July New Books (Part 9)

Silent Alarm by Jennifer Banash

Contemporary Fiction 

Alys, a Plaineville, Wisconsin, junior who dreams of studying violin at Julliard, must deal with the aftermath of a tragic high school shooting in which her older brother, Luke, was the shooter.

Spelled by Betsy Schow

Fantasy 

As the crown princess of Emerald, Dorthea lives a charmed life full of Hans Christian Louboutin glass slippers and Glenda Original ball gowns. But when she unknowingly wishes upon a cursed star, all hell breaks loose and the rules of fairy tale disappear--taking Dorthea's parents with them.

Sweet by Emmy Laybourne

Action/Adventure 

The luxurious celebrity cruise launching the trendy new diet sweetener Solu should be the vacation of a lifetime. But Laurel is starting to regret accepting her friend Viv's invitation. She's already completely embarrassed herself in front of celebrity host Tom Forelli--the hottest guy ever!--and she's too sick to even try the sweetener. And that's before Viv and all the other passengers start acting really strange. Tom knows that he should be grateful for this job and the chance to shed his former-child-star image. His publicists have even set up a 'romance' with a sexy reality star. But as things on the ship start to get wild, he finds himself drawn to a different girl. And when the hosting gig turns into an exposé on the shocking side effects of Solu, it's Laurel that he's determined to save. Emmy Laybourne, author of the Monument 14 trilogy, takes readers on a dream vacation in Sweet that goes first comically, then tragically, then horrifyingly, wrong!

Tangled Webs by Lee Bross 

Historical Fiction 

London, 1725. Everybody has a secret. Lady A will keep yours—for a price. This sumptuous, scandalous YA novel is wickedly addictive.

Lady A is the most notorious blackmailer in the city. With just a mask and a gown to disguise her, she sweeps into lavish balls and exclusive events collecting the most valuable currency in 1725 London—secrets.

But leading a double life isn't easy. By day Lady A is just a sixteen-year-old girl named Arista who lives in fear of her abusive master, Bones, and passes herself off as a boy to move safely through the squalor of London's slums. When Bones attempts to dispose of his pawn forever, Arista is rescued by the last person she expects: Jonathan Wild, the infamous Thief Taker General who moves seamlessly between the city's criminal underworld and its most elite upper circles. Arista partners with Wild on her own terms in the hopes of saving enough money to buy passage out of London.

Everything changes when she meets Graeden Sinclair, the son of a wealthy merchant. Grae has traveled the world, has seen the exotic lands Arista has longed to escape to her whole life, and he loves Arista for who she is—not for what she can do for him. Being with Grae gives something Arista something precious that she swore off long ago: hope. He has promised to help Arista escape the life of crime that has claimed her since she was a child. But can you ever truly escape the past? 

To Hold the Bridge by Garth Nix

Fantasy 

A collection of nineteen short stories, one set in the same world as Shade's Children, and another story set in the world of A Confusion of Princes.

New year, new books ~ Happy 2015! (part 2)

Avatar the Last Airbender: The Search parts 2 & 3 by Gene Luen Yang

Continuing his quest to uncover his mother's fate, Fire Lord Zuko, his sister Azula, and his friends enter the Forgetful Valley, a mysterious forest from which some people never emerge.

Catalyst by S. J. Kincaid

Tom Raines and his friends return to the Spire for their third year as superhuman government weapons, but the rules have been changed and Tom's training is put to the test.

Chernobyl's Wild Kingdom: Life in the Dead Zone by Rebecca Johnson

After the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear explosion, scientists believed radiation would make the area a barren wasteland. Today the Dead Zone is teeming with wildlife. But every plant and animal is radioactive, leaving scientists wondering how their survival is possible.

Dangerous Deceptions by Sarah Zettel

An unwelcome engagement, a mysterious plot that hints at treason, and a possible murder add even more excitement to sixteen-year-old Peggy Fitzroy's life as she continues to serve as both a lady-in-waiting and confidential agent to King George of England.

A Different Me by Deborah Blumenthal

Allie Johnston's secret wish since the day she was twelve is to have her nose done. But she hasn't told anyone--not her parents, or even her best friend, Jen. But when she starts visiting a plastic surgery discussion board on the Web, she finds people who get her, for the first time in her life. Her new friends, including two girls her age with vastly different backgrounds who share her obsession with changing their faces--but for very different reasons. 

Don't Touch by Rachel Wilson

16-year-old Caddie struggles with OCD, anxiety, and a powerful fear of touching another person's skin, which threatens her dreams of being an actress--until the boy playing Hamlet opposite her Ophelia gives her a reason to overcome her fears.