Emerald Green

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier, 2010 Square Fish

     The final installment of Gwen's story follows directly on the heels of Sapphire Blue. Gwenyth and Gideon have spoken with Lucy and Paul leading the pair even further from trusting the Saint-Germain Society. 

     Gwenyth and Gideon discover the answer ot their riddle of teh chronograph--Gwen is immortal and the Count Saint-Germain craves her immortality enough to forcer to take her own life. 

     The two time-travelers are on the outs after Gwen misunderstands (with her cousin's vehement insinuation) the relationship between Gideon and Charlotte. With Gideon as her only quasi-reliable ally at the society Gwen grudginly allows him to help. Raphael (Gideon's brother), Leslie, and Xemerius try to piece everything together before Gwen has her meeting with the count. 

     The Saint-Germain Society insists that Gwen adn Gideon complete the circle of the chronograph at the count' behest. But their conversations with Lucy and Paul have set Gwen on a parallel path: they direct her to the stolen chronograph in present time. 

     Gweneth and Gideon close the original Chronograph's circle with Gideon's blood and find the Philosopher's Stone. The society force the meeting with the Count while Gwen's cousin Charlotte believes she is hiding something--which she is--and tries to bring the full weight of the society down. Her repeated attempts to discredit Gwen backfire when Charlotte spills secrets of the society and Gwenyth appears to follow all of the society's dictates. 

     It all comes to a head when secrets are revealed and the count isn't just some figure in history. Gwen and ideon have choices that will affect not just their futures and teh society, but all of humanity. 

     This conclusion to the Gemstone Trilogy ties up the loose ends and allows for the future. Emerald Green is aimed at teen readers with elements of romance and time travel. 

Sapphire Blue

Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier, 2010 Square Fish

     Beginning moments after Ruby Red's conclusion is the second installment of Gwen's adventure with time travel. After they return from a failed trip back to obtain a blood sample from Lady Tilney Gwyneth Shephard and Gideon de Villiers find themselves with more questions than the secret Saint-Germain Society is willing to answer. 

     Gideon still insists the society is acting in their best interests and the interests of society at large, but Gwen questions his blind loyalty. Her conversation with Lucy pointed her toward the Society's secrecy as a method of manipulation. Lesley continues to support Gwen and help her seek information. The two girls discover more about the prophecies which drive the society forward, though interpreting those prophecies is like deciphering poetry. 

     Gwen seems to be crumbling under the pressure of an etiquette coach who has no compassion and her cousin, Charlotte's smug, repeated criticisms. Leslie reminds Gwen of her ability to speak with ghosts and the gargoyle ghost who has been following her becomes the girls' best spy and ally. Xemerius is able to provide information the society keeps from Gwen and, when Gideon's brother unexpectedly appears, keeps her grounded amid emotional turmoil. 

     The two time travelers are learning more and more about the time they've been assigned to travel to. Gwen asks the forbidden questions and breaks the rules, but Gideon tries to protect her from the Society and its punishments for disobedience. Slowly Gwen gains hold of her ability to speak with ghosts and gains enough confidence to succeed in the missions set by the Saint-Germain Society. 

     The further down the rabbit hole they go, the less Gwen trusts the Society. Xemerius shadows her distrust, and it becomes harder and harder for her to follow the directions of the creepy count Saint-Germain through the Society. 

     Another meeting with Lucy and Paul's associates points even further suspicion on the Society. Like its predecessor, Sapphire Blue ends abruptly. Gwen's journey is not yet over as she searches for her own way in a role she never even wanted. 

     The second installment of Gwen's story sees her gain confidence in her own abilities. Readers will enjoy her doubt in the secrets she's expected to keep without understanding and her somewhat rebellious response to that doubt. Sapphire Blue is intended for teens with some mature violence and romantic entanglements. 

