Even best friends.
Swirling black descends like ravens, large enough to block the glow of the streetlights. A dull roar starts like a train on the 'L', a far-away rumbling that grows louder as it pulls closer, until it's directly overhead and you feel it in your chest, except this doesn't pass you by. Verity, white-faced and eyes blazing, shouts through the din, "Run, Mo!"
Mo Fitzgerald knows about secrets. But when she witnesses her best friend's murder, she discovers Verity was hiding things she never could have guessed. To find the answers she needs and the vengeance she craves, Mo--quiet, ordinary, unmagical Mo--will have to enter a world of raw magic and shifting alliances. And she'll have to choose between two very different, equally dangerous guys--protective, duty-bound Colin and brash, mysterious Luc.
One wants to save her, one wants to claim her. Which would you choose?
"Who doesn't love a character torn between two dangerous worlds and two risky guys? The only thing safe about this book is how good it is." --Lee Nichols, author of Deception, A Haunting Emma Novel
"Dark, exciting and totally addictive! Just. . .wow!" –Kristi Cook, author of Haven
"Dark, magical, and delicious!"
--New York Times Bestselling Author C. L. Wilson
Secret agent Amelia Kidd has saved the world loads of times from evil geniuses and criminal masterminds—thanks to her great disguises, gadgets (which sometimes work), and her brilliance at improvising in sticky situations. The three secret agent case files in this book are:
The Case of the Ghost Diamond, in which Amelia foils a daring jewel theft during a class trip to the museum, thanks to her convincing granny disguise and her mirror-on-a-stick gadget.
The Case of the Cat Nappers, in which Amelia discovers the reason for all the disappearing cats in her area—they have all been trained to become burglars! Cat burglars! Luckily Amelia's quick thinking foils the robbery and catches the thieves!
The Case of the Whispering Weeds, in which an innocent trip to the garden center results in Amelia meeting an evil genius who has cultivated a weed army to control every crop on the planet. Weed killer—and Agent Amelia smarts—to the rescue!
This book is inspired by the ancient story of Arash the Swift Arrow who with a single shot sent an arrow all the way to the Oxus River and marked the border between Persia and her rival empire of Tooran.
The story introduces several other characters of Persian mythology including King Hooshang, Simorgh, Zahak, Ahriman and his Deevs, as well as the Zoroastrian philosophy of the constant battle between Good and Evil, to an audience of 8 to 12 year olds.
Children with or without Persian heritage, might be more attracted to the mystery and intrigue in which the heroes are children their own age.
3rd edition includes additions to the plot.
Series Website: emragland.com
As far as Sophie Morgan is concerned, nothing sets her apart from other people her age, except maybe her quick temper. But when a car accident claims the life of her mother on Christmas night, Sophie comes face to face with her angelic father and learns her existence is anything but ordinary. As Sophie adjusts to her new life in California with her Aunt Celeste, she is thrust into a world of music, angels, and unearthly vengeance. And she is not alone; misunderstood classmate and local musician Joseph McCafferty is tortured by his own demons. Sophie and Joseph begin a strained friendship that develops into an unshakable, possibly forbidden love that marks the first step along a pre-destined journey in which Sophie must choose between her love for Joseph, her place in Heaven or Hell, and the fate of humanity.
The end . . . or a new beginning?
As Ellie comes to grips with her destiny as the Elect One, her relationship with Michael grows tense. When she meets a mysterious boy named Rafe, things get even more complicated.
Yet the time has come for the Elect One to stand against the group of evil fallen angels who are bent on destroying the world. In order to face the immeasurable malevolence heading her way, Ellie tries to put her personal life aside. But she soon learns that whoever holds her heart also holds the key to mankind’s salvation—or destruction. As the end days approach, Ellie is faced with an epic decision. Who does her heart really belong to? And is her love strong enough to save the world?
I noticed his eyes. They were blue, sharp and intense. Despite the youthful glows of his suntanned face, his eyes were cold and unfriendly, suggesting he had great experience in the world and was now expecting the worst.
In her seventeenth year, Princess Alera of Hytanica faces one duty: to marry the man who will be king. But her father's choice of suitor fills her with despair.
When the palace guard captures and intruder—a boy her age with steel-blue eyes, hailing from her kingdom's greatest enemy—Alera is alarmed…and intrigued. But she could not have guessed that their clandestine meetings would unveil the dark legacy shadowing both their lands.
In this mystical world of court conspiracies and blood magic, loyalties will be tested. Courage won't be enough. And as the battle begins for everything Alera holds dear, love may be the downfall of a kingdom.
Revered at first, they soon discover that they are intended as the entertainment at a horrific ritual . . . sacrifices to the legendary flesh-eating mares in the coloseum of King Diomedes.
Another thrilling new Black Stallion novel by Walter Farley's son, which proves that the art of writing a great horse story is definitely in the genes!
