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Firespell
Chloe Neill
Synopsis: New Girl.
New School.
Old Evil.

From the author of the Chicagoland Vampires novels.

A new series about a boarding school filled with something worse than homework.

Lily's parents have sent her to a fancy boarding school in Chicago filled with the ultra-rich. If that wasn't bad enough, she's hearing and seeing bizarre things on St. Sophie's creepy campus. Her roommate, Scout, keeps her sane, but keeps disappearing at night. When one day Lily finds Scout running from real-life monsters, she learns the hard way that Scout is involved in a splinter group of rebel teens.

They protect Chicago from demons, vamps, and dark magic users. It's too bad Lily doesn't have powers of her own to help. At least, none that she's discovered yet...
Publication Date: 01/05/10
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Bushfire Rescue
Justin D'Ath
Synopsis: After trying to save a prize bull from being stolen by rustlers, Sam Fox finds himself trapped in the moutains as a bushfire rages and he has to rely on Chainsaw, a rodeo bull, to find his way out.
Publication Date: 01/01/10
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Inspector Jacques
Sally Odgers, Darrel Odgers
Synopsis: Unimpressed by the pretentious Inspector Jacques, a fellow canine detective who considers himself Jack's superior, Jack Russell initially steers clear of Jacques' investigations into human crimes but is forced to solve the mystery when Jacques and his human are accused of an art theft. Original.
Publication Date: 01/01/10
Age Level: 8 - 12
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Mia the Magnificent
Eileen Boggess
Synopsis: A contemporary Washington mystery with a high tech, China twist… A brilliantly-conceived spy novel introducing seven engaging characters whose lives are transformed by crisis.It begins as a drinking club in an academic backwater on the Stanford University campus of the late 1970s. A post-Nixon/post-Mao generation of China scholars plots to make a better world. Suddenly, the U.S. recognizes the People’s Republic of China. Intense demand arises for the unique skills The Mandarin Club members possess.Now, yesterday’s dreamers are today’s policy-makers and pundits, patriots and spies. Their intimately intertwined past thrusts them together into an international crisis straight from tomorrow’s headlines, as America, China, and Taiwan stumble toward war.Told sequentially from the perspective of each of the Stanford originals, the fast-paced tale takes us behind the scenes of rogue intelligence operations and high tech smuggling, from Washington and Beijing to the wild coastal towns of California.
Publication Date: 01/01/10
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Hearts At Stake
Alyxandra Harvey
Synopsis:

On Solange's sixteenth birthday, she is going to wake up dead. As if that's not bad enough, she also has to outwit her seven overprotective older brothers, avoid the politics involved with being the only daughter born to an ancient vampire dynasty, and elude Kieran Black-agent of an anti-vampire league who is searching for his father's killer and is intent on staking Solange and her entire family.

Luckily she has her own secret weapon-her human best friend Lucy-who is willing to defend Solange's right to a normal life, whether she's being smothered by her well-intentioned brothers or abducted by a power-hungry queen. Two unlikely alliances are formed in a race to save Solange's eternal life-Lucy and Solange's brother Nicholas, and Solange and Kieran Black-in a dual romance that is guaranteed to jump start any romance-lover's heart.

Even fans of the genre who've seen it all will find a fresh read with kick-butt characters and family dynamics that ring true for all brothers and sisters-vampire or otherwise.

Publication Date: 01/01/10
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Rich Again
Anna Maxted
Synopsis:

Walk-in closet full of designer everything? Check. Private Caribbean island? Check. Connection to the aristocracy? Working on it. Cunning, malicious stalker? Double check.

Welcome to the world of the Kents, a charismatic, ambitious, and fabulously wealthy English family with two sisters – one as strong and sparkling as the other is delicate and wounded – who must somehow put their differences aside to keep an unknown enemy from bringing them down. Wild and beautiful Emily Kent has had the world laid at her feet by her ruthless mother and billionaire father – but it's not enough. Gifted with her mother's to-die-for looks, her father's hard-scrabble business sense, and both of her parents' lust for control, Emily is determined to make her own luck by seducing the only man she's ever wanted, a man who can make her dreams of attaining the heights of old-money English society come true. By contrast, Emily's step-sister, Claudia, is a fragile soul―her mother died when she was five, leaving her to the unkind reign of step-mother Innocence. In an uncharacteristic burst of rebellion, Claudia trades her gilded lifestyle for an ordinary flat and daytime job where she meets the man of her dreams… or so she imagines.

