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COL |
The Supernaturalist
(age 12+) by Eoin Colfer spooky ... science fiction ... adventure ... action Publisher comments: In futuristic Satellite City, fourteen-year-old Cosmo Hill escapes from his abusive orphanage and teams up with three other people who share his unusual ability to see supernatural creatures. Together they determine the nature and purpose of the swarming blue Parasites that are invisible to most humans. |
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WES |
The Uglies Series (age 12+) by Scott Westerfeld adventure ... action ... fantasy ... science fiction Publisher comments: Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that? Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her license, but for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there. But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world, and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever. title: uglies title: pretties title: specials title: extras |
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TAY |
Shadowmancer
(age 12+) by G. P. Taylor adventure ... action ... magic ... fantasy Catalog: When Obadiah Demurral, the power-hungry Vicar of Thorpe, attempts to become a god by dabbling in magic, Raphah (who has come from Africa to get back the artifact stolen from his Temple and sold to Demurral) joins forces with Kate and Thomas to stop him. |
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NIX |
The Abhorsen Trilogy (age 12+) by Garth Nix action ... adventure ... magic ... fantasy Publisher comments: Since childhood, Sabriel has lived outside the walls of the Old Kingdom, away from the power of Free Magic, and away from the Dead who refuse to stay dead. But now her father, the Mage Abhorson, is missing, and Sabriel must cross into that world to find him. With Mogget, whose feline form hides a powerful, perhaps malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage, Sabriel travels deep into the Old Kingdom. There she confronts an evil that threatens much more than her life'and comes face to face with her own hidden destiny. title: Sabriel title: Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr title: Abhorsen |
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LEE |
The Claidi Journals (age 12+) by Tanith Lee letters/journal ... adventure ... action ... fantasy Publisher comments: A new teen fantasy series begins with this story that sweeps readers into an epic adventure while probing truths of adolescence. Claidi is a 16-year-old orphan, forced to serve as a handmaiden to a cruel, royal family in the oppressive House. Outspoken and ready for romance, she becomes embroiled in a plot to rescue a handsome, intriguing prisoner. title: Wolf Tower title: Wolf Star title: Wolf Queen title: Wolf Wing |
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HIL |
The Icemark Chronicles (age 12+) by Stuart Hill adventure ... action ... war ... princesses ... fantasy After the death of her beloved father, headstrong princess Thirrin Freer Strong-In-The-Arm becomes warrior queen of her homeland, Icemark, defending it from a formidable invader. Despite Thirrin's bravery and the support of Oskan, the Witch's son, the task proves more difficult than Thirrin ever dreamed. She must assemble a force to rival her opponent. And, in the chill winter of Icemark, she only has until spring to unite the strange beasts and frightening creatures who live just outside her country. Ultimately, it is Thirrin's vision and determination that will see her through to victory. title: The Cry of the Icemark title: Blade of Fire title: Last Battle of the Icemark |
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DUN |
The Hollow Kingdom Trilogy (age 12+) by Clare B. Dunkle adventure ... action ... magic ... fantasy Publisher comments: For thousands of years, young women have been vanishing from Hallow Hill, never to be seen again. Now Kate and Emily have moved there with no idea of the land’s dreadful heritage, until Marak decides to tell them himself. Marak is a powerful magician who claims to be the goblin king, and he has very specific plans for the two new girls who have trespassed into his kingdom. title: The Hollow Kingdom title: Close Kin title: In the Coils of the Snake |
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CAR |
Dragon's Keep
(age 12+) by Janet Lee Carey adventure ... action ... princesses ... fantasy Publisher comments: Far away on Wilde Island, Princess Rosalind is born with a dragon claw where her ring finger should be. To hide the secret, the Queen forces her to wear gloves at all times until a cure can be found, so Rosalind can fulfill the prophecy to restore the family to their rightful throne. But Rosalind's flaw cannot be separated from her fate. When she is carried off by the dragon, everything she thought she knew falls apart. The dragon sees beauty in her talon where her mother saw only shame, and Rosalind finally understands what her mother has truly denied her. |
