The First by Katherine Applegate

The First by Katherine Applegate

To learn if she truly is the last dairne in the world—the endling—Byx and her friends must travel into the snow-covered mountains of the country of Dreyland, where they hope to uncover the truth behind the legend of a hidden dairne colony. But the threat of war across the lands continues to grow with each passing day.

As the group confronts untold dangers at every turn, they will ultimately uncover a treacherous plot that involves the other powerful governing species. With both her dreams and all the creatures of Nedarra on the brink of extinction, Byx and her friends are determined to never give up hope.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Enslavement
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a family member recounted
  • Drowning
  • Imprisonment
  • Genocide recounted
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate and illustrated by Charles Santoso

Trees can’t tell jokes, but they can certainly tell stories. . . .

Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood “wishtree”—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red’s branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red’s hollows, this “wishtree” watches over the neighborhood.

You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red’s experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever. 

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Islamomisia
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

The Last by Katherine Applegate

The Last by Katherine Applegate

Byx is the youngest member of her dairne pack. Believed to possess remarkable abilities, her mythical doglike species has been hunted to near extinction in the war-torn kingdom of Nedarra.

After her pack is hunted down and killed, Byx fears she may be the last of her species. The Endling. So Byx sets out to find safe haven, and to see if the legends of other hidden dairnes are true.

Along the way, she meets new allies—both animals and humans alike—who each have their own motivations for joining her quest. And although they begin as strangers, they become their own kind of family—one that will ultimately uncover a secret that may threaten every creature in their world.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Blood depiction
  • Sword & knife violence
  • Battle violence
  • Animal death
  • Animal attack
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

In a city covered in ice and ruin, a group of magicians face off in a daring game of magical feats to find the next headliner of the Conquering Circus, only to find themselves under the threat of an unseen danger striking behind the scenes.

As each act becomes more and more risky and the number of missing magicians piles up, three are forced to reckon with their secrets before the darkness comes for them next.

The Star: Kallia, a powerful showgirl out to prove she’s the best no matter the cost. The Master: Jack, the enigmatic keeper of the club, and more than one lie told. The Magician: Demarco, the brooding judge with a dark past he can no longer hide

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Misogyny
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Loss of autonomy (mind manipulation)
  • Blood & injury depiction
  • Eyeball trauma
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a parent
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

Speak: The Graphic Novel by Laurie Halse Anderson

Speak: The Graphic Novel by Laurie Halse Anderson and illustrated by Emily Carroll

“Speak up for yourself-we want to know what you have to say.”

From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless–an outcast–because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. Through her work on an art project, she is finally able to face what really happened that night: She was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. 

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Racism
  • Rape
  • Sexual assault
  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Self harm
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Bullying
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

Granted by John David Anderson

Granted by John David Anderson

Everyone who wishes upon a star, or a candle, or a penny thrown into a fountain knows that you’re not allowed to tell anyone what you’ve wished for. But even so, rest assured: There is someone out there who hears it.

Ophelia Delphinium Fidgets is no ordinary fairy—she is a Granter: one of the select few whose job it is to venture beyond the boundaries of the Haven and grant the wishes of unsuspecting humans every day. It’s the work of the Granters that generates the magic that allows the fairies to do what they do and to keep the Haven hidden and safe. But with worldwide magic levels at an all-time low, this is not as easy as it sounds. On a typical day, only a small fraction of the millions of wishes made get granted. And even granting those promised few means navigating a human world fraught with danger.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Alcohol consumption mentioned
  • Animal abuse recounted
  • Animal injury during military service mentioned
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

The Memory Thief by Jodi Lynn Anderson

The Memory Thief by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Twelve-year-old Rosie Oaks’s mom is missing whatever it is that makes mothers love their daughters. All her life, Rosie has known this…and turned to stories for comfort. Then, on the night Rosie decides to throw her stories away forever, an invisible ally helps her discover the Witch Hunter’s Guide to the Universe, a book that claims that all of the evil in the world stems from thirteen witches who are unseen…but also unstoppable. One of these witches—the Memory Thief—holds an insidious power to steal our most precious treasures: our memories. And it is this witch who has cursed Rosie’s mother.

In her quest to save her mom—and with her wild, loyal friend “Germ” by her side… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Murder
  • Hanging mentioned
  • Kidnapping & presumed death of a newborn
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson

2065: Adri has been handpicked to live on Mars. But weeks before launch, she discovers the journal of a girl who lived in the house where she’s staying more than a hundred years ago and is immediately drawn into the mystery surrounding her fate.

1934: Amid the fear and uncertainty of the Dust Bowl, Catherine’s family’s situation is growing dire. She must find the courage to sacrifice everything she loves in order to save the one person she loves most.

1919: In the recovery following World War I, Lenore tries to come to terms with her grief for her brother, a fallen British soldier, and plans to sail from England to America. But can she make it that far?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death of children from ‘dust pneumonia’
  • Death of a pet
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders

Humanity clings to life on January–a colonized planet divided between permanently frozen darkness on one side, and blazing endless sunshine on the other.

Two cities, built long ago in the meager temperate zone, serve as the last bastions of civilization–but life inside them is just as dangerous as the uninhabitable wastelands outside.

Sophie, a young student from the wrong side of Xiosphant city, is exiled into the dark after being part of a failed revolution. But she survives–with the help of a mysterious savior from beneath the ice… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Toxic friendships
  • Body horror
  • Police brutality
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com

The Twistrose Key by Tone Almhjell

The Twistrose Key by Tone Almhjell and illustrated by Ian Schoenherr 

When a mysterious parcel arrives at her family’s new home, eleven-year-old Lin Rosenquist has a curious feeling she’s meant to discover what’s inside.

Much to Lin’s surprise, the ornate key contained in the parcel unlocks a spellbinding world called Sylver, hidden behind the cellar door. Sylver is an enchanting land of eternal winter, inhabited by animals that shared a special connection with children in the real world. In death, they are delivered to Sylver, where they take on a curiously human-like form and still watch over the children they cherish. While Lin is overjoyed to be reunited with her beloved pet, Rufus, she soon learns that the magic of the Petlings and Wilders is failing, and snow trolls want to claim Sylver for themselves. Lin must discover a way to stop them and save this enchanted world.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Animal death
  • Death of a pet cat by drowning
Support Us at Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com