New Releases of Science Fiction and Fantasy for Children and Teenagers--the middle of October Edition

Here are the new releases of science fiction and fantasy for children and teenagers from October 6-15th. This is a big list, but I wanted to get these all out in the open, because the cutoff for nominating any of these books for the Cybils is October 15th. Lots of them have been nominated already--I've put an asterisk next to those I know are already on the Cybils lists.

Middle Grade:

ALIENATED by Andrew Auseon. "Best friends Gene Brennick and Vince Haskell come across freaky aliens like Mold Man, Calamari Girl, and Crumble Bun all the time as reporters for their homemade weekly tabloid, the Globe, a newsletter featuring stories on the aliens living quietly among humans in Santa Rosa, California. Gene and Vince's classmates don't take their articles too seriously -- no one does, really. Gene's determined to find a way to end his outsider status for good, and when he and Vince discover a local teacher's deep, dark secret, Gene's convinced he's found the answer. But after taking it one step too far, Gene and Vince are suddenly at the center of an intergalactic conflict, one that could be the death of the boys' friendship, or of the boys themselves -- whichever comes first."

THE BIG BOOK OF BADDIES: HOW TO CATCH THE MOST WANTED VILLAINS OF ALL TIME! by John Townsend. "Felons, gangsters, outlaws, pirates: meet the bad guys! This dip-in delight has the lowdown on 100 infamous scoundrels from history, literature, mythology, film, and TV. Drawing from sources around the world, this unusual and eclectic collection makes its case against each evildoer through an imaginative range of incriminating evidence: police and psychiatric reports, diary entries, eyewitness statements, and school records.

The line-up includes some of the most notorious figures in villaindom (Vlad the Impaler, who inspired Dracula and Bonnie and Clyde), as well some newer—but equally wicked—faces"

THE BLUE SHOE: A TALE OF THIEVERY, VILLAINY, SORCERY, AND SHOES by Roderick Townley. "It was only one shoe. It fit no one. But everyone wanted it. Hap Barlo in a cell, wondering how it had all gone so wrong. The blue shoe was ruined, the girl he’d been trying to help was missing, and he’d been branded a thief—again! He would be banished to the far side of Mount Xexnax in the morning. On the bright side, now he might be able to rescue his father, who had been banished last year. No one has ever returned from Xexnax, so perhaps Hap is a tad optimistic to be dreaming of rescue. Then again, perhaps a dreamer, a doer, and a thief is just the kind of boy who could challenge this mountain—and win!"

THE CHRISTMAS GENIE by Dan Gutman. "It's the last day of school before Christmas vacation and Alex, Chase, and the rest of Mrs. Walter's fifth-grade class couldn't wish more for that final bell to ring. But the day takes a crazy turn when a mysterious meteorite crashes through their classroom window and a genie pops out. He will grant just one wish for the whole class to share. Be careful what you wish for!"

DWEEB: BURGERS, BEASTS, AND BRAINWASHED BULLIES by Aaron Starmer. "Strange things are happening at Ho-Ho-Kus Junior High. The cafeteria is covered in a sea of burger wrappers. Bullies aren’t bullying anymore. And there’s an eerie growling coming from the walls.
If anyone can get to the bottom of these mysteries, it’s Denton, Wendell, Eddie, Elijah, and Bijay. They may be misfits, but they’re also the smartest kids in the eighth grade."

FINN THE HALF-GREAT by Theo Caldwell. "Finn McCool, at fourteen feet, thinks he is the tallest thing in the Emerald Isle. That is, until he ventures outside his childhood valley. Finn soon discovers that ancient Britain is a land of giants, dragons, wizards, and men, in which he is only one little fellow. Despite treating those about him as decently as he can, Finn finds he has enemies all over. Even before he was born, cruel creatures known as the Frost Giants killed Finn’s father and tried to do away with his mother. When Finn learns what befell his parents, his first order of business is to seek out the Frost Giants and take revenge."

THE KNIGHT IN THE SHADOWS: HAUNTED by Chris Eboch. "When Jon and Tania attend a costume party at a museum full of ancient arms and armor -- relics that have been through bloody battles, or worse -- it doesn't surprise either of them to discover a ghost lurking in the shadows. But this particular ghost is on a mission, and if Jon and Tania don't help him, he just might become the warrior he was when he was alive, and that means trouble -- and danger -- for everyone involved!"

*THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY AND THE PRISONER'S DILEMMA by Trenton Lee Stewart. "Join the Mysterious Benedict Society as Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance embark on a daring new adventure that threatens to force them apart from their families, friends, and even each other. When an unexplained blackout engulfs Stonetown, the foursome must unravel clues relating to a nefarious new plot, while their search for answers brings them closer to danger than ever before."