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ALL |
City of the Beasts
(age 12+) by Isabel Allende nature ... action ... adventure ... family ... fantasy Publisher comments: Alexander Cold is about to join his fearless grandmother on the trip of a lifetime. An International Geographic expedition is headed to the dangerous, remote wilds of South America on a mission to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the Beast. But there are many secrets hidden in the unexplored wilderness, as Alex and his friend Nadia soon discover. Drawing on the strength of their spirit guides, both young people are led on a thrilling and unforgettable journey to the ultimate discovery. sequel: Kingdom of the Golden Dragon sequel: Forest of the Pygmies |
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ZIN |
The Gadget
(age 12+) by Paul Zindel adventure ... action ... math/science/technology ... mystery ... historical Publisher comments: Near the end of World War II, scientists in Los Alamos, New Mexico, are working on a project that will alter the fate of the world. Thirteen-year-old Stephen Orr is living at a top secret military base with his father who is a leading physicist building the atomic bomb. Stephen realizes the dangers involved when one of the scientists becomes hospitalized as a result of working with the project. The scientist alerts him to disasters that could come from The Gadget. Stephen feels it is up to him and his friend Tilanov to find the answers that lie behind this veil of secrecy. |
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WEA |
Memory Boy: A Novel
(age 12+) by Will Weaver action ... adventure ... family ... survival ... science fiction Catalog: Sixteen-year-old Miles and his family must flee their Minneapolis home and begin a new life in the wilderness after a chain of cataclysmic volcanic explosions creates dangerous conditions in their city. |
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PEC |
Cowboy Ghost
(age 12+) by Robert Newton Peck adventure ... action ... historical Publisher comments: The ride of a lifetime! The year is 1924 and the place is Florida's dusty and rugged "long" country. Sixteen-year-old Titus Timothy MacRobertson--"Tee"--can saddle up a wild mustang and round up stray beefs on his father's ranch with the best of them, but does he have what it takes to make it on a grueling cattle drive through the unpredictable Florida wilderness? Battered by a storm, then caught up in a roaring stampede, Tee is ripsawed by the raw edges of ranching. But he manages to hang proud--until fate lands one final blow, and Tee must find the courage to become the man no one but his brother, Micah, ever thought he could be. |
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SNI |
The Sleeper Conspiracy (age 12+) by Tom Sniegoski mystery ... adventure ... action Catalog: Just when he has met a beautiful girl and his outlook is improving, sixteen-year-old narcoleptic Tom Lovett begins to suspect that his dreams and hallucinations of killing people may be something more real and terrifying. This high-action thriller will appeal to fans of Alex Rider. title: Sleeper Code title: Sleeper Agenda |
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HOF |
Stravaganza Series (age 12+) by Mary Hoffman adventure ... action ... historical ... fantasy Publisher comments: During the day, Lucien battles cancer in his modern, normal life. But at night, he becomes a Stravagante, a time-traveler of sorts who finds himself in Belleza, a city parallel to old Venice. Befriended by a local girl and protected by an older Stravagante, Lucien uncovers a plot to murder the city's beloved ruler, the Duchessa. But to save the Duchessa and the city Lucien risks losing his only chance to return home to his family and his real life. title: Stravaganza: City of Masks title: Stravaganza: City of Stars title: Stravaganza: City of Flowers title: Stravaganza: City of Secrets |
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COR |
Monster Blood Tattoo Series (age 12+) by D. M. Cornish action ... adventure ... magic ... fantasy Publisher comments: Meet Rossamund, a foundling, a boy with a girl's name who is about to begin a dangerous life in the service of the Emperor of the Half-Continent. What starts as a simple journey becomes a dangerous and complicated set of battles and decisions. Humans, monsters, unearthly creatures . . . who among these can Rossamund trust? D. M. Cornish has created an entirely original world; Foundling is a magic-laced adventure that will transport the reader. title: Foundling title: Lamplighter |
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YAN |
