Books to Die For: Books 1-3


Richard Houston - 2015
    He’s an ordinary guy with an extraordinary dog. He's trying to make the best of a divorce and mid-life crisis when he gets a call at two o’clock Sunday morning from his mother. His sister has been arrested for the murder of her fourth husband, and his father is near death. Thus begins an adventure that takes Jake and his golden retriever from their Colorado retreat to a backwater town in the Missouri Ozarks where they search for cold-blooded killers, a cache of gold coins buried by Jesse James, and the love of a beautiful nurse. A Book to Die ForThis time the story takes place in the foothills of Denver. Jake is accused of manslaughter and he has to prove the accident was really murder. Along the way he encounters a poaching ring and falls in love with a beautiful game warden. A Treasure to Die ForThere is a treasure high in the Colorado Rockies waiting for someone to find it. Jake Martin couldn't care less. Since the death of his wife, all Jake wants is to be left alone in his mountain cabin where he and his dog, Fred, can get on with life. But when it becomes known that the location of the treasure is encrypted in a message left by a 19th century miner, people begin to die, and Jake’s good friend and neighbor becomes the number one suspect.The old miner used a copy of Tom Sawyer as a key to his coded message, and the real murderer wants that edition so bad, he’s willing to kill for it. Can the amateur sleuths decode the message and stop the murderer, or have Jake and Fred finally met their match?

Guarding His Fake Family


Katie Knight - 2021
    Alisha Lewis, the sister of one of his squad mates, could be his key to his next bestseller—if their smoldering chemistry doesn’t get in the way. She’s sexy, smart and just happens to be an investigative reporter working on what might be the perfect story. After the adrenaline rush of a stakeout-gone-bad, they share a night of passion—one they both agree was a mistake. But that one night has lasting consequences when Alisha learns she’s pregnant.Alisha didn’t expect Simon to insist on staying near to keep her and the baby safe. But when an abduction happens on their doorstep, she's glad the towering SEAL is there to protect her, and their unborn child. Soon, they’re up to their necks in crooked cops, kidnappers, and the kidnap victim’s abandoned baby. Not to mention the red-hot passion that continues to flare between them.Worse yet? As they work to solve the mystery, Alisha realizes she’s starting to fall hard for the sexy SEAL. But will they be able to survive long enough to fall in love?

The Pranksters Club: The Wimpy Kid Takeover


J.C. Foster - 2014
    And how can that get any worse for this Wimpy Kid? By finding out that you’re getting the meanest teacher in the school this year AND she just moved down the street.Leave it up to Connor, Max and Milo to turn the miserable first week of school into the biggest and most exciting party ever. All while avoiding the bully squad, outsmarting Molly, the teacher’s pet and staying one step ahead of Mr. Mooger, the principal.But everything is not as it seems and the three soon find out that they haven’t been the only one’s pulling pranks.Join Connor, Max and Milo on their new adventures in middle school, watch them out smart the bullies and stay one step ahead of the teachers. This illustrated book is a humorous and fun ride through middle school, never knowing what's just around the corner or under your seat. Connor's Diary of the Wimpy Kids in his prankster's club will keep you guessing and laughing out loud.Also Available: The Pranksters' Club: Ripped - Book 2 of the Series

Wildlife Warrior: Steve Irwin: 1962 - 2006, a Man Who Changed the World


Richard Shears - 2006
    'Wildlife Warrior' charts his amazing life - from his childhood catching snakes in Victoria, through to his work in the wilderness and in his zoo. It follows his love story with his wife Terri and his rise to fame.

The Wolf Princess


Cathryn Constable - 2012
    But just like in a fairy tale, a princess comes to her rescue: the beautiful, exotic Anna Volkonskaya. Over a river of ice in a horse-drawn sleigh, she brings Sophie and her friends to a magnificent, if weathered, winter palace.At first, Sophie is enchanted by Princess Anna's stories of long-ago royalty, of white wolves and gray diamonds. But when the princess takes a particular interest in her, Sophie grows concerned. What is her place in the sinister mystery that surrounds her? Even as the wind and wolves howl outside, is she more in danger now, a prisoner of the palace, than she ever was lost in the snow?

The Matchstick Castle


Keir Graff - 2017
    Jail, for example. Or an earplug factory. Anything would be better than doing summer school on a computer while his scientist dad is stationed at the South Pole. Boring lives up to its name until Brian and his cousin Nora have a fight, get lost, and discover a huge, wooden house in the forest. With balconies, turrets, and windows seemingly stuck on at random, it looks ready to fall over in the next stiff breeze. To the madcap, eccentric family that lives inside, it's not just a home--it's a castle. Suddenly, summer gets a lot more exciting. With their new friends, Brian and Nora tangle with giant wasps, sharp-tusked wild boars, and a crazed bureaucrat intent on bringing the dangerously dilapidated old house down with a wrecking ball.

Cogheart


Peter Bunzl - 2016
    Her father is missing and now silver-eyed men stalk her through the shadows. What could they want from her?With her friends—Robert, the clockmaker’s son, and Malkin, her mechanical fox—Lily is plunged into a murky and menacing world. Too soon Lily realizes that those she holds dear may be the very ones to break her heart...Murder, mayhem and mystery meet in this gripping Victorian adventure.

