New Releases: May 11, 2021
Adult Fiction
21st Birthday (Women’s Murder Club #21) - James Patterson
Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Detective Lindsay Boxer vows to protect a young woman from a serial killer long enough to see her twenty-first birthday.
When young wife and mother Tara Burke goes missing with her baby girl, all eyes are on her husband, Lucas. He paints her not as a missing person but a wayward wife—until a gruesome piece of evidence turns the investigation criminal.
While Chronicle reporter Cindy Thomas pursues the story and M.E. Claire Washburn harbors theories that run counter to the SFPD’s, ADA Yuki Castellano sizes Lucas up as a textbook domestic offender . . . who suddenly puts forward an unexpected suspect. If what Lucas tells law enforcement has even a grain of truth, there isn't a woman in the state of California who's safe from the reach of an unspeakable threat.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “21st Birthday (Women’s Murder Club #21) by James Patterson
The Coffinmaker’s Garden (Ash Henderson #3) - Stuart MacBride
Genres: Fiction, Thriller
A house of secrets…
As a massive storm batters the Scottish coast, Gordon Smith’s home is falling into the sea. The trouble is: that’s where he’s been hiding the bodies.
A killer on the run…
It’s too dangerous to go near the place, so there’s no way of knowing how many people he’s murdered. Or how many more he’ll kill before he’s caught.
An investigator with nothing to lose…
As more horrors are discovered, ex-detective Ash Henderson is done playing nice. He’s got a killer to catch, and God help anyone who gets in his way.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Coffinmaker’s Garden (Ash Henderson #3) by Stuart MacBride
The Dictionary of Lost Words - Pip Williams
Genres: Fiction, Historical
In 1901, the word ‘Bondmaid’ was discovered missing from the Oxford English Dictionary. This is the story of the girl who stole it.
Esme is born into a world of words. Motherless and irrepressibly curious, she spends her childhood in the ‘Scriptorium’, a garden shed in Oxford where her father and a team of dedicated lexicographers are collecting words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. Esme’s place is beneath the sorting table, unseen and unheard. One day a slip of paper containing the word ‘bondmaid’ flutters to the floor. Esme rescues the slip and stashes it in an old wooden case that belongs to her friend, Lizzie, a young servant in the big house. Esme begins to collect other words from the Scriptorium that are misplaced, discarded or have been neglected by the dictionary men. They help her make sense of the world.
Over time, Esme realises that some words are considered more important than others, and that words and meanings relating to women’s experiences often go unrecorded. While she dedicates her life to the Oxford English Dictionary, secretly, she begins to collect words for another dictionary: The Dictionary of Lost Words.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Dictionary of Lost Words” by Pip Williams
The Drowning Kind - Jennifer McMahon
Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Psychological, Paranormal
Be careful what you wish for.
When social worker Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she could have ever imagined.
In 1929, thirty-seven-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Drowning Kind” by Jennifer McMahon
Good Company - Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
Genres: Fiction, Domestic
Flora Mancini has been happily married for more than twenty years. But everything she thought she knew about herself, her marriage, and her relationship with her best friend, Margot, is upended when she stumbles upon an envelope containing her husband’s wedding ring—the one he claimed he lost one summer when their daughter, Ruby, was five.
Flora and Julian struggled for years, scraping together just enough acting work to raise Ruby in Manhattan and keep Julian’s small theater company—Good Company—afloat. A move to Los Angeles brought their first real career successes, a chance to breathe easier, and a reunion with Margot, now a bona fide television star. But has their new life been built on lies? What happened that summer all those years ago? And what happens now?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Good Company” by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
Lost Immunity - Daniel Kalla
Genres: Fiction, Thriller
An ordinary day
The city of Seattle is stunned when a deadly bacteria tears through a nearby Bible camp. Early tests reveal the illness is a form of meningitis, and the camp’s residents are among its most vulnerable victims: children and teenagers.
A new vaccine
Facing a rapidly rising death rate, Seattle’s chief public health officer, Lisa Dyer, and her team quickly take all steps necessary to contain the devastating outbreak. And when further testing reveals that the strain of the bacteria is one that caused catastrophic losses in Iceland six months before, Lisa decides to take a drastic step: she contacts Nathan Hull, vice president of a pharmaceutical company that is doing final-phase trials on a viable vaccine, and asks him to release it early for use on the city’s population.
An epidemic in the making
Lisa gets the go-ahead on her controversial plan, despite the protests of dubious government officials, anti-vaxxers, and even those on her own team. Vaccine clinics roll out across the city, and the risky strategy appears to be working, leaving Lisa, Nathan, and thousands of others breathing a sigh of relief. Until people start dying from mysterious and horrific causes—and the vaccine itself is implicated.
