Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 4

Asagiri, Kafka. Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 4. 2017. 176 p. ISBN 9780316468169. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Following a confrontation between Ryuunosuke and Atsushi on a boat, Atsushi and Kyouka escaped from the clutches of the Port Mafia and returned to the Armed Detective Agency, and new lodging arrangements have both of them living together. Kyouka’s lineage is questioned by the police, but Agency President Fukuzawa claims her as his daughter.

Dazai has traced the name of the group behind the ransom for Atsushi. It is a North American group called the Guild, which is made up of rich and famous politicians, military, and cultural leaders. As the members of the Agency discuss how to deal with this new threat, the Guild arrives at their door and proposes a deal to Fukuzawa: Sell the Agency so that the Guild can use the precious Operations License, or see themselves wiped out. Fukuzawa refuses, but within 24 hours agents begin to disappear.

Atsushi himself falls prey to a trap set by Lucy Montgomery, a Guild member able to create an extradimensional space and use her rag doll Annie to crush her opponents. Atsushi finds himself outclassed and outmaneuvered. Fortunately for him, the Port Mafia is about to fight back against the Guild, and the enemy of their enemy is about to temporarily become their friend...

Shadowshaper

Older, Daniel José. Shadowshaper. 2015. 297p. ISBN 978-0-545-59161-4. Available at FIC OLD on the library shelves.

Sierra Santiago leads a busy life. With school done, she’s looking forward to working on a mural, spending time with friends, and also taking care of her elderly grandfather, who’s losing more and more of his memories. Working on the mural, she notices that the other painting across the street has faded overnight and seems sadder than she remembers it. That night, she attends a party with her best friend but they are attacked by a strange zombie-like guy who relentlessly pursues her.

Sierra discovers that she is one of the Shadowshapers, people who have the power to connect with spirits through paintings, music, and art. These spirits are then willing to do the Shadowshaper’s bidding. This small group is very secretive, and as Sierra investigates she discovers that her grandparents were part of it, but her parents wanted nothing to do with this paranormal power and denied it even existed. Her brother Juan has been introduced to the Shadowshapers by her grandfather. Holding an old photo of her grandfather and his friends, Sierra sees that members of the group are slowly vanishing.

Through the helpful assistance of a librarian at the University, Sierra ascertains that one of her grandfather’s colleague, anthropologist Dr. Jonathan Wick, has used the powers of Shadowshapers to conjure spirits that have been pursuing his own evil plans, including animating the corpses that have been threatening Sierra and her friends. As Wick seeks to become the only one who can control this power, Sierra is the only one who can stop him, but in doing so she will discover information about her family’s past and present she may not be ready to learn.

Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 6

Adachitoka. Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 6. 2015. 181p. ISBN 978-1-61262-996-4. Available in the Graphic Section of the library.

The long awaited confrontation between Bishamon and Yato has now erupted, and the war goddess is overpowering the stray god with her strength and weapons. In Noragami Stray God Vol. 5, Yukiné was sliced in half, destroying Yato’s shinki. However, Yukiné’s single-minded devotion suddenly transforms him into a blessed vessel, and he regains form, this time in the shape of two swords. Bishamon’s shinkis are shocked that such as lowly shinki as Yukimé would be able to achieve such a high status.

Kugaha, Bishamon’s medicine man, continues to observe the titanesque combat between the two gods. Soon, the medicine he gave Bishamon will wear off, and her true blighted nature will reveal itself. To speed the process, he releases an angry Ayakashi amid Bishamon’s shinki, and the Ayakashi proceeds to devour them.

Kazuma and Hiyori, who were emprisoned in Bishamon’s dungeon by Kugaha, manage to escape and join the fray. As Bishamon weakens, Yato is poised to deliver the killing blow. Will the stray god triumph over the war goddess?

Freakling

Krumwiede, Lana. Freakling. Book 1 of the Psi Chronicles series. 2012. 309p. ISBN 0-7636-5937-1. Available at FIC KRU on the library shelves.

The city and countryside of Deliverance has lived at peace ever since its people, led by Nathan, removed themselves from the Republic and sought shelter behind an impassable chain of mountains. Persecuted for their abilities to manipulate their environment through psionics powers, specifically telekinesis, psy wielders found rest and created a new society. That society is now in danger, however, as the priesthood seeks to gain control of psy weapons and enter in an alliance with the Republic against its enemies.

Twelve-year-old Taemon has never known any other world. He uses psi to eat, dress, wash, open locks and turn on the lights. His older brother, Yens, hopes to become a psi ball professional player so he can escape the fate of becoming a religious teacher like his father. For Taemon, however, he still has a year left before he needs to make a decision. When the head priest, Elder Naseph, announces that the True Son prophesized by Nathan has arrived, all eyes turn to Yens, who demonstrates an understanding of psi beyond his years.

