The Pearl by John Steinbeck

The Pearl by John Steinbeck

Like his father and grandfather before him, Kino is a poor diver, gathering pearls from the gulf beds that once brought great wealth to the kings of Spain and now provide Kino, Juana, and their infant son with meager subsistence. Then, on a day like any other, Kino emerges from the sea with a pearl as large as a sea gull’s egg, as “perfect as the moon.” With the pearl comes hope, the promise of comfort and of security…

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Knife violence & stabbing
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Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Of Mice & Men by John Steinbeck

Clinging to each other in their loneliness and alienation, George and his simple-minded friend Lennie dream, as drifters will, of a place to call their own—a couple of acres and a few pigs, chickens, and rabbits back in Hill Country where land is cheap. But after they come to work on a ranch in the fertile Salinas Valley of California, their hopes, like “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men,” begin to go awry.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Ableism
  • Misogyny
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Recreational drug use (smoking)
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Animal death
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Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren’t the heroes everyone thinks they are.

But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona’s powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Ableism
  • Amputation recounted
  • Emesis
  • Death of a mother & father
  • Murder
  • Explosion
  • Gun violence
  • Electrocution
  • Torture
  • Poisoning
  • Fire
  • Imprisonment
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Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart

Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart

Constance Kopp doesn’t quite fit the mold. She towers over most men, has no interest in marriage or domestic affairs, and has been isolated from the world since a family secret sent her and her sisters into hiding fifteen years ago. One day a belligerent and powerful silk factory owner runs down their buggy, and a dispute over damages turns into a war of bricks, bullets, and threats as he unleashes his gang on their family farm. When the sheriff enlists her help in convicting the men, Constance is forced to confront her past and defend her family — and she does it in a way that few women of 1914 would have dared.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Gun violence
  • Kidnapping
  • Stalking
  • Car accident
  • Bullying
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The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after…

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Classism
  • Ableist language
  • Homomisia
  • Child abuse recounted
  • Attempted suicide mentioned
  • Blood depiction
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a father recounted
  • Gun & knife violence
  • Murder
  • Kidnapping
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Obsidio by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Obsidio by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff book cover

Kady, Ezra, Hanna, and Nik narrowly escaped with their lives from the attacks on Heimdall station and now find themselves crammed with 2,000 refugees on the container ship, Mao. With the jump station destroyed and their resources scarce, the only option is to return to Kerenza–but who knows what they’ll find seven months after the invasion?

Meanwhile, Kady’s cousin, Asha, survived the initial BeiTech assault and has joined Kerenza’s ragtag underground resistance. When Rhys–an old flame from Asha’s past–reappears on Kerenza, the two find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict. With time running out, a final battle will be waged on land and in space, heros will fall, and hearts will be broken.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Underage sex work mentioned
  • Suicide
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Explosions
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Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering

And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Ableism and ableist language
  • Racial discrimination
  • Sexual assault, specifically nonconsensual kissing and unwanted touching
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Body horror
  • Blood and gore depiction
  • Physical injuries
  • Coma-like state
  • Grief depiction
  • Death of a father
  • Death of a stepmother
  • Death of parents
  • Death of a friend
  • Death of a partner
  • Murder and attempted murder
  • Mass murder
  • Physical assault
  • Explosions
  • Gun violence
  • Imprisonment
  • War themes
  • Bullying
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Undying by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Undying by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Undying by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner book cover

Sixteen-year-old Maguire knows the universe is against her. No matter how many charms she buys off the internet or good luck rituals she performs each morning, horrible things happen when she’s around. Like that time the roller coaster jumped off its tracks. Or the time the house next door caught on fire. Or the time her brother, father, and uncle were all killed in a car crash–and Maguire walked away with barely a scratch.

Despite what her therapist tells her, Maguire thinks it’s best to hide out in her room, far away from anyone she might accidentally hurt. But then she meets Jordy, an aspiring tennis star who wants to help her break her unlucky streak. Maguire knows that the best thing she can do for him is to stay away, but it turns out staying away might be harder than she thought.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Ableism and ableist language
  • Cheating recounted, secondary character
  • Panic attack/s
  • Attempted murder
  • Gun violence
  • Explosions
  • Kidnapping
  • Captivity
  • Hostage situation
  • Incarceration
  • Fire
  • War themes
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The Creeping Shadow by Jonathan Stroud

The Creeping Shadow by Jonathan Stroud

After leaving Lockwood & Co., Lucy is a freelance operative, hiring herself out to agencies that value her ever-improving skills. One day she is pleasantly surprised by a visit from Lockwood, who tells her he needs a good Listener for a tough assignment.

Penelope Fittes, the leader of the giant Fittes Agency wants them–and only them–to locate and remove the Source for the legendary Brixton Cannibal. They succeed in their very dangerous task, but tensions remain high between Lucy and the other agents. Even the skull in the jar talks to her like a jilted lover.

What will it take to reunite the team? Black marketeers, an informant ghost, a Spirit Cape that transports the wearer, and mysteries involving Steve Rotwell and Penelope Fittes just may do the trick.  

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Persecution for witchcraft mentioned
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Blood & gore depiction, including dead bodies
  • Physical injuries
  • Dismemberment
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a friend
  • Death of a mother, father & sister recounted
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Knife violence & stabbing
  • Gun violence
  • Explosions
  • Animal cruelty (minor)
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The Hollow Boy by Jonathan Stroud

The Hollow Boy by Jonathan Stroud

As a massive outbreak of supernatural Visitors baffles Scotland Yard and causes protests throughout London, Lockwood & Co. continue to demonstrate their effectiveness in exterminating spirits. Anthony Lockwood is dashing, George insightful, and Lucy dynamic, while the skull in the jar utters sardonic advice from the sidelines. There is a new spirit of openness in the team now that Lockwood has shared some of his childhood secrets, and Lucy is feeling more and more as if her true home is at Portland Row. It comes as a great shock, then, when Lockwood and George introduce her to an annoyingly perky and hyper-efficient new assistant, Holly Munro.

Meanwhile, there are reports of many new hauntings, including a house where bloody footprints are appearing, and a department store full of strange sounds and shadowy figures… Read More.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Suicide mentioned
  • Blood & gore depiction, including dead bodies
  • Physical injuries
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother, father & sister recounted
  • Death of a child
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Knife violence & stabbing
  • Gun violence
  • Explosions
  • Fire
  • Homelessness
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