What if the Great Fire of London wasn't an accident? London, 1666. Eleven-year-old Jem Green is a lonely but resourceful kitchen boy, always in trouble with the cook for pilfering from the larder. He's fascinated by the wealthy visitors he glimpses in the Dukes' household but when the powerful and frightening Count Cazalon requests to meet him, it becomes clear that his life might actually be in danger. And he is not the only child involved in the Count's sinister plan. As Jem starts meeting secretively with Ann, a young sorceress, and Tolly, a mute slave boy who can mind-speak, the three of them piece together the Count's terrible plans to devastate the City of London, and try to understand why Jem is at the heart of it all. 'Recalls Joan Aiken and Sally Gardner in its confident blend of historical fact with creepy fantasy' THE TIMES

Ginny is sure the new girl in her second-grade class will be her best friend. After all, Stephanie is Chinese, just like Ginny. But Ginny soon discovers some puzzling things about Stephanie: she doesn't like Chinese food, she hates her straight black hair, and even more surprisingly, her parents are not Chinese. Drawing on Virginia Loh's real life story, the authors poignantly capture Ginny's dilemma as she navigates between her culture and her friendship.

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Kristin Scott Thomas (The English Patient), directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky (The Counterfeiters) Drawing from decades of work, travel, and research in Russia, Robert Alexander re-creates the tragic, perennially fascinating story of the final days of Nicholas and Alexandra Romanov as seen through the eyes of their young kitchen boy, Leonka. Now an ancient Russian immigrant, Leonka claims to be the last living witness to the Romanovs’ brutal murders and sets down the dark secrets of his past with the imperial family. Does he hold the key to the many questions surrounding the family’s murder? Historically vivid and compelling, The Kitchen Boy is also a touching portrait of a loving family that was in many ways similar, yet so different, from any other. "Ingenious...Keeps readers guessing through the final pages." —USA Today

With the long-chained dragon now free and the rebels' invasion smashed by her exultant fury, young Emperor Chien Hua is ambitious to strike back with increasingly godlike powers that are making him dangerously rash. But the emperor's forces have no hope of launching a counterattack, until a goddess moves to oppose the dragon's will.

A riddle rarely makes sense the first time you hear it. The connection between Dane, a bully, and Billy D, a guy with Down Syndrome, doesn't even make sense the second time you hear it. But it's a collection of riddles that solidify their unlikely friendship. Dane doesn't know who his dad is. Billy doesn't know where his dad is. So when Billy asks for Dane's help solving the riddles his dad left in an atlas, Dane can't help but agree. The unmarked towns lead them closer to secrets of the past. But there's one secret Billy isn't sharing. It's a secret Dane might have liked to know before he stole his mom's car and her lottery winnings and set off on a road trip that will put him face to face with Billy's dad.

Unable to control his binge eating, a morbidly obese teenager nicknamed Butter decides to make live webcast of his last meal as he attempts to eat himself to death.