Book picks similar to
The Light Maze by Joan North


fantasy
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Out of the Silent Planet


C.S. Lewis - 1938
    Lewis's classic science fiction trilogy, Dr Ransom, a Cambridge academic, is abducted and taken on a spaceship to the red planet of Malacandra, which he knows as Mars. His captors are plotting to plunder the planet's treasures and plan to offer Ransom as a sacrifice to the creatures who live there. Ransom discovers he has come from the 'silent planet' – Earth – whose tragic story is known throughout the universe...

The Copper Elephant


Adam Rapp - 1999
    She must live in hiding, but if she can dodge burning rain, avoid brutish soldiers, and keep from starving, perhaps she'll survive. She must bond together with other fugitives and refugees to form some kind of family -- and somehow save herself.

The Big Splash


Jack D. Ferraiolo - 2008
      The treacherous, hormone-soaked hallways of Franklin Middle School are the setting for this sharp, funny noir novel about tough guys and even tougher girls. “The Frank” is in the clutches of a crime syndicate run by seventh-grader Vinny “Mr. Biggs” Biggio, who deals in forged hall passes and black-market candy. Double-cross him and your number is punched by one of his deadly water-gun-toting assassins. One hit in the pants and you are in “the Outs” forever. Matt Stevens is a proud loner with his own code of justice. He’s avoided being pulled into Vinny’s organization until now: Mr. Biggs has offered him a job he can’t resist, one that leads to the surprising downfall of Vinny’s top assassin, the beautiful and deadly Nikki “Fingers” Finnegan, at the hands of an unknown assailant. Matt thinks he was used, and he becomes determined to find the trigger-guy or -girl, even if it means bringing down one of his oldest friends.  New talent Jack D. Ferraiolo revitalizes the noir novel while delivering a terrific, addictive mystery that crackles with wit and excitement.   “Jack Ferraiolo shines a light on middle school and reveals what we’ve always suspected: it’s a sinister place ruled by crime bosses and thugs. ‘The Big Splash’ will make you laugh out loud.”—Jeff Kinney, #1 New York Times bestselling author of DIARY OF A WIMPY KID“Move over Bogart; now there's hard-boiled private detective Matt Stevens on the job at Franklin Middle School ... You could call this genre kid noir.”—Judy Freeman, on the "Sure Shot Books for Boys" list on readkiddoread.com“Entertaining and thrilling.”--The New York Times Sunday Book Review (full page review)“A first novel with an ingenious premise: junior high noir … Twists and curve balls keep readers guessing; extended jokes will keep them laughing. With crisp prose and surprisingly poignant moments, Ferraiolo’s debut entertains on many levels.” --Publishers Weekly, starred review“Ferraiolo weaves a tale that is thought-provoking and rib-tickling all at the same time. Highly recommended.”--Library Media Connection starred review“Matt Stevens may turn out to be a bankable franchise: His first-person present-tense narration carries in it echoes of Marlowe, and the simple plot makes some crafty twists and turns as it goes along.”--Kirkus“Ferraiolo cleverly interweaves Mafia undertones with Middle School social dynamics in this comical yet page turning novel.  Young adult mystery enthusiasts will love the unmasking of this new sleuth in literature.”--ALAN “Ferraiolo has taken us down, in a manner of speaking. Good fun, and the comic-book style cover will attract readers.”—KLIATT reviews“This fabulous mystery will have teens racing to get to the last page…A great whodunit mystery lovers are sure to consume.”—VOYA“This debut novel delivers plenty of laughs … Fans of private-eye spoofs will enjoy this entertaining read.”—Booklist “Well paced, funny, and suspenseful, with some real commentary on bullying and mob mentality, this book will have fans eagerly awaiting the next installment in this faux noir detective series.”—School Library Journal“Ferraiolo shines in this debut novel, working the noir tropes for all they’re worth … The mystery itself is cagily constructed to keep readers guessing pretty much til’ the last bell.”—Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books“If middle school has an “underworld,” this book is The Godfather and The Maltese Falcon all rolled into one. Better still, it’s funny, and not just a little.”—Gordon Korman, author of SCHOOL OF ROCKF&P level: W

Forever


Eric Marier - 2014
    Mute, violent Kev Anderwaith hasn't been to school in months. On the day Kev does return, Kate is shocked when the overgrown, social outcast sits next to her in class and claims they've both lived previous lives, and keep finding each other, throughout the centuries, falling in love every time.

Kipling's Choice


Geert Spillebeen - 2002
    Although Rudyard would go on to win England’s highest accolades, he never got over this lost opportunity to serve his country. When World War I broke out, John, like his father before him, wanted to fight for his country. When his military application was threatened for the same reason as his father’s—poor eyesight—Rudyard took matters into his own hands. Determined not to let history repeat itself, the elder Kipling applied all his influence to get his son a commission. The teenager who had lived his life in comfort and whose greatest concern had been pleasing his father now faced a much greater challenge—staying alive in his first battle.Geert Spillebeen’s moving fictionalized account follows the true story of John Kipling, a young man whose desire to live up to the family name threatens his very survival. It also draws attention to the senseless suffering and loss of life in this and every war.