It Had to Be You

It Had to Be You by Janice Thompson, 2010 Fleming H Revell

    On the heels of her second themed wedding, Bella is overjoyed to be planning her aunt and uncle's wedding, quickly followed by her own ceremony. That is until her little sister decides to marry within weeks of Bella's big day. 

     Rosa and Lazarro's forties-themed bash is a joy to plan and the Rossi family reunites across the ocean. Even Lazarro's old mobster friend Sal shows up. The Rossi clan of Galveston Texas believes they can help the old man find salvation. Laz hopes Sal's parrot Guido can help lead him to faith. 

     Sal finds more than Guido and the Rossis helping him toward the Christian faith. The Splendora trio is always willing to lead a man to water. When Sal seems to find a little more than friendship with one of the ladies it seems he may be drawn fully into the light. 

     The family drama pulls Bella and her family from their roots. Old and new rivalries and jealousies challenge each member of the family but draw them back together and to their faith. 

     In planning her own nuptials, maintaining a happy front while her parents remodel as a surprise for Rosa and Laz, and spreading her time thin enough to help Sophia plan her own wedding Bella forgets to take time for herself. Bella is forced to learn to rely on others and her faith to make her dreams a reality. 

     The Rossi family is grounded in their faith and their connection to each other. Bella and DJ get their happily ever after among family and friends, just as they've helped arrange for many couples before them. 

Swinging on a Star

Swinging on a Star by Janice Thompson, 2010 Baker Publishing

     After Bella's first themed wedding is a success she is challenged by a new theme. Rob and Marian want a Medieval theme and Bella Rossi is more than happy to oblige: she even had a castle built to house the ceremony.
     Rob and Marian have a surprise for their wedding planner. Bella is stunned at the news Rob's best friend is a Hollywood movie star, Brock Benson. They ask if Bella and the Rossi clan can help keep Brock from the paparazzi. Anything to make her bride's day perfect: Bella agrees.
     The young man who deejayed Bella's first wedding, D.J. Neely, has stayed around and the two have been dating. Bella is serious about her beau and enjoys his family and their quirks. When Brock seems to take too much of a shine to the elder Miss Rossi, Bella must figure out how to break it to him that she's taken.
     Her sister has no such claim and enjoys the charming movie star's attention while he hides from paparazzi in the Rossi household. Brock finds family with the Rossis and their flamboyant insistence that on being the very best they could be drives him to seek his own family. The Rossis are happy to be adopted. 

     Despite setbacks Bella and her family band together to make Rob and Marian's wedding an event to remember. Even with a celebrity best man, the focus is on the bride and groom. The challenges help Bella and DJ on their journey closer to each other and forward in their faith. 

     Readers who enjoyed Bella's first themed wedding and meeting DJ will enjoy following their blooming relationship. 

Princess of Glass

Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George, 2010 Bloomsbury

      After their curse is broken the princesses of Westfalin are sent as diplomatic emissaries around the known world. The king hopes his daughters will learn from the nations surrounding their small country and possibly they will help provide political restitution for the loss of so many high-ranking young men.

     Princess Poppy is sent to her mother's homeland Breton. Life with the Seadown family, cousins of her late mother, is comfortable despite their attempts to find her a suitable husband. The daughter of the house, Marianne, introduces Poppy to several of her friends including Roger and Dickon Thwaite and the visiting Prince Christian. Marianne and Dickon seem to be all but engaged. Poppy finds Roger to be an agreeable companion if distracted by a childhood love, but it is Christian with whom she develops an affinity. 

     The friendships carry Poppy through missing her sisters, but when the men of her acquaintance become enamored of a mysterious "Lady Ella" Poppy smells a rat, or rather the magic of the dark. The women become unnaturally enraged at Ella's appearance--also uncharacteristic of both Marianne and her mother. Poppy finds her experience with dark and dangerous magic makes her the most qualified to discover what happened to all common sense in Breton.

