Blaze a trail with two wayward kids as they explore a private forest whose supernatural potentials illuminate the triumphs and follies of desperate imagination.
High school senior Meg revels in being a rebel; cutting class whenever possible and hanging out anywhere she's not supposed to be. Like on a railroad-tracks-covered bridge that's off-limits to trespassers. When she and her friends are busted for trespassing and underage drinking, she's sentenced to spend her spring break riding along with a rookie police officer on his nightshift patrol. To make things worse the cop, John After, is only two years older than Meg, and is sure that he knows all he needs to about her. John has nothing but contempt for her childish rebellion, but that's fine, because the feelings mutual - his straight-laced, by-the-book attitude is everything that Meg hates. But they're about to discover that they have a lot more in common than either one of them could have dreamed and, as they're forced to spend time together, sparks fly and a hot attraction between them becomes undeniable…
"While this is a personal journal of just two people, it feels familiar. We see ourselves as students recalling those teachers that have faded from memory-for some, good riddance, for others, the memory of a teacher who may have turned your life around is indelible. While these personal connections stoke memories, the reader gradually gets introduced into bigger policy matters. Enjoy it. Learn from it. Act on it." - Michael Fullan, OC. Professor Emeritus, OISE, University of Toronto Too Far from Perfect is based on the reflections of a Toronto high school student about her learning journey from pre-school to grade 12. Through a dialogue with her father, educator Charles Pascal, Tai Notar describes the lessons learned about what has made the big difference to her learning and the educational aspirations of her peers. While Tai's focus in on catching teachers and others doing things right, her narrative also calls attention to things that need to change. In this regard, Tai provides some provocative ideas about how public education can move closer to perfect. This father-daughter conversation is a must read for teachers and parents who believe that we need to listen more carefully to the authentic stories of our children and students.
In a novel of action, intrigue, and romance, a U.S. Navy SEAL and an FBI agent race to unravel a mystery–while confronting their own unresolved feelings for each other. In his career as one of America’s elite warriors, Lt. Sam Starrett can do no wrong. In his private life, Sam–the king of one night stands–has done little right. Now, he’s waiting for a divorce and determined to stay active in his young daughter’s life. But when Sam shows up at the door of his ex-wife’s home in Sarasota, Florida, he makes a grisly discovery. His daughter is gone and the body of a woman lies brutally murdered on the floor. FBI agent Alyssa Locke’s relationship with Sam has been overwhelmingly intense and nearly catastrophic, yet it refuses to end. The last time she saw Sam was six months earlier, when they worked together to stop terrorists from assassinating the U.S. President. Much to her dismay, Alyssa is assigned to lead the murder investigation and once again the two are face to face. When explosive information surfaces linking Sam to the still unsolved assassination plot, the stakes are raised. With her reputation hanging in the balance, and her loyalties in question, Alyssa is faced with an impossible dilemma:arrest a man she believes to be innocent, or risk her career. While Alyssa tries to fight their intense attraction, Sam is determined to heat things up between them once again. And the complex case pushes them both to the wrong side of the law–and on the run to discover the truth. As more agents step into the chase, and with Sam’s daughter still unaccounted for, neither Alyssa nor Sam can predict just how deadly hot this situation is about to become. . . . A thrilling novel that ranges back into the days of World War II, into friendships, families, liaisons, betrayals, and the code of honor that binds the U.S. Navy SEALs, Gone Too Far is an electrifying experience in suspense–and a brilliant tale of lives lived on the edge.
