Friday Finds - April 23, 2010

Friday Finds are books that I have come across along the blogosphere, as well as book catalogs, and other sources.  More often than not these books will end up on my bookshelf at one time or another.

At the House of the Magician by Mary Hooper
Publisher : Bloomsbury USA Children's Books
ISBN : 978-0747588863
Release Date : October 12, 2010 (First Published in UK August 6, 2007)
Series : #1 At the House of the Magician Series

Lucy dreams of being a maid in one of the houses of the gentry - anything to get her closer to the queen and further from her drunken father.

By an odd twist of fate, she finds employment at the house of Dr Dee, court magician and consultant to Elizabeth I. Lucy is intrigued by the mysterious work of the doctor and his dark associate, Mr Kelly. She can’t resist poking her nose in, especially if it means catching a glimpse of the queen. But she learns more than she bargained for, and discovers a terrible secret that she must convey to Her Grace at all costs.  

Empty by Suzanne Weyn

Publisher : Scholastic Press

ISBN : 978-0545172783

Release Date : October 1, 2010

Series : Unknown

 

It's the near future - the very near future - and the fossil fuels are running out. No gas. No oil. Which means no driving. No heat. Supermarkets are empty. Malls have shut down. Life has just become more local than we ever knew it could be. 

Nobody expected the end to come this fast. And in the small town of Spring Valley, decisions that once seemed easy are quickly becoming matters of life and death. There is hope - there has to be hope - just there are also sacrifices that need to be made, and a whole society that needs to be rethought. 

Teens like Nicki, Tom, and Leila may find what they need to survive. But their lives are never going to be the same again.

Contagion by Joanne Dahme

Publisher : Running Press Kids

ISBN : 978-0762437382 

Release Date : September 28, 2010

Series : Stand Alone

In her fourth novel Joanne Dahme creates another page-turning tale in which a youngwoman named Rose strives to rid Philadelphia’s water of the deadly typhoid bacteria. Set in the late 19th century, Rose Dugan is a young wife who is actively involved in her community. But when her best friend is killed while working at Philadelphia’s Water Works' gardens, the mystery around her death pulls Rose in. Will she save the city from a deadly typhoid outbreak that is threatening the city’s water system? Will Rose unravel the mystery behind her best friend’s murder—a fate that was actually meant for her?