But, Emily and Claudia are caught up in a desperate situation that may be beyond their control. As for their father, disgraced tycoon Jack Kent, and his wife Innocence, they are too obsessed with the fight for supremacy over their vast empire to see that a mighty and sinister opponent is plotting to ruin them all.

Publication Date: 12/22/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
The Ever Breath
Julianna Baggott
Synopsis: Follow the secret passageway . . . and discover the magic!

In a world where locust fairies flutter and firebreathers burst from snowbanks, two children are having the adventure of their lives. Truman and his twin sister, Camille, have just met their grandmother . . . and she’s a little strange. She whispers a tale about something called the Ever Breath, an amber orb that maintains the balance between our world and a dreamy one of imagination—and evil.

Soon Truman and Camille find themselves in the Breath World, a magical place where ogres clash and a mouse holds the key to a mystery. Some creatures want to help them—and some want them D-E-A-D. That’s because the Ever Breath has been stolen, and an epic battle is raging to bring it safely back. Can the twins save not only one world—but two?
Publication Date: 12/22/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Far From Gringo Land
Edward Myers
Synopsis:

Rick Dresner is spending the summer with the Romero family, who live in a barrio in the hills of Santo Domingo, Mexico. He'll help them build a house on their land, and in return, they'll provide room and board and help Rick improve his Spanish. But the construction project turns out to be a lot tougher than Rick had imagined. Language and cultural differences lead to awkwardness and misunderstanding, especially when he falls for a rich American girl from a very different part of town. In this new twist on the classic fish-out-of-water story, it's a middle-class white boy who's out of his element and must change and grow to adapt to his surroundings.

Publication Date: 12/14/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
The Pillow Book of Lotus Lowenstein
Synopsis: An adorable, completely original YA voice.

Lotus Lowenstein's life is merde. She dreams of moving to Paris and becoming an existentialist. Yet here she is trapped in Park Slope, Brooklyn, with a New-Agey mom, an out-of-work dad, and a chess champion brother who dreams of being a rock star. Merci à Dieu for Lotus’s best friend, Joni, who loves French culture enough to cofound their high school’s first French Club with Lotus. At the first meeting, the cutest boy in the world walks in. His name is Sean, and he too loves French culture and worships Jean-Paul Sartre.

At first, Lotus thinks Sean is the best thing to happen to her in years. He’s smart, cultured, and adorable. Unfortunately, though, Joni feels the same way. And having an existentialist view of love, Sean sees nothing wrong with enjoying both girls’ affections. Things come to a head when all three depart for Montreal with their teacher, Ms. G, on the French Club’s first official field trip. Will Sean choose Joni over Lotus? And will Lotus and Joni’s friendship ever recover?
Publication Date: 12/08/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
I So Don't Do Spooky
Barrie Summy
Synopsis: Someone’s out to get Sherry’s stepmom. . . .Can she save her before it’s too late?

Did you know that the main campus of the Academy of Spirits is at a Dairy Queen in Phoenix? Me either. Until now. Some weird stuff has been happening to my stepmother, Paula, and the Academy has asked me, Sherry Holmes Baldwin, to get to the bottom of it. They think someone’s trying to hurt her.

I really don’t want to get involved—my life is way too busy. Josh and I are celebrating two blissful months of togetherness. And my best friend, Junie, is finally showing a teeny bit of interest in clothes and makeup after years of brainiac behavior. But being that my mom is a ghost and all, me, my brother, and my dad rely on Paula a lot. So it’s not like I can just ignore what’s going on. Especially since my mom is competing at the Ghostlympics. If she comes in first place, she earns five minutes of Real Time.

And that means I’ve got to get involved in a creepy, freaky mystery.

But . . . I so don’t do spooky.
Publication Date: 12/08/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Spells of the City
Martin H. Greenberg, Jean Rabe
Synopsis: Venture into Spells of the City, where a troll may be your toll collector on the George Washington Bridge…Harry the Book will be happy to place your bets in a spellbinding alternative New York…a gargoyle finds himself left to a lonely rooftop existence when he’s forced to live by his creator’s rules…and leprechauns must become bank robbers to keep up with the demand for their gold.
Publication Date: 12/01/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Love in Translation
Wendy Nelson Tokunaga
Synopsis:

Stuck. That's how 33-year-old aspiring singer Celeste Duncan feels, with her deadbeat boyfriend and static career. But then Celeste receives a puzzling phone call and a box full of mysterious family heirlooms which just might be the first real clue to the identity of the father she never knew. Impulsively, Celeste flies to Japan to search for a long-lost relative who could be able to explain. She stumbles head first into a weird, wonderful world where nothing is quite as it seems―a land with an inexplicable fascination with foreigners, karaoke boxes, and unbearably perky TV stars.

