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Pulling up Stakes and Other Piercing Stories
Synopsis: Many things can pierce – sharpened stakes, fencing swords, cat's claws, short stories, ideas, earrings, and love, to name just a few. This collection of eleven penetrating stories, gathered from my contributions to YA anthologies, contains some of my favorite pieces, including a slapstick account of a young man sent on a mortifying mission by the girl he loves, a tale about the mysteries of faith and belief, and a comedy of errors where a Transylvanian immigrant arouses suspicion in the darkness of the Alaskan winter. I've had the pleasure of writing short stories for the best anthologists in the YA world. Now, I have the pleasure of sharing those stories with my readers in one sharp collection.

About the author:
David Lubar attributes his passion for short stories to his short attention span and his lack of typing skills. He has written 27 books for teens and young readers. He also worked as a video-game programmer and designer, back in the old days when eight pixels was good enough for everyone. His books include Hidden Talents, Punished, Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie, Dunk, My Rotten Life (Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie book #1), and the Weenies story collections, which have sold more than two million copies.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fiction
Slipping Reality
Emily Beaver
Synopsis: Slipping Reality by Emily Beaver
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Skater Boy (First Kiss Club)
Synopsis: EDITORIAL REVIEWS

"Mancusi has scored a hit. Dawn is likeable, and any teen girl--wealthy or not--should identify with her typical problems. From boys to friends to parents, the author covers it all. She even manages to include one or two deeper messages in the form of "straight edge" teens and a "perfect" wealthy boy who turns out to be a real jerk. "
-- Alexandra Kay, RT Book Reviews

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

Dawn Miller is sick of being good. Her parents have scheduled her to within an inch of her life and her popular friends can only think of hooking up and shopping. She's ready for a serious boyfriend, and it's definitely not the obnoxious rich boy everyone wants her to date.

Then she meets Starr, the headmaster's rebellious daughter who refuses to play by the rules. The differences between them are night and day but Dawn is fascinated. Starr introduces her to a world she didn't even know existed: hip indy record stores, all night raves, and cute skateboarders who hang out underneath a parking deck downtown.

Skateboarders like the gorgeous Sean, who's sweet, smart, and curiously serious --everything Dawn's always wanted in a boyfriend. Soon she finds herself head over heels and doing the unthinkable, lying to her parents and friends. Deep down she knows her parents will never approve of this boy from the wrong side of town...and her secret life is finally catching up to her. Will Dawn be forced to choose between the girl she was and the girl she is meant to be? And if she chooses, will she lose her skater boy forever?

Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Zaftan Entrepreneurs: Book 1 of the Zaftan Trilogy
Synopsis: Tired of reading scifi and fantasy stories that take themselves too seriously? Zaftan Entrepreneurs is a unique
First Contact story; it is part adventure and part corporate and political satire spiced with comic relief.
Here, you'll find nasty, snarly aliens, fantasy creatures, humans, romance, magic, and--just like the
real world--incompetent politicians and feuding bureaucracies. What more could a fantasy/scifi reader ask for?
Aliens, fantasy creatures and humans in one story? They don't mix very well. Neither do untrustworthy aliens and
deceitful government bureaucrats.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Fear of Falling
Hannah R. Goodman
Synopsis: With two ex-boyfriends haunting her and a newly recovered alcoholic sister, seventeen-year-old Maddie Hickman has a lot to deal with. She begins her junior year steeped in self-pity and grief until she receives an anonymous letter. “Anonymous”, a student at Maddie’s school, is a guy who confesses to liking another guy. He’s terrified of coming out and being alienated by parents, peers, as well as the boy he likes– a jock with everything to lose if he’s outed to their homophobic high school. “Anonymous” begs Maddie to use her power as editor of the school newspaper to help him. The letter forces Maddie to step out of her grief and into the real world, where she soon finds herself imploring the school’s administration to publish an article protesting homophobia. When they refuse, she decides she has to go outside the lines to help Anonymous and other gay students. Even with the help of friends, Maddie must choose how far she is willing to go, especially when her safety and her own reputation are in jeopardy.
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
The Boy Who Delivered the Wind
Synopsis: Little Sammy needs ten thousand dollars, and fast, if he is to save his home from foreclosure and his family from catastrophe. Russ befriends the lonely boy, and soon the two embark on a series of adventures that reveal the sorry underbelly of humanity and the glorious mysteries of nature.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
The Cage (The Birthright Series)
Synopsis: Four students – thrown together in a high school summer class. Tyrell tells of a dream he’s been having, a girl needs help. Sam realizes she’s getting the same information, from her own sketches! Where is this information coming from? What is the Blue Group to do about it? Join Ty, Tiff, Sammy and Lando as they navigate the complicated world of high school friendship, romance and sex trafficking!
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Delta Legend
Kelan O'Connell
Synopsis: When 16-year-old Oakland teenager, Calvin Pierce, makes a bad decision and winds up getting arrested, his mother is quick to take action. Determined not to lose a second son to the drug and gang violence of the inner city, she sends Calvin to spend the summer working for his great uncle in the heart of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Stuck in the predominately white region of agriculture and recreational boating, Calvin’s a fish out of water with a chip on his shoulder. But when severed body parts are discovered floating in a slough, his summer of proving himself takes on new meaning.

