Where are the Good Mothers in Middle Grade Science Fiction and Fantasy?

In honor of Mother's Day, I've been thinking about mothers in middle grade sci fi and fantasy. How many mothers are there in mg sff who are not a. dead b. evil c. virtually non-existent by virtue of being depressed/insane/preoccupied with their own lives? From the fairy tales of the nineteenth-century on to the present, there have been so many, many orphans. So many, many, children of absent and evil mothers. And even when a mother might be "good" (which is to say, involved and caring), often she is an impediment (actual or emotional) to the magical journey of the child protagonist (as in The Puzzle Ring, by Kate Forsyth).

I just went through all 156 posts I've written about middle grade books (most of which are fantasy), and found only one really nice mother (in The House on Mayferry Street, by Eileen Dunlop, from the 1970s). Moving beyond the books I've written about, I could only think of one contemporary series where there is someone who meets my criteria for a "good mother" -- Sarah Heap, in the Septimus Heap series. She genuinely cares about all her children, she's there for them, and she's not evil or dead. Casting my mind further back in time, I rather like the mother of Will Stanton in The Dark is Rising, a book in which the hominess of Will's home makes the magic stand out ever so clearly. And that's about all that's coming to mind.

It's not at all surprising that there are so few good mothers in this genre, and, in fact, I thought of sub-titleing this post "should there be Good Mothers in sci fi fantasy?" I think that one of the reasons kids read these books is to escape their own lives, to explore and try on other personas. Fantasy offers metaphors that can be brought home--ways of re-casting issues from the real world. And so one does not necessarily want the Good Mother casting her shadow of stifling love over the realm of the imagination. (For Good Mother as Nightmare, Neil Gaiman's Coraline is the obvious choice, although The Runaway Bunny, by Margaret Wise Brown, is a close second).

As I was going through the mg sff books I've reviewed, I ticked them off in my mind--dead, dead, absent, dead, evil, dead, dead, dead. There are a huge number of dead mothers (fathers, not so much). It's rather sad that so many authors are killing the mothers--as a mother myself, I don't want to be cut out of my sons' journey toward growing up (and I want to stay alive, thanks very much). I don't want to be cast an impediment that will hold them back. And I think this is one of the reasons I am very fond of the Septimus Heap books is that Angie Sage makes Sarah a loving mother, without, in any way, impinging on the magical experiences her stories offer either the characters or the readers.

If I am missing any obvious (or even not so obvious) good mothers, let me know!

(for those who want to read more about parents, this time in contemporary YA literature, here's a NY Times article from April entitled The Parent Problem in YA Literature, and here's Liz's response at A Chair, A Fireplace, and A Tea Cozy).

Some science fiction picture books in honor of Space Day

Happy Space Day! The aim of Space Day, taken from its official site, is "nurturing young peoples' enthusiasm for the wonders of the universe and inspiring them to continue the stellar work of today's space explorers." Since this is something that books are good at, here are some of our favorite science fiction picture books.

Mungo and the Spiders from Space, by Timothy Knapman, illustrated by Adam Stower (Dial 2008). Mungo finds himself inside the book he was reading...an epic space adventure entitled "Galacticus and Gizmo save the Universe." But it looks like they won't be able to save the universe from Dr. Frankenstinker and his robot spiders without Mungo's help. This is a great one for the older picture book reader--it feels somewhat like a comic book with bigger, brighter pictures. But it's a fun one to read to a smaller child too. We read this one five times in the week we had it out from the library.

Actually, this one might not inspire a child to head out into outer space (what with its scary spiders). But it is still fun.

There's Nothing to Do on Mars, by Chris Gall (Little Brown, 2008). "When Davey Martin's family moved to Mars, he thought he'd never make a friend again...Davey knew there was nothing to do on Mars." A lovely mix of a bored child and an utterly unboring planet waiting for him to discover its secrets while jetting around on his flying scooter. I especially liked the fact and diagram filled endpapers, but my boys liked the amusing story.



Sheep Blast Off! by Nancy Shaw, illustrated by Margot Apple (Houghton Mifflen Co., 2008). Those crazy sheep are back, and this time they commandeer an alien spacecraft. As anyone familiar with Shaw's sheep knows, they are bumblingly (is that a word?) incompetent--"Sheep panic. Sheep guess. Which button should they press?" A funny "first science-fiction" book for the younger child (3ish).




The final book on our list is one that really celebrates space travel and exploration in the spirit of Space Day. Astro Bunnies, by Christine Loomis, illustrated by Ora Eitan (Putnam, 2001) tells, in rhyme, of the rabbit inhabitants of a technologically-advanced rabbit world who travel into space.


"Astro bunnies
See a star
Think they'd like to
Go that far"

So they don their space suits, and blast off into a magical cosmos, conducting scientific experiments, and even meeting a star travelling race of alien bunnies (with three ears)!

Yet wherever
Bunnies go
There is one thing
They all know

Rockets fly and
Rockets roam
But bunnies ALWAYS
Come back home

(and this is where I used to add "to their mamas who love them so very very much," snuggle snuggle, making this Mother's Day appropriate too!")

Another good one is Earth to Clunk, reviewed here

Kid vs. Squid, by Greg van Eekhout

Kid vs Squid, by Greg van Eekhout (May 11, 2010, Bloomsbury, middle-grade, 256 pages in ARC form)

Spending his summer with fake mermaids and other assorted grotesqueries wasn't Thatcher's idea, but he had no choice. Dumped at a ghastly sea-side town in California by his parents, he spends his days dusting the creepy curiosities in his uncle's museum. But one night a mysterious girl steals the creepiest of all--a shrunken head, and Thatcher takes off in pursuit.

The thief is no ordinary girl--she's a princess of lost Atlantis. The head is no ordinary shrunken head--it belongs to the evil witch Skalla who destroyed Atlantis long ago. And now Skalla wants her head back...and, incidentally, plans to destroy the whole town, along with everyone in it, and quite possibly take over the world.

Standing against her are Thatcher (ordinary boy), Trudy (ordinary girl, except for her keen interest in the FBI's techniques), and Shoal (princess of Atlantis), who can't really do much for most of the book because of being swallowed by an evil fish. So, in non-stop action, a swirling mass of evil lobster-men, jellyfish boys, strangely intelligent sharks, the flotsam of Atlantis, and two (ordinary) kids converges in an epic struggle. And then the giant squid shows up...

The author has an enjoyable dry wit, and the story is enlivened with quite a few funny bits, such as this one:

"That's a submarine," I said.

"Oh, aye, she's called the Other Nautilus. And a fine vessel she is. She's not seaworthy, but for a death trap, aye, a very fine vessel." p 145 of arc (hee hee)

At times the intensity of the action threatens to overwhelm the characterization, but that should not be a deterrent to the young reader who wants something fast and wacky.

