YA Mystery & Crime

In Edward Bloor’s 1997 debut novel, Tangerine, Paul Fisher navigates the treacherous waters of attending middle school in a new town. In this young adult novel, the coming-of-age tale is complicated by the mystery of why Paul lost so much of his sight—the apocryphal story is that he looked at an eclipse too long—and by the presence of his violent older brother, Erik.Included in the ALA Top Ten Best Books of the Year, Tangerine teams... Read Tangerine Summary

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The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime that Changed Their Lives (2017) is a work of narrative nonfiction by Dashka Slater, a journalist and children’s book author. The book covers an event that happened on November 4, 2013, when two high school students were riding the same city bus and one set the other on fire.The interaction between these two teenagers lasts just a matter of minutes, but the events... Read The 57 Bus Summary

In a future America, seventeen-year-old Jenna Fox awakes from a year-long coma with no memory of her family or her past. She remembers the darkness of her coma, but not the terrible accident that caused it. Her mother encourages her to watch home movies to jog her memory. Her father, a rich doctor and head of a medical research corporation, is usually away on business. Lily, Jenna’s grandmother, is strangely cold towards Jenna. Jenna attempts... Read The Adoration of Jenna Fox Summary

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Published in 1939, The Big Sleep by novelist and screenwriter Raymond Chandler is a murder mystery widely regarded as one of the greatest hard-boiled detective stories of the 20th century. The work introduces Philip Marlowe, a fictional private eye with a jaundiced view of humanity but a strong sense of fairness, who appears in seven other novels by Chandler. Hired by a super-rich family to negotiate with a blackmailer, Marlowe encounters murder, mayhem, and a... Read The Big Sleep Summary

Not far from Cincinnati in 1830 lies a “great forest” occupied by the scattered homes of early settlers. Among them is an old, neglected cabin with a front door and boarded-up window. For decades, a white-haired man named Murlock has lived there; he looks 70 but is really 50. He lets his yard grow wild and provides for himself by selling animal skins.Murlock is found dead at his cabin, apparently of natural causes. He’s buried... Read The Boarded Window Summary

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The Castle of Otranto, first published in 1764 by English author Horace Walpole (1717-1797), is considered the first supernatural work of Gothic fiction, influencing many well-known 19th century writers such as Clara Reeve, Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe, and Robert Louis Stevenson.The five-chapter long novella revolves around the mysterious supernatural events at the titular castle, whose owner goes to villainous lengths to maintain control of it. Walpole introduces Gothic elements that drive the... Read The Castle of Otranto Summary

The Compound is a 2008 young adult novel by S.A. Bodeen. Much of the story is set in what appears to be a post-apocalyptic setting: a compound built by the narrator’s father, which houses the main characters after a nuclear attack destroys much of humanity. However, the characters begin to suspect that the world outside the Compound may exist, and that their father has been lying to them. Bodeen examines themes of family, shame, survival... Read The Compound Summary

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Book DetailsIn the mystery novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Christopher Boone, a brilliant teenage boy, sets out to solve the murder of his neighbor’s dog. While it is not explicitly stated in the novel, critics and professional medical reviewers generally agree that Christopher has autism. Written by Mark Haddon and published in 2003, the book won the Whitbread Book Award for best Novel and Book of the Year and the... Read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Summary

Caroline B. Cooney’s The Face on the Milk Carton is a work of young adult fiction originally published in 1990. The first of “The Janie Books,” it has sold over 4 million copies, spawned five sequels, and was adapted into a 1995 TV movie starring Kellie Martin. The novel was often challenged or banned after its publication due to its references to cults and sexual activity. This guide references the 2012 paperback edition.Plot SummaryFifteen-year-old Janie... Read The Face on the Milk Carton Summary

The False Prince, by Jennifer A. Nielsen, is a YA fantasy novel published in 2012 by Scholastic Books and the first book in the Ascendance Trilogy.The story opens with Bevin Conner, a powerful regent in King Eckbert of Carthya’s court, arriving at Mrs. Turbeldy’s Orphanage for Disadvantaged Boys. Conner is there to collect Sage, the narrator of the story, for a royal mission, though the exact nature of the mission is unclear. Sage is a... Read The False Prince Summary

The Girl I Used to Be, by April Henry, is a young adult mystery novel published in 2016. It takes place in a contemporary, small-town setting and taps into the current widespread interest in true crime narratives. The novel was named to the International Literacy Association’s Children’s Choice List and won the Anthony Award, in addition to being a finalist for several other awards.Plot SummaryOlivia Reinhart is an orphaned teenaged girl living in Portland. She... Read The Girl I Used to Be Summary

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die is a thriller/suspense novel by New York Times-bestselling author April Henry. Published in 2013, the novel involves a 16-year-old protagonist who wakes up in a cabin in the woods. She has no recollection of who she is or how she’s ended up in the cabin. There are obvious signs that she’s been tortured, and she overhears that she is going to be killed. With this beginning, The Girl... Read The Girl Who Was Supposed To Die Summary

The Good Nurse: A True Story of Medicine, Madness, and Murder by Charles Graeber is a true crime biography of the life of Charles Cullen, one of the most prolific serial killers in US history. Graeber is an American journalist who spent time as a medical student before moving on to journalism, writing for many prolific news outlets. His joint history in medicine and writing provides him with the necessary expertise to explain the intimacies... Read The Good Nurse Summary

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