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The Runaway Dragon
Kate Coombs
Synopsis:

When Meg's dragon, Laddy, flies away from home, she knows she must go on a quest to find him. But she hasn't counted on her parents, the king and queen of Greeve, sending ten guardsmen along. Fortunately, she is also accompanied by her best friends: Dilly, a lady-in-waiting and a cool head in any crisis not involving heights; Cam, a gardener's assistant who knows the exact value of a brick shed filled with sausages; Nort, a skinny guardsman who has never given much thought to crows; and Lex, a young wizard with bad taste in horses, magic carpets, and sorceresses. Of course, Meg's quest goes topsy-turvy once she enters the enchanted forest―and her adventure is just beginning. What's more, meeting up with the dashing bandit Bain again isn't at all what she expected. Will this princess be able to rescue herself, let alone anybody else?

In The Runaway Princess, Meg and her friends defeated a pack of princes. Now they're going to need swordplay, magic, and a whole lot of courage to find Laddy and get back home!

Publication Date: 09/01/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
The Midnight Charter
David Whitley
Synopsis: In a society based on trade, where everything can be bought and sold, the future rests on the secrets of a single document-and the lives of two children whose destiny it is to discover its secrets. In this spellbinding novel, newcomer David Whitley has imagined a nation at a crossroads: misshaped by materialism and facing a choice about its future. He has brought to life two children who will test the nation's values-and crafted a spellbinding adventure story that will keep readers turning the pages until the very end.  For readers who love Philip Pullman, THE MIDNIGHT CHARTER combines great storytelling with a compelling vision - a many layered adventure with powerful and timely implications.
Publication Date: 09/01/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Arizona: Book One
Tanja Bauerle, Lisa M. Cottrell-Bentley
Synopsis: Announcing Book #1 in the first series about a homeschooling family. The Wrights travel the USA in an RV. Each month brings them to a new state with a new educational theme to explore and play with. They prove that learning can happen all the time, anywhere, and that being with family is fun! Meet Aidan, age 7: Boisterous and joking all the time, this sporty boy knows how to have fun! Meet Nadia, age 11: Curious and fiery, this intellectual girl can always find out answers to even the most difficult questions. Meet their parents: Harrison, a writer and linguist expert, and Stephanie, a telecommuting computer expert; ready to adventure with their children. Meet Prince Pumpkin III, turtle extraordinaire: This 50 year old little guy is holding on tight, as the family RV and a mysterious device take him on an adventure no turtle has ever gone on before. Explore an Arizona desert cave with the Wrights as they begin their trip. What will Aidan and Nadia discover? This series is Wright on Time.
Publication Date: 08/27/09
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Adventure
The Stone Child
Dan Poblocki
Synopsis: What if the monsters from your favorite horror books were real?

Eddie Fennicks has always been a loner, content to lose himself in a mystery novel by his favorite author, Nathaniel Olmstead. That’s why moving to the small town of Gatesweed becomes a dream come true when Eddie discovers that Olmstead lived there before mysteriously disappearing thirteen years ago. Even better, Eddie finds a handwritten, never-before-seen Nathaniel Olmstead book printed in code and befriends Harris, who’s as much an Olmsteady as he is. But then the frightening creatures of Olmstead’s books begin to show up in real life, and Eddie’s dream turns into a nightmare. Eddie, Harris, and their new friend, Maggie, must break Olmstead’s code, banish all gremlins and monster lake-dogs from the town of Gatesweed, and solve the mystery of the missing author, all before Eddie’s mom finishes
writing her own tale of terror and brings to life the scariest creature of all.
Publication Date: 08/25/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Star Trek: The Never-ending Sacrifice
Synopsis:
Continuing the post-television Deep Space Nine saga, this original novel shows the fall of the Cardassian empire as seen through the eyes of a young man with a foot in two worlds.

Rugal is an orphaned Cardassian who has been raised by the people his race once conquered, the Bajorans. Reluctantly repatriated to Cardassia as a teenager, Rugal becomes the living witness to the downfall of the proud people to whom he was born, first by the invading Klingons, then during the Cardassians’ unholy pact with the Dominion—a partnership that culminated in a near-genocide. Through it all, Rugal’s singular perspective illuminates the choices that brought the Cardassians to their ruin...even as he learns that the Cardassian soul is not as easy to understand as he imagined.
Publication Date: 08/25/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Birdies Book
Andrea Burden, Jan Bozarth
Synopsis: Where do fairy godmothers come from?

When Birdie goes to visit her grandmother for the first time, she learns that her grandmother is a fairy godmother—which means Birdie's a fairy godmother too! Trained by fairies in a magical land called Aventurine, human fairy godmothers have been hidden protectors of the world for centuries. Birdie' s family talisman, a singing stone, has been broken, and now only Birdie can use the stone to travel to Aventurine to repair it.

