than one. A beautiful protagonist I wanted to wrap my arms around. Drama, love, hate, hope. A classic YA book in my opinion, and one I think that everybody ought to read.

***

Thanks ever so much for joining me today, Chantelle and for your cracking recommendations.  I have read and thoroughly enjoyed ‘Maria in the Moon’ and know exactly what you mean about Catherine.  Such a great book!

If Chantelle has managed to tempt you, or you would like to find out more about her choices, please click the following amazon.co.uk links:

Maria in the Moon by Louise Beech | Little Gold by Allie Rogers | The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas |

About Chantelle:
Chantelle Atkins was born and raised in Dorset, England and still resides there now with her husband, four children and multiple pets. She is addicted to both reading and music, and is on a mission to become as self-sufficient as possible. She writes for both the young adult and adult genres. Her fiction is described as gritty, edgy and compelling. Her debut Young Adult novel The Mess Of Me deals with eating disorders, self-harm, fractured families and first love. Her second novel, The Boy With The Thorn In His Side follows the musical journey of a young boy attempting to escape his brutal home life. She is also the author of This Is Nowhere, This Is The Day and a collection of short stories related to her novels, called Bird People and Other Stories. Her latest release is the YA dystopian The Tree Of Rebels.

About The Tree of Rebels:
‘There will always be those who say no, Lissie. There will always be those who do not believe what they are told. There will always be those who rebel.’ It’s 2145. 13-year-old Lissie Turner lives in the peaceful community of Province 5. Everyone is provided for and everyone is grateful. Everyone obeys the rules. Lissie has never questioned her society until she falls into a daydream and wanders beyond the fence that keeps them safe. She finds an apple tree which changes her life and threatens to blow her world apart. Growing food has been forbidden since the last war ended 70 years ago. All food is raised under the Domes. With the discovery of the tree, Lissie finds herself breaking the rules. And if she believes what her dying Great-Grandmother has been trying to tell her, she must question everything she has ever been told. Who really started the Endless War? And it is really over? As she uncovers the shocking truth, Lissie must choose between conformity and rebellion, between living a lie and tearing her peaceful community apart… A YA dystopian adventure about a future disconnected from nature.

amazon.co.uk | amazon.com | Goodreads |

Chantelle’s Blog and Social Media Links:
The Glorious Outsiders | Twitter | Facebook |

Join me again tomorrow.