Book picks similar to
Apple by R.A. Black


young-adult
horror
ya
first-reads-giveaways

The Unquiet


Mikaela Everett - 2015
    She is the perfect sleeper-soldier. But she’s beginning to suspect she is not a good person. The two Earths are identical in almost every way. Two copies of every city, every building, even every person. But the people from the second Earth know something their duplicates do not—two versions of the same thing cannot exist. They—and their whole planet—are slowly disappearing. Lira has been trained mercilessly since childhood to learn everything she can about her duplicate, to be a ruthless sleeper-assassin who kills that other Lirael and steps seamlessly into her life.An intricate, literary stand-alone from an astonishing new voice, The Unquiet takes us deep inside the psyche of a strong teenage heroine struggling with what she has been raised to be and who she really is. Fans of eerily futuristic and beautifully crafted stories such as Never Let Me Go, Orphan Black, and Fringe will find themselves haunted by this unsettling debut.

Nine Tails 5: Void Shift


J.L. Weil - 2019
    Karina and Devyn are on the run. No destination in mind. Sleeping in random hotels. And running from a band of faes sent to kill her. Sounds like a good time...if you were insane. There was nothing glamorous about Karina’s current situation, except for Devyn St. Cyr. The Shaman born to protect her, but Karina can’t seem to stop thinking about his lips, his eyes, his hands, and how he makes her feel. The last thing she should be doing is falling in love. Karina struggles to control her powers. The stronger she gets, the harder it becomes for her. She always knew there would come a time when she would have to travel to the Second Moon, but it might be sooner than she is prepared for.

When We Were Animals


Joshua Gaylord - 2015
    In fact, she never thought she would escape her small and peculiar hometown. When We Were Animals is Lumen's confessional: as a well-behaved and over-achieving teenager, she fell beneath the sway of her community's darkest, strangest secret. For one year, beginning at puberty, every resident "breaches" during the full moon. On these nights, adolescents run wild, destroying everything in their path.Lumen resists. Promising her father she will never breach, she investigates the mystery of her community's traditions and the stories erased from the town record. But the more we learn about the town's past, the more we realize that Lumen's memories are harboring secrets of their own.A gothic coming-of-age tale for modern times, When We Were Animals is a dark, provocative journey into the American heartland.

Empath


H.K. Savage - 2010
    She’s lived her entire life as a slave to a constant barrage of emotions that weren't hers. Off to college she hopes simply to blend with the crowd where she can best hide her curse. Within her first few weeks at school Claire meets Stephen Andrews, a small, fragile looking boy who changes her life forever. 

Stephen, a boy with a secret of his own, instantly recognizes Claire for what she is. It is through Stephen's aid that Claire meets James, a vampire with a talent of his own. As soon as they touch, their abilities connect in a way that has not occurred in over three hundred years forming a bond that cannot be broken. Follow the trilogy:BondedSecretsBe sure to check out the other books by HK Savage:Life BloodBlood Bound

Super Dark


Tanith Morse - 2013
    Ten years ago on Halloween night, grotesque creatures snatched her best friend Elliot and Sam narrowly escaped with her life. Now a decade on, the police investigation has ground to a halt and Elliot’s whereabouts remains a mystery. Traumatized by her ordeal, Sam finds it hard to make friends. She is mistrustful of authority and changed schools more times than she cares to remember. To her, the world is cruel and unforgiving. Then she meets the enigmatic Lee Weaver. With his gorgeous face and magnetic presence, he turns heads wherever he goes. Sam has never wanted anyone as much as she wants Lee, but there are things about the alluring stranger that don’t add up, leading Sam to ask unsettling questions about her past. Soon she discovers the boy of her dreams is keeping a terrible secret: one that threatens to destroy everything Sam holds dear . . .Super Dark is a seductive love story that will keep you guessing right until the final page ...

The Vampire Chronicles: The Queen of the Damned, Interview with the Vampire, the Vampire Lestat, etc


Source Wikipedia - 2011
    If you would prefer to read the unedited articles in their old format for free, we have provided a list of the article titles under "chapters" below. Simply go to Wikipedia and use their search form to locate each individual article.)Chapters: The Queen of the Damned, Interview with the Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, Memnoch the Devil, The Tale of the Body Thief, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles, Those Who Must Be Kept, The Vampire Armand, Blood and Gold, Marius de Romanus, Maharet and Mekare, Pandora, Jessica Miriam Reeves, Khayman, Daniel Molloy, Talamasca Caste, Merrick, Blood Canticle, Vittorio the Vampire, Théâtre des Vampires, Merrick Mayfair, Amel, Blackwood Farm, Mona Mayfair, Avicus, Santiago.

The Angel Knights


Mary Ting - 2016
    Their children, Zachary and Lucia, were destined to be demon hunters—Venators. From the age they were able to hold a sword, they were trained to become the best and to ensure they would become leaders one day. All is peaceful throughout the land until the Fallen and demons’ presences were felt in the between and on Earth. As the Venators investigate these locations, they will quickly learn how dangerous their lives are. Hearts will be broken. Teammates will lose their lives. And they will face obstacles which will test their faith. As danger grows, the fear of fallen angels and demons regrouping has the Divine Elders on pins and needles. Now, Zachary and Lucia, along with Uncle Davin, must prepare themselves—mentally and physically—to live on Earth to investigate where the focal point of evil resides before it’s too late.

