The Thing about Giants by Christopher Galvin

Jacq is destined to hunt fearsome giants to protect her city--but when she meets a sensitive young giant named Corman in the forest, she realizes the world isn't quite what she's been taught. A page-turning adventure full of heart.

Thirteen-year-old Jacq Dyer is the daughter of two renowned giant hunters, although she's never had much stomach for what they do. In a city built from giants' bones, people rely on hunters to keep them prosperous and safe, and everyone knows that giants are violent, senseless creatures . . . aren't they? But when an accident leaves Jacq lost and injured in the wilderness, she ends up face-to-face with Corman, a frightened young giant, and Misneach, his overgrown badger. Corman has just lost his dad to hunters, and he and Jacq must learn to trust each other if they're going to find their ways home. 

But as they start finding out the truth about giant hunting--and the shadowy Resistance Jacq has grown up hating--they discover there's more at stake than either of their people know. 

With captivating world-building and rich characters, debut author Christopher Galvin offers an engrossing and thought-provoking tale.

Really Rubie by Maddie Frost

Hello, summer! Eleven-year-old Rubie Fox can’t wait to go to sleepaway camp for the very first time. She and her best friend Riley Swisher will go away for an entire month TOGETHER, and they’ll even be able to spy on Riley’s crush Owen, who will be across from Camp Pineview, over at the boys’ camp, Moose-Ridge.

But when Riley drops a bomb—she can’t go to camp because she broke her ankle—Rubie has to go by herself. Which sort of makes her feel RAGE…how can she go to camp without Riley?! But her mom has already paid for it, so she’s stuck with her plushie chicken Jim the Duck and a cabin full of girls she doesn’t know.

But Rubie just might find another BFF, break out of her shell, and even meet a boy…all without Riley. Camp might be more eventful than Rubie ever thought it could be—will she sink or will she swim?

Just Another Dead Boy by Kelly McCaughrain

In a world where everyone knows the date they will die, Regan’s job to be the perfect girlfriend to rich boys with days to live. Her two rules: Don’t fall in love. Don’t have hope. So far, she’s been able to follow them, but will the last client between her and a full-time “Juliet” contract be the one that breaks her?

Wild-child Regan works at a luxury resort as a “Juliet” for the Romeo & Juliet Service, promising to provide the illusion of star-crossed romance to rich boys on end-of-life retreats. She gets to live life on the edge—skydiving, partying, and doing a host of other people’s bucket-list thrills—then moves on to her next client. But when world-famous Death Date researchers the Dalys arrive, she’s tasked with her hardest client yet, their overachieving stone-faced son. Jude Daly sees right through the setup—he thinks she’s a parasite, and, frankly, she thinks he’s an entitled jerk. They agree to fake romance for the sake of Jude’s parents and Regan’s job, but as contempt turns into something else, news breaks of the first ever Death Date survivor. Will Regan break her ironclad rules so she and Jude can take on Fate together—before his impending Death Date catches up with them? A compelling and heartbreaking love story, in which Regan realizes she might have to stop living like today is her last—and start living like it isn’t.

The Unchosen One by Amy Sparkes

Tassie has always dreamt of a life of adventure and exploration. Instead, she’s stuck in the Citadel under the care of the Chief Steward, well away from any form of danger. When the Wisest of the Wise Witches comes to visit and proclaims her the Chosen One, destined to save her people from death and destruction, Tassie realizes why she’s spent her life under lock and key—in order to fulfill a prophecy. Can she refuse the role and find an alternative? Along with her best friend, a griffin named Spin, she embarks on a hilarious epic quest through magical lands in a race against time.

Small Wonder by Ross Montgomery

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Family secrets, a kingdom in danger, the adventure of a lifetime for two brothers and their horse . . .

'Small Wonder': that was what Tick's grandfather always called him. He taught Tick a lot of things: how to take care of himself; how to take care of his little brother, Leaf; how to take care of their horse, Pebble. But Grandfather is no longer around . . .

So when the family home is under suddenly threat, it's on Tick to put everything he's learned into practice and protect his family, by taking them on a quest filled with danger. Because it's not just their home at risk; enemies are invading the whole land. He has only six moons to get to Kings' Keep and warn their ruler . . .

Travelling through forests and mountains, encountering bandits and rogue knights along the way, the journey is not an easy one. But Tick is determined to honour his grandfather's last advice - Make it count, Small Wonder. . .

Fear Files: Hide and Seek by Christopher Edge

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Nobody knows who started the Darkive. It's a database filled with first-hand accounts of strange, unexplained experiences. Ghosts; paranormal entities; weird anomalies. Each one is stored with a bank of evidence to prove the story. Are you ready to dive in?

Adam didn't think his camping trip with his best friend, Sol, could get any worse. Stumbling upon an abandoned ghost town, they find themselves playing a strange game of hide and seek. But who or what is trying to find them? And can Adam stay one step ahead?

