Pet has lived a quiet life with parents and older sister in a lighthouse on the coast of England, but war on the continent is looming closer, and the people of her small village are anxious.
Pet's German-born mother is suddenly under suspicion even though she has never done anything to warrant it, and the town is preparing to send their children inland in case the war crosses the channel.
When a saboteur strikes communication lines, people are quick to blam Pet's mother, and she is sent to an internment camp for German nationals. Pet knows her mother isn't a German agent and sets out to discover the truth.
Her investigation will take her into danger, shocking discoveries, and a link to an ancient mythological past.
I really enjoyed this historical mystery by Lucy Strange. I really felt like I was inhabiting Pet's world, and the mystery is good, too. Highly recommended.
Fionn Doyle and his sister Tara are spending the summer on Arranmore Island with their grandfather. Tara was on the island last summer, but Fionn has never been before, and the moment he steps off the ferry, he knows something is strange about this place. The earth seems to move and change beneath his feet leaving him dizzy and disoriented.
Their grandfather's cottage is filled with candles with strange names, and the old man seems to spend all his time making them. Tara immediately sets off with a boy in search of some magical cave. Fionn is skeptical, but it seems it's all true.
His grandfather isn't just a candlemaker; he's the storm keeper. Each of those candles allows the user to relieve the moment it captures, and Fionn's grandfather has spent a lifetime preserving the island's magic. Once in a generation, the island chooses a member of one of the old families to wield its power, and Fionn's grandfather is nearing the end of his time.
There is also an ancient evil buried deep beneath the earth in the island. Long ago, Morrigan used her power to subdue and control before she was defeated. Now, it almost seems like she can sense a change even deep in the earth after all this time. Is that ancient evil waking once again?
Catherine Doyle's fantasy series begins with this wonderful Celtic adventure. It's a great fantasy, but it's grounded in the real world with an annoying older sister, a grandfather struggling with memory loss, and the pain of a lost father. I loved it all, and I can't wait to find out what happens next! Fantasy fans will fight for this one! This book is inspired by the author's experiences growing up on the real Arranmore Island in Ireland, and now I'm sad I didn't go there when I was in Ireland myself.
Emmy's dad has been a mystery to her since he disappeared on her third birthday. Her mother has always refused to talk about him at all. That just leaves Emmy and her mom, the parenting guru who is always moving Emmy to a new and "better" school. It's hard to make friends when you never stick around for more than a year.
But now her mother has reached an all-time high in best (worst?) parenting. She has a new TV show that will have her traveling all over the country, and she'll be so busy working she won't really have time to pay attention to Emmy. So she's sending Emmy to boarding school. In England.
Despite a rocky start at Wellsworth (including a terrible roommate), Emmy eventually starts to enjoy life at boarding school. She's actually made some real friends for once. Then she uncovers a surprising coincidence; her dad went to Wellsworth, too!
Determined to find clues about her father, instead, she uncovers dark truths about the school including a secret society. The Order of Black Hollow Lane has been around for centuries, and her dad seems to be connected somehow. Emmy and her new friends are determined to uncover the truth, but some people believe the truth should stay hidden at any cost.
Julia Nobel's mystery series starter was a pleasant surprise. The cover puts this book squarely in middle grade territory, but the characters could easily have been older. This is an engaging mystery with plenty of twists, a secret criminal society, and a missing father. Great fun! I can't wait for the next one!
Ked's life just seems to be getting worse every day. His mom left years ago looking for better opportunities on the other side of the country. Ked and his dad live in a Maine town on the edge of failing. His dad barely brings home enough from factory job to cover the rent, and there is no guarantee he won't gamble it all away.
Ked's lost his friend's over the years, and the last one just abandoned him to eat alone in the cafeteria. He tries to tell himself it's no big deal, he doesn't really mind, he saw this coming. When he was diagnosed with kyphosis, he thought things would be ok. After all, it took years before he even noticed the curving of his spine, but once it started, the damage intensified quickly. Now the hump on his back is so bad, he can't really fit normal sized clothes. Not only are all his friends gone, but he is also the obvious target for bullies at school.
When he finds out his dad gambled their rent money, and they are about to be homeless, Ked takes a risk of his own. He decides to buy a pocket bike in poor condition, rebuild it, and sell it for a profit. If he can fix it in time and make enough money, he might be able to save their home, but it's not going to be easy.
