New Books for April 2016 (part 7)

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

Fantasy 

Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from. 

Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she'd gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan's army, with a fugitive who's wanted for treason. And she'd never have predicted she'd fall in love with him...or that he'd help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is.

Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan

Fantasy 

Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok's lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna's survival depends on the world believing she is dead. But that doesn't stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized. With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.

Same But Different: Teen Life on the Autism Express by Holly Robinson Peete & Ryan Elizabeth Peete

Contemporary Fiction 

Being a teen is hard enough. But when you have autism--or when your sibling is struggling with the condition--life can be a topsy-turvy ride. What happens when you come face-to-face with dating, parties, sports, body changes, school, and kids who just don't get you? Where do you turn when your sibling with autism is the butt of jokes, the victim of misunderstood social cues, and the one everyone thinks is weird? Through alternating narratives based on their own lives, Ryan Elizabeth Peete and her twin brother, RJ, who has autism, bravely and honestly reveal what it means to be a teen living with the disorder. 

The Shadow Queen by C. J. Redwine

Fantasy 

Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She'll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen. In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol's father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic of his own—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman—and bring her Lorelai's heart. But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn't going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.

The Skeleton Tree by Iain Lawrence

Action/Adventure 

Less than forty-eight hours after twelve-year-old Chris sets off on a sailing trip down the Alaskan coast with his uncle, their boat sinks. The only survivors are Chris and a boy named Frank, who hates Chris immediately. Chris and Frank have no radio, no flares, no food. Suddenly, they've got to forage, fish, and scavenge the shore for supplies. Chris likes the company of a curious, friendly raven more than he likes the prickly Frank. But the boys have to get along if they want to survive. Because as the days get colder and the salmon migration ends, survival will take more than sheer force of will. 

New Books for the Best Month ~ March 2016 (part 2)

Fairy Tail vol 29 by Hiro Mashima

Manga (Japanese Graphic Novel) 

Fairy Tail's remaining wizards stand against Hades, a former master of the guild who has already defeated his successor, Makarov! But can they really take on someone with an encyclopedic knowledge of their magic and deadly lost magic of his own? It'll take the return of a wayward son and an unlikely alliance to turn the tide!

The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury

Fantasy 

She is the most powerful Jinni of all. He is a boy from the streets. Their love will shake the world... When Aladdin discovers Zahra's jinni lamp, Zahra is thrust back into a world she hasn't seen in hundreds of years -- a world where magic is forbidden and Zahra's very existence is illegal. She must disguise herself to stay alive, using ancient shape-shifting magic, until her new master has selected his three wishes. 

 But when the King of the Jinn offers Zahra a chance to be free of her lamp forever, she seizes the opportunity--only to discover she is falling in love with Aladdin. When saving herself means betraying him, Zahra must decide once and for all: is winning her freedom worth losing her heart?

Frozen Tides by Morgan Rhodes

Fantasy 

The plans are laid and the players are determined but nothing can prepare these unlikely warriors for what the elemental gods of Mytica have in store. CLEO: Reeling after a shocking realization about Magnus, Princess Cleo must cast aside her feelings and look toward her kingdom with the eyes of a queen. MAGNUS: The steely prince of Limeros is once again torn between love and duty, leaving him wondering whether he's strong enough to rule his people. LUCIA: Heartbroken and blind with fury, the betrayed sorceress allies with the awoken Fire god, who also seeks revenge. JONAS: The defeated rebel leader reunites with Princess Cleo, only to become a pawn in the dangerous hunt for the elusive Kindred. KING GAIUS: A desperate King of Blood flees Mytica and sails to Kraeshia, where he attempts to ally with the famously brutal emperor across the Silver Sea.