Hollow by Taylor Grothe

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When Cassie Davis returns to her hometown in upstate New York, she's eager to mask her new autism diagnosis from her old friends. The group take a backpacking trip together to Hollow Ridge to celebrate her homecoming, but after the first night, Cassie wakes to an abandoned campsite - her friends all gone.

With severe weather approaching, and nearing sensory overload, Cassie meets a boy named Kaleb, who leads her to safety, to a place he calls The Roost - an off-the-grid compound lived in by a group of artists and outcasts. There, with Kaleb, Cassie begins to feel, for the first time in her life, that she can truly be herself.

But as the days pass, strange things start happening. Crows surround them, there are odd noises... But are the dangers in the eerie forest that surrounds them, or inside the Roost itself?

Oxford Blood by Rachel Davis Featherstone

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Love, Lies, Legacy...High-achieving state-school pupil Eva has one dream – reading English at Oxford. If she gets in, not only will she receive a world-class education at an elite university, but she will be fulfilling the dreams of her mother and gain some independence from her father, the overprotective Inspector Dawkins.

At the same school, Eva's best-friend George is also hoping to go to Oxford. The attraction between him and Eva is undeniable, but they’ve agreed to put any romance on hold until their places at Oxford are secured. Eva cannot be distracted from her goal – although when they are both invited for interview week, their future together feels oh-so close.

Until George shows up dead.

The police rule his death an accident, but the behaviour of some of the other interview candidates has Eva suspecting foul play. When a shocking secret about George is revealed, Eva finds suspicion falling on her. What was meant to be one of the most important weeks of her life is fast turning into a nightmare.

All eyes are now on Eva, including the anonymous posters behind OxSlay, a gossipy social media forum exclusively for Oxford students. But amongst the conspiracy theories, lurk hidden clues. Could they help Eva clear her name - and catch the killer?

The Last Pebble by Alex Horne

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Trader and his grandpa have combed the beach of Bognor Regis for as long as he can remember, and every time they find a beautiful or special stone, it’s added to the treasure collection. But when Trader finds a particularly special pebble, he stumbles on a secret that was supposed to be kept for ever...

Can Trader and his new friend Charlotte unravel the mystery of this treasure, and return it to its rightful home?

All Better Now by Neal Shusterman

An unprecedented condition is on the rise. It behaves like a virus, with the first symptom being a fever, but those who contract it experience long-term effects no one has ever seen utter contentment. Soon after infection, people find the stress, depression, greed, and other negative feelings that used to weigh them down are gone.

Almost everyone revels in this mass unburdening. But people in power—who depend on malcontents tuning into their broadcasts, prey on the insecure to sell their products, and convince people they need more, new, faster, better everything—know this new state of being is bad for business. Soon, campaigns start up convincing people that being happy all the time is dangerous. There’s even a vaccine developed to rid people of their inner peace and get them back to normal because, surely, without anger or jealousy as motivators, productivity will grind to a halt and the world will be thrown into chaos.

It’s nearly impossible to determine the truth when everyone with a platform is pushing their own agendas, and two teens from very different backgrounds who’ve had their lives upended in different ways by the virus find themselves enmeshed in the center of a dangerous power play. Can they reveal the truth?

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody by Patrick Ness

Zeke and Daniel have just been made hall monitors by Principal Wombat. This has nothing to do with the fact that they are monitor lizards. And never mind the fact Alicia, the only other monitor lizard in the school, is also a hall monitor.

Somehow, the three hall monitors must impose order on arrogant lions, excitable seals and super-relaxed pandas. And worst of all, there is Pelicarnassus! A pompous giant pelican and the son of a major supervillain, who inexplicably has it out for the lizards. Can the hall monitor lizards and their new friend, a blind, fearsome red-tailed hawk, protect their school from all manner of outlandish threats?

Last Seen Online by Lauren James

When Delilah meets Sawyer Saffitz (son of the Anya Saffitz, aka Hollywood royalty), she becomes hooked on a decade-old scandal. In her quest for the truth, Delilah uncovers blogposts written by the mysterious “gottiewrites” and is soon caught up in a world of greed, fandom conspiracy theories … and murder. And the deeper Delilah digs, the more dangerous it becomes – because someone is willing to kill to hide the truth.

I am Rebel by Ross Montgomery

“I’m Tom’s dog, and he’s my human. We belong to each other.” 

Rebel is a good dog, and he loves his simple, perfect life on the farm with his owner Tom – until one day the war comes too close… Now Tom is determined to join the rebellion to defeat the king’s men. But Rebel knows war is dangerous, and he will stop at nothing to save the human he loves. Rebel must bring Tom home before it’s too late.