     Roger Thwaite had experience with dark magic in the East and is a quick ally when Poppy requires a level head. He notices a familiar face among the Seadowns' servants. Poppy ties links between Eleanor's strange comings and goings and her fascination with Prince Christian. The friends dig deeper trying to discover the source of the problems. 

     Poppy and Roger discover Eleanor is Lady Ella and the mysterious benefactor who made it all possible is an ancient and dangerous supernatural being. The main cast strips up to challenge the witch when her magic tries to take Eleanor's life and Christian's freedom. Poppy fights to survive another monster's captivity. 

     Middle school and younger teen readers will find this sequel to The Midnight Ball an enjoyable blend of Cinderella with modern trappings. Princess of Glass is followed by Princess of the Silver Wood concluding the Princesses of Westfalin trilogy. 

Belle's Song

Belle's Song by K. M. Grant, 2010 Quercus Publishing

     Belle's father is a bell founder and named after the bells he has devoted his life to. Belle' smother made their home run smoothly while Belle is absorbed by the stories in her head. When her mother dies, Belle is hopeless as a housekeeper and one of the widows in their London neighborhood moves in to care for the young woman and her father.
     She does take part in her father's work and while helping the men raise the bells, Belle is distracted and her distraction results in the large bell falling and breaking both of her father's legs. Belle's father is crippled and his work begins to fall off, but the neighborhood helps keep Belle's little family running.
     After her father's accident, Belle feels she caused the incident and she starts searching for a way to make it right. When a pilgrimage leaves from the local tavern to Canterbury, Belle decides to join and pay penance at the shrine, hoping to heal her father's injuries. Belle discovers that one of their party is the famous Chaucer.
    On their way to Canterbury Chaucer's assistant, Luke catches the pretty girls' eyes. Luke is the son of an alchemist who no longer wants to deceive audiences and is traveling to become a monk as penance. Belle is fascinated, though the squire traveling with the party seems to be just the right amount of courtly charming. Walter is a flamboyant young man on pilgrimage with his father as recompense for his sister's elopement against the church's doctrine.
     The trio become friends, though Luke is wary of becoming too attached to the pretty girl when he is meant to become a monk. When Walter and Belle appear to be more than mere friends Luke begins to distance himself from their interactions. Both Belle and Walter are concerned that their actions have pushed away the boy they're both falling for. Walter confides in Belle as they discover one of their party may be dipping into nefarious activities.
    A Catholic priest who gathers sins for the church is called the Summoner. The Summoner traveling with the pilgrimage has some sins of his own. When the Summoner blackmails Belle, she and Walter uncover a political plot against the king. They discover an unknowing Luke at the center and the pair work to untangle the knot around him.
    When her life and immortal soul are threatened by the Summoner, Belle is unsure what to do. She struggles with self-harm and an obsession with the number three. Her friendship with Walter and budding relationship with Luke driver her to challenge the Summoner and bring the nefarious plot into the open.
    Belle's Song deals with mature topics in a way younger readers may not understand including self-harm and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The tale is a retelling of Chaucer's famous Canterbury Tales with political intrigue and an unanticipated love triangle. Teen and young adult readers who enjoyed A Golden Web and In the Shadow of the Lamp will enjoy this tale.

City of Ships

City of Ships by Mary Hoffman, 2010 Bloomsbury

    Most of her friends have become withdrawn over the last few months when Isabel finds a small pouch of mosaic stones. The tesserae transport her into Classe, a coastal town in Talia. 

     Isabel befriends the prosperous merchant and secret Stravagante, Flavia. The kind woman helps Isabel find her feet and connect with other Stravagante both in Talia and at home in England. 

     As she's getting used to nightly adventures, Isabel discovers her beloved Classe is under threat from the Gate People and their fleet. While she is shadowed by her twin brother at home, in Classe she has purpose and feels important. She helps Flavia prepare for the coming invasion, but her plans are thrown out of sync when her brother, Charlie, takes her talisman and accidentally stravigates too. 

