The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett

When Ekata’s brother is finally named heir, there will be nothing to keep her at home in Kylma Above with her murderous family. Not her books or science experiments, not her family’s icy castle atop a frozen lake, not even the tantalizingly close Kylma Below, a mesmerizing underwater kingdom that provides her family with magic. But just as escape is within reach, her parents and twelve siblings fall under a strange sleeping sickness. In the space of a single night, Ekata inherits the title of duke, her brother’s warrior bride, and ever-encroaching challengers from… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Attempted coerced marriage
  • Staged suicide
  • Emesis
  • Murder mentioned
  • Poisoning
  • Drowning
  • War themes

Devil’s Lair by Sarah Barrie

Devil’s Lair by Sarah Barrie

After the violent death of her husband, Callie Jones retreats to a cottage in the grounds of an old mansion in Tasmania. The relative remoteness of the place and the wild beauty of the Tasmanian landscape are a balm to her shattered nerves and the locals seem friendly, particularly horseman Connor Atherton and his siblings at the nearby property, Calico Lodge.

But all is not well: the old mansion has a sinister past, one associated with witchcraft and murder. As Callie is threatened by odd events in the night and strange dreams overtake her sleep, she begins to doubt her own sanity. What’s really going on beneath the surface of this apparently peaceful town? Are her friends and neighbours really who they seem? As events escalate, Callie starts to realise that the mansion may hold the key to unlocking the mystery, but the truth might have as much power to destroy as it does to save.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Blood depiction
  • Death of a spouse
  • Death of a child recounted
  • Murder
  • Stabbing
  • Drowning mentioned
  • Stalking
  • Graphic animal death
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All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

After a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas, Cassie Hobbes and the Naturals are called in to investigate. But even with the team’s unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any security feed. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code-and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes. Meanwhile, Cassie is dealing… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parental abandoment & physical and verval child abuyse recounted
  • Foster care experiences recounted (secondary characters)
  • Self-harm (secondary character)
  • Attempted murder resulting in being comatose (secondary character)
  • Murder (theme), including by drowning, being shot with an arrow, and a magician being burned alive due to faked equipment malfunction

A Noise Downstairs by Linwood Barclay

A Noise Downstairs by Linwood Barclay

College professor Paul Davis is a normal guy with a normal life. Until, driving along a deserted road late one night, he surprises a murderer disposing of a couple of bodies. That’s when Paul’s “normal” existence is turned upside down. After nearly losing his own life in that encounter, he finds himself battling PTSD, depression, and severe problems at work. His wife, Charlotte, desperate to cheer him up, brings home a vintage typewriter—complete with ink ribbons and heavy round keys—to encourage him to get started on that novel he’s always intended to write.

However, the typewriter itself is a problem. Paul swears it’s possessed and types by itself at night. But only Paul can hear the noise coming from downstairs; Charlotte doesn’t hear a thing. And she worries he’s going off the rails… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Cheating
  • Suicide mentioned
  • Blood depiction
  • Murder
  • Drowning
  • Animal death
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Diego and the Rangers of the Vastlantic by Armand Baltazar

Timeless: Diego and the Rangers of the Vastlantic by Armand Baltazar

The world did not end. At least not permanently. The Time Collision came from beyond the stars, a cosmic event that fractured time and space, tearing apart the earth and reshaping it into something entirely new. This is the world Diego Ribera was born into. The past, present, and future coexisting together. Timeless.

In New Chicago, Diego’s middle school hallways buzz with kids from all eras of history and from cultures all over the world. The pieces do not always fit together neatly, but this is the world he loves. There are those, however, who do not share his affection… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Alcohol consumption
  • Smoking mentioned
  • Murder of a brother mentioned
  • Sword violence
  • Gun violence
  • Kidnapping
  • Near-drowning incident
  • War themes & battle scenes
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The Wild Ones by Nafiza Azad

The Wild Ones by Nafiza Azad

Meet the Wild Ones: girls who have been hurt, abandoned, and betrayed all their lives. It all began with Paheli, who was once betrayed by her mother and sold to a man in exchange for a favor. When Paheli escapes, she runs headlong into a boy with stars in his eyes. This boy, as battered as she is, tosses Paheli a box of stars before disappearing.

With the stars, Paheli gains access to the Between, a place of pure magic and mystery. Now, Paheli collects girls like herself and these Wild Ones use their magic to travel the world, helping the hopeless and saving others from the fates they suffered… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Child trafficking
  • Rape, implied
  • Suicide
  • Forced pregnancy
  • Genital mutilation mentioned
  • Murder of a child
  • Torture mentioned
  • Drowning
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Curse of the Forgotten City by Alex Aster

After unwillingly inheriting all of the Night Witch’s abilities, Tor Luna is the most powerful person on Emblem Island—though he doesn’t want power at all. Fresh from their last adventure, a girl from a forgotten underwater city named Vesper, with the same water-breathing emblem as Tor, washes ashore—with a warning. Pirates are coming to attack Emblem Island. Using the Night Witch’s enchanted ship, Tor, Melda, Engle, and Vesper set off on a dangerous journey to find the only thing that can save Emblem… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Nightmares
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Physical injury
  • Death of a parent recounted
  • Attempted murder recounted
  • Shipwreck
  • Drowning
  • Death from a fall
  • Animal attack (shark)

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.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Enslavement
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a family member recounted
  • Drowning
  • Imprisonment
  • Genocide recounted
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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.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Animal death
  • Death of a pet cat by drowning
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We Were Liars by E Lockhart

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Memory loss
  • Hallucinations
  • Self harm
  • Suicidal ideation
  • Migraines
  • Near-drowning incident
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