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Goodbye, Perfect


Sara Barnard - 2018
    . . Now you are wild - what am I? Eden McKinley knows she can’t count on much in this world, but she can depend on Bonnie, her solid, steady, straight-A best friend. So it’s a complete shock when, five days before the start of their GCSEs, Bonnie runs away with a guy Eden knows nothing about. And it's the last person she would ever have expected.As the days pass, and her world begins to unravel, Eden is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her best friend and herself.

The Diviners Exclusive Preview


Libba Bray - 2012
    Evie O'Neill just arrived and she's ecstatic! The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult and Evie worries he'll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far. But when the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer. Printz Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Libba Bray opens a brand-new historical fiction series with The Diviners, where the glittering surface of the Roaring Twenties hides a mystical horror creeping across the country.

Until They Bring the Streetcars Back


Stanley Gordon West - 1997
    Stanley West weaves rollicking humor, riveting suspense, and a bittersweet love story into the fabric of those optimistic times. Through a seemingly harmless prank and a chance conversation, Cal Gant, previously secure in the friendly neighborhoods of his idyllic life, stumbles onto the naked face of cruelty, incest, and murder. When he attempts to rescue a strange and haunting girl, he finds himself in a heart-stopping struggle with her ruthless father, leading Cal to the brink of self-doubt, terror, and death itself. Can he find within himself the backbone to stand against the horror and the daring to concoct some scheme to set Gretchen free?

The Undrowned Child


Michelle Lovric - 2009
    And at last she has her chance. But strange and sinister things are afoot in the beautiful floating city.Teo is quickly subsumed into a secret world in which salty-tongued mermaids run subversive printing presses, ghosts good and bad patrol the streets, statues speak, rats read and librarians turn fluidly into cats. And where a book, The Key to the Secret City, leads Teo straight into the heart of the danger that threatens to destroy the city to which she feels she belongs.An ancient proverb seems to unite Teo with a Venetian boy, Renzo, and with the Traitor who has returned from the dark past to wreak revenge…. But who is the undrowned child destined to save Venice?

Chopstick


Sandra Byrd - 2005
    But they can't both win - someone must lose and disappoint those who love them. Paige Winsome has always been in the shadow of her athletic brother and academic sister and, as a result, is too often overlooked by her family. Kate Kennedy, a pastor's daughter and only child, received plenty of praise and attention for her voice, but her family struggles to make ends meet and must constantly accept others' charity - and put downs.No sooner do Paige and Kate meet and become fast friends than they discover they're both entering the same singer-songwriter competition and competing for the same $400 prize. Each girl sees this contest as an answer to her problem - for Paige to finally get the recognition she's been waiting, and for Kate, to help others financially without having to ask for handouts. Can this new friendship survive the stress of competition? After all, only one can win ..."This book is excellent. The girls are real, and their conflicts engage the heart. A laugh-out-loud, cry-out-loud, cheer-out-loud book." Romantic Times Book Review, Top Pick, 4 1/2 stars If you enjoyed Chopsticks, be sure to check out Red Velvet and Daisy Chains, two more Forever Friends books also on Kindle.

Bliss


Lauren Myracle - 2008
    The only guide naïve Bliss has to her new environment is what she’s seen on The Andy Griffith Show. But Mayberry is poor preparation for Crestview Academy, an elite school where the tensions of the present and the dark secrets of the past threaten to simmer into violence. Openhearted, naïve Bliss is happy to be friends with anyone. That’s not the way it has ever worked at Crestview, and soon Bliss is at the center of a struggle for power between three girls—two living and one long dead.

The Apothecary


Maile Meloy - 2011
    Here, fourteen-year-old Janie meets a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows—a fascinating boy who’s not afraid to stand up to authority and dreams of becoming a spy. When Benjamin’s father is kidnapped, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary’s sacred book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping it out of the hands of their enemies—Russian spies in possession of nuclear weapons. Discovering and testing potions they never believed could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending disaster.

