Best Laid Plans by Roan Parrish

Best Laid Plans by Roan Parrish

Charlie Matheson has spent his life taking care of things. When his parents died two days before his eighteenth birthday, he took care of his younger brother, even though that meant putting his own dreams on hold. He took care of his father’s hardware store, building it into something known several towns over. He took care of the cat he found in the woods so now he has a cat. When a stranger with epic tattoos and a glare to match starts coming into Matheson’s Hardware, buying things seemingly at random and lugging them off in a car so beat-up Charlie feels bad for it, his instinct is to help. When the man… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism & homophobia
  • Anxiety, panic attack (on-page) & intrusive thoughts
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of parents in a car accident recounted
  • Poverty & eviction recounted

Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros

Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros

Efrén Nava’s Amá is his Soperwoman, named after the delicious Mexican sopes his mother often prepares. Both Amá and Apá work hard all day to provide for the family, making sure Efrén and his younger siblings Max and Mía feel safe and loved. But Efrén worries about his parents; although he’s American-born, his parents are undocumented. His worst nightmare comes true one day when Amá doesn’t return from work and is deported across the border to Tijuana, México. Now more than ever, Efrén must channel his inner Soperboy to help take care of and try to reunite his family.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Deportation (theme)
  • ICE raids, off-page
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Ruthless by Sara Shepard

Ruthless by Sara Shepard

For years scandal has rocked Rosewood, Pennsylvania – and high school seniors Aria, Emily, Hanna, and Spencer have always been at the centre of the drama. They’ve lost friends, been targeted by a ruthless stalker named A, and narrowly escaped death. And it’s not over yet. Aria’s love life is on the fritz. Emily’s exploring her wild side. Hanna’s kissing the enemy. And someone from Spencer’s past – someone she never thought she’d see again – is back to haunt her. But none of that compares to what happened last spring break. It’s… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Ableism, racism, lesbophobia & slut-shaming
  • Fatphobia & body shaming
  • Child abuse mentioned
  • Eating disorder (protagonist)
  • Attempted suicide
  • Drug overdose
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Teen pregnancy
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Stalking & blackmail
  • Fire mentioned

The Amateurs by Sara Shepard

The Amateurs by Sara Shepard

When Aerin Kelly was eleven, she idolised her seventeen-year-old sister, Helena, and they did everything together. They made Claymation movies and posted them to YouTube. They made fun of Windmere-Carruthers, the private school they attended, they invented new flavours for their parents’ organic ice cream shop, and they dressed up their golden retriever, Buster. But when Helena went into senior year things started to change. Rather than being Aerin’s inseparable sister, she started to push her away. Then, on a snowy winter’s day, Helena vanished… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Sexism
  • Death of a parent
  • Death of a grandparent
  • Death of a sibling
  • Murder
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In a Badger Way by Shelly Laurenston

In a Badger Way by Shelly Laurenston

Petite, kind, brilliant, and young, Stevie is nothing like the usual women bodyguard Shen Li is interested in. Even more surprising, the youngest of the lethal, ball-busting, and beautiful MacKilligan sisters is terrified of bears. But she’s not terrified of pandas. She loves pandas. Which means that whether Shen wants her to or not, she simply won’t stop cuddling him. He isn’t some stuffed Giant Panda, ya know! He is a Giant Panda shifter. He deserves respect and personal space. Something that little hybrid is completely ignoring. But Stevie has a way of finding trouble. Like… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Ableism
  • Sexual harassment
  • Panic attacks
  • Discussions of weight
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Physical injury, including broken bones
  • Emesis
  • Needles & syringes
  • Medical human experimentation
  • Kidnapping of a child
  • Explosion
  • Physical assault
  • Car accident
  • Injury of a dog
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I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sánchez

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez

Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family. But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role. Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed. But it’s not long before… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Sexual assault
  • Cheating
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Attempted suicide
  • Self-harm
  • Abortion mentioned
  • Death of a sibling
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Blanche on the Lam by Barbara Neely

Blanche on the Lam by Barbara Neely

Blanche White is a plump, feisty, middle-aged African-American housekeeper working for the genteel rich in North Carolina. But when an employer stiffs her, and her checks bounce, she goes on the lam, hiding out as a maid for a wealthy family at their summer home. That plan goes awry when there’s a murder and Blanche becomes the prime suspect. So she’s forced to use her savvy, her sharp wit, and her old-girl network of domestic workers to discover the truth and save her own skin. Along the way, she lays bare the quirks of southern society with humour, irony, and a… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Ableism
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Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram

Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram

Darius Kellner is having a bit of a year. Since his trip to Iran this past spring, a lot has changed. He’s getting along with his dad, and his best friend Sohrab is only a Skype call away. Between his first boyfriend, Landon, his varsity soccer practices, and his internship at his favorite tea shop, Darius is feeling pretty okay. Like he finally knows what it means to be Darius Kellner. Then, of course, everything changes. Darius’s grandmothers are in town for a long visit while his dad is gone on business, and Darius isn’t sure whether they even like him. The internship isn’t what Darius thought it would be, and now he doesn’t know… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism & racial slur
  • Homomisia
  • Misgendering
  • Depression
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a grandfather from a brain tumour
  • Bullying
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Kings of B’more by R Eric Thomas

Kings of B’more by R. Eric Thomas

With junior year starting in the fall, Harrison feels like he’s on the precipice of, well, everything. Standardized testing, college, and the terrifying unknowns and looming pressures of adulthood after that–it’s like the future wants to eat him alive. Which is why Harrison is grateful that he and his best friend Linus will face these things together. But at the end of a shift at their summer job, Linus invites Harrison to their special spot overlooking the city to deliver devastating news: he’s moving out of state at the end of the week. To keep from completely losing it–and partially inspired by a cheesy movie-night pick… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Abandonment
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Suicidal ideation
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Smoke Gets in Your Eyes and Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty

Most people want to avoid thinking about death, but Caitlin Doughty—a twenty-something with a degree in medieval history and a flair for the macabre—took a job at a crematory, turning morbid curiosity into her life’s work. Thrown into a profession of gallows humor and vivid characters (both living and very dead), Caitlin learned to navigate the secretive culture of those who care for the deceased.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Fatmisia
  • Suicidal ideation
  • Attempted suicide
  • Death of a child
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