     Charlie is caught in the invasion and Isabel faces the chance that her plans in Classe will fail and her secret will be revealed putting her adventures on indefinite hold. But her new friends from school help Charlie see that Isabel and the people of Classe have much to do to save their beloved city from attack - both by land and sea. 

     Much like Italy's Ravenna, Classe has a deep connection with the art of mosaic. The beauty draws Isabel as the drama and political instability give her purpose. With one more member of their Stravagante club the teens begin to notice a pattern in who is chosen. The mystery of how and why remain unsolved, but their mission in Talia continues. 

     City of Ships is the fifth in the Stravaganza series following City of Secrets and preceding City of Swords. Classe has a new element: International trade; and the Di Chimi family have opened a door they cannot hope to close alone. Teen and young adult readers will enjoy this story independently or as an installment in the series. 

Black Magic Sanction

Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison, 2010 Harper Voyager

     She hasn't quite accepted that she is a day-walking demon, but the Coven of Moral and Ethical Standards is after Rachel anyway. After the shunning, a woman attacks her in the grocery store while she and Ivy shop. Vivian is a member of the Coven, using her white magic with deadly consequences. Rachel is sent to the FIB and made to pay for damages while Vivian is absolved of her part.
     On her way home from the FIB offices, Rachel is summoned to San Francisco where the Coven attempts to railroad her into either being magically neutered, or literally neutered. Rachel is sent to Alcatraz when she refuses where she learns some of the ways the Coven manages trouble-maker witches. The church's gargoyle, Bis, finds Rachel and comforts her until Ivy can summon her back home to Cincinnati.
     Thus begins the tug-o-war between Rachel and the forces who want to control her. Trent Kalamack is still itching to get her under his control, Algaliarept (her demon teacher) attempts to keep her in the ever-after whenever he gets the chance, Pierce (the ghost brought back to life in a previous book) leverages attraction to influence her, and the Coven is on the prowl for her ability to kindle demon magic.
     After several near-death excursions and the loss of a close friend, Rachel makes her stand, accepting her place as a step between witches and demons but refusing to let it be the reason she dies.
     Rachel Morgan doesn't want to use black magic, but her blood is having difficulty kindling standard magic. She is becoming a different entity, and the consequences on her life spiral out of control. Through her friendships and faith in herself Rachel holds her world together and manages to get out okay. Like her reader, Rachel deals with the mess of everyday life as it comes to her and hopes what comes tomorrow won't kill her.

Bright Young Things

Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen, 2010 Harper

    Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey are best friends from the same Ohio town. Letty is the oldest daughter of a strictly religious family who dreams of stardom - and she has the talent to succeed. Cordelia is the orphan of the town's promiscuous black sheep being raised by a strict aunt.
     After Cordelia is caught skinny dipping with a boyfriend she is dragged to a shotgun wedding and the two girls see an opportunity to escape to New York City where they hope to find a better life. But neither girl is prepared for the shocks of big city life.
     Letty and her voice are one of dozens searching for a break into the biz. She takes a job as a cigarette girl in scandalously short skirts and high heels. When a Broadway promoter offers he chance at a big break Letty isn't sure about the sleazy man, and questions how far is too far to achieve her dreams.
     Cordelia is in search of her long-absent father, the bootlegger Darius Grey. Grey made his living and a fortune selling illegal alcohol and throwing lavis parties to capture the attention and trade of New York's bright, rich, and beautiful. But with the fame and money comes surveillance - someone might try to kidnap the boss's daughter to make a quick buck. Even worse is the discovery of her new beau's identity: Thom Hale is the son of a rival bootlegger.
     The friends part ways early in the story and come across the variety of 1920s New York City: Letty meets showgirls, a starving writer Grady Lodge, and normal people of all kinds, Cordelia is surrounded by the elite socialites, flappers, and thugs hired to protect them. Astrid Donal takes Cordelia under her wing, and as lover to Cordelia's brother Charlie, Astrid has a unique take on her lifestyle.
     No one cares where the girls are from, only where they're going and if they'll have a grand time on the way. The strict social structure of nineteenth century is crumbling as new money and illegal alcohol bring together the rich and beautiful of New York City. Readers who enjoyed Godbersen's Luxe series will enjoy her illustration of the high life at the end of the Jazz Age. With some promiscuity, Bright Young Things is aimed at teen and young adult readers.

