Contemporary – Page 131 – Trigger Warning Database

The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James by Ashley Herring Blake

The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James by Ashley Herring Blake

When Sunny St. James receives a new heart, she decides to set off on a “New Life Plan”: 1) do awesome amazing things she could never do before; 2) find a new best friend; and 3) kiss a boy for the first time.

Her “New Life Plan” seems to be racing forward, but when she meets her new best friend Quinn, Sunny questions whether she really wants to kiss a boy at all. When the reemergence of her mother, Sunny begins a journey to becoming the new Sunny St. James.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Queermisia
Parent with alcoholism
Heart transplant surgery

The Very Nice Box by Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman

The Very Nice Box by Laura Blackett & Eve Gleichman

Ava Simon designs storage boxes for STÄDA, a slick Brooklyn-based furniture company. She’s hard-working, obsessive, and heartbroken from a tragedy that killed her girlfriend and upended her life. It’s been years since she’s let anyone in.

But when Ava’s new boss—the young and magnetic Mat Putnam—offers Ava a ride home one afternoon, an unlikely relationship blossoms. Ava remembers how rewarding it can be to open up—and, despite her instincts, she becomes enamoured. But Mat isn’t who he claims to be, and the romance takes a sharp turn.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Ableism
Queermisia
Abusive relationship
Panic attacks
Grief & loss depiction
Fatal car accident recounted

I Kissed Alice by Anna Birch

I Kissed Alice by Anna Birch

Rhodes and Iliana couldn’t be more different, but that’s not why they hate each other. Hyper-gifted artist Rhodes has always excelled at Alabama’s Conservatory of the Arts despite a secret bout of creator’s block, while transfer student Iliana tries to outshine everyone with her intense, competitive work ethic. Since only one of them can get the coveted Capstone scholarship, the competition between them is fierce… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Anxiety
Depression
Alcohol consumption
Recreational drug use
Bullying
Financial issues & bankruptcy

Nevada by Imogen Binnie

Nevada by Imogen Binnie

Nevada is the darkly comedic story of Maria Griffiths, a young trans woman living in New York City and trying to stay true to her punk values while working retail. When she finds out her girlfriend has lied to her, the world she thought she’d carefully built for herself begins to unravel, and Maria sets out on a journey that will most certainly change her forever.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Queermisia
Misgendering
Alcohol consumption
Recreational drug use

The Monster of Her Age by Danielle Binks

The Monster of Her Age by Danielle Binks

Ellie Marsden was born into the legendary Lovinger acting dynasty. Granddaughter of the infamous Lottie Lovinger, as a child Ellie shared the silver screen with Lottie in her one-and-only role-playing the child monster in a cult horror movie. The experience left Ellie deeply traumatised and estranged from people she loved.

Now seventeen, Ellie has returned home to Hobart for the first time in years. Lottie is dying and Ellie wants to make peace with her before it’s too late. But forgiveness feels like playing make-believe… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Emotional child abuse & gaslighting recounted
Hospitalisation of a grandparent
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a grandparent
Bullying recounted

The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks

The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks

Fred’s family is a mess. Fred’s mother died when she was six and she’s been raised by her Pop and adoptive father, Luca, ever since. But now Pop is at the Rye Rehabilitation Centre recovering from a fall; Luca’s girlfriend, Anika, has moved in; and Fred’s just found out that Anika and Luca are having a baby of their own. More and more it feels like a land-grab for family and Fred is the one being left off the map.

But even as the world feels like it’s spinning out of control, a crisis from the other side of… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Death of a parent recounted
Stillbirth
Blood depiction
Refugee experiences

Sidelined by Kara Bietz

Sidelined by Kara Bietz

Julian Jackson has a short to-do list for his senior year at Crenshaw County High School in Meridian, Texas: football, football, and more football. He knows he’s only got one chance to earn a college scholarship and make it out of his small town, and keeping his head down, his grades up, and his cleats on the field is that one chance. And then Elijah Vance walks back into his life, throwing all of his carefully-laid plans into a tailspin.

Elijah and Julian used to be best friends, maybe even on their way to something… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Teen pregnancy

Hazel’s Theory of Evolution by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Hazel’s Theory of Evolution by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Hazel knows a lot about the world. That’s because when she’s not hanging with her best friend or helping her two moms care for the goats on their farm, she loves reading through dusty encyclopedias. But even Hazel doesn’t have answers for the questions awaiting her as she enters eighth grade. How can she make friends in a new school where no one seems to understand her? What’s going to happen to one of her moms who’s pregnant again after having two miscarriages? Why does everything have to change when life was already perfectly fine?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Anxiety
Suicidal ideation mentioned
Self-harm recounted
Miscarriage
Hospital
Bullying

Drum Roll, Please by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Drum Roll, Please by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Melly only joined the school band because her best friend, Olivia, begged her to. But to her surprise, quiet Melly loves playing the drums. It’s the only time she doesn’t feel like a mouse. Now, she and Olivia are about to spend the next two weeks at Camp Rockaway, jamming under the stars in the Michigan woods.

But this summer brings big changes for Melly: her parents split up, her best friend ditches her, and Melly finds herself falling for a girl at camp named Adeline. To top it off, Melly’s not sure she has what it takes to be a real rock ‘n’ roll drummer. Will she be able to make music from all the noise in her heart?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Ableist language
Sexism
Toxic friendship
Parent with Multiple Sclerosis

Starting from Here by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Starting from Here by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Sixteen-year-old Colby Bingham’s heart has been broken too many times. Her mother has been dead for almost two years, her truck driver father is always away, her almost girlfriend just dumped her for a guy, and now she’s failing chemistry.

When a stray dog lands literally at her feet, bleeding and broken on a busy road, it seems like the Universe has it in for Colby. But the incident also knocks a chink in the walls she’s built around her heart… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Bimisia
Cancer mentioned
Death of a parent mentioned