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Wide as the Wind
Edward Stanton
Synopsis:

The lyrical tale of a boy, a girl, their island, and how they saved it.

Wide as the Wind is the first novel to deal with the stunning, tragic history of Easter Island (Vaitéa). It could be described as quest fiction for all ages in the line of Tolkien's The Hobbit, but it is set in the real world, not Middle-earth. Wide as the Wind portrays Polynesian voyages across the Pacific Ocean in canoes with no metal parts or instruments: the greatest adventure in human prehistory, as bold as modern space voyages (National Geographic).

When Vaitéa is ravaged by war, hunger and destruction, it falls upon Miru, the fifteen-year-old son of a tribal warrior, to sail to a distant island to find the seeds and shoots of trees that could reforest their homeland. If he decides to undertake the voyage, he must leave behind Kenetéa, a young woman from an enemy tribe with whom he has fallen deeply in love. And if Miru and his crew survive the storms, sharks and marauding ships that await them on a journey over uncharted ocean, an even greater mission would lie ahead. They must show their people that devotion to the earth and sea can be as strong as war and hatred. Wide as the Wind is both a stirring novel of adventure and a prophetic tale for our times.

Publication Date: 10/01/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Adventure
True Blue Forever: Book Three of the True Blue Trilogy
Synopsis: Three boys in love with the same girl. A son's promise to his father. A bitter rivalry ends in tragedy. The toughest choice of her life... 1980—senior year! In this final installment of the True Blue Trilogy, it's getting harder than ever for Jeana to deal with the intense and violent relationships that Mickey, Wade, and Billy Joe have with her and with each other, and they all have tough choices to make about college and the rest of their lives. Just when they think they have things all figured out, tragedy strikes and everything changes, forcing Jeana to make the hardest decision she'll ever have to make. The road they travel to adulthood is paved with laughter, tears, and more than one kind of heartache, but Jeana holds on through it all to the one thing she never questions: a love that's True Blue. Fans of The Notebook will revel in the enduring love story, and baseball fans will adore the father/son dynamics like those in Field of Dreams.
Publication Date: 09/27/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Series
Jacmuir: Gestation (Jacmuir Prequel Series Book 1)
Synopsis: Every story has a beginning, a gestation period where everything takes time to manifest.

Before Natro, Resna, and Xavor ruled the kingdom of Jacmuir they were ordinary college students navigating their senior year at Jacmuir University. Xavor watched cautiously as Natro won over the Jacmuir University student body with the promise of a legendary Homecoming costume party aimed to win Resna's heart. Xavor reluctantly helps Natro with his party plans with the pretense of finding the perfect time to tell Resna he has feelings for her. He's not sure how Resna will react to his disclosure but he has to find out before Natro discovers their playful rivalry is actually a serious competition.

At the costume party, Xavor is forced to confront a secret from his past that will change Resna's and Natro's perception of him and seal their bond as friends forever.
Publication Date: 09/19/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Series
Irreversible
Chris Lynch
Synopsis: The accused date rapist from the “finely crafted and thought-provoking” (School Library Journal) National Book Award Finalist, Inexcusable, must confront the kind of person he really is and come to terms with his past actions, in this stunning sequel from Printz Honor–winning author Chris Lynch.

Keir Sarafian insists he did nothing wrong. But no one will believe that he’s the good guy he knows he is—no one except his father, Ray. And Ray is just the person Keir has to leave in order to have the fresh start he deserves.

Now at Carnegie College, Keir’s life isn’t what he thought it would be. Two soccer players are poised to take his spot as kicker. Ray keeps calling, and Joyce, his guiding light on campus, seems to be avoiding him. When tragedy strikes, will Keir finally be able to confront his past actions and realize his potential?
Publication Date: 09/06/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Naked '76
Kevin Brooks
Synopsis: London, 1976: A summer of creation, destruction, and blistering heat. Lili Garcia stands at the edge of London's growing punk scene, playing bass with one of city's wildest bands. The group's success has only strained things between Lili and Curtis Ray, her cool, rebellious boyfriend and bandmate.
Lili soon meets William Bonney, a guitarist from Northern Ireland. William is as reserved as Curtis Ray is loud, haunted by the life he left behind, but every bit as brilliant a musician. William's quiet confidence moves Lili to search for what she really wants. But the secrets of William's past could mean danger for both of them . . .
Publication Date: 09/01/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fiction
Hunter's Moon
David Michael Martin
Synopsis:

Kidahin, of the Eyloni, is on her first mission since her adulthood ceremony when her ship, Hunter's Moon, is attacked. The ship suffers major damage and the crew suffers the devastating loss of its Warleader. While making repairs at a nearby moon, Kidahin's youthful hubris gets her into trouble when she attempts to track a human: Chief Warrant Officer Del Marsch, a topnotch soldier and training officer.

