Sarah may claim that she may be invisible, but we see her. She knows all the magic spells and uses them to create all kinds of amazing things, like our logo, print flyers, and our website. So wherever you go on the website? It’s safe to conclude that “Sarah was here.” All kidding aside, we couldn’t have this wonderful resource without her talents and magic!
Introducing: Sarah Jamila Stevenson, Co-Blog Editor and Website Designer
In addition to being a huge (and we mean HUGE) Science Fiction/Fantasy and Young Adult fan, Sarah loves drawing comics, writing books, and globe trotting. She is also a former adjunct professor, and current proofreader and production assistant at Scholastic Teachables. When she’s not working, you can usually find her hiding somewhere with a book.
SARAH’s SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY PICKS
A Door in the Dark (Waxways, #1)
by Scott Reintgen
Ren Monroe has spent four years proving she’s one of the best wizards in her generation. But top marks at Balmerick University will mean nothing if she fails to get recruited into one of the major houses. Enter Theo Brood. If being rich were a sin, he’d already be halfway to hell.
A party trick fails. Theo's punishment is to travel home with the scholarship kids. A fight breaks out. The portal malfunctions. Someone has died. Thank goodness for Ren?!
Ren Monroe has spent four years proving she’s one of the best wizards in her generation. But top marks at Balmerick University will mean nothing if she fails to get recruited into one of the major houses. Enter Theo Brood. If being rich were a sin, he’d already be halfway to hell.
A party trick fails. Theo's punishment is to travel home with the scholarship kids. A fight breaks out. The portal malfunctions. Someone has died. Thank goodness for Ren?!
Midnight Strikes
by Zeba Shahnaz
Anaïs (17) just wants tonight to end. As an outsider at the kingdom’s glittering anniversary ball, she has no desire to rub shoulders with the nation’s most eligible (and pompous) bachelors. But at the stroke of midnight, an explosion rips through the palace, killing everyone in its path. Including her.
The last thing Anaïs sees is fire, smoke, chaos . . . and then she wakes up in her bedroom, hours before the ball. No one else remembers the deadly attack or believes her warnings of disaster. Even when it happens again and again. She must make it stop ... but she has to do it before midnight.
Anaïs (17) just wants tonight to end. As an outsider at the kingdom’s glittering anniversary ball, she has no desire to rub shoulders with the nation’s most eligible (and pompous) bachelors. But at the stroke of midnight, an explosion rips through the palace, killing everyone in its path. Including her.
The last thing Anaïs sees is fire, smoke, chaos . . . and then she wakes up in her bedroom, hours before the ball. No one else remembers the deadly attack or believes her warnings of disaster. Even when it happens again and again. She must make it stop ... but she has to do it before midnight.
Star Splitter
by Matthew J. Kirby
For Jessica Mathers (16), teleportation and planetary colonization in deep space aren't hypotheticals--they're real. So real that they are the reason her scientist parents left her behind six years ago.
On her way to being reunited with them, something goes wrong. She has crash-landed on the planet and in the ship where her parents should be. But they aren't there. Just empty corridors, bloody handprints on the walls and broken machines.
For Jessica Mathers (16), teleportation and planetary colonization in deep space aren't hypotheticals--they're real. So real that they are the reason her scientist parents left her behind six years ago.
On her way to being reunited with them, something goes wrong. She has crash-landed on the planet and in the ship where her parents should be. But they aren't there. Just empty corridors, bloody handprints on the walls and broken machines.
Unraveller
by Frances Hardinge
In a world where anyone can create a life-destroying curse, only Kellen has the power to unravel them. Kellen does not fully understand his talent, but helps those transformed maliciously.
Nettle, whom he recovered from entrapment in bird form, is now his constant companion and closest ally.
Yet he, too, is cursed. Kellen and Nettle have to remove his curse, otherwise Kellen is in danger of unravelling everything—and everyone—around him .
In a world where anyone can create a life-destroying curse, only Kellen has the power to unravel them. Kellen does not fully understand his talent, but helps those transformed maliciously.