Lord Sunday

Lord Sunday by Garth Nix, 2010 Scholastic Books

     After seemingly falling to his death, Arthur Penhalion manages to escape into the Secondary Realms using the Improbable Stair. Under attack by giant insects Arthur cannot concentrate to use the key to protect himself or escape the bugs.
     Suzy Turquoise Blue, meanwhile, is being held by Superior Saturday's minion but manages to escape into Sunday's Incomparable Gardens where she tries to seek out the seventh part of the Will. Arthur's friend Leaf is back on Earth dealing with the results of nuclear strike (how the government dealt with Friday's Sleepers) when Sunday's Dusk attempts to bring her into the house for ransom. The plan fails when the Front door is under attack and Leaf remains as guardian.
    The house is at risk of collapse from Nothing and it appears Sunday, the last trustee, has little or no plan to save the House and its surrounding realms. Arthur attempts to unite the Architect's children against the Nothing which threatens total destruction: if the House falls all of existence will fall with it.
     Can Arthur unite all seen parts of the Will and save the House with all it entails? Or will the Piper, the Mariner, and the Old One stand in his way? In the conclusion to The Keys to the Kingdom Arthur Penhalion decides whether his journey has been worth the efforts or if he will give up the power and opportunity presented in the House to return to a world which has completely changed since he was swept away. Middle Grade readers will find the end of this epic satisfying, if somewhat predictable.

Scorch Trials

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner, 2010 Random House

     After Thomas and his companions are rescued they arrive at whatever place it is the boys are dropped off by WICKED. The building is a large room with two dormitories off the main room; Thomas is awakened the first night when Teresa is pulled from him - screaming in his mind. When the boys awaken it is to find their windows replaced with screaming creatures - humans who have begun to deteriorate and call themselves the Cranks.
     Thomas and his friends flee the creatures and Thomas searches for Teresa. In her place they find Aris - another boy. Aris describes an experience very like what the boys experienced in the maze. Aris was placed in a maze full of girls and young women, much like Teresa joined the boys. Thomas is concerned for Teresa and Aris is barely accepted by the boys.
    After several days locked in the building without food and afraid to leave for fear of finding more Cranks, a strange man appears with food and gives the boys a directive. They will cross hundreds of miles of the Scorch to a barren city and beyond the mountains and a safe zone.
     Along the way Thomas, Aris, and the boys from the maze encounter more Cranks and most survive. But when Teresa and the other girls appear will the two groups survive the planned betrayal? Teen and young adult readers will enjoy Dashner's dystopia. Some violence and romantic tension pervade the story.