But what if science isn’t to blame?
The Newcomer - Mary Kay Andrews
Genres: Fiction, Romance
In trouble and on the run... After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya's ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister's warnings: "If anything bad happens to me--it's Evan. Promise me you'll take Maya and run. Promise me."
With a trunkful of emotional baggage... So Letty grabs her sister's Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a "go-bag" of cash and a big honking diamond ring--but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel.
The No Vacancy sign is flashing & the sharks are circling... And that's the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel's former storage room, she tries to heal Maya's heartache and unravel the key to her sister's shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner's dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn--or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it's a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past.
Other People’s Children - R.J. Hoffman
Genres: Fiction, Literary
Gail and Jon Durbin moved to the Chicago suburbs to set up house as soon as Gail got pregnant. But then she miscarried—once, twice, three times. Determined to expand their family, the Durbins turn to adoption. When several adoptions fall through, Gail’s desire for a child overwhelms her.
Carli is a pregnant teenager from a blue-collar town nearby, with dreams of going to college and getting out of her mother’s home. When she makes the gut-wrenching decision to give her baby up for adoption, she chooses the Durbins. But Carli’s mother, Marla, has other plans for her grandbaby.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Other People’s Children” by R.J. Hoffman
The Perfect Guests - Emma Rous
Genres: Fiction, Mystery
1988. Beth Soames is fourteen years old when her aunt takes her to stay at Raven Hall, a rambling manor in the isolated East Anglian fens. The Averells, the family who lives there, are warm and welcoming, and Beth becomes fast friends with their daughter, Nina. At times, Beth even feels like she's truly part of the family...until they ask her to help them with a harmless game--and nothing is ever the same.
2019. Sadie Langton is an actress struggling to make ends meet when she lands a well-paying gig to pretend to be a guest at a weekend party. She is sent a suitcase of clothing, a dossier outlining the role she is to play, and instructions. It's strange, but she needs the money, and when she sees the stunning manor she'll be staying at, she figures she's got nothing to lose.
In person, Raven Hall is even grander than she'd imagined--even with damage from a fire decades before--but the walls seem to have eyes. As day turns to night, Sadie starts to feel that there's something off about the glamorous guests who arrive, and as the party begins, it becomes chillingly apparent their unseen host is playing games with everyone...including her.
The Sanatorium - Sarah Pearse
Genres: Fiction, Thriller
You won’t want to leave. . . until you can’t.
Half-hidden by forest and overshadowed by threatening peaks, Le Sommet has always been a sinister place. Long plagued by troubling rumors, the former abandoned sanatorium has since been renovated into a five-star minimalist hotel.
An imposing, isolated getaway spot high up in the Swiss Alps is the last place Elin Warner wants to be. But Elin’s taken time off from her job as a detective, so when her estranged brother, Isaac, and his fiancée, Laure, invite her to celebrate their engagement at the hotel, Elin really has no reason not to accept.
Arriving in the midst of a threatening storm, Elin immediately feels on edge–there’s something about the hotel that makes her nervous. And when they wake the following morning to discover Laure is missing, Elin must trust her instincts if they hope to find her. With the storm closing off all access to the hotel, the longer Laure stays missing, the more the remaining guests start to panic.
Elin is under pressure to find Laure, but no one has realized yet that another woman has gone missing. And she’s the only one who could have warned them just how much danger they are all in. . .
The Secret Path - Karen Swan
Genres: Fiction, Romance
In Costa Rica, amid startling white beaches and hot, dense rainforests, the luxurious world of the super-rich butts up against something darker, something more sinister.
Tara Tremain has worked hard to leave the controlling grasp of her extremely affluent family far behind. With her own career in medicine, she doesn’t need the Tremains’ expectations weighing her down any more. But pulled back into the family’s orbit one last time for an unmissable party in the jungles of Costa Rica, she finds herself flung into action: a local boy is desperately ill and she must trek for days into the jungle to save his life.
What Tara could never have predicted is that the one person who can help her in this impossible journey is Alex Carter, the man who destroyed her life ten years ago . . .
Six Weeks to Live - Catherine McKenzie
Genres: Fiction, Thriller
Jennifer Barnes never expected the shocking news she received at a routine doctor’s appointment: she has a terminal brain tumor—and only six weeks left to live.
While stunned by the diagnosis, the forty-eight-year-old mother decides to spend what little time she has left with her family—her adult triplets and twin grandsons—close by her side. But when she realizes she was possibly poisoned a year earlier, she’s determined to discover who might have tried to get rid of her before she’s gone for good.