Magicalia: Race of Wonders by Jennifer Bell

From the internationally bestselling author of Wonderscape and The Uncommoners, comes a spectacular new fantasy series inspired by astronomy, science and Pokémon, irresistible to fans of Nevermoor, Skandar and the Unicorn Thief and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

When her dad is kidnapped, Bitsy and best friend Kosh are swept into a secret world of ancient meteorites and strange beasts called magicores, each conjured using a different emotion. Using a powerful beastiary called Magicalia, the friends must quickly become conjurors themselves, before following a trail of clues that will take them from London to India to Paris, in a race to rescue Bitsy’s dad from a mysterious villain…

Bringing Back Kay-Kay by Dev Kothari (minor spoilers in review)

Steeped in mystery and adventure, this brisk and beautifully crafted middle-grade debut set in modern-day India explores the complexities of the sibling bond.

When her older brother, Karthik—Kay-Kay, the golden child of the family—heads to camp for two weeks, Lena’s parents begin showering her with all the attention she craves. For a time, she’s the golden child and secretly wishes her brother wouldn’t come home. But when the scheduled train arrives and Karthik isn’t on it, Lena is stricken with guilt and fear for her beloved Kay-Kay. Her brother has vanished without a trace, and the police view him as a runaway. Incredulous, Lena undertakes a search of her own—reading mysterious poems left in his backpack, interrogating his fellows from the train, retracing his route, and encountering shadowy strangers along the way. 

Convinced Kay-Kay is still alive even when the rest of her family has given up, Lena steadily unearths her brother’s secrets as her determination to bring him home leads to a heart-stopping discovery. Perhaps Kay-Kay isn’t a golden child after all? Set in a vividly evoked modern-day India, this character-driven middle-grade mystery tackles rich themes—from the sibling bond to self-worth—in a taut and suspenseful adventure.

Little Bang by Kelly McCaughrain

A bittersweet Northern Irish romance that takes a new look at teen pregnancy, the magic and mess of first relationships, and a young woman's right to choose her own future.

Beneath the New Year's Eve fireworks, shy science-nerd Mel and slacker songwriter Sid get pregnant on their first date. Any sixteen-year-olds would expect trouble – but this is Northern Ireland 2018, where abortion is still illegal. Mel's religious parents insist she must keep the baby, whilst Sid's feminist mum pushes for a termination. Mel and Sid are determined to do this together, but they soon discover that pregnancy is totally different for boys and girls. When their relationship starts to fall apart under all the pressure, Mel finds herself feeling alone with the impossible dilemma of the Little Bang growing inside her.

Jane Eyre abridged by Patrice Lawrence

"I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will."

As a young orphan, Jane Eyre is thrown upon the mercy of an aunt and cousins who are anything but merciful, and when they send her away to an austere boarding school for charity cases, it seems she will never be allowed to forget her humble beginnings. However, Jane has a quiet inner strength and resourcefulness, and when she take on a role as governess at Thornfield Hall, she quickly gains both the affection and respect not only of her young pupil, but also the child's guardian, the fierce and brooding Mr Rochester.

Perhaps Jane has finally found the love for which she has always longed? But Mr Rochester has a dark secret. A secret that will rock Thornfield Hall to its very foundations...

Stitch by Pádraig Kenny

Stitch is not a monster - he's a creation.

He and his friend Henry Oaf were brought to life by the genius Professor Hardacre, and have spent all their days in a castle deep in the woods, far from humankind. But when the Professor dies and his pompous nephew comes to take over the laboratory, they soon find out that his sights are set not on scientific discovery, but personal glory. And Henry is his next experiment.

Can Stitch and Henry escape his clutches and make their way in a world they were never built for - and may never be ready for them?

A magnificent gothic adventure full of heart for age 8+

The Deadlands: Hunted by Skye Melki-Wegner

Before there were dragons, there were dinosaurs...

Imagine a world in which the dinosaurs weren't killed by a meteor hitting the earth. A world in which dinosaurs have learned to speak. To dream. To wage war.

Eleri is an oryctodromeus, a small dinosaur raised in an underground warren. He dreams of becoming his herd's storyteller but when he saves an enemy soldier from a pterosaur attack, he is exiled to the Deadlands. To survive this scorched desert full of carnivores, he joins a herd of other young exiles, including a peppy stegosaur, a stoic sauropod, an irritable triceratops ... and a mysterious spy. Can five young misfits save their warring kingdoms?

Includes bonus content: a map and extra dinosaur facts.

Perfect for fans of Skandar and the Unicorn Thief, How to Train Your Dragon and Percy Jackson.

Nic Blake and the Remarkables by Angie Thomas

It's not easy being Remarkable in a world where standing out is dangerous...

Nic Blake is a Manifestor. All she wants is to learn the Gift, so she can be as powerful as her dad ... until she discovers a shocking secret. Now she must find a powerful magical weapon, or risk losing him for ever.

Book 1 of Nic Blake and the Remarkables