Burned

Burned by Kristin and P.C. Cast, 2010 St. Martin's Press

   After Zoey battles Neferet and her soul shatters, Stark takes her to the Isle of Sgiach where his kinsman is the queen's guardian. Following a poem from Kramisha, Darius and Aphrodite team with Sgiach to determine what exactly it will take for Zoey to come back.
     Zoey lingers in the Otherworld mourning the loss of her ex-boyfriend Heath. Stark must become a Shaman to find Zoey, especially when she doesn't want to return. Zoey refuses to accept the portions of her soul back and has been trapped in the Otherworld unable to move either forward or backward.
     To get Stark into the Otherworld, even after he becomes a Shaman, takes a long and involved process of summoning one of the Bulls either of Darkness or Light. Stevie Rae and Rephiam mistake the white bull of Darkness for the harbinger of Light.
     When he is led by the White Bull of Darkness into the Otherworld Stark contacts Heath hoping to convince Zoey to return when Heath has moved beyond the Otherworld. Her fear of losing the people she loves is the impetus which brings Zoey back.
     The world Zoey comes back to has been forever changed by the argument between Light and Darkness. Stevie Rae is in Tulsa holding down the fort, the rest of the crew has traveled to the Isle of Sgiach to be with Zoey, all are still reeling from the confrontation in Venice. The group is picking up the pieces, the world of vampyres is constantly changing: Neferet claims she is the goddess Nyx and Kalona her consort Erebus.
     Though only teenagers Zoey, Stevie Rae and their friends are insistent that they can make a change in the world around them. The vampyres fledglings have always trusted have little to say when things are beyond their expectation. Zoey fights to maintain her faith in the people around her as they face life-changing challenges. Burned focuses more on Zoey's friends and what they'll do to keep her around. Their adventures are aimed at older teens who enjoy contemporary paranormal with a touch of romantic triangle.

StarCrossed

StarCrossed by Elizabeth C. Bunce, 2010 Arthur A. Levine

     In Llyvaraneth's capital city, Gerse, Digger is a young woman who's been working as a thief. After escaping the Convent of Celys she finds work as a thief. Her greatest enemies are the Greenmen -- guards at Celys's temple who have banned magic and scour the city to eliminate any trace. When a routine job goes horribly wrong, Digger loses everything she has: her partner and lover Tegen and any sense of safety.
     With only the scraps from that last job and a cursed tingling of magic Digger finds herself taking on the guise of Celyn Contrare aboard a boat of nobles (nobs). One of the young men introduces Celyn to his family and Digger becomes maid to Lady Merista Nemair.
     As Digger attempts her escape from any taint of the King's hunt for magic her luck does not last long--a family friend joins the Nemair in the winter home and discovers the young woman in the midst of stealing from him. Remy Daul blackmails the thief, hoping she will spy on her benefactors for his gain.
     Daul's treachery solidifies Digger's resolve to leave behind the life which has cost her so much, but can she escape. The sixteen-year-old finds herself at the heart of another rebellion when it appears so much of the world around her and of her life with the Nemair is artifice.
     Digger-as-Celyn is a talented thief with a sense of honor which compels her to find truth. Whether it is at her own behest or the convoluted direction of those attempting to use her skills for their benefit, Digger gets to the root of her search and uses her discoveries to advance her own beliefs. Readers who enjoy action and adventure will find Digger's journey interesting. Her story is more appropriate for mature readers in style and content.

The Agency: The Body at the Tower

The Body at the Tower by Y. S. Lee, 2010 Candlewick Press

     Construction on Parliament's clock tower is twenty-five years behind schedule and set to be delayed even further when a body is found in the work yard at the base of the clocktower. Mary Quinn makes a reappearance in her first case as a real agent.
     Mary disguises herself as a boy to get a job on the construction site. She must battle the memory of childhood hunger, poverty, and the danger of an unprotected young woman in the streets of Victorian London to be successful in her mission.
     Shuttled from job to job, Mary's supposed age and inexperience makes her fit for little more than errand-boy or work in the site office. She becomes an outsider and has difficulty working the case until a character from her past comes back.
     James Easton went to India as head engineer ending a burgeoning relationship. With James's return Mary is again thrown into emotional turmoil whether or not to accept the friendship he offers.
     With James's help, Mary is able to link the threads of the murderer and bring an answer back to the Agency. Mary nearly loses herself undercover on the construction site, but her friendships and the will to move ahead ground her. The tension between James and Mary is different between the first and second installments of The Agency series adding a new layer to the suspense.
     The Agency is a new type of investigative service; readers of all ages can enjoy the logical progression of Mary's investigation and the suspense of finding a murderer. Written at a late elementary level The Body at the Tower is a new kind of young adult mystery.

