New Releases of Fantasy and Science for Children and Teenagers, the Cybils Eve edition!

Tomorrow the 2009 Cybils begin!

The Cybils are book awards given by the children's and young adult book blogging community. Everyone (blogger or not) is invited to nominate the books of the past year they love best in a number of categories, including Science Fiction and Fantasy. From these nominations, a panel of readers selects a shortlist, which then goes on to a group of judges. Any book in English published from October 16th 2008 to October 15, 2009 is eligible--this includes books published this past year in the US that might have already been published in their home country, but have not yet been nominated for the Cybils. There will be more details about how to nominate books on the Cybils Website tomorrow. Please spread the word!

Science fiction and fantasy are divided into two age groups (M.G. and Y.A.), and I am fortunate to be on the nominating committee for the younger group. I hope that lots of great books end up on our list! Last year there were c. 60 middle grade books, and c. 100 YA books; I bet there are many more than that this year....

I hope that my lists of new releases prove helpful to people like myself who have trouble remembering books they read in the past year. I only started doing this in April, though, so I have only the faintest idea what books were published from October, 2008, through March, 2009...

So, that being said, and much more about the Cybils to come, here are the new releases of science fiction and fantasy books for children and teenagers from the end of September, taken from the list at Teens Read Too, with help from Amazon.

THE APOCRYPHON: FABULOUS TERRIBLE by Sophie Talbot. "In your first year as a student at Trumbull Woodhouse school for girls, your secret psychic gifts have led you into the depths of a mythic side of the school known only to a select few. The elite school has a powerful history that has been kept secret for the past 125 years. Warring factions, strained alliances, and a hidden magic all lurk beneath the posh surface of your exclusive school. At the center of the mystery lies The Apocryphon, a book of secret texts and prophecies written by school founder Emma Woodhouse. The Apocryphonshifts the tide of power between Lionhead, a group of adults who claim you are “The One”: the girl who was prophesied in the book, someone who will change the future with her unprecedented abilities and powers. Lionhead has controlled The Apocryphon for decades- but if you can locate it and unify the two factions, your school will change forever. You've always been ambivalent about your psychic powers. But what if they are the key to making you an insider for the first time in your life?"

THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX: NATHANIEL FLUDD, BEASTOLOGIST by R. L. LaFevers. "Nathaniel Fludd’s life has taken a turn for the worst. With his parents lost at sea, he lands on the doorstep of a distant cousin—the world’s last remaining beastologist. Soon Nate is whisked off on his first expedition, to Arabia, where the world’s only phoenix prepares to lay its new egg. When disaster strikes, Nate quickly finds himself all alone. Will he be able to see the phoenix safely hatched, keep his accidental pet gremlin out of trouble, and rescue his guardian from the Bedouin? If he fails, nothing will stand between the world’s mythical creatures and extinction. Too bad Nate’s not the sort of boy who enjoys adventure . . .yet."

LEVEN THUMPS AND THE RUINS OF ALDERby Obert Skye

SPELLBINDER by Helen Stringer. "Belladonna Johnson can see ghosts. It’s a trait she’s inherited from her mother’s side of the family, like blue eyes or straight hair. And it’s a trait she could do without, because what twelve-year-old wants to be caught talking to someone invisible. It is convenient, though, after Belladonna’s parents are killed in a car accident. They can live with her the same as always, watching the same old TV shows in their same old house. Nothing has changed . . . until everything changes. One night, with no warning, they vanish into thin air—along with every other ghost in the world. It’s what some people think ghosts are supposed to do, but Belladonna knows it’s all wrong. They may not be living, but they’re not supposed to be gone. With the help of her classmate Steve, a master of sneaking and spying, Belladonna is left to uncover what’s become of the spirits and to navigate a whole world her parents have kept well-hidden. If she can’t find her way, she’ll lose them again—this time for good."