Here's another review, at Bib-Laura-graphy.

(arc picked up at ALA midwinter)

Drizzle, by Kathleen Van Cleve

Drizzle, by Kathleen Van Cleve (Penguin, 2010, middle grade, 358 pages) tells of a magical rhubarb farm, where it rains every Monday at the same time, there's a lake you cannot drown in, the insects are big and smart, and so are some of the plants....Polly Peabody loves her farm, and her family (with the glaring exception of her big sister, who isn't exactly nurturing). But one Monday, the rain doesn't come, her beloved older brother falls ill, and the farm is in danger of being sold.

Polly seems to have a greater connection to the farm than anyone else in the family, so it falls to her to unlock the secrets of the farm. Polly isn't particularly brave, or smart, or determined--but she does care enough to keep trying, until at last she understands how to bring the magic back....

Polly is not my favorite heroine of the year. She makes a really rotten choice early in the book, loosing her temper with a beloved plant that is trying to help her figure out what is going on, and shredding him--pretty immature. She has a lot of growing up to do socially as well...and, although one can't cast stones, it's pretty easy to see why she doesn't have friends at school. She does gain confidence as the book progresses, though (partly through her reading of Emerson's Self Reliance, which is woven nicely into her story), and by the end of the book she's become more likeable.

(But the plant shredding really got to me. It's not simply that I love my own plants, but I just can't relate to anyone who practically kills her best friend in a fit of frustration.....Just by way of contrast, Tasha at Kid's Lit called Polly "a great protagonist.")

It was the magical setting of the farm, and the gradually unlocking of its mysteries, that carried me through the book. I was a tad afraid the farm would be magical in a twee sort of way--I'd heard that there was chocolate rhubarb growing there, and a magical umbrella ride, and it sounded a bit, um, childish. But it isn't; it's a lovely, enchanting place (edited to add, because I was just thinking about it some more) that combines the magic with a dash of science and considerable horticultural interest, very pleasing to those of us who like that sort of thing....

Here are some other reviews, at Searching for a Good Read, Eva's Book Addiction, and Kids Lit.

Catweazle, by Richard Carpenter, for Timeslip Tuesday

Today's Timeslip story is one that I last read when I was ten years old or so...I hung on to my battered Puffin paperback all these years, and now have finally revisited it.

Catweazle, by Richard Carpenter (Puffin, 1970, middle grade, 190 pages) tells of an Anglo-Celtic magician, who, while being pursued by Normans, works a magic spell that lands him (and his toad, Touchwood) on a turkey farm in 20th century England. There he is much impressed by the "magical" powers of the farmer's son Edward, commonly known as "Carrot."

"Master!" he whispered.
"Eh?" said Carrot.
"Let me serve thee!"
"What?"
"Teach me thy elec-trickery- that I may do it."
"Do what?" said Carrot.
"Put the sun in a bottle," said Catweazle, pointing up at the light-bulb." (page 25)

For Carrot, the next few weeks become a blur as he tries to keep Catweazle out of mischief. Yet still Catweazle, determined to get home, causes confusion after confusion, whether it's pinching the crystal ball from the local fortune-tellers shop, trying to fly off the steeple of the church and causing the vicar much distress, or serving as a very reluctant interviewee on the subject of local folklore. Catweazle has some touch of true magic, a very independent spirit, and a firm belief that Carrot is a fellow traveler on the path of dark arts. Very trying for Carrot, who tries to be helpful, but is instead the constant recipient of medieval abuse.

Here's Catweazle after Carrot has offered him a restorative shot of brandy:

"Yeeeeeaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!" he cried, skipping round the room, clutching his stomach and then his throat. "I burn! I burn!"
"Thought that would do the trick," murmured Carrot.
Catweazle stopped jumping about and advanced on Carrot, coughing and spluttering. Tears ran down his face leaving little pale paths on his dirty face.
"Thou bow-legged beetle!" he snarled.
"That's better," said Carrot.
"Thou white-legged worm!"
"Anything else?" asked Carrot calmly.
Catweazle took a deep breath. "Thou wry-necked, trash-mongering, swaggering, double-tongued, huff-snuff!" (pages 122-123)

It's the type of book where everything is constantly teetering on the edge of minor disaster--poor Carrot is constantly rushing around after Catweazle, tiding the edges of reality after they have been disrupted, and always afraid this father is going to find out about it all, and send Catweazle off...so it's not a restful read, even though it's often quite funny.

Catweazle, although often maddening, has his moments of dignity--and indeed, he is in a difficult position, seeing the modern world through the eyes of early medieval magic. Carrot sees someone worth helping in him (even though he doesn't believe that Catweazle came from the past), and Catweazle has certainly brought color and excitement to the world of the turkey farm. But in the end, Catweazle finds his way home back to the past...and finally convinces Carrot that all the things he said about himself were true.

It's an excellent read for a ten or eleven year old, and didn't seem dated to me at all.

Catweazle's story continues in Catweazle and the Magic Zodiac, which I sadly no longer seem to have a copy of, and which I remember liking even better....Next time I'm in England (where my husband's family lives), I'll have to remember to look for it. Or maybe I'll just buy it used from Amazon, where both books are available...

Catweazle began as a television series--the 40th anniversy DVD has just been released.

Dragons of Darkness, by Antonia Michaelis

Dragons of Darkness, by Antonia Michaelis (Amulet Books, 2010 US, 2006 Germany, YA, 545 pages).

Tiger Moon, shortlisted for the Cybils last fall, was the first book of Michaelis' I'd read. I fell in love with her dream-like story telling, in which magic and the mundane mixed in a fantastic Indian adventure. So Dragons of Darkness, a magical journey into the mountains of Nepal, was an obvious book to look for this year.

In Nepal, a 14 year old boy named Jumar, the invisible son of the king, leaves the palace where he has been a virtual prisoner all his life to seek revenge on the Maoist insurgents he believes have killed a faithful servant.

In Germany, a 14 year old boy named Christopher grieves for his brother Arne, kidnapped by the Maoists and held hostage somewhere in Nepal. A library book, full of pictures of the place, lets him feel closer to his brother...and he falls into the pages, and is there. Not only is he in Nepal, he has fallen on top of Jumar...

Christopher's grandmother, whom he strongly resembles, was Nepalese--he can pass for a local. And the magic that transported him has given him the language too. So the two boys (one of whom is invisible), set out toward the mountains. There they see the havoc wrought by the color dragons, who steal all that is good and beautiful wherever their shadows pass. The grey rice in the fields has no sustenance, and worse still, any person touched by a dragon's shadow becomes a bronze statue.

The suffering of the mountain people is exacerbated by the war between the Maoists and the Royalists. And it is this war, full of complex injustices, in which the two boys are about to become entangled. The rebel cause becomes real in the person of Nayu, a girl their age who is recruiting for the Maoists. She is brave, she is beautiful, and both boys fall hard for her...

