AustLit

'When her parents announce their impending separation, Natalie can’t understand why no one is fighting or at least mildly upset. Then Zach and Lucy, her two best friends, hook up, leaving her feeling slightly miffed and decidedly awkward. She’d always imagined she would end up with Zach one day—in the version of her life that played out like a TV show, with just the right amount of banter, pining and meaningful looks. Now everything has changed and nothing is quite making sense.

'Until an unexpected romance comes along and shakes things up even further.

'It Sounded Better in My Head is a tender, funny and joyful novel about longing, confusion, feeling left out and finding out what really matters—from an exciting new voice in Australian YA writing.' (Publication summary)

'When Marlowe gets a heart transplant and a second chance at life, all she wants is to thank her donor’s family. Maybe then she can move on. Maybe then she’ll discover who she is if she’s no longer The Dying Girl.

'But with a little brother who dresses like every day is Halloween, a vegan warrior for a mother and an all-out war with the hot butcher’s apprentice next door, Marlowe’s life is already pretty complicated. And her second chance is about to take an unexpected turn.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Joshua is good at magic tricks, ignoring his homework, and not thinking about life after year twelve. He's not so good at talking to Sophia, the genius in his class who he's had a crush on for years. But with their time together in high school running out, he has to do something about it, soon - because if he's learned one thing, it's that timing is everything, Sophia is smart enough to know that geniuses like her can end up as socially inept recluses. 

'In fact, maybe she's halfway there already, what with the panic attacks and her best (and only) friend Elsie drifting away. All Sophia can do is seek refuge in what she understands best: maths, science, logic. But there's no logical explanation for the odd, almost magical things happening around her. And there are some things no amount of study can prepare you for... ' (Synopsis)

'Second-hand bookshops are full of mysteries

'This is a love story.

'It's the story of Howling Books, where readers write letters to strangers, to lovers, to poets, to words.

'It's the story of Henry Jones and Rachel Sweetie. They were best friends once, before Rachel moved to the sea.

'Now, she's back, working at the bookstore, grieving for her brother Cal. She's looking for the future in the books people love, and the words that they leave behind.

'Sometimes you need the poets

'The new novel from the award-winning author of Graffiti Moon.' (Publication summary)

'Will the secrets of LaRoux Industries finally be exposed by Gideon Marchant, an eighteen-year-old computer hacker and an urban warrior, and fellow rebel and thief Sofia Quinn?

'A year ago, Flynn Cormac and Jubilee Chase made the now-infamous Avon Broadcast, calling on the galaxy to witness LaRoux Industries' corruption. A year before that, Tarver Merendsen and Lilac LaRoux were the only survivors of the Icarus shipwreck, forced to live a double life after their rescue.

'Now, at the centre of the galaxy on Corinth, all four are about to collide with two new players in the fight against LRI.

'Gideon Marchant is an underworld hacker known as the Knave of Hearts, ready to abseil his way past the best security measures on the planet to expose LRI's atrocities. Sofia Quinn, charming con artist, can work her way into any stronghold without missing a beat. When a foiled attempt to infiltrate LRI headquarters forces them into a fragile alliance, it's impossible to know who's playing whom - and whether they can ever learn to trust each other.

'With their lives, loves and loyalties at stake, only by joining forces with the Icarus survivors and Avon's protectors do they stand a chance of taking down the most powerful corporation in the galaxy - before LRI's secrets destroy them all.

'The New York Times bestselling Starbound trilogy comes to a close with this dazzling final instalment about the power of courage and hope in humanity's darkest hour.' (Publication summary)

'Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.

'Lee is captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.

'Flynn is leading the rebellion against the powerful conglomerate that rules Avon. These corporations terraform uninhabitable planets across the universe and recruit colonists with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon.

'Desperate for any advantage, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape together.

'The stunning second novel in the Starbound trilogy is an unforgettable story of love and forgiveness in a world torn apart by war.' (Publication summary)

'It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets to the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.

'Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they're worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.

'Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other's arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder - would they be better off staying in this place forever?

'Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won't be the same people who landed on it.

'The first in a sweeping science fiction trilogy, These Broken Stars is a timeless love story about hope and survival in the face of unthinkable odds.'

'Charlie Duskin is running. Fleeing from failures and memories and friends who have given up on her. And she's not only running, she's chasing things - like a father who will talk to her, friends who don't think she's as invisible as a piece of cling wrap, and an experience with a boy in which she doesn't look like an idiot.

'But Charlie Duskin is about to have the best summer of her life. She's about to meet a friend who'll change her forever. She's about to fall in love. She just doesn't know it yet.' (Publication summary)

'Emily’s dad is accused of murdering a teenage girl. Emily is sure he is innocent, but what happened that night in the woods behind their house where she used to play as a child? Determined to find out, she seeks out Damon Hillary, the enigmatic boyfriend of the murdered girl. He also knows these woods. Maybe they could help each other. But he’s got secrets of his own about games that are played in the dark.' (From the publisher's website.)

'There's a reason that the number thirteen is bad luck: it sucks to be thirteen. You're definitely not a kid anymore, but your parents still treat you like one. No-one escapes thirteen unscathed - not even the best looking, most popular people with straight white teeth. The best you can do is be true to yourself, even when everything's changing. Girl v the World is a funny and inspiring series about thirteen-year-old girls taking on the world. Because you've got to be strong to take it on! Edi lives a weird double life. At school, it seems like everyone loves her, but at home, her parents barely notice she exist – except when her marks aren’t good enough. So when Edi hooks up with her crush Archie, she can hardly believe her luck. Archie is super cute, and his family are the exact opposite to hers – warm and welcoming. Edi finally has the family she’s always wanted and she loves Archie more than anything. But does Archie feel the same way?' (Publication summary)

'Lucy is in love with Shadow, a mysterious graffiti artist. Ed thought he was in love with Lucy, until she broke his nose. Dylan loves Daisy, but throwing eggs at her probably wasn't the best way to show it. Jazz and Leo are slowly encircling each other.

'An intense and exhilarating 24 hours in the lives of four teenagers on the verge: of adulthood, of HSC, of finding out just who they are, and who they want to be.' (From the publisher's website.)

'"I remember when we lay together for the first time and I closed my eyes and felt the crackle of her dark hair between my fingers. She was all warmth and sparking light. When I was with her, my skin sighed that the centre of the world was precisely here."

'Anna is afraid she must be unlovable - until she meets Flynn. Together, the girls swim, eat banana cake, laugh and love. Some days Flynn is unreachable; other days she's at Anna's door - but when Anna discovers Flynn's secret, she wonders if she knows her at all.

'A beautifully crafted novel by award-winning author Joanne Horniman that explores the tension between the tender moments that pull people together and the secrets that push them apart.' (From the publisher's website.)

'In this touching novel for ages 10+, Lucy Christopher explores the remarkable bond between a young girl, a boy and a damaged wild bird - a relationship that will affect everyone who reads it.

'While visiting her father in hospital, thirteen-year-old Isla meets Harry, the first boy to understand her and her love of the outdoors. But Harry is ill, and as his health fails, Isla is determined to help him in the only way she knows how.

'Together they watch a lone swan struggling to fly on the lake outside Harry's window. Isla believes that if she can help the damaged swan, somehow she can help Harry. And in doing so, she embarks upon a breathtakingly magical journey of her own.' (From the publisher's website.)

'Dogleg Bay is one big retirement home; the richest man in town - the funeral director - drives a hotted-up hearse.

'Hunter Vettori is thirteen, and longs to catch a record-breaking mulloway, leave Dogleg Bay, and become bigger then Rexy Hunt.

'On the way, maybe he'll get to kiss a girl (there's only two to choose from and they're twins), save his mum from getting a really bad tatt and find out if Target really has a section called Christian Smart Casual.

'But, above all, Hunter wants his father back.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.