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We have quite a fantastic list of new releases to share with you today, as some of the most anticipated books of the season are among this week's offerings, including Melissa de la Cruz's 4th installment in the Blue Bloods series, THE VAN ALEN LEGACY; yet another wacky Georgia Nicolson adventure with an equally wacky title, ARE THESE MY BASOOMAS I SEE BEFORE ME?; not to mention a holiday-themed romance from Kate Brian, EX-MAS. Fans of The Hunger Games should not miss James Dashner's dystopic sci-fi novel, THE MAZE RUNNER, as well as Scott Westerfeld's illustrated spin on World War I in LEVIATHAN.


New Releases for October 5th

Hardcover

FIRE by Kristin Cashore (Dial Books for Young Readers)
She is the last of her kind...

It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her.

Exquisitely romantic, this companion to the highly praised GRACELING has an entirely new cast of characters, save for one person who plays a pivotal role in both books. You don't need to have read GRACELING to love FIRE. But if you haven't, you'll be dying to read it next.


New Releases for October 6th

Hardcover

BAD APPLE by Laura Ruby (HarperTeen)
"If I really wanted to open up, I'd confess that I really am the liar everyone believes I am."

High-school junior Tola Riley has green hair, a nose ring, an attitude problem, and a fondness for fairy tales, which are a great escape from real life. Everyone thinks she's crazy; everyone says so. Everyone except Mr. Mymer, her art teacher. He gets her paintings and lets her hang out in the art room during lonely lunch periods.

But then rumors start flying and Tola is suddenly the center of a scandal. The whole town is judging her --- even her family. When Mr. Mymer is suspended for what everyone thinks is an affair, she has no choice but to break her silence. Fairy tales won't help her this time . . . so how can she tell the truth? And, more importantly, will anyone believe her?

HOW BEAUTIFUL THE ORDINARY: Twelve Stories of Identity, edited by Michael Cart (HarperTeen)
A girl thought to be a boy steals her sister's skirt, while a boy thought to be a girl refuses to wear a cornflower blue dress. One boy's love of a soldier leads to the death of a stranger. The present takes a bittersweet journey into the past when a man revisits the summer school where he had "an accidental romance." And a forgotten mother writes a poignant letter to the teenage daughter she hasn't seen for fourteen years.

Poised between the past and the future are the stories of now. In nontraditional narratives, short stories, and brief graphics, tales of anticipation and regret, eagerness and confusion present distinctively modern views of love, sexuality, and gender identification. Together, they reflect the vibrant possibilities available for young people learning to love others --- and themselves --- in today's multifaceted and quickly changing world.

ICE by Sarah Beth Durst (Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster)
When Cassie was a little girl, her grandmother told her a fairy tale about her mother, who made a deal with the Polar Bear King and was swept away to the ends of the earth. Now that Cassie is older, she knows the story was a nice way of saying her mother had died. Cassie lives with her father at an Arctic research station, is determined to become a scientist, and has no time for make-believe.

Then, on her eighteenth birthday, Cassie comes face-to-face with a polar bear who speaks to her. He tells her that her mother is alive, imprisoned at the ends of the earth. And he can bring her back --- if Cassie will agree to be his bride.

That is the beginning of Cassie's own real-life fairy tale, one that sends her on an unbelievable journey across the brutal Arctic, through the Canadian boreal forest, and on the back of the North Wind to the land east of the sun and west of the moon. Before it is over, the world she knows will be swept away, and everything she holds dear will be taken from her --- until she discovers the true meaning of love and family in the magical realm of Ice.

THE VAN ALEN LEGACY: A Blue Bloods Novels, by Melissa de la Cruz (Disney-Hyperion)
With the stunning revelation surrounding Bliss's true identity comes the growing threat of the sinister Silver Bloods. Once left to live the glamorous life in New York City, the Blue Bloods now find themselves in an epic battle for survival. Not to worry, love is still in the air for the young vampires of the Upper East Side. Or is it? Jack and Schuyler are over. Oliver's brokenhearted. And only the cunning Mimi seems to be happily engaged.

ARE THESE MY BASOOMAS I SEE BEFORE ME? by Louise Rennison (HarperTeen)
For Georgia, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Just when she thought she was the official one-and-only girlfriend of Masimo, he's walked off into the night with the full hump, leaving Georgia all aloney on her owney --- again. All because Dave the Laugh tried to do fisticuffs at dawn with him!

Two boys fighting over Georgia? It's almost as romantic as Romeo and Juliet . . . though perhaps a touch less tragic.

It's time for Georgia to get to the bottom (oo-er) of this Dave the Laugh spontaneous puckering business once and for all. It's like they always say: If you snog a mate in the forest of red bottomosity and no one is around to see it, is he still a mate? Or is he something more?

LEVIATHAN written by Scott Westerfeld and illustrated by Keith Thompson (Simon Pulse)
It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet.

Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker and a loyal crew of men.

Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.

With the Great War brewing, Alek's and Deryn's paths cross in the most unexpected way...taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure. One that will change both their lives forever.

THE MAZE RUNNER by James Dashner (Delacorte Books for Young Readers)
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade --- a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.

Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up --- the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers.

Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.


Paperback

EX-MAS: A Love/Hate Story, by Kate Brian (Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing)
Seventeen-year-old Lila Beckwith's parents just left for vacation, and Lila's all set to throw the holiday party of the season. But when her Christmas-obsessed little brother, Cooper, discovers that global warming is melting the North Pole, he and his best friend, Tyler, take off on a runaway mission to save Santa.

Lila has to get Cooper safely home before her parents get back on Christmas Eve. But the only person who can help her is Tyler's older brother, Beau --- a.k.a. Lila's musician, anti-everything ex-boyfriend.

It'll take more than a Christmas miracle for Lila and Beau to overcome their differences and find their fugitive brothers. But could a journey destined for disaster help these polar opposites fall in love...all over again?

GO AHEAD, ASK ME by Nico Medina and Billy Merrell (Simon Pulse)
Would you rather be a stereotypically beautiful class-A moron or a Nobel Prize winner with a gimp arm?

Your best friend's significant other hits on you --- and not in a cute, in-front-of-your-best-friend sort of way. What to do? Blow them off? Flirt back? Play it cool, then fill your friend in?

Would you rather marry the love of your life and have no friends, or never marry and have friends for life?

Whether you're hanging out with your besties or getting closer to your crush, these five hundred questions are sure to spark convos, truths, laughs, and buried secrets. Start from the front, the back, or flip to any page to find out who you --- and your friends --- really are.