The Book Thief is a historical fiction novel about a girl named Liesel who loves words and books, to the extent that she is willing to steal them. It is narrated by the sarcastic, ever working, overwhelmed, and caring Death throughout the period of World War II.
Shatter Me, by Tahereh Mafi, is the first book in a YA dystopian series of the same name. In this novel, Juliette, a girl with the ability to kill someone with her touch, lives in a wasteland society. After being kidnapped by the son of a powerful man, Juliette, and her love interest Adam, must try to escape and reach safety.
Disney fairytales meet Gotham City in this crime fantasy drama! The story follows Mary Elizabeth, an intern at the Monarch City police department. Mary Elizabeth is a Legacy, those who once had magic before it disappeared in the Great Death. When the daughter of one of the most powerful businessmen in the Scar— the neighborhood where Mary Elizabeth lives with her Legacy boyfriend and best friend— goes missing, Mary Elizabeth is assigned her very first case! As Mary Elizabeth investigates, she discovers that this girl’s disappearance is part of a deeper, darker mystery.
World War Z tells a story of the zombie war, a massive outbreak across the globe that turned humans into mindless, deadly creatures. The main character is tasked with creating a report about the entirety of the war. He does so, but finds that almost half of his work has been removed from the final draft, on the grounds of being too “intimate” and “emotional.” This book is a collection of what was removed from that report, published in the hopes that the horror and fear of this event should never happen again.
For the first time in the game’s history, Caraval will be held twice in one year, within weeks of each other. Only this time, Tella will be playing. Unlike the others, however, Tella will not be playing for fun. She needs to repay a debt to a mysterious man that she bargained with and who only wants one thing: Legend’s real name. To get it, Tella must win Caraval.
The School for Good and Evil is the first book in a series of the same name by Soman Chainani. This is a middle-grade fantasy novel that follows two girls in their early teens as they are taken from their hometown and thrust into a school to learn to become either good or evil. Although this is a middle-grade book, it has some more mature themes and insinuating moments in the dialogue.
In The Three Musketeers, a historical fiction novel, D’Artagnan, a young man from Gascon who is loyal to the king and queen, travels to Paris seeking to become a musketeer. There he discovers his future best friends, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, and a plot by Cardinal Richelieu to steal the throne. The four friends go on many adventures in service of the queen and her reputation, but are often foiled by Milady, a beautiful, evil, and mysterious agent of the Cardinal.
“Whatever you've heard about Caraval, it doesn't compare to the reality. It's more than just a game or performance. It's the closest you'll ever find yourself magic in this world.”
Four is a collection of short stories, including the first four novellas of the Divergent series, by Veronica Roth. The first part of the book is made up of “The Transfer,” “The Initiate,” and “The Son” and focuses on expanding on Tobias’ past and events prior to Tris’ initiation. These three stories were pretty good, but the first, “The Transfer,” was the best of the group.
Following The Son, the fourth novella in Veronica Roth's Divergent series, The Traitor, is probably the best of the series’ first four novellas. This story is set during Tris' initiation, so a lot is unfolding, and we get to see Four's perceptions of and reactions to Tris.
