Mar 04 18:46

Light Beneath Ferns

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Light Beneath Ferns by Anne Spollen
245 pages; 2010

This contemporary ghost story begins on a suspenseful note, with narrator Elizah Rayne warning readers, “If death and the dead make you afraid, you better just stop reading and go take a nap.” However, heavy foreshadowing and transparent characterizations mar the overall effect. In order to escape the scandal of her father's sudden disappearance, Elizah and her mother move to a different town, where Elizah resists making friends with her new classmates. Her interests are limited to bones, specifically the human jawbone she found in the woods, and Nathaniel, a mysterious loner she meets under a bridge, whose touch (a “mingling of coolness and heat”) reminds Elizah of “light beneath ferns.” Evidence mounts that Nathaniel is a ghost, but Elizah remains skeptical until a local psychic helps her piece together the puzzle of Nathaniel's history. ~From Publisher's Weekly

Mar 04 18:37

Borderline

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Borderline by Allan Stratton
298 pages; 2010

Printz Honor–winner Stratton (Chanda's Secrets) explores the genesis of and fallout from racial and religious discrimination in this thriller about a Muslim boy's life, which is turned on its head when his father is accused of collaborating with Islamic terrorists in a plot to contaminate the water supplies in New York City and Toronto. But 15-year-old Mohammed “Sami” Sabiri has more to worry about than the resulting media circus and his father's incarceration. How can he avoid being bullied at school? How will his mother support the family after being fired? And are the allegations about his father true or are they the result of a scared community and a government embracing prejudice at its worst? When Sami goes undercover to verify his father's innocence, the story reaches a fist-clenching pinnacle before a conclusion that should defy readers' expectations. ~From Publisher's Weekly

 

Mar 04 18:28

Some Girls Are

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Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
245 pages; 2010

Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard—falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High... until vicious rumors about her and her best friend's boyfriend start going around. Now Regina's been "frozen out" and her ex-best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully. Friendship doesn't come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend... if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don't break them both first. ~Publisher's Description

Mar 04 18:23

They Never Came Back

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They Never Came Back by Caroline B. Cooney
200 pages; 2010

In a busy school cafeteria, a teenage girl is confronted by a classmate who questions her identity. He explains to the students who have crowded around that the girl bears an uncanny resemblance to his cousin, who was taken away by social services five years ago. Her parents abandoned her, fleeing the country after being accused of embezzling millions of dollars. The students are intrigued, but the girl shrugs off the attention as a case of mistaken identity.

As the days pass, however, the boy refuses to relent and even brings his parents in to back him up. But they are not the only adults involved. An FBI agent who has been working the case these past five years believes that whoever this girl is, she can serve as bait to help the FBI capture the fugitives. ~Publisher's Description

Mar 04 18:14

Heist society

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Heist Society by Ally Carter
287 pages; 2010

When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her to the Louvre . . . to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria . . . to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own — scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving “the life” for a normal life proves harder than she’d expected.
Soon, Kat’s friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster’s priceless art collection has been stolen and he wants it returned. Only a master thief could have pulled off this job, and Kat’s father isn’t just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat’s dad needs her help.
For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it’s a spectacularly impossible job? She’s got two weeks, a teenage crew, and, hopefully, just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family’s (very crooked) history — and with any luck, steal her life back along the way. ~Publisher's Description

Jan 28 14:26

The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet

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The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet by Erin Dionne
290 pages; 2010

Hamlet Kennedy just wants to be your average, happy, vanilla eighth grader. But with Shakespearean scholar parents who dress in Elizabethan regalia and generally go about in public as if it were the sixteenth century, that's not terribly easy. It gets worse when they decide that Hamlet's genius sevenyear- old sister will attend middle school with her— and even worse when the Shakespeare project is announced and her sister is named the new math tutor. By the time an in-class recitation reveals that our heroine is an extraordinary Shakespearean actress, Hamlet can no longer hide from the fact that she—like her family—is anything but average. ~Publisher's Description

Jan 28 14:19

Some Girls Are

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Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
245 pages; 2010

Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard--falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High... until vicious rumors about her and her best friend's boyfriend start going around. Now Regina's been "frozen out" and her ex-best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully. Friendship doesn't come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend... if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don't break them both first.

Tensions grow and the abuse worsens as the final days of senior year march toward an explosive conclusion in this dark new tale from the author of Cracked Up To Be. ~Publisher's Description

 

Jan 20 15:12

Captivate

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Captivate by Carrie Jones
276 pages; 2010

Zara and her friends knew they hadn't solved the pixie problem for good. Far from it. The king's needs grow deeper every day he's stuck in captivity, while his control over his people gets weaker. It's made him vulnerable. And now there's a new king in town.

A turf war is imminent, since the new pixie king, Astley, is moving in quickly. Nick nearly killed him in the woods on day one, but Zara came to his rescue. Astley swears that he and Zara are destined to be together, that he's one of the good guys. Nick isn't buying it, though Zara isn't as sure -- despite herself, she wants to trust the new king. But it's a lot more than her relationship with Nick that is at stake. It's her life -- and his. ~Publisher's Description

Jan 12 14:59

The Pale Assassin

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The Pale Assassin by Patricia Elliot
336 pages; 2009

This exciting novel about a teen aristocrat who must question the justice of her own wealth while facing the cataclysmic divisions of her society will captivate readers as secrets come out, sympathies shift, and every choice can change—or end—a life.

Spoiled, beautiful fourteen-year-old Eugénie de Boncoeur is accustomed to outrageous privilege. The French Revolution may rage around her, but Eugénie's luxurious lifestyle is only improved by visits from her brother, Armand, especially doting since the two were orphaned. What Eugénie doesn't know is that their guardian has promised her in marriage to the wealthy, vengeful Le Fantome, a revolutionary nursing a secret grudge against her family. As the Revolution becomes increasingly violent, Eugénie is shipped off to convent school. Finally, there is no place in France that is safe for her. Eugénie dusts off her lightly used brains and rises to the challenge of survival; and soon she is in the thick of turmoil and romance, confronting spies, secret agents, and double-crossing suitors in her quest to get out of France alive. ~Publisher's Description

Jan 12 14:51

Out of the Blue

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Out of the Blue by S.L. Rottman
297 pages; 2009

Stu and his mom are heading to Minot, North Dakota, where she will assume command of the Air Force base. But this time it will be just the two of them. His brother is away at college, and their father has abruptly decided to move to Nevada. With his family scattered and his mother preoccupied with military duties, Stu finds himself on his own and adrift in this new environment, caught between a respect for the regimented life of the military and an aching desire for independence and freedom. As he struggles to find his way, he is pulled into his neighbors' dysfunctional family drama and becomes an unwitting participant. When tragedy finally strikes, Stu must come to terms with his own culpability. ~Publisher's Description