Separated from her husband and with a contentious divorce in progress, Jennifer focuses her suspicions on her soon-to-be ex. Meanwhile, her daughters are each processing the news differently. Calm medical student Emily is there for whatever Jennifer needs. Moody scientist Aline, who keeps her mother at arm’s length, nonetheless agrees to help with the investigation. Even imprudent Miranda, who has recently had to move back home, is being unusually solicitous.
But with her daughters doubting her campaign against their father, Jennifer can’t help but wonder if the poisoning is all in her head—or if there’s someone else who wanted her dead.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Six Weeks to Live” by Catherine McKenzie
You’ll Thank Me For This - Nina Siegal
Genres: Psychological, Thriller
Twelve-year old Karin is blindfolded and dropped into the Hoge Veluwe National Forest with three other children. With nothing but a few basic supplies and emergency food, the children are tasked with working together to navigate one of the Netherlands' most beautiful and wild locations and return to where their families are anxiously waiting.
Karin quickly finds herself at odds with two of the older teens, and suddenly looks up to see that the other children have vanished. As Karin struggles against the elements to find her way back, she soon realizes that something far more sinister lurks in the woods.
Grace, Karin’s mother and an American married to a Dutch husband, has been nervous about this practice from the start. At first she tells herself the space is good for her daughter, but as the hours begin to tick by and the children fail to arrive at their designated campsite, she becomes certain something has gone horribly wrong.
As Karin fights for survival, and Grace hastens to find her daughter, the night culminates in the reveal of a deadly secret—and a shocking confrontation—that will push each of them to her edge.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “You’ll Thank Me For This” by Nina Siegal
Adult Non-Fiction
Because He’s Jeff Goldblum - Travis M. Andrews
Genres: Non-fiction, Biography
When did you first encounter Jeff Goldblum? Maybe as a deranged killer in his 1974 screen debut in Death Wish? Maybe as a cynical journalist in 1983s The Big Chill? Or a brilliant if egotistical scientist-turned-fly in 1986s The Fly? Perhaps as the wise-cracking skeptical mathematician in 1993s Jurassic Park? Or maybe you're not a film buff but noticed his face as part of one of the Internet's earliest memes. Who knows?
Whenever it was, you've probably noticed that Goldblum has become one of Hollywood's most enduring actors, someone who only seems to grow more famous, more heralded, more beloved through the decades, even though he's always followed his own, strange muse. The guy primarily plays jazz music these days, but is more famous than ever. Actor, pianist, husband, father, style icon, meme. Goldblum contains multitudes, but why? What does he mean?
The Washington Post's Travis M. Andrews decided to find out. And so he set out on a journey through Goldblum's career, talking to directors like Lawrence Kasdan and Philip Kaufman, colleagues like Harry Shearer and Billy Crudup, and pop culture experts like Chuck Klosterman and Sean Fennessey, to get to the bottom of this whole Goldblum thing. And then he took what he learned and he wrote this book, which is titled Because He's Jeff Goldblum and is the best thing written since The Brothers Karamazov and slightly easier to follow. But you should already know that. In this new semi-biography, semi-rumination, and semi-ridiculous look at the career of Goldblum, Andrews takes you behind the scenes of his iconic movies, explores the shifting nature of fame in the twenty-first century, and spends far too much time converting Goldblum's name into various forms of speech.
Want to hear how Goldblum saved a script supervisor from an amorous baboon? Or what he would write on the mirror after taking showers when he was a teenager? How about his feelings on various brands of throat lozenges? (That one could be an entire book unto itself.) Then this is the book for you!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Because He’s Jeff Goldblum” by Travis M. Andrews
The Bomber Mafia - Malcolm Gladwell
Genres: Non-fiction, History, World War II
An exploration of how technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war
In The Bomber Mafia, Malcolm Gladwell weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history.
Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the “Bomber Mafia,” asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?
In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo on the deadliest night of the war was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, “Was it worth it?”
Things might have gone differently had LeMay’s predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. Hansell believed in precision bombing, but when he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II. The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Bomber Mafia” by Malcolm Gladwell
How to Do The Work - Dr. Nicole LePera
Genres: Non-Fiction, Self-Help
As a clinical psychologist, Dr. Nicole LePera often found herself frustrated by the limitations of traditional psychotherapy. Wanting more for her patients—and for herself—she began a journey to develop a united philosophy of mental, physical and spiritual wellness that equips people with the interdisciplinary tools necessary to heal themselves. After experiencing the life-changing results herself, she began to share what she’d learned with others—and soon “The Holistic Psychologist” was born.