Marsch, a hardened veteran, whose family has been senselessly murdered by the brutal Ni'zakhonii, suffers from extreme PTSD, with flashbacks powerful enough he can smell them. But a war is brewing and soldiers must be trained, even on a ship whose current mission is a diplomatic one. Aboard the Henri Edda, Marsch is the best one for the job - until he inadvertently offers to train a young alien.

March's agreement with the Mistress of Hunter's Moon to take the inexperienced Kidahin under his wing infuriates Ambassador Harrison, primary human liaison to the Eyloni. He's positive this arrangement could drive a wedge into the diplomatic relationship. But the power-hungry diplomat knows little of the culture of the Eyloni - and even less about the Ni'zakhonii.

Tensions reach the breaking point when Marsch, compelled to mount a rescue when the Ni'zakhonii capture a group of Eyloni, must make life-changing decisions, even as Harrison is branding him a traitor.

Publication Date: 09/01/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
Christian and Layla
Claire Merchant
Synopsis: Fourteen-year-old Christian Turner starts his new life in the small town of Almanbury. Unhappy with his father's decision to move there from South Coast, Christian's spirits reach a new low. Just when he feels like his life is going up in smoke, he meets Layla Thomas, a bubbly schoolmate, who turns out to be the love of his life. They sweep each other off their feet. It's the type of love that we all want to find; one that will scare us a little. From that day, they are Christian and Layla, Layla and Christian. Inseparable, together forever... until, after years of a perfect relationship, Layla disappears from Christian's life without a goodbye. Devastated, Christian refuses to accept that she left and struggles to move on, wanting to understand why, and hoping she will come home. Beautiful, romantic, funny and sad, this is a story of two people who are destined to be together. But will they?
Publication Date: 08/25/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Romance
Mata Hari's Last Dance
Michelle Moran
Synopsis: From the international bestselling author of Rebel Queen and Nefertiti comes a captivating novel about the infamous Mata Hari, exotic dancer, adored courtesan, and, possibly, relentless spy.

Paris, 1917. The notorious dancer Mata Hari sits in a cold cell awaiting freedom…or death. Alone and despondent, Mata Hari is as confused as the rest of the world about the charges she’s been arrested on: treason leading to the deaths of thousands of French soldiers.

As Mata Hari waits for her fate to be decided, she relays the story of her life to a reporter who is allowed to visit her in prison. Beginning with her carefree childhood, Mata Hari recounts her father’s cruel abandonment of her family as well her calamitous marriage to a military officer. Taken to the island of Java, Mata Hari refuses to be ruled by her abusive husband and instead learns to dance, paving the way to her stardom as Europe’s most infamous dancer.

From Indian temples and Parisian theatres to German barracks in war-torn Europe, international bestselling author Michelle Moran who “expertly balances fact and fiction” (Associated Press) brings to vibrant life the famed world of Mata Hari: dancer, courtesan, and possibly, spy.
Publication Date: 07/19/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fiction
And I Darken
Kiersten White
Synopsis: The New York Times Bestseller!

“Absolutely riveting.” —Alexandra Bracken, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Darkest Minds

This vividly rendered novel reads like HBO’s Game of Thrones . . . if it were set in the Ottoman Empire. Ambitious in scope and intimate in execution, the story’s atmospheric setting is rife with political intrigue, with a deftly plotted narrative driven by fiercely passionate characters and a fearsome heroine. Fans of Victoria Aveyard’s THE RED QUEEN and Sabaa Tahir’s AN EMBER IN THE ASHES won’t want to miss this visceral, immersive, and mesmerizing novel, the first in the And I Darken series.

NO ONE EXPECTS A PRINCESS TO BE BRUTAL. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets.

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, who’s expected to rule a nation, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

From New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White comes the first book in a dark, sweeping new series in which heads will roll, bodies will be impaled . . . and hearts will be broken.

“A dark and twisty fantasy . . . think Game of Thrones, but with teens.”—Seventeen
 
“Sinister, suspenseful, and unapologetically feminist.”—Buzzfeed
 
“Will completely spin you into another time and place.”—Bustle
 
“Takes no prisoners, offering up brutal, emotional historical fiction.”—NPR.org

An ALA Rainbow List Top Ten Selection
Publication Date: 06/28/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Series
A Lady Born, A Pirate Bred
Claire Merchant
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Corey has developed into the perfect pirate, serving under a fine captain and in a position of trust and authority. But even if she is content with her life, she knows deep down it is not complete. Is she really just a pirate, or is there something more? Why do the enigmatic, dashing Sebastian and a sea maiden come into her life?
Publication Date: 05/27/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Romance
Because I Love You
Tori Rigby
Synopsis:

Eight weeks after sixteen-year-old Andie Hamilton gives her virginity to her best friend, “the stick” says she’s pregnant. 

