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We Were Never Here / Sophia Hannan / Book Review

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WE WERE NEVER HERE George and Jules. Jules and George. That's what they are, what it feels like they have always been: the secretly-dating cohosts of a popular YouTube ghost hunting show that's only a cover for precious art theft. The money they've got coming in from the show (and, more importantly, the heists they've run) will pay for their fancy boarding school this fall. It will pay for their college education. It will set them up for life. But all that was before . Before July. Before there was a knife in Jules's chest and blood splatter on Georgia's shoes. Before they called in a major favor... Before the funeral. Now it's October, and Georgia is drowning. She hasn't been to class in weeks. She hasn't talked to her old crew, who helped research and film the YouTube show. She has hardly left her room at the fancy boarding school where she and Jules were supposed to be together. But when a call comes through ...

What Lies Beneath Flowers / Natasha Díaz / Book Review

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WHAT LIES BENEATH THE FLOWERS Pippa really needs to catch a break. Working long hours at her aunt's store isn't cutting it, especially with the bills piling up as they are. She's got big dreams, after all. Yes, she needs something else , and Estella Aubergine might just be the ticket... Not that It-girl Estella Aubergine would ever cross paths with Pippa. They run in different social circles. Very different social circles. Except that Pippa does know Estella. In fact, she was maybe the last person to see Estella before she went missing. And the security cameras didn't even know Pippa was there, skulking in the garden, searching for something botanical to add to her latest masterpiece. When Estella's reclusive mother announces the reward, well, Pippa's got to go for it, right? She's practically got insider information. But trying to convince her best friend Bidi to drop her summer plans to get involved in a world o...

When Dealing With Dragons / Dana Swift / Book Review

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WHEN DEALING WITH DRAGONS Farren Walsh used to be the top of her class. Whip-smart, highly competitive: she could keep up with the best silver-crafters out there, even as lowly copper-crafter she herself. But that was before. Before she learned to keep her head down. Before she learned to keep her mouth shut. Before Nity... One thing that hasn't changed: Farren wants to follow in her father's footsteps. As a world-class dragon veterinarian, he's one of a kind. Most skilled metal-crafters are more interested in racing dragons or, worse, harvesting their metallic scales to sell to the highest bidder. Few are interested in the well-being of these majestic beasts. And though she might have fallen off the academic radar, Farren's still leading her class in at least one subject: dragon medicine. This summer is all about rounding out her application for collegiate scholarships. Her father might be well-respected, but dragon medicine...

Augusta Pine Does Not Exist / Emily Lloyd-Jones / Book Review

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AUGUSTA PINE DOES NOT EXIST Three years ago, Augusta Pine died. Or, at least, the girl she used to be before died. Literally. After a hack gone wrong, her heart stopped, and though the hospital got it started again, her life was changed forever. Because she was in trouble. So, so much trouble. Rather than spend decades of her life in prison and then have to build a life with a serious criminal record afterwards, Augusta was offered a choice: use her talent for the next decade for the Identity Security Division, a secret branch of the federal government. And it wasn't a hard choice to make. She's been working with them ever since. No home, no family, and few friends: that's how she rolls these days. And even a weekend off can turn into a hostage situation... THOUGHTS This book is so fun! It's exactly what YA should be. It's snarky. It's unserious....

A Prince Among Pirates / Katie Abdou / Book Review

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A PRINCE AMONG PIRATES Kit Davenport doesn't know what he wants to do with his life, but he knows what he doesn't want to do. He does not want to marry the noblewoman his father has picked out for him, regardless of how charming she may be. He's young. He's got so much of life ahead of him. And he's tired of being trapped under his father's thumb. So on the eve of his nuptials, Kit does something reckless: he packs a trunk. And he has a servant help him lug that trunk to the docks. And before the sun rises, he finds himself contracted to do accounting for the Deliverance , a merchant galleon with a roguishly handsome captain. The only problem? Kit might have miscalculated. He thought the Deliverance was a merchant ship like any other. He isn't well acquainted with sailors and their like. How was he supposed to know? But as the ship sails into murky waters, he begins to suspect that this ship might be a little... ...

Last to Leave / Teresa Richards / Book Review

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LAST TO LEAVE You have to be careful what you say online. Fallon knows that better than anyone. As a streamer, what she says matters. What she says can get clipped and shared a thousand times. What she says can get her demonetized. What she says can have the wildcard slot for the largest e-sports competition in the world taken away from her in a moment. So you really do have to be careful... but that doesn't mean you can't take a risk. For Fallon, that risk is SluethIt , the new murder-mystery web show competition that's going to feature exclusively up-and-coming streamers. As a gamer, she knows she'll have an edge, but her chances of getting into the competition are slim... until she does. Against her family's wishes, she jumps on a plane to LA, ready to meet the competition. But this competition isn't all that the ads made it seem... THOUGHTS T...

The Monsters We Made / Peyton June / Book Review

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THE MONSTERS WE MADE Claire's done something crazy: she contact paranormal vloggers. You know, those annoying couple-y ones who travel all over "investigating"? Worse, she did it anonymously. With edited footage. And now they're coming to investigate her small town of Scarberry. To be fair, she did it for her family. The ranch is kept afloat by tourists, those believers (or non-believers) seeking to learn more about the legendary alien cryptid, Old Lucky, who supposedly made contact right in her backyard sixty years ago. But interest in the cryptid has waned in the years since the sighting, and so a girl has to do what she has to do. When Lenny and her boyfriend Evan arrive on Old Lucky's doorstep, Lenny's the only one who is excited. She's had a picture of the Scarberry lights in her bedroom since she was a kid. Sure, the clip someone sent them anonymously was a little... fishy. But she believes. Even when Evan...