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* MEJIA, Tehlor Kay. Paola Santiago and the River of Tears. 368p. Disney-Hyperion/ Rick Riordan Presents. Aug. 2020. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781368049177. Gr 5-8--Twelve-year-old Paola 'Pao' Santiago lives in Silver [...]

LANG, Heidi & Kati Bartkowski. Whispering Pines. 320p. S. &S./Margaret K. McElderry Bks. Sept. 2020. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781534460478. Gr 4-8--Twelve-year-old Rae Carter arrives in Whispering Pines, CT, determined to [...]

THE FIFTH AVENUE STORY SOCIETY Rachel Hauck Read by Lisa Larsen Narrator Lisa Larsen captures the wonder of five strangers in New York City who receive mysterious invitations to the [...]

THEN, NOW, ALWAYS Mona D. Shroff Read by Soneela Nankani Single mother Maya Rao seems even more real, thanks to narrator Soneela Nankani's lilting Indian accent with its subtle British [...]

(EA) THE BEGINNING OF EVERYTHING Kristen Ashley Read by Liz Thompson, Dina Pearlman, Stella Bloom, Joniece Abbott Pratt, Esther Wane, Gemma Dawson, et al. Full-cast romance is rare, but The [...]

(EA) I glimpsed an article online recently that advocated for doing your own in-person grocery shopping because it's important, in this digital day and age, that we maintain some human [...]

ORTON, Katharine. Nevertell. 336p. Candlewick/Walker. Apr. 2020. Tr $18.99. ISBN 9781536207125. Gr 4-8--Eleven-year-old Lina lives with her mother Katya in a Siberian work prison in Stalin's Russia. Her mother arranges [...]

BOWMAN, Erin. The Girl and the Witch's Garden. 288p. S. & S. May 2020. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781534461581. Gr 5-8--Twelve-year-old Piper Peavey lives with her father Atticus in Connecticut. As [...]

RYAN, Pam Munoz. Mananaland. 256p. Scholastic. Mar. 2020. Tr $18.99. ISBN 9781338157864. Gr 3-6--Eleven-year-old Maximiliano Cordoba lives in Santa Maria village with his father's extended family of stone masons. On [...]

ELPHINSTONE, Abi. CasperTock and the Everdark Wings. 384p. (Unmapped Chronicles: Bk. 1). Aladdin. Jan. 2020. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781534443075. Gr 4-7--The ultimate underdog, Casper Tock attends Little Wallops British boarding [...]

Isn't it fun to have conversations about your town? I love talking with townies who know not only the oldest house in town but also the best places for a [...]

THE SATURDAY NIGHT SUPPER CLUB Carla Laureano Read by Teri Schnaubelt Narrator Teri Schnaubelt serves up an elegant romance simmering with cooking references. Responding to an article written by freelancer [...]

* MOSS, Tamara. Lintang and the Pirate Queen. 368p. HMH/Clarion. Oct. 2019. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781328460301. Gr 4-7--Twelve-year-old Lintang of Desa village, protected by the sea guardian Nyasamdra, yearns for [...]

WALLIAMS, David. The Midnight Gang. illus. by Tony Ross. 480p. HarperCollins/Harper. Feb. 2018. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9780062561060. Gr 3-6-The Lord Funt Hospital in London is a rambling building with a [...]

CALEJO, Ryan. Charlie Hernandez & the Castle of Bones. 528p. (Charlie Hernandez: Bk. 2). S. & S./Aladdin. Oct. 2019. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781534426610. Gr 4-8--Floridian and animal mage Charlie Hernandez [...]

(EA) THE MISTER E L James Read by Dominic Thorburn, Jessica O'Hara-Baker A sensitive, skillful narration elevates this E L James novel, an obvious departure from her bestselling 50 Shades [...]

(EA) AMERICAN DREAMER Adriana Herrera Read by Sean Crisden Narrator Sean Crisden wraps listeners in the warmth of food truck owner Nesto Vasquez, whose Dominican heritage inspires his delicious Afro-Caribbean [...]

VALENTINO, Serena. The Odd Sisters. 304p. (Villains: Bk. 6). Disney. Jul. 2019. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781368013185. Gr 4-7--Circe, identified as the Enchantress from Disney's Beauty and the Beast, sets out [...]

LACHLAN, Jeremy. Jane Doe and the Cradle of All Worlds. 368p. (Jane Doe Chronicles). Lerner. May 2019. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781541539211. Gr 4 Up--'Cursed' Jane Doe exists to take care [...]

A CHRISTMAS PRAYERWanda E. BrunstetterRead by Rebecca GallagherRebecca Gallagher narrates Brunstetter's wagon train adventure with straightforward simplicity. In 1850, Cynthia heads to California with her mother, her fiance, Walter, and [...]

MARRY ME BY SUNDOWNJohanna LindseyRead by Pilar WitherspoonUnlike the stagecoach that the main character eventually finds herself in, narrator Pilar Witherspoon gives listeners a smooth ride from London to Philadelphia [...]

While mystery and science fiction certainly have tropes that weave through the genres--romance rules for recognizable storylines. Going back 50 years, boss/secretary, nurse/patient, teacher/widower-with-son stories were thick on the ground. [...]

HENDERSON, Leah. One Shadow on the Wall. 448p. S. & S./Atheneum. Jun. 2017. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781481462952. Gr 5-8--In his seaside home in Senegal, 11-year-old Mor Fall experiences the deaths [...]

BARATZ-LOGSTED, Lauren. I Love You, Michael Collins. 240p. Farrar. Jun. 2017. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9780374303853. Gr 4-7--In the summer of 1969, NASA prepares to send Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin [...]

BROWN, Jennifer. Pennybaker School Is Headed for Disaster. illus. by Marta Kissi. 320p. Bloomsbury. Jul. 2017. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781681191744. Gr 4-7--Pennybaker Hill Academy accepts students with unique gifts. Sixth [...]

ROCK CHICK REBORN: Rock Chick, Book 8.5 Kristen Ashley Read by Nicole Small Narrator Nicole Small scores a win with her elegant performance of Kristen Ashley's new Rock Chick novella. [...]

LAUREN'S BARBARIAN: Icehome, Book 1 Ruby Dixon Read by Sean Crisden, Felicity Munroe Narrator Felicity Munroe sells listeners on a planet where blue men mate with Earth women who have [...]

CALLANDER, Drew & Alana Harrison. Mightier Than the Sword. illus. by Ryan Andrews. 320p. (Mightier Than the Sword: Bk. 1). Penguin Workshop. Jul. 2018. Tr $ 13.99. ISBN 9781524785093. Gr [...]

CHASING DOWN A DREAM: Blessings, Book 8 Beverly Jenkins Read by Lynnette Freeman With a silvery smooth voice, narrator Lynnette Freeman conveys the essential message in Jenkins's Blessings series: The [...]

HIS ALONE: For Her, Book 2 Alexa Riley Read by Summer Morton, Jay Crow Narrators Summer Morton and Jay Crow sell obsession in Alexa Riley's For Her series. Morton portrays [...]

ONE NIGHT OF SIN: After Hours, Book 1 Elle Kennedy Read by Joe Arden The award for best sexy Boston accent officially goes to narrator Joe Arden for his depiction [...]

WANTED, A GENTLEMAN KJ Charles Read by Greg Patmore Theodore Swann, editor of London's Matrimonial Adviser, is hired by Mr. Martin St. Vincent to accompany him to Gretna Green in [...]

THE WEIGHT OF IT ALL N.R. Walker Read by Joel Leslie When Henry's boyfriend dumps him for being too fat, Henry joins a gym and meets personal trainer/Greek god Reed [...]

WEISSMAN, Elissa Brent. The Length of a String. 384p. Dial. May 2018. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780735229471. Gr 5-8--Twelve-year-old Imani is many things: a resident of a Baltimore suburb, a big [...]

* Equal time. In my last column, I focused on cozy romance. This time, let's hit shuffle on the player and turn to edgy and paranormal romance. For any Twilight [...]

(b) BLADE OF DARKNESS Dianne Duvall Read by Kirsten Potter Kirsten Potter's narration of Duvall's paranormal series about supercharged fighters who protect unsuspecting humans from vampires is a must-listen on [...]

GLEWWE, Eleanor. Wildings. 3 36p. Viking. Nov. 2016. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9780451468857. Gr 5-8-Rivka Kadmiel accompanies her ambassador father to Ashara for one reason: to find her lost twin brother, [...]

SECOND CHANCE GIRL: Happily, Inc., Book 2 Susan Mallery Read by Tanya Eby Two sisters, Carol and Violet, find romance in the idyllic wedding town of Happily, Inc., California. Narrator [...]

MERRY AND BRIGHT Debbie Macomber Read by Em Eldridge Imagine Merry Knight's surprise when her well-meaning mother and brother, Patrick, give her an online dating account as her Christmas gift. [...]

As the crisp days of fall shift inevitably to the snowy invasion of winter--at least here in the Northeast--I start to hunker down and cozy up. My softest green sweatshirt [...]

LAW, Ingrid. Switch. 224p. (Savvy). Dial. Sept. 2015. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9780803738621. Gr 4-7--Another magical tale that emphasizes every person's unique gifts. Some years have passed in the Beaumont household, [...]

CATERER, Claire M. The Wand & the Sea. 384p. ebook available. S. & S./Margaret K. McElderry Bks. Jun. 2015. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781442457447. Gr 4-7--Holly, her brother Ben, and neighbor [...]

3Q * 4P * J * S Williams, Sean. Crashland: A Twinmaker Novel. Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins, 2014. 480p. $17.99. 978-0-06-220324-3. Crashland picks up in the aftermath of Clair Hill's decision [...]

LOWE, Natasha. The Courage of Cat Campbell. 288p. S. & S./Paula Wiseman Bks. Jan. 2015. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781481418706; ebk. ISBN 9781481418720. Gr 3-7--Eleven year-old Cat Campbell wants the one [...]

(EA) FAIR, BRIGHT, AND TERRIBLE: Welsh Blades, Book 2 Elizabeth Kingston Read by Nicholas Boulton Narrator Nicholas Boulton's imposing presence lends authority to the scheming heroine of this historical novel. [...]

Compromise creates space for love in these new audiobooks * Author Kathleen Woodiwiss (1939-2007) has the signature honor of having created the historical romance in its twentieth-century form. Her alpha [...]

(EA) WHITE HOT: Hidden Legacy, Book 2 Ilona Andrews Read by Renee Raudman Nevada Baylor, a private investigator in a magical Houston, teams up with the dangerously magical Connor 'Mad' [...]

Caitlin is a librarian from Connecticut, and she's been reviewing audiobooks for AudioFile since 2006. She's also been a judge for the Audie Awards since 2009. She is a longtime [...]

ENDE, Michael. The Night of Wishes, tr from German by Heike Schwarzbauer & Rick Takvorian. illus. by Regina Kehn. 224p. New York Review. Oct. 2017. Tr $16.95. ISBN 9781681371887. Gr [...]