However Yens is evil. He attempts to kill Taemon by throwing him over a cliff, and only Taemon’s clairvoyance saves him from drowning. In the process, he loses access to his telekinetic abilities. Having to fake your way through life without the ability to manipulate the environment through his mind, Taemon is soon discovered to be psi-less, and is sent to the Colony, a space reserved for those people who do not have psi.

There Taemon discovers people who do things the old fashioned way: with their hands. He begins a new trade, and makes new friends, including Amma, a beautiful girl. But even in the Colony there are secrets. Why is there a door hidden in Amma’s house that is locked by psi when no one has any here? Why are people disappearing in Deliverance? As secrets are revealed, Taemon must decide if he is willing help his people, knowing that this help will come at a deadly price.

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 3

Asagiri, Kafka. Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 3. 2017. 188 p. ISBN 9780316468152. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Following Atsushi’s rescue of Port Mafia assassin Kyouka Izumi after she made an attempt on a train, he must deal with the consequences of sparing her life. After all, she is wanted by the authorities for over 35 lives lost during the bombing, and at the same time the Port Mafia wants to kill her to prevent her to talk. Having spared her life, he is now responsible to decide what to do with her. Before he can decide, however, he is ambushed by Ryuunosuke and is thrown in the back of a truck. Hoping to deliver Atsushi’s head to a bidder, Ryuunosuke boards a ship with the shapeshifter and congratulates Kyouka’s unwilling role as an accomplice.

The Armed Detective Agency does not react well to Atsushi’s disappearance. The president of the Agency himself orders all personnel to participate in their newest recruit’s rescue. At the same time, Dazai finds himself in the hands of the Port Mafia, chained to a wall. Carrying a death wish, Dazai is visited by his ex-partner, Chuuya Nakahara. Dazai and Chuuya have a tense confrontation, but Chuuya suddenly realizes that Dazai meant to be here at this specific time. Dazai frees himself and investigates who would put such a high price on Atsushi’s head.

Meanwhile, a battle between a damaged Atsushi and a powerful Ryuunosuke erupts aboard the ship carrying them out of the country. Will Atsushi manage to resist Ryuunosuke’s attacks and save Kyouka?

The story continues in Bungo Stray Dogs, vol 4.

Black Butler, Vol 11

Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol 11. 2012. 176p. ISBN 978-0-316-18967-5. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

With the storm abating and all of the guests gone, Sebastian reveals to the Professor what his role was in the murders of three people at Phantomhive Manor. Sworn to protect Ciel Phantomhive, Sebastian had anticipated all but the death of the young Mister Phelps. Which leads him to finding the real thirteenth member of their group during the storm. Having escaped Noah's Ark Circus, Snake has been hunting Ciel and Sebastian for their role in making his adopted family disappear. Ciel convinces him to abandon his quest of revenge and tells Snake he should stay close, as his missing family will surely turn up. Snake agrees to join the staff as a footman, much to the dismay of the personnel below.

Meanwhile in London, a hospital has accomplished the miracle of defeating death. The Aurora Society, led by Rian Stoker, has managed to bring people back from the death. Warned by his agent of the potential for paranormal activity, Phantomhive decides to investigate. The Aurora Society plans a demonstration of its skills aboard a luxury liner heading to New York, so Phantomhive agrees to board the ship, knowing that his fiancee, Elizabeth, who had tried to convince Ciel to take a vacation with her aboard the same ship.

Joining the members of the Society, they witness the impossible. A young woman is brought back from the dead in front of the assembled audience. Unfortunately, she is very hungry ...

Tumble & Blue

Beasley, Cassie. Tumble & Blue. 2017. 390p. ISBN 978-0-525-42844-2. Available at FIC BEA on the library shelves.

Blue Montgomery is a loser. Not in the metaphorical way, in the real world way of losing at everything. Blue always manages to lose any game or activity he participates in, even if it is a one-player game. His father, by contrast, is a winner and never loses. A car racer by profession, Blue’s father is always on the move, looking for another race. This year, however, he decides to drop off Blue at his grandmother’s house in on the edge of the Okefenokee swamp in Georgia. Abandoned in Murky Branch (population 340), Blue discovers that the Montgomerys have been cursed. An ancestor decades ago entered the swamp on a red moon and made a pact with a strange golden alligator named Munch. But the wish went wrong. Half of the Montgomerys are blessed with abilities or talents that make them the envy of the world. The other half? Their talents are deadly, obnoxious, or, like Blue and losing, completely dangerous to their lives.

Now the red moon arises again, and Montgomerys from all over the world are congregating once again in the hopes of being the one to whom Munch will give a wish. Blue finds himself in the frenzy that plagues his grandmother’s house as more and more relatives arrive. Trying to escape them all, he runs into Tumble, a girl who has moved down the street. Her parents are renting a small cabin but Tumble has decided to continue living in their RV. Upon seeing Blue, Tumble makes the decision to save him from his curse. For, you see, Tumble herself follows Maximal Star’s advice to always be the hero. Let the heroing begin!

