Looking for a swashbuckling adventure? Stop looking. We’ve got it.
Egg has grown up on Deadweather Island, known to be populated almost entirely by pirates. The thirteen-year-old has led a pretty dull life, punctuated by the occasional bullying from his awful siblings. But when his father takes the family to the neighboring island of Sunrise, everything changes. Suddenly, Egg is surrounded by riches and sophistication he never thought possible. And, when an innocent balloon ride goes terribly awry, spiriting his relations away on the wind, it looks like he might be able to stay forever.
But Egg quickly learns that the beauty and comfort of Sunrise hides a dark secret, a secret to which Egg himself may hold the key! Assisted only by a plucky girl named Millicent and a strange, sinister young sailor, Egg must unravel the mystery that connects Deadweather and Sunrise. Along the way, he might just learn something very important about himself.
The first in a series, this is the perfect read for guys (and girls!) who love adventure and a good mystery. Geoff Rodkey has a pretty perfect formula going here: a smart, under-appreciated hero, a bevy of dastardly pirates, wicked bureaucrats, bratty siblings (who get their comeuppance in the end), a feisty sidekick, and treasure! Yep, there’s ancient, epic treasure, too. What’s not to love?
Deadweather and Sunrise: The Chronicles of Egg #1 by Geoff Rodkey; Putnam Publishing (Penguin); 16.99; Ages 10-12
Jay Baker is the brainchild of debut author Jay Clark. In The Edumacation of Jay Baker, this high school freshman’s parents are separated because his mom had an affair, he’s in love with his cheerleader best friend, and his football playing nemesis calls him “Gay Baker.” But Jay can give as good as he gets in the insult department, which makes for some funny and tense moments along the way. A funny and fast-paced coming-of-age story for ages 14 and up.
trapped. The two lovers go in search of the sorcerer Ordorio Valdana, hoping he will know how to grant Erris real life again. When they learn that Valdana has mysteriously vanished, Nimira decides to take matters into her own hands, and begins to secretly study the sorcerer’s spell books. Yet even as she begins to understand the power and limitations of sorcery, it becomes clear that freeing Erris will bring danger-if not out-and-out war-as factions within the faerie world are prepared to stop at nothing to prevent him from regaining the throne. Ages 12 and up.
Jon Skovron is the author of Misfit and Struts and Frets. In Misfit, we meet Jael Thompson, who has never really fit in. She’s changed schools too many times to count. The only family she’s ever known is her father, a bitter ex-priest who never lets her date and insists she attend the strictest Catholic school in Seattle. And her mother–well, she was a five thousand year old demon. That doesn’t exactly help. On her sixteenth birthday, her father gives her a present that brings about some unexpected changes. Some of the changes, like strange and wonderful powers and the cute skater boy with a knack for science, are awesome. But others, like the homicidal demon seeking revenge on her family? Not so much. Steeped in mythology, this is an epic tale of a heroine who balances old world with new, science with magic, and the terrifying depths of the underworld with the ordinary halls of high school. Ages 14 and up.
