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BLOOD RED HORSE BY K.M. GRANTBloodRedHorse

SYNOPSIS: Will longs to be a knight, like his older brother Gavin. Then he could ride a charger, fight bravely in the Crusades for King Richard and win the heart of a fair maiden. All he needs is a horse. And when he chooses a horse, he chooses well - a small chestnut stallion with a blaze on its forehead...

REVIEW: This is a gripping story, exciting and sad. Follow an amazing adventure story with twists and turns. I enjoyed it so much! CS Age 12

FLOUR BABIES BY ANNE FINEFlourBabies

Class 4C are having a science fair, perfectly ordinary except that 4C is a mixture of immature, idiotic boys. When Simon Martin has the terrible job of looking after a bag of flour as if it were a child, he discovers the difficulties of being a parent...SA Age 12

MIDNIGHTERS: THE SECRET HOUR BY SCOTT WESTERFELDMidnighters

SYNOPSIS: Strange things happen at midnight in the town of Bixby, Oklahoma. Time freezes. Nobody moves. For one secret hour each night, the town belongs to the dark creatures that haunt the shadows. Only a small group of people know about the secret hour - only they are free to move about the midnight time. These people call themselves Midnighters. Each one has a different power that is strongest at midnight: Seer, Mindcaster, Acrobat, Polymath.
For years the Midnighters and the dark creatures have shared the secret hour, uneasily avoiding one another. All that changes when the new girl with an unmistakable midnight aura appears at Bixby High School. Jessica Day is not an outsider like the other Midnighters. She acts perfectly normal in every way. But it soon becomes clear that the dark creatures sense a hidden power in Jessica ...and they're determined to stop her before she can use it.

REVIEW: This is a really exciting book, slightly scary, full of action. I enjoyed i thoroughly. It is a highly believable story, funny as well as sad. CS Age 12

 

Double CrossDOUBLE CROSS BY MALORIE BLACKMAN

SYNOPSIS: Everyone assumes the bomb that killed Callie Rose's grandmother was the work of a nought terrorist. But Callie Rose knows the truth - and her fear of the past leaves her afraid for her future. Her boyfriend Tobey is worried about his own future. A nought boy at an exclusive school Tobey hopes to keep out of trouble, go to university, get a good job and leave the dangerous streets of his childhood behind. But Tobey is discovering that he can't keep clinging to some kind of no-man's land while the neighbourhood around him is carved up by rival gangs. Then he is offered the chance to earn some ready money just making a few 'deliveries'. He doesn't want a part of that world, the world of gangs. But maybe he could get away with it, just this once ...He little realizes how his decision will bring violence down on both himself and Callie and just how far he will go in fighting back...

REVIEW: This is the last of the Noughts and Crosses series. It gives you  a real life insight into racial discrimination. It is fantabulous! If you haven't read the other books... CS Age 12

THE PRINCESS DIARIES BY MEG CABOTPrincess Diaries

REVIEW: Mia is an ordinary teenager but then comes the fateful day when she finds out she is a PRINCESS! How will Mia cope with her new duties and how will she get over her crush for mega-hottie Josh Richter... SA Age 12

GINGER SNAPS BY CATHY CASSIDYGinger Snaps

REVIEW: Ginger Brown used to be an outcast, a fat, scabby-kneed girl with no friends. Then she got a makeover, became Shanon's best friend and became blissfully happy... But then comes Sam Taylor who make Ginger's heart flutter. Can Ginger and Shannon stay best friends forever or are they drifting apart... SA Age 12

THE ROAR BY EMMA CLAYTONRoar

SYNOPSIS: Twelve-year old twins, Mika and Ellie, live in a future behind a wall - safe from the plague animals beyond. Or so they've been told. But when one of them disappears, and the other takes part in a sinister virtual reality game, they begin to discover their concrete world is built on lies. Determined to find each other again, they go in search of the truth. And as a strange sound in their heads grows to a roar, they find out that children and the planet have never mattered more...

REVIEW: This is a very exciting book. As things start to unfold the plot thickens. Life behind the wall is about to explode. A great read for both girls and boys. CS Age 12

THE GIFT BY ALISON CROGGONGift

SYNOPSIS: Maerad is a slave in a desperate and unforgiving settlement, taken there as a child when her family is destroyed in war. She is unaware that she possesses a powerful gift, a gift that marks her as a member of the School of Pellinor.