THE NAMING OF TISHKIN SILK by Glenda Millard. "Griffin Silk is an uncommon boy, from an uncommon sort of family—but lately Griffin isn’t so sure that’s a good thing. If he were an ordinary boy, he wouldn’t have to worry about the secret in his heart and maybe he would understand why his mother and baby sister have gone away. When Griffin starts school and meets the spirited Princess Layla, a once-in-lifetime friend who can heal souls, the answers to his questions gently start to unfold. And just like the mythical beast whose name he bears, Griffin discovers that he has uncommon courage and the heart of a lion."

*THE NAVEL OF THE WORLD: THE FORGOTTEN WORLDS by P. J. Hoover. "At the end of summer school, Benjamin was given one task find his missing brothers. Should be easy right? But Benjamin can't locate a trace of them anywhere until he interns at his father's office over spring break. There he finds a mysterious file written in ancient Lemurian with his name on it. Could the answers that Benjamin seeks be in the past?"

PETER AND THE SWORD OF MERCY by Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson."It's been twenty-three years since Peter and the Lost Boys returned from Rundoon. Since then, nobody on the island has grown a day older, and the Lost Boys continue their friendship with the Mollusk tribe, and their rivalry with Captain Hook. Meanwhile in London, Molly has married George Darling and is raising three children: Wendy, Michael, and John. One night a visitor appears at her door; it's James, one of Peter's original Lost Boys. He is now working for Scotland Yard and suspects that the heir to England's throne, Prince Albert Edward, is under the influence of shadow creatures. These shadow creatures are determined to find a secret cache of startstuff which fell to London many centuries ago. The starstuff is hidden in an underground vault which has only one key: the Sword of Mercy, a legendary weapon kept with the Crown Jewels. Molly is determined to help, but when she suddenly goes missing, it is up to her eleven-year-old daughter, Wendy, to keep the starstuff out of the Others' clutches. She has heard her mother's stories of a flying boy named Peter Pan, and he may be her only hope in saving the world from a shadowy doom..."

THE SHADOW OF MALABRON: THE PERILOUS REALM by Thomas Wharton. "When Will crashes his father’s motorcycle and stumbles into the Perilous Realm, all he wants is to find his way back to the world he knows. But he cannot get back the way he came, and as he soon discovers, his story is bound up with this mysterious land and with the very fabric of Story itself. Will is befriended by many strange people and creatures — including Rowen, a girl with a special destiny of her own, and Shade, an unusual wolf — but he is also pursued by dark forces under the control of Malabron, otherwise known as the Night King, the Master of Fetches, and the Storyeater. As Will’s path crosses those of the inhabitants — both innocent and malevolent — of this strange new world, his choices will determine not only his own fate, but that of his new friends in the Perilous Realm."

*THE SHIFTER: THE HEALING WARS by Janice Hardy. "Nya is an orphan struggling for survival in a city crippled by war. She is also a Taker—with her touch, she can heal injuries, pulling pain from another person into her own body. But unlike her sister, Tali, and the other Takers who become Healers' League apprentices, Nya's skill is flawed: She can't push that pain into pynvium, the enchanted metal used to store it. All she can do is shift it into another person, a dangerous skill that she must keep hidden from forces occupying her city. If discovered, she'd be used as a human weapon against her own people."

THE TIME QUAKE: THE GIDEON TRILOGY by Linda Buckley-Archer. "Abducted to 1763, Peter Schock and Kate Dyer begin to understand that history has reached a tipping point. The antigravity machine is in the hands of the cruel and ambitious Lord Luxon -- who has set his sights on the most valuable prize of all: America. He is determined to manipulate time to his advantage, no matter what the cost. And the cost is great indeed. As Lord Luxon changes more and more of the past for his own gain, terrible time quakes begin to sweep through all of history. Kate Dyer, adrift in time and suffering from an overexposure to time travel, knows that if Lord Luxon is not stopped, the time quakes will tear the universe apart."

THAT DOGGONE CALF by Bill & Carol Wallace. "What happens when an uppity calf who thinks he has a royal pedigree tries to take over the job of a no-nonsense guard dog? Dust flies and so do some pretty hilarious antics. Cookie, a black-and-white belted Galloway calf, thinks that he has come to the farm to be in charge of the herd of cows. Hoss, the German shepherd, figures that Cookie can barely keep track of his own tail. The only thing the two stubborn animals have in common is their loyalty to a young farm girl named Ann. So when Ann is in danger, the two rivals must figure out how to go from butting heads to putting their two heads together to save her from a pack of stray dogs."

