Sixteen-year-old foster kid Elle Zoellner's life turns topsy turvy when a father, she never knew about, wants her to move to Tokyo. Elle feels as if she's living a real version of Cinderella's life. Her father, when he's around, is charming, funny, and someone she wants to know more about....

Annaleigh just wanted to be in charge of the lighthouse close to her island home. Rumors circulate on the island that her family is cursed. There used to be twelve sisters, but four of them died tragically. Then her father comes home with a new wife who doesn't want to...

Eighteen-year-old Casiopea feels trapped in her rich grandfather’s home in southern Mexico. She wants to leave their small town and experience life, but she's in charge of caring for her grandfather who treats her as the ‘poor’ relative. What keeps Casiopea going is her grandfather’s promise of receiving money at...

The start of thirteen-year-old Rachel’s summer doesn’t go as she planned. Tensions are high at her home and she knows that her parents are having financial problems. Then there’s her BFF Micah, who wants to be more than friends, but she doesn't feel the same way. She’s not sure what...

I'm a huge fan of graphic novels and this series is one that is sure to appeal to those who love an engaging tale set in outer space. I recommend readers start with the first book in the series to read how Cleopatra is transported to the future and...

Sixteen-year-old Bluebelle, or BB/Big Bones, loves herself. Forget that others say she's fat. After a recent asthma attack, she has a doctor's visit and is told she must lose weight. The doctor suggests she write in a food journal. Only the journal becomes much more than just about food. ...

Zahra wants the world to know the truth about her father. She believes he wasn't to blame for the deaths of people on the space ship House of Wisdom. So when Adam, the cult leader she'd followed since a child, says that their 'family' can take the deserted ship as...

Eighteen-year-old Princess Leonie "Leo" Kolburg has a title, but not much else. She's heir to an older European spaceship.When the annual Valg Season comes around, her father 'hopes' she'll land an engagement with a rich suitor in order to save what's left of their family fortune. Then her childhood...

This is a enthralling telling of the brave Soviet airwomen who flew missions during World War II. They fought in combat, unlike the other Allied nations at that time. Their story hasn't been shared for some time. What worked: The stories of these brave Soviet women...

Miriam lives in New Jerusalem, a haven from the evil outside. She's taught to be submissive and obedient to their leader Daniel. When the ceremony the Matrimony comes, Miriam is excited as she feels Caleb will choose her as his wife. Nothing goes as planned and instead of being faithful,...

What worked: Just wowza. This is one intense, haunting tale of girls that are banished on their sixteenth year to release their 'magic' into the wild before they can come back home. The villagers 'fear' the girl's magic and set them out into the wilderness. Even though no one can...

It's been eighteen months since Hetty and her friends have been quarantined at the Raxter School for Girls. A deadly virus, the Tox, has infected them and the staff. They are left to fend for themselves while those around them either die a grisly death or are transformed into something...

What worked: Latinx ARE YOU THERE GOD, IT'S ME MARGARET. I LOVE how the author shows a strong preteen heroine who deals with issues like her changing body, her first menstrual period, and first crush. Told in verse, this novel follows bicultural Celi Rivera who has questions about so many...

What worked: Fast-paced time travel romp through Tudor England. Readers find out what might have happened if Queen Elizabeth I married Robert Dudley and had a son. In this case it would have been Nicholas the Ironheart. High school senior Emmie didn't think her research on Nicholas...

What worked: This is an emotional tale of Lida, a young Ukrainian girl, who is stolen from her home and sent to a slave camp to work for the Nazis. Little has been known about this part of WWII. What readers see is the horrific plight of Ukrainians that are...