Book cover courtesy of SyndeticsOnyx and Ivory, Mindee Arnett

They call her Traitor Kate. Cast out of the nobility after her father’s attempt to assassinate the high king of Rime, Kate now works for the royal courier service. At night the drakes– flightless dragons– come out to hunt. But Kate was born with a forbidden magic, one that allows her to influence the minds of animals. Her job brings her to the scene of a drake massacre– and to Corwin Tormaine, the son of the king. With their paths entangled, Kate and Corwin must put the past behind them to face this new threat– and an even darker menace stirring in the kingdom. (Publisher summary)

First lines: Out here, darkness meant death.
Kate Brighton urged her weary horse ever faster as night crept over the land of Rime. The gelding labored with the pace already, his pants like whipcracks in the air, and his shoulders and neck lathered with foamy white stripes. But they couldn’t stop, and couldn’t slow down.

Book cover courtesy of SyndeticsHow we roll, Natasha Friend

When the McAvoy family moves to Gull’s Head, Massachusetts, it’s for 14-year-old Quinn’s autistic younger brother’s education. Quinn, however, is eager to start anew after an alopecia areata totalis diagnosis left her bald as a cue ball and the butt of her classmates’ cruel jokes. No one in Gull’s Head knows she’s wearing a wig, so once freshman year starts, Quinn is thrilled to be welcomed by the hip girls, but the once-popular and promising football player Nick Strout is a tough sell. Unlike Quinn’s ability to hide her alopecia under a wig, Nick can’t hide the fact that an accident has left him an amputee. Slowly, a friendship blossoms between Quinn and Nick, and they turn each other’s messed-up world right-side up. (Publisher summary)

First lines: On the first day of seventh grade, Quinn, Paige, and Tara wore matching outfits. Oxford shirts, capri jeans, Keds. They took turns sitting on a stool in Paige’s kitchen while Paige’s mom did their hair. Three matching french braids, three matching bows.

Book cover courtesy of SyndeticsBig bones, Laura Dockrill

Meet Bluebelle, aka BB aka Big Bones. She’s bold, beautiful and beginning her summer holiday. But instead of relaxing she’s forced to write a food diary and an accident upturns her family. And then there’s Max – will they ever move beyond latte art and chamomile tea? (Publisher summary)

First lines:The first thing I ate after my asthma was a crumpet. Ok. Not a crumpet. It was more a set. A set of crumpets.
“Can you push them down again please? They still look raw.”

Book cover courtesy of SyndeticsGirl made of stars, Ashley Herring Blake

Mara and Owen are as close as twins can get, so when Mara’s friend Hannah accuses Owen of rape, Mara doesn’t know what to think. Can her brother really be guilty of such a violent act? Torn between her family and her sense of right and wrong, Mara feels lost, and it doesn’t help that things are strained with her ex-girlfriend, Charlie. As Mara, Hannah, and Charlie come together in the aftermath of this terrible crime, Mara must face a trauma from her own past and decide where Charlie fits into her future. (Publisher summary)

First lines: Charlie refuses to answer my texts. Or she has on her phone on silent. Or she forgot to charge it. Or she had a rare fit of temper and tossed into a toilet, thereby rendering it unusable.