Kristy and the Snobs: A Graphic Novel (The Baby-Sitters Club #10)


Ann M Martin - 2021
    

The Story Web


Megan Frazer Blakemore - 2019
    When Alice was little, she found a gigantic spider web deep in the forest. Her dad called it the Story Web and told her how its strands were woven from the stories that hold our world together.Years later, Alice's dad has gone away for reasons Alice is sure are her fault. Now she won't even talk about her dad and definitely no longer believes his farfetched stories. But when animals in town start acting strangely, she can't ignore them. The Story Web is in danger--and the fabric of our world is breaking. The only way to mend it is to tell honest tales from the heart, even if they are difficult to share.In this magical tale of truth and honesty perfect for fans of Katherine Applegate, Megan Frazer Blakemore deftly weaves fantasy into the real world.

Chomp


Carl Hiaasen - 2012
    His father is an animal wrangler, so he's grown up with all manner of gators, snakes, parrots, rats, monkeys, snappers, and more in his backyard. The critters he can handle. His father is the unpredictable one. When his dad takes a job with a reality TV show called "Expedition Survival!", Wahoo figures he'll have to do a bit of wrangling himself—to keep his dad from killing Derek Badger, the show's boneheaded star, before the shoot is over. But the job keeps getting more complicated. Derek Badger seems to actually believe his PR and insists on using wild animals for his stunts. And Wahoo's acquired a shadow named Tuna—a girl who's sporting a shiner courtesy of her old man and needs a place to hide out. They've only been on location in the Everglades for a day before Derek gets bitten by a bat and goes missing in a storm. Search parties head out and promptly get lost themselves. And then Tuna's dad shows up with a gun . . .It's anyone's guess who will actually survive "Expedition Survival". . . .

The Exploding Life of Scarlett Fife


Maz Evans - 2021
    And she's about to get into BIG trouble. From the bestselling Maz Evans comes a heartfelt and hilarious new series, perfect for fans of Roald Dahl's Matilda.Scarlett Fife has BIG FEELINGS. And when she has BIG FEELINGS, they explode out of her like an over-squeezed stress ball.Scarlett's in big trouble after a BIG FEELINGS episode leads to a runaway hamster getting into the vicar's trousers at her aunty's engagement party. If she loses her temper ONE MORE TIME, she's going to miss out on her trip to Mega Awesome Sicky Fun World, the best theme park on the planet.But feelings are like slime in a party bag. No matter how much someone tells you to keep it in, it'll always find its way out. And very soon, Scarlett notices that every time she pushes her feelings down, something explodes. Like ... really, properly explodes.It might be her teacher's slimy green smoothie. A huge pot of purple paint. Or a massive pile of elephant poo at the zoo. And let's hope Scarlett doesn't get mad at Aunty's wedding - that wedding cake is HUGE ...Laugh-out-loud action for every child and parent who has ever lost control of their feelings - this is sparkling, heartwarming and beautifully illustrated throughout.

Fly by Night


Frances Hardinge - 2005
    Her cruel uncle keeps her locked up in his mill, and her only friend is her pet goose, Saracen, who'll bite anything that crosses his path. But she does have one small, rare thing: the ability to read. She doesn't know it yet, but in a world where books are dangerous things, this gift will change her life.Enter Eponymous Clent, a smooth-talking con man who seems to love words nearly as much as Mosca herself. Soon Mosca and Clent are living a life of deceit and danger -- discovering secret societies, following shady characters onto floating coffeehouses, and entangling themselves with crazed dukes and double-crossing racketeers. It would be exactly the kind of tale Mosca has always longed to take part in, until she learns that her one true love -- words -- may be the death of her."Fly by Night" is astonishingly original, a grand feat of the imagination from a masterful new storyteller.

Rain Dance


Karen Wood - 2014
    'It's a big fancy ball, heaps of fun.' Boy, could this girl use some fun. And some rump steak.Holly shook her head.Kaydon gave up. Trying to make her smile was like doing a rain dance. There were clouds and rumblings, and a sprinkle here and there. But no amount of fancy footwork was going to make it happen for real.Holly Harvey doesn't want to move to Gunnedah, far from her friends and her home near the beach. And she's a vegetarian, so living on a beef property, with cattle yards, polo ponies and pig-shooting, makes it even worse. She and Kaydon are worlds apart - until a fight breaks out at the fundraising ball.Another addictive romance from the author of Jumping Fences.

Jackie's Wild Seattle


Will Hobbs - 2003
    Heart-stopping adventure on the wild side of Seattle! How do you rescue a coyote trapped in the elevator of a downtown office building? How do you save an injured seal at the bottom of a cliff with the tide coming in? Fourteen-year-old Shannon and her younger brother, Cody, are about to find out as they spend a summer of breathless, sometimes reckless, often hilarious adventure visiting their uncle Neal at a wildlife center called Jackie's Wild Seattle.When Uncle Neal is injured, it's up to Shannon, Cody, and Sage, the rescue dog, to keep the circle of healing unbroken.

Detective Gordon: The First Case


Ulf Nilsson - 2012
    If only he had an assistant?someone small, fast, and clever?to help solve this terrible case.