Pivot Point by Kasie West

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not. In one potential future, Addie is adjusting… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Sexual assault of a minor (vision)
  • Parent with substance addiction
  • Murder & attempted murder (including a faked suicide)

The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry by Anna Rose Johnson

Selena Lucy Landry (named for a ship, as every sailor’s child should be) has been frightened of the water ever since she lost her father at sea. But with no one else to care for her, she’s sent to foster with the Martins—a large Anishinaabe family living on a lighthouse in the middle of stormy Lake Superior. The Martin family is big, hard-working, and close, and Lucy—who has always been a dreamer—struggles to fit in. Can she go one day without ruining the laundry or forgetting the sweeping? Will she ever be less afraid of the lake? Although life at the lighthouse isn’t what Lucy hoped for, it… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a parent

Dear Wendy by Ann Zhao

Sophie Chi is in her first year at Wellesley College (despite her parents’ wishes that she attend a “real” university, rather than a liberal arts school) and has long accepted her aromantic and asexual identities. Despite knowing she’ll never fall in love, she enjoys running an Instagram account that offers relationship advice to students at Wellesley. No one except her roommate knows that she’s behind the incredibly popular “Dear Wendy” account. When Joanna “Jo” Ephron―also a first-year student at Wellesley―created their “Sincerely Wanda” account, it was… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Acephobia & arophobia
  • Bullying

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie

The Midnight Forest. The Fanged Creature. Two fortune-telling cards that spell an untimely death for 17-year-old Clara. Despite the ever-present warning from her fortune-teller grandmother, Clara embarks on a dangerous journey into the deadly Forest Grimm to procure a magical book – Sortes Fortunae , the Book of Fortunes – with the power to reverse the curse on her village and save her mother. Years ago, when the villagers whispered their deepest desires to the book, its pages revealed how to obtain them. All was well until someone used the book for an evil purpo… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Physical child abuse & parental abandonment
  • Blood & injury depiction
  • Murder
  • Poisoning

Big Tree by Brian Selznick

A mysterious voice has been speaking to Louise in her dreams. She and her brother Merwin are Sycamore seeds, who hope to one day set down roots and become big trees. But when a fire forces them to leave their mama tree prematurely, they find themselves catapulted into the unknown, far from home. Alone and unprepared, they must use their wits and imagination to navigate a dangerous world-filled with dinosaurs, meteors, and volcanoes!-and the fear of never finding a safe place to grow up. As the mysterious voice gets louder, Louise comes to realize their mission in life may be much bigger than either of them imagined.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Death of a mother in a stampede
  • Fire, volcanic eruption & asteroid strike

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo’s undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo’s dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Minor physical injury (a child’s hand is crushed in a door)
  • Alcohol consumption mentioned
  • Death of a mother & father mentioned
  • Child homelessness (theme)

The Prospects by K.T. Hoffman

Hope is familiar territory for Gene Ionescu. He has always loved baseball, a sport made for underdogs and optimists like him. He also loves his team, the minor league Beaverton Beavers, and, for the most part, he loves the career he’s built. As the first openly trans player in professional baseball, Gene has nearly everything he’s ever let himself dream of—that is, until Luis Estrada, Gene’s former teammate and current rival, gets traded to the Beavers, destroying the careful equilibrium of Gene’s life. Gene and Luis can’t manage a civil conversation off the field or a competent play on it, but in the close confines of dugout bench… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Transphobia mentioned
  • Anxiety

Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian

2019. Moud is an out gay teen living in Los Angeles with his distant father, Saeed. When Moud gets the news that his grandfather in Iran is dying, he accompanies his dad to Tehran, where the revelation of family secrets will force Moud into a new understanding of his history, his culture, and himself. 1978. Saeed is an engineering student with a promising future ahead of him in Tehran. But when his parents discover his involvement in the country’s burgeoning revolution, they send him to safety in America, a country Saeed despises. And even worse—he’s forced to live with the American grandmother he never knew existed… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Homophobia
  • Racism & colourism
  • Suicide (off-page)
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death of a mother recounted
  • Death of a grandfather from cancer
  • Police brutality & abuse of force*

*Context: The military uses force and gun violence against unarmed protestors.

Mall Goth by Kate Leth

Liv Holme is not exactly thrilled to be moving to a new town with her mother. After all, high school can be brutal, even more so when you’re a fifteen-year-old, bisexual goth. But Liv is determined to be who she is, bullies or not. Still, being the new kid and the only out student brings her a lot of unwelcome attention, and Liv flounders in her search for community. The only person who makes time for her is one of teachers, but Liv isn’t sure how to feel about the way he behaves toward her. Thankfully, she’s found the perfect the mall. Under its fluorescent lights, Liv feels far away from her parents’ strained marriage and the peers who don’t.. Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Adult-minor relationship

God of Fury by Rina Kent

I’m not attracted to men. Or so I thought before I slammed into Nikolai Sokolov. A mafia heir, a notorious bastard, and a violent monster. An ill-fated meeting puts me in his path. And just like that, he has his sights set on me. A quiet artist, a golden boy, and his enemy’s twin brother. He doesn’t seem to care that the odds are stacked against us. In fact, he sets out to break my steel-like control and blur my limits. I thought my biggest worry was being noticed by Nikolai. I’m learning the hard way that being wanted by this beautiful nightmare is much worse.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Sexual assault of a minor recounted
  • Self-harm (cutting)
  • Attempted suicide
  • Blood depiction
  • Murder