Onward: The Search for the Phoenix Gem: An In-Questigation (Disney Pixar Onward)


Steve Behling - 2020
    She goes to school, hangs out with her friends, and dreams of becoming a journalist. But the problem is, nothing exciting ever seems to happen in her town of New Mushroomton. Sadalia wonders if she'll ever get the chance to write a true investigative story. Then one day something mysterious, monumental, and shockingly magical erupts at her high school, sending everything into chaos. And the whole event centers on two elf brothers, Ian and Barley Lightfoot. Sadalia thinks this is her chance to finally write a real story. But there are so many questions: What caused this event? How are Ian and Barley involved? And why were they searching for a magical object known as the Phoenix Gem? It's up to Sadalia to set out on her own in-questigation, to follow the Lightfoot brothers' epic quest and discover the truth about the events that transformed her town and her entire world.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond and Related Readings


Elizabeth George Speare
    The Witch of Blackbird Pond with related readings.

Bloodchild


Tim Bowler - 2008
    All he knows is that he's had an accident & that his life is slipping away. Against all the odds he survives - but with an almost total loss of memory. He does not even know himself. At night he is tormented by visions, in the daytime by hostile strangers. Why does he have so many enemies?

A Tale of Two Castles


Gail Carson Levine - 2011
    Which is the villainous whited sepulcher?Elodie journeys to the town of Two Castles to become a mansioner—an actress—but luck is against her. She is saved from starvation by the dragon Meenore, who sends her on a dangerous mission inside the ogre's castle. There, disguised as a kitchen maid at an ogre's feast, she finds herself cast in the role of a lifetime and pitted against a foe intent on murder.Newbery Honor author Gail Carson Levine weaves an entrancing tale of a fearsome ogre, a dragon detective, and a remarkable heroine, who finds friendship where she least expects it, learns that there are many ways to mansion, and discovers that goodness and evil come in all shapes and sizes.

The Dark Inside


Rupert Wallis - 2014
    Hoping to find a 'cure' for a dark curse inflicted on the homeless man, the pair embark on a journey together not knowing that what they discover will impact them both in ways they never imagined...A gripping and haunting story about loss and hope, perfect for fans of Patrick Ness and David Almond.

Dancing in the Streets of Brooklyn


April Lurie - 2002
    But in July 1944, Judy’s carefree days and her innocence are shaken by a discovery: The man she’s always called Pa isn’t her real father. Even more shocking, Judy learns that the father she doesn’t remember was an alcoholic who abandoned his family. That’s why Judy’s mother emigrated to America from Norway. Now Judy feels jumbled inside: She’s angry at her mother for keeping the truth from her–and she’s suddenly awkward around Pa. Nothing her parents say soothes the hurt.At first, even the attentions of Jacob Jacobsen don’t make her feel any better. Judy likes Jacob; it’s just that his dad’s drinking binges hit too close to home. Ashamed, Judy doesn’t want anyone to find out her secret. But as misfortune befalls Jacob, Judy’s close friends, and her own family, Judy rallies to their side, and in the process recognizes that growing up encompasses forgiveness–of others and of herself.

The Aviary


Kathleen O'Dell - 2011
    Clara has never known another home. In fact, she's confined to the grand estate due to a mysterious heart condition. But it's a comfortable life, and if it weren't for the creepy squawking birds in the aviary out back, a completely peaceful one too. But once old Mrs. Glendoveer passes away, Clara comes to learn many dark secrets about the family. The Glendoveers suffered a horrific tragedy: their children were kidnapped, then drowned. And their father George Glendoveer, a famous magician and illusionist, stood accused until his death. As Clara digs deeper and deeper into the terrifying events, the five birds in the aviary seem to be trying to tell her something. And Clara comes to wonder: what is their true identity? Clara sets out to solve a decades-old murder mystery—and in doing so, unlocks a secret in her own life, too. Kathleen O'Dell deftly weaves magic, secret identities, evil villians, unlikely heroes, and the wonder of friendship into a mystery adventure with all the charm of an old fashioned classic.

The Last Knight


Hilari Bell - 2007
    He's found himself a reluctant partner in Fisk, a clever rogue who has been given the choice of serving as Michael's squire or going to jail for a very long time. Now Michael and Fisk are on a quest to right wrongs, protect the innocent, and make the world a happier place.It's not going to be easy. On their first attempt at rescuing a damsel in distress, they break a lady out of a tower, only to discover she was there for good reason: awaiting trial for poisoning her husband. Now the would-be heroes must find Lady Ceciel and return her to justice or be condemned themselves.