With little knowledge of Japanese, Celeste finds a friend in her English-speaking homestay brother, Takuya, and comes to depend on him for all variety of translation, travel and investigatory needs. As they cross the country following a trail after Celeste's family, she discovers she's developing "more-than-sisterly" feelings for him. But with a nosy homestay mom scheming to reunite Takuya with his old girlfriend, and her search growing dimmer, Celeste begins to wonder whether she's made a terrible mistake by coming to Japan. Can Celeste find her true self in this strange land, and discover that love can transcend culture?

Publication Date: 11/24/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Snow Queen
Emma Harrison
Synopsis:

Chamberlain Ski Resort and Spa

Welcome to the 10th Annual Snow Queen competition!

I can't believe I got roped into this.

Snow Princesses must attend all pageant rehearsals, with appropriate outfits.

Well, no matter what it takes, I'm going to wipe that smirk off Layla Chamberlain's face.

Our rehearsal space can be booked to practice your talent.

Um, does "looking dumb in a dress" count as a talent?

See Grayson Chamberlain, the assistant director, with any questions.

If you insist! First question: How can someone so sweet (and hot!) be a Chamberlain?

Good luck! One of you will soon be our new Snow Queen!

Oh joy.

Unless Grayson comes with the tiara . . .

Publication Date: 11/24/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Best Bet
Laura Pedersen
Synopsis: Since Hallie's father died and left behind ten children, money at the Palmer household is tighter than ever. And just when Hallie thought she was graduating from college, it turns out she's four credits short. A professor needs one more student for a project that will take her around the world, only longtime boyfriend Craig has another proposition for Hallie.

Thus begins Hallie's great odyssey, for the first time she ventures outside the safety of Cosgrove County and the sixty-mile radius in which she's functioned for her entire life. But somehow, escaping home doesn't translate into leaving behind all of her problems, and, unfortunately, not all can be solved by putting her superior gambling skills to work.

Eventually, it's time to return home to all the good people who are great at driving each other crazy. Hallie must finally face the biggest decision of her life.

Humorous and heartfelt, Best Bet underscores the importance of friends, family, and a sense of belonging. The characters in this modest, but neighborly, small town prove that an ordinary existence made up of small but genuine moments can satisfy a soul that's hungry for life in all of its glories and disappointments.

Publication Date: 11/23/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Utah: Book Two
Tanja Bauerle, Lisa M. Cottrell-Bentley
Synopsis: Announcing the second book in a series about an RV living homeschooling family. Each month brings the Wright family 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 Wright, age 7: Boisterous and joking all the time, this sporty boy knows how to have fun! Meet Nadia Wright, age 11: Curious and fiery, this intellectual girl can always find out answers to even the most difficult questions. Meet their parents, Harrison and Stephanie: Ready to take their kids on adventures of a lifetime. Meet Prince Pumpkin III, turtle extraordinaire: This 50 year old little guy is holding on tight, as the family RV and mysterious device take him on an adventure no turtle has ever gone on before. Explore a dinosaur dig with the Wrights as they roadschool in Utah. What will Aidan and Nadia discover about the mysterious device they found in Arizona? This series is Wright on Time.
Publication Date: 11/23/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Prairie Winter
Bonnie Geisert
Synopsis:

The Cresbard school means a lot to sixth grader Rachel Johnson. It means classes with a beloved teacher, important band rehearsals for the upcoming concert in Chicago, and time to hang out with Winnie and Darren and the rest of the town kids. For a twelve year-old living on a remote prairie farm with no phone, school means connection. And that connection is about to be severed. The most dangerous winter that Rachel has ever known is about to descend on Cresbard, marooning her on the farm and keeping her from the school she so desperately loves.

Then, in a surprising turn of events, Rachel’s dad agrees to fly his three oldest daughters to town so they can continue the school year. Rachel will be boarding in a hotel with no parents, no rules, and no chores. Her choice of desserts every night, two-stepping with Darren Baxter at the school dance . . .will Rachel ever be able to return to farm life after this?

Publication Date: 11/16/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Juvenile Fiction

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