Now, Dr. LePera is ready to share her much-requested protocol with the world. In How to Do the Work, she offers both a manifesto for SelfHealing as well as an essential guide to creating a more vibrant, authentic, and joyful life. Drawing on the latest research from a diversity of scientific fields and healing modalities, Dr. LePera helps us recognize how adverse experiences and trauma in childhood live with us, resulting in whole body dysfunction—activating harmful stress responses that keep us stuck engaging in patterns of codependency, emotional immaturity, and trauma bonds. Unless addressed, these self-sabotaging behaviors can quickly become cyclical, leaving people feeling unhappy, unfulfilled, and unwell.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “How to Do The Work” by Dr. Nicole LePera
If I Knew Then - Jann Arden
Genres: Non-fiction, Autobiography
Digging deep into her strengths, her failures and her losses, Jann Arden brings us an inspiring account of how she has surprised herself, in her fifties, by at last becoming completely her own person. Like many women, it took Jann a long time to realize that trying to be pleasing and likeable and beautiful in the eyes of others was a loser's game. Letting it rip, and damning the consequences, is not only liberating, it's a hell of a lot of fun: "Being the age I am--that so many women are--is just the best time of my life."
Jann weaves her own story together with tales of her mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, and the father she came close to hating, to show her younger self--and all of us--that fear and avoidance is no way to live. "What I'm thinking about now aren't all the ways I can try to hang on to my youth or all the seconds ticking by in some kind of morbid countdown to death," she writes, "but rather how I keep becoming someone I always hoped I could be. If I'm lucky one day a very old face will look back at me from the mirror, a face I once shied away from. I will love that old woman ferociously, because she has finally figured out how to live a life of purpose--not in spite of but because of all her mistakes and failures."
You Are Your Best Thing - Tarana Burke and Brene Brown
Genres: Non-fiction
It started as a text between two friends.
Tarana Burke, founder of the 'me too.' Movement, texted researcher and writer Brené Brown to see if she was free to jump on a call. Brené assumed that Tarana wanted to talk about wallpaper. They had been trading home decorating inspiration boards in their last text conversation so Brené started scrolling to find her latest Pinterest pictures when the phone rang.
But it was immediately clear to Brené that the conversation wasn't going to be about wallpaper. Tarana's hello was serious and she hesitated for a bit before saying, "Brené, you know your work affected me so deeply, but as a Black woman, I've sometimes had to feel like I have to contort myself to fit into some of your words. The core of it rings so true for me, but the application has been harder."
Brené replied, "I'm so glad we're talking about this. It makes sense to me. Especially in terms of vulnerability. How do you take the armor off in a country where you're not physically or emotionally safe?"
Long pause.
"That's why I'm calling," said Tarana. "What do you think about working together on a book about the Black experience with vulnerability and shame resilience?"
There was no hesitation.
Burke and Brown are the perfect pair to usher in this stark, potent collection of essays on Black shame and healing. Along with the anthology contributors, they create a space to recognize and process the trauma of white supremacy, a space to be vulnerable and affirm the fullness of Black love and Black life.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “You Are Your Best Thing” by Tarana Burke and Brene Brown
Young Adult Fiction
Attack on Titan (Attack on Titan #1) - Hajime Isayama
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
For the past century, what's left of mankind has hidden in a giant, three-walled city, trapped in fear of the bizarre, giant humanoids known as the Titans. Little is known about where they came from or why they are bent on consuming humankind, but the sudden appearance of an enormous Titan is about to change everything...
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Attack on Titan (Attack of Titan #1) by Hijime Isayama
Attack on Titan (Attack on Titan #2) -Hajime Isayama
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
The Colossal Titan has breached humanity’s first line of defense, Wall Maria. Mikasa, the 104th Training Corps’ ace and Eren’s best friend, may be the only one capable of defeating them, but beneath her calm exterior lurks a dark past. When all looks lost, a new Titan appears and begins to slaughter its fellow Titans. Could this new monster be a blessing in disguise, or is the truth something much more sinister?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Attack on Titan (Attack on Titan #2) by Hajime Isayama
Attack on Titan (Attack on Titan #3) - Hajime Isayama
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
The last thing Eren remembers before blacking out, a Titan had bitten off his arm and leg and was getting ready to eat him alive. Much to his surprise he wakes up without a scratch on him, with a crowd of angry soldiers screaming for his blood. What strange new power has he awakened, and what will happen when the boy devoted to destroying the Titans becomes one himself?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Attack on Titan (Attack on Titan #3) by Hajime Isayama
The Avant-Guards, Volume 2 (The Avant-Guards) - Carly Usdin
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Romance
The Avant-Guards have been on a roll, but when they hit the end of their winning-streak, will these new friendships survive? As The Avant-Guards struggle to move forward, they’ll soon learn just what it means to truly be a team - on the court and, most importantly, off the court. The critically-acclaimed team of writer Carly Usdin (Heavy Vinyl) and artist Noah Hayes (Wet Hot American Summer) deliver the next chapter of the series where every shot counts when you take them with your friends.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Avant-Guards, Volume Two (The Avant Guards #2) by Carly Usdin
Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Volume 1 (Magi #1) - Shinobu Ohtaka
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Deep within the deserts lie the mysterious Dungeons, vast stores of riches there for the taking by anyone lucky enough to find them and brave enough to venture into the depths from where few have ever returned. Plucky young adventurer Aladdin means to find the Dungeons and their riches, but Aladdin may be just as mysterious as the treasures he seeks.