This new book by Michael Northrop is good in a lot of ways. It has a child with a disability that is often not represented and plays to the kids who are mechanically inclined. I just found it a difficult to swallow that a kid with no experience rebuilding an engine could get it right on the first try. The conclusion is wrapped up a little too neatly, as well. I'm not sure how many 7th graders have the maturity to see beyond themselves and recognize the "person beneath the surface." I'm also not sure how many bullies would have such a quick turn around. I'm interested to get a student's perspective on this one.
Van is small and quiet, and people have a tendency to overlook him, but he notices everything. He may not be able to hear well, but he can focus in on the small things in the world around him like no one else he knows. He travels the world with his mother. They live in the city where his mother is performing in the opera and then move on to the next.
One day Van notices something he shouldn't--a girl in a long black coat taking pennies out of a fountain. She's accompanied by a talking squirrel. Not only can the squirrel talk, but Van has no problems hearing him. It's like the squirrel is talking directly into his mind. He follows the girl and her squirrel and discovers the truth, wishes are real! Pebble is a collector. It's their job to collect wishes before they can get out into the world. As Pebble tells him, some wishes are silly, but others are dangerous.
No one is supposed to know about the collectors. No one has ever even seen them before. Van is sworn to secrecy and sent on his way, but he can't stop thinking about the collectors and the creatures who help them collect the wishes.
He soon discovers the collectors aren't the only ones after the wishes, and they haven't told him the whole truth. He's stumbled on a strange new world full of rivals where everyone seems to be keeping secrets. Can Van uncover the truth before he makes a terrible mistake?
This series opener by Jacqueline West is a fun fantasy adventure featuring a character with a disability. While Van's hearing loss sometimes leaves him confused, it is also often an advantage. It's an interesting premise, but I couldn't help questioning the impossibility of collecting ALL the wishes and other creatures important to the story. Maybe those questions will be answered in subsequent books. Recommended for fantasy fans.
For the last few years, Sunny St. James has been held back by her weak heart. She couldn't even go to school, and she was always tired and out of breath. A heart transplant offers her a fresh start, and she intends to make the best of it.
Her amazing new life plan has three parts: have adventures, find a new best friend, and kiss a boy. It's a great plan in theory, but maybe not so easy in real life. Her long lost mother who abandoned her when Sunny was four has suddenly reappeared, and Sunny isn't sure she even wants to see her. She has Kate who has never let her down and took care of her during all those bad years before the new heart.
She wants nothing to do with her former best friend Margot. Sunny can't get over Margot's betrayal, but she doesn't really have any other friends since she's been out of school and homebound for so long. When she meets Quinn, a blue-haired girl whose life is all about adventure, it seems like a dream come true.
Quinn's never had a best friend either. She's constantly moving because of her mom's job, but she and Sunny make an instant connection and decide to embark on a kissing quest together this summer. But Sunny is coming to the realization it isn't a boy she wants to kiss.
Ashley Herring Blake has written another novel about an LGBTQ living her life, and it's perfect for middle school. These are so hard to find, and I am thankful for each one. This is a beautiful story about friendship, belonging, love, and living life to the fullest. Highly recommended.
DJ ParSec's career was poised to take off when she was murdered. No one is more upset than her former best friend Kya and current publicist Fuse. Kya and Fuse are both upset about ParSec's death, but there's no love lost between them, and they are angry and suspicious.
Even though she was only sixteen, ParSec's music has already inspired a rabid fanbase, #ParSecNation. But there's a dark side to everything and the Dark Nation is not satisfied with the police investigation, and they are equally suspicious of ParSec's former friends.
The Dark Nation makes Kya and Fuse an offer they can't refuse: find out who killed ParSec, or pay the price themselves for her death.
As the story unfolds in the present, DJ ParSec, AKA Paris, tells her own story in flashbacks of the months leading up to her death.
Kya and Fuse are getting closer to the truth, but that also means they are getting closer to a killer.
Lamar Giles's newest thriller is his best so far. This is a great mystery set in the heart of the homegrown music scene with strong ties to the power of social media. Recommended for grades 8 and up.