The Alfred Kropp Adventures (age 12+) by Richard Yancey growing up ... adventure ... action Publisher comments: Alfred Kropp is just trying to survive high school when his guardian uncle ropes him into a suspicious get-rich-quick scheme that changes his life forever: stealing Excalibur, the legendary sword of King Arthur. But when Alfred unwittingly delivers the sword into the wrong hands, he undertakes an unlikely quest to right his wrong and save the world from imminent destruction. This gripping, fast-paced, often hilarious novel is both a thrilling adventure story and an engaging account of one boy's coming of age. title: The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp title: Alfred Kropp: the Seal of Solomon title: Alfred Kropp: the Thirteenth Skull |
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JIN |
Evil Genius Series (age 12+) by Catherine Jinks fantasy ... science fiction ... mystery ... identity ... adventure ... action ... brilliant protagonist ... school Publisher comments: Cadel Piggott has a genius IQ and a fascination with systems of all kinds. At seven, he was illegally hacking into computers. Now he's fourteen and studying for his World Domination degree, taking classes like embezzlement, misinformation, forgery, and infiltration at the institute founded by criminal mastermind Dr. Phineas Darkkon. Although Cadel may be advanced beyond his years, at heart he's a lonely kid. When he falls for the mysterious and brilliant Kay-Lee, he begins to question the moral implications of his studies for the first time. But is it too late to stop Dr. Darkkon from carrying out his evil plot? An engrossing thriller with darkness and humor, freaks and geeks, Evil Genius explores the fine line between good and evil in a strange world of manipulations and subterfuge where nothing is as it seems. title: Evil Genius title: Genius Squad title: Genius Wars |
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MAR |
The Tomorrow Series (age 12+) by John Marsden adventure ... action ... friendship ... survival ... war Publisher comments: When Ellie and six of her friends return home from a camping trip deep in the bush, they find things hideously wrong: their families gone, houses empty and abandoned, pets and stock dead. Gradually they begin to comprehend that their country has been invaded and everyone in the town has been taken prisoner. As the horrible reality of the situation becomes evident they have to make a life-and-death decision: to run back into the bush and hide, to give themselves up to be with their families, or to stay and try to fight. This reveting, tautly-drawn novel seems at times to be only a step away from today's headlines. title: Tomorrow, When the War Began title: The Dead of Night title: A Killing Frost title: Darkness Be My Friend title: Burning For Revenge title: The Night is For Hunting title: The Other Side of Dawn |
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MAR |
The Night Tourist
(age 12+) by Katherine Marsh brilliant protagonist ... fantasy ... action ... adventure Publisher comments: Jack Perdu, a shy, ninth grade classics prodigy lives with father on the Yale University campus. Smart and introverted, Jack spends most of his time alone, his nose buried in a book. But when Jack suffers a near fatal accident, his life is forever changed. His father sends him to a mysterious doctor in New York City--a place Jack hasn't been since his mother died there eight years ago. While in the city, Jack meets Euri, a young girl who offers to show him the secrets of Grand Central Station. Here, Jack discovers New York's Underworld, a place where those who died in the city reside until they are ready to move on. This, Jack believes, is a chance to see his mother again. But as secrets about Euri's past are revealed, so are the true reasons for Jack's visit to the Underworld. Masterfully told, The Night Tourist weaves together New York City's secret history and its modern-day landscape to create a highly vivid ghost world, full of magical adventure and page-turning action. |
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MEY |
Wave Walkers Series (age 12+) by Kai Meyer adventure ... action ... fantasy Catalog: In a place similar to the Caribbean in 1706, two fourteen-year-old "polliwogs"--humans who can walk on water--rely on a mysterious figure known as the Ghost Trader and a band of pirates to help them escape from the evil that is chasing them. title: Pirate Curse title: Pirate Emperor title: Pirate Wars |
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MIK |
Touching Spirit Bear
(age 12+) by Ben Mikaelsen growing up ... survival ... adventure ... action Publisher comments: Within Cole Matthews lie anger, rage and hate. Cole has been stealing and fighting for years. This time he caught Alex Driscal in the, parking lot and smashed his head against the sidewalk. Now, Alex may have permanent brain damage, and Cole is in the biggest trouble of his life. Cole is offered Circle Justice: a system based on Native American traditions that attempts to provide healing for the criminal offender, the victim and the, community. With prison as his only alternative, Cole plays along. He says he wants to repent, but in his heart Cole blames his alcoholic mom his, abusive dad, wimpy Alex (everyone but himself) for his situation. Cole receives a one-year banishment to a remote Alaskan island. There, he is mauled by mysterious white bear of Native American legend. Hideously injured, Cole waits for his death. His thoughts shift from from anger to humility. To survive, he must stop blaming others and take responsibility for his life. Rescuers arrive to save Cole's but it is the attack of the Spirit Bear that may save his soul. sequel: Ghost of Spirit Bear |
