Book picks similar to
City of Scars by Steven Montano


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Night of the Purple Moon


Scott Cramer - 2012
    Her younger brother, Jordan, is having no problem fitting in and making friends.Everyone on Castine Island is anxiously awaiting the arrival of the purple moon, caused by a comet entering the Earth's atmosphere. Scientists expected this thrilling phenomenon and food companies are churning out purple-colored products in celebration of the comet’s arrival.The morning following the comet’s debut Abby and Jordan make a chilling discovery: every adult on the island is dead. The children of the island band together to withstand their new circumstances, and the older kids quickly learn a gripping truth about their own ticking clocks. It's only a matter of time before they succumb to the comet bacteria, but can they raise the next generation to survive?"Frightening and inspiring" - Kirkus Reviews. Riveting dystopian drama for all ages (13+)Alternate Cover edition for ISBN 9780615637082

The Dragons of Dorcastle


Jack Campbell - 2014
    The Mechanics and the Mages have been bitter rivals, agreeing only on the need to keep the world they rule from changing. But now a Storm approaches, one that could sweep away everything that humans have built. Only one person has any chance of uniting enough of the world behind her to stop the Storm, but the Great Guilds and many others will stop at nothing to defeat her.Mari is a brilliant young Mechanic, just out of the Guild Halls where she has spent most of her life learning how to run the steam locomotives and other devices of her Guild. Alain is the youngest Mage ever to learn how to change the world he sees with the power of his mind. Each has been taught that the works of the other’s Guild are frauds. But when their caravan is destroyed, they begin to discover how much has been kept from them.As they survive danger after danger, Alain discovers what Mari doesn’t know—that she was long ago prophesized as the only one who can save their world. When Mari reawakens emotions he had been taught to deny, Alain realizes he must sacrifice everything to save her. Mari, fighting her own feelings, discovers that only together can she and Alain hope to stay alive and overcome the Dragons of Dorcastle.

The Last Orphans


N.W. Harris - 2014
    In a span of mere hours, the entire adult population is decimated, leaving their children behind to fend for themselves and deal with the horrific aftermath of the freak occurrence. As one of the newly made elders in his small town, Shane finds himself taking on the role of caretaker for a large group of juvenile survivors. One who just happens to be Kelly Douglas—an out-of-his-league classmate—who, on any other day, would have never given Shane a second glance. Together, they begin their quest to find out why all of the adults were slaughtered. What they find is even more horrifying than anything they could have expected—the annihilation of the adults was only the beginning. Shane and his friends are not the unlucky survivors left to inherit this new, messed-up planet. No, they are its next victims. There is an unknown power out there, and it won’t stop until every person in the world is dead. A spine-tingling adventure that will have you gasping for breath all the way until the last page, The Last Orphans is the first book in an all-new apocalyptic series.

Three Wells of the Sea


Terry Madden - 2016
    . .When Nechtan, warrior king of the Five Quarters is murdered, he leaves his land on the brink of civil war. His closest adviser, the druid Lyleth, has a price on her head and the evidence to condemn the real killer. Seeking to unify the land, she strikes a bargain with her green gods and weaves a forgotten spell to summon her king from the land of the dead.Hugh Cavendish is torn from his life as a high school English teacher and pitched back into the turmoil of his previous life as king Nechtan. If he and Lyleth fail to regain his throne and prevent civil war, the ice-born reaver known as the Bear waits to snatch up the scraps of the kingdom. As Hugh clings to life in our world, in the other he must face the rebellion as well as the Bear. If he lets go of life in either world he will lose not only his kingdom but the woman he loves.