As they learn more about the curse, Tumble and Blue realize that it will not be as easy as they thought to rid Blue of his bad fate. Great-grandmother Myrtle Montgomery is the only one that knows exactly when the red moon will occur, and she’s making everyone entertain her before she tells her handpicked choice the time. With no hope of being picked, Blue must discover how he can transform himself from a loser to a winner without depending on a mythical golden alligator. But what if that alligator really did exist?

Lyrical and beautifully written, Blue and Tumble’s adventures through the small town of Murky Branch show that fate is never fixed and can always be altered, with a little help from friends and family.

The Demon Covenant

Brennan, Sarah Rees. The Demon Covenant. Book 2 of the Demon Lexicon trilogy. 2010. 440p. 901 mins. ISBN 9781416963813. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

In The Demon Lexicon, Alan and Nick discovered after a confrontation with the magicians of the Obsidian Circle that Nick was not human, but rather an ancient demon inserted in the body of a newborn to achieve Black Archer’s dark purpose of acquiring even more magic. Nick’s capture had failed, and as a result many of the magicians of the circle had been slain. Mae Crawford and her younger brother Jamie had returned to Exeter and resumed their lives. Having discovered that the two siblings were playing their divorced parents against each other, Annabelle, Mae and Jamie’s mother, has assumed sole custody and now keeps a closer eye on her kids.

Mae is flabbergasted when she discovers that Jamie has continued to meet and talk with Gerald, now the leader of the Obsidian Circle. Jamie possesses magical talents and hopes to develop them further, and he is also madly in love with Gerald. She contacts Alan and Nick to inform them of her worries. The two brothers appear to have had a falling out of sorts, and are barely speaking to each other. As Mae work with Nick to attempt to make him appear more human, she also begins to fall for Sebastian, a tough boy at school who’s been picking on Jamie, causing further tensions between herself and her brother. She’s also still attracted to Alan, and to Nick.

With Gerald planning to capture Nick and draining him of magical powers for his own nefarious purposes, Mae realizes that she must unite all of the magicians’ enemies into a strike force to take the magicians out. This, however, will require careful planning and the setting aside of old hatreds. Can Mae maneuver the deadly pitfalls to save everyone she cares about?

Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 5

Adachitoka. Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 5. 2015. 164p. ISBN 978-1-61262-995-7. Available in the Graphic Section of the library.

Hiyori is concerned that Yato has not yet released her tie to the spirit world. She promises she will not forget him, but she needs to stop falling asleep at a moment’s notice as very important exams are coming up soon. Yato meanwhile is still escaping the clutches of Bishamon and her shinkis. When Kazuma’s treachery is discovered, he is imprisoned along with a captured Hiyori in Bishamon’s realm.

Meanwhile, Kugaha’s plot to overthrow Bishamon continues apace. His plan is simple. He has already weakened the goddess of war, and now, with Hiyori’s capture he can use her as bait to attract Yato. An encounter between the two should lead to Bishamon’s death, or at least her complete weakening. Yato has already destroyed her household once upon a time, after Bishamon has fallen victim to an ablution that had not cured her infection. Kazuma’s prayer to Yato to rescue Bishamon from the Ayakashi resulted in her shinkis’ death, which save her life. Since then, however, Bishamon has vowed to destroy Yato for what he did.

As the two confront each other, Yato’s shinki Yukiné is ready, but Bishamon’s myriad of shinki provide her with multiple options. Can the Stray God survive her relentless assault and desire for revenge?

The story continues in Noragami Stray God, Vol. 6.

Black Butler, Vol 10

Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol 10. 2012. 176p. ISBN 978-0-316-18967-5. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Ciel Phantomhive and his guests are confined to the Phantomhive manor due to the storm, and three murder victims lay in the wine cellar, covered with white sheets. The death of two of Ciel’s guests was dreadful, but the loss of Sebastian was worse. Without the elite butler, the household staff is left to its own devices and must pick up the slack.

Phantomhive and his guests continue their investigation of the murders, knowing full well that the murderer or murderers are among them. When the staff catch vicar Jeremy Rathbone in the kitchen, they are convinced they have their thirteenth man and the prime murder suspect. Unfortunately, it is soon revealed that the vicar received a note from Sebastian the night of his murder, and came as quickly as he could from London to assist. Taking control of the investigation, Jeremy soon makes startling discoveries which could endanger Phantomhive and his guests ...

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 2

Asagiri, Kafka. Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 2. 2017. 197 p. ISBN 978-0-316-55470-1. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Rendered unconscious during his battle with Akutagawa, Atsushi Nakajima comes to back in the offices of the Armed Detective Agency. His actