Truths I Learned from Sam by Kristin Butcher
Summary: After her mother gets married for the fifth time, seventeen year-old Dani thinks she will be spending the six weeks her mother is on her honeymoon by herself. But her mother springs a surprise on her: instead Dani will be spending the time with Sam, the uncle she never knew about. Although she could be angry about her mother keeping secrets from her, Dani opts for excitement over getting to know a new family member. Sam and Dani are two peas in a pod, enjoying an easy camaraderie right from the start. While on her vacation with Sam, Dani learns to ride a horse and starts a...
Read MoreBreathless by Pam Withers
Summary: Staying with her Uncle Tom for Christmas break to help him with his dive shop, Beverley gets to do what she loves while hanging out in Kauai, Hawaii. Intending to take full advantage of her trip, Beverley decides the time she has in Hawaii is perfect for losing ten pounds and finding her first boyfriend. While she drastically cuts back on her food intake immediately, even before she starts losing the weight she meets Garth, a confident young divemaster who appears to be interested in her. Before Beverley knows it, she is breathless not only because of Garth’s persistent...
Read MoreThe Lynching of Louie Sam by Elizabeth Stewart
Summary: When a local man is murdered and a Native named Louie Sam is suspected of the crime, the charged atmosphere of 1884 demands justice. Unhappy when the Canadian law enforcement seeks a trial for Louie Sam, a lynch mob calling themselves the Nooksack Vigilance Committee crosses the Canadian/United States border and strings him up to hang from a tree. George Gillies and his friend Pete Harkness are observers of the act, and afterwards George finds himself questioning the ‘facts’ of the case. As he pieces what really happened to Mr. Bell together, his challenge is trying to...
Read MoreRed Sea by Diane Tullson
Summary: Heading down a troubling path with a nineteen year-old boyfriend named Ty, fourteen year-old Libby takes it hard when her mother divorces her father to marry a new man named Duncan. Despite her attempts to break them up including her claim that Duncan has abused her, Libby still finds herself on a year-long sailing trip with Duncan and her mother. But when Libby’s stalling means their boat leaves for their Red Sea journey after the others they’ve been travelling with, an encounter with pirates changes all of their lives forever. Number of Pages: 169 Age Range: 13-14...
Read MoreShade & Sorceress by Catherine Egan
Summary: At the tender age of twelve years old, young Eliza comes into the knowledge of her birthright. The daughter of the former Shang Sorceress, Eliza’s destiny is to take her mother’s place and protect the connection between the lands of Tian Xia and Di Shang through developing her magical powers and having a daughter of her own. But when she is discovered by the Mancers and expected to take her place, everyone is surprised by the fact that she appears to have zero magical ability at all. Despite lacking essential powers, a competing sorceress who has been locked away for a...
Read More