Shelter


Tara Shuler - 2011
    Alice Wright is a young vampire going to high school for the first time at the age of seventeen at the behest of her eccentric mother. In many ways, she's more afraid of the human students than they would be of her. She feels lost and awkward in human society, but she soon develops a strong bond with the cousin of one of her human classmates, nineteen year old Kai. He is beautiful, but somewhat of an enigma. She discovers a dark secret in Kai's life, and she instantly wants to shelter him from the pain that has tormented him all his life. Then she meets Maksim Augustine, the incredibly gorgeous guy who seems more like he should be a model than a high school student. She is overwhelmingly attracted to him physically, but her love for Kai causes her to continually push him away. Eventually, she discovers a frightening secret about Max, too. But Max's secret threatens to destroy everything...

The Dream Slayer


Jill Cooper - 2012
    Natalie Johnson has always dreamed she's someone else; calm, beautiful, in control. A chosen warrior with a maniacal arch nemesis and a dreamy boyfriend, the type that can make your knees melt and your heart quiver. Real life is much different. She's tormented by a bully and endures the sharp tongue of her father, but finds solace in her dreams. When her bully ends up dead, de ja vu from a dream hits her hard as everything around her begins to fall apart. Whatever killed Sarah in her dreams is now in reality, hunting her from the shadows. And it wants her dead. Somehow as the lines between reality and nightmare blur, Natalie must discover hidden strength to pull her friends and family back from the brink of madness.

Carmilla: A Dark Fugue


David Brian - 2013
    However, General Spielsdorf does not travel alone. Moreover, his band of companions carry a secret of their own, and it is one which will likely spell disaster for any who fall prey to their urges. The General is about to discover that when werewolves and vampires clash; there can be no winners. Carmilla: A Dark Fugue - is a stand alone story which unfolds parallel to the events in Carmilla: The Wolves of Styria.

Instinct


Mattie Dunman - 2013
    For as long as she can remember, Derry has been plagued by the extraordinary ability to hear, see, and feel the truth. But when Derry and her erratic, self-centered mother move to historic Harpers Ferry, she discovers she is not the only one with hidden talents. As the newest reporter on the school newspaper, Derry learns of a high school student’s unexpected suicide and recognizes that the truth behind her death may still be hidden. When tragedy strikes, Derry is drawn into a deadly battle of wits with the only person whom her abilities don’t affect. Driven by guilt and an obsession with bringing the killer to justice, Derry finds herself in danger from a vindictive murderer, a sadistic deviant who preys on the weak, and trapped in the middle of a treacherous triangle of attraction between two brothers whose abilities rival her own. Derry must trust her instincts to guide her to the truth and bring her enemies to justice even as she fights for her own survival.INSTINCT focuses on a gifted, intelligent, and loyal heroine who must contend not only with the inherent dangers of high school bullying and backstabbing, but with loss, grief, and guilt. Against issues of sexual abuse, teenage suicide, and destructive relationships, the heroine learns to cherish the strength of real friendship, understand accountability, and experiences the healing touch of first love.

Dragon Guard


Eric J. Krause - 2013
     Sophomore Ben Phillips thought his biggest problems were homework and his bickering parents, but when he runs into a couple of wandering zombies on his way to school, he realizes there is a whole multiverse of worse things out there. His life gets even weirder when he falls for the new girl at school, Andi Thomas, who is a 758 year-old dragon in a fifteen year-old girl's body. If all of that isn't enough, fate has decided that Ben should be Andi's Dragon Guard, her soul-bound mate with superpowers straight out of comic books and video games. When a demon-infused necromancer kidnaps first Ben's parents, and then Andi's, those powers are the only thing that could save them. Unfortunately, Ben and Andi are only partially bound, meaning their powers aren't anywhere near full strength. Will they be strong enough to save the day? Oh, and there's also the matter of a mysterious prophecy that Ben and Andi are at the center of … NOTE: This book was originally published in 2013 by Hunt Press with a different cover. This is no longer a Hunt Press publication. I've made a few minor changes in the text, but nothing changed plot or structure-wise. If you already own Dragon Guard, there is no need to purchase this edition.

Rooms


Lauren Oliver - 2014
    His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance. But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb. The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

The Other Side of Elsewhere


Brett McKay - 2018
    He and his friends have the perfect summer planned before they start sixth grade, and his new job at the local mortuary promises enough pocket money for all the sodas they can drink. A dare from an older boy quickly ruins their plans. Everyone knows to stay away from the Crooked House, but after Ret and his friends take on the dare to spend the night in the abandoned house, they become caught up in the house’s dark history. Later, an outsider buys the house. When people start to disappear, Ret is determined to solve the mystery before it swallows the entire town. His obsession with the Crooked House and its strange new owner threatens to put him and his friends in danger more terrifying than anything they could have imagined.

Asylum


Kristen Selleck - 2011
    These crumbling castles all share a common appearance and history. They inspire curiosity, fear, and even a few urban legends.Chloe Adams came to Birch Harbor, a small college town in the U.P., to escape the stigma of mental illness. Her new roommate Sam Klingeman, came to drink her weight in vodka and find a hot guy with a trust fund. Between Chloe's developing relationship with campus hockey hero and floor RA, Seth Maird, trying to be the voice of moderation for Sam, and her new position as teacher's assistant for the eccentric Dr. Willard, she's stayed busy enough to keep the past firmly behind her.But the voices return...and this time, she's not the only one that can hear them.The beautiful old dormitory she lives in is hiding a secret. A secret that will uncover a dark plot 200 years in the making. Will Chloe be able to hold onto the new life she's worked so hard to build, will she relapse into a world of her own making, or will she, perhaps, fulfill the legacy she was born into?