Friday, July 29, 2011

Books ordered for August

Bloodlines (Bloodlines Series #1) by Richelle Mead (Young Adult)

Synopsis
The first book in Richelle Mead's brand-new teen fiction series - set in the same world as Vampire Academy.

When alchemist Sydney is ordered into hiding to protect the life of Moroi princess Jill Dragomir, the last place she expects to be sent is a human private school in Palm Springs, California. But at their new school, the drama is only just beginning.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Bloodlines explores all the friendship, romance, battles and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive - this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone's out for blood.

Stay: A Novel by Allie Larkin

Synopsis
"Girl meets dog in this effervescent "feel-good debut" (People)

Savannah "Van" Leone has been in love with Peter Clarke since their first day of college. Six years later, Peter is marrying Van's best friend, Janie. Loyal to a fault, Van dons her pumpkin-orange, maid-of- honor gown and stands up for the couple, struggling to hide her true feelings even when she couldn't be more conspicuous. After the wedding, nursing her broken heart with a Rin Tin Tin marathon plus a vodka chaser, Van accidentally orders a German Shepherd puppy over the Internet. When "Joe" turns out to be a hundred-pound beast who only responds to commands in Slovak, Van is at the end of her rope-until she realizes that sometimes life needs to get more complicated before it can get better.


Retribution (Dark-Hunter Series #20) by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Synopsis
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon comes the next thrilling installment in her blockbuster Dark-Hunter® series

Harm no human…

A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he’d spend eternity protecting the humans he’d once considered prey.

Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief—Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters and training for the day when she meeting the man who killed her family: Jess Brady.

A gun in the hand is worth two in the holster…

Jess has been charged with finding and terminating the creature who’s assassinating Dark-Hunters. The last thing he expects to find is a human face behind the killings, but when that face bears a striking resemblance to the one who murdered him centuries ago, he knows something evil is going on. He also knows he’s not the one who killed her parents. But Abigail refuses to believe the truth and is determined to see him dead once and for all.

Brought together by an angry god and chased by ancient enemies out to kill them both, they must find a way to overcome their mutual hatred or watch as one of the darkest of powers rises and kills both the races they’ve sworn to protect.

Merciless by Diana Palmer

Synopsis
Can she convince a man to let down his defenses when he's set on guarding his heart? Tall, dark and eligible? That's all that matters to the women of Jacobsville when it comes to handsome and aloof FBI agent Jon Blackhawk. But if it were up to him, he would never settle down. Luckily, Jon has the best gatekeeper: his efficient and reliable assistant, Joceline Perry. Without her help, he'd be at the mercy of husband hunters—but the more he comes to rely on her, the more he notices how invaluable she really is… While Joceline can't deny that her boss is attractive, as a single mother with responsibilities she's determined to be professional. But when Jon is accosted by a criminal seeking revenge, she comes to his aid—fueling the spark that is growing between them. As the attempts on Jon's life increase, Joceline stands by his side. But when the smoke clears, will the man who avoided love realize that all he ever needed was right there all along?


Second Chance by Gary D Mcmillan, Michael A McMillan (Illustrator)

Synopsis
This is the seventh installment of the Tye Watkins series. These novels are works of fiction that use facts and locations that are historically accurate to paint a picture in the reader's mind as they turn the page. Tye Watkins is a scout for Fort Clark, Texas, who uses his skills to work his way through one adventure after another.
  
In this book, Tye is tracking a band of outlaws who robbed and murdered a rancher's wife and son. Adam Carter, one of the men Tye is after, worked for the rancher, and was coerced into the robbery by his so called "friends." Along the trails certain events occur that have Tye thinking that Adam isn't the cold-hearted killer he originally made him out to be.


This Beautiful Life by Helen Schulman

Synopsis
When the Bergamots move from a comfortable upstate college town to New York City, they’re not quite sure how they’ll adapt—or what to make of the strange new world of well-to-do Manhattan. Soon, though, Richard is consumed by his executive role at a large New York university, and Liz, who has traded in her academic career to oversee the lives of their children, is hectically ferrying young Coco around town.