And their loyalties and their missions become a confusion in their minds. To save Arne, to end the pain caused by the color dragons, to become visible, and to bring peace to Nepal, Jumar, Nayu and Christopher must journey bravely through mountains where death--in the beauty of a dragon's wing, in the muzzle of a gun, in the land itself-- could lie around every corner. And it would be a lot easier if they were sure what they were looking for...

Both a quest story and a coming of age story, Michaelis has created a rich and complex world in her magical Nepal. It is both modern, in its fictionalized evocation of the actual people and politics of the place, and fairy-tale like, with its enchantments and dragons, and the sense of old stories being re-lived. Her characterization is vivid, and the tangled relationship between the three young teenagers is fascinating and convincing. Friendship and loyalty are complicated things...and Michaelis captures this well.

But, sadly for me, I found the adventures of the heroes' journey becoming a little tedious after a while--I felt that I grasped the "danger lurks around every corner" and "people are suffering" and "no cause is totally just" themes sooner than the author believed I had--at 545 pages, it's a long book, and didn't necessarily need to be quite so long. So although I enjoyed it, I didn't fall hard for it, the way I did with Tiger Moon.

Fans of Finnikin of the Rock, by Melina Marchetta, might like this one--it is similar in feel, with its violent, unremitting journey (although fewer violent things happen to the characters in this book, and it is closer to a fairy tale than an epic, with more moments of beauty and wonder).

Note on age appropriateness: Two of the main characters turn to each other for comfort, and end up having sex. There's violence, and one scene in particular that is rather horrible and sad.

Here's another review at Wands and Worlds, which (among other things) discusses the mix of real world politics and fantasy in the book.

Poop Happened! A History of the World from the Bottom Up

When I was young, I spent several days inside a Viking privy in York, England. From an archaeological point of view it was fascinating--the preservation was wonderful. So wonderful, in fact, that the privy smelled like it had been used yesterday, and intact turds were recovered (one of which ended up on display in the Jorvik Viking Center. Fascinating stuff, that poop--you can learn a lot from it!

Poop Happened! A History of the World from the Bottom Up, by Sarah Albee, takes poop and runs with it. It is a chronological compendium of the history of defecation in Europe (mainly England) and the USA, providing not only poop-specific facts (I didn't know Queen Elizabeth I travelled with a port-a-potty), but tying them to the larger social history in an extremely compelling way (poop and the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, for instance). It's an excellent introduction to social history--the sort that eschews dates and names in favor of trends and interconnections. It makes the point that to understand the workings of a society, and the trajectory of its history, understanding daily life is important, and interesting, too!

Poop Happens! is chock full of extremely interesting details, arranged in short sections of just a few paragraphs that flow nicely into one another. Albee does an excellent job, I thought, packing a lot of information into an accessible format, and this accessibility is further enhanced by the copious illustrations, both historic images and cartoons.

The obvious reader for this book would be the middle-grade kid, but I think its appeal, and its utility, goes beyond this demographic. For instance, many people have noticed that few fictional characters ever have to poop. But for any writer of fantasy or historical fiction who wants to create a world that is really three-dimensional, this book, with its quirky tidbits and exposé of the dark underparts of life, might be just the thing...

My main disappointment is with the European focus of the book--the subtitle is misleading, as "world" implies a global perspective, and it's annoying (and just plain wrong) when it turns out to be short for "the European world." There are a few pages devoted to toilets beyond Europe, but these were so sparse that they felt like token nods. And the indigenous cultures of North and South America are not included. What were the sanitation arrangements, for instance, at Machu Picchu? At Teotihuacan?

Sarah Albee herself apologizes for this problem in the introduction, explaining that she was limited by lack of primary sources available in English. But why couldn't they have changed the subtitle to reflect this? And perhaps she could have added more non-Western poop if she had spent more time talking to archaeologists--we are, after all, able to find toilets even when there are no written records of them.

Still, a fascinating and very readable book with lots of kid appeal.

Other reviews at A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy, and Welcome to my Tweendom.

Non-fiction Monday is hosted today by Bookends.

(disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher)

Avielle of Rhia, by Dia Calhoun (a textile fantasy)

After reading Brightly Woven a while back, I set off on the trial of other textile fantasies--stories in which weaving, or other textile arts, are an integral part of the story (because I like books where people do things with their hands, and make beautiful things). A list of the textile fantasies I've looked at so far is at the end of the post; but now, on to Avielle of Rhia.

Avielle of Rhia, by Dia Calhoun (2006, Marshall Cavendish, YA, 397 pages). Avielle is a princess in a land where it is thought that the traits of the ancestors become manifest again in their descendants. And Avielle bears an uncanny resemblance to the most cursed queen of all, Dolvoka, whose dark magic drove the birds away from Rhia. Dolvoka came from Dredonia long ago, an unwilling bride sealing a peace treaty, and Avielle has inherited the silver skin and silver hair of the Dredonia. Many, including Avielle herself, fear that she has inherited Dolvoka's dark magic as well...

Avielle grew up on the outskirts of royal life, facing prejudice and distrust, finding solace in her weaving, and in her love for her little brother. But that life comes to a crashing halt when the Brethren of the Black Cloaks, who have come to power in Dredonia, make their move against Rhia. In a hideous whirlwind, the king's castle is destroyed, killing almost all inside. By chance Avielle was in town, visiting Gamalda, the most skilled weaver in the kingdom, and so she survived.

Her family is dead, and her kingdom in jeopardy. But Avielle refuses to come forward, to face the fear and suspicion of her people--instead, she becomes Gamalda's apprentice. Gradually she learns to let her own magic come to her as she weaves dream-fraught cloth, inspired by the goddess, and gradually this leads her closer to the wisdom that will guide her as she faces her destiny. But for the most part, her days are filled with life on a busy street of crafters and printers and magic users. From her new neighbors, Avielle learns lessons of friendship, and trust, and the bonds that bring ordinary people together. It is these lessons, as well as her own magic, that will let Avielle defeat her own demons, and those of her country.

It's a rather lovely book, in its collection of diverse characters all busy with their lives, the magic that is part of life, and the textiles--lovely textiles of great metaphoric import...And it's worth reading for this aspect of it alone. As part of her plan to help Avielle gain wisdom, Gamalda sends Avielle into the lives of all the neighbors--the magical sock maker, the book-seller, with his whimsical system of organization, the silversmith and glass makers, lovely artisans both, and more. Fascinatingly detailed descriptions bring all of these characters, and their shops, to life.

Avielle's own story--one of coming to terms with prejudice, grief, and self-doubt--is compelling also, but it was not subtle. I felt that things were underlined a tad too much--the reader is not give a heck of a lot of credit. And I found this to be the case with the world building as well--falling just short of excellent because the points were driven home a tad too hard.