Amazon Exclusive: Stephanie Perkins Reviews Forbidden
Stephanie Perkins is the author of the young adult novel Anna and the French Kiss. The companion book, Lola and the Boy Next Door, will be released September 29, 2011. Read her exclusive guest review of Forbidden:
Tabitha Suzuma has crafted a harrowing, sexy, heart wrenching, and heartbreaking masterwork about one of our last remaining taboos. Lochan and Maya are the oldest children of an alcoholic, absentee mother. The burden of raising their three younger siblings has fallen upon them, and they have been forced to mature into parents. As their friendship is strengthened, and as they become dependent upon one another for survival, their parental relationship develops into a new stage: romantic love.
An alternating first-person narration immerses the reader deep inside the hearts of the characters. Suzuma takes great care to help us understand how such a situation could arise and allows us to be sympathetic for it--even root for it--though we know, just as Lochan and Maya know, that the future of a Happily Ever After is unlikely.
This is a powerful novel about love in all of its forms. About teenagers forced to become adults, and about children forced to acknowledge new parents. Particularly stressful is the second oldest boy, Kit, whose every appearance carries an impending sense of disaster.
Forbidden never let me set it down. It never let me stop worrying. And it never let me stop hoping for the best. --Stephanie Perkins
Being the spawn of two infamous occultists (and alleged murderers) isn’t easy, but freewheeling magician Arcadia “Cady” Bell knows how to make the best of a crummy situation. After hiding out for seven years, she’s carved an incognito niche for herself slinging drinks at the demon-friendly Tambuku Tiki Lounge.
But she receives an ultimatum when unexpected surveillance footage of her notorious parents surfaces: either prove their innocence or surrender herself. Unfortunately, the only witness to the crimes was an elusive Æthyric demon, and Cady has no idea how to find it. She teams up with Lon Butler, an enigmatic demonologist with a special talent for sexual spells and an arcane library of priceless stolen grimoires. Their research soon escalates into a storm of conflict involving missing police evidence, the decadent Hellfire Club, a ruthless bounty hunter, and a powerful occult society that operates way outside the law. If Cady can’t clear her family name soon, she’ll be forced to sacrifice her own life . . . and no amount of running will save her this time.
My Beginning is told through the eyes of Ivory, a 16-year-old girl who has lived her entire life within the walls of an institution. The institution is one of many supposedly set up to protect those within from a worldwide plague. She and all of the other surviving children live a strict, mundane life full of tasks and responsibilities--forbidden to go outside, congregate or even look at the opposite sex. Despite the uncompromising atmosphere, Ivory manages to pique the interest of the only boy who did not grow up in the institution, creating a love affair neither of them expected. Multiple secret meetings take a turn for the worse when they are caught and severely punished, but through unexpected circumstances they find themselves on the outside. There is a lot more to the world than they could have ever imagined when they learn of a war and lifelike machines that threaten humankind. Ivory faces many unexpected challenges, and, ultimately, it is up to her to save Aidan and the world she has grown to love. (YA Fiction: science fiction, for ages 15 and up)
"My Beginning offers up familiar subject matter yet refreshingly showcases it from a seldom seen perspective. By setting the angst and torture of a teenage coming of age story against the backdrop of a post-apocalyptic plague-ravaged society the reader gets to experience a world they've become accustomed to through the astonished eyes of Ivory, the story's protagonist. When you take Ivory's strong yet vulnerable character, throw in a shadowy corporatist boogey-man and his army of 'the machines' you end up with Cinderella meets Blade Runner. Kline's descriptive and lush writing style, reminiscent of Richard Matheson and early Stephen King paints a visually rich world with vibrant characters that keeps you turning pages till there's no more left to turn." - Sean Bishop, Dreamworks feature Animation
My Beginning is told through the eyes of Ivory, a 16-year-old girl who has lived her entire life within the walls of an institution. The institution is one of many supposedly set up to protect those within from a worldwide plague. She and all of the other surviving children live a strict, mundane life full of tasks and responsibilities--forbidden to go outside, congregate or even look at the opposite sex. Despite the uncompromising atmosphere, Ivory manages to pique the interest of the only boy who did not grow up in the institution, creating a love affair neither of them expected. Multiple secret meetings take a turn for the worse when they are caught and severely punished, but through unexpected circumstances they find themselves on the outside. There is a lot more to the world than they could have ever imagined when they learn of a war and lifelike machines that threaten humankind. Ivory faces many unexpected challenges, and, ultimately, it is up to her to save Aidan and the world she has grown to love. (YA Fiction: science fiction, for ages 15 and up)
"My Beginning offers up familiar subject matter yet refreshingly showcases it from a seldom seen perspective. By setting the angst and torture of a teenage coming of age story against the backdrop of a post-apocalyptic plague-ravaged society the reader gets to experience a world they've become accustomed to through the astonished eyes of Ivory, the story's protagonist. When you take Ivory's strong yet vulnerable character, throw in a shadowy corporatist boogey-man and his army of 'the machines' you end up with Cinderella meets Blade Runner. Kline's descriptive and lush writing style, reminiscent of Richard Matheson and early Stephen King paints a visually rich world with vibrant characters that keeps you turning pages till there's no more left to turn." - Sean Bishop, Dreamworks feature Animation