REVIEW: This has to be one of, if not my favourite series of books. Set in a world when the Light is giving way to the dark. It's a great book, full of adventure, friendship and sorrow. CS Age 12

RIBBLESTROP BY ANDY MULLIGAN (PUBLISHED APRIL 2009)Ribblestrop

SYNOPSIS: Roofless dormitories, distracted teachers and a lethally dangerous underground labyrinth - Ribblestrop's visionary headmaster is out of his depth even before the pupils arrive! And when they do - what a bunch! There's Sanchez, a Colombian gangster's son hiding from kidnappers; Millie, an excluded arsonist and self-confessed wild child; Caspar, the landlady's spoiled grandson; the helpful but hapless Sam and his best friend Ruskin, plus a handful of orphans from overseas, who are just happy to have beds - even if they are located in a roofless part of the building...Anything could happen - and anything does!

REVIEW: This is a wonderful book. It has a wonderful twist of hilarious accidents and a dark danger lurking beneath everything else (literally). This is a great book so give it a go. CS Age 12

MISTER MONDAY BY GARTH NIXMister Monday

SYNOPSIS: Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins. One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world - where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets.

REVIEW: A thoroughly enjoyable book - adventure, excitement, power - oh and a boy who was meant to die. Somehow, by chance, Arthur is caught up with the business of the House. Will life ever be the same again? CS Age 12

SABRIEL BY GARTH NIXSabriel

SYNOPSIS: Sabriel must return to a world filled with parasitical spirits, Mordicants, and Shadow Hands -- for her missing father is none other than The Abhorson. His task is to lay the disturbed dead back to rest.
Taking on her father's title and duties Sabriel must battle the evil forces that lurk in the icy river of Death, waiting for an opportunity to escape into the realm of the living.

REVIEW: An extraordinary book. If you like magic in a story (even if you don't) just try this book. Things are appearing that shouldn't be, with her father missing Sabriel must take up position as the Abhorsen and send the dead back where they belong. CS Age 12

GUANTANAMO BOY BY ANNA PERRERAGuantanamo boy

SYNOPSIS: Khalid, a fifteen-year-old Muslim boy from Rochdale, is abducted from Pakistan while on holiday with his family. He is taken to Guantanamo Bay and held without charge, where his hopes and dreams are crushed under the cruellest of circumstances. An innocent denied his freedom at a time when Western boys are finding theirs, Khalid tries and fails to understand what's happening to him and cannot fail to be a changed young man...

REVIEW: This book is just astounding. It makes you feel angry, sad and horrified as you follow one innocent boy's living nightmare as he is forced into survivinh hideous torture and cruelty in Guantanamo Bay. It shows you the worst of people but it also shows you how kind people can be, finding friendship in strange forms! CS Age 12

MAGYK BY ANGIE SAGEMagyk

SYNOPSIS: A baby girl is rescued from a snowy path in the woods. A baby boy is stillborn. A young Queen is taken ill. An ExtraOrdinary Wizard mysteriously resigns from his post. And all on the same night.
A string of events, seemingly unconnected, begins to converge ten years later, when the Heap family receive a knock at the door. The evil Necromancer DomDaniel is plotting his comeback and a Major Obstacle resides in the Heap family. Life as they know is about to change, and the most fantastically fast-paced adventure of confused identities, magyk and mayhem, begin.

REVIEW: A rather funny book, but with dark plots and danger. It's very exciting as Septimus Heap, a seventh son of a seventh son, is plunged into a world of mystery. As apprentice to the Extra-Ordinary Wizard, his life is more complicated than most... CS Age 12

THE BOOK THIEF BY MARKUS ZUSAKBook Thief

SYNOPSIS: 1939 - Nazi Germany - The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier. Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall. Some important information - this novel is narrated by death. It's a small story, about: a girl; an accordionist; some fanatical Germans; a Jewish fist fighter; and quite a lot of thievery. Another thing you should know - death will visit the book thief three times.

REVIEW: A deep heart-wrenching tale that reveals the life of an ordinary girl's life during the war. It has powerful messages about friendship, hints of dark danger but it is simply a marvellous book. Don't be daunted by its length - it disappears leaving you craving more... CS Age 12