All Books
Synopsis:
Incinerator is the pulse-pounding sequel to Crusher, Niall Leonard's debut YA novel and an Edgar Award finalist for Best Young Adult Novel.
Following the bloody deaths of his mother and father, Finn Maguire is determined to make a fresh start, running a boxing gym in the bruised and bitter heart of the city. But when loan sharks target his business partner and his lawyer vanishes with all his money, Finn is dragged down into London's underworld once more, with only his fists and his wits to keep him alive.
Publication Date: 04/08/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Mystery
Synopsis: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is an epic star-crossed romance about a girl who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
The world Prenna James comes from is in ruins. She and the others who escaped are here to prevent humanity’s destruction. But if they don’t follow The Rules, everything that matters will be gone: Friends. Families. Dreams. Love.
Ethan Jarves can never know Prenna’s secret. That she’s not from another place.
She’s from another time.
"This gripping story is set in a world unlike any other and inhabited by beautifully imagined characters that stay with you long after the last page.” – Sara Shepard, bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars
“An appealing romantic thriller . . . [also] a potent reminder that we inherit the future we buy with our actions today.”—Cassandra Clare for the New York Times Book Review
“Fast-paced, gripping, and romantic.”—Publishers Weekly
“Lightning-paced . . . like a cinematic blockbuster.”—Kirkus Reviews
“The Here and Now could just as easily sit among the time-travel sci-fi, coming-of-age, or romantic thrillers of YA. Honestly, even though I really don't know how to categorize it, I loved it.”—Happily Ever After/USA Today
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
The world Prenna James comes from is in ruins. She and the others who escaped are here to prevent humanity’s destruction. But if they don’t follow The Rules, everything that matters will be gone: Friends. Families. Dreams. Love.
Ethan Jarves can never know Prenna’s secret. That she’s not from another place.
She’s from another time.
"This gripping story is set in a world unlike any other and inhabited by beautifully imagined characters that stay with you long after the last page.” – Sara Shepard, bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars
“An appealing romantic thriller . . . [also] a potent reminder that we inherit the future we buy with our actions today.”—Cassandra Clare for the New York Times Book Review
“Fast-paced, gripping, and romantic.”—Publishers Weekly
“Lightning-paced . . . like a cinematic blockbuster.”—Kirkus Reviews
“The Here and Now could just as easily sit among the time-travel sci-fi, coming-of-age, or romantic thrillers of YA. Honestly, even though I really don't know how to categorize it, I loved it.”—Happily Ever After/USA Today
Publication Date: 04/08/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: A 2015 William C. Morris YA Debut Award Finalist
Magical realism, lyrical prose, and the pain and passion of human love haunt this hypnotic generational saga.
Foolish love appears to be the Roux family birthright, an ominous forecast for its most recent progeny, Ava Lavender. Ava — in all other ways a normal girl — is born with the wings of a bird. In a quest to understand her peculiar disposition and a growing desire to fit in with her peers, sixteen-year old Ava ventures into the wider world, ill-prepared for what she might discover and naive to the twisted motives of others. Others like the pious Nathaniel Sorrows, who mistakes Ava for an angel and whose obsession with her grows until the night of the summer solstice celebration. That night, the skies open up, rain and feathers fill the air, and Ava’s quest and her family’s saga build to a devastating crescendo. First-time author Leslye Walton has constructed a layered and unforgettable mythology of what it means to be born with hearts that are tragically, exquisitely human.
Magical realism, lyrical prose, and the pain and passion of human love haunt this hypnotic generational saga.
Foolish love appears to be the Roux family birthright, an ominous forecast for its most recent progeny, Ava Lavender. Ava — in all other ways a normal girl — is born with the wings of a bird. In a quest to understand her peculiar disposition and a growing desire to fit in with her peers, sixteen-year old Ava ventures into the wider world, ill-prepared for what she might discover and naive to the twisted motives of others. Others like the pious Nathaniel Sorrows, who mistakes Ava for an angel and whose obsession with her grows until the night of the summer solstice celebration. That night, the skies open up, rain and feathers fill the air, and Ava’s quest and her family’s saga build to a devastating crescendo. First-time author Leslye Walton has constructed a layered and unforgettable mythology of what it means to be born with hearts that are tragically, exquisitely human.