That being said, this is a lovely one, I think, for the 12 or 13 year old girl, for whom reading fantasy is her path toward learning about the world, for thinking about things in our world through the mirror of magical places.

And the textiles are lovely...

Thanks, Natalie, for the recommendation! I enjoyed this one.

(note on age: I put this one in both mg and ya--I think it's definitely a tween. There's no sex, but it is very much a teenage girl growing up. There's violence, but not enough to make it upper middle grade unfriendly)

Other textile fantasies I've reviewed:

The Spellcoats, by Diana Wynne Jones
Tom Ass, by Ann Laurence
Brightly Woven, by Alexandra Bracken
Silksinger, by Laini Taylor

Other textile fantasies that I haven't:

A Curse Dark as Gold, by Elizabeth Bunce
Weaveworld, by Clive Barker
Gathering Blue, by Lois Lowry
Dragon Slippers, by Jessica Day George

Any more recommendations?

This Sunday's Middle Grade Fantasy and Science Fiction round-up

Welcome to another week's worth of middle grade fantasy and science fiction reviews and etceteras from around the blogs (middle grade being 9-12, ish). Please let me know if I missed your post, or if you saw something really cool that I should add!

Abby Carnelia's One and Only Magical Power, by David Pogue (2010) at Book Aunt.

The Adventures of Benny, by Steve Shreve (2009) at Charlotte's Library.

Any Which Wall, by Laurel Snyder (2009), at Becky's Book Reviews.

Attack of the Fluffy Bunnies, by Andrea Beaty (2010), at Book Aunt

The Blue Sword, by Robin McKinley, at Fantasy Literature (although the subtitle is "How YA fantasy is done" this is a wonderful book for 11 and 12 year olds too)

The Boneshaker, by Kate Milford, at Fuse #8.

Boom! by Mark Haddon (2010, original incarnation 1993) at Book Aunt.

Enchanted Glass, by Diana Wynne Jones (2010), at Eva's Book Addiction.

Flight of the Outcast, by Brad Strickland (2010), at Book Aunt.

Hellion, by Christopher Fowler (2010), at The Book Zone (for Boys) (one of those YA books that the review thinks would be appreciated by the upper middle grade set).

The Hidden Boy, by Jon Berkeley (2010) at Keep Reading to Your Child.

The Magic Thief, by Sarah Prineas (2008) at Writing at High Altitude.

Middleworld, by J. & P. Voelkel (2010), at Charlotte's Library.

Molly Withers and the Golden Tree, by Kent Allan Rees (2009), at Jules' Book Reviews.

The Ring of Five, by Eoin McNamee at Charlotte's Library.

Runemarks, by Joanne Harris (2008) at Robin McKinley's blog.

The Sixty-Eight Rooms, by Marianne Malone (2010), at Charlotte's Library.

Skellig, by David Almond, at The Zen Leaf.

The Storm in the Barn, by Matt Phelan (2009), at Biblio File and Yet Another Children's Book Blog.

When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead (2009) at Lucy was Robbed.

The Witchy Worries of Abby Adams, by Rhonda Hayter (2010) at In Bed with Books.

Wyrmeweald: Return's Wealth, by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell (2010) at Nayu's Reading Corner, and at Fantasy Book Review (and here's a post from the same site about its artwork)


For fans of Blackbringer, by Laini Taylor--the Story Sleuths chose it as their book to discuss in April, and here are the posts:

Post #1: Point of View in Blackbringer
Post #2: Word Choice & Language
Post #3: Suspense
Post #4: Midpoint
Post #5: Lending Fantasy a Semblance of Truth, an essay by Susan Fletcher

Interviews:

For fans of Eoin Colfer, here's a BBC video in which he talks about writing fantasy for children.

Rhonda Hayter, author of The Witchy Worries of Abby Adams, at In Bed with Books

Robin McKinley at Speculative Book Review.

Diane Zahler, author of The Thirteenth Princess, at Manga Maniac Cafe.

And at Suvudu, you can find books for your own reading list by reading about the 10 books that most influenced Christine Brodien-Jones, author of The Owl Keeper.

This has been Moomin Week at Tor! All who love the Moomins must visit the wide range of posts! And celebrate the re-release of the books by Macmillan! Coincidentally Moomin novice Lenore looks at Comet In Moominland today...

Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go, by Dale E. Basye (2008) is getting some attention in the blogs this week--it's going to be made into a movie by Juan Jose Campanella. The newest book in the series, Blimpo, comes out May 11.

The fifth book in the Sluggers series (magic meets baseball meets historical fiction) just came out--to celebrate, Boys Rule Boys Read! are having a review challenge to celebrate.

And yes, it's not middle grade, but still of great interest: the brackets for the YA Debut Battle of the Books are up here at the Shady Glade! I'm going to put my money on The Demon's Lexicon, but since I haven't read a lot of them, I could easily be missing the obvious favorite...

And finally, here are some lovely pictures of Will and Lyra's bench, and the garden it's in, at Once, Oh Marvellous Once.

Middleworld, by J & P Voelkel

Middleworld, by J. & P. Voelkel (Egmont, 2010, upperish middle grade on up, 398 pages in ARC form). Book 1 of The Jaguar Stones.

Strangely, playing computer games at home in Boston had not prepared 14 year-old Max very well for his encounter with the Mayan god of the dead. And, more generally, his rather lazy attitude toward life had not equipped him for jungle adventure, politeness when encountering different foods and customs, and a stiff upper lip. Let alone being a hero.

But when Max is suddenly sent off to the tiny Central American country of San Xavier, where his parents are leading an archaeological dig, he is forced to become one. Because his parents have gone missing, the clock on the Mayan doomsday calender is ticking down, and the incredible power of the five jaguar stones of the ancient Mayan kings might be about to fall into the hands of someone really, really evil.

Fortunately for Max, it's not up to him to defeat the villain, or even survive the jungle on his own. When he leaves his uncle's house in the city to set off on the trail of a mysterious thief, he meets Lola, a brave and resourceful Mayan girl. She takes him in hand and teaches him a few lessons in courage and tenacity (and manners). These are lessons that will stand him in good stead when he enters the Black Pyramid of Death, home of the un-dead Demon Warriors of Ixibalba (although the Demon Warriors, happily for the characters, don't actually come to zombified life).

Hmm. I'm not entirely satisfied with my plot summary--there are lots of other characters and
Mayan mythological and historical elements and two very important Howler monkeys...In a nutshell, it's a fantastically detailed and somewhat complicated/over-the-top adventure with gods and long dead Mayan royalty and lost treasure and bad guys and a tough beautiful girl and a young teenage boy who has a lot to learn. And it's funny--I chuckled out loud several times.

"Once there was the terrible sound of rock scraping on rubber as they got wedged under a particularly low overhang. Then they had to try not to scream and calmly maneuver themselves to the left or the right, to find a place where the raft could squeeze through. (By unspoken agreement, Max did the trying not to scream, while Lola did the calm maneuvering.)" (Page 135 of ARC)

I liked Lola lots and lots! And by the end of the book, Max was pretty engaging too (although he's something of a brat for the first half).

The plot is light-hearted, but with scary bits. It was taken to very wild extremes, yet the fantastical, for the most part, avoided the twin traps of jungle-treasure-adventure-stereotype and farce. That being said, although I very, very, much enjoyed the two teenagers travelling though the jungle part of the story, I didn't enjoy the Mayan magical showdown part quite as well--it was just a bit too much! (Howler monkey flatulence, for instance, played a role in the defeat of the bad guys).

I did not, however, let that minor failure of connection between me and the book spoil my enjoyment of it. It was a fun, fast read that I'd happily recommend to older middle-grade kids on up. It also gets major points from me for its matter-of-fact inclusion of Maya's cultural background. Nestled into the wild storytelling are some rather valuable educational elements, which I thought the authors did a good job including without being didactic.

This is the first of series, so there are loose ends...but even if everything had been tidied up, I'd still be glad to read another Lola and Max adventure!

(diclaimer: ARC received from the publisher)

New Releases of Science Fiction and Fantasy for Teenagers and Kids--the beginning of May, 2010 edition

Happy May Day! Happy Free Comic Book Day! Happy (?) add even more books to your tbr list day! Never since I started doing new release posts have so many books I want to read all come out in one week....the last Charlie Bone book, a new Sisters Grimm book, the sequel to Wings, the third Gone book, a new Mette Ive Harrison book, and tons of new ones...

My information comes from the new release list at Teens Read Too, and the blurbs, unless otherwise noted, are from the publishers, generally via Amazon.

CHARLIE BONE AND THE RED KNIGHT: CHILDREN OF THE RED KING by Jenny Nimmo. "Charlie and his friends take on the most powerful and dangerous magic in Book Eight of this extraordinary series. As wicked forces come to a head at Bloor's Academy, Charlie and his friends must use all their magic and all their might to fight the evil and save Charlie's parents. In his greatest adventure yet, Charlie must discover the fate of his family, the evil intentions of the Bloors, what has become of Septimus Bloor's will, and, most important, the destiny of the Red King's heirs. But are the Children of the Red King strong enough to defeat the darkness to find the answers? Join Charlie and his friends as they race to unlock the mystery of the Red King in this final chapter."

CROSSING OVER: SUDDENLY SUPERNATURAL by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel Medium-in-training Kat Roberts is one year older and feeling a whole lot wiser when it comes to healing the living dead. But when her spirit-seeing mother volunteers to chaperone her class trip to Old Montreal, Kat's problems become drop dead-serious. From dealing with French-Canadian ghosts to trying to win the heart of her former bio lab partner and top-secret crush, Kat is finding beaucoup drama on this border and boundary-crossing adventure.

DARK LIFE by Kat Falls. Set in an apocalyptic future where rising oceans have swallowed up entire regions and people live packed like sardines on the dry land left, DARK LIFE is the harrowing tale of underwater pioneers who have carved out a life for themselves in the harsh deep-sea environment, farming the seafloor in exchange for the land deed. The story follows Ty, who has lived his whole life on his family's homestead and has dreams of claiming his own stake when he turns eighteen. But when outlaws' attacks on government supply ships and settlements threaten to destroy the underwater territory, Ty finds himself in a fight to stop the outlaws and save the only home he has ever known. Joined by a girl from the Topside who has come subsea to look for her prospector brother, Ty ventures into the frontier's rough underworld and begins to discover some dark secrets to Dark Life. As Ty gets closer to the truth, he discovers that the outlaws may not be the bloodthirsty criminals the government has portrayed them as. And that the government abandoning the territory might be the best thing for everyone, especially for someone like Ty, someone with a Dark Gift."

THE DEAD END by Mimi McCoy. "Casey Slater can’t believe her bad luck. It’s the summer before seventh grade, and instead of the perfect vacation she’d planned with her best friend, Casey is in a remote country town, where her parents are restoring an old, creaky, creepy house. Worst of all, everyone else in town thinks the old house is haunted. And soon Casey thinks so, too -- a vase explodes, a heavy china cabinet falls over on its own -- and it seems like the ghost doesn’t want them there. Casey thought she’d be dying of boredom, but now she’s scared to death!"

FELIX TAKES THE STAGE: THE DEADLIES by Kathryn LaskyThe Deadlies are like any other family with a loving mother and bright, rambunctious children. Except they're spiders. Really, really poisonous ones. But Edith and her children are kind and cultured. In fact, the Deadlies had been happily living in a symphony hall until Edith's son, Felix, had a . . . misunderstanding with the maestro. Now they're on the hunt for a new home. That is, if they can outwit the overzealous arachnologists and evil exterminators on their tail. Will they ever find a place to live in peace?

HOME OF THE BRAVE: SLUGGERS by Phil Bildner & Loren Long The final book of a magical baseball series (sorry I couldn't find a blurb on-line! Or a picture the right size).

THE INSIDE STORY: THE SISTERS GRIMM by Michael BuckleyAfter the shocking ending of The Everafter War, this book picks up with Sabrina, Daphne, and Puck stuck in the Book of Everafter, where all the fairy tales are stored and enchanted characters can change their destinies. The girls (and Puck) must chase the Master through a series of stories, where they’re willing to change what they need in order to save their baby brother. Soon, however, they are confronted by the Editor—the book’s guardian—who, along with an army of tiny monsters known as Revisers, threatens the children with dire consequences if they don’t stick to the stories. As they chase their quarry and dodge the Revisers, they meet Alice, Mowgli, Jack the Giant Killer, Hansel and Gretel, the Headless Horseman, and more. But will they find their brother in time?

LOST TALES OF GA'HOOLE: GUARDIANS OF GA'HOOLEby Kathryn LaskyGuided by the Knower, Otulissa has studied long in the libraries of the Others; she has probed the ancient lore of the strange and powerful dire wolves of the Beyond. And at the Great Ga'Hoole tree itself she has uncovered secret histories of Guardians she thought she knew well! Attention Dear Reader! Great mysteries will be revealed to the attuned mind in these last Lost Tales of the Great Tree! Otulissa embarks on a journey to revitalize academic vigor and historical interest at the Great Tree. Lost Tales of Ga'Hoole is the result of her labor. In finding and compiling these tales previously lost to the annals of Ga'Hoolian history, she composes her magnum opus. Otulissa tells the never-before-known tales of minor and invented characters in the world of Ga'Hoole. They contain new information about the owls, dire wolves, and other creatures of Ga'Hoole, but always refer back to the world and overarching storyline that readers of the series have come to love.