Together with the djinn Ugo and his friend Alibaba, Aladdin sets out to find his fortune in the depths of the endless dunes.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Volume 1 (Magi #1) by Shinobu Ohtaka
Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Volume 2 (Magi #2) - Shinobu Ohtaka
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Aladdin and Alibaba have entered the Dungeon of Qishan hoping to find hidden treasure—but danger's found them! A horde of slimes closes in on them, while Lord Jamil and his slaves head into the dungeon looking to intercept Aladdin and grab any riches he may have found! But these rivals have more to worry about than each other, and new friends, new enemies and amazing riches are yet to be discovered!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Volume 2 (Magi #2) by Shinobu Ohtaka
Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic (Magi #3) - Shinobu Ohtaka
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Aladdin finds himself among the Kouga tribe, who live deep in the desert far from Qishan. An emissary from the Kou Empire arrives offering peace, but when it turns out to be an offer they can't refuse, things take a turn for the worse. Aladdin learns more about the legend of the Magi and the Rukh, bird-like beings of light, with whom he appears to share a deep connection...
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic (Magi #3) by Shinobu Ohtaka
Nubia: Real One -L.L. McKinney
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Can you be a hero...if society doesn’t see you as a person?
Nubia has always been a little bit...different. As a baby she showcased Amazonian-like strength by pushing over a tree to rescue her neighbor’s cat. But, despite having similar abilities, the world has no problem telling her that she’s no Wonder Woman. And even if she was, they wouldn’t want her. Every time she comes to the rescue, she’s reminded of how people see her; as a threat. Her Moms do their best to keep her safe, but Nubia can’t deny the fire within her, even if she’s a little awkward about it sometimes. Even if it means people assume the worst.
When Nubia’s best friend, Quisha, is threatened by a boy who thinks he owns the town, Nubia will risk it all—her safety, her home, and her crush on that cute kid in English class—to become the hero society tells her she isn’t.
The Outside Circle - Patti LaBoucane-Benson
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel
In this important graphic novel, two Aboriginal brothers surrounded by poverty, drug abuse, and gang violence, try to overcome centuries of historic trauma in very different ways to bring about positive change in their lives.
Pete, a young Aboriginal man wrapped up in gang violence, lives with his younger brother, Joey, and his mother who is a heroin addict. One night, Pete and his mother’s boyfriend, Dennis, get into a big fight, which sends Dennis to the morgue and Pete to jail. Initially, Pete keeps up ties to his crew, until a jail brawl forces him to realize the negative influence he has become on Joey, which encourages him to begin a process of rehabilitation that includes traditional Aboriginal healing circles and ceremonies.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Outside Circle” by Patti LaBoucane-Benson
Paper Girls: Vol. 1 (Paper Girls #1) - Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
In the early hours after Halloween of 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls: Vol. 1 (Paper Girls #1) by Brian K. Vaughn
Paper Girls: Vol. 2 (Paper Girls #2) - Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
After surviving the strangest night of their lives in the Cleveland suburb of Stony Stream, intrepid young newspaper deliverers Erin, Mac, and Tiffany find themselves launched from 1988 to a distant and terrifying future... the year 2016.
