Lists and Suggestions for Teens

A collection of illustrated short stories, each one about the relationship of humans and the animals, both wild and domestic, that share the urban environment of the inner city. Some of the stories are only one page in length; others are told in free-form verse; all throw light on the hidden world of truth and feeling beneath the surface of our everyday lives.

Jake Livingston is one of the few Black kids at St. Clair Prep, one of the others being his infinitely more popular older brother. To make matters worse and definitely more complicated, Jake can see the dead. In fact he sees the dead around him all the time. Most are harmless: stuck in their death loops as they relive their deaths over and over again, they don't interact often with people. But Sawyer was a troubled teen who shot and killed six kids at a local high school last year before taking his own life. Now a powerful, vengeful ghost, he has plans for his afterlife--plans that include Jake.

Tina Mains isn't an average teenager-- she's also the keeper of an interplanetary rescue beacon. One day soon it is going to activate, and then her dreams of saving all the worlds and adventuring among the stars will finally be possible. Tina is the hidden clone of a famed alien hero, left on Earth disguised as a human to give the universe another chance to defeat a terrible evil. When the beacon activates, Tina's destiny isn't quite what she expected. Things are far more dangerous than she ever assumed. Luckily, Tina is surrounded by a crew she can trust, and her best friend Rachel, and she is still determined to save all the worlds. But first she'll have to save herself.

Ian Gray isn't supposed to have a dog, but a lot of things that shouldn't happen end up happening anyway. And Gather, Ian's adopted pup, is good company now that Ian has to quit the basketball team, find a job, and take care of his mom as she tries to overcome her opioid addiction. Despite the obstacles thrown their way, Ian is determined to keep his family afloat no matter what it takes. And for a little while, things are looking up: Ian makes friends, and his fondness for the outdoors and for fixing things lands him work helping neighbors. But an unforeseen tragedy results in Ian and his dog taking off on the run, trying to evade a future that would mean leaving their house and their land. Even if the community comes together to help him, would Ian and Gather have a home to return to?

In the sequel to A Conspiracy of Stars, Octavia's search to uncover the truth grows more dangerous as she becomes determined to protect her planet's fate. In the forty years since the Vagantur landed on Faloiv, the planet has existed in a tenuous peace between the humans who live in the enclosed community of N'Terra and the Faloii, the indigenous population. But after uncovering the shadowy secrets of the Council's newly elected leader and helping a kidnapped Faloii man escape, sixteen-year-old Octavia knows that conflict is looming. Then the Faloii discover the N'Terran's latest experiment: an artificially weaponized creature, and Octavia realizes that it's up to her to prevent her people from causing any further destruction. As she and her friends set out to understand the scope of humanity's history, nothing can prepare them for what they discover about both their home on Faloiv and the Origin planet. With war on the brink, Octavia must act to change her people's future before the natural balance on the planet shifts forever.

In Asalin, fae rule and witches don't. Wyatt's betrothal to his best friend, fae prince Emyr North, was supposed to change that. But after Wyatt lost control of his magic, he fled to the human world. Now a coldly distant Emyr has hunted him down. Despite transgender Wyatt's newfound identity and troubling past, Emyr has no intention of dissolving their engagement. In fact, he claims they must marry now or risk losing the throne. As Wyatt realizes the boy he once loved may still exist, he must decide once and for all what's more important: his people or his freedom.

Nina is a Lipan girl in our world. She's always felt there was something more out there. She still believes in the old stories. Oli is a cottonmouth kid, from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he's been cast from home. He's found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake. Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli's best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven't been in centuries. And there are some who will kill to keep them apart.

Cade barely managed to survive the duel with the Hydra Alpha-- but the Games are far from over. By order of their cruel overlord, Abaddon, Cade and his friends are sent off to war against the Greys, a humanoid race who have far surpassed humans in technology on their home planet. This attempt to move up the leaderboard... and leads Cade to a game-changing revelation: The Pantheon, the millennia-old alien masterminds behind the Games, have a weakness. Now Cade has one chance to end their tyranny forever... or the survival of Earth itself will be forfeit.

In a society determined to keep her under lock and key, Tavia must hide her siren powers. Meanwhile, Effie is fighting her own family struggles, pitted against literal demons from her past. Together, these best friends must navigate through the perils of high school's junior year. But, everything changes in the aftermath of a siren murder trial that rocks the nation, and Tavia accidentally lets out her magical voice at the worst possible moment. Soon, nothing in Portland, Oregon, seems safe. To save themselves from drowning, it's only Tavia and Effie's unbreakable sisterhood that proves to be the strongest magic of all.

Lana Torres has always preferred dragons to people. In a few weeks, sixteen countries will compete in the Blazewrath World Cup, a tournament where dragons and their riders fight for glory in a dangerous relay. Lana longs to represent her native Puerto Rico in their first ever World Cup appearance, and when Puerto Rico's Runner--the only player without a dragon steed--is kicked off the team, she's given the chance. But when she discovers that a former Blazewrath superstar has teamed up with the Sire--a legendary dragon who's cursed into human form--the safety of the Cup is jeopardized. The pair are burning down dragon sanctuaries around the world and refuse to stop unless the Cup gets canceled. All Lana wanted was to represent her country. Now, to do that, she'll have to navigate an international conspiracy that's deadlier than her beloved sport.

In a world ruled by fierce warrior queens, a grand empire was built upon the backs of Phoenix Riders--legendary heroes who soared through the sky on wings of fire--until a war between two sisters ripped it all apart. Sixteen years later, Veronyka is a war orphan who dreams of becoming a Phoenix Rider from the stories of old. After a shocking betrayal from her controlling sister, Veronyka strikes out alone to find the Riders--even if that means disguising herself as a boy to join their ranks. Just as Veronyka finally feels like she belongs, her sister turns up and reveals a tangled web of lies between them that will change everything. And meanwhile, the new empire has learned of the Riders' return and intends to destroy them once and for all. Crown of Feathers is an epic fantasy about love's incredible power to save--or to destroy. Interspersed throughout is the story of Avalkyra Ashfire, the last Rider queen, who would rather see her empire burn than fall into her sister's hands.

In a world where disease has been eliminated, the only way to die is to be randomly killed (gleaned) by professional reapers (scythes). Citra and Rowan are teenagers who have been selected to be scythe's apprentices, and despite wanting nothing to do with the vocation they must learn the art of killing and come to understand the necessity of what they do. Only one of them will be chosen as a scythe's apprentice. And when it becomes clear that the winning apprentice's first task will be to glean the loser, Citra and Rowan are pitted against one another in a fight for their lives.

Things just got weird for Prudence Wu. One minute, she's cashing in on a routine smuggling deal. The next, she's escaping enforcers on the wings of what very much appears to be a sentient cybernetic dragon. Pru is used to life throwing her some unpleasant surprises--she goes to prep school, after all, and selling banned media across the border in a country with a ruthless corporate government obviously has its risks. But a cybernetic dragon? That's new. She tries to forget about the fact that the only reason she's not in jail is because some sort of robot saved her, and that she's going to have to get a new side job now that enforcers are on to her. So she's not exactly thrilled when Rebelwing shows up again. Even worse, it's become increasingly clear that the rogue machine has imprinted on her permanently, which means she'd better figure out this whole piloting-a-dragon thing--fast. Because Rebelwing just happens to be the ridiculously expensive weapon her government needs in a brewing war with its neighbor, and Pru's the only one who can fly it.

Only the most powerful and honorable semidioses get chosen. I'm just a Jade. I'm not a real hero." As each new decade begins, the Sun's power must be replenished so that Sol can keep traveling along the sky and keep the evil Obsidian gods at bay. Ten semidioses between the ages of thirteen and eighteen are selected by Sol himself as the most worthy to compete in The Sunbearer Trials. The winner carries light and life to all the temples of Reino del Sol, but the loser has the greatest honor of all they will be sacrificed to Sol, their body used to fuel the Sun Stones that will protect the people of Reino del Sol for the next ten years. Teo, a 17-year-old Jade semidi̤s and the trans son of Quetzal, goddess of birds, has never worried about the Trials...or rather, he's only worried for others. His best friend Niya daughter of Tierra, the god of earth is one of the strongest heroes of their generation and is much too likely to be chosen this year. He also can't help but worry (reluctantly, and under protest) for Aurelio, a powerful Gold semidi̤s and Teo's friend-turned-rival who is a shoo-in for the Trials. Teo wouldn't mind taking Aurelio down a notch or two, but a one-in-ten chance of death is a bit too close for Teo's taste. But then, for the first time in over a century, Sol chooses a semidi̤s who isn't a Gold. In fact, he chooses two: Xio, the 13-year-old child of Mala Suerte, god of bad luck, and...Teo. Now they must compete in five mysterious trials, against opponents who are both more powerful and better trained, for fame, glory, and their own survival.

She is the reason no one goes in the water. And she will make them pay. A chilling new novel for fans of Tiffany D. Jackson, Lamar Giles, and Ryan Douglass. Bronwyn is only supposed to be in rural Hillwoods for a year. Her grandmother is in hospice, and her father needs to get her affairs in order. And they're all meant to make some final memories together. Except Bronwyn is miserable. Her grandmother is dying, everyone is standoffish, and she can't even go swimming. All she hears are warnings about going in the water, despite a gorgeous lake. And a pool at the abandoned rec center. And another in the high school basement. Anais tries her hardest to protect Bronwyn from the shadows of Hillwoods. She follows her own rituals to avoid any unnecessary attention--and if she can just get Bronwyn to stop asking questions, she can protect her too. The less Bronwyn pays attention to Hillwoods, the less Hillwoods will pay attention to Bronwyn. She doesn't get that the lore is, well, truth. History. Pain. The living aren't the only ones who seek retribution when they're wronged. But when Bronwyn does more exploring than she should, they are both in for danger they couldn't expect.

In 1605 London, sixteen-year-old Joan Sands' magical ability to control metal makes her a skilled craftswoman, but her family gift for observing the Fae, who recently broke the Pact and are now brutally attacking mortals, draws Joan into political intrigue in both human and Fae worlds.

When rogue packs of wolf-hybrid soldiers threaten the tenuous peace alliance between Earth and Luna, Iko takes it upon herself to hunt down the soldiers' leader. She is soon working with a handsome royal guard who forces her to question everything she knows about love, loyalty and her own humanity.

Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmother's bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town. One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any town home. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.