A startling, seductive, deliciously dark debut that will shatter your definition of YA fantasy.
Seventeen-year-old Twylla lives in the castle. But although she's engaged to the prince, no one speaks to her. No one even looks at her. Because Twylla isn't a member of the court. She's the executioner.
As the goddess-embodied, Twylla kills with a single touch. So each week, she's taken to the prison and forced to lay her hands on those accused of treason. No one will ever love her. Who could care for a girl with murder in her veins? Even the prince, whose royal blood supposedly makes him immune to her touch, avoids her.
But then a new guard arrives, a boy whose playful smile belies his deadly swordsmanship. And unlike the others, he's able to look past Twylla's executioner robes and see the girl, not the goddess. Yet a treasonous romance is the least of Twylla's problems. The queen has a plan to destroy her enemies-a plan that requires an unthinkable sacrifice. Will Twylla do what it takes to protect her kingdom? Or will she abandon her duty in favor of a doomed love?
Calwyn knows nothing about the world beyond the Wall. She's never seen the golden stone of the city of kalysons or the wide waters of the Bay of Sardi. She hasn't heard the windworker's melodies in the Isles of Firthana or the occasional explosions from the colleges of Mithates. She knows only the rounds of her life as a novice ice priestess in Antaris, tending her bees, singing her chantments, and dreaming.
Enter Darrow, who speaks to Calwyn of discord in Tremaris, where chanters are hated for their gifts. And Darrow himself is being hunted by a man who was once his best friend is now the most powerful chanter of all.
To help Darrow, to escape Antaris, to see the world and perhaps save it, Calwyn will leave the safety of the Wall for a journey with a man she barely know - and an adventure as beautiful and dangerous as the music of chantment itself.
The Sisters Grimm books are hits with young readers and critics. In their third outing, Sabrina and Daphne confront the menace behind the family’s troubles, Little Red Riding Hood. After meeting their recently returned uncle Jake, the girls embark on a harrowing quest to reconstruct the mythical vorpal blade, the only weapon capable of killing Red’s pet and bodyguard, the dreaded Jabberwocky.
Kensington Outrage. Murder by Madman. Both the experienced detective, Mr Lestrade, and consulting expert, Mr Sherlock Holmes, have concluded that this horrible series of events is the work of a madman, not a common criminal. No other explanation makes sense. Someone is smashing Napoleon statues and the police have no idea why. Luckily, Holmes and Watson are on hand to help. Little do they know that these few smallcrimes will turn into one big adventure!
Almost everybody who has grown up in Chicago knows about the Thorne Rooms. Housed in the Children's Galleries of the Chicago Art Institute, they are a collection of 68 exquisitely crafted miniature rooms made in the 1930s by Mrs. James Ward Thorne. Each of the 68 rooms is designed in the style of a different historic period, and every detail is perfect, from the knobs on the doors to the candles in the candlesticks. Some might even say, the rooms are magic.
Imagine—what if you discovered a key that allowed you to shrink so that you were small enough to sneak inside and explore the rooms' secrets? What if you discovered that others had done so before you? And that someone had left something important behind?
Fans of Chasing Vermeer, The Doll People, and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler will be swept up in the magic of this exciting art adventure!
The Aldens are visiting a small town known for its fall festival, and while Grandfather is off taking in the fall colors, the children try out the town's newest attraction―a Halloween escape room! The Aldens love solving the puzzles to get out of the room, and they don't mind the spooky theme. The problem is, someone―or something―is making things downright scary for other customers!
An unmissable paraquel to the internationally bestselling Skulduggery Pleasant series, The Skulduggery Pleasant Grimoire is at once a thrilling recap of the books so far, a reference guide to characters, and a treasure-trove of bonus content.
As the Skulduggery Pleasant series nears its end (again), relive the adventure in this compendium of all things Skulduggery. Featuring a unique run-down of the books so far, it also includes an invaluable reference tool for the dizzying cast of characters, as well as bonuses, surprises, and a dark story all of its own. The Grimoire is an essential book for any Skulduggery fan.
The Skull by Philip K. Dick - Conger agreed to kill a stranger he had never seen. But he would make no mistakes because he had the stranger's skull under his arm.
'WHAT is this opportunity?' Conger asked. 'Go on. I'm interested.'
The room was silent; all faces were fixed on Conger—still in the drab prison uniform. The Speaker leaned forward slowly.
'Before you went to prison your trading business was paying well—all illegal—all very profitable. Now you have nothing, except the prospect of another six years in a cell.'
Conger scowled.
'There is a certain situation, very important to this Council, that requires your peculiar abilities. Also, it is a situation you might find interesting. You were a hunter, were you not? You've done a great deal of trapping, hiding in the bushes, waiting at night for the game? I imagine hunting must be a source of satisfaction to you, the chase, the stalking—'
Conger sighed. His lips twisted. 'All right,' he said. 'Leave that out. Get to the point. Who do you want me to kill?'
The Speaker smiled. 'All in proper sequence,' he said softly.
Olivia Sharp, cousin to super sleuth Nate the Great, is a detective too! Rather than solve mysteries like Nate, Olivia helps friends with their problems by detecting what's wrong beneath the surface. You'll be won over by Olivia's spunk, eccentricities, and can-do spirit.
Sometimes it takes a sleuth to catch a sleuth!
Olivia Sharp, agent for secrets, always comes through to help those in need--especially her friends. But this time Olivia is the one with a problem. Another detective is covering up her ads with those of E.J.'s Spy Service and spoiling Olivia's business. He's also trying to guess what weird feathery birthday present Olivia is hiding in her apartment. Can Olivia fool the sly spy?
A chilling middle grade horror perfect for fans of R.L. Stine and Holly Black alike.
Noe Wiley couldn’t be more excited to move. After the slumber party sleepwalking incident of last year, she’s ready to make some new friends.
But Noe didn’t expect the sullen, strange girls who live on her new street. And she certainly didn’t expect the strange warning they give her—to stay out of her basement, no matter what.
Noe’s not going to let these girls boss her around. She’ll go in her own basement whenever she wants.
So she does. And there he is.
And now there’s no going back.
A princess, a traitor, a soldier, a hunter and a thief. Five teenagers with the fate of the world in their hands. Five nations destined for conflict.
In Brigant, Princess Catherine prepares for a political marriage arranged by her brutal and ambitious father, while her true love, Ambrose, faces the executioner's block. In Calidor, downtrodden servant March seeks revenge on the prince who betrayed his people. In Pitoria, feckless Edyon steals cheap baubles for cheaper thrills as he drifts from town to town. And in the barren northern territories, thirteen-year-old Tash is running for her life as she plays bait for the gruff demon hunter Gravell.
As alliances shift and shatter, and old certainties are overturned, our five heroes find their past lives transformed and their futures inextricably linked by the unpredictable tides of magic and war. Who will rise and who will fall? And who will claim the ultimate prize?