Broken


S.J. West - 2013
    On the night the Tear first appeared, the Watchers, a mysterious group of men possessing supernatural powers, made their presence known to the leaders of the world, earning their complete trust to deal with the turmoil the Tear caused.Now twenty-two years old, Jess is an agent working for the Watcher Agency searching for a way to bring her parents back home. When the leader of the Watchers, Mason Collier, recruits her to join his team, Jess quickly discovers she is meant to play a major role in sealing the Tear forever. Mason and Jess instantly find themselves drawn to one another but they both resist their mutual attraction for different reasons. Broken by past events in their lives, they each struggle to overcome their fears and find the strength to take a chance on one another.A Disclaimer from the Author:It is not necessary to have read The Watchers Trilogy to read The Watcher Chronicles. But if you are interested in reading The Watchers Trilogy, I would recommend you not read this new series until you have finished Forgiven. What happens at the end of the trilogy is explained fairly early in Broken and I would hate for the ending of Forgiven to be ruined for you.

Dusssie


Nancy Springer - 2007
    Her mother had hoped that Dusie's being half-mortal would protect her from inheriting the family curse.    Still reeling from this revelation, Dusie tries to keep her snakes under wraps. But after a boy she likes in school almost exposes her, she discovers another family secret--just one look from Dusie's snakes has the power to send someone right into his own personal Stone Age. Talk about "if looks could kill"!     Dusie better figure out how to control her snakes and her rage, and find a way to get her life back--before anything else disastrous happens.

Second Sight


J.A. Culican - 2017
    At thirteen, Ela foretold the death of her best friend, only to watch it happen before her very eyes. Ela, now twenty-one, spends her days locked away in her apartment, avoiding the public and the gift she considers a curse.Until he appears. Luka Conway is handsome. Charming. And magical. After Ela predicts yet another death, Luka leads her to an underground city hidden beneath Atlanta, populated by empaths, telepaths, and seers. Luka is a Shade, a soldier fighting a secret war against the Wraiths, a deadly group of sorcerers who wish to take over the world. Ela is given no choice; she must prove herself a Shade, and use her powers for the light, or she will be put to death. Resolved to her fate, Ela trains as a warrior, determined to put her curse to good use. Then Talon Michaels appears. He's just as dashing as Luka, and even more dangerous. A Wraith, Talon warns Ela that the Shades aren't all what they appear. Who can Ela trust, if anyone? Should her powers be used for good...or evil? Which should she choose?

Black and Orange


Benjamin Kane Ethridge - 2011
    The stories are distortions. They were created to keep the Church of Midnight hidden from the world. Every October 31st a gateway opens to a hostile land of sacrificial magic and chaos. Since the beginning of civilization the Church of Midnight has attempted to open the gateway and unite with its other half, the Church of Morning. Each year they've come closer, waiting for the ideal sacrifice to open the gateway permanently.This year that sacrifice has come. And only two can protect it. Martin and Teresa are the nomads, battle-hardened people who lack identity and are forever road-bound on an endless mission to guard the sacrifice. Their only direction is from notes left from a mysterious person called the Messenger. Endowed with a strange telekinetic power, the nomads will use everything at their disposal to make it through the night alive. But matters have become even more complicated this year. Teresa has quickly lost ground battling cancer, while Martin has spiraled into a panic over being left alone. His mind may no longer be on the fight when it matters most... because ever on their heels is the insidious physical representation of a united church: Chaplain Cloth.***BRAM STOKER AWARD WINNER, Superior Achievement in First Novel***

The Rapture


Liz Jensen - 2009
    It is a June unlike any other before, with temperatures soaring to asphyxiating heights. All across the world, freak weather patterns—and the life-shattering catastrophes they entail—have become the norm. The twenty-first century has entered a new phase. But Gabrielle Fox’s main concern is a personal one: to rebuild her life after a devastating car accident that has left her disconnected from the world, a prisoner of her own guilt and grief. Determined to make a fresh start, and shake off memories of her wrecked past, she leaves London for a temporary posting as an art therapist at Oxsmith Adolescent Secure Psychiatric Hospital, home to one hundred of the most dangerous children in the country. Among them: the teenage killer Bethany Krall.Despite two years of therapy, Bethany is in no way rehabilitated and remains militantly nonchalant about the bloody, brutal death she inflicted on her mother. Raised in evangelistic hellfire, the teenager is violent, caustic, unruly, and cruelly intuitive. She is also insistent that her electroshock treatments enable her to foresee natural disasters—a claim which Gabrielle interprets as a symptom of doomsday delusion.But as Gabrielle delves further into Bethany’s psyche, she begins to note alarming parallels between her patient’s paranoid disaster fantasies and actual incidents of geological and meteorological upheaval—coincidences her professionalism tells her to ignore but that her heart cannot. When a brilliant physicist enters the equation, the disruptive tension mounts—and the stakes multiply. Is the self-proclaimed Nostradamus of the psych ward the ultimate manipulator or a harbinger of global disaster on a scale never seen before? Where does science end and faith begin? And what can love mean in “interesting times”?With gothic intensity, Liz Jensen conjures the increasingly unnerving relationship between the traumatized therapist and her fascinating, deeply calculating patient. As Bethany’s warnings continue to prove accurate beyond fluke and she begins to offer scientifically precise hints of a final, world-altering cataclysm, Gabrielle is confronted with a series of devastating choices in a world in which belief has become as precious - and as murderous—as life itself.

