House of Secrets, by Chris Columbus

Summary:  Cordelia, Brendan, and Eleanor Walker, aged fifteen to eight, must rely on a mysterious book to face the Wind Witch and her father, the Storm King, who have kidnapped Dr. and Mrs. Walker and brought them to a strange world of magic.

Balzer+Bray

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Wicked Cruel, by Rich Wallace

Summary: Three separate short stories, all set in the same New Hampshire town, explore the truth behind local urban legends as, for example, sixth-grader Jordan begins seeing a boy from his school who died of injuries after being bullied.

Knopf

Summer of the Mariposas, by Guadalupe Garcia McCall

Summary:  When Odilia and her four sisters find a dead body in the swimming hole, they embark on a hero’s journey to return the dead man to his family in Mexico. With the supernatural aid of ghostly La Llorona via a magical earring, Odilia and her little sisters travel a road of tribulation to their long-lost grandmother’s house.  Can these fantastic trials prepare Odilia and her sisters for what happens when they face their final test, returning home to the real world, where goddesses and ghosts can no longer help them? Summer of the Mariposas is not just a magical Mexican American retelling of The Odyssey , it is a celebration of sisterhood and maternal love.

Tu Books

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The Wednesdays, by Julie Bourbeau

Summary: In a village where peculiar things happen every Wednesday, one boy must save the town to save himself.

Knopf

The Storm Makers, by Jennifer Smith

Summary: Twelve-year-olds Ruby and Simon have been growing apart since their parents moved them to a Wisconsin farm, but weird weather events that seem tied to Simon’s emotions bring a stranger into their lives who introduces them to the Makers of Storms Society, strengthening the bond between the twins.

Little, Brown

The Exceptionals, by Erin Cashman

Summary:  Fifteen-year-old Claire, apparently the only normal student at a school for people with supernatural powers, learns that she is the subject of a famous prophecy, and when fellow students start disappearing, she must use her ability to communicate with animals to help them.

Holiday House

Oddfellow’s Orphanage, by Emily Winfield Martin

Summary:  Although mute, Delia quickly becomes part of the “family” at a most unusual orphanage, where classes include Fairy Tale Studies, a field trip may result in a monster sighting, and classmates include a hedgehog and a boy whose head is an onion.

Random House

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Akata Witch, by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

Summary:  Twelve-year-old Sunny Nwazue, an American-born albino child of Nigerian parents, moves with her family back to Nigeria, where she learns that she has latent magical powers which she and three similarly gifted friends use to catch a serial killer.

Viking

The Midnight Gate, by Helen Stringer

Summary:  Twelve-year-old Belladonna Johnson, who lives with the ghosts of her parents, once again teams up with her classmate Steve, whose mother has suddenly disappeared, when they are given a dangerous assignment by a ghostly monk involving a return to the Dark Times.

Feiwel & Friends

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The Only Ones, by Aaron Starmer

Summary:  After setting off from the island where he has been leading a solitary existence, thirteen-year-old Martin discovers a village with other children who have been living similarly without any adults, since the grown-ups have all been spirited away.

Delacourte

Dragons of Ordinary Farm, by Tadd Williams and Deborah Beale

Summary:  When their great-uncle Gideon invites Tyler and Lucinda to his farm for the summer, they discover his animals are extremely unusual.

Harper