What would you do if you were suddenly confronted by your 12-year-old self? 40-year-old newspaper reporter Erin Tieng is about to find out in this action-packed story about identity, mortality, and growing older in the 21st century.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls: Vol. 2 (Paper Girls #2) by Brian K. Vaughn
Paper Girls: Vol. 3 (Paper Girls #3) - Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
Erin, Mac and Tiffany finally reunite with their long-lost friend KJ in an unexpected new era, where the girls must uncover the secret origins of time travel... or risk never returning home to 1988.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls (Paper Girls #3) by Brian K. Vaughn
Paper Girls: Vol. 4 (Paper Girls #4) - Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
Intrepid newspaper deliverer Tiffany is launched from the prehistoric past into the year 2000! In this harrowing version of our past, Y2K was even more of a cataclysm than experts feared, and the only person who can save the future is a 12-year-old girl from 1988.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls: Vol. 4 (Paper Girls #4) by Brian K. Vaughn
Paper Girls: Vol. 5 (Paper Girls #5) - Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
Can anyone escape fate? That's what Mac and her fellow newspaper delivery girls must discover as they escape the year 2000 and travel to the distant future. Plus, the truth behind the mysterious “old-timers” is finally revealed.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls: Vol. 5 (Paper Girls #5) by Brian K. Vaughn
Paper Girls: Vol 6 (Paper Girls #6) -Brian K. Vaughn
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Sci-fi
After surviving adventures in their past, present and future, the Paper Girls of 1988 embark on one last journey, a five-part epic that includes the emotional double-sized series finale.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Paper Girls: Vol. 6 (Paper Girls #6) by Bryan K. Vaughn
Tokyo Ghoul Vol. 1 - Sui Ishida
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
Ghouls live among us, the same as normal people in every way—except their craving for human flesh.
Ken Kaneki is an ordinary college student until a violent encounter turns him into the first half-human half-ghoul hybrid. Trapped between two worlds, he must survive Ghoul turf wars, learn more about Ghoul society and master his new powers.
Shy Ken Kaneki is thrilled to go on a date with the beautiful Rize. But it turns out that she’s only interested in his body—eating it, that is. When a morally questionable rescue transforms him into the first half-human half-Ghoul hybrid, Ken is drawn into the dark and violent world of Ghouls, which exists alongside our own.
Tokyo Ghoul Vol. 2 - Sui Ishida
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
Unable to discard his humanity but equally unable to suppress his Ghoul hunger, Ken finds salvation in the kindness of friendly Ghouls who teach him how to pass as human and eat flesh humanely. But recent upheavals in Ghoul society attract the police like wolves to prey, and they don't discriminate between conscientious and ravenous Ghouls.
Tokyo Ghoul Vol. 3 - Sui Ishida
Genres: Young adult fiction, Graphic novel, Horror, Sci-fi
Kaneki is still trying to get used to his new life when Commission of Counter Ghoul agents Mado and Amon start sniffing around for Hinami. Kaneki and Touka are going to have to get them off her tail and fast. No easy task now that Kaneki's got to bring humans and Ghouls to a rapid truce at the same time.
Junior Fiction
The Backstagers: Rebel Without Applause (The Backstagers #1) - James Tynion IV
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
When Jory transfers to an all-boys private high school, he's taken in by the only ones who don't treat him like a new kid, the lowly stage crew known as the Backstagers. Not only does he gain great, lifetime friends, Jory is also introduced to an entire magical world that lives beyond the curtain. With the unpredictable twists and turns of the underground world, the Backstagers venture into the unknown, determined to put together the best play their high school has ever seen.
The Backstagers: The Show Must Go On (The Backstagers #2) - James Tynion IV
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fanatsy
Jory and the rest of the Backstagers have one goal this semester: to put on the best show their town’s ever seen. But best laid plans aren’t easy to achieve when there’s an entire magical world that lives beyond the curtain! When one of the actors suddenly goes missing, the Backstagers must band together to save their comrade and maintain the natural balance of . . . theater.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Backstagers: The Show Must Go On (The Backstagers #3) by James Tynion IV
The Backstagers: Encore (The Backstagers #3) - James Tynion IV
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
The Backstagers are back in (stage) blacks, for a festive collection of Valentine’s Day and Halloween stories! Join Jory and the rest of the Backstagers as they wrestle with anti-Valentine crusades, totally creepy phantoms (NOT of the opera), and the everpresent magic of the backstage world in this romantically spooky third volume of the hit series.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Backstagers: Encore (The Backstagers #3) by James Tynion IV
Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #1) - Akane Shimizu
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Science
Strep throat! Hay fever! Influenza! The world is a dangerous place for a red blood cell just trying to get her deliveries finished. Fortunately, she's not alone... she's got a whole human body's worth of cells ready to help out! The mysterious white blood cell, the buff and brash killer T cell, the nerdy neuron, even the cute little platelets -- everyone's got to come together if they want to keep you healthy!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #1) by Akane Shimizu
Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #2) - Akane Shimizu
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Science
Strep throat! Hay fever! Influenza! The world is a dangerous place for a red blood cell just trying to get her deliveries finished. Fortunately, she’s not alone… she’s got a whole human body’s worth of cells ready to help out! The mysterious white blood cell, the buff and brash killer T cell, the nerdy neuron, even the cute little platelets — everyone’s got to come together if they want to keep you healthy!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #2) by Akane Shimizu
Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #3) by Akane Shimizu
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Science
Strep throat! Hay fever! Influenza! The world is a dangerous place for a red blood cell just trying to get her deliveries finished. Fortunately, she's not alone... she's got a whole human body's worth of cells ready to help out! The mysterious white blood cell, the buff and brash killer T cell, the nerdy neuron, even the cute little platelets -- everyone's got to come together if they want to keep you healthy!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Cells at Work! (Cells at Work #3) by Akane Shimizu
Girl Haven - Lilah Sturges
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Three years ago, Ash's mom, Kristin, left home and never came back. Now, Ash lives in the house where Kristin grew up. All of her things are there. Her old room, her old clothes, and the shed, where she spent her childhood creating a fantasy world called Koretris.