Ascendant

Ascendant by Diana Peterfreund, HarperTeen 2010

     After she has accepted her role as a Hunter, Astrid Llewelyn continues to live in Rome and hunt unicorns. Fully trained and enjoying life when her boyfriend decides to leave Rome and go back to school in New York, and when Cornelia's Unicorn powers suddenly and slowly fade away.
     Cornelia decides to return to England and hopes to figure why her power is fading. Astrid goes with her, but they are side-tracked in Paris when Astrid comes up against a corporation trying to figure out the magic of unicorns. The corporation gives Astrid the chance to apply her talents to finding the Remedy--a cure for any illness. Her ex-boyfriend is staying with the company and creates tension between Astrid and Giovanni, her current boyfriend.
   When the bond Astrid forms with the unicorn herd on company land begins to prevent her from killing the unicorns Astrid becomes concerned with the mission placed before her. The comfort of working with a pharmaceutical company and the isolation from her friends and family changes Astrid into someone she doesn't recognize.
     When an encounter with a rogue unicorn nearly kills Astrid, her world turns upside down. The unicorns become more than just her life's work. How will Astrid handle her life depending on the magic of the unicorns?
      The transition from reluctant hunter to diligent caretaker is characterized by a significant change in Astrid's personal outlook. Ideas of chastity and the personal right of choice are addressed with the mythology of unicorns. High school readers and those who enjoy Young Adult fiction will enjoy Ascendant.

The Agency: A Spy in the House

A Spy in the House by Y. S. Lee, 2010 Candlewick Press

     Mary Lang is a half-caste Chinese-Irish girl living in Victorian England. From a childhood of crime she is rescued from the gallows by the women of Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls. Nearly five years of schooling have created a confident young woman capable of handling nearly anything.
     Bored by the typical life planned out for her, Mary asks Miss Treleaven and Mrs. Frame for something with a little more variety--and gets more than she expected. Anne Treleaven and Felicity Frame are the leaders of the Agency, a secret investigative unit which is composed entirely of women. The Agency functions on the premise that women of the time are overlooked or discounted.
     Mary's first assignment takes her into the home of a prominent merchant, Henry Thorold, as his daughter's paid companion. The merchant is suspected of smuggling and insurance fraud. While searching for documentation of his perfidy Mary meets James Easton in the wardrobe of the home office.
     James's older brother George is infatuated with Angelica, the daughter of the house, and James has begun his own investigation into Henry Thorold. When the two join forces Mary is reluctant to trust this young man and his fascinating view of the world. As they suffer through London's worst heat wave in years, James and Mary search for evidence to support or disprove their theories, and fight the strange feelings they begin to feel for each other.
     Blooming romance threads through the mounting intrigue possibly turning an unwilling friendship into an unexpected relationship. The blend builds on the tension of their investigation. Written for middle school-aged students, The Agency is a full-fledged mystery and readers of all ages can find something to capture their attention

The Grimm Legacy

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman, 2010 G.P. Putnam's Sons Books

     When Elizabeth Rew is suggested for an internship at the New York Circulating Material Repository she is intrigued. Instead of books, the library lends objects: a tea set, carpentry tools, children's toys. The items lent from the library range from simple, everyday objects to rare or complex tools and antiquities. 

     Deep in the warren-like basement Elizabeth discovers the Collections. Her first glimpse that the library is more than it seems is the disappearance of an entry in the Grimm Legacy, items straight out of the fairy tales. 

      But along with the mystical seven-league boots, neverending feast, and Little Red Riding Hood's cloak are more sinister magical items--and items which allow someone sinister action. Magical items begin to disappear. 

     Elizabeth and her new friends at the Repository decide to embark on a quest worthy of the Grimm Brothers to find the mysterious thief before they are blamed for the crime. And before they're the ones disappearing. 

     Hidden behind the simple facade of an old victorian home, the New York Circulating Material Repository houses magic. Elizabeth is an ordinary girl hoping to live an ordinary life, until the extraordinary plucks her into a world swirling with action and adventure. Readers of all ages will enjoy the effects of fantastic items from some of the best-known fairy tales in western culture. 

Boston Jane: Wilderness Days

Boston Jane: Wilderness Days by Jennifer Holm, 2010 Yearling Books

     Still in Shoalwater Bay, Washington, Jane Peck has been abandoned by her fiance. She makes plans to travel back home, but receives a letter making those plans impossible: her father, ill throughout the first novel, has died.
     With nothing left to return to, Jane decides to stay in Shoalwater Bay. But she is the only woman in the settlement, her closest companions in a nearby Chinook village. Working for her keep turns the somewhat over-emotional Jane sour and her ex-fiance's treatment makes her suspicious of the men around her. When Mr. and Mrs. Fink arrive, Jane is hopeful of a companion and friend.
    But Mrs. Fink is a little too charming: the men of Shoalwater Bay clamour to do her bidding and ignore their spunky Jane, while still expecting her to care for them. Even a proposal from Jehu, an attractive young man Jane met on the ship from Boston, is fraught with frustration and suspicion.
     A mysterious man with a valuable gold watch offers Jane the watch for her caring and hospitality and she finally has the means to go home to civilization. But the man may have something sinister in store for her new home, can Jane abandon her new friends to return to a place she never belonged?
     Though she found the adventure she had always dreamed of it turns out, adventure wasn't what Jane was searching for. Early teen readers who enjoy adventure, romance, and a touch of spook will find Wilderness Days an engaging novel with a frustratingly realistic lead in Jane.

A Golden Web

A Golden Web by Barbara Quick, 2010 HarperTeen

     Alessandra is gifted--while her older brother avoids his studies as many young boys do, Alessandra soaks up every moment of learning she can. From her earliest moments she glowed with intelligence and curiosity.
     As a young woman, Alessandra's intelligence becomes the greatest hurdle to her happiness. She longs for the freedom to learn at the great university in Bologna where medicine is developing daily. Alessandra's stepmother has another idea and plans to marry her off to a man who will keep Alessandra out of her stepmother's home. In preparation for such a day the young woman is sent to a cloister from which she escapes to the University and the freedom of disguise as a man.
     But in fourteenth-century Italy, a woman disguised as a man is an abomination--a witch to be burned at the stake. Alessandra must be careful of how the world sees her, but her mind is quick and she becomes what she's always dreamed of: a student, a desired young woman, and an expert medico.
     A Golden Web is based on the life of Alessandra Giliani the world's first female anatomist. Her story is embellished and brought to life through Quick's characters breathing fresh life into the young woman who defied the world.

Mockingjay

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, 2010 Scholastic Press

     After she's taken from the Arena in her second Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen is spirited to the long-lost District 13. There she recovers and learns she is to be the face of the revolution. The only problem is President Coin seems to want to maintain the status quo rather than improve the lives of Panem's people.
      When Peta appears to be supporting the government, Katniss is hard-pressed to protect him from the eradication Coin has planned. Only by agreeing to be the Mockingjay can she save him, and so begins Katniss's activism.
      She disobeys orders and fights for the people of her nation, district by district her honest actions win over the people. When Katniss is nearly killed during the siege of the Capitol's final stronghold the people rise to defend her--she has not challenged them, but given the dissatisfied a point to rally behind.
     When the time comes to battle the Capitol within its own bounds Katniss is held back. Haymitch notes that she is a tool, one with an expiration date if she does not support the new regime whole-heartedly. When given the chance to defect and take matters into her own hands the Mockingjay takes her tribe into the heart of battle and fights for the future.
     Like the books preceding it, Mockingjay is a bloody battle for supremacy, rather than subtle maneuvering and manipulation with the Hunger Games Panem breaks out into full-blown civil war and rebellion. The story is not meant for young children or readers who are uncomfortable with gore--it is more suited to older teens and young adults with its graphic violence.