New Teen Fiction

For a family with four kids, two dogs, assorted cats, and a constant stream of family and friends dropping by, life in the Austin family home has always been remarkably steady and contented. When a family friend suddenly dies in a plane crash, the Austins open their home to an orphaned girl, Maggy Hamilton. The Austin children - Vicky, John, Suzy, and Rob - do their best to be generous and welcoming to Maggy. Vicky knows she should feel sorry for Maggy, but having sympathy for Maggy is no easy thing.

Gorgeous, uber-harsh, and uber-stylish, Kacey Simon is the undisputed social dictator of Marquette Middle School. That is, until an eye infection and a visit to the dentist leave her with coke-bottle glasses, a mouth full of metal, and... a littttthsp! Dissed and dismissed by her popular friends, Kacey is forced to hang out with a boy who wears skinny jeans and jams in his own band. But as she adjusts to life as a loser, she's surprised to find that Skinny Jeans is kind of hot and his band is pretty cool.

When Noah invites Penny on his first-ever European tour, she can’t wait to spend the summer with her rock-god-tastic boyfriend. But between Noah’s jam-packed schedule, less-than-welcoming bandmates, and threatening messages from jealous fans, Penny wonders whether she’s really cut out for life on tour. She can’t help but miss her family; her best friend, Elliot; and her blog, Girl Online.

Senior year is finally over. After all they've been through, Dan, Abby, and Jordan are excited to take one last road trip together, and they're just not going to think about what will happen when the summer ends. But on their way to visit Jordan's uncle in New Orleans, the three friends notice they're being followed...and photographed. Then Dan starts receiving messages from someone he didn't expect to hear from again - someone who died last Halloween.

Rafe isn't exactly considered a winner in Hills Village Middle School, to say the least, but everything's about to change: He's won a school-wide art competition, and the fabulous prize is getting to jet-set off to Australia for a whirlwind adventure! But Rafe soon finds that living in the Land Down Under is harder than he could've ever imagined.

As a washed-up and forgotten sorcerer, Aldric’s only goal in life is to get drunk enough to forget his tragic past. That is, until his friends coerce him into a teaching position at one of the most prestigious magic academies in the world. Now he’s saddled with the responsibility of teaching four new pupils, all of whom wonder who this brilliant yet unorthodox man truly is.

Mann is only 13, yet he has already had to deal with more than most go through in a lifetime. His family is still reeling from the tragic shooting death of his little brother, Jason, each person coping with grief in his or her own way.

As an obedient orphan of the U.N.A. (the super-country that was once Mexico, the US, and Canada), Alenna learned at an early age to blend in and be quiet - having your parents taken by the police will do that to a girl. But Alenna can’t help standing out when she fails a test that all 16-year-olds have to take: The test says she has a high capacity for brutal violence, and so she is sent to the wheel, an island where all would-be criminals end up.

In the third installment of the Significance series, we begin with Maggie and Caleb in the clutches of a new enemy: the Virtuoso council. Not only do they have to deal with the consequences of taking the lives of the Watsons and the council attempting to take Maggie away to keep their precious Visionary safe, but they must deal with Marla as well. All are determined to undermine, control, and use Caleb and Maggie's rare gifts for their own uses, and some wish to destroy them entirely. A new challenge emerges when Maggie's father and Bish are threatened.

Everything is finally going right for Emry Merlin. Now that Arthur is the king and her wayward magic is under control, she’s enjoying life as Camelot’s official court wizard—and as Arthur’s girlfriend. But when an unexpected visitor arrives at court, Emry finds her hard-won position threatened. And Arthur is torn between listening to his advisors and following his heart. Even more troubling, war is on the horizon, with King Yurien’s access to dark magic ensuring Camelot’s doom. That is, unless Emry, Arthur, and Lance can find a way to defeat the evil sorceress Bellicent.