WITCH ON THE WATER by Christine & Ethan Rose. "Witch on the Water" chronicles the continuing adventures of twelve-year-old Cullen and his friends, Maddy and April. Cullen thought he had enough trouble surviving school, dealing with his miserable home life, and being possessed by Rowan, a 1400-year-old wizard. But when Rowan's wife, the sadistic vampire Fiana, comes back seeking revenge, Cullen and his band of misfits must do what they can to stop her."

YOUNG ADULT

*ARCHENEMY: THE LOOKING GLASS WARS by Frank Beddor. "The Heart Crystal’s power has been depleted, and Imagination along with it. The people of Wonderland have all lost their creative drive, and most alarmingly, even Queen Alyss is without her powers. There is some comfort in the fact that the vicious Redd Heart seems to be similarly disabled. Amazingly, she is attempting to team up with her enemy, Alyss, in order to reclaim Wonderland from King Arch. Alyss might have no choice but to accept Redd’s overtures, especially when she begins to receive alarming advice from the caterpillar oracles."

THE DEMON KING: A SEVEN REALMS NOVEL by Cinda Williams Chima. "Times are hard in the mountain city of Fellsmarch. "Reformed thief Han Alister will do almost anything to eke out a living for himself, his mother, and his sister Mari. Ironically, the only thing of value he has is something he can't sell. For as long as Han can remember, he's worn thick silver cuffs engraved with runes. They're clearly magicked-as he grows, they grow, and he's never been able to get them off. .... Meanwhile, Raisa ana'Helena, Princess Heir of the Fells, has her own battles to fight. She's just returned to court after three years of relative freedom with her father's family at Demonai camp - riding, hunting, and working the famous Clan markets. Although Raisa will become eligible for marriage after her sixteenth name-day, she isn't looking forward to trading in her common sense and new skills for etiquette tutors and stuffy parties."

DISCOVERING: LILY DALE by Wendy Corsi Staub. "After finally learning who was behind her mother’s death, Calla still doesn’t understand why it happened. Somewhere out there, someone seems to share the powerful psychic abilities that allow Calla to see not only into the past, but to the Other Side—someone who apparently doesn’t want to be found. Will Calla’s journey lead to the closure she's been searching for, or will it force her to accept yet another loss and forever wonder what might have been?"

GATEWAY by Sharon Shinn. "As a Chinese adoptee in St. Louis, teenage Daiyu often feels out of place. When an elderly Asian jewelry seller at a street fair shows her a black jade ring—and tells her that “black jade” translates to “Daiyu”—she buys it as a talisman of her heritage. But it’s more than that; it’s magic. It takes Daiyu through a gateway into a version of St. Louis much like 19th century China. Almost immediately she is recruited as a spy, which means hours of training in manners and niceties and sleight of hand. It also means stealing time to be with handsome Kalen, who is in on the plan. There’s only one problem. Once her task is done, she must go back to St. Louis and leave him behind forever. . . ."

THE GHOST AT WIDOWER'S POND: GHOST GIRLS by Karen Chilton. "Paige Parker is adjusting to life in Heather Hollow. She’s O.K. with the ghost-girl roommate, the Hounds of Hell, and the vampire buried around the corner. What’s really scary? The mean girls at Heather Hollow High. Queen bee Heather Duffy is using all her nastiest tricks to make the new girl in town feel very unwelcome."

*GIRL IN THE ARENA by Lise HainesLyn is a neo-gladiator’s daughter, through and through. Her mother has made a career out of marrying into the high-profile world of televised blood sport, and the rules of the Gladiator Sports Association are second nature to their family. Always lend ineffable confidence to the gladiator. Remind him constantly of his victories. And most importantly: Never leave the stadium when your father is dying. The rules help the family survive, but rules—and the GSA—can also turn against you. When a gifted young fighter kills Lyn’s seventh father, he also captures Lyn’s dowry bracelet, which means she must marry him...

HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW: GIFTED by Marilyn Kaye. "Shy, dreamy Emily Sanders is able to foresee future events with the gift of premonitions, but they aren’t always quite right. With frustration, Emily can not yet manage to control her visions, and the other students usually don’t take her seriously. As Emily works on controlling her gift and her premonitions become clearer, her classmates find themselves in a situation where they are forced to listen to her, but will it be too late?"

*HUSH, HUSH by Becca Ajoy Fitzpatrick. "With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to [Patch] against her better judgment. But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel. For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life."

*ICE by Sarah Beth Durst. "Cassie lives with her father at an Arctic research station, is determined to become a scientist, and has no time for make-believe. Then, on her eighteenth birthday, Cassie comes face-to-face with a polar bear who speaks to her. He tells her that her mother is alive, imprisoned at the ends of the earth. And he can bring her back -- if Cassie will agree to be his bride.That is the beginning of Cassie's own real-life fairy tale, one that sends her on an unbelievable journey across the brutal Arctic, through the Canadian boreal forest, and on the back of the North Wind to the land east of the sun and west of the moon. Before it is over, the world she knows will be swept away, and everything she holds dear will be taken from her -- until she discovers the true meaning of love and family in the magical realm of Ice."

