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| Grace and Fury by Tracy BanghartIn a world...where women are expected to be perfectly submissive, two sisters endure two different kinds of imprisonment: rebellious Nomi is trapped in her role as a Grace, a demure servant of the powerful Heir, while dutiful older sister Serina must survive in a brutal prison where the inmates are forced to fight to the death.
For fans of: descriptive fantasies with dystopian undertones, such as Traci Chee's The Reader and Dhonielle Clayton's The Belles. |
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| Contagion by Erin BowmanFeaturing: microbiology intern Thea, former military pilot Nova, and their teammates on the rescue ship sent to answer a distress call from a drill crew on the planet Achlys.
What happens: By the time the team arrives on Achlys, there's no one left to rescue -- just piles of corpses and an ominous warning note. Can they discover what killed the drill crew without meeting the same fate? Multiple perspectives heighten the suspense in this horror/science fiction hybrid, the 1st in a planned duology. |
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| Fresh Ink: An Anthology by Lamar Giles (editor)What it is: a short story collection that amplifies marginalized voices, presented by the team at We Need Diverse Books.
Featuring: Nicola Yoon's vision of a bulletproof black superhero, Sara Farizan's tale of an Iranian American girl learning to cook for her girlfriend, Melissa de la Cruz’s story about an undocumented college student, plus many more.
Who it's for: anyone who's ever struggled to find themselves in the pages of a book. |
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| Heretics Anonymous by Katie HenryWelcome to: St. Clare's, a private Catholic school where new student (and avowed atheist) Michael is welcomed into Heretics Anonymous, a group for misfits such as Eden (pagan), Avi (Jewish, gay), Max (fashion outlaw), and Lucy (feminist, aspiring priest).
What happens: As Michael and Lucy grow closer, the Heretics decide to quit complaining and take action.
Why you might like it: Believers and nonbelievers of all kinds can appreciate the witty dialogue and non-judgmental tone of this debut novel. |
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| Notes from My Captivity by Kathy ParksWhat it's about: When aspiring journalist Adrienne accompanies her anthropologist stepdad to Siberia, she's determined to disprove his theories about the existence of the Osinovs, a legendary family of mystics. Yet after she's captured by the (very real) Osinovs, Adrienne has to face much bigger problems than being wrong.
For fans of: the offbeat humor of Libba Bray's Beauty Queens and the haunting intensity of Lucy Christopher's Stolen. |
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#Own Voices: Science Fiction and Fantasy
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Consider
by Kristy Acevedo
What it's about: "When mysterious holograms suddenly appear, heralding the end of the world, seventeen-year-old Alexandra Lucas must brave her anxiety disorder and make the ultimate decision for her friends, family, and the human race: to stay, or to go"
Series Alert: To see what happens after Alexandra makes her decision, checkout Contribute, the second book in the Holo Series.
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| Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida CórdovaWhat it's about: Despite coming from a long line of brujas, 17-year-old Alex Mortiz is desperate to ditch her powerful encantrix abilities. After a spell to get rid of her magic backfires and endangers her family, Alex -- along with best friend Rishi and shady brujo Nova – must journey through the underworld of Los Lagos to save them.
Try this next: the sequel, Bruja Born, or Daniel José Older's Shadowshaper Cypher, another mythology-infused fantasy series set in contemporary Brooklyn.
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| On the Edge of Gone by Corinne DuyvisWhat it's about: With her sister missing, her mom slipping deeper into addiction, and a comet about to decimate the Earth, 16-year-old Denise makes a last-ditch attempt to guarantee her family's safe passage on a generation ship.
Why you might like it: Set in Amsterdam and starring a complex autistic heroine, On the Edge of Gone is a refreshingly atypical apocalyptic thriller.
Did you know? Author Corinne Duyvis coined the "own voices" hashtag. |
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Blood of a Thousand Stars
by Rhoda Belleza
What it's about: A sequel to Empress of a Thousand Skies finds Rhee risking her crown to negotiate peace terms with villainous media star Nero, while framed assassin Aly plots revenge and Kara seeks technology that will erase her royal past.
Series Alert: As mentioned above, Empress of a Thousand Skies is the first in this series, and is available now at the IPL. No word yet on when book three will hit the shelves.
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After The Snow
by S. D. Crockett
What it's about: Fifteen-year-old Willo Blake, born after the 2059 snows that ushered in a new ice age, encounters outlaws, halfmen and an abandoned girl as he searches for his family, who mysteriously disappeared from the freezing mountain that was their home.
You may also like: The Ashfall series by Mike Mullin. A post-apocalyptic tale set off by a different form of natural diaster.
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Contact your librarian for more great books for age 14 and up!
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