SYREN: SEPTIMUS HEAP by Angie Sage. "In this fifth book in the Magykal series, Septimus ends up on a captivatingly beautiful island, one of seven set in a sparkling sea. He's stranded there with his badly injured dragon, Spit Fyre, along with Jenna and Beetle. There are some strange things about the island, including a Magykal girl named Syrah, a cat-shaped lighthouse that has lost its Light, and an eerie presence that sings to Septimus—can he escape the persistent call? Trouble is also brewing for Lucy and Wolf Boy, who have become entangled with some nefarious sailors at sea, and for Milo Banda, Jenna's father, who is harboring a mysterious treasure chest in his ship's hold."

THE SEED OF HOPE by Quinton Wall. "Growing up in Devon Grove, kids are used to magic talents. After all, magic grows on trees --- literally. One bite of the magical apples, and your wildest dreams could come true. Turning invisible, flying, and even talking to animals are all just part of everyday life. Like any kid in Devon Grove, thirteen-year-old Charlie Parker has been waiting for his talent apple his entire life, but he has even more at stake: his father is the caretaker of the Talent Tree, the source of the town's magic, and someday Charlie will inherit the responsibility, whether he wants to or not. But when Charlie's apple is stolen from him and the great Talent Tree falls, killing his father, Charlie and his five companions must embark on a quest to find the mythical Bag of Brakka. The Bag, said to foretell the future, holds the key to Charlie discovering who stole his talent, and why his father died. Friendship, loyalties, and magical abilities are put to the test when the companions discover they are in the center of a plot that threatens to destroy the world they live in."

Young Adult

RAPTURE OF THE DEEP: BLOODY JACK ADVENTURES by Louis A. MeyerOn the very day that Jacky Faber is to wed her true love, she is kidnapped by British Naval Intelligence and forced to embark on yet another daring mission—this time to search for sunken Spanish gold. But when Jacky is involved, things don't always go as planned. Jacky has survived battles on the high seas, the stifling propriety of a Boston finishing school, and even confinement in a dank French prison. But no adventure has quite matched her opportunistic street-urchin desires—until now."

THE SQUIRE'S QUEST: THE SQUIRE'S TALES by Gerald Morris. "And why is it, after all of these years, that Terence is still just a squire, offering advice on how best to scrub the rust spots from armor? But Squire Terence has more to worry about than his place on the social scale. For all the peace and prosperity that has made England famous across Europe, Terence is uneasy. After nearly six months without contact with the World of the Faeries – not even from his old friend, the mischievous sprite Robin – Terence is sure something is rotten in King Arthur's court."

BETRAYING SEASON by Marissa Doyle. "Penelope (Pen) Leland has come to Ireland to study magic and prove to herself that she is as good a witch as her twin sister, Persy. But when the dashing Niall Keating begins to pay her court, she can’t help being distracted from her studies. Little does Pen know, Niall is acting upon orders from his sorceress mother. And although it starts as a sham, Niall actually falls deeply in love with Pen, and she with him. But even if he halts his mother’s evil plan, will Pen be able to forgive him for trying to seduce her into a plot? And what of Pen’s magic, which seems to be increasingly powerful?"

BLOOD RELATIVES VOL. III: VAMPIRES KISSES by Ellen Schreiber. "Raven's romance with her dreamy vampire boyfriend, Alexander, has been complicated once again by Alexander's menacing half-vamp cousin. Now that Claude and his fearless gang have been tricked out of the blood-filled vials that can turn them into full vampires, Claude will stop at nothing to find the real vials. Raven's family and friends could be in danger. When Claude teams up with Raven's longtime nemesis, Trevor, invitations soon go out for a vampire-themed masquerade party. Could Claude be scheming to turn all of the students at Dullsville High into vampires if he doesn't get what he wants? Raven and Alexander must try to stop Claude—but also ask themselves what really matters most in the end."

