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Best YA Books of October, part 1

Submitted by lpeugh on Sun, 10/07/2012 - 1:55pm

 

These are perfect spooky Halloween reads - and there are more to come!

Velveteen (Hardcover)

By Daniel Marks
$17.99
ISBN-13: 9780385742245
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
Mark's debut novel is wonderfully dark and gory - how could it not be, given that it's set in Purgatory? Velveteen is a tough heroine, hell-bent (deliberate pun!) on punishing the serial killer who murdered her and saving other potential victims, as well as protecting the world she lives in now. "Velveteen" had me in its bloody grip from page one and I'm dying (second pun!) for the sequel!

Passenger (Hardcover)

By Andrew Smith
$17.99
ISBN-13: 9781250004871
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Feiwel & Friends, 10/2012
I sat down with Andrew Smith's newest on a dark and stormy night, the perfect setting for one of his twisted tales - and what a twisted tale it was! Jack (from "The Marbury Lens") is back and so is Marbury, in all it's bloody glory. But it's a different version of Marbury and Jack must fight his way through many "Inception"-like layers of reality, each more horrifying than the last, to find his way home - but will it be the same world he left? "Passenger" is gloriously dark, grim, and violent, and I enjoyed every minute of the journey to hell and back!

Jepp, Who Defied the Stars (Hardcover)

By Katherine Marsh
$16.99
ISBN-13: 9781423135005
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Disney-Hyperion, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
Katherine Marsh's tale of Jepp, a "court dwarf" in the Middle Ages, makes for fascinating historical fiction, especially since it's based in fact. She also poses the question: is our life already mapped out, written in the stars? Or do we make our own fate? This is what Jepp must decide as he leaves home and journeys all over Europe (not always by choice). A wonderful, fascinating, tender read!

Eve and Adam (Hardcover)

By Katherine Applegate, Michael Grant
$17.99
ISBN-13: 9780312583514
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Feiwel & Friends, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
This husband and wife writing team turn the Creation story on its head with their tale of a girl who creates the perfect man...in a lab. The snappy dialogue, political issues, and crazy-but-plausible scientific advancements make this a fun, funny, and thought-provoking read!

Son (Hardcover)

By Lois Lowry
$17.99
ISBN-13: 9780547887203
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
"The Giver" is a book that's very dear to me: it's one of the first books I read as a kid that really made me think, about things like symbolism and life choices. So I was beyond thrilled to find out there is a fourth book to what I thought was a trilogy! "Son" will not only satisfy long-time Lowry fans, but should attract new ones as well - brava, Lois Lowry!

What Happens Next (Hardcover)

By Colleen Clayton
$17.99
ISBN-13: 9780316198684
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Poppy, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
I love reading a great book by a new author: it feels like I've stumbled onto a treasure - and that's exactly how I felt reading "What Happens Next"! Clayton's story of a high-schooler's sexual assault and the aftermath is witty and relatable, heartbreaking and hopeful; I can't praise it enough! This is definitely a title adults need to steal from teens!

All You Never Wanted (Hardcover)

By Adele Griffin
$16.99
ISBN-13: 9780375870828
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Knopf Books for Young Readers, 10/2012
Other Editions of this Title
How far is to far to go to get what you want? Griffin's unsettling new novel explores this and other issues and left me thinking long after I'd finished it!