Girl Last Seen by Heather Anastasiu

Mystery 

Kadence Mulligan's star was rising. She and her best friend, Lauren DeSanto, watched their songs go viral on YouTube, then she launched a solo career when a nasty throat infection paralyzed Lauren's vocal chords. Everyone knows Lauren and Kadence had a major falling-out over Kady's boyfriend. But Lauren knows how deceptive Kadence could be sometimes. And nobody believes Lauren when she claims she had nothing to do with the disappearance. Or the blood evidence... As the town and local media condemns Lauren, she realizes the only way to clear her name is to discover the truth herself. Lauren slowly unravels the twisted life of Kadence Mulligan and sees that there was more to her than she ever knew. But will she realize she's unknowingly playing a part in an elaborate game to cover up a crime before it's too late?

The Graveyard Book vol 2 by Neil Gaiman

Graphic Novel 

The concluding volume of the graphic novel adaptation of the book about a boy, raised by the inhabitants of the local graveyard who rally to protective from a league of villains named Jack who seek to destroy him.

The Heir and the Spare by Emily Albright

Contemporary Fiction 

Going all the way to England for college--to Oxford, no less--for college would be exciting enough. But no sooner does Evie set foot on English soil than she falls for a boy who turns out to be a real prince--in fact, second in line to the throne of England. Edmund is wonderful, even though loving him can be a royal pain, from the demands of his family to the stuck-up aristocrat who thinks she should be the one to win Edmund's heart. All that is swept aside, however, when the riddle of Evie's past surfaces, and the new couple becomes obsessed with figuring out who the real Evie is, with the growing suspicion that the truth will be a shocker.

Summer Reads! - July New Books (part1)

Life After Theft by Aprilynne Pike

Jeff is the new guy in school and the only one who can see Kimberlee, a ghost with a lot of (stolen) baggage. To help her move on, Jeff must return everything she stole when she was alive. But being Kimberlee's accomplice turns into more than he bargained for when his crush and the cops get involved.

 Five Summers by Una LaMarche

Emma, Skylar, Jo and Maddie have all come back to camp for a weekend of tipsy canoe trips to the island, midnight skinny dipping in the lake, and an epic game of capture the flag--boys versus girls. But the weekend isnt quite as sunwashed as theyd imagined as the memories come flooding back... "The summer we were nine" Emma was branded "Skylars friend Emma" by the infamous Adam Loring . . . "The summer we were ten: " Maddie realized she was too far into her lies to think about telling the truth . . . "The summer we were eleven" Johanna totally freaked out during her first game of Spin the Bottle . . . "The summer we were twelve" Skylars love letters from her boyfriend back home were exciting to all of us--except Skylar . . . "Our last summer together: " Emma and Adam almost kissed. Jo found out Maddies secret. Skylar did something unthinkable...

Dodger by Terry Pratchett

In an alternative version of Victorian London, a seventeen-year-old Dodger, a cunning and cheeky street urchin, unexpectedly rises in life when he saves a mysterious girl, meets Charles Dickens, and unintentionally puts a stop to the murders of Sweeny Todd.

50 Machines that Changed the Course of History by Eric Chaline

The book celebrates more than 200 years of technological development at the height of the Industrial Revolution. These are not generic inventions but rather specific, branded machines whose names in many cases have become synonymous with the machine or its purpose.
These are a few of the 50 machines described:

• Stephenson's Rocket (1829), the first locomotive designed for passenger transport
• Harrison power loom (1851) produced the bulk of the world's cotton cloth during the First Industrial Revolution
• Westinghouse alternating current system (1887) brought electrical power and lighting to homes and workplaces
• Hoover suction sweeper (1908) revolutionized domestic cleaning
• Lumière cine projector (1896) and Marconi radio (1897) together heralded the dawn of the media age
• Baird "Televiso" (1930), the first television set
• More recently, the Motorola DynaTAC cellphone (1983) ensured that we would always be able to "phone home." 

The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar

When eighteen-year-old Margo learns she lost the lead in her high school musical to a sophomore because of a modern-day genie, she falls in love with Oliver, the genie, while deciding what her own wishes should be and trying to rescue him from an old foe.