Fifteen-year-old Jake is gratefully taken into the fold by a group of friends at Wildwood, an elite private school.

But the upper-class cocoon in which they have enveloped themselves is ripped apart when Jake wakes up one morning after an unchaperoned party and finds an email in his in-box from an eighth-grade admirer. Attached is a sexually explicit video she has made for him. Shocked, stunned, maybe a little proud, and scared—a jumble of adolescent emotion—he forwards the video to a friend, who then for-wards it to a friend. Within hours, it’s gone viral, all over the school, the city, the world.

The ensuing scandal threatens to shatter the Bergamots’ sense of security and identity, and, ultimately, their happiness. They are a good family faced with bad choices, and how they choose to react, individually and at one another’s behest, places everything they hold dear in jeopardy.

This Beautiful Life is a devastating exploration of the blurring boundaries of privacy and the fragility of self, a clear-eyed portrait of modern life that will have readers debating their assumptions about family, morality, and the sacrifices and choices we make in the name of love.


Substitute Creacher by Chris Gall (Children's)

Synopsis
The troublemaking students of Ms. Jenkins' class arrive at school one day to discover a substitute creacher has come to put a stop to their monkey business! He regales them with mind-boggling stories about his former students who didn't follow the rules: Keith the glue-eater, Zach the daydreamer, and Hank the prankster, to name a few. But even this multi-tentacled, yellow-spotted, one-eyed monster's cautionary tales about the consequences of mischief-making can't seem to change the students' wicked ways until he reveals the spookiest and most surprising story of all: his own.

Chris Gall's vibrant artwork leaps off the page with a dynamic comic book aesthetic that will grab both parents and monster-loving kids!


The Omen Machine by Terry Goodkind 

Synopsis
Hannis Arc, working on the tapestry of lines linking constellations of elements that constituted the language of Creation recorded on the ancient Cerulean scroll spread out among the clutter on his desk, was not surprised to see the seven etherial forms billow into the room like acrid smoke driven on a breath of bitter breeze. Like an otherworldly collection of spectral shapes seemingly carried on random eddies of air, they wandered in a loose clutch among the still and silent mounted bears and beasts rising up on their stands, the small forest of stone pedestals holding massive books of recorded prophecy, and the evenly spaced display cases of oddities, their glass reflecting the firelight from the massive hearth at the side of the room.

Since the seven rarely used doors, the shutters on the windows down on the ground level several stories below stood open as a fearless show of invitation. Though they frequently chose to use windows, they didn’t actually need the windows any more than they needed the doors. They could seep through any opening, any crack, like vapor rising in the early morning from the stretches of stagnant water that lay in dark swaths through the peat barrens.

The open shutters were meant to be a declaration for all to see, including the seven, that Hannis Arc feared nothing.

#1 New York Times-bestselling author Terry Goodkind returns to the lives of Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell—in a compelling tale of a new and sinister threat to their world.


Betrayal of Trust (J. P. Beaumont Series #20) by J. A. Jance

Synopsis
Seattle investigator J. P. Beaumont investigates a dark and deadly conspiracy that reaches deep into the halls of state government, in this latest thriller from New York Times bestselling author J. A. Jance

At first glance, the video appears to be showing a childish game: a teenage girl with dark wavy hair smiles for the camera, a blue scarf tied around her neck. All of a sudden things turn murderous, and the girl ends up dead. It’s as bad as a snuff film can get, and what’s worse, the clip has been discovered on a phone that belongs to the grandson of Washington State’s governor. However, the boy, who has a troubled background, swears that he’s never seen the victim before.

Fortunately, the governor is able to turn to an old friend, J. P. Beaumont, for help. The Seattle private investigator has witnessed many horrific acts over the years, but this one ranks near the top. Even more shocking is that the crime’s multiple perpetrators could be minors. Along with Mel Soames, his partner in life as well as on the job, Beaumont soon discovers that what initially appears to be a childish prank gone wrong has much deeper implications, reaching into the halls of state government itself. But Mel and Beau must follow this path of corruption to its very end, before more innocent young lives are lost.