Crossing in Time


D.L. Orton - 2015
    The future isn't hidden, it's a trap. If she ever wants to see him again, she'll have to take the risk. Fall into this "Funny, Romantic & Harrowing" (Publishers Weekly Starred Review) dystopian love story and prepare to encounter a finicky time machine, a mysterious seashell, and a very clever dog (some sex, some swearing, some violence, but no vampires and absolutely NO ditzes!)When offered a one-way trip to the past, Isabel sacrifices everything for a chance to change the rapidly deteriorating present--and see her murdered lover one last time. When she arrives twenty years in the past, buck naked and mortally wounded, she has 24 hours to convince a stunned but enraptured nineteen-year-old to change their future. Definitely easier said than done, as success means losing him to a brainy, smart-mouthed bombshell (her younger self), and that's a heart breaker, save the world or not.This offbeat tale is about falling madly in love when one is too cynical for such things, letting go of pessimism when it's the last life jacket on a sinking ship, and racing against the clock when one doesn't have the proper footwear. It's a coming-of-age story for old fogeys, a how-to-make-love guide for diehard celibates, and a laugh-out-loud tragedy with a hopeful twist.Alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here

Witch for Hire


N.E. Conneely - 2014
    She’s clanless, looking for a warlock who isn’t offended by her lack of family connections, and in danger of losing her job if she can’t find the escaped trolls before they start eating the local residents. Trolls, angry police, and misbehaving spells are the least of her problems. Statues attacking homeowners might be problematic for your average witch, but to Michelle it’s another day at the office. Her real concern is the wizard suddenly interested in dating her and an old elf set on pestering her. When her happy family is rocked by a long kept secret her stable life falls apart faster than she can pick up the pieces. And she still hasn’t found those trolls.

You Are Mine


Janeal Falor - 2013
    She will always be owned by a warlock. She will never have freedom. She will always do what her warlock wishes, regardless of how inane, frivolous, or cruel it is. And if she doesn’t follow the rules, she will be tarnished. Spelled to be bald, inked, and barren for the rest of her life—worth less than the shadow she casts.Then her ownership is won by a barbarian from another country. With the uncertainty that comes from belonging to a new warlock, Serena questions if being tarnished is really worse than being owned by a barbarian, and tempts fate by breaking the rules. When he looks the other way instead of punishing her, she discovers a new world. The more she ventures into the forbidden, the more she learns of love and a freedom just out of reach. Serena longs for both. But in a society where women are only ever property, hoping for more could be deadly.

Unlit


Keri Arthur - 2018
    Between those who are free, and those who are not… Though classified as having no magic, Neve March can hear the whispers of the wind and sometimes even control her. But it’s a secret she must hold close if she wishes to continue as Nightwatch—the soldiers who guard Winterborne against those who roam the wastelands and feast on human flesh. When Neve is sent to investigate a faint SOS signal, she not only unearths a woman close to death, but a plot involving an ancient enemy long thought dead. In an effort to expose those behind the plot, Neve goes undercover amongst Winterborne’s elite—a dangerous step that could expose her secret and rip away all that she holds dear. The trail of treachery leads her from Winterborne’s golden halls to the heart of the enemy’s hive, and it will shake her belief of not only who she is, but what she is

Moon Chosen


P.C. Cast - 2016
    Chosen to follow her destiny. Chosen to change her world.Mari is an Earth Walker, heir to the unique healing powers of her Clan, but she has been forced to turn from her duties, until she is chosen by a special animal ally, altering her destiny forever. When a deadly attack tears her world apart, Mari reveals the strength of her powers and the forbidden secret of her dual nature as she embarks on a mission to save herself and her people. It is not until Nik, the son of the leader from a rival, dominating Tribe, strays across her path that Mari experiences something she has never felt before…Now evil is coming, and with it, a force more terrible and destructive than the world has ever seen, leaving Mari to cast the shadows from the earth. By breaking Clan Law and forming an alliance with Nik, she must make herself ready. Ready to save her people. Ready to save herself and Nik. Ready to embrace her true destiny…and battle the forces that threaten to destroy them all.

Broken


Dean Murray - 2011
    At least she thought so until the two most intriguing guys in her new school take an interest in her.Both boys are gorgeous and blessed with obscene amounts of money. They should have the emotional depth of note cards, but instead display undercurrents she doesn't fully understand. Rumors the pair destroys peoples' livelihoods seem ludicrous until she gets caught in the crossfire and her family almost loses their home. She's increasingly unsure either boy is really human, and their rivalry is rapidly turning deadly.

