New Teen Fiction

For seventh-grader Mila, it starts with some boys giving her an unwanted hug on the school blacktop. A few days later, at recess, one of the boys (and fellow trumpet player), Callum, tells Mila it's his birthday, and asks her for a "birthday hug." He's just being friendly, isn't he? And how can she say no? But Callum's hug lasts a few seconds too long, and feels...weird. According to her friend, Zara, Mila is being immature and overreacting. Doesn't she know what flirting looks like? But the boys don't leave Mila alone.

Fourteen-year-old Terry has parents who never paid him much attention. So when they both disappear after one of their all-too-frequent arguments, Terry isn’t exactly eager for them to come home. On his own, he occupies himself by assembling a car kit that’s been collecting dust in the garage for years. When the car is finished, Terry is pleased to discover it actually runs. Though he doesn’t know much about driving, he gets behind the wheel and heads west, with the notion of visiting an uncle in Oregon. But Terry’s plan takes a detour when he meets Shakespeare-quoting wanderer Waylon Jackson....

Susan Beth Pfeffer's Life as We Knew It enthralled and devastated listeners with its brutal but hopeful look at an apocalyptic event - an asteroid hitting the moon, setting off a tailspin of horrific climate changes. Now this harrowing companion novel examines the same events as they unfold in New York City, revealed through the eyes of 17-year-old Puerto Rican Alex Morales.

From the author of Newbery Medal winner Moon Over Manifest comes the odyssey-like adventure of two boys’ incredible quest on the Appalachian Trail. When Jack Baker’s father sends him from his home in Kansas to attend a boys’ boarding school in Maine, Jack doesn’t know what to expect. Certainly not Early Auden, the strangest of boys. Early keeps to himself, reads the number pi as a story, and refuses to accept truths others take for granted. Jack, feeling lonely and out of place, connects with Early, and the two become friends.

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.

Mari is an Earth Walker, heir to the unique healing powers of her Clan; but she has cast her duties aside...until she is chosen by a special animal ally, altering her destiny forever. When a deadly attack tears her world apart, Mari reveals the strength of her powers and the forbidden secret of her dual nature as she embarks on a mission to save her people. It is not until Nik, the son of the leader from a rival dominating clan, strays across her path that Mari experiences something she has never felt before.

Aaryn, son of Cupid and Psyche, is determined to follow in his father's footsteps. On the night of his first assignment, without first logging in to the high-tech compatibility database, he shoots a ballet prodigy named Karma. Aaryn realizes too late the other arrow in his pack is useless. He can't shoot Danny, Karma's date, which makes the enchantment tragically one-sided. In the year that follows, Karma's destiny is derailed. One pregnancy confirmed. One ballet scholarship lost.

Bobby is a typical urban New York City teenager, impulsive, eager, and restless. For his 16th birthday he cuts school with his two best buddies, grabs a couple of slices at his favorite pizza joint, catches a flick at a nearby multiplex, and gets some news from his girlfriend, Nia, that changes his life forever: He's going to be a father.

Published on the eve of World War I, a decade after Buddenbrooks had established Thomas Mann as a literary celebrity, Death in Venice tells the story of Gustave von Aschenbach, a successful but aging writer who follows his wanderlust to Venice in search of spiritual fulfillment that instead leads to his erotic doom.

From Erth to the dragon homeworld, Ki:mera, everything has been forever changed by the meeting of dragons and humans. Their fate has become inextricably intertwined - and their story will transform the very fabric of time. Ren, the human boy, now has unprecedented powers. With his control of a magical horse, his abilities scare even the most formidable dragons. Yet the dragons fear even more the rise of the dark dragon Graven, and rumors that the dragons who came first may have known more than anyone realized run rampant through the wearle.

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.

The first day of middle school means trading in freeze tag at the pool for new schedules, fabulous outfits, and a fresh start. But for 11-year-old Kaylan, the chaos of new locker combinations, cafeteria cliques, and potential first kisses is more than she can handle. She dreads the start of sixth grade and feels like she wants - no, needs - a winning game plan. Luckily, Kaylan and her effortlessly chill BFF, Arianna, have a fool-proof plan for tackling transitions: a list of 11 things they need to do to totally transform themselves before they both turn 12 in November.

"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."

Girls are dying in mysterious circumstances.... They are found dead in their beds, covered in blood, with a look of pure horror on their faces. Worse still, their ghosts are left to walk the Earth, just waiting for someone to hear the terror that has befallen them. Thomas Ward is the local spook - it’s his job to protect the county from things that go bump in the night. But this is no ordinary haunting, and he finds himself on the path of a dangerous beast that is looking to kill again.

Dahlia 16's life is a lie. The city of Lakeview isn't a utopia that raises individuals for the greater good; it is a clone farm that mass-produces servants for the elite. And because Dahlia breaks the rules, her sisters - the 4,999 girls who share her face - are destroyed. She and Trigger 17, the soldier who risked his life for hers, go on the run, escaping into the wild outside the city walls. But it turns out Dahlia has one remaining identical, one who shouldn't even exist.

Dahlia 16 sees her face in every crowd. She's nothing special - just one of 5,000 girls created from a single genome to work for the greater good of the city. Meeting Trigger 17 changes everything. He thinks she's interesting. Beautiful. Unique. Which means he must be flawed. When Dahlia can't stop thinking about him - when she can't resist looking for him, even though that means breaking the rules - she realizes she's flawed, too. But if she's flawed, then so are all her identicals. And any genome found to be flawed will be recalled.

From YouTube sensation Zoella comes a debut coming-of-age novel that perfectly captures what it means to grow up and fall in love in today's digital world. Girl Online is the first book to be published by Keywords Press, an imprint under Simon & Schuster dedicated to today's digital stars.

The battle lines have been drawn, and Mari, an Earth Walker, and Nik, a Companion, who were once from rival clans now find themselves fighting to save each other and their people from destruction. Thaddeus betrayed his own people, killing Nik's father and destroying their entire clan. But he wants more. He wants the power he believes Mari has stolen from him and his people, and he will do anything he must to get them back, even if it means destroying everything in his path.

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.

The Pack and the Wind Riders must find a way to stop the God of Death before he poisons their world and all is lost. There is one hope: Ralina, Death’s Storyteller. The woman Death has forced to travel at side, recording every atrocity he commits. But Ralina heeds the call of the Goddess of Life, the only being who can defeat Death, and escapes to warn the Pack and the Wind Riders with the knowledge she has accumulated during her harrowing journey. But will it be enough? Is there any way to truly stop the God of Death?