Always a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Since the gripping conclusion of Once a Witch, Tamsin Greene has been haunted by her grandmother’s prophecy that she will soon be forced to make a crucial decision—one so terrible that it could harm her family forever. When she discovers that her enemy, Alistair Knight, went back in time to Victorian-era New York in order to destroy her family, Tamsin is forced to follow him into the past. Stranded all alone in the nineteenth century, Tamsin soon finds herself disguised as a lady’s maid in the terrifying mansion of the evil Knight family, avoiding the watchful eye of the vicious matron, La Spider, and fending off the advances of Liam Knight. As time runs out, both families square off in a thrilling display of magic. And to her horror, Tamsin finally understands the nature of her fateful choice.

Bloody Horowitz by Anthony Horowitz (Young Adult)

Synopsis
A teen gang leader taken for a deadly ride by a car with a mind of its own. . . . A boy haunted by a phantom cobra. . . . A reality TV show pitting teens against grown ups, with only one survivor. . . . From whose twisted mind can such gruesome stories unfold? Only Anthony Horowitz. From the internationally bestselling author of the Alex Rider missions, this collection of harrowing tales is sure to have you smiling in terrified pleasure. But whatever you do, don't turn out the lights!






The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) by Kody Keplinger (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She's also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her "the Duff," she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren't so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she's falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone. And eventually, through this realization, Bianca begins to see how harmful her unhealthy way of dealing with her problems has been, and finds a way to confront them head on.


Dark Souls: A Novel by Paula Morris (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Welcome to York, England.
Mist lingers in the streets.
Narrow buildings cast long shadows.
This is the most haunted city in the world. . . .

Miranda Tennant arrives in York with a terrible, tragic secret. She is eager to lose herself amid the quaint cobblestones, hoping she won’t run into the countless ghosts who supposedly roam the city. . . .

Then she meets Nick, an intense, dark-eyed boy who knows all of York’s hidden places and histories. Miranda wonders if Nick is falling for her, but she is distracted by another boy — one even more handsome and mysterious than Nick. He lives in the house across from Miranda and seems desperate to send her some sort of message. Could this boy be one of York’s haunted souls?

Soon, Miranda realizes that something dangerous — and deadly — is being planned. And she may have to face the darkest part of herself in order to unravel the mystery — and find redemption.


So, So Hood (Drama High Series #14) by L. Divine (Young Adult)

Synopsis
For Jayd Jackson, a new school takes the drama to a new level. . .
With her senior year just beginning, Jayd's drama is going nowhere anytime soon. Although she's graduated to the next level with her powers, she's also going head-to-head with her former best friend, Misty. Jayd's also got to deal with the aftermath of the debutante ball, her boyfriend's cheating, and her ex-boyfriend/best guy friend Rah's continuing baby mama drama. Luckily, when her crew gets to be too much, Jayd can turn to her new crush Keenan, a UCLA first draft football pick, for a time out. Jayd's got to keep a cool head now more than ever because there's a new enemy waiting to pounce if she lets down her guard ...




Doing My Own Thing (Fab Life #3) by Nikki Carter (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Success is never easy. Neither is staying real. . .

Sunday Tolliver's hard work and talent have finally paid off—she's got a smash album and mad-money beyond her wildest dreams. But earning fame is a lot easier than dealing with it. Sunday's diva cousin, Dreya, and bad-boy rapper, Truth, will do anything to get payback and wreck her reputation. Her gifted new collaborator Dilly has every reason not to make Sunday's crucial follow-up album a hit. And a new reality show starring Sunday is making her love life way too hot to handle. Now she has to figure out who's fake, who's for real, who's down, and who's really got her back. And the only way she can take control of her success is to keep making it her way. . .


Falling for Hamlet by Michelle Ray (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Meet Ophelia: a blonde, beautiful high-school senior and long-time girlfriend of Prince Hamlet of Denmark. Her life is dominated not only by her boyfriend's fame and his overbearing family, but also by the paparazzi who hound them wherever they go. As the devastatingly handsome Hamlet spirals into madness after the mysterious death of his father, the King, Ophelia rides out his crazy roller coaster life, and lives to tell about it. In live television interviews, of course.