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MIT |
The Midnight Twins Series (age 12+) by Jacquelyn Mitchard adventure ... action ... fantasy Publisher comments: Meredith and Mallory Brynn are mirror twins born on either side of midnight one snowy New Year's Eve. They have always been inseparable. But after they are nearly killed in a mysterious fire on their thirteenth birthday, the bond that has always joined them unravels. They begin to have visions and dreams that reveal the deep secrets kept by the people around them. Meredith and Mallory realize they have each been given a gift: Mallory can see deep into the past; Meredith can see the future. But when they discover that one boy is not what they imagined, their lives will be changed forever. If they can survive . . . title: The Midnight Twins title: Look Both Ways |
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MUS |
The Door of No Return
(age 12+) by Sarah Mussi historical ... identity ... mystery ... action ... adventure Publisher comments: Zac Baxter's grandfather has always told him that he's the descendant of African kings, whose treasure was stolen when his ancestors were sold into slavery. Of course, Zac brushes this off as a tall tale, until his grandfather is murdered and their apartment is completely ransacked. Clearly somebody is after something. Heeding his grandfather's dying words, Zac is off to Ghana to track down his family's history. But what did his grandfather mean when he said that Zac had the map to the treasure? Following every clue he can find, Zac begins to suspect that the treasure is real, and hidden in one of Ghana's old slave forts. Too bad the killers always seem to be one step ahead of him. With no one he can trust and with everything to lose, Zac races against time as he tries to uncover the truth about the past, and a fortune in gold. |
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MYE |
Sunrise Over Fallujah
(age 12+) by Walter Dean Myers realistic ... adventure ... action ... survival ... war Publisher comments: Operation Iraqi Freedom, that's the code name. But the young men and women in the military's Civil Affairs Battalion have a simpler name for it: war. In this novel, Walter Dean Myers looks at a contemporary war with the same power and searing insight he brought to the Vietnam war of his classic, Fallen Angels. He creates memorable characters like the book's narrator, Birdy, a young recruit from Harlem who's questioning why he even enlisted; Marla, a blond, tough-talking, wisecracking gunner; Jonesy, a guitar-playing bluesman who just wants to make it back to Georgia and open a club; and a whole unit of other young men and women and drops them incountry in Iraq, where they are supposed to help secure and stabilize Iraq and successfully interact with the Iraqi people. The young civil affairs soldiers soon find their definition of "winning" ever more elusive and their good intentions being replaced by terms like "survival" and "despair." Caught in the crossfire, Myers' richly rendered characters are just beginning to understand the meaning of war in this powerful, realistic novel of our times. |
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PAT |
Maximum Ride Series (age 12+) by James Patterson science fiction ... adventure ... action Publisher comments: Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, Angel, and Maximum: six kids who are 98% human and 2% bird. They grew up in cages, living like rats, but now they're free. When the bloodthirsty Erasers, half men, half wolves genetically engineered by sick and sinister scientists, kidnap little Angel, the Flock embarks on a rescue mission full of nonstop action, adventure, and soul-seeking, not to mention a little bit of saving the world on the side. title: The Angel Experiment title: School's Out-- Forever title: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports title: The Final Warning: A Maximum Ride Novel |
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PET |
The Rule of Won