When she gets there she meets Kerka, a warrior-like girl who has been sent to help her find the other half of the stone. Will Birdie and Kerka have the knowledge and strength to banish the shadow that has come over both the garden in Aventurine and Birdie's family? One thing's for sure—no one who travels to Aventurine will ever be the same again!

For girls who are fans of Harry Potter and have outgrown the Disney Fairies series and the American Girl books, the Fairy Godmother Academy is the perfect series—fantasy books filled with magic and adventure but grounded by contemporary girls and issues.

The series boasts an amazing Web site that allows girls to enter the world they visit in the books. There they can do activities both on- and offline, vote for things they'd like to see in the books, and connect with other Fairy Godmother Academy fans.

Join the Fairy Godmother Academy!
Visit the Web site for games, activities, and networking with friends!
www.fairygodmotheracademy.com
Publication Date: 08/25/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Band of Acadians
John Skelton
Synopsis:

In 1755, on the eve of the Seven Years' War, fifteen-year-old Nola and her Acadian parents face expulsion from Grand Pré by the British. Nola, her friends Hector and Jocelyne, Nola's grandfather, and a band of bold teenagers manage to flee by boat only to encounter challenges tougher than their wildest imaginings. Their destination is French-occupied Fort Louisbourg, but along the way hostile soldiers, a harsh environment, enigmatic Mi'kmaq, and superpowers at war turn their journey into a series of hair-raising adventures.

As it turns out, the runaways' route to freedom may be rudimentary technology. Using raw gypsum, limestone, coal, and salt, they forge coal-oil fire bombs that keep their attackers at bay for a short time but not long enough to ensure their survival.

Will the resourceful teenagers finally discover what it takes to prevail in a continent poised on the edge of irrevocable change?

Publication Date: 08/17/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Leo and the Lesser Lion
Sandra Forrester
Synopsis: A heartwarming family story set during the Depression that reads like a classic.

Everyone's been down on their luck since the Depression hit. But as long as Mary Bayliss Pettigrew has her beloved older brother, Leo, to pull pranks with, even the hardest times can be fun. Then one day, there’s a terrible accident, and when Bayliss wakes up afterward, she must face the heartbreaking prospect of life without Leo.

And that’s when her parents break the news: they’re going to be fostering two homeless little girls, and Bayliss can’t bear the thought of anyone taking Leo’s place. But opening her heart to these weary travelers might just be the key to rebuilding her grieving family.
Publication Date: 08/11/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
The Poisons of Caux: The Hollow Bettle
Jennifer Taylor, Susannah Appelbaum
Synopsis: Introducing a witty and macabre new fantasy trilogy.

There's little joy left in the kingdom of Caux: the evil King Nightshade rules with terrible tyranny and the law of the land is poison or be poisoned. Worse, eleven-year-old Ivy’s uncle, a famous healer, has disappeared, and Ivy sets out to find him, joined by a young taster named Rowan. But these are corrupt times, and the children—enemies of the realm—are not alone. What exactly do Ivy and Rowan’s pursuers want? Is it Ivy’s prized red bettle, which, unlike any other gemstone in Caux, appears—impossibly—to be hollow? Is it the elixir she concocted—the one with the mysterious healing powers? Or could it be Ivy herself?

Told with wry humor, The Hollow Bettle is the first installment in the Poisons of Caux trilogy, an astonishing tale of herbs and magic, tasters and poisoners.
Publication Date: 08/11/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
The Curse of the Romany Wolves
Christian Slade, S. Jones Rogan
Synopsis: Penhaligon takes on pirates and sea serpents on the high seas.

The creatures of Porthleven are suffering from a mysterious illness that looks like Febra lupi, the curse of the Romany wolves, which has no known cure. The dashing apothecary fox Penhaligon must find a cure or risk losing everyone he holds dear!

Penhaligon uncovers a fragment of parchment that just might be a recipe for a cure—and it includes ingredients found only on the haunted Howling Island. But the obstacles Penhaligon must face on his quest for the cure make ghosts seem friendly: Pirates! Sea serpents! Double-crossing ferrets! Can Penhaligon make it back in time to save his village?
Publication Date: 08/11/09
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Adventure
Treason's Shore
Sherwood Smith
Synopsis: Fourth in "an intense fascinating epic"* of high action and fantasy adventure.