Passion, romance, drama, humor, and tragedy intertwine in this compulsively readable debut novel, told by a strong-willed, modern-day Ophelia.



From Willa, With Love (Life of Willa Havisham Series #3) by Coleen Murtagh Paratore (Young Adult)

Synopsis
It's a surprising, sparkling summer for Willa!

It's August on Cape Cod and Willa has a lot to look forward to. Soon, JFK will return home from baseball camp, and Willa has an idea for an exciting new project that will challenge her to dream big! But life throws Willa some unexpected twists and turns: Ruby has bad news, a beloved friend leaves, a dear friend returns, her brother Will has something he does't want to talk about, and of course, there's a wedding to plan! There's also a cute boy who likes Willa . . . a lot, and Willa thinks she might like him too. It's a summer full of romance and surprises!


The Final Hour by Andrew Klavan (Young Adult)

Synopsis
"You're not alone. You're never alone."

Charlie West has held on to that belief, but now he's starting to wonder. He went to bed one night an ordinary high-school kid. When he woke up, he was wanted for murder and hunted by a ruthless band of terrorists. He's been on the run ever since. Now he's stuck in prison, abandoned by his allies, trying desperately to stay a step ahead of vicious prison gangs and brutal guards. And a flash of returning memory tells him another terrorist strike is coming soon. A million people will die unless he does something. But what? He's stuck in a concrete cage with no way out and no one who can help. Charlie has never felt so alone-and yet he knows he can't give in or give up . . . not with the final hour ticking away.

Hooked by Catherine Greenman (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Thea Galehouse has always known how to take care of herself. With a flighty club-owner mom and a standoffish, recovering-alcoholic dad, Thea has made her own way in her hometown of New York, attending the prestigious and competitive Stuyvesant High School. But one chat with Will, a handsome and witty senior, and she's a goner—completely hooked on him and unable to concentrate on anything else.

Always worried that she loves Will more than he loves her, Thea is pleasantly surprised when their romance weathers his move to college and Will goes out of his way to involve her in his life. But then, Thea misses a period. And that starts Thea and Will on a wild ride that neither of them could have possibly prepared for. When they decide to keep the baby, their concerned parents chip in what they can to keep Will in school and give both teenagers a comfortable place to raise their child. But when a freak accident leaves Thea shaken and threatens to upend their little family altogether, Thea is forced to turn to the last place she would have chosen for comfort: her stiff, uncompromising father.

This smart, touching first novel brims with realistic, beautifully drawn characters, and reminds us that love is never as easy or predictable as we might like it to be.


Middle School, the Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson, Laura Park (Illustrator), Chris Tebbetts (With) (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Rafe Khatchadorian has enough problems at home without throwing his first year of middle school into the mix. Luckily, he's got an ace plan for the best year ever, if only he can pull it off: With his best friend Leonardo the Silent awarding him points, Rafe tries to break every rule in his school's oppressive Code of Conduct. Chewing gum in class-5,000 points! Running in the hallway-10,000 points! Pulling the fire alarm-50,000 points! But when Rafe's game starts to catch up with him, he'll have to decide if winning is all that matters, or if he's finally ready to face the rules, bullies, and truths he's been avoiding.

Blockbuster author James Patterson delivers a genuinely hilarious-and surprisingly poignant-story of a wildly imaginative, one-of-kind kid that you won't soon forget.


Morganville Vampires: Fade Out and Kiss of Death Vol. 4 by Rachel Caine (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Two of New York Times bestselling author Rachel Caine's Morganville Vampire novels in one volume.

Fade Out
Without the evil Bishop ruling over Morganville, the vampires have made major concessions to the human population. But when a filmmaker goes missing after starting work on a documentary about vampires, Claire Danvers and her friends feel anything but safe...

Kiss of Death
Vampire Michael Glass's music has attracted the attention of a music producer-giving Michael the opportunity to leave Morganville. But between a horde of hateful humans and a savage party of feral vampires, Michael may not make it to the show on time...or ever.