Publication Date: 03/25/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Synopsis: At seventeen, Sherman Andrews has been accepted in the Missouri Scholars' Academy. Sherman has had a ten-year plan since he was eight, and he is determined to become an award-winning investigative journalist. He is going places, unlike his low-brow plumber father or his absent mother. While researching his first project, a chance discovery of a mysterious photograph of four men, dated 1935, leads to Sherman uncovering records of deaths, disappearances, and cover-ups on an almost unbelievable scale. Too late, Sherman realizes the organization responsible is still around, and they're prepared to take drastic measures to keep him quiet. Sherman must decide if he wants to flee for his life, or risk everything to become the reporter he's always wanted to be. There are only two people he can trust to help him. One is Charlie, the cute, chubby student librarian at the historical society. The other is Denton, who claims that the organization is led by a shadowy man who died in 1966...and 1935...and 1864. The fact that Denton has been forcibly committed to a mental hospital is just an unfortunate misunderstanding. Something evil is about to reappear. And Sherman, with his Dictaphone, his ironed socks, and his ten-page resume, may be the only one who can prevent a tragedy. Interspersed with flashbacks to the original 1935 adventurers, Everyone Dies is a lighthearted coming of age story about love, growing up, and what it's like to be buried alive.
Publication Date: 03/15/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Synopsis:
It’s not easy being Todd Williams, a fourteen-and-a-half-year-old gay musical prodigy. The bullies, Bob and Ari, at his fancy private school make his life a living hell. Todd’s drunken, irresponsible mother, Eddie, constantly embarrasses him and puts his artistic future in jeopardy. And now, his best friend, Jennifer, who plays clarinet with him in the orchestra, isn’t speaking to him. Maybe Leroy, Todd’s friendly poltergeist, knows what’s going on with her. To top it off, he can no longer rely on Jennifer's help in the race to solve a puzzle that could lead to a buried treasure. Todd must learn to stand alone. He’s finding out that growing up is far scarier than he ever imagined.
Publication Date: 03/13/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Synopsis:
A suspenseful tragedy laced with romance, Never Ending will take you from the past—a steamy vacation in Greece that’s cut short by the unfathomable—to the present—a lake-side clinic stay—to the truth in between.
“What do you deserve, Siobhan?”
“I don’t deserve to forget he’s dead. Even for a moment.”
“I asked what you do deserve, not what you don’t.”
“I deserve not to be forgiven."
Shiv's brother Declan, her best friend, is dead. It's been all over the news. Consumed by grief and guilt, she agrees to become an inpatient at the Korsakoff Clinic. There she meets Mikey. Caron. The others. They share a similar torment. And there, subjected to the clinic's unconventional therapy, they must face what they can't bear to see.
Shiv is flooded with flashbacks, nightmares, haunting visions of Declan on their last, fateful family vacation in Greece. And with memories of Nikos, the beautiful young man on the tour boat. It started there, with him, beside the glittering sea . . . the beginning of the end.
“The characters and the scenery are rendered with such photographic precision that readers will feel as though they’re watching a film.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred
“Bedford skillfully pushes and pulls at the reader’s emotions while carefully revealing the details of the backstory and the aftermath until the two converge.” —Booklist, Starred
“Part-mystery, part-romance, and part-disturbing portrait of how fragile the human psyche can be, this novel is provocative and not for the faint of heart.” —SLJ
Publication Date: 03/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Adventure
Synopsis: "Jenna Strong is a futuristic Jason Bourne."--Justine Magazine
Fans of Matched and Divergent will be hooked by this fast-paced, nail-biting survival story, featuring an unforgettable heroine reminiscent of Katniss Everdeen and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s Lisbeth Salander.
