Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero by Saadia Faruqi

Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero by Saadia Faruqi

Yusuf Azeem has spent all his life in the small town of Frey, Texas—and nearly that long waiting for the chance to participate in the regional robotics competition, which he just knows he can win. Only, this year is going to be more difficult than he thought. Because this year is the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, an anniversary that has everyone in his Muslim community on edge. With “Never Forget” banners everywhere and a hostile group of townspeople protesting the new mosque, Yusuf realizes that the country’s anger from two decades ago hasn’t gone away. Can he hold onto his joy—and his friendships—in the face of heartache and prejudice?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • 9/11 (theme)
  • Animal death (cat)
  • Bullying
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The Ghost Variations by Kevin Brockmeier

The Ghost Variations: One Hundred Stories by Kevin Brockmeier

A spirit who is fated to spend eternity reliving the exact moment she lost her chance at love, ghostly trees that haunt the occupant of a wooden house, spectres that snatch anyone who steps into the shadows, and parakeets that serve as mouthpieces for the dead: these are just a few of the characters in this extraordinary compendium of one hundred ghost stories. Kevin Brockmeier’s fiction has always explored the space between the fantastical and the every day with profundity and poignancy.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Physical & emotional child abuse
  • Death of a child
  • Death of a parent
  • Animal death
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The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold 

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

A man broken in body and spirit, Cazaril has returned to the noble household he once served as page, and is named, to his great surprise, secretary-tutor to the beautiful, strong-willed sister of the impetuous boy who is next in line to rule. It is an assignment Cazaril dreads, for it must ultimately lead him to the place he most fears: the royal court of Cardegoss, where the powerful enemies who once placed him in chains now occupy lofty positions. but it is more than the traitorous intrigues of villains that threaten Cazaril and the Royesse Iselle here, for a sinister curse… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Rape discussed
  • Domestic violence
  • Child abuse
  • Torture
  • Animal death
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The Mayan Conspiracy by Graham Brown 

The Mayan Conspiracy by Graham Brown

Former CIA-agent Hawker has been black flagged by his own government and Interpol and the State department have issued a warrant for his arrest. All Hawker wants to do is find a way back home that doesn’t involve a prison sentence or a body bag. Government operative Danielle Laidlaw is his way out. She needs a pilot and a security consultant for her mission to discover the lost Mayan city of Tulan Zuyu. In return for his services, she promises Hawker his life back… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Animal death
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Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell

Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell

Also known as Dark Charm.

Jude Lomax scrapes a living playing the trumpet on the neon streets of Baton Noir. Then she is invited to play at the funeral of the infamous cajou queen, Ivory Monette. Passing through the cemetery gates, Jude finds herself possessed by the murdered queen’s spirit. And Ivory won’t rest until she’s found the person responsible for her death. Jude Lomax scrapes a living playing the trumpet on the neon streets of Baton Noir. Then she is invited to play at the funeral of the infamous cajou queen, Ivory Monette. Passing through… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Emesis
  • Death of a sibling recounted
  • Animal death
  • Animal attack
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The Raven and the Reindeer by T. Kingfisher 

The Raven and the Reindeer by T. Kingfisher

When Gerta’s friend Kay is stolen away by the mysterious Snow Queen, it’s up to Gerta to find him. Her journey will take her through a dangerous land of snow and witchcraft, accompanied only by a bandit and a talking raven. Can she win her friend’s release, or will following her heart take her to unexpected places?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Self-harm
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Cannibalism
  • Animal death
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Extasia by Claire Legrand  

Extasia by Claire Legrand

Her name is unimportant. All you must know is that today she will become one of the four saints of Haven. The elders will mark her and place the red hood on her head. With her sisters, she will stand against the evil power that lives beneath the black mountain–an evil which has already killed nine of her village’s men. She will tell no one of the white-eyed beasts that follow her. Or the faceless gray women tall as houses. Or the girls she saw kissing in the elm grove… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Sexism
  • Sexual harassment
  • Suicide
  • Cannibalism
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Branding
  • Torture
  • Gun violence mentioned
  • Knife violence
  • Fire
  • Cults
  • Animal death (dog)
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Where the Lost Wander by Amy Harmon

Where the Lost Wander by Amy Harmon

The Overland Trail, 1853: Naomi May never expected to be widowed at twenty. Eager to leave her grief behind, she sets off with her family for a life out West. On the trail, she forms an instant connection with John Lowry, a half-Pawnee man straddling two worlds and a stranger in both. But life in a wagon train is fraught with hardship, fear, and death. Even as John and Naomi are drawn to each other, the trials of the journey and their disparate pasts work to keep them apart. John’s heritage gains them safe passage through… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism, on-page
  • Rape
  • Gun violence
  • Scalping
  • Animal death
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The Girl with Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee

The Girl with Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee

As a child growing up in North Korea, Hyeonseo Lee was one of the millions trapped by a secretive and brutal totalitarian regime. Her home on the border with China gave her some exposure to the world beyond the confines of the Hermit Kingdom and, as the famine of the 1990s struck, she began to wonder, question and realise that she had been brainwashed her entire life. Given the repression, poverty and starvation she witnessed surely her country could not be, as she had been told “the best on the planet”?… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Human trafficking
  • Forced sex work
  • Suicide mentioned
  • Famine & starvation
  • Executions
  • Imprisonment
  • Fire
  • Refugee experience
  • Death of a pet
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Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige 

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

I didn’t ask for any of this. I didn’t ask to be some kind of hero. But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know? Sure, I’ve read the books. I’ve seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little bluebirds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can’t be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There’s still a yellow brick road—but even that’s crumbling… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Parent with alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Medical experimentation
  • Knife violence
  • Physical assault
  • Tornado
  • Animal death
  • Poverty
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