Paradise by Jill S. Alexander (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Paisley Tillery is the drummer for a country rock band. If they can make it to the stage at the Texapalooza music fest, then Paisley will be closer to her dream of a career in music and a ticket out of her small Texas town.

Drumming and music are what Paisley has always wanted. Until the band gets a new lead singer, the boy from Paradise, Texas. With Paradise in her life, what Paisley wants, and what she needs, complicate her dreams coming true.





Guardian of the Gate (Prophecy of the Sisters Series #2) by Michelle Zink (Young Adult)

Synopsis
In this highly-anticipated sequel to Prophecy of the Sisters, sixteen year-old orphan Lia Milthorpe continues her quest to end an ancient prophecy that has turned generations of sisters against each other. Having now accepted the responsibilities tied to her role as Gate, Lia journeys to the unchartered isle of Altus to continue her search for the missing pages of the Book of Chaos—the pages that could tell her how to end the prophecy once and for all. Along the way, her courage, strength, and soul are tested in ways she never could have imagined.

Meanwhile, twin sister Alice continues to hone her spellcasting abilities, completely ignoring the rules that govern the Otherworlds. Alice will stop at nothing to reclaim Lia's role of Gate, and that's not the only thing she wants. There's also Lia's true love, James.

The outcome of this battle between sisters will have consequences of Biblical proportion. In the end, only one sister will be left standing.

Spoiled by Heather Cocks, Jessica Morgan (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Sixteen-year-old Molly Dix has just discovered that her biological father is Brick Berlin, world-famous movie star and red-carpet regular. Intrigued (and a little terrified) by her Hollywood lineage, Molly moves to Los Angeles and plunges headfirst into the deep of Beverly Hills celebrity life. Just as Molly thinks her life couldn't get any stranger, she meets Brooke Berlin, her gorgeous, spoiled half sister, who welcomes Molly to la-la land with a smothering dose "sisterly love"...but in this town, nothing is ever what it seems.

Set against a world of Redbull-fuelled stylists, tiny tanned girls, popped-collar guys, and Blackberry-wielding publicists, Spoiled is a sparkling debut from the writers behind the viciously funny celebrity blog GoFugYourself.com

Heather Cocks is a die-hard sports fan, a Leo, an ex-reporter, a Notre Dame grad, a dual citizen of the U.S. and U.K., a sandwich enthusiast, and a former producer for America's Next Top Model. Jessica Morgan is a Southern California native and UCLA alumna who has produced reality shows ranging from Growing Up Gotti to the docu-series 30 Days. She collects shoes, books, and unpaid parking tickets. Both ladies live in Los Angeles and watch almost everything on the CW.

Together, Heather and Jessica skewer celebrity fashion crimes on their popular blog, Go Fug Yourself, which draws millions of monthly readers and made Entertainment Weekly's Must List. Their dispatches from the front rows are routinely the most-read pieces on New York magazine's Web site during Fashion Week. This is their first novel for young adults.


Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore (Young Adult)

Synopsis
Amy Goodnight's family is far from normal. She comes from a line of witches, but tries her best to stay far outside the family business. Her summer gig? Ranch-sitting for her aunt with her wacky but beautiful sister. Only the Goodnight Ranch is even less normal than it normally is. Bodies are being discovered, a ghost is on the prowl, and everywhere she turns, the hot neighbor cowboy is in her face.








87 Ways to Throw a Killer Party by Melissa Daly, Christian Robinson (Illustrator) (Young Adult Non-Fiction)

Want an excuse to get friends together? Or looking for an idea for a party your friends will never forget? This ultimate party-planning book for teens includes eighty-seven original ideas (and original takes on classic ideas) for great bashes. Inside you’ll find parties of all kinds, such as an Anti-Valentine’s Day soiree, a haunted house party, and a season finale get-together. Also includes party-planning tips, hosting etiquette, and how to avoid typical party pitfalls. Each idea contains some historical background information, a description of what you’ll need, and guidelines of how to set it up. Fun illustrations and safety and money-saving tips included.