The Man Booker Prize finalist Far to Go by acclaimed author Alison Pick is historical fiction at its very best. When Czechoslovakia relinquishes the Sudetenland to Hitler, the powerful influence of Nazi propaganda sweeps through towns and villages like a sinister vanguard of the Reich's advancing army. A fiercely patriotic secular Jew, Pavel Bauer is helpless to prevent his world from unraveling as first his government, then his business partners, then his neighbors turn their back on his affluent, once-beloved family. Only the Bauers' adoring governess, Marta, sticks by Pavel, his wife, Anneliese, and their little son, Pepik, bound by her deep affection for her employers and friends. But when Marta learns of their impending betrayal at the hands of her lover, Ernst, Pavel's best friend, she is paralyzed by her own fear of discovery—even as the endangered family for whom she cares so deeply struggles with the most difficult decision of their lives. Interwoven with a present-day narrative that gradually reveals the fate of the Bauer family during and after the war, Far to Go is a riveting family epic, love story, and psychological drama.
Astrid Bjorklund wants to use her medical training to serve God and feels that He might be leading her in the direction of missionary work. Smarting from a misunderstanding with Joshua Landsverk, the young man she thought she loved, she heads east to a missionary training school, hoping to eventually use her skills in some remote outpost in Africa. When she is called home unexpectedly to help in a family medical emergency, Astrid learns of a deadly measles outbreak on the nearby Indian reservation. She immediately senses the Spirit tugging her to help the Indians and wonders if her "mission field" is not so far away as she had imagined. But if she follows God's call, will love pass her by?
“Real-life news reports of out-of-control hazing by high school sports teams give Lupica’s tale a ripped-from-the-headlines thrill.”—Publishers Weekly South Shore High School’s nationally recognized basketball team is in the midst of a winning season when its team manager is murdered—and aspiring sportswriter, senior Sam Perry, begins to hear stories of hazing that went over the line. As the ranks close against him, he turns to fallen-from-grace city newsman Ben Mitchell for help. And the two will discover just how far a town will go to get a state championship. “Brisk writing and bristling with suspense. Too Far is too smart to figure out. (You won’t.) It’s terrific.”—Patricia Cornwell “Surprising, dark...stunning…filled with twisting plot, crackling dialogue and unforgettable characters.”—*Harlan Coben “It’s simple, you can write or you can’t. Lupica can. And Too Far proves it again.”—Robert B. Parker
The New York Times bestselling novel that continues the passionate story of Rush and Blaire from Fallen Too Far. Our relationship had been short. Intense and brief. I wondered what it would have felt like to curl up in Rush’s arms anytime I wanted. To know I was safe and that he loved me. We’d never had that chance. Just when Blaire allowed herself to fall for her stepbrother, Rush, he revealed a life-altering secret so devastating that she couldn’t forgive him. Unable to face him again, Blaire leaves the promise of true love behind in Rosemary Beach and returns to the comforts of her small town in Alabama, wanting nothing more than to put the summer behind her. But unexpected news complicates Blaire’s plans, and she’s forced to trust the one man she shouldn’t. Trapped between Rush’s fierce desire to win her back and her own sense of self-preservation, Blaire doesn’t know if she’s doing the right thing...or if she’s making the biggest mistake of her life.
"Filled with tension and heart-in-your-throat suspense that kept me guessing to the very end."-Jennifer Brown, author of Hate List and Thousand Words on Six Months Later Send me a name. Make someone pay. Piper Woods can't wait to graduate. To leave high school-and all the annoying cliques-behind. But when she finds a mysterious notebook filled with the sins of her fellow students, Piper's suddenly drowning in their secrets. And she's not the only one watching... An anonymous text invites Piper to choose: the cheater, the bully, the shoplifter. The popular kids with their dirty little secrets. And with one text, Piper can make them pay. But the truth can be dangerous... Praise for Six Months Later: YALSA Teens Top 10 nominee "[A] smart, edgy thriller."-Kirkus "Well paced and beautifully written...This romantic thriller will leave readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page. Recommend it to fans of Gayle Forman's If I Stay (Dutton, 2009) and Lissa Price's Starters (Delacorte, 2012)" School Library Journal "An intense psychological mystery... has the feel of a high-stakes poker game in which every player has something to hide." Publishers Weekly