The year is 2113. In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID—the most brutal controlling police force in history—rule supreme. No throwaway comment or whispered dissent goes unnoticed—or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a horrendous crime she struggles to remember. But Jenna’s violent prison time has taught her how to survive by any means necessary. When a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed, and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID and try to uncover the truth about what really happened on that terrible night two years ago. They’ve taken her life, her freedom, and her memories away from her. How can she reclaim anything when she doesn’t know who to trust?
Winner of the North East Teenage Book Award
"Great suspense . . . excellent characters and gripping action."--TheGuardian.com
Fans of Matched and Divergent will be hooked by this fast-paced, nail-biting survival story, featuring an unforgettable heroine reminiscent of Katniss Everdeen and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s Lisbeth Salander.
The year is 2113. In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID—the most brutal controlling police force in history—rule supreme. No throwaway comment or whispered dissent goes unnoticed—or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a horrendous crime she struggles to remember. But Jenna’s violent prison time has taught her how to survive by any means necessary. When a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed, and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID and try to uncover the truth about what really happened on that terrible night two years ago. They’ve taken her life, her freedom, and her memories away from her. How can she reclaim anything when she doesn’t know who to trust?
Winner of the North East Teenage Book Award
"Great suspense . . . excellent characters and gripping action."--TheGuardian.com
Publication Date: 03/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
Synopsis: A Gothic thriller and captivating love story set in Civil War Mississippi
Seventeen-year-old Violet Dancey has been left at home in Mississippi with a laudanum-addicted stepmother and love-crazed stepsister while her father fights in the war—a war that has already claimed her twin brother. When she comes across a severely injured Union soldier lying in an abandoned lodge deep in the woods, things begin to change. Thomas is the enemy—one of the men who might have killed her own brother—and yet she’s drawn to him. But Violet isn’t Thomas’s only visitor. Someone has been tending to his wounds—keeping him alive—and it becomes chillingly clear that this care hasn’t been out of compassion. Against the dangers of war and threatening powers of voodoo, Violet fights to protect her home, her family, and the man she’s begun to love.
“An exciting story—juicy, romantic and at times quite chilling.” —BookPage
“An atmospheric story in which darkness houses mysteries, [with] rich imagery and imaginative subplots.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Compelling. . . . There’s a languid ease to the prose that invites readers to become fully immersed.” —The Bulletin
Seventeen-year-old Violet Dancey has been left at home in Mississippi with a laudanum-addicted stepmother and love-crazed stepsister while her father fights in the war—a war that has already claimed her twin brother. When she comes across a severely injured Union soldier lying in an abandoned lodge deep in the woods, things begin to change. Thomas is the enemy—one of the men who might have killed her own brother—and yet she’s drawn to him. But Violet isn’t Thomas’s only visitor. Someone has been tending to his wounds—keeping him alive—and it becomes chillingly clear that this care hasn’t been out of compassion. Against the dangers of war and threatening powers of voodoo, Violet fights to protect her home, her family, and the man she’s begun to love.
“An exciting story—juicy, romantic and at times quite chilling.” —BookPage
“An atmospheric story in which darkness houses mysteries, [with] rich imagery and imaginative subplots.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Compelling. . . . There’s a languid ease to the prose that invites readers to become fully immersed.” —The Bulletin
Publication Date: 03/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Talisa Santiago is the granddaughter of a shaman and going between two different worldly dimensions is something she realizes she is destined to do; however, what she doesn’t count on is what fate has in store for her. After surviving the first hurricane of the season on the island where she lives, Talisa learns her life is in grave danger. She must retreat immediately to live with a secretive clan of Indians on a remote reservation deep within the Great Smokey Mountains. Her blood brothers, three shifters who have the desires of both man and animal surround her, promising everlasting friendship and protection. However, the majestic mountains hold many secrets and danger lurks in the night. As Talisa falls prey to the evil tricksters that want her dead, she unleashed an untamed passion that may get them all killed.
