Featured Books for 13+ readers

Where the World Ends
Geraldine McCaughrean
Winner of the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2018 | Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award | In a nutshell: beautifully written, totally original, mesmerising storytelling In the summer of 1727...
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Starry Eyes
Jenn Bennett
In a Nutshell: Summer of romance, revelations, friendship and feuds Stars collide and sparks fly in this electrifying story of a wildly unforgettable summer. Thought-provoking, funny and flooded with energy,...
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Midnight
Derek Landy
In a Nutshell: Can a coldblooded killer be curtailed as time ticks down? Following hot on the heels of Resurrection, this eleventh instalment of Skulduggery Pleasant's incomparable exploits offers everything...
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My Messed-Up Life
Susin Nielsen
June 2018 Book of the Month | In a Nutshell: Problem parents | Dealing with change | Loads of LOLs | Hilarious and heartfelt Judy Blume-brilliant tale of a girl who's...
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The Weight of a Thousand Feathers
Brian Conaghan
Heart wrenching, honest, funny and bold, this exceptional novel about the life, loves and agonies of a young carer, and the love between a mum and her sons, is a...
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My Box-Shaped Heart
Rachael Lucas
In a Nutshell: Fractured families | First love | Fresh starts | 16-year-old Holly feels like an outsider, except when she's swimming at her local pool: “Under the surface, deep in...
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The Dark Prophecy
Rick Riordan
In a nutshell: epic adventure, story-telling genius It's not easy being immortal in Rick Riordan's Greek-myth inspired sagas, and Apollo has every right to feel fed up in this one....
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Shadowblack
Sebastien de Castell
In a Nutshell: Magic | Murder | Mystical plague | This satisfying sequel to Spellslinger sizzles with sorcery, secrets and a slathering of swindle and comes highly-recommended for fans of...
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The Extinction Trials: Exile
S.M. Wilson
In a Nutshell: Dystopian dangers, deadly dinosaurs = Jurassic Park meets The Hunger Games | Pounding hot on the clawed heels of its primeval predecessor, this second installment of...
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Rhythm and Poetry
Karl Nova
Winner of the Centre for Literacy in Primary Poetry Award 2018 The first published collection from Hip Hop poet Karl Nova has a refreshing directness, honesty and authenticity. Many of the...
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Rising Stars
Ruth Awolola, Victoria Adukwei Bulley, Abigail Cook, Jay Hulme, Amina Jama
Highly Commended in the Centre for Literacy in Primary Poetry Award 2018 Five emerging writer-performers are showcased in a book which is a blend of anthology & individual collections. Ruth Awolola...
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The Family Tree
Mal Peet
June 2018 Book of the Month | In a nutshell: themes of fatherhood, memory and guilt explored in haunting YA novella Mal Peet, who died in 2015, wrote with extraordinary...
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Ash Princess
Laura Sebastian
June 2018 Debut of the Month | In a Nutshell: Rebellion, romance and an imprisoned princess set on revenge This ambitiously epic fantasy debut sees a captive princess rise...
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All of This Is True
Lygia Day Penaflor
June 2018 Debut of the Month | In a Nutshell: Heroine-worship | Manipulation | Betrayal | This cool concept, genre-subverting page-turner sees a group of affluent teenagers enmesh themselves...
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Eve of Man
Tom Fletcher, Giovanna Fletcher
The first novel in a compelling dystopian series, co-authored by Tom and Giovanna Fletcher. What if the fate of humanity was down to you?
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Suffragette The Battle for Equality
David Roberts
Of all the books about the campaign for women's suffrage in this the centenary year of some women being given the vote, David Roberts's is the most beautiful to look...
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The One Memory of Flora Banks
Emily Barr
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | Longlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2018 | One...
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Straight Outta Crongton
Alex Wheatle
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | From the acclaimed author of Liccle Bit and Crongton Knights, comes another story from the South Crong council estate.
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La Belle Sauvage: The Book of Dust Volume One
Philip Pullman
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | November 2017...
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You Are Awesome
Matthew Syed
May 2018 Book of the Month | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month April & May 2018 Table tennis champion Matthew Syed offers his very best advice on how...
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Indigo Donut
Patrice Lawrence
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | In a Nutshell: Soaring soundtrack to resilience and love Real-life grit, gripping mystery,...
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It Only Happens in the Movies
Holly Bourne
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | October 2017 Book of the Month A feast of feel-good funniness and feminism that cleverly contrasts the impossible magic of movie romance...
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Moonrise
Sarah Crossan
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | Shortlisted for the Centre for Literacy in Primary Poetry Award 2018 | One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Shortlisted for the...
