Month: October 2018

Meet Cute by Various

Whether or not listeners believe in fate, or luck, or love at first sight, every romance has to start somewhere. This is an anthology of original short stories featuring tales of how people first meet, featuring some of today’s most popular young adult authors.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does, or does not, say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

Writing letters to the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., seventeen-year-old college-bound Justyce McAllister struggles to face the reality of race relations today and how they are shaping him.

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

On September fifth, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They‘re going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they‘re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure, to live a lifetime in a single day.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: Humanity has conquered all those things and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life, and they are commanded to do so in order to keep the size of the population under control. Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe, a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sanchez

Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family. But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role. Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed. But it’s not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first kiss, first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister’s story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal?

The Fates Divide by Veronica Roth (Carve the Mark #2)

As Lazmet ignites a barbaric war, Cyra and Akos are desperate to stop him at any cost. For Cyra, that could mean taking the life of the man who may–or may not–be her father. For Akos, it could mean giving his own.

Genesis by Brendan Reichs (Project Nemesis #2)

Min, Noah, and the sophomores of Fire Lake must fight to survive in the second phase of Project Nemesis.

I Have the Right To by Chessy Prout

In 2014, Chessy Prout was a freshman at St. Paul’s school, a prestigious boarding school in New Hampshire when a senior boy sexually assaulted her as part of a ritualized game of conquest. Chessy bravely reported her assault to the police and testified against her attacker in court. Then, in the face of unfathomable backlash from her once trusted school community, she shed her anonymity to help other survivors find their voice. Prepare to be inspired by this remarkable young woman and her story of survival, advocacy, and hope in the face of unspeakable trauma.