All Books
Synopsis: JoJo and Sam have been best friends since he moved in next door when they were five years old. JoJo has always liked the ways Sam is different from other boys, but now that they’re both 14, he’s changing in ways she’s not so sure she likes. Just when she thinks she’s getting used to his new muscles and the way other girls are looking at him, she sees the bruises on his back and knows his step-father is beating him. JoJo tries to get Sam to leave, but he says he can’t desert his mom and step-sister. He makes JoJo promise not to tell anyone or he’ll be sent away to live with his grandmother in Tennessee. When Sam’s mom witnesses the abuse for herself, she finally stops drinking and stands up for all of them, but that’s when Sam’s step-father turns deadly.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Named to ten BEST OF THE YEAR lists and selected as a William C. Morris Award Winner,The Serpent King is the critically acclaimed, much-beloved story of three teens who find themselves--and each other--while on the cusp of graduating from high school with hopes of leaving their small-town behind. Perfect for fans of John Green's Turtles All the Way Down.
"Move over, John Green; Zentner is coming for you." —The New York Public Library
“Will fill the infinite space that was left in your chest after you finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” —BookRiot.com
Dill isn't the most popular kid at his rural Tennessee high school. After his father fell from grace in a public scandal that reverberated throughout their small town, Dill became a target. Fortunately, his two fellow misfits and best friends, Travis and Lydia, have his back.
But as they begin their senior year, Dill feels the coils of his future tightening around him. His only escapes are music and his secret feelings for Lydia--neither of which he is brave enough to share. Graduation feels more like an ending to Dill than a beginning. But even before then, he must cope with another ending--one that will rock his life to the core.
Debut novelist Jeff Zentner provides an unblinking and at times comic view of the hard realities of growing up in the Bible belt, and an intimate look at the struggles to find one’s true self in the wreckage of the past.
“A story about friendship, family and forgiveness, it’s as funny and witty as it is utterly heartbreaking.” —PasteMagazine.com
“A brutally honest portrayal of teen life . . . [and] a love letter to the South from a man who really understands it.” —Mashable.com
“I adored all three of these characters and the way they talked to and loved one another.”—New York Times
"Move over, John Green; Zentner is coming for you." —The New York Public Library
“Will fill the infinite space that was left in your chest after you finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” —BookRiot.com
Dill isn't the most popular kid at his rural Tennessee high school. After his father fell from grace in a public scandal that reverberated throughout their small town, Dill became a target. Fortunately, his two fellow misfits and best friends, Travis and Lydia, have his back.
But as they begin their senior year, Dill feels the coils of his future tightening around him. His only escapes are music and his secret feelings for Lydia--neither of which he is brave enough to share. Graduation feels more like an ending to Dill than a beginning. But even before then, he must cope with another ending--one that will rock his life to the core.
Debut novelist Jeff Zentner provides an unblinking and at times comic view of the hard realities of growing up in the Bible belt, and an intimate look at the struggles to find one’s true self in the wreckage of the past.
“A story about friendship, family and forgiveness, it’s as funny and witty as it is utterly heartbreaking.” —PasteMagazine.com
“A brutally honest portrayal of teen life . . . [and] a love letter to the South from a man who really understands it.” —Mashable.com
“I adored all three of these characters and the way they talked to and loved one another.”—New York Times
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: City girl, country guy. Will opposites attract—or clash?
When New-York-City girl Emily visits her cousin Janelle in Oregon, Emily wonders how she'll survive the wilderness. Janelle wonders if the wilderness will survive Emily's visit—and if she can convince her cousin to help save part of an old-growth forest.
Meanwhile, Emily also wonders if a big-city girl can get along with a county guy—named Bret. Under forest canopies and by crystal-clear waters she struggles with her growing attraction to him. But they're so different. Whoever thought she'd fall for someone like him?
When New-York-City girl Emily visits her cousin Janelle in Oregon, Emily wonders how she'll survive the wilderness. Janelle wonders if the wilderness will survive Emily's visit—and if she can convince her cousin to help save part of an old-growth forest.
Meanwhile, Emily also wonders if a big-city girl can get along with a county guy—named Bret. Under forest canopies and by crystal-clear waters she struggles with her growing attraction to him. But they're so different. Whoever thought she'd fall for someone like him?
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Truth in the past.
Truth in reality.
Truth for tomorrow.
Finally adjusting to life in small town Texas, Ashley Asher sees a glimmer of what happiness really is. Even her new relationship with the attentive Joshua Brandt shows promise of a first romance. But Ashley's fear of intimacy after years of unspeakable abuse may cause friction and distance in their relationship.
Determined to prove to her that she's healing, Dr. Matt, her beloved therapist, shows her that "life is messy." And he doesn't know how messy it is about to get. When her mother decides that Ashley belongs back in their hometown with her, Ashley is forced into another family feud that she isn't prepared for. Refusing to leave behind the new life she created in Texas, Ashley and her mother go head-to-head. But can Ashley finally find the courage and strength to battle her demons when her mother might be the biggest demon of all?
Truth in reality.
Truth for tomorrow.
Finally adjusting to life in small town Texas, Ashley Asher sees a glimmer of what happiness really is. Even her new relationship with the attentive Joshua Brandt shows promise of a first romance. But Ashley's fear of intimacy after years of unspeakable abuse may cause friction and distance in their relationship.
Determined to prove to her that she's healing, Dr. Matt, her beloved therapist, shows her that "life is messy." And he doesn't know how messy it is about to get. When her mother decides that Ashley belongs back in their hometown with her, Ashley is forced into another family feud that she isn't prepared for. Refusing to leave behind the new life she created in Texas, Ashley and her mother go head-to-head. But can Ashley finally find the courage and strength to battle her demons when her mother might be the biggest demon of all?
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: "The 5th Wave" meets "The Host" in an epic new saga, SEEK.
“An intriguing read that any pre-teen or teen will enjoy!”—LitPick
Out of seven billion people, there’s only one thing we all have in common.
We search for what eludes us.
We evade what causes us sorrow.
We extract what doesn’t suit our needs.
And we kill to get what we want.
WE SEEK.
In the time it takes you to read this, two lives will be revoked and one spared. Some call it divine intervention, others say natural selection decides, but no one really knows for sure.
EXCEPT ME.
My name is Keira, and this is how I saved you.
Keira Donavan joins a secret government agency called SEEK to get her sister, Lindy, an illegal operation (a genetically created spinal cord transplant). The surgery promises to repair Lindy’s legs after a car accident, which Keira feels responsible for, leaves her paralyzed.
At SEEK, Keira is a trained huntress who tracks and kills parasitic shadows in the Daniel Boone National Forest. She's told the shadows—the "Khayal"—are evil parasites which prey on humans. But things get weird after she finds herself injured and alone in the woods. Once rescued, everything changes including her eye-color and her job. SEEK gives her a human target—a handsome nineteen-year-old millionaire—Jonathan Steed. Now she has two choices if she's going to succeed in getting Lindy that operation, seduce Jonathan and convince him to join SEEK...or kill him.
But nothing goes according to plan when she finds herself staring into eyes the same radioactive green as hers. Jonathan swears SEEK's been lying to her, but it isn’t until Keira comes face-to-face with a true Khayal that her world crashes down—one lie at a time—until she's forced to see the truth. Khayal are good and SEEK wants her dead. But running isn’t that simple. SEEK has her sister and her family.
Again Keira must choose, save her sister and her family or save the Khayal. And falling in love with Jonathan isn't helping.
LitPick Top Choice Book Review Award
**Mild Language
“An intriguing read that any pre-teen or teen will enjoy!”—LitPick
Out of seven billion people, there’s only one thing we all have in common.
We search for what eludes us.
We evade what causes us sorrow.
We extract what doesn’t suit our needs.
And we kill to get what we want.
WE SEEK.
In the time it takes you to read this, two lives will be revoked and one spared. Some call it divine intervention, others say natural selection decides, but no one really knows for sure.
EXCEPT ME.
My name is Keira, and this is how I saved you.
Keira Donavan joins a secret government agency called SEEK to get her sister, Lindy, an illegal operation (a genetically created spinal cord transplant). The surgery promises to repair Lindy’s legs after a car accident, which Keira feels responsible for, leaves her paralyzed.
At SEEK, Keira is a trained huntress who tracks and kills parasitic shadows in the Daniel Boone National Forest. She's told the shadows—the "Khayal"—are evil parasites which prey on humans. But things get weird after she finds herself injured and alone in the woods. Once rescued, everything changes including her eye-color and her job. SEEK gives her a human target—a handsome nineteen-year-old millionaire—Jonathan Steed. Now she has two choices if she's going to succeed in getting Lindy that operation, seduce Jonathan and convince him to join SEEK...or kill him.
But nothing goes according to plan when she finds herself staring into eyes the same radioactive green as hers. Jonathan swears SEEK's been lying to her, but it isn’t until Keira comes face-to-face with a true Khayal that her world crashes down—one lie at a time—until she's forced to see the truth. Khayal are good and SEEK wants her dead. But running isn’t that simple. SEEK has her sister and her family.
Again Keira must choose, save her sister and her family or save the Khayal. And falling in love with Jonathan isn't helping.
LitPick Top Choice Book Review Award
**Mild Language
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Lilly Thornton is a fourteen-year-old girl who lives on an acreage just outside Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. She owns four rescued cats and has helped find homes for many more. Her mother belongs to a dragon boat race team and some of the team members have decided to go camping around the island with their families.
Lilly is considered too young to be left at home alone. Since one of Lilly's cats is diabetic and needs an insulin shot twice a day she has to bring her along. The other three have never been left alone before so Lilly convinces her parents that they have to come, too. It sounds like a simple solution until they begin to drive away from their house and the cats start howling.
While camping the cats try to find ways to get out. They hover at the screen door waiting for it to open. One checks every open door searching for the magic way outside and spends the night pawing at the metal window blinds so she can look out. Are they going to ruin the camping trip or is boredom? The first day there is no one Lilly’s age and by the afternoon she wants to go home. And then she meets Jesse, the fifteen-year-old Metis son of another team member.
Lilly is considered too young to be left at home alone. Since one of Lilly's cats is diabetic and needs an insulin shot twice a day she has to bring her along. The other three have never been left alone before so Lilly convinces her parents that they have to come, too. It sounds like a simple solution until they begin to drive away from their house and the cats start howling.
While camping the cats try to find ways to get out. They hover at the screen door waiting for it to open. One checks every open door searching for the magic way outside and spends the night pawing at the metal window blinds so she can look out. Are they going to ruin the camping trip or is boredom? The first day there is no one Lilly’s age and by the afternoon she wants to go home. And then she meets Jesse, the fifteen-year-old Metis son of another team member.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis:
Lotus Saga is a quest fantasy in which the young scribe, Rook, leaves his home village and goes on a journey with the Lotus Sword to find the Water of Life. After the death of his mentor, Rook seeks this mythical substance in order to defeat Amaranth, a thief of time. In the process Rook travels through murderous forests, endless deserts, and bends air in order to descend an unscalable cliff.He must find out who his real allies are, and uncover the motivations of a being who lives within him.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Alyssha promised her father she wouldn't return to Bandor, and for six years she has kept that promise. But the hit-and-run victim she found dying on a Granville street was a man she met in that other world, and his family won't know what happened to him unless she goes back to tell them. She really has no choice, has she?
And the other dead man, the body lying in a willow grove near the road to Bandor Gan... Finding him there was just a terrible coincidence, wasn't it?
Alyssha fervently hopes so. Yes, six years ago Bandor had troubles – cruel and repressive laws, workers exploited in the city's woolen mills and the northern mines. Growing pains of the budding industrial revolution. Some people were angry, ready to fight. But these problems seem smaller and easier to solve, somehow, than the problems she's left behind. Bandor is cleaner, kinder, more peaceful, more right, than the frantic world she inherited in 21st Century America.
Anyway, the problems aren't hers to solve. There's so much country here that these troubles don't touch. She'll go to the nomadic village where her friends are, where she was happy all those years ago. She'll study with the old kura, learning to be a teacher, a healer. Her life will mean more, here among these cheerful, pleasant people, than it would mean in Granville. She'll find her home here, and she'll be content.
And, as in a fairy tale, there'll be a happy ending. She and Kardl loved each other back then, when they were children. Now they're grown up, and the daydreams that sustained her in Granville will come true at last. Kardl will be here, waiting for her, as she's waited all these years for him…
Won't he?
And the other dead man, the body lying in a willow grove near the road to Bandor Gan... Finding him there was just a terrible coincidence, wasn't it?
Alyssha fervently hopes so. Yes, six years ago Bandor had troubles – cruel and repressive laws, workers exploited in the city's woolen mills and the northern mines. Growing pains of the budding industrial revolution. Some people were angry, ready to fight. But these problems seem smaller and easier to solve, somehow, than the problems she's left behind. Bandor is cleaner, kinder, more peaceful, more right, than the frantic world she inherited in 21st Century America.
Anyway, the problems aren't hers to solve. There's so much country here that these troubles don't touch. She'll go to the nomadic village where her friends are, where she was happy all those years ago. She'll study with the old kura, learning to be a teacher, a healer. Her life will mean more, here among these cheerful, pleasant people, than it would mean in Granville. She'll find her home here, and she'll be content.
And, as in a fairy tale, there'll be a happy ending. She and Kardl loved each other back then, when they were children. Now they're grown up, and the daydreams that sustained her in Granville will come true at last. Kardl will be here, waiting for her, as she's waited all these years for him…
Won't he?
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Selina, a beautiful, British-born Pakistani young woman recently lost her father, and finds herself struggling to cope with life, in particular with some aspects of her studies. Matters go from bad to worse, when a trusted family friend from the mosque offers to tutor her, and rapes her instead. With the threat of dishonour to her family at her back, Selina goes to extreme lengths to avoid scandal, and prevent shame being brought to her widowed mother’s door. It will take all the strength and courage Selina can muster when her life travels down a dangerous path, from which there may be no return…
Publication Date:
Age Level: Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: If you could control minds...would you?
It's hard enough for Dawn hiding that she's a teen psychic from her new classmates and new step-family, but it gets even tougher when she learns that ESP spells D-A-N-G-E-R. When Dawn gets involved with a fortuneteller mentor and two girls who share her mysterious talents, she finally belongs after years of being a misfit.
After she learns her new friends may be tied to freak "accidents" in town, Dawn has an important choice to make—continue developing the talent that makes her special or challenge the only people who have ever accepted her.
Aimed at young adult readers and the young at heart. Download this magical and intriguing story that catapults to a thrilling conclusion.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: An unhackable global crime syndicate. An assassination order on a diplomat and his family. A government powerless to help.
The world is a small place when you're being hunted.
Adam and Emma are used to being the youngest agents in the Arcanum Trivindico. Remarkable gadgets, vehicles, and advanced training continue to hone their talents as undercover operatives. A pair of new classmates and an unsanctioned assignment bring questioned loyalties and sparks of romance. As they battle their way across a jungle on an unfamiliar continent, each of them will be pushed to the limit to survive… and complete the mission.
The Presidium Files (Book 1) available now. Look for the final episode (Book 3) in the trilogy coming late 2018.
The world is a small place when you're being hunted.
Adam and Emma are used to being the youngest agents in the Arcanum Trivindico. Remarkable gadgets, vehicles, and advanced training continue to hone their talents as undercover operatives. A pair of new classmates and an unsanctioned assignment bring questioned loyalties and sparks of romance. As they battle their way across a jungle on an unfamiliar continent, each of them will be pushed to the limit to survive… and complete the mission.
The Presidium Files (Book 1) available now. Look for the final episode (Book 3) in the trilogy coming late 2018.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Carla and Sasha are the daughters of an Olympic Champion and because of that they are expected by their family to compete in running, swimming and athletics and win. Until Sasha goes for a run on her own and disappears. No one knows what happened to her, or why she disappeared.
Carla is left to compete on her own, until she is approached by a boy she doesn’t like, who warns her to stop competing, as her life might be in danger. Carla thinks it a cruel joke… but is it?
Carla is left to compete on her own, until she is approached by a boy she doesn’t like, who warns her to stop competing, as her life might be in danger. Carla thinks it a cruel joke… but is it?
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: An Anthony Provati Literary Thriller
This time, Anthony’s libido threatens his life. Anthony Provati flirts with Russian mob boss, Gorgon Malakhov’s mistress. The Russian deals in death. ISIL, the Islamic State in the Levant, wants the product. Russian Intelligence supplies the means, and an art theft funds the scheme.
ISIL’s targets are chilling. The chase across the Mediterranean is on. Can Anthony thwart ISIL? Will he survive?
This time, Anthony’s libido threatens his life. Anthony Provati flirts with Russian mob boss, Gorgon Malakhov’s mistress. The Russian deals in death. ISIL, the Islamic State in the Levant, wants the product. Russian Intelligence supplies the means, and an art theft funds the scheme.
ISIL’s targets are chilling. The chase across the Mediterranean is on. Can Anthony thwart ISIL? Will he survive?
Publication Date:
Age Level: Mature Young Adult
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Here's a little secret: Sometimes the dragon saves the princess from the princes...
In the kingdom of Marshwood, everybody lives happily ever after - orphans, stepmothers, everybody. King Wesick and Queen Mattea are wise and beloved rulers, even if the queen is a terrible cook. The adventurous Prince Nolan is such a good stepbrother that he doesn't mind Princess Littagale inheriting the kingdom. As for Littagale, all she wants is to build things and have adventures of her own. But, alas, it's time for her to marry.
That's when the horrible dragon, Tor the Intolerant, flies down from Mount Shadow, kidnaps the princess, and flies her to his dark lair!
"Oh, no! The horror! Who will save her?" cry the townspeople.
With great fanfare and the cologne of testosterone, princes arrive in Marshwood and vow to rescue the princess - in exchange for the honor of becoming her husband. The townspeople rejoice, place bets, and everyone waits to see who will defeat Tor and save Princess Littagale.
But what secret is Queen Mattea hiding? And can Prince Nolan and his bashful friend Casper solve the biggest question of them all: Why does Tor have a spa in his lair?
Swoop in and get a copy of this "imaginative comedic treasure readers will fall in laugh with!"
In the kingdom of Marshwood, everybody lives happily ever after - orphans, stepmothers, everybody. King Wesick and Queen Mattea are wise and beloved rulers, even if the queen is a terrible cook. The adventurous Prince Nolan is such a good stepbrother that he doesn't mind Princess Littagale inheriting the kingdom. As for Littagale, all she wants is to build things and have adventures of her own. But, alas, it's time for her to marry.
That's when the horrible dragon, Tor the Intolerant, flies down from Mount Shadow, kidnaps the princess, and flies her to his dark lair!
"Oh, no! The horror! Who will save her?" cry the townspeople.
With great fanfare and the cologne of testosterone, princes arrive in Marshwood and vow to rescue the princess - in exchange for the honor of becoming her husband. The townspeople rejoice, place bets, and everyone waits to see who will defeat Tor and save Princess Littagale.
But what secret is Queen Mattea hiding? And can Prince Nolan and his bashful friend Casper solve the biggest question of them all: Why does Tor have a spa in his lair?
Swoop in and get a copy of this "imaginative comedic treasure readers will fall in laugh with!"
Publication Date:
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Cephas Paulson was born to solve puzzles that nobody else can solve, a talent the U.S. government has exploited with deadly results. Living in 2202 A.D., his is a world dominated by apathy and hedonism where religion is banned and the few remaining Christians hide in the shadows. Known worldwide as “The Cult Hunter”, Cephas is largely responsible for putting them there. Now living a quiet life as a Religious History professor, Cephas is reluctantly called out of retirement when the government sends him on a high stakes mission designed to crush Christianity once and for all.
As the puzzles begin to unravel, Cephas struggles to find the one answer that has always eluded him, the solution to his own desire to explore faith rather than destroy it. To do so, he finds himself walking a dangerous line between two worlds and two beautiful women. One represents the temptations of the outwardly utopian world of man while the other the Godly world that he’s secretly trying to understand. Unfortunately, neither these worlds nor these women are truly what they appear to be, leaving Cephas to wonder if “The Cult Hunter” has become the hunted. Luckily, like the Apostle Paul, Cephas’ learns that God often chooses His champions from the least likely among us and even “The Cult Hunter” has a place in His plan.
As the puzzles begin to unravel, Cephas struggles to find the one answer that has always eluded him, the solution to his own desire to explore faith rather than destroy it. To do so, he finds himself walking a dangerous line between two worlds and two beautiful women. One represents the temptations of the outwardly utopian world of man while the other the Godly world that he’s secretly trying to understand. Unfortunately, neither these worlds nor these women are truly what they appear to be, leaving Cephas to wonder if “The Cult Hunter” has become the hunted. Luckily, like the Apostle Paul, Cephas’ learns that God often chooses His champions from the least likely among us and even “The Cult Hunter” has a place in His plan.
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Short-listed for the 2017 Rossetti Award. "Jean Gill brings her magical storytelling skills to teens, to weave compelling and thought-provoking stories that will linger on in their minds well after the last page is read." Kristin Gleeson, author and children's librarian
Can dreams take over your life? Jamie's mother is hooked on fortune-tellers, and running the family into debt. To cure her, Jamie decides to investigate the psychic world, and to show that it is a rip-off, with the help of her best friend, Ryan.
Their research causes havoc in school and they are drawn deeper into the very world they are investigating. Jamie's dreams of walking a medieval battlefield are so vivid that she feels compelled to resolve a historical mystery that starts at Kidwelly Castle in South Wales, where Princess Gwenllian once lived.
Caught up in what seem to be supernatural events, Jamie doesn't know what to believe and is sleepwalking into danger. Will friendship be strong enough to bring her back into the real world?
Can dreams take over your life? Jamie's mother is hooked on fortune-tellers, and running the family into debt. To cure her, Jamie decides to investigate the psychic world, and to show that it is a rip-off, with the help of her best friend, Ryan.
Their research causes havoc in school and they are drawn deeper into the very world they are investigating. Jamie's dreams of walking a medieval battlefield are so vivid that she feels compelled to resolve a historical mystery that starts at Kidwelly Castle in South Wales, where Princess Gwenllian once lived.
Caught up in what seem to be supernatural events, Jamie doesn't know what to believe and is sleepwalking into danger. Will friendship be strong enough to bring her back into the real world?
Publication Date:
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fiction