MOLLY MOON & THE MORPHING MYSTERY by Georgia Byng. "Molly Moon is back! Not only can she hypnotize anyone who crosses her path, travel through time and read minds, now she has a new power: morphing! From human to animal and back again, Molly must find her way back to her own body—and save the world while she’s at it—before it’s too late. In this fifth book in the wildly popular Molly Moon series, Molly is braver than ever before."

PUPPET MASTER by Joanne Owen. "From riches to rags, Milena is growing up in the city of Prague at the turn of the 20th century. Her parents' once prosperous theater lies in disrepair, and her life seems to be in ruins since the fateful night her father died in a tragic accident and her beautiful, talented mother went missing. Milena has never lost hope that her mother will come back. The day she meets the flamboyant Puppet Master and his menacing twin protégés, Zdenko and Zdenka, under the shadow of Prague's famous Astronomical Clock in the Old Town square, is, coincidentally, the date of her mother's birthday. It's also the day Milena's grandmother chooses to reveal to he the story of her ancestors—and of her legacy. Perhaps it's not such a coincidence?"

THE PYRAMID OF SOULS: MAGICKEEPERS by Erica Kirov. "It was stolen from Alexander the Great. To keep it safe, Edgar Allen Poe bargained away his sanity. And somebody suckered P. T. Barnum to get their hands on it. It's the most closely guarded secret in the magician community. And it's missing. What would you do to protect your family from an ancient pyramid capable of stealing your very soul? Nick Rostov finally has the life he's always dreamed-and he'll do anything to protect it. Nick has only now discovered he is part of an extended Russian family of magicians: the Magickeepers. He lives with his eccentric new relatives at the Winter Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, where they perform daring feats of magic to a packed house. Real magic. But Nick and his family face a new danger in the form of a stolen relic, the Pyramid of Souls. The tiny pyramid has traded hands many times throughout history. Its power can steal a magician's very soul. Nick knows who took it: Rasputin, leader of the Shadowkeepers. Using his unique ability as a Gazer-one who can see into the past-Nick enlists his cousin Isabella to help him find it. Soon, the two are hot on the evil sorcerer's trail...until Isabella's soul is trapped by the very relic they're trying to find. Nick will do anything to rescue Isabella and recover the Pyramid of Souls. But will it be enough to save his family?"

RABBIT MAGICby Holly Webb. "Lottie has discovered an unhappy rabbit at Netherbridge's other pet shop (the non-magical one). He seems to have budding magical abilities, but can't possibly express them in his tiny, dingy cage. Lottie is determined to rescue him! Jealous of Lottie's new interest in rabbits, her dachshund, Sophie, sulks and runs away from home. If that wasn't enough, a startling dream means big changes. Lottie's long-lost father is still alive--and he's headed for Netherbridge!"

THE RED PYRAMID: THE KANE CHRONICLES by Rick Riordan. "Since their mother’s death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane. One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives. Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set--has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe--a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs."

TALES FROM THE ODYSSEY by Mary Pope Osborne. "Brave Odysseus is far from home, tossed by stormy seas, and cursed by an angry one-eyed giant. If he ever wants to see his family again, he will have to face hungry cannibals, outwit a beautiful witch, and sail past a six-headed serpent. And when he finally does return home, he will have yet more dangerous enemies to face. His journey is the ultimate test of endurance and courage."

THIS TOTALLY BITES! by Ruth Ames. "Twelve-year-old Emma-Rose Paley has always felt different from her bubbly, outgoing parents. Unlike them, Emma-Rose has pale skin and jet-black hair, is quiet and moody, and prefers gray weather to sunshine. She also hates the taste of garlic, has very sharp incisors, and loves rare burgers. When Emma-Rose uncovers a dark family secret, she has a sudden revelation. Could Emma-Rose be a real, live vampire?"

TORTILLA SUNby Jennifer Cervantes. "When twelve-year-old Izzy discovers a beat-up baseball marked with the words 'Because magic' while unpacking in yet another new apartment, she is determined to figure out what it means. What secrets does this old ball have to tell? Her mom certainly isn't sharing any especially when it comes to Izzy's father, who died before Izzy was born. But when she spends the summer in her Nana's remote New Mexico village, Izzy discovers long-buried secrets that come alive in an enchanted landscape of watermelon mountains, whispering winds, and tortilla suns."


Young Adult (sorry,YA fans--I ran out of steam on the pictures...)

ANXIOUS HEARTS by Tucker Shaw “Evangeline,” he repeated, calling at a whisper. “Evangeline.” He was not calling that she may hear, he was calling that somehow her soul might know that he was devoted entirely to her, only to her. “Evangeline, I will find you.” Eva and Gabe explore the golden forest of their seaside Maine town, unknowingly tracing the footsteps of two teens, Evangeline and Gabriel, who once lived in the idyllic wooded village of Acadia more than one hundred years ago. On the day that Evangeline and Gabriel were be wed, their village was attacked and the two were separated. And now in the present, Gabe has mysteriously disappeared from Eva. A dreamlike, loose retelling of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous love poem “Evangeline,” Anxious Hearts tells an epic tale of unrequited love and the hope that true love can be reunited."

THE DAYKEEPER'S GRIMOIRE: PROPHECY OF DAYS by Christy Raedeke. "When her safe-cracker mom and code-breaker dad inherit a dreary Scottish castle, sixteen-year-old Caity Mac Fireland is not happy. Ripped from her cushy life and friends in San Francisco, Caity’s secret fantasy of being discovered by a Hollywood agent, talent scout, or even just a pageant coach seems more unlikely than ever. But when Caity stumbles across a hidden room in the castle, its walls covered in strange symbols, her life takes a bizarre turn. She finds herself center stage in an international conspiracy involving warring secret societies, assassins, the suppressed revelations of the Mayan Calendar and the year 2012, plus the fate of humanity.With the help of her friend Justine back home, and Alex, a gorgeous and mysterious Scottish boy, Caity must race to decipher the code and reveal its message to the world before time runs out."

THE ELIJAH PROJECT by Bill Myers. "Previously published as four separate books, the exciting series, which has sold almost 15,000 copies, can now be found in one low-priced volume. In The Elijah Project, Zach and Piper aren’t the only ones to notice their little brother Elijah’s supernatural gifts. Something evil also is paying attention, and the children must draw strength from heaven while being pursued by the powers of darkness."

FLECKS OF GOLD by Alicia Buck. "Mary Margaret is not the type of girl to fall in love, especially after seeing what a string of bad relationships has done to her mother. That's why it's so weird when Mary finds herself strangely attracted to Kelson, a guy at her new school. It's almost . . . unnatural. What she doesn't know is that she's been put under a spell. And when Kelson kidnaps Mary's mother and takes her to his home world, Mary will have to rescue her by relying on something she never knew existed, magic. Flecks of Gold is an enchanting blend of fantasy, action, and even a little romance."

FIRE WILL FALL by Carol Plum-Ucci. "Scott, Owen, Cora, and Rain are the Trinity Four, teen survivors of a bioterrorist attack in Trinity Falls, New Jersey, that has left them famous in People magazine but also seriously ill and sequestered in a remote compound, where they receive intensive medical care and wait for the terrorists who planned the attack to be apprehended. The Four alternate narration, along with two other teen spies, also ill and hidden in another location, who hack into chat rooms and collect information on the terrorists. This thriller’s pacing is slow, considering the multiple narrators, the promising premise, and the elements of danger and espionage. Most of the story takes place over a few days in the spring following 9/11. After security is breached, and the hackers are announced dead in a house fire, figuring out whom to trust gets harder for everyone, including the reader, and the narrative picks up speed."

HAWKSMAID: THE UNTOLD STORY OF ROBIN HOOD AND MAID MARIAN by Kathryn Lasky. "Before she was Maid Marian, she was Matty...Matty has been raised to dance well, embroider exquisitely, and marry nobly. But when Matty's mother is murdered before her very eyes and her father, a nobleman, is reduced to poverty, Matty's life changes. As the daughter of Nottingham's most famous falconer, she finds a new destiny in the hawks her father keeps. She begins to understand their thoughts and even speak their language. The beautiful merlin Marigold becomes Matty's closest winged companion and her fiercest ally. It is a treacherous time in England. The sheriff of Nottingham is rising to power, and a true king has been kidnapped. Determined to fight, Matty's friend Fynn becomes Robin Hood. As Maid Marian, Matty joins Fynn and his Merry Men, famously robbing from the rich to give to the poor."

JEKEL LOVES HYDE by Beth Fantaskey. "Jill Jekel has always obeyed her parents' rules--especially the one about never opening the mysterious, old box in her father's office. But when her dad is murdered, and her college savings disappear, she's tempted to peek inside, as the contents might be the key to a lucrative chemistry scholarship.To improve her odds, Jill enlists the help of gorgeous, brooding Tristen Hyde, who has his own dark secrets locked away. As the team of Jekel and Hyde, they recreate experiments based on the classic novel, hoping not only to win a prize, but to save Tristen's sanity. Maybe his life. But Jill's accidental taste of a formula unleashes her darkest nature and compels her to risk everything--even Tristen's love--just for the thrill of being...bad."

THE KEEPERS' TATTOO by Gill Arbuthnott. "Ten years ago, Alaric, leader of the Shadowmen, killed most of the Keepers--teachers of ancient knowledge that threatened his barbaric rule. Young Kit was captured, but his twin sister, Nyssa, escaped. Only later will she learn that both she and her lost brother bear the secret words of their people: three lines each of strange, unintelligible writing tattooed on their scalps. Now the Shadowmen are on the attack again, determined to quell a growing rebellion. Nyssa must find her brother, and together they must unlock the meaning--the power--behind the mysterious words."

LIES: A GONE NOVELby Michael Grant. "It's been seven months since all the adults disappeared. Gone. It happens in one night. A girl who died now walks among the living; Zil and the Human Crew set fire to Perdido Beach; and amid the flames and smoke, Sam sees the figure of the boy he fears the most: Drake. But Drake is dead. Sam and Caine defeated him along with the Darkness—or so they thought. As Perdido Beach burns, battles rage: Astrid against the Town Council; the Human Crew versus the mutants; and Sam against Drake, who is back from the dead and ready to finish where he and Sam left off. And all the while deadly rumors are raging like the fire itself, spread by the prophetess Orsay and her companion, Nerezza. They say that death is a way to escape the FAYZ. Conditions are worse than ever and kids are desperate to get out. But are they desperate enough to believe that death will set them free?"

LITTLE VAMPIRE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott & Lynn Messina"Christmas wont be Christmas without any corpses." The dear, sweet March sisters are back, and Marmee has told them to be good little women. Good little vampire women, that is. That's right: Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy have grown up since you last read their tale, and now they have (much) longer lives and (much) more ravenous appetites. Marmee has taught them well, and so they live by an unprecedented moral code of abstinence . . . from human blood. Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy must learn to get along with one another, help make society a better place, and avoid the vampire hunters who pose a constant threat to their existence. Plus, Laurie is dying to become a part of the March family, at any cost. Some things never change."

LIVING OUTSIDE THE LINES by Lesley Choyce. "Nigel is a 16-year-old high school student who writes a class assignment about a world in which teenagers become the leading actors in society, politically, economically, socially and medically. Unexpectedly, a publisher expresses interest, the book is published, and very quickly Nigel becomes an unwitting celebrity, subject to praise and sometimes violent opposition. Nigel’s a loner, not a social animal, and to his surprise a mysterious new classmate fastens onto him - and strongly encourages him to complete his novel. Where she’s from is unknown, but Michelle is beautiful and intelligent and as it turns out, from the future, and the book Nigel’s written has become in her time a guidebook for the youth of her day. Complicating Nigel’s life is the fact that Michelle has to return to her own time—and it’s left to him to decide whether he must say goodbye to her forever or else join her in the future. If he does, he can never return to his own world, in a time where teenagers remain outside the realms of power and control."

THE ODYSSEY: ALL-ACTION CLASSICS by Homer. "Welcome the next entry in the fabulously received and brilliantly created ALL-ACTION CLASSICS series. The brainchild of former Marvel Comics artist Ben Caldwell, these graphic novels are the freshest, coolest approach to the classics ever. Each one takes a famous work of fiction and translates it into a kid-friendly comic book narrative—with full-color illustrations and a fast-paced tone that will have even reluctant readers flying through. Shipwrecks, angry gods, magical lands, beautiful nymphs, and siren songs: this vivid retelling of Homer’s legendary Greek epic follows Odysseus on his long, arduous journey home from Ithaca after the fall of Troy. Done in comic-book style, it features the highest-energy kid-grabbing details and plot twists, all dramatized in brilliant, action-packed images. It’s the perfect way to introduce kids and fans of graphic novels to one of literature’s great works."

PICTURE THE DEAD by Adele Griffin & Lisa Brown. "A ghost will find his way home. Jennie Lovell's life is the very picture of love and loss. First she is orphaned and forced to live at the mercy of her stingy, indifferent relatives. Then her fiancé falls on the battlefield, leaving her heartbroken and alone. Jennie struggles to pick up the pieces of her shattered life, but is haunted by a mysterious figure that refuses to let her bury the past. When Jennie forms an unlikely alliance with a spirit photographer, she begins to uncover secrets about the man she thought she loved. With her sanity on edge and her life in the balance, can Jennie expose the chilling truth before someone-or something-stops her? Against the brutal, vivid backdrop of the American Civil War, Adele Griffin and Lisa Brown have created a spellbinding mystery where the living cannot always be trusted and death is not always the end."