(age 12+) by Stefan Petrucha realistic ... action ... adventure ... friendship ... school Publisher comments: The secret of The Rule of Won is simple, yet its power has been suppressed for generations. The universe is one of infinite abundance. Ask, and you shall receive. Umm, yeah right. Meet Caleb Dunne, slacker extraordinaire. Caleb prefers to glide through life with the minimal amount of effort, so he isnt too jazzed when his overachieving girlfriend, Vicky, convinces him to join a new school club based on a controversial book, The Rule of Won. Slackers dont join school clubs, do they? As The Rule gains popularity, though, the club members start to gain power within the school. From dark posts on the clubs online message board to all-out threats in the hallways, it becomes apparent that the group is getting out of control. For slacker Caleb, though, the only thing worse than doing something is not doing something. Darkly funny and exceptionally thought-provoking, The Rule of Won, inspired by the ideas behind books like the runaway hit The Secret, shines a light on the dangers of group thinking and the inner desires that can sometimes get the best of us all. |
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REE |
The Hungry City Chronicles (age 12+) by Philip Reeve adventure ... action ... fantasy Publisher comments: London is hunting... The great Traction City lumbers after a small town, eager to strip its prey of all assets and move on. Resources on the Great Hunting Ground that once was Europe are so limited that mobile cities must consume one another to survive, a practice known as Municipal Darwinism. Tom, an apprentice in the Guild of Historians, saves his hero, Head Historian Thaddeus Valentine, from a murder attempt by the mysterious Hester Shaw, only to find himself thrown from the city and stranded with Hester in the Out Country. As they struggle to follow the tracks of the city, the sinister plans of London's leaders begin to unfold. title: Mortal Engines: A Novel title: Predator's Gold: A Novel title: Infernal Devices: A Novel title: A Darkling Plain: A Novel |
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SCO |
Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel (age 12+) by Michael Scott adventure ... action ... fantasy Publisher comments: He holds the secret that can end the world. The truth: Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly 700 years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty. The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects: the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time. title: The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel title: The Magician title: The Sorceress title: The Necromancer |
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SHA |
Demonata Series (age 12+) by Darren Shan adventure ... action ... spooky Publisher comments: Grubbs Grady hates history and loves bacon, rats, and playing tricks on his squeamish older sister. He's a little big for his age, which means he can get into R-rated movies. When Grubbs opts out of a weekend family trip, everything seems normal. He never guesses that he is about to take a terrifying journey into darkness. Hungry demons and howling werewolves haunt his waking nightmares...and threaten his life. title: Lord Loss title: Slawter title: Demon Thief title: Bec title: Blood Beast title: Demon Apocalypse title: Death's Shadow |
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SPR |
Spy Goddess Series (age 12+) by Michael Spradlin humor ... adventure ... action ... mystery Publisher comments: Blackthorn Academy, meet Rachel Buchanan. I'm not a delinquent...I'm just misunderstood. Of course, the judge didn't see it that way. She gave me a choice: juvenile detention or boarding school in Pennsylvania, of all places. That's how I wound up at freaky Blackthorn Academy. This school is clearly hiding some major secrets. And here's something you should know about me: Rachel Buchanan never gives up when there are secrets to uncover. Watch out, Blackthorn Academy! The hilarious new series Spy Goddess brings you a witty combination of espionage, action, mystery, and girlpower. title: Live and Let Shop title: To Hawaii With Love |
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WAR |
The Grassland Trilogy (age 12+) by David Ward fantasy ... action ... adventure Publisher comments: In Grassland the only hope of freedom is to go beyond the reach of sinister, silent masters, and the only family you know are your fellow captives. Coriko has never known a world beyond his cell and the fields where he toils all day. He does what he's told and tries not to anger the Spears, the cruel, masked jailers who guard him and the other child slaves. If he gathers baskets of shards and keeps quiet and orderly, then he can spend time with his cellmate and best friend, Pippa. But without warning, the children's orderly lives begin to change, slowly at first, with the arrival of a pair of siblings who speak Coriko and Pippa's language. Soon after, violent events shake up the quiet world of Grassland, and Coriko must find the strength to grasp his freedom. Full of heartstopping action, Escape the Mask introduces Coriko, Pippa, and their friends, and begins the journey of The Grassland Trilogy. title: Escape the Mask title: Beneath the Mask |
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ASA |