Publication Date: 03/04/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Synopsis: "It's a sight seen countless times along the seafront at Whitby, just one more girl kissing one more vampire" 17 is a difficult age for B.J. Neither his three friends, his secretive family nor Roger, the decor-loving football hooligan, can help him in his search to find himself – and lose his virginity. A darkly comic novel about love, death, sex (and Goths) by the author of The Snake Oil Dickens Man.
Publication Date: 02/28/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Synopsis: You would think that living in a ‘castle’-like house, being waited on hand and foot and being the best player in minor league football with the potential of signing to major league, would be every university student’s idea of heaven. Not in the case of Samuel Saber. Between the scandals and bad publicity involving his father, to the complication that is his love life, Sam Saber’s life is far from the blissful content you would be led to believe. Sam is a simple guy with only a couple of ambitions, so why is it turning out to be so hard to achieve them? Sam begins his journey of a few life lessons and a series of unexpected turns of events with the break up with his year-long girlfriend. Sam soon starts to realise that a name can be a hindrance and that people are not always who he originally thought them to be.
Publication Date: 02/27/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Romance
Synopsis: Can a boy on the edge find his way back? From award-winning Icelandic author Fridrik Erlings comes a novel as cruel as it is tender.
Henry has a clubfoot and he is the target of relentless bullying. One day, in a violent fit of anger, Henry lashes out at the only family he has — his mother. Sent to live with other troubled boys at the Home of Lesser Brethren, an isolated farm perched in the craggy lava fields along the unforgiving Icelandic coast, Henry finds a precarious contentment among the cows. But it is the people, including the manic preacher who runs the home, who fuel Henry’s frustration and sometimes rage as he yearns for a life and a home. Author Fridrik Erlings offers a young adult novel that explores cruelty and desperation, tenderness and remorse, but most importantly, kindness and friendship.
Henry has a clubfoot and he is the target of relentless bullying. One day, in a violent fit of anger, Henry lashes out at the only family he has — his mother. Sent to live with other troubled boys at the Home of Lesser Brethren, an isolated farm perched in the craggy lava fields along the unforgiving Icelandic coast, Henry finds a precarious contentment among the cows. But it is the people, including the manic preacher who runs the home, who fuel Henry’s frustration and sometimes rage as he yearns for a life and a home. Author Fridrik Erlings offers a young adult novel that explores cruelty and desperation, tenderness and remorse, but most importantly, kindness and friendship.
Publication Date: 02/25/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Friendship is a bond stronger than secrets in this novel from the author of The Almost Truth and Unraveling Isobel.
As first graders, Avery and Nora bonded over a special trait they shared—they were both adopted.
Years later, Avery is smart, popular, and on the cheerleading squad, while Nora spends her time on the fringes of school society, wearing black, reading esoteric poetry, and listening to obscure music. They never interact...until the night Nora approaches Avery at a party, saying it’s urgent. She tells Avery that she thought she found her birth mom—but it turned out to be a cruel lie. Avery feels for Nora, but returns to her friends at the party.
Then Avery learns that Nora overdosed on pills. Left to cope with Nora’s loss and questioning her own actions, Avery decides to honor her friend by launching a search for her own birth mother. Aided by Brody, a friend of Nora’s who is also looking for a way to respect Nora’s legacy, Avery embarks on an emotional quest. But what she’s really seeking might go far deeper than just genetics…
As first graders, Avery and Nora bonded over a special trait they shared—they were both adopted.
Years later, Avery is smart, popular, and on the cheerleading squad, while Nora spends her time on the fringes of school society, wearing black, reading esoteric poetry, and listening to obscure music. They never interact...until the night Nora approaches Avery at a party, saying it’s urgent. She tells Avery that she thought she found her birth mom—but it turned out to be a cruel lie. Avery feels for Nora, but returns to her friends at the party.
Then Avery learns that Nora overdosed on pills. Left to cope with Nora’s loss and questioning her own actions, Avery decides to honor her friend by launching a search for her own birth mother. Aided by Brody, a friend of Nora’s who is also looking for a way to respect Nora’s legacy, Avery embarks on an emotional quest. But what she’s really seeking might go far deeper than just genetics…
Publication Date: 02/25/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: A 2015 Stonewall Honor Book
A groundbreaking work of LGBT literature takes an honest look at the life, love, and struggles of transgender teens.