Her friends treat her like she’s carrying the plague, her classmates torture and ridicule her, and the boy she thought loved her doesn’t even care. Afraid to experience the next seven months alone, she turns to her ex-boyfriend, Neil Donaghue, a dark-haired, blue-eyed player. With him, she finds comfort and the support she desperately needs to make the hardest decision of her life: whether or not to keep the baby. 

Then a tragic accident leads Andie to discover Neil’s keeping a secret that could dramatically alter their lives, and she's forced to make a choice. But after hearing her son’s heartbeat for the first time, she doesn’t know how she’ll ever be able to let go.

Publication Date: 05/17/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Chick Lit
Places No One Knows
Brenna Yovanoff
Synopsis: Fans of Lady Bird will love this novel about a good girl who dreams herself into a bad boy's room in this lyrically romantic novel that Maggie Stiefvater, author of The Raven King, says she read and "woke up satisfied."
 
    Waverly Camdenmar spends her nights running until she can’t even think. Then the sun comes up, life goes on, and Waverly goes back to her perfectly hateful best friend, her perfectly dull classes, and the tiny, nagging suspicion that there’s more to life than student council and GPAs.
    Marshall Holt is a loser. He drinks on school nights and gets stoned in the park. He is at risk of not graduating, he does not care, he is no one. He is not even close to being in Waverly’s world.
    But then one night Waverly falls asleep and dreams herself into Marshall’s bedroom—and when the sun comes up, nothing in her life can ever be the same. In Waverly’s dreams, the rules have changed. But in her days, she’ll have to decide if it’s worth losing everything for a boy who barely exists.

"Waverly and Marshall burn brightly . . . both refreshingly flawed as they come into their own. Readers will forgo sleep themselves to witness their vibrant, achingly real story unfold. A brilliant romance." —Kirkus Reviews, Starred

"A tightly woven, luminously written novel that captures the uncertain nature of high school and the difficult path of self-discovery." —Booklist, Starred

"Yovanoff offers a multilayered exploration of human connections, particularly those that manifest in unpredictable ways."—Publishers Weekly, Starred
Publication Date: 05/17/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Romance
The Darkest Corners
Kara Thomas
Synopsis: "Gripping from start to finish . . . with twists that left me shocked."—Victoria Aveyard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Red Queen

For fans of Gillian Flynn and Pretty Little Liars, The Darkest Corners is a psychological thriller about the lies little girls tell, and the deadly truths those lies become.

    There are secrets around every corner in Fayette, Pennsylvania. Tessa left when she was nine and has been trying ever since not to think about what happened there that last summer.
    She and her childhood best friend Callie never talked about what they saw. Not before the trial. And certainly not after.
    But ever since she left, Tessa has had questions. Things have never quite added up. And now she has to go back to Fayette—to Wyatt Stokes, sitting on death row; to Lori Cawley, Callie’s dead cousin; and to the one other person who may be hiding the truth.
    Only the closer Tessa gets to what really happened, the closer she gets to a killer—and this time, it won’t be so easy to run away.

And don't miss Kara's next "eerie and masterly psychological thriller" Little Monsters—on sale now (SLJ)!
Publication Date: 04/19/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Mystery
Kings & Queens
Courtney Vail
Synopsis: When seventeen-year-old Majesty Alistair can't budge police in her sleepy, rich town after overhearing two fellow students planning a church shooting, she sets out to ID the faceless nutjobs herself before they act. But, their agenda turns out to be far bigger than she ever assumed, and she becomes the centerpiece in a ruthless game that casts even her closest friends under suspicion.
Publication Date: 04/15/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Mystery
Goodbye Bombay
Gry Finsnes
Synopsis: Bombay in 1980, India’s business centre, was a swirl of parties mixing all religions and nationalities. The Norwegian lawyer Christine is married but falls in love with the good-looking Parsee Zarin. They meet in a houseboat in Srinagar and declare their love in the Mogul gardens, but this is just the beginning of a dramatic series of events leading them to the beaches of Goa and the tea gardens of Darjeeling. Twenty years later Christine tells her story to a friend in England when a stranger turns up.
Publication Date: 02/15/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Historical Fiction
A Whole Lot
Bradley Wind
Synopsis:
Publication Date: 01/31/16
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Humor

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