Samurai Girl Series (age 12+) by Carrie Asai survival ... mystery ... action ... adventure Publisher comments: When I was six months old, I dropped from the sky, the lone survivor of a deadly Japanese plane crash. The newspapers called me Heaven. I was adopted by a wealthy family in Tokyo, pampered, and protected. For nineteen years, I thought I was lucky. I'm learning how wrong I was. They say your life begins on your wedding day. Here's what happened on mine: I lost the person I love most. I learned that everything I knew about my family was a lie. Now I'm being hunted. I must fight back, or die. My life ended that day. The old Heaven is gone. I am samurai girl. title: The Book of the Sword title: The Book of the Shadow title: The Book of the Pearl title: The Book of the Wind title: The Book of the Flame title: The Book of the Heart |
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BUR |
Runs With Horses
(age 12+) by Brian Burks war ... growing up ... adventure ... action ... historical Publisher comments: Sixteen years old in 1886, Runs With Horses is a member of the last small band of Apaches continuing to resist the U.S. Army. His training for manhood as a Chiricahua Apache has been difficult but thrilling, and he is eager to accomplish the final two of the four raids required to be-come a warrior. Sadly, this is not possible when they at last surrender to the U.S. Army. |
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GOR |
Tunnels Series (age 12+) by Roderick Gordon action ... fantasy ... adventure Publisher comments: 14-year-old Will Burrows has little in common with his strange, dysfunctional family. In fact, the only bond he shares with his eccentric father is a passion for archaeological excavation. So when Dad mysteriously vanishes, Will is compelled to dig up the truth behind his disappearance. He unearths the unbelievable: a secret subterranean society. "The Colony" has existed unchanged for a century, but it's no benign time capsule of a bygone era--because the Colony is ruled by a cultlike overclass, the Styx. Before long--before he can find his father--Will is their prisoner.... title: Tunnels title: Deeper title: Freefall |
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REE |
The Larklight Series (age 12+) by Philip Reeve science fiction ... action ... adventure Arthur (Art) Mumsby and his irritating sister Myrtle live with their father in a huge and rambling house called Larklight...that just happens to be traveling through outer space. When a visitor called Mr. Webster arrives for a visit, it is far from an innocent social call. Before long Art and Myrtle are off on an adventure to the furthest reaches of space, where they will do battle with evil forces in order to save each other, and the universe. A fantastically original Victorian tale set in an outer space world that has a unique gravitational pull all its own. title: Larklight: Or the Revenge of the White Spiders! Or to Saturns Rings and Back! a Rousing Tale of Dauntless Pluck in the Farthest Reaches of Space title: Starcross: Or, the Coming of the Moobs, or, Our Adventures in the Fourth Dimension! a Stirring Adventure of Spies, Time Travel and Curious Hats title: Mothstorm: Or the Horror From Beyond Georgium Sidus! or a Tale of Two Shapers |
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ROB |
I Am the Great Horse
(age 12+) by Katherine Roberts war ... action ... adventure ... historical ... animals "I am the dark horse, Bucephalus. I am no black beauty. I am a stallion trained for war." From the moment they dare sit on his back, the fates of Alexander, 12-year-old heir to the Macedonian throne, and Charm, a kind stable girl, are bound to the battle-ready steed. When the boy becomes king, Bucephalus helps his young master transform into a conquering hero. In a hard-won, nearly blind blaze of glory, they gallop from Greece to the golden sands of Persia to the edge of the known world. At their side, as ever, is Charm. This is their epic. Through the eyes of a horse, history unfolds. |
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YOL |
Pit Dragon Series (age 12+) by Jane Yolen adventure ... action ... fantasy Jakkin, a bond boy who works as a Keeper in a dragon nursery on the planet Austar IV, secretly trains a fighting pit dragon of his own in hopes of winning his freedom. title: Dragon's Blood title: Heart's Blood title: A Sending of Dragons |
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HOR |
Gatekeeper's Series (age 12+) by Anthony Horowitz fantasy ... adventure ... action As punishment for a crime he didn't really commit, Matt was given a choice: go to jail or go live with an old woman named Mrs. Deverill in a remote town called Lesser Malling. He should have chosen jail. A strange and sinister plan is coming together made in Lesser Malling, with Matt at the center of it all. People who try to help him disappear . . . or die. It all ties to an evil place named Raven's Gate - a place whose destiny is horrifyingly intertwined with Matt's own. title: Ravens Gate title: Evil Star title: Nightrise title: Necropolis |
