Book fo Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman

Nora's happy life is shattered by a nightmarish evening that leaves one friend in a catatonic state, another dead and her boyfriend accused of murder. Nora resolves to prove her boyfriend's innocence and follows a violent trail to Prague, where she discovers a mysterious manuscript that purportedly offers the secret to ultimate knowledge and the ability to communicate with the divine and thus control the world. This story reminds me of the Da Vinci Code with ancient manuscripts, mysterious robed men, murder and cyphers and is an excellent adventure with a detailed plot of twists and turns.

Starters by Lissa Price (Random House)

The world has been devasted by a war and only the young and the old were immune to the biological toxins. Callie, her sickly brother, and another boy try stay alive in spite of bad conditions. Callie is desperate to help her ailing brother and so she goes to Prime Destinations. Here teens rent their bodies to the elderly, who want to be young again, for a huge pay-off. Maybe she can earn the money to help her brother. A contract is signed and the body is returned to the young person after a time. Callie discovers her renter plans to do more than party--her renter wants to commit murder through the use of her young body. The girl also discovers what Prime Destinations is beginning to do which will endanger the lives of all young people. This science fiction action adventure read will take many twists and turns before evil is defeated--or is it? This will be a two-part series and I'm already anxiously awaiting the conclusion!

Dead to you by Lisa McMann

Ethan was abducted nine years ago when he was seven years old. He has returned to his family and everything is wonderful--at first. The adjustments are harder than everyone realizes and issues start to surface. Ethan resents Grace at first because she is young and represents that his parents went on with their lives without him. Blake, the younger brother, keeps wondering why Ethan went with the people who pulled up to him, when he knew they were not supposed to get in a car with strangers. The family is now falling apart in a different way and it would help if Ethan could remember more about the event to help answer questions. Tension and doubt build in the household and Ethan has only one person with whom  he can share his feelings. It all comes to a head when the police show up. This is a riveting story of desperation and trust and a desire to really belong.

Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan

The Empyrean is the only home 15-year-old Waverly has ever known. The sister space ship, New Horizon, is ahead of the Empyrean and has a dogmatic leader who yearns to populate the New Earth first. Part of the first generation to be successfully conceived in deep space, Waverly and her boyfriend,Kieran, will be pioneers of a New Earth. Waverly knows she must marry young in order to have children who can carry on the mission, and Kieran, the handsome captain-to-be, has everything Waverly could want in a husband. Still, there's a part of Waverly that wants more from life than marriage, and she is secretly intrigued by the shy, darkly brilliant Seth. Suddenly, Waverly's dreams are interrupted by an attack of the New Horizon. The New Horizon's leaders are desperate to populate the new planet first, and will do anything to get what they need: young girls. The girls are taken onto the New Horizon and Kieran and Waverly are separated They each find themselves at the helm of dangerous missions, where every move has potentially devastating consequences, and decisions of the heart may lead to disaster. This is a riveting book with twists at every turn and no one to trust!
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The Secret Journeys of Jack London, Book One: The Wild by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon

Looking for a book to intrigue the teen reader who loves adventure? This book will captivate those who also love the books by Jack London. Using Jack London as the main character in this new series, the authors have created a modern tale with the classic feel.
The world knows Jack London as a writer who lived his own thrilling, real-life adventures--terrifying, mysterious, bizarre, and magical-- these are the Secret Journeys of Jack London. We meet Jack at age seventeen, following thousands of men and women into the Yukon Territory in search of gold. For Jack, the journey holds the promise of another kind of fortune: challenge and adventure. But what he finds in the wild north is something far more sinister than he could have ever imagined: kidnapping and slavery, mythical beasts and evil men. This book is a total page-turner with action, gore and suspense at every turn.

After the Snow by S.D. Crockett

 A futuristic novel about the kind of life that might await us if winter never ends, but more than that, it’s a book about a teenager discovering the world and his place in it. While Willo’s father fears he’s been hardened by the harsh realities of his childhood, Willo is actually full of innocence, shown in his pure desire to help a girl he finds along his path. He’s tough when battling the elements or any other cruelties nature throws at him, but having been raised by kind people, he is completely unprepared for the cruelty of men. Willo comes off the mountain after his family is taken to go to the city in search of them. He sees the reality of what his father has kept from him and survives in spite of it. Set in a sparse, cold landscape, with hardships befalling its protagonist at every turn, the novel is surprisingly hopeful and sure to keep one engrossed to the final page. I was a little thrown off by the form of language used, but you soon get used to it and see that it also is harsh just like the environment.

Wonder by R.J. Polacio

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to school--he's been homeschooled--until now. His parents make the decision that it's time he faced the world. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep and if you've ever been the new kid, then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. He wants to be a regular kid, making friends and doing ordinary things. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite his appearance? This story has you laughing one minute and crying the next and it's hard to believe that it is uplifting and heart-warming and should be read by all kids.