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This is a comic school adventure built around role-playing, a video game and a scheme to outsmart another pupil. Its central appeal appears to be the mismatch between the game’s fantasy and school life.

A fantasy adventure shaped by divided loyalties, perilous plans and the prospect of war, with the brothers’ relationship under strain.

This is a fantasy quest story centred on Four Winds, a young warrior trying to save his tribe. The journey involves a spirit horse, hostile forces and a dangerous final adversary.

This is a fast-moving disaster story centred on children confronting a hurricane’s danger, while also carrying family worries, illness and efforts to reach or help people and animals.

This is a fantasy sequel about Azra learning what being Jinn means while navigating human and Jinn worlds, official scrutiny, hidden information and a possible uprising affecting more than her immediate circle.

A fast-moving Hardy Boys mystery combines exploration, investigation and danger. Frank and Joe follow the mystery of a swallowed statue into tunnels and an abandoned underground city, where a criminal group threatens Bayport.

A fast-moving survival adventure places Sam and Delphy in immediate danger from wildfire while their developing friendship becomes central to their effort to reach safety.

A warm, episodic family story in which each child encounters a different mishap or opportunity. It combines humour and adventure with working life, financial constraint and the affection holding a large family together.

This is a frontier adventure about two friends seeking new beginnings, with danger arising after a mistake. Its central appeal appears to be action combined with a friendship tested under pressure.

This is a high-stakes young-adult mystery about loyalty, identity and truth. Nearly’s investigation crosses community, family and school pressures, with danger becoming increasingly personal.

A lively story about a child whose entrepreneurial idea grows rapidly, testing friendships and responsibilities. It offers an engaging way to think about ambition, persistence and the consequences of taking risks.

A lively detective adventure centred on sisters, friendship and a tightly connected high-rise community. The mystery moves through clues, suspects and reversals, balancing comic sibling exchanges with the seriousness of murder and its effects.

A fast-moving survival adventure where four children must depend on one another in an unfamiliar rainforest. Alongside practical dangers, it explores courage, trust, fear, friendship and the difficult choices needed to keep going.

This is a fast-moving virtual-reality adventure with a capable but vulnerable protagonist, combining tournament gameplay with a mystery about a threatening player and technology’s real-world consequences.

This is a character-led coming-of-age novel about identity, secrecy, family and finding community. Its emotional centre is Amir’s attempt to reconcile his Muslim family life, sexuality, fear and desire for freedom.

Expect a fast-moving, imaginative adventure in which time travel connects family relationships, grief and responsibility. The story also makes room for humour, friendship and emotional growth, with Al facing both practical dangers and difficult choices.

This is a wartime story about a child whose ordinary village life is disrupted by evacuation, military preparations and a missing cat. It combines danger, friendship and a later family connection across generations.

A survival adventure built around two sisters, a forbidden rewilded landscape and the challenge of finding a route home. Its imagined future also brings together wildlife, environmental change and questions about human access to nature.

Expect a lively, illustrated fantasy quest built around an underdog team. The story combines dungeon challenges, comic world-building and a friendship arc, while Kit’s impulsive decision creates the central problem.

A strange, claustrophobic survival story about people sharing an inescapable place, confronting missing memories and deciding whether a dangerous escape is worth attempting.

Best suited to readers who enjoy high-stakes fantasy, unusual weather magic and court intrigue. Expect romantic tension, dangerous storms and a deliberately unfinished-feeling first instalment.

This is a socially focused YA novel about a young person navigating foster and group-home life, exclusion and threatened displacement, with suspense from arson and a developing romance.

Choose this for a young reader who enjoys brisk adventure, teamwork and high-stakes missions. Its central appeal is action: a television project becomes a dangerous situation involving a terrorist, hostages and a bushfire.

This is a coming-of-age novel about a troubled teenager finding trust, purpose and belonging through stock-car racing and an unexpected family relationship. Its appeal lies in character change, racing detail and emotional upheaval.

A faith-centred historical adventure about rebuilding Jerusalem, political danger and a young person discovering where he belongs. Expect biblical themes, journeys, opposition and an emphasis on courage, loyalty and service.

This is a high-stakes fantasy adventure centred on competing responsibilities: returning home, preventing war, rescuing friends and stopping monsters from returning. Its strongest apparent appeal is sustained peril combined with loyalty and impossible-looking choices.

A dark coming-of-age fantasy about belonging, secrecy and divided identity. Mackie’s wish for ordinary life is disrupted by a missing baby, leading him towards an unsettling hidden world and a choice about where he belongs.

Expect an offbeat adventure centred on a circus boy whose attempt to find interest beyond his unusual home brings an unsettling complication. Its distinctive setting and comic premise may appeal, while the kidnapping introduces genuine suspense.

A wilderness-survival story about two boys whose floatplane’s engine failure leaves them stranded and facing dangerous conditions and an approaching winter. Their differing cultural backgrounds become part of a relationship shaped by practical dependence.

A parent-preview choice for a teenager ready to discuss unequal relationships, grief and financial pressure.