Nettle, whom he recovered from entrapment in bird form, is now his constant companion and closest ally.
Yet he, too, is cursed. Kellen and Nettle have to remove his curse, otherwise Kellen is in danger of unravelling everything—and everyone—around him .
SARAH’s YOUNG ADULT FICTION PICKS
Into the Light
by Mark Oshiro
For a year now, Manny has Manny lived by himself, abiding by self-taught rules that keep him moving―and keep him alive. Now, he’s taking a chance on a traveling situation with the Varela family. Something about Carlos seems to promise a new future.
Eli lives with his family in a secluded community. He was raised to believe his obedience will be rewarded. Yet an unsettling question gnaws at him: why can’t he remember his past?
The discovery of an unidentified body in the hills of Idyllwild, California, pulls these young men into facing their biggest fears and confronting their own identity―and who they are allowed to be.
For a year now, Manny has Manny lived by himself, abiding by self-taught rules that keep him moving―and keep him alive. Now, he’s taking a chance on a traveling situation with the Varela family. Something about Carlos seems to promise a new future.
Eli lives with his family in a secluded community. He was raised to believe his obedience will be rewarded. Yet an unsettling question gnaws at him: why can’t he remember his past?
The discovery of an unidentified body in the hills of Idyllwild, California, pulls these young men into facing their biggest fears and confronting their own identity―and who they are allowed to be.
The Lake House
by Sarah Beth Durst
Claire is wired to anticipate worst-case scenarios, second-guessing every decision. None of her worries had come true, until she got to summer camp.
She, Reyva, and Mariana arrive to find a blackened, burned husk instead of a lodge.
When the three girls find a dead body in the woods, they realize none of this is an accident. They are being hunted. That someone - or something - hides in the shadows and is refusing to let them leave.
Claire is wired to anticipate worst-case scenarios, second-guessing every decision. None of her worries had come true, until she got to summer camp.
She, Reyva, and Mariana arrive to find a blackened, burned husk instead of a lodge.
When the three girls find a dead body in the woods, they realize none of this is an accident. They are being hunted. That someone - or something - hides in the shadows and is refusing to let them leave.
A Long Stretch of Bad Days
by Mindy McGinnis
A school error leaves Lydia Chass 1 credit short of graduating, ruining her plans to away from small-town Henley. To get that credit, she shifts her listener-friendly local history podcast into a truth-telling exposé. She partners with foul-mouthed Bristal Jamison, a classmate with a bad reputation who also needs 1 credit to graduate.
Together, the girls investigate the Long Stretch of Bad Days, a week when Henley was hit by a tornado, flash-flooding, and the town's only murder. In the process, the girls unearth town secrets that someone wants kept that way. As Lydia and Bristal get closer to the truth, the threats escalate. Can they outrace their town's history?
A school error leaves Lydia Chass 1 credit short of graduating, ruining her plans to away from small-town Henley. To get that credit, she shifts her listener-friendly local history podcast into a truth-telling exposé. She partners with foul-mouthed Bristal Jamison, a classmate with a bad reputation who also needs 1 credit to graduate.
Together, the girls investigate the Long Stretch of Bad Days, a week when Henley was hit by a tornado, flash-flooding, and the town's only murder. In the process, the girls unearth town secrets that someone wants kept that way. As Lydia and Bristal get closer to the truth, the threats escalate. Can they outrace their town's history?
Tell Me What Really Happened
by Chelsea Sedoti
It was going to be fun. Five friends camping in the woods near Salvation Creek. Around midnight, she vanished. Now, four friends are back, answering questions from the police. Each with a different story. Each under suspicion.
If there is any chance of their friend being found, the lies need to stop. Someone knows what really happened. But who?
It was going to be fun. Five friends camping in the woods near Salvation Creek. Around midnight, she vanished. Now, four friends are back, answering questions from the police. Each with a different story. Each under suspicion.
If there is any chance of their friend being found, the lies need to stop. Someone knows what really happened. But who?