Traveler


Breeana Puttroff - 2017
    Stay away from the woods on the other side of the river. Never speak of magic. Be wary of associating with young men who might only be seeking her father's political power. She'd followed the rules -- mostly. In return, she was supposed to have some small freedoms -- like choosing her own partner. Or, at least, that was what she'd thought. But when her father changes the rules on her at the same time a strange young man appears in the woods, Ellarowan discovers that maybe nothing is what she thought it was. From the author of the bestselling Dusk Gate Chronicles comes a new story of adventure, love, and hope in a new world.

The Fallen


Thomas E. Sniegoski - 2003
    He can hear the sounds of weapons clanging, the screams of the stricken, and another sound he cannot quite decipher. But gazing upward at the sky, he suddenly understands. It is the sound of great wings, angels' wings, beating the air unmercifully as hundreds of armored warriors descend on the battlefield.Orphaned since birth, Aaron is suddenly discovering newfound -- and sometimes supernatural -- talents. But it's not until he is approached by two men that he learns the truth about his destiny, and his role as a liaison between angels, mortals, and Powers both good and evil, some of whom are hell-bent on his destruction....

Jimi & Me


Jaime Adoff - 2005
    But his father s death has left them devastated-both emotionally and financially. Forced to leave Brooklyn and move in with his aunt, Keith urgently clings to every last reminder of his dad, discovering comfort in his own music and that of the late legend-and his father s idol-Jimi Hendrix. In Jimi s music, Keith finds solace, and brief moments of reprieve from his chaotic new life. But just as he begins to get a handle on his father s death, he discovers the secrets of his father s life--secrets that threaten to tear apart what s left of his fragile family.

To Keep the Oath [Darkover Series]


Marion Zimmer Bradley - 1979
    But the laws of our charter prevent me and I am bound by oath to obey those laws; laws made, not by our own Guild-mothers, but by men who fear what we might have to say to their women!

Conan: The Collected Adventures of the World's Fiercest Barbarian (Illustrated)


Robert E. Howard - 2016
    Howard's stories about Conan the Barbarian.These stories were originally published in Weird Tales magazine between 1933 and 1936.The Conan stories included in the collection are:1. The Frost Giant's Daughter (Gods of the North)2. The Tower of the Elephant3. Rogues in the House4. Shadows in the Moonlight (Iron Shadows in the Moon)5. Black Colossus6. Queen of the Black Coast7. The Slithering Shadow (Xuthal of the Dusk)8. A Witch Shall Be Born9. The Devil in Iron10. The People of the Black Circle11. Shadows in Zamboula (Man-Eaters of Zamboula)12. The Pool of the Black One13. Beyond the Black River14. Red Nails15. Jewels of Gwahlur (The Teeth of Gwahlur)16. The Phoenix on the Sword17. The Scarlet Citadel18. The Hour of the Dragon (Conan the Conqueror)As an added bonus, also included in the set are:Cimmeria—A PoemThe Hyborian Age—Conan's World (This is Howard's background essay on the world of Conan)For ease of navigation, the anthology includes an interactive table of contents. The stories in this collection are ordered roughly in chronological order from Conan's first adventures as a young mercenary adventurer and thief to his final epic clashes as a king and are based on the Rippke chronology.About Conan:Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films (including Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer), television programs (cartoon and live-action), video games, role-playing games and other media. The character was created by writer Robert E. Howard in 1932 via a series of fantasy stories published in Weird Tales magazine.Conan the Character:Conan is a Cimmerian. From Robert E. Howard's writings (The Hyborian Age among others) it is known that the Cimmerians were based on the Celts or Gaels. He was born on a battlefield and is the son of a village blacksmith. Conan matured quickly as a youth and, by age fifteen, he was already a respected warrior who had participated in the destruction of the Aquilonian outpost of Venarium. After its demise, he was struck by wanderlust and began the adventures chronicled by Howard, encountering skulking monsters, evil wizards, tavern wenches, and beautiful princesses. He roamed throughout the Hyborian Age nations as a thief, outlaw, mercenary, and pirate. As he grew older, he began commanding larger units of men and escalating his ambitions.