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BLO |
London Calling
(age 12+) by Edward Bloor war ... historical ... science fiction ... adventure ... action Martin Conway comes from a family filled with heroes and disgraces. His grandfather was a statesman who worked at the US Embassy in London during WWII. His father is an alcoholic who left his family. His sister is an overachieving Ivy League graduate. And Martin? Martin is stuck in between--floundering. But during the summer after 7th grade, Martin meets a boy who will change his life forever. Jimmy Harker appears one night with a deceptively simple question: Will you help? Where did this boy come from, with his strange accent and urgent request? Is he a dream? It's the most vivid dream Martin's ever had. And he meets Jimmy again and again--but how can his dreams be set in London during the Blitz? The people and the scenes Martin witnesses have a profound effect on him. And he begins to believe that maybe he can help Jimmy. Or maybe that he must help Jimmy, precisely because all logic and reason argue against it. This is a truly remarkable and deeply affecting novel about fathers and sons, heroes and scapegoats. About finding a way to live with faith and honor and integrity. And about having an answer to the question: What did you do to help? |
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COL |
La Ultima Oportunidad
(age 12+) by Eoin Colfer adventure ... action ... humor ... growing up Meg Finn is in trouble, unearthly trouble. Cast out of her home by her stepfather after her mother's death, Meg is a wanderer, a troublemaker. But after her latest stunt, finding a place to sleep is the least of her worries. Belch, her partner in crime, has gotten her involved in the attempted robbery of an elderly man, Lowrie McCall. And things go horribly wrong. After an accidental explosion, Meg's spirit is flung into limbo, and a race begins between the demonic and the divine to win her soul. Irreverent, hilarious, and touchingly hopeful, The Wish List takes readers on a journey of second chances, where joy is found in the most unexpected places. |
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COL |
The Wish List
(age 12+) by Eoin Colfer adventure ... action ... humor ... growing up Meg Finn is in trouble, unearthly trouble. Cast out of her home by her stepfather after her mother's death, Meg is a wanderer, a troublemaker. But after her latest stunt, finding a place to sleep is the least of her worries. Belch, her partner in crime, has gotten her involved in the attempted robbery of an elderly man, Lowrie McCall. And things go horribly wrong. After an accidental explosion, Meg's spirit is flung into limbo, and a race begins between the demonic and the divine to win her soul. Irreverent, hilarious, and touchingly hopeful, The Wish List takes readers on a journey of second chances, where joy is found in the most unexpected places. |
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COL |
Airman
(age 12+) by Eoin Colfer historical ... adventure ... action ... brilliant protagonist ... math/science/technology Airman is set in the 1890's on the sovereign Saltee Islands, off the Irish coast. It is the story of Conor Broekhart, a young Saltee Islander whose father, Declan, is the King's bodyguard. When Conor discovers that the power hungry Marshall Hugo Bonvilain is organizing a military coup, the king is murdered and Conor is blamed for the crime and thrown into prison. In prison, Conor passes the solitary months by scratching designs for flying machines into the walls. This has always been his dream, to win the race for flight. After two years, Conor now sixteen, plans and executes a daring escape to the mainland. Initially he plans to return home, but realizes that this would put his entire family in danger, so instead he builds a glider to fly to the prison island and reclaim the diamonds he buried there from the prison mine. Eight bags of diamonds, means eight trips. Conor' s father is beginning to question Bonvilain's rule, and so the marshall decides to use his son to blackmail him. This is when he realizes that Conor has escaped. He also finds Conor's drawings and realizes that he is the mysterious Airman who has been flying around the prison island. Bonvilain arrests Conor's whole family to trap him. To save them, Conor will have to build the flying machine that he has been dreaming of all these years. |
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OPP |
Airborn
