Assassin nuns. Need I say more? If you're not quite sold, let me add the following: rich historical detail, major butt-kicking, and a deliciously complex heroine.
Rebecca
In 1870s London, Sally Lockhart investigates her father's murder. She finds herself part of a bigger mystery involving smuggling and the secrets of the British Empire, and along the way she picks up friends and allies, including a rogue office boy, a pair of hapless photographers, an actress, and a boxer-turned-minister.
Sarah
Blue Sargent’s psychic family believes she will kill her first love with a kiss. Consequently, she has avoided boys of the nearby Aglionby Academy and is not thrilled when four friends begin to appear everywhere in her life. The boys have a unique extracurricular activity that soon lures her: their ringleader Gansey is on a quest for the lost Glendower, a vanished Welsh king. Legend tells that whomever finds him will have the power of one wish. Danger, fast cars, friendships, and romance lie ahead. The first in a series, grab a copy before the second (Dream Thieves) comes out on September 17th!
Stephanie
You've read The Fault In Our Stars & are looking for something lighter, funnier, nihilistic, tangential, & self-deprecating, with more realism & Werner Herzog. You open this book & find a deeply flawed teenager, obsessed with filmmaking, trying to avoid a forced friendship with his acquaintance recently diagnosed with Leukemia. You don’t like him, but you can relate. You are horribly sad when this book ends because it has a sneaky hidden depth. Your trusty bookseller friend says, "One of my favorite books this year!" and she was right.
Jill
Take two intrepid heroes of the Austen persuasion. Add a few spaceships, class division, rampant genetic engineering, and a dollop of romance. Stir until potent. Diana Peterfreund's For Darkness Shows the Stars is a lush, poetic reimagining of Jane Austen's Persuasion, an adaptation both familiar and surprising in turn. If Jane Austen and science fiction are your cups of tea, this book is for you.
Rebecca
Meg Powers likes her life just the way it is. This is unfortunate, considering that her mother has just decided to run for president. Worse, Meg is pretty sure her mother is going to win. The President's Daughter is the first installment in one of my favorite under-appreciated young adult series. Readers will discover a smart and savvy heroine in Meg, as well as a nuanced and sympathetic family dynamic set against the backdrop of a national political campaign. Perfect for fans of complex and compelling contemporary young adult fiction.
Rebecca
This modern day story of suspense reads like a fairy tale. Jeremy Johnson Johnson (his real name) lives in the town of Never Better and helps to run the Two-Book Bookstore, where there are only two titles for sale. The ghost of Joseph Grimm, one half of the Brothers Grimm, is his closest companion and protector. Meanwhile the nefarious Finder of Occasions watches and waits.
Robin
Bickle's
vampires are the stuff of nightmares--enthralling, deadly, and
downright terrifying. Luckily, her unbreakable heroine Katie is more
than a match for them. Thrilling and action-packed, The Hallowed Ones is
perfect for readers seeking an antidote to the fluffy vampires of
Twilight fame.Rebecca
This adaptation of the adult bestseller is so well done that even adults will want to revisit the story about the work of Paul Farmer in Haiti and elsewhere. Tracy Kidder’s introduction to this younger version is pitch perfect, and the book settles on the essential story, only leaving out bits of some background info. Amazingly well done!
Carol
Originally published individually as three books, this middle reader gem is a brilliant introduction for the young reader into Pratchett's subversive, clever and humorous fantasy. Set in a department store and featuring a clan of nomes, it is part adventure, part satire and part parable and a whole lot of fun. My tip of the hat to Terry Pratchett who is bravely facing the end of his writing career and will be sorely missed by fans of all ages.
Susannah
