Reviews written by Kim Baccellia, Staff Reviewer

Seventeen-year-old Sienna Jones gave up everything she loved about California, swimming, surfing, after the death of her mother. When her father suggests she go on a humanitarian mission to a village in Indonesia to help survivors with PTSD, she's hesitant at first. Just the thought of flying makes her...

What worked: This is a highly engaging historical tale of a teen warrior who is taken by a rival clan and finds out her beloved dead brother is in fact very much alive and now a part of the hated Riki tribe. Seventeen-year-old Eelyn is tough and true...

Serena can't wait to go on a Romantic Tour of Paris with her older sister to recreate her parent's honeymoon. She wants to do this to remember her father, who had died two years previously. But her plans are messed up when her sister 'forgets' and is instead going to...

In this alternative history the time after the Civil War has caused not only bad times to come to Daisy 'Willie's' family, but a mysterious plague turns people into 'shakes' or zombie-like creatures. Her town Glory, Texas is almost a ghost town. A wall is around the city, keeping the...

Ryan Hess escapes his abusive stepfather and flees to Mexico, hoping to train with a former famous boxer. He doesn't want to draw any attention to himself, but that changes when he runs into Dalila Sandoval. Dalila Sandoval is the daughter of one of the wealthiest lawyers...

Her Royal Highness, Fredericka Elisabetta Teresa von Boden don Morch, 'Fritzi' and her family flee their country during a coup and end up in a suburban American city. While there Fritzi attends a public middle school and has to keep silent about who she really is. She encounters a mean...

In this retelling of the classic Charles Dickens's tale, Oliver Twist, Oliver is a girl. Time has passed, but Olivia now is soon to be engaged to a childhood friend and lives in London's high society while at night she dresses as a boy and helps the less fortunate. She...

I'm a huge British royalty fan. What's great about BAD PRINCESS is the author shares great insights into the lives of real-life princesses. Also there are some facts behind some common terms like 'blue-blooded' and 'dollar' princesses. These were rich American girls that came with a huge dowry to attract...

Seventeen-year-old Stella Ainsley wants to leave the poverty of her spaceship behind. So she applies for a governess job on another ship. When she's hired, she loves the luxury of the ship Rochester and is drawn to the nineteen-year-old captain Hugo. But there's secrets on board this ship. Dark ones....

Alfonso Jones is a bright teen who is excited to try out for Hamlet at his school. When he and his girlfriend Danetta go to a department store to purchase a suit, Alfonso's shot by a police officer after a customer complaint. Alfonso's brutally killed and finds himself on a...

This is a collection of short stories told from the point of view of the wives of King Henry VIII. Each wife shares her take of what it was like to live with King Henry VIII from the beginning to the very end. Intriguing insight in the royal life with...

Intriguing 'what if' look into what might have happened if Sir John Conway's daughter wasn't an enemy, but dear friend of Queen Victoria. What worked: I love historical fiction and this story is a fascinating look into the childhood of Queen Victoria. Readers seen the Queen as...

Indiana Jones meets Myst on an alien planet. There's lots of tension when scavenger Amelia meets disgraced professor's son Jules Addison on the alien planet Gaia. Each has their own goals. Amelia wants to scavenge any of the alien tech to help buy back her younger sister's freedom on Earth....

Thirteen-year-old Beatrice Archer isn't too excited when her professor father is offered a job far away from Boston. When she finds out they're moving to Rome, she's upset that she'll leave her friends behind. Once there though she's swept up in what looks like an robbery of some priceless sculptures...

Kara lives on the streets of New Detroit, where a pickpocket job goes terribly wrong. She finds herself running from Deluca, a crime/drug lord. Kara escapes to a rehab prison where she ends up being 'recruited' to be a part of the prestigious Honor Space program. Those lucky enough...