LADY MACBETH'S DAUGHTER by Lisa Klein. "Albia has grown up with no knowledge of her mother of her father, the powerful Macbeth. Instead she knows the dark lure of the Wychelm Wood and the moors, where she’s been raised by three strange sisters. It’s only when the ambitious Macbeth seeks out the sisters to foretell his fate that Albia’s life becomes tangled with the man who leaves nothing but bloodshed in his wake. She even falls in love with Fleance, Macbeth’s rival for the throne. Yet when Albia learns that she has the second sight, she must decide whether to ignore the terrible future she foresees—or to change it. Will she be able to save the man she loves from her murderous father? And can she forgive her parents their wrongs, or must she destroy them to save Scotland from tyranny?"

LEGACY by Tom Sniegoski. "What if you found out your deadbeat father is a superhero? Would you leave your small-town life to take up the mantle of a father you never knew? For 18-year-old Lucas, the choice is an easy one: he’s not going to leave behind his mother and his comfortable life for a father who’s never shown any interest in him. But his father—known officially as billionaire Clayton Hartwell, and secretly as the vigilante superhero The Raptor—tells Lucas that as he is dying, evil is growing, and the world needs Lucas to become the new Raptor. When Lucas’s mother is killed by mysterious warriors, he realizes that his father is right. Once in Seraph City, Lucas is stunned by the amount of poverty and crime. But after observing his father’s “heroic” behavior up close, Lucas is left wondering about the line between good and evil. And eventually, he must decide whether to take a stand against the one man who loves him in order to defend a world that desperately needs him."

*LEVIATHAN by Scott Westerfeld. "It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet. Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker and a loyal crew of men. Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.With the Great War brewing, Alek's and Deryn's paths cross in the most unexpected way...taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure. One that will change both their lives forever."

MAD WITH WONDER: HATTER M VOL. 2 by Frank Beddor. "Hatter follows the Glow from London to the battlefields of America's Civil War in search of the Princess who must some day be Queen. The America that Hatter encounters is a sprawling, wounded, boiling landscape of innocence and energy run amok. The war is tearing the country apart, yet Hatter must maintain his sanity in this maelstrom of holy rollers, child healers, prophetic snake handlers, deranged outlaws, and passionate southern belles. As Hatter searches he learns he is not the only Wonderland presence that has found its way to the Promised Land. Queen Redd's black imagination is fueling the Civil War and threatening our world with her evil!"

*THE MAZE RUNNER by James Dashner. "When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift. Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers."

*MIRRORSCAPE by Mike Wilks

*THE VAN ALEN LEGACY: BLUE BLOODS by Melissa de la Cruz. "With the stunning revelation surrounding Bliss's true identity comes the growing threat of the sinister Silver Bloods. Once left to live the glamorous life in New York City, the Blue Bloods now find themselves in an epic battle for survival. Not to worry, love is still in the air for the young vampires of the Upper East Side. Or is it? Jack and Schuyler are over. Oliver's brokenhearted. And only the cunning Mimi seems to be happily engaged."

WHITE HEAT: THE PERFECT FIRE TRILOGY by K. M. Grant. "Picking up where Blue Flame left readers, Raimon has escaped the pyre and is hiding deep within the mountains of the Occitan. He longs to follow Yolanda to Paris, where she has been forced to marry Sir Hugh. However, he knows he must instead fulfill his duty of protecting the Blue Flame and save their beloved country from the advancing forces set on destroying it. In Paris, Yolanda believes Raimon is dead, she still resists her marriage, and as Sir Hugh’s war train—backed by the French king—heads for the Occitan, Yolanda must find new ways to fight."


And here's one I don't think is fantasy exactly, but it sounds like a good one for those of us who read it: A Brief History of Montmary, by Michelle Cooper. "On a remote island kingdom of Montmaray live the last of the FitzOsbornes, a royal family of scrappy (but dignified) orphans teetering on the edge of poverty in their crumbling castle. It’s 1936, and sixteen-year-old Sophie occupies her days with mundane household chores, half-hearted study in the family library, raising her unruly tomboy sister, and keeping a diary of distant hopes and longings. Her older cousin Veronica—a budding scholar—writes a history of the Montmaravians while keeping close tabs on the current political signs that point to another world war. One of those signs--in the form of a boat carrying Nazi "historians"--lands on their shores. The arrival of the Germans sets in motion a chain of events that rivals any of the high adventures of the princesses’ colorful ancestors."