Europe

Materials from Europe

Play to the Angel

In February 1938, in Vienna, twelve-year-old Greta Radky is devastated to learn that her mother plans to sell the family piano. Greta’s brother, a concert pianist, died the previous April, and her mother thinks of the piano as his. But Greta is an equally committed musician, and when she meets a mysterious piano teacher who agrees to work with her, she proves it. With his help the piano is saved, and inspired by his tiny angel doll, Greta practices furiously for her first recital. Then, on the day of the performance, the Nazis invade Austria. Suddenly Greta discovers her teacher’s secret and knows that his life is in danger. Having stood up to her mother, Greta must now confront the Nazis.

Caddy Ever After

Love is in the air for the Casson family! Four hilarious, endearing tales unfold as Rose, Indigo, Saffy, and Caddy each tell their intertwining stories. Rose begins by showing how she does special with her Valentine\’s card for Tom in New York. Not to be outdone, Indigo has his own surprise in store for the Valentine,s Day disco at school. For her part, Saffy has an unusual date in a very, very dark graveyard, and is haunted by a balloon that almost costs her her best friend.But it is Caddy who dares everything — as she tells all about love at first sight when you have found the Real Thing. Unfortunately the Real Thing is not darling Michael. What is Rose going to do?

The Reminder

Daisy, otherwise known as Daze, keeps hearing her dead mother’s voice. Sometimes it’s because of her dad, who likes to watch old home movies when he can’t sleep. Sometimes it’s because of her brother, who was too young to remember Mom, and needs to be reminded by looking at photographs and watching videos. Sometimes it might just be her mind trying to work out what her therapist would call “issues.” But this time, it is none of those things. It’s something much more wonderful and much more terrifying, something Daze never thought possible. And it might allow Daze to do what she couldn’t years ago: save her mother’s life.Rune Michaels, the visionary author of Genesis Alpha, plunges headfirst into the waters where science, family, and memory meet, and emerges with a powerful and fascinating story about loss and survival that challenges everything we think we know about the people we love.

The Knife Of Never Letting Go: Chaos Walking: Book One (Chaos Walking)

A dystopian thriller follows a boy and girl on the run from a town where all thoughts can be heard — and the passage to manhood embodies a horrible secret.Todd Hewitt is the only boy in a town of men. Ever since the settlers were infected with the Noise germ, Todd can hear everything the men think, and they hear everything he thinks. Todd is just a month away from becoming a man, but in the midst of the cacophony, he knows that the town is hiding something from him — something so awful Todd is forced to flee with only his dog, whose simple, loyal voice he hears too. With hostile men from the town in pursuit, the two stumble upon a strange and eerily silent creature: a girl. Who is she? Why wasn’t she killed by the germ like all the females on New World? Propelled by Todd’s gritty narration, readers are in for a white-knuckle journey in which a boy on the cusp of manhood must unlearn everything he knows in order to figure out who he truly is.

On the Run

Fifteen-year-old Luke is a skilled thief with a perfect record until the day he is caught running from a robbery gone wrong. He chooses to save the life of a blind girl, Jodi, rather than escape cleanly. As a result, Luke is given a shot at freedom if he will train to be Jodi’s guide in the London Marathon. The friendship that develops between the two offers Luke one last chance to discover just how far-and in what direction-he is willing to run. A taut, unpredictable read, this novel will appeal to anyone who has changed course in life . . . or is trying to figure out how.

The Bag Of Bones: The Second Tale From The Five Kingdoms

The good witches of Wadingburn are worried – there’s a new witch in town with a bag of magic bones, and she’s so evil she makes their toes ache…This is another fun-filled fantasy in the “Tales from the Five Kingdoms” stories that started with “The Robe of Skulls”.Truda Hangnail is a very wicked witch, banned from the Five Kingdoms because of her use of deep magic. Then she comes up with a fiendish plan to restore evil to the Five Kingdoms, transforming the good witches of Waddingburn into shrivelled, wicked old witches who will help her take over King Frank’s kingdom on his fiftieth birthday. Luckily, a sweet-natured half-human, half-elf named Loobly is witness to Truda’s evil spell and sets off to fetch help. As the birthday party looms and Truda’s evil gathers strength, Loobly enlists the help of Prince Marcus of Gorebreath and Gracie Gillypot, as well as old friends Gubble the troll and Marlon and Alf the bats, to stop Truda and send her packing to the house of the Ancient Crones to face her just deserts.

Triskellion 2: The Burning

As twins Rachel and Adam are pursued across Europe by terrifying forces, they realize they can trust no one — and must draw on their special powers to survive. After the shocking revelations in Triskellion, being guests of the “Hope Project” might seem like a relief. But Rachel and Adam soon figure out that they’re being held prisoner, and that the program has more sinister goals than archaeological research in mind. A hideous discovery at the funeral of their grandmother makes it clear that the teenagers must flee from England to Paris, Seville, and finally Morocco, evading not only their former benefactors but also the followers of “The Englishman,” a zombie-like figure with a frightening agenda of his own. It will take all of their special abilities and courage to stay alive until their journey reaches an explosive climax — and they unearth, on the North African coast, an ancient secret even more startling than the first.

Bloodline

Warring kingdoms, bloody feuds, and a boy’s battle for survival. Step back into the Dark Ages with this riveting epic adventure.In the wilds of Dark Age Britain, a bard abandons his son, Essa, in a village trapped between two feuding kingdoms. As the once-nomadic boy grows rooted in the life of the Wolf Folk, forging allegiances and young love, King Penda of Mercia threatens to attack, thrusting Essa into the violent and cunning world of the tribal rulers. Joined by unlikely friends, unsure of whom to trust — or even of who he is — Essa sets off on a dangerous journey, using his newfound intuitive gifts to guide them as a deadly battle brews. Will his desperate efforts to save his loved ones bring him closer to understanding why his father has never returned?

The Juliet Club

Italy . . . Shakespeare . . . but no romance?

Kate Sanderson inherited her good sense from her mother, a disciplined law professor, and her admiration for the Bard from her father, a passionate Shakespeare scholar. When she gets dumped, out of the blue, for the Practically Perfect Ashley Lawson, she vows never to fall in love again. From now on she will control her own destiny, and every decision she makes will be highly reasoned and rational. She thinks Shakespeare would have approved.

So when she is accepted to a summer Shakespeare symposium in Verona, Italy, Kate sees it as the ideal way to get over her heartbreak once and for all. She’ll lose herself in her studies, explore ancient architecture, and eat plenty of pasta and gelato. (Plus, she’ll be getting college credit for it—another goal accomplished!) But can even completely logical Kate resist the romance of living in a beautiful villa in the city where those star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet met and died for each other? Especially when the other Shakespeare Scholars—in particular Giacomo, with his tousled brown hair, expressive dark eyes, and charming ways—try hard to break her protective shell?

“In fair Verona, where we lay our scene . . . ”