Physical Assault – Trigger Warning Database

Lu by Jason Reynolds

Lu was born to be co-captain of the Defenders. Well, actually, he was born albino, but that’s got nothing to do with being a track star. Lu has swagger, plus the talent to back it up, and with all that—not to mention the gold chains and diamond earrings—no one’s gonna outshine him. Lu knows he can lead Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and the team to victory at the championships, but it might not be as easy as it seems. Suddenly, there are hurdles in Lu’s way—literally and not-so-literally—and Lu needs to figure out, fast, what winning the gold really means.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Substance addiction mentioned
Parental pregnancy mentioned
Death of an overdose mentioned
Physical assault
Bullying mentioned including ableist name-calling

Miles Morales: Spider-Man by Jason Reynolds

Miles Morales: Spider-Man by Jason Reynolds

Miles Morales is just your average teenager. Dinner every Sunday with his parents, chilling out playing old-school video games with his best friend, Ganke, crushing on brainy, beautiful poet Alicia. He’s even got a scholarship spot at the prestigious Brooklyn Visions Academy. Oh yeah, and he’s Spider Man. But lately, Miles’s spidey-sense has been on the fritz. When a misunderstanding leads to his suspension from school, Miles begins to question his abilities. After all, his dad and uncle were Brooklyn jack-boys with criminal records. Maybe kids like Miles aren’t meant to be superheroes. Maybe Miles should take his… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Physical injury (broken nose & wrist)
Death from a spearing mentioned
Death from an uncle from accidental suicide (gun accident)
Physical assault (fistfights)

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds

A lot of the stuff that gives my neighbourhood a bad name, I don’t really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing. ,Nah, not his thing. Ali’s got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there’s a dude looking for trouble – and, somehow, it’s always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy’s gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it’s all small potatoes; it’s not like anyone’s getting hurt. And then there’s Needles. Needles is Noodles’s brother. He’s got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It’s cool, everyone… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Physical assault (fistfights)

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Running. That’s all that Ghost (real name Castle Cranshaw) has ever known. But never for a track team. Nope, his game has always been ball. But when Ghost impulsively challenges an elite sprinter to a race—and wins—the Olympic medalist track coach sees he has something: crazy natural talent. Thing is, Ghost has something else: a lot of anger, and a past that he is trying to outrun. Can Ghost harness his raw talent for speed and meld with the team, or will his past finally catch up to him?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Domestic violence mentioned, including an scene where an drunk man shoots at his wife and child (who remain unharmed)
Alcohol consumption & drug & alcohol abuse mentioned (secondary adult characters)
Bullying & physical assault (fistfights)

Coach by Jason Reynolds

Coach by Jason Reynolds

Before Coach was the man who gave caring yet firm-handed guidance to Ghost, Lu, Patina, and Sunny on the Defenders track team, he was little Otie Brody, who was obsessed with Mr. 9.99 (a.k.a. Carl Lewis) and Marty McFly from Back to the Future. Like Mr. 9.99—and his own dad—Otie is a sprinter. Sprint free or die is practically his motto. Then his dad, who is always away on business trips, comes home with a pair of Jordans. JORDANS. Fine as fine can be. Otie puts them on and feels like he can leap to the moon…maybe even leap like Mr. 9.99 when he won the Olympic… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Minor blood depiction & injuries (bloodied nose, cuts)
Drug use & alcohol consumption mentioned (secondary characters)
Car accident mentioned
Bullying, including fistfights and intimidation tactics (threatening with clippers, throwing students into lockers)

Wish by Barbara O’Connor

Eleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since fourth grade. She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite. But when she is sent to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. That is until she meets Wishbone, a skinny stray dog who captures her heart, and Howard, a neighbor boy who proves surprising in lots of ways. Suddenly…. Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Parent in jail (protagonist)
Bullying & minor fistfights (on-page)

Dream by Barbara O’Connor

Idalee Lovett is content with her life in small-town Colby, North Carolina, living in her family’s huge house with rooms for rent. But she has big dreams, just like her mama. While Mama is on tour for the summer with her cover band, Lovey Lovett and the Junkyard Dogs, Idalee decides to hone her craft as a songwriter—since her truest wish is to hear her country songs on the radio one day. When the local radio station announces a songwriting contest with the winning song being recorded by an up-and-coming singer, Idalee is determined to win. It would definitely be possible if only she could buy the shiny blue guitar in… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Alcohol consumption mentioned
Amputation mentioned, including a secondary character who lost toes in an axe incident and a cousin who lost a finger in a fireworks incident
Parent in jail for assault (secondary character)
Fistfight mentioned

Cage of Ice and Echoes by Pam Godwin

Frankie and her ruthless protectors conquered unspeakable evil. But their fight to escape the hills of shivers and shadows is far from over. Stranded in Alaska, survival becomes paramount against starvation, hypothermia, and the dangerous predators lurking outside their isolated cabin. Sharing precious body heat with her viciously possessive men presents another challenge. She must navigate not only the brutal arctic tundra but also the intricacies of polyamorous love to ensure they make it out alive. Their only hope rests on a plane they can’t fly—unless they unlock the secrets hidden beneath its wings in a cage of ice and echoes.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Paedophilia & child sexual abuse recounted (love interest)
Kidnapping & captivity recounted
Blizzard & food scarcity (on-page)

Knotted by Pam Godwin

I try to forget her. It’s impossible. Growing up together, Conor and I shared all our firsts. First love, first kiss, first… Not all our firsts. We were sixteen the night she was violently assaulted while I helplessly watched.
I’ll never forget the sounds of her suffering. Or my inconsolable agony when she left Oklahoma. Years later, she returns to honor our teenage pact. Except the boy she loved is gone, replaced by a ruthless cattle rancher knotted with secrets. She doesn’t know my dark cravings or the trails of sin that lead to her. I don’t deserve her, but one truth remains. She’s mine.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Graphic rape of a minor (protagonist)
Child abuse (physical assault by parent)
Graphic murder

Forbidden Passage by Jeff Probst and Christ Tebbetts

It happened to them once. It could never happen again, right? Two months ago, Vanessa and Buzz’s dad married Jane and Carter’s mom and they became a family. But their adventure really started just two weeks ago when the four siblings were shipwrecked and stranded on a deserted tropical island for thirteen days. Alone. They thought it was over, but now, they find themselves on a whole new island, and this time, they’re not alone. Getting here was a nightmare. Leaving just might be impossible. Because this time, it’s forbidden.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Physical assault
Death from a fall
Kidnapping