Mark of the Mage


R.K. Ryals - 2013
    Medeisia is a country in turmoil ruled by a blood thirsty king who has outlawed the use of magic and anything pertaining to knowledge. Magery and scribery are forbidden. All who practice are marked with a tattoo branded onto their wrists, their futures precarious. Sixteen year-old Drastona Consta-Mayria lives secluded, spending her spare time in the Archives of her father's manor surrounded by scribes. She wants nothing more than to become one of them, but when the scribes are royally disbanded, she is thrust into a harsh world where the marked must survive or die.

Illumine


Alivia Anders - 2012
    Haunted by vivid nightmares and hallucinations of the event she does anything she can to pretend she's like every other normal girl in High School. Only Essallie is far from normal. Able to conjure blue fire and a shimmering silhouette of wings from her body, she seeks the only known solace left to her name; her first home in Belfast, Maine.But she soon realizes that her return home is only the beginning of a long and twisted road taking her as far from her humanity as possible, with Kayden, the demon originally summoned to slaughter her, leading the way. Unable to touch her but oddly curious, he joins Essallie in her search to find out just what she is. But neither of them were prepared for the secrets they've begun to unravel, secrets that will change Essallie and everyone around her forever.

Avondale


Toby Neighbors - 2014
    Only a few fortified cities high in the mountains have survived. The lands below lay covered by a permanent barrier of mist and only huge, monstrous beasts ever rise up above the cloud bank.In Avondale, the Earl’s son harbors a secret. Magic is blamed for the cataclysm and outlawed in the high mountain cities, but Tiberius longs to become a wizard. When he finally begins to practice magic, he knows his time in the wondrous city of Avondale is short, but where can he go? What lies beneath the mists that surround his mountaintop home? And if he ventures out of the city, how will he survive in a land that no one has ever returned from?Avondale is the first book in new epic fantasy series that explores a fantastic world full of wonder and more than a little danger. It’s a fast paced adventure, with strong characters and magical places that you won’t want to put down. Written by Toby Neighbors, author of the best selling series The Five Kingdoms, Avondale is a fresh, new, high action fantasy novel that will sweep you away into a world of magic and wizards, swords and sorcery.

A Drop of Blue


Isa Briarwood - 2017
    And she's not there alone. Stranded amongst countless others struggling to grasp that the year is 2043, she meets Angus Danann, a handsome 19-year-old boy from Ireland. They are magnetically drawn to each other from the beginning, although Cate tries to suppress her feelings. But then Angus tells her about an intriguing Irish myth involving a goddess of dreams and the man who loves her. They both recognize themselves in the legend, and admit to having independent yet eerily coincidental experiences. It becomes clear that Angus and Cate are destined to be at The Village together, if only to figure out how to help the other “rifters” back to their own time. As the two of them struggle through one harrowing situation after another, they attract the attention of General Lyons, the stern overseer of The Village. He suspects the rising toll of incidents associated with Angus and Cate aren't happening by chance. With their lives at risk, Angus is forced to reveal a secret that changes the game completely—for all of them. If they give General Lyons what he wants, they get to go home. But if they succeed at their task, Cate and Angus doom themselves to being stranded in vastly different times, separated from one another forever.

The Institute


Kayla Howarth - 2015
    Always looking over your shoulder. The source of your fear? The Institute.Allira Daniels will do anything to keep her Defective brother safe from the Institute. They claim to protect Defectives, but it’s human nature to fear the unknown. Defectives are dangerous, they possess abilities that no human should be able to. To Allira and the rest of her family, the Institute seems more like a prison than the safe-haven they promote themselves to be. Protecting Shilah from that fate is their number one priority.When Allira stumbles across a car crash involving two of her school classmates, she ignores all of her father’s warnings of laying low and not drawing attention to herself. By doing so, she may have just caught the eye of the Institute. She’s not Defective, but what seventeen-year-old girl has the ability to pull two teenage boys away from a fiery rubble and walk away without a scratch? It would definitely be seen as suspicious.Allira and her family need to make decisions. Do they stay, or do they flee again? Will they be coming for her? Will her whole family come under investigation? Will they discover Shilah and his ability to predict the future?Are you Defective? The Institute is coming for you.