Ash knows all about Koretris: how it's a haven for girls, with no men or boys allowed, and filled with fanciful landscapes and creatures. When Ash's friends decide to try going to Koretris, using one of Kristin's spellbooks, Ash doesn't think anything will happen. But the spell works, and Ash discovers that the world Kristin created is actually a real place, with real inhabitants and very real danger.
But if Koretris is real, why is Ash there? Everyone has always called Ash a boy. Ash uses he/him pronouns. Shouldn't the spell have kept Ash out? And what does it mean if it let Ash in?
Hex Vet: Witches in Training (Hex Vet #1) - Sam Davies
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
In a world where magic is an ordinary part of daily life, two young apprentice veterinarians pursue their dreams of caring for supernatural creatures.
Have you ever wondered where witches' cats go when they pull a claw? Or what you do with a pygmy phoenix with a case of bird flu? Nan and Clarion have you covered. They're the best veterinarian witches of all time—at least they're trying to be. But when an injured spectral wolf beast from another realm stumbles into their lives, Nan and Clarion have to put down their enchanted potions and face the biggest test of their magical, medical careers...outside of the clinic.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Hex Vet: Witches in Training (Hex Vet #1) by Sam Davies
Hex Vet: The Flying Surgery (Hex Vet #2) - Sam Davies
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
It’s time for the monthly “Winged Creature Clinic” at Willows Whisper Veterinary Practice, where flying creatures from all over come to get treated. But when Glenn the Wildlife Warlock brings in an injured flying pig that looks like it may have been mistreated, panic strikes and a greater mystery unfolds.
It’s up to everyone’s favorite witches-in-training, Nan and Clarion, to keep everything under control at the chaotic clinic while Dr. Talon is away. Will Nan and Clarion save the day and keep their jobs? Or are their days at Willows Whisper numbered?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Hex Vet: The Flying Surgery (Hex Vet #2) by Sam Davies
Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #1) - Yoshihiro Togashi
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Adventure
Hunters are a special breed, dedicated to tracking down treasures, magical beasts, and even other people. But such pursuits require a license, and less than one in a hundred thousand can pass the grueling qualification exam. Those who do pass gain access to restricted areas, amazing stores of information, and the right to call themselves Hunters.
Gon might be a country boy, but he has high aspirations. Despite his Aunt Mito's protests, Gon decides to follow in his father's footsteps and become a legendary Hunter. The Hunter hopefuls begin their journey by storm-tossed ship, where Gon meets Leorio and Kurapika, the only other applicants who aren't devastated by bouts of seasickness.
Having survived the terrors of the high seas, Gon and his companions now have to prove their worth in a variety of tests in order to find the elusive Exam Hall. And once they get there, will they ever leave alive...?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #1) by Yoshihiro Togashi
Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #2) - Yoshihiro Togashi
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Adventure
Gon and his friends Leorio and Kurapika have more to worry about than just the Hunter Exam--their fellow applicants are deadly serious. Hisoka, the mad magician, nearly kills them all in a mock test and Killua reveals that appearances can be deceiving.
Then there are the tests, which prove to be as varied as they are difficult. The picky proctors of the second exam demand the applicants perform culinary feats of wonder, and it takes the intervention of the President of the Hunter Association Review Board to convince them to let anyone pass at all!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #2) by Yoshihiro Togashi
Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #3) - Yoshihiro Togashi
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Adventure
Gon and his teammates have been challenged by a group of criminals hired by the Hunter Association. Gon wins with wits, and Kurapika's red-eyed rage assures a victory. But Leorio is all out of luck, and loses precious time for his team. It's up to Killua to save the day with a gruesome display of his assassin skills. With time running out, it takes ingenuity and brute force to beat the clock and the test.
And the fourth exam finds the team stranded on an island for a battle royale. Can Gon get the best of Hisoka, or will he be... eliminated?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Hunter x Hunter (Hunter x Hunter #3) by Yoshihiro TogashI
The Prince and the Dressmaker - Jen Wang
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Historical
Paris, at the dawn of the modern age:
Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride―or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia―the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!
Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances―one of only two people who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “The Prince and the Dressmaker” by Jen Wang
Princeless: Be Yourself (Princeless #4) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Angoisse Ashe, the oft-forgotten middle sister of the Ashe royal family, is locked in a castle deep in the swamp. Not only is her castle guarded by zombies, but the swamp is full of dangerous hazards. Everything from quicksand to goblins to swamp monsters to-- vampires! But does that give Adrienne pause? Unfortunately not, as she and Bedelia dive head-first into their most dangerous adventure yet!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Be Yourself” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Find Yourself (Princeless #7) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
With Bedelia left behind, Adrienne and Sparky are on their own for the first time since they left the tower...and it's not going well. Alize's castle is somewhere in the Great Southern Desert, but they can't find it! They've been lost in the desert for days and when tempers flare, Adrienne may find herself alone and in peril on her quest. But what waits for her in the desert is more amazing than she could have imagined...and more deadly. It's time for a final confrontation with the Black Knight. And as they emerge from the Black Forest, Devin and company find themselves going head to head with an old enemy in an unexpected place. Soon Asheland will be under attack, but will they make it back to Asheland to tell anyone?
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Find Yourself” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Get Over Yourself (Princeless #2) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Princess Adrienne sets out as the mysterious dragon riding knight to rescue her sister Angelica, meanwhile her father, believing Adrienne has been killed by the dragon riding knight, gathers the bravest knights in the land to seek justice.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Get Over Yourself” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Love Yourself (Princeless #9) - Jeremy Whitler
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
With only one more volume left until our epic conclusion, Princeless Volume 9 is the biggest and most intense the series has ever been. Adrienne has one last sister left to save, but she’s going to have to go through a maze, a minotaur, and her own father to get there.
And far away in the woods of the elves Devin, Tempest, Kira, and Noni have been taken captive. They’re all in danger and the only one who can save them is Tempest. Is she really the daughter of the fallen elf king and queen? Everyone is waiting for her to wake up to find out. .
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Love Yourself” by Jeremy Whitler
Princeless: Make Yourself Part Two (Princeless #6) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Fresh off their time fighting vampires, zombies, and giant creatures in the swamp - Princess Adrienne, Bedelia the Blacksmith, and Sparky the Dragon are in for their biggest adventure yet! Join our team of fearless ladies as they set off into the mountains to save twin princesses Andrea and Antonia. They'll meet a team of dragon slaying dwarf women, a farm full of trained monsters, and perhaps some of their most dangerous foes yet!
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Make Yourself Part Two” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Make Yourself Part One (Princeless #5) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Adrienne and Bedelia are only a few sisters away from finishing their quest of rescuing Adrienne's sisters from their towers. Now comes one of their greatest challenges! Adrienne's older twin sisters Andrea and Antonia are locked deep within the treacherous mountains of The Rim. Adrienne will have to push deep into the bitter cold to get to them, but first she must face The Dragon Slayers. And Sparky the Dragon's quest to meet her mom will finally see break through, but somebody else on the team may be reunited with a family member they weren't expecting to see.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Make Yourself Part One” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Princesses (Princeless #8) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
What type of princess are you? With all of the secrets finally out and Adrienne heading toward fulfilling her quest. It's time to find out what's really been going on. What has the Black Knight been up to and how does it involve Adrienne's sisters? And now that they're free, what are Adrienne's sisters up to? THese four issues tell the stories of the princesses left behind and shape the future of the Princeless universe in a way that will change everything.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Princesses” by Jeremy Whitley
Princeless: Save Yourself (Princeless #1) - Jeremy Whitley
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
Princess Adrienne is tired of being locked in a tower, waiting around to be rescued by a prince. She escapes from the tower with the help of her guardian dragon, Sparky, and with her plucky sidekick Bedelia, Adrienne sets off on a quest to rescue her sisters who are suffering the same fate.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Princeless: Save Yourself” by Jeremy Whitley
The Shark King - R Kikuo Johnson
Genres: Junior fiction, Graphic novel, Fantasy
In graphic novel format, retells the Hawaiian story of Nanaue, born of human mother and shark father, who struggles to find his place in a village of humans.
Siha Tooskin Knows the Love of the Dance - Charlene Bearhead
Genres: Junior fiction
Siha Tooskin (Paul) and his Uncle Lenard help a school friend, Jeff learn about Nakota forms of traditional and non-traditional dance at a pow wow.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE “Siha Tooskin Knows the Love of the Dance” by Charlene Bearhead