Something deadly is lurking in the deep murky waterways of the Delta. Now the daunting task of containing the living incarnation of a mythical creature falls to Calvin and his ragtag posse of oddball characters.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Gypsy Knights (The Gypsy Knights Saga)
Synopsis: Fourteen-year-old Durriken Brishen has lost his parents, his grandfather, and though he doesn't know it, his Gypsy culture's dangerous gift.

Taken in and raised on the rails by the first woman to pilot a freight train, Durriken has one remaining connection to his Romani roots: a small wooden box that hangs from the hammer loop of his overalls.

The last gift he received from his grandfather, the box contains the world's first chess set. But a piece is missing: the Red Queen. According to Durriken’s family lore, the complete set awakens the power of Tărie, a mercurial gift that confers unique abilities on each new Master.

When a suspicious fire erupts in the Chicago rail yard, Durriken's escape produces an uneasy alliance, though not without its silver lining. Dilia is a few inches taller, several degrees cleverer, and oh yes – very pretty. While Durriken is uneasy allying with a girl whose parents were convicted of sedition, there's no doubt she is a powerful partner. And while it's not immediately clear to either, her own Guatemalan culture and family history are deeply entwined with the ancient Romani mystery.

Jumping box cars, escaping riverboats, deciphering clues, crossing swords with the brilliant madman Radu Pinch – with great American cities as its backdrop – Gypsy Knights is the page-turning saga of Durriken Brishen and his quest to rediscover his past.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fiction
Don't Give Up, Said Mom
Christina Leigh Pritchard
Synopsis: Amazon Best Sellers Rank: voted #1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Death & Grief



Christina Black squirmed. Sweat dripped down her face and it wasn’t from the South Florida sunshine. Her mother's hair was gone. There were five or six bottles of pain killers lined up on the kitchen counter.

"Christina, where are you?" Mrs. Black called. "I want you to sit and read to me honey."

Christina's green eyes watered and she pushed back her black bangs. They stuck up slightly from all the sweat. "I'll be right in," she shouted. Her voice cracked a little. She grabbed her mother's pain pills and placed them on a tray with some toast. "Okay mom, I'm ready," Christina said.

She peered around the door to see her mother's head wrapped in a handkerchief. Her mom was so skinny and frail. A big lump clogged Christina's throat. There was saliva stuck in the corners of her mother’s mouth making her look half alive. Slowly Mrs.Black's eyes fluttered closed.

Christina put the tray down on the end table and crept out the front door. She raced towards her favorite spot. It was at the end of the street on a private boating dock. She collapsed onto the dock and burst into tears. Her mom couldn't have cancer. She was only thirteen. What would she do without her mother?
Publication Date:
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fiction
The Impossible Rescue (The Castle Sisters #1)
Synopsis: Faith and Summer Castle are the ultimate crime fighting duo.
And they’re not even old enough to drive.
Faith has the super smarts and Summer brings the super brawn.

When their Uncle gets kidnapped by the evil Agent Dark the Castle Sisters find themselves facing their greatest challenge yet.

The forces of darkness are gathering and the battle between good and evil has reached a pivotal turning point. Agent Dark has stolen a secret formula that could give him the ultimate control. With the sisters’ Uncle out of the way, no one stands between Agent Dark and the end of everything.

Not only does the fate of the world now hang in the balance, but the sisters must pull off what will almost certainly be an impossible rescue.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fiction
Retro Geeks: A Short on Time Book for Teens
Synopsis: Retro Geeks is a Short on Time Books for Teens, fast-paced and fun novels for readers on the go.

Remember when it wasn't cool to be a geek? That's so yesterday! Retro Geeks, chronicles the (mis)adventures of two
self-proclaimed geek girls, Molly and Ally, as they attempt to land super-hot
dates for their senior prom. The 80s obsessed BFFs attempt a variety of date-finding
schemes, including spying on the popular girls for the 411 on fitting in, in
their quest for top-tier prom dates.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Knee Deep
Jolene Perry
Synopsis: Shawn is the guy Ronnie Bird promised her life to at the age of fourteen. He's her soul mate. He's more uptight every day, but it's not his fault. His family life is stressful, and she's adding to it. She just needs to be more understanding, and he'll start to be the boy she fell in love with. She won’t give up on someone she’s loved for so long.

Luke is her best friend, and the guy she hangs with to watch girlie movies in her large blanketopias. He's the guy she can confide in before she even goes to her girlfriends, and the guy who she's playing opposite in Romeo and Juliet. Now her chest flutters every time he gets too close. This is new. Is Ronnie falling for him? Or is Juliet? The lines are getting blurry, but leaving one guy for another is not something that a girl like Ronnie does.

Shawn’s outbursts are starting to give her bruises, and Luke’s heart breaks as Ronnie remains torn. While her thoughts and feelings swirl around the lines between friendship and forever, she’s about to lose them both.
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
McKinley's Jewel
Marissa St. James
Synopsis: Bonnie-Jean Russell, personal assistant to the current laird of McKinley clan, can't find her boss. When she discovers his likeness in an ancestor's portrait she has to find a way to bring him back to the present. Standing in her way is the tale of a missing pouch of gemstones...a treasure everyone else wants.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
BRUXA The Secret Within
Synopsis: Gabriella is no ordinary seventeen-year-old girl. She is the last to carry her mother’s rare bloodline of Bruxa, an ancient secret order of witches. Settling into her late father’s estate, she is welcomed by a phantom presence that resurrects within her, a secret curse her father took to his grave ten years ago.
Gabriella finally finds a sense of belonging and gains the affections of high school’s most desired boy, Joey Davale. Her newly found life becomes derailed when she learns her whole existence has been a lie, and the boy she’s falling for, is designed to destroy the very thing growing inside of her. Forced to conceal this truth, Gabriella embarks on a secret life that will drive her into the arms of Alvero, the embodiment of her darkest fear.
Her newly found heritage traps her in a dangerous web of lies between two worlds and two loves. Her life will become more dangerous than she ever imagined. As the age-old battle between witches and vampires collide, will she fall prey to her heart or welcome the predator inside?

The Intense and stylized, A.F.Costa’s debut is an alluring live wire full of intrigue and forbidden love. Bruxa: the secret within, powerful vision of witches and vampires will challenge your understanding and leave you craving more.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Calixte: A Novel
Rosella Eleanor LaFevre
Synopsis: Will their love survive her insecurities?

A senior in high school, Calixte has spent a lifetime feeling lonely. One Friday night, she throws a party with the help of her uber-popular classmate Glory and Glory's sexy brother Howard. When Howard flirts with her, Calixte promises herself that she's not going to fall for this hottie. They'll hook up and that'll be it. But then he asks her to be his girlfriend. Things go well for the two at first but then it seems like her fears are getting the best of her.

This young adult novel is a deliciously exciting romance that'll make your heart race.
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction

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