THE PRINCE OF MIST by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. "It's war time, and the Carver family decides to leave the capital where they live and move to a small coastal village where they've recently bought a home. But from the minute they cross the threshold, strange things begin to happen. In that mysterious house still lurks the spirit of Jacob, the previous owners' son, who died by drowning. With the help of their new friend Roland, Max and Alicia Carver begin to explore the strange circumstances of that death and discover the existence of a mysterious being called the Prince of Mist--a diabolical character who has returned from the shadows to collect on a debt from the past. Soon the three friends find themselves caught up in an adventure of sunken ships and an enchanted stone garden--an adventure that will change their lives forever."

THE PRINCESS AND THE SNOWBIRD by Mette Ivie Harrison. "She is the headstrong daughter of the hound and the bear, heir to all her royal parents' magic and able to transform at will into any animal she wishes. He is an outcast, a boy without magic, determined to make his way in the forest beholden to no one. Though Liva and Jens are as different as night and day, from the time their paths first cross they are irresistibly drawn to one another. Each wrestles with demons: Liva with the responsibility that comes with the vast magic she's inherited, Jens with the haunting memories he's left behind. Separately, they keep a lookout for each other and for the immense snowbird whose appearances signify a dark event on the horizon. When a terrible threat surfaces, Liva and Jens set out in an attempt to protect all they hold dear. Much is at stake—for while their failure could spell an end to all magic, their success could bring them together at last."

THE REASON: GHOST HUNTRESS by Marley Gibson. "It’s not everyday you have a premonition of your own demise. But two months after Kendall had a vision of her own death, all is well in her world. Maybe some cosmic wires got crossed. Then Kendall gets a request by the mayor of Radisson to investigate the mayoral manor. Emily and Loreen warn her against it: This spirit is dangerous. But not even they can see just how dangerous. But during the aftermath of her run-in with the spirit Kendall learns a life-shattering secret. Now Kendall has an even bigger problem. Somehow, she’s got to pull her life together if she wants to cleanse the mayor’s mansion and bring peace to the home—and herself."

SHADE by Jeri Smith-Ready. "Best. Birthday. Ever. At least, it was supposed to be. With Logan's band playing a critical gig and Aura's plans for an intimate after-party, Aura knows it will be the most memorable night of her boyfriend's life. She never thought it would be his last. Logan's sudden death leaves Aura devastated. He's gone. Well, sort of. Like everyone born after the Shift, Aura can see and hear ghosts. This mysterious ability has always been annoying, and Aura had wanted nothing more than to figure out why the Shift happened so she can undo it. But not with Logan's violet-hued spirit still hanging around. Because dead Logan is almost as real as ever. Almost. It doesn't help that Aura's new friend Zachary is so understanding--and so very alive. His support means more to Aura than she cares to admit. As Aura's relationships with the dead and the living grow ever complicated, so do her feelings for Logan and Zachary. Each holds a piece of Aura's heart...and clues to the secret of the Shift."

SPELLS by Aprilynne Pike. "In this second installment of a series that started with the best-selling Wings (2009), Laurel, who recently discovered she is a faerie, finds herself completely immersed in her new world when she begins studies at the Academy at Avalon. There she can spend more time with Tam, the faerie who is hopelessly in love with her, and also learn about the benefits and burdens her heritage entails. But the action really begins when she returns home. The trolls that stalked her in the previous book are more dangerous than ever, and this time Laurel is not the only one being targeted. Pike astutely mixes these breathtaking events with the real meat of the story: the angst and uncertainty Laurel feels as she tries to combine—and sometimes keep separate—her two lives. At the heart of that conundrum is the affection she feels for both her earthly love, David, and the deliciously different Tam. Mixing a little bit of Harry Potter and a lot of Twilight (Team David! Team Tam!), Pike has hit on a winning combination. Yet it is her own graceful take on life inside Avalon that adds a shimmering patina sure to enthrall readers." (Booklist)

TAURUS EYES: STAR CROSSED by Bonnie Hearn Hill. "Having been accepted into the summer writing camp in Monterey, CA, Logan worked so hard for in Aries Rising, she is on her way to becoming a real published author! She needs to impress the camp’s instructor, Henry Jaffa, a renowned journalist, paranormal investigator, and fellow Aquarian, whom she hopes will see the promise in her writing and become her mentor. But when Logan is stuck writing about an obscure folk singer Sean Baylor, whose spirit is rumored to be haunting the quaint seaside town, she is not sure that she will be able to complete her assignment. Will Logan be able to utilize her knowledge of the planets to impress Henry Jaffa, work through her romantic tug-of-war with the camp brooding bad boy Jeremy, solve the mystery of Sean Baylor’s death, all while competing with the overachieving writers for the coveted spots in the camp’s anthology?"

VAMPIRE RISING: ALEX VAN HELSING by Jason Henderson. "Trouble seems to follow Alex Van Helsing wherever he goes. First, the 14-year-old got kicked out of school for fighting. Then, after being transferred to Switzerland’s Glenarvon Academy, he slays what appears to be a vampire in the surrounding woods. And he swears none of it has anything to do with his famous vampire-hunter surname. Right. Soon Alex’s English teacher reveals that he is part of the Polidorium, a stealth quasi-military vampire-tracking organization with its eye on the Icemaker—a vampire clan lord who, incidentally, is actually the poet Lord Byron. It all has something to do with the backstory to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Alex’s Da Vinci Code–style digging for historical clues is the plot’s high point. If there’s a low point, it’s probably the action-movie assault on the Scholomance (“an MIT for vampires”), but even that is invigorated by likable teen heroes with believable interests (one loves vampire lore, the other manga)." (Booklist)

WHAT CURIOSITY KILLS: THE TURNING by Helen Ellis. "Nobody can know your secret. Nobody can know your power. But if nobody knows who you are to begin with...what's stopping you? I whisper, "What's so special about me all of a sudden?" Nick says, "The Turning." Mary feels different, but can't explain why. The fainting, the strange cravings...and worse, the things she's noticed about her body. Mary doesn't know where to turn. If she tells her parents or her sister, she'll risk losing everything. She has no other family, no way of knowing if what she's going through is normal. Everyone she's ever known and loved could reject her..."

WHITE CAT: THE CURSE WORKERS by Holly Black. "Cassel comes from a family of curse workers -- people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they're all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn't got the magic touch, so he's an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail -- he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago. Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He's noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen."


And then there are two new releases that I've added to my list just because they sound so interesting:
SCARRED HEARTS by Max Blecher and STOLEN by Lucy Christopher