We're starting over. Mom and Dad think the best way for me to move on from the death of Ben is to move to Oakwood. There, we can spend time with Mom's late best friend's family and open a new bakery. And I'm okay with that. After all, I get to dance and in Oakwood where no one knows me, which means there are no pity stares and silent whispers.

Dear Wendy's Sophie and Jo, two aromantic and asexual college students, engage in an online feud while unknowingly becoming friends in real life, in this dual POV Young Adult contemporary debut from Ann Zhao.

Nearra does not know who she is or where she lives but she does know one thing: Someone wants her dead. Her only hope lies leagues away, in an ancient temple, where healing clerics may be able to restore her memory. A helpful young ranger, a failed warrior, a sneaky elf, and a kender wizard offer to accompany Nearra on her journey. She soon learns her newfound friends have secrets of their own. As goblins, an angry minotaur, and a vicious green dragon attempt to stop them at every turn, friendships are tested and all of if may come to ruin from the one Nearra trusts the most.

Mary Ann Hoberman has won the National Book Award for her sparkling poetry. Her debut novel, Strawberry Hill, stars 10-year-old Allie, a young Jewish girl living with her family during the Great Depression. Everyone is excited because dad has found a home to rent and the street sounds like a place filled with fun and adventure - Strawberry Hill. But Allie soon finds many challenges in her new home and works hard to overcome them.

Just because Mel lives in New Whitby, a city founded by vampires, doesn't mean she knows any of the blood-drinking undead personally. They stay in their part of town; she says in hers. Until the day a vampire shows up at her high school. Worse yet, her best friend, Cathy, seems to be falling in love with him. It's up to Mel to save Cathy from a mistake she might regret for all eternity! On top of trying to help Cathy (whether she wants it or not), Mel is investigating a mysterious disappearance for another friend and discovering the attractions of a certain vampire wannabe.

Half-human, half-angel, Meridian Sozu has a dark responsibility. Sixteen-year-old Meridian has been surrounded by death ever since she can remember. And on her 16th birthday, a car crashes in front of her home and Meridian's body explodes in pain. Before she can fully recover, Meridian is told that she's a danger to her family and hustled off to her great-aunts house in Colorado. It's there that she learns that she is a Fenestra - the half-angel, half-human link between the living and the dead.

Just when Joey Pigza's wired world finally seems to be under control, his good-for-nothing dad pops back into his life. This time, though, Carter Pigza is a new man - literally. After a lucky lotto win, he has a crazy new outlook on life, and he's even changed his name to Charles Heinz. He thinks Joey and his mom should become new people, too. Soon Joey finds himself bombarded with changes, including a new name, a new home, and a new family business: running the beat-up Beehive Diner.

Triumph. Tragedy. The empyreal. The infernal. Even the mundane, filtered through the fantastical. Superheroes are, appropriately enough, a sort of super-genre, encompassing all other story types. This YA anthology features thirteen short stories that creatively turn superhero tropes on their head, while still paying homage to the genre that has found fans for more than eight decades. And there will be no mistake—superheroes don’t have to just be generic handsome white dudes.

Rebeka Uwitonze was born in Rwanda with curled and twisted feet, which meant she had to crawl or be carried to get around. At nine years old, she gets an offer that could change her life. A doctor in the US might be able to turn her feet. But it means leaving her own family behind and going to America on her own. Her Own Two Feet tells Rebeka's inspiring story through her eyes, with the help of one of her hosts. She travels from Rwanda to Austin, Texas, to join the Davis family, despite knowing almost no English.

"One day I was 12 years old and broke. I set out to mow some lawns with Grandpa's old riding mower. One client was Arnold the stockbroker, who offered to teach me about: the beauty of capitalism. Supply and demand. Diversifying labor. Distributing the wealth. 'It's groovy, man,' Arnold said. The grass grew, and so did business. Arnold invested my money in many things. One of them was a prizefighter. All of a sudden I was the sponsor of my very own fighter, Joey Pow."