Inda, fresh from his triumph on the battlefield against the Venn, takes his place beside King Evred as Harskialdna, the King's Shield. But the Venn are far from defeated and only Inda's fame is strong enough to inspire all the squabbling kingdoms to unite and raise a force mighty enough to protect the strait and repel the enemy. Evred has also ordered Inda to take over the strait once the battle is won, but Inda, a former pirate, knows that this is a very bad idea. Now Inda must choose between obeying his liege-or committing treason.
Publication Date: 08/04/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Timelock
David Klass
Synopsis:

In Timelock, the thrilling finale to the Caretaker Trilogy, the end of life as we know it has arrived, and history will be made -- or lost -- at the hands of one young hero.

Jack Danielson has spent the last year saving the oceans and the Amazon, attempting to fulfill a prophecy that was written before his birth. Now he's more than ready to get back to life as a typical teenager and spend some quality time with his girlfriend, P.J. Too bad the world has other plans.

Wrenched away once more from those he knows and loves, Jack is thrust through time to the fiery deserts of the future and the frozen tundra of the Arctic, battling cyborgs, zombie warlocks, and scorpions the size of tanks. At least he has Gisco -- everyone's favorite surly telepathic canine -- to keep him company, not to mention the Ninja Babe, Eko. And he will finally be reunited with the parents who abandoned him so long ago, in order that he might save their dying planet.

But it isn't only a race to save Earth. As the clock ticks down before the final confrontation with the dreaded Dark Lord, Jack must decide once and for all who he really is -- prince of the future or humble human of the present -- and choose between the two women who love him.

Publication Date: 08/04/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Westward Ho!
Malcolm Day, Charles Kingsley
Synopsis: Beginning in the fictional seaport of Bideford Quay in Devon, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Charles Kingsley's monumental novel follows the fortunes of Amyas Leigh, a young man who sets sail on a life of adventure on the high seas. After battling pirates and treasure-hunting in the Caribbean, and setting out to rescue his beloved Rose Salterne, Amyas joins Sir Francis Drake as he prepares to face England's greatest threat—the Spanish Armada. Packed with drama, excitement and romance Westward Ho! is a magnificent celebration of an age of exploration, discovery and conquest. More than this, however, the novel also draws parallels between Elizabethan England and mid-nineteenth century Britain, when many feared imminent invasion by the French under their Catholic emperor Louis Napoleon. Included is an insightful introduction by historical writer Malcolm Day.
Publication Date: 08/01/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Rift in the Sky
Julie E. Czerneda
Synopsis: Third in the prequel series to the Locus bestselling Trade Pact Universe novels.

Despite all good intentions, the lure of the Talent to move through space using the M'hir dimension is too much for the Om'ray of Cersi to resist. As the awareness of this talent spreads, all those Om'ray who are capable converge on the settlement at Sona. To prevent the disruption of the Agreement and the destruction that it would unleash, the M'hiray, as they now call themselves, agree to leave Cersi forever and try to establish their own haven within the Trade Pact worlds-only to learn that not everybody wants peace.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Promise Of The Wolves
Dorothy Hearst
Synopsis: The first in The Wolf Chronicles trilogy, brilliantly weaving together original research, lovable characters and a dynamic, thoroughly engaging plot, Promise of the Wolves is a historical adventure story in the tradition of Clan of the Cave Bear and Watership Down.

Set 14,000 years ago in what is now Southern Europe, Promise of the Wolves is told from the point of view of Kaala, a young wolf born of a forbidden, mixed-blood litter. An outcast after her mother is exiled, Kaala struggles to earn her place in her pack. But her world is turned upside down when she rescues a human girl from drowning. Kaala and her young packmates begin hunting and playing with humans—risking expulsion from their pack and banishment from their home in the Wide Valley.

When war between humans and wolves threatens, Kaala learns that she is the last in a long line of wolves charged with keeping watch over humans in order to prevent them from losing touch with nature and thus destroying the world. But to do so she must solve the great paradox of wolfkind: though wolves must always be with humans, humans cannot abide the presence of wolves, and every time the two come together, war ensues. Kaala must choose between safety for herself, her friends, and their human companions and the survival of her pack—and perhaps all of wolf and humankind.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure
Winter Duty
E.E. Knight
Synopsis: The cause of freedom in Kentucky balances on a knife-edge. Major David Valentine and his fugitive battalion are all that is left of an expeditionary force shattered in its long retreat from disaster in the Appalachians. Between a raging blizzard, the remnants of the brutal and fanatic Moondaggers - bands of headhunters kidnapping entire towns to sell to the Kurians - and the need to recover wounded soldiers lost during the retreat, Valentine is in for the toughest winter of his life.
And Valentine is losing allies fast. Some of the clans in the region have declared themselves in favor of the Kurians, throwing Kentucky into civil war. But the Kurian overlords have determined that the region isn't worth the effort of another conquest. Their order: extermination. By whatever means necessary.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Adventure

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