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Potter's Boy
Tony Mitton
Shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2018 | The first novel by acclaimed poet Tony Mitton (winner of the CLPE Poetry Award - the only award for published poetry for...
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A Face Like Glass
Frances Hardinge
In a Nutshell: Intrigue and artisanal invention in an Alice in Wonderland world An endlessly inventive adventure through the twisting tunnels of a subterranean city that's sent reeling by...
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Fly By Night
Frances Hardinge
Winner of the Branford Boase Prize 2006 Fly By Night is a wholly original fantasy peopled with a cast of unusual characters whose adventures unravel at a breathtaking pace. Mosca...
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Gullstruck Island
Frances Hardinge
A hugely imaginative and inventive fantasy, Gullstruck Island is the wonderful creation of a whole new world in which some of the strangest things happen. Arilou is a Lost, a...
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Things a Bright Girl Can Do
Sally Nicholls
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2018 | February 2018 Book of the Month This inspirational novel about three young Suffragettes from very different backgrounds is at once a riveting...
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A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars
Yaba Badoe
Shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2018 | In a Nutshell: Circus girl searches for roots amidst real-world cruelties A dazzlingly powerful kaleidoscope of magic realism, folklore and the...
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I Stop Somewhere
T. E. Carter
May 2018 Debut of the Month | In a Nutshell: Intense exposé of extreme misogyny and male privilege An unflinching novel about brutally toxic masculinity, male collusion and how justice systems...
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The Beast Awakens
Joseph Delaney
In a Nutshell: Fresh folkloric frights from a master of spine-tingling storytelling This first timelessly terrifying tale in a new series from the creator of The Spook's Apprentice confirms...
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Dear Martin
Nic Stone
May 2018 Debut of the Month | In a Nutshell: Striving for goodness when the world has you down as bad Picture this. You're an honors student with a top...
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Cuckoo Song
Frances Hardinge
Frances Hardinge creates a brilliant sense of menace in this chillingly dark fairy story . Something sinister, beyond just getting wet, happens to Triss when she falls into the Grimmer....
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The Lie Tree
Frances Hardinge
Award-winning Frances Hardinge is spellbinding is this hugely entertaining and dramatic Victorian thriller. When Faith's father dies suddenly she knows she must try to find out exactly what he was...
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A Skinful of Shadows
Frances Hardinge
May 2018 Book of the Month | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month May 2018 | Shortlisted for Waterstones Book of the Year 2017 Award-winning Frances Hardinge's latest novel bubbles...
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Skylarks
Karen Gregory
In a Nutshell: Falling in love, taking a stand, and standing tall Exploring an unforgettable relationship between two young women and obstructive social inequalities, this is a thoroughly thought-provoking,...
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The Wonder of Us
Kim Culbertson
In a Nutshell: Rollercoaster road trip, relationships and forging fresh paths Brimming with coming-of-age dilemmas, romance and tonnes of transformative on-the-road experiences, this is an ideal summer read for...
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How to Write a Love Story
Katy Cannon
In a Nutshell: A feel-good feast of romance, writing and one glorious gran “When your whole family is obsessed with Love and Romance it sets some pretty high expectations, believe me”,...
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White Rabbit, Red Wolf
Tom Pollock
In a Nutshell: Murderous mystery, mental health and maths This explosively unique page-turner sees a seventeen-year-old maths genius with anxiety disorder become embroiled in a treacherous world of espionage following...
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The Colour of the Sun
David Almond
This is a moving, funny and inspirational novel from the bestselling author of Skellig. This an outstanding novel full of warmth and light, from a multi-award-winning author. David Almond says: 'I...
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Lord of Shadows
Cassandra Clare
In a Nutshell: Epic fantasy packed with passion and paranormal intrigue There are dark dangers and dilemmas aplenty in this glamorous, gripping sequel to Lady Midnight, second in The Dark...
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SLAY
Kim Curran
When Milly arrives home to discover her mum has been taken over by something very evil, she finds herself in mortal danger. But the last people she expects to rescue...
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The Wheel of Surya
Jamila Gavin
Selected by a distinguished independent panel of experts including our editorial expert, Julia Eccleshare, for Diverse Voices - 50 of the best Children's Books celebrating cultural diversity in the UK....
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Charmcaster
Sebastien de Castell
Kellen, Reichis and Ferius are on their way to Gitabria, a city where amazing inventions are dreamed up and sold across the land of the Seven Sands. But when the...
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The Faceless Ones
Derek Landy
Prize winning Skulduggery Pleasant is back for a third thrilling adventure. Along with his side-kick Stephanie, Skulduggery, the skeleton detective, must stand up to the Faceless Ones in a typically...
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