Magic and misery, by Peter Marino

TJ has never had a boyfriend and falls hard for the new boy in school, Pan, who is funny, classy, beautiful - and gay, as TJ learns when he outs himself in the course of a class discussion one day. The two become close friends. But when TJ starts dating Caspar, things get complicated. Pan is jealous of her time with Caspar, and Caspar is confused about TJ and Pan's friendship.

While I liked the story, there are things I really didn't like. The concept of a "new" emotion - fago - just seems to me to be something a little silly. Do we really need a new emotion? Then there is the matter of sex. For a book about relationships, it is treated way too casually. Readers would be better off reading Sarah Dessen and Alex Sanchez.

13 reasons why, by Jay Asher

On tape, Hannah explains that there are 13 reasons why she decided to commit suicide. Clay is one of them. If he listens to the tapes, he'll find out why. So over the course of one long, terrible night, Clay listens to all 13 taped stories.

This is a heartbreaking book to read as it follows Hannah's descent into despair. If you ever doubted that your simple small acts of kindness can make a difference, this book is an emotional arguement that they matter. A powerful story well told.

Staying fat for Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher

Eric Calhoun (Mobe) survived his early teen years as a fat boy with the help of another social outcast, Sarah Byrnes, whose face and hands are terribly scarred from burns suffered as a small child. Sarah is the bravest, toughest person he's ever known. Now in high school, joining the swim team has changed Mobe's body, but not his fierce loyalty to Sarah. But now Sarah sits unresponsive in a mental ward, and Mobe, at a loss as to how to help her, enlists the help of an old school enemy, his best friend, and even his swim coach. And he discovers that Sarah is still that brave, tough friend, caught in the crosshairs of her abusive dad. Love, loyalty, and courage come in the least expected people as Sarah and Mobe figure out how to keep her safe.

Wow - this author isn't afraid to face tough topics - abuse, abortion, religion, disfigurement, bullying - and he does it without losing perspective and a sense of humor.

Putting makeup on the fat boy, by Bil Wright

Carlos Duarte has a dream of making the big time as a makeup artist, and when he gets hired at one of the Macy's makeup counters, he has a chance to take some real steps toward the dream. But life is never simple, and just as Carlos gets his big break, he has to deal with the jealous diva boss who could undermine his dream plans; his sister's abusive boyfriend; and a fantasy (or is it?) crush on his punk-rocker classmate.

Rot & ruin, by Jonathan Maberry

In a future post-zombie apocalypse United States, Ben Imura has lived his entire 15 years in the isolated community of Mountainside, where at 15 everyone must begin working or face their food ration cut in half. After losing half a dozen jobs, Benny reluctantly agrees to join the "family business" of his older 1/2 brother Tom who is a zombie killer. When the brothers venture out into the Rot & Ruin outside Mountainside, Benny discovers how wrong he has been about many things - from the "coolness" of more flamboyant bounty hunters to the inhuman nature of "zoms", and especially the real nature of the family business. Then Benny's potential girlfriend is kidnapped by Charlie Mathias - a cruel bounty hunter, and the Imura brothers have to work together to try and rescue her before it is too late.

There is lots of adventure, violence, and action balanced with thought provoking questions about bravery and honor and about survivors and victims. And who would have guessed that I would love a zombie book, anyway?

The Marbury lens, by Andrew Smith

Leaving a party at his best friend Connor's, Jack is kidnapped, drugged, tortured and nearly raped. He narrowly escapes his tormentor and returns to Connor's house where he confides all that happened. The boys decide to keep it a secret, but they have fallen into the dark, and will need each other's help to survive.

A mysterious man gives Jack a pair of glasses, through which Jack finds himself in a different, surreal world - one of violence and destruction. Worst of all, a world where Connor is trying to kill him and the 2 younger boys entrusted to Jack's care.

This is a dark and disturbing nightmare of a story that packs an enormous emotional punch. Scary, creepy, and hard to forget.

Carter finally gets it, by Brent Crawford

Will Carter - freshman, ADD, stutterer, and add immature, clueless, too eager, clumsy, and earnest. You have to love a guy like that. Carter bungles his way through his freshman year trying way too hard to be cool and together and even though he misses the mark by a mile, the trip is, well, a trip.

Deadline, by Chris Crutcher

This book was one of the 2011 Abe books, but I delayed reading it because it concerns a dying teen - emotional stuff. But in the hands of a writer like Chris Crutcher, there are themes worth the inevitable tears here. The main character, Ben Wolf, learns he has terminal cancer during a routine sports physical at the opening of his senior year. Being 18, he refuses to let his doctor tell anyone else and refuses treatment. Instead, he sets about making his last year count for a whole lifetime. In the hands of a lesser writer this could be unbearable. But there is no sentimentality, no unnecessary pulling of heartstrings as smart-ass Ben meets his mortality on his own terms and touches the lives of everyone around him.

Before I fall, by Lauren Oliver

Samantha Kingston dies in a fiery car crash, but before she knows what is happening she is allowed to re-live her last day on earth several times before she learns how to make every minute count not only for herself but for others her life impacts. She tries desperately to change that fatal course of events, and with each try, the lives of others are changed for better or for worse, until she finally finds the way.

How to say goodbye in robot, by Natalie Standiford

Bea is tired of moving every year to follow her Dad's career. Isolated from her career obsessed father and her depressed (unhinged?) mother, Bea is reluctant to even try making new friends at her new school. But the daily morning assembly finds her sitting next to Jonah, who is even more isolated than Bea. And the two soon find common interests that include late night talk radio, where Jonah (Ghost boy) and Bea (Robot girl) can communicate. Their relationship grows with shared secrets and stunts, and their friendship runs deep, though never quite into romance.

Senior year becomes an adventure Bea never expected, but life after high school looms as a big unknown.