(age 12+) by Kenneth Oppel action ... adventure ... fantasy Sailing toward dawn, and I was perched atop the crow's nest, being the ship's eyes. We were two nights out of Sydney, and there'd been no weather to speak of so far. I was keeping watch on a dark stack of nimbus clouds off to the northwest, but we were leaving it far behind, and it looked to be smooth going all the way back to Lionsgate City. Like riding a cloud. . . . Matt Cruse is a cabin boy on the Aurora, a huge airship that sails hundreds of feet above the ocean, ferrying wealthy passengers from city to city. It is the life Matt's always wanted; convinced he's lighter than air, he imagines himself as buoyant as the hydrium gas that powers his ship. One night he meets a dying balloonist who speaks of beautiful creatures drifting through the skies. It is only after Matt meets the balloonist's granddaughter that he realizes that the man's ravings may, in fact, have been true, and that the creatures are completely real and utterly mysterious. sequel: Skybreaker sequel: Starclimber |
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STR |
The Bartimaeus Trilogy (age 12+) by Jonathan Stroud humor ... adventure ... action ... fantasy ... magic Nathaniel is a young magician's apprentice, taking his first lessons in the arts of magic. But when a devious hotshot wizard named Simon Lovelace ruthlessly humiliates Nathaniel in front of everyone he knows, Nathaniel decides to kick up his education a few notches and show Lovelace who's boss. With revenge in his mind, he masters one of the toughest spells of all: summoning the all-powerful djinni, Bartimaeus. But summoning Bartimaeus and controlling him are two different things entirely, and when Nathaniel sends the djinni out to steal the powerful Amulet of Samarkand, Nathaniel finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of magical espionage, murder, blackmail, and revolt. title: The Amulet of Samarkand title: The Golems Eye title: Ptolemy's Gate |
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STO |
Five Ancestors Series (age 12+) by Jeff Stone identity ... adventure ... action ... historical Twelve-year-old Fu and his temple brothers Malao, Seh, Hok, and Long don’t know who their parents were. Raised from infancy by their grandmaster, they think of their temple as their home and their fellow warrior monks as their family. Then one terrible night, the temple is destroyed by an army led by a former monk named Ying, whose heart is bent on revenge. Fu and his brothers are the only survivors. Charged by their grandmaster to uncover the secrets of their past, the five flee into the countryside and go their separate ways. Somehow, Grandmaster has promised, their pasts are connected to Ying’s. Understanding that the past is the key to shaping the future, the first book in the series follows Fu as he struggles to find out more and prove himself in the process. Fu’s name literally means “tiger,” for he is the youngest-ever master of the fierce fighting style modeled after that animal. title: Tiger title: Monkey title: Snake title: Crane title: Eagle title: Mouse title: Dragon |
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PUL |
The Sally Lockhart Trilogy (age 12+) by Philip Pullman action ... mystery In search of clues to the mystery of her father's death, 16-year-old Sally Lockhart ventures into the shadowy underworld of Victorian London. Pursued by villains at every turn, the intrepid Sally finally uncovers two dark mysteries, and realizes that she herself is the key to both. title: The Ruby in the Smoke title: Shadow in the North title: The Tiger in the Well |
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SMI |
Peak
(age 12+) by Roland Smith family ... adventure ... action ... growing up ... survival After Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. But Peak quickly learns that his father's renewed interest in him has strings attached. Big strings. He wants Peak to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best. Even so, for a climbing addict like Peak, tackling Everest is the challenge of a lifetime. But it's also one that could cost him his life. Roland Smith has created an action-packed adventure about friendship, sacrifice, family, and the drive to take on Everest, despite the incredible risk. |
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CHR |
The Tripods Series (age 12+) by John Christopher adventure ... action ... science fiction Young Will Parker and his companions make a perilous journey toward an outpost of freedom where they hope to escape from the ruling Tripods, who capture mature human beings and make them docile, obedient servants. title: The White Mountains title: The City of Gold and Lead title: The Pool of Fire title: When the Tripods Came |
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PUL |
His Dark Materials (age 12+) by Philip Pullman growing up ... spooky ... action ... adventure ... fantasy Lyra Belaqua is content to run wild among the scholars of Jordan College, with her daemon familiar Pantalaimon always by her side. But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle ... a struggle born of Gobblers and stolen children, witch clans and armored bears. And as she hurtles toward danger in the cold, far North, young Lyra never suspects the shocking truth: She alone is destined to win, or to lose, this more-than-mortal battle. title: The Golden Compass title: The Subtle Knife title: The Amber Spyglass title: Once Upon a Time in the North |