Author and photographer Susan Kuklin met and interviewed six transgender or gender-neutral young adults and used her considerable skills to represent them thoughtfully and respectfully before, during, and after their personal acknowledgment of gender preference. Portraits, family photographs, and candid images grace the pages, augmenting the emotional and physical journey each youth has taken. Each honest discussion and disclosure, whether joyful or heartbreaking, is completely different from the other because of family dynamics, living situations, gender, and the transition these teens make in recognition of their true selves.
A groundbreaking work of LGBT literature takes an honest look at the life, love, and struggles of transgender teens.
Author and photographer Susan Kuklin met and interviewed six transgender or gender-neutral young adults and used her considerable skills to represent them thoughtfully and respectfully before, during, and after their personal acknowledgment of gender preference. Portraits, family photographs, and candid images grace the pages, augmenting the emotional and physical journey each youth has taken. Each honest discussion and disclosure, whether joyful or heartbreaking, is completely different from the other because of family dynamics, living situations, gender, and the transition these teens make in recognition of their true selves.
Publication Date: 02/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Nonfiction
Synopsis: In 1848, an educated slave girl faces an inconceivable choice — between bondage and freedom, family and love.
On one side of the Mason-Dixon Line lives fifteen-year-old Willow, her master’s favorite servant. She’s been taught to read and has learned to write. She believes her master is good to her and fears the rebel slave runaways. On the other side of the line is seventeen-year-old Cato, a black man, free born. It’s his personal mission to sneak as many fugitive slaves to freedom as he can. Willow’s and Cato’s lives are about to intersect, with life-changing consequences for both of them. Tonya Cherie Hegamin’s moving coming-of-age story is a poignant meditation on the many ways a person can be enslaved, and the force of will needed to be truly emancipated.
On one side of the Mason-Dixon Line lives fifteen-year-old Willow, her master’s favorite servant. She’s been taught to read and has learned to write. She believes her master is good to her and fears the rebel slave runaways. On the other side of the line is seventeen-year-old Cato, a black man, free born. It’s his personal mission to sneak as many fugitive slaves to freedom as he can. Willow’s and Cato’s lives are about to intersect, with life-changing consequences for both of them. Tonya Cherie Hegamin’s moving coming-of-age story is a poignant meditation on the many ways a person can be enslaved, and the force of will needed to be truly emancipated.
Publication Date: 02/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: A contemporary young adult novel about a bright dyslexic teen struggling to find her place in a literate world. Counting to D is sure to resonate with anyone who has struggled with learning disabilities, young love, or just being a teen!
The kids at Sam's school never knew if they should make fun of her for being too smart or too dumb. That's what it means to be dyslexic, smart, and illiterate. Sam is sick of it. So when her mom gets a job in a faraway city, Sam decides not to tell anyone about her little illiteracy problem. Without her paradox of a reputation, she falls in with a new group of highly competitive friends who call themselves the Brain Trust. When she meets Nate, her charming valedictorian lab partner, she declares her new reality perfect. But in order to keep it that way, she has to keep her learning disability a secret. The books are stacked against her and so are the lies. Sam's got to get the grades, get the guy, and get it straight-without being able to read.
The kids at Sam's school never knew if they should make fun of her for being too smart or too dumb. That's what it means to be dyslexic, smart, and illiterate. Sam is sick of it. So when her mom gets a job in a faraway city, Sam decides not to tell anyone about her little illiteracy problem. Without her paradox of a reputation, she falls in with a new group of highly competitive friends who call themselves the Brain Trust. When she meets Nate, her charming valedictorian lab partner, she declares her new reality perfect. But in order to keep it that way, she has to keep her learning disability a secret. The books are stacked against her and so are the lies. Sam's got to get the grades, get the guy, and get it straight-without being able to read.
Publication Date: 02/11/14
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Juvenile Fiction