DEMON PRINCESS: REIGN OR SHINE by Michelle Rowen. "As if trying to fit in at a new school isn't stressful enough, sixteen-year-old Nikki Donovan just found out that her long-lost father is, in fact, the demon king of the Shadowlands—the world that separates and protects us from the Underworld. When she is brought there by the mysterious—and surprisingly cute—messenger Michael, she learns that her father is dying, and he wants her to assume the throne. To complicate matters, a war is brewing between the Shadowlands and the Underworld, her half-demon qualities are manifesting, and her growing feelings for Michael are completely forbidden. Ruling a kingdom, navigating a secret crush, and still making it home by curfew—what's a teenage demon princess to do?"

DREAMS OF THE DEAD: THE WAKING by Thomas Randall. "Sixteen-year-old Kara Foster is an outsider in Japan, but is doing her best to fit at the private school where her father is teaching English for the year. Fortunately she’s befriended by Sakura, a fellow outsider struggling to make sense of her sister’s unsolved murder some months ago. No one seems to care about the beautiful girl who was so brutally murdered, and the other students go on as if nothing has happened. Unfortunately, the calm doesn’t last for long. Kara begins to have nightmares, and soon other students in the school turn up dead, viciously attacked by someone . . . or something. Is Sakura getting back at those she thinks are responsible for her sister’s death? Or has her dead sister come back to take revenge for herself?"

DUPLIKATE by Cherry Cheva. "By the time Kate Larson accidentally fell asleep at three a.m., she'd already done more work in one night than the average high school senior does in a week. Getting into Yale has been her dream for years—and being generally overworked and totally under-rested is the price of admission. But when she opens her eyes the next day, she comes face-to-face with, well, her face—which is attached to her body, which is standing across the room. Wait, what? Meet Kate's computer-generated twin. Kate doesn't know why she's here or how to put her back where she belongs, but she's real. And she's the last thing Kate has time to deal with right now. Unless . . ."

THE EVERAFTER by Amy Huntley. "Madison Stanton doesn't know where she is or how she got there. But she does know this—she is dead. And alone, in a vast, dark space. The only company she has in this place are luminescent objects that turn out to be all the things Maddy lost while she was alive. And soon she discovers that with these artifacts, she can reexperience—and sometimes even change—moments from her life."

THE LOST TRAIN OF THOUGHT: THE SEEMS by John Hulme & Michael Wexler. "Fixer Becker Drane never thought things could get so bad: he's in deep trouble with The Seems for breaking so many rules, he never gets to see his girlfriend, and it looks like his days as a Fixer may be numbered. So when a train carrying a load of Thought destined for The World disappears, Becker reluctantly agrees to join a crew of fixers to solve the mystery—in The Middle of Nowhere. The mission leads Becker into a scenario more terrifying and dangerous than he could have ever prepared for. Getting the Train of Thought back on track is just a temporary Fix. Becker's real mission may prove to be saving The World from ending—forever."

NEVER BITE A BOY ON THE FIRST DATE by Tamara Summers

1. I've got a few issues:
2. I'm a vampire now.
3. One of my classmates was found dead, with telltale fang marks.
4. I didn't do it! (really!)
5. Nobody believes me, so . . .
6. I'm going to have to find the real killer. I've already got three suspects. (three very cute suspects.)
7. One more problem: I am seriously falling for one of them . . . but what if he's the killer?

PASTWORLD by Ian Beck. "What if all of London were really an amusement park—a whole city returned to Victorian times to entertain visitors from the twenty-first century? That's the wildly original premise of Ian Beck's Pastworld, a high-stakes mystery set in a simulated past. Eve is a lifelong resident of Pastworld who doesn’t know she’s living in a theme park until a mysterious threat forces her to leave home. Caleb is a visiting tourist who finds the lawlessness of the past thrilling—until he suddenly becomes a fugitive from an antiquated justice system. And in the midst of it all, in the thick London fog a dark and deadly figure prowls, claiming victim after victim."