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It's All Relative! by Sarah Nathan


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Mercedes Ice: An Urban Fairy Story For Modern Children


Philip Ridley - 1989
    But soon the shining concrete began to crack and the gleaming windows became grimy and dull. Into this colourless decay comes Mercedes Ice, Crown Prince of Shadow Point, with an impossible demand: colour.

Wings


Jason Lethcoe - 2009
    There, Edward develops an itch in his back that he can’t scratch, and when he gets angry it seems like he can move things with his mind. When the itch erupts into a set of wings, an evil teacher tries to cut them off. Edward is rescued by Mr. Spines, who reveals that Edward is a Guardian, a magical being who guards and guides souls in the Woodbine, a stopover between life and death. Edward will now have to battle the most evil force in the Woodbine, the Jackal, and his army of fallen Guardians. They have destroyed the bridges that lead to the afterlife, trapping countless souls. Edward is unprepared for so much responsibility and he runs away and becomes lost in the Woodbine. There he must find his own voice and learn to master his powers as he is pulled from side to side by magical forces he is only beginning to understand.

Wait Till Helen Comes


Mary Downing Hahn - 1986
    Heather is such a whiny little brat. Always getting Michael and me into trouble. But since our mother married her father, we're stuck with her ... our "poor stepsister" who lost her real mother in a mysterious fire. But now something terrible has happened. Heather has found a new friend, out in the graveyard behind our home—a girl named Helen who died with her family in a mysterious fire over a hundred years ago. Now her ghost returns to lure children into the pond ... to drown! I don't want to believe in ghosts, but I've followed Heather into the graveyard and watch her talk to Helen. And I'm terrified. Not for myself, but for Heather...

Well Witched


Frances Hardinge - 2007
    After all, who's really going to miss a few tarnished coins?The well witch does.And she demands payback: Now Ryan, Josh, and Chelle must serve her . . . and the wishes that lie rotting at the bottom of her well. Each takes on powers they didn't ask for and don't want. Ryan grows strange bumps--are they eyes?--between his knuckles; Chelle starts speaking the secrets of strangers, no matter how awful and bloody; and Josh can suddenly--inexplicably--grant even the darkest of wishes, the kind of wishes that should never come true.Darkly witty, wholly unexpected, and exquisitely sinister, Frances Hardinge's Well Witched is one well-cast tale that readers didn't know they were wishing for.

Through the Hidden Door


Rosemary Wells - 1987
    But soon he and his friend Snowy make a discovery so dangerous they don't dare tell anyone about it.

The Coming Storm


Rob Kidd - 2006
    Jack has assembled a motley crew of adventurers to locate and seize the legendary Sword of Cort�s. This scenario sounds feasible until the treasure hunters run into heavy storms and bloodthirsty pirates.

Deep Secret


Diana Wynne Jones - 1997
    Actually, Rupert is really only a junior Magid. But he's got a king-sized problem. Rupert's territory includes Earth and the Empire of Korfyros. When his mentor dies Rupert must find a replacement. But there are hundreds of candidates. How is he supposed to choose? And interviewing each one could take forever.Unless...What if he could round them all up in one place? Simple!

The Door in the Lake


Nancy Butts - 1994
    Now, two years later, he has reappeared. But something's stopping him from settling back into his old life. Joey still looks twelve. He feels sick all of the time and he hears voices in his head. No one believes him when he tells the truth: Joey Finney was abducted by aliens.

Water Keep


J. Scott Savage - 2008
    In fact, his favorite dream is of a world far away, a world where magic is as common as air, where animals tell jokes, and where trees beg people to pick their fruit. He even has a name for this place-Farworld.When Marcus magically travels to Farworld, he meets Kyja, a girl without magic in a world where spells, charms, and potions are everywhere, and Master Therapass, a master wizard who has kept a secret hidden for thirteen years, a secret that could change the fate of two worlds.But the Dark Circle has learned of Master Therapass's secret and their evil influence and power are growing. Farworld's only hope is for Marcus and Kyja to find the mythical Elements-water, land, air, and fire-and convince them to open a drift between the worlds.As Kyja and Marcus travel to Water Keep, they must face the worst the evil Dark Circle can throw at them-Summoners, who can command the living and the dead; Unmakers, invisible creatures that can destroy both body and soul; and dark mages known as Thrathkin S'Bae.Along the way, Marcus and Kyja will discover the truth about their own heritage, strength of their friendship, and the depths of their unique powers.

The Familiars


Adam Jay Epstein - 2010
    Moments later Jack, a young wizard in training, comes in to choose a magical animal to be his familiar. Jack thinks his birthday pet is magical, and Aldwyn plays along.He just has to convince the other familiars -- know-it-all blue jay Skylar and unsure tree frog Gilbert that he's as powerful as he claims. Then the unthinkable happens. Jack and two other young wizards are captured by the evil queen of Vastia. The familiars face dangerous foes, unearth a shocking centuries-old secret, and discover a destiny that will change Vastia forever.

The Dollhouse Murders


Betty Ren Wright - 1983
    While visiting her Aunt Clare at the old family home, she discovers an eerily-haunted dollhouse in the attic—an exact replica of the family home. Whenever she sees it, the dolls, representing her relatives, have moved. Her aunt won't listen to Amy's claims that the dolls are trying to tell her something. This leads Amy to research old news reports where she discovers a family secret—the murder of her grandparents. The two sisters unravel the mystery. Amy grows to accept her sister and to understand that Louann is more capable than she had first thought.

The Cabinet of Wonders


Marie Rutkoski - 2008
    But it's never been ordinary. She has a pet tin spider named Astrophil who likes to hide in her snarled hair and give her advice. Her best friend can trap lightning inside a glass sphere. Petra also has a father in faraway Prague who is able to move metal with his mind. He has been commissioned by the prince of Bohemia to build the world's finest astronomical clock.Petra's life is forever changed when, one day, her father returns home – blind. The prince has stolen his eyes, enchanted them, and now wears them. But why? Petra doesn't know, but she knows this: she will go to Prague, sneak into Salamander Castle, and steal her father's eyes back.Joining forces with Neel, whose fingers extend into invisible ghosts that pick locks and pockets, Petra finds that many people in the castle are not what they seem, and that her father's clock has powers capable of destroying their world.

Dream Spinner


Bonnie Dobkin - 2006
    Fatherless, isolated, and betrayed by her best friend, Jori is angry at the world. And now her sister Lisa has disappeared, unable to cope with the changes in her family. Walking home from school one day, Jori stumbles upon a strange house and meets Professor DePris, who shows her a living tapestry woven from dreams. Distrustful of the eccentric old man and the telepathic spider who weaves for him, she resists entering the dream tapestry until she realizes her sister is trapped inside. It's up to Jori to enter the tapestry and rescue Lisa from the monstrous old man who is feasting on her fantasies. But how can Jori convince Lisa to leave this fantastic, yet dangerous, world where anything--even reuniting with their father--is possible?

Sweep: Volume 1


Cate Tiernan - 2001
    But when she meets Cal, a captivatingly handsome coven leader, she makes a discover that turns her whole world upside down: she is a witch, descended from an ancient and powerful line. And so is Cal. Their connection is immediate and unbreakable; Cal teases out Morgan's power, her love, her magick. But Morgan discovers too soon that her powers are strong-- almost too powerful to control. And she begins to suspect that Cal may be keeping secrets from her . . . secrets that could destroy them both.

Touched


Elisa S. Amore - 2012
    An ancient, deadly, inescapable race. No one can see them. They’re shadows of destiny. They’re knights of death. They’re the Subterraneans and they’re here to claim our lives. Commanded by a mysterious congregation called the Màsala, the Angels of Death ensure that each man’s destiny takes its due course on Earth.But what happens when love intervenes?Can an Angel of Death deny his own nature and challenge destiny?Can love rebel against fate?When Gemma’s eyes first meet the dark, piercing gaze of Evan James, an ominous shadow creeps into her life, ultimately leading her to face her destiny. She doesn't realize Evan is one of Death's soldiers and that Death is summoning her. Her time is up: Gemma must die . . . and Evan has been sent to kill her.But what if she’s the only one who can truly see him? Against every rule. Against fate itself. Against everything and everyone. A story of forbidden love and star-crossed destinies.Dark. Romantic. Dangerous.Touched combines devastating passion and unconfessable secrets, heartrending decisions and deep emotions, giving life to a love story as intense as the feelings that unite Evan and Gemma, as inescapable as the destiny that looms over them . . .