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Expect a high-stakes resistance story centred on loyalty, oppression and difficult choices. Its speculative world includes a plague’s aftermath, time-travelling operatives and a society controlled through medicine, walls and surveillance.

This is a steampunk-tinged fantasy adventure about identity, political danger and survival. Its strongest appeal is likely Riese herself: capable, resistant to expectations and drawn towards action rather than courtly duties.

A fast-moving historical fantasy about investigations, accusations and escape, set within medieval religious institutions and restrictive expectations for women. Its central interest lies in how characters interpret apparent evil, authority and difference.

A buoyant, unusual adventure pairs a determined child with a loving guardian and a rooftop community. Its imaginative freedom sits alongside peril, precarious living, family uncertainty and moments of physical harm.

A playful but perilous mystery-fantasy, this book combines sensory food imagery, secret societies and puzzles with a kidnapping plot. Its young protagonists confront adults who use deception and threats to pursue extraordinary goals.

An adventurous Arctic quest gradually becomes a confrontation with powerful institutions and adults who control children’s lives. Lyra’s courage, unusual companions and truth-seeking device drive a story that leaves moral boundaries deliberately unsettled.

This is a friendship-centred story about young women seeking room to choose their futures within restrictive social and family structures. Its strongest appeal may be the tension between loyalty, independence and everyday acts of defiance.

This is a mystery about discovering and confronting organised racism in a new community. It offers suspense, a young investigator and questions about how prejudice can be spread through technology and social networks.

Expect a brisk fantasy quest built around danger, escape and puzzle-solving. The book spends substantial time in Noradz, where cleanliness is enforced harshly, before moving towards a frightening confrontation in the City of the Rats.

This is a magical rescue adventure in which Arica responds to the unicorns’ call and confronts a threat to their world. Expect fantasy creatures, danger, loyalty and a child making consequential choices.

A brisk, gadget-filled spy adventure centres on Alex’s mission against Herod Sayle. Its appeal lies in danger, mystery and implausible ingenuity; its intensity comes from repeated threats, killings and peril rather than quiet character development.

A suspenseful children’s adventure about siblings investigating unsettling circumstances in a guarded Cornish house. Expect secrets, danger, teamwork and a wartime political backdrop, alongside melodrama and an intentionally improbable child-led challenge to adults.

A tense story about a young person trying to escape a parent’s extreme survivalist rules while navigating foster care, distrust and the possibility of being found. Its emotional force comes from Amber’s guarded, sharply ironic voice.

This offers a contained lunar mystery with clues, suspects, suspense and humour. Its appeal lies in Dash’s investigation, the unusual space setting and the contrast between boredom, danger and intellectual challenge.

A tense coming-of-age story follows Kadeen as football offers connection and purpose in a new home. Her secret involvement with the team is complicated by her aunt’s opposition and the need to avoid recognition.

This is an idea-rich mystery-fantasy about a girl pursuing knowledge and justice within restrictive Victorian expectations.

Expect brisk, idea-led stories rather than one continuous adventure. Robots, scientists, technicians and institutions face puzzles arising from rules intended to protect people, with the linked structure building a wider argument.

Expect a highly atmospheric Christmas fantasy: cosy feasts and snow sit alongside wolves, criminals, magic, shifting time and pursuit. Its strongest appeal is the uneasy movement from delight into responsibility.

This is a historical fantasy mystery about grief, temptation and friendship, with a vividly frozen London setting. Its magical adventure is balanced by family sorrow, medical history and questions about women’s independence.

A fast-moving supernatural adventure places young characters in conflict with corrupt authority. Its strongest features are the shadowy coastline, escalating danger and clear moral stakes; its spiritual allegory is direct rather than subtle.

This is a team-centred science-fiction adventure about young people confronting the organisation responsible for transforming one of them. Expect secret missions, superhuman and alien abilities, technology, fights and an urgent threat affecting millions.

Expect anarchic humour, imaginative adventures and a central character who challenges adult authority. Pippi’s friendships, confidence and physical strength drive the fun, while the episodic structure offers distinct comic situations rather than one tightly unfolding plot.

Expect a character-led science-fiction story built around rivalry, secrets and a gradually changing relationship. Its school setting includes debate and sparring, while family power, past harm and ethical questions appear to broaden the focus beyond romance.

This is a fast-moving fantasy adventure about a dangerous supernatural challenge, a search across time, and magical self-discovery. It may particularly suit readers who enjoy continuing quests, strange places and ensemble characters.

This is supplementary, perspective-driven fiction: Warner’s novella follows his fixation on Juliette and conflict with the Supreme Commander, while Adam’s centres on protecting Juliette, Kenji and his brother during resistance preparations.

This is a dark historical escape narrative: Alice seeks freedom from family control, but her new community’s leader may impose a different form of entrapment. Its shifting viewpoints broaden the story beyond Alice’s experience.

This offers a historical romance centred on restricted independence, a former prisoner’s attempt to change direction, and attraction complicated by family authority and Jesse’s remaining sentence.

A brisk superhero adventure places an isolated teenage sidekick between loyalty and independence. Expect comic embarrassment, secret identities, action, a developing romance and revelations that challenge Scott’s view of his mentor and himself.

Choose this for a fantasy adventure rooted in family love, storytelling and legend. Its quest structure offers momentum, while stories within the story invite attention to how tales shape courage and understanding.

This is a dark, fast-moving fantasy about a young man caught between government power, organised crime and intimate loyalties. Its strongest offering is sustained moral uncertainty rather than simple heroes and villains.

This is a coming-of-age story about freedom, belonging and complicated attachment. Its central relationship places a young teenager and a married teacher in an emotionally charged situation, alongside difficult changes at home and school.

This is a family-centred story about Mary Fred’s difficult choices, changing responsibilities and uncertain priorities. It also introduces disruption at home, including an overseas separation, a new baby and a forceful relative taking control.

A brisk science-fiction mystery about an academy that may be engineering conflict between humans and robots. Its central appeal is Nico’s investigation, alongside uncertainty about identity and the founder’s purpose.

This is a fantasy rescue adventure about a young prince challenging parental authority to help someone in danger. It offers peril, a fantastical setting and an ending that leaves room for more adventures.

This is a fantasy adventure shaped by bereavement, transformation and responsibility. Edward’s unusual powers connect to a larger struggle involving trapped souls, while his personal challenge is understanding himself and finding his voice.

This is a historical story about an enslaved woman using literacy and a formal appeal while separated from family and facing mistreatment. Its focus is both personal distress and a determined attempt to seek change.

This is a satirical story about teenagers turning consumer choice into organised dissent. Its central appeal lies in the collision between youthful collective power, commercial persuasion and adult claims to authority.

This is a school-and-family story about loneliness, self-expression and belonging. Dennis's passion for fashion becomes publicly difficult when wearing a dress leads to expulsion, threatening both his friendships and his place in football.

Expect a fantastical adventure centred on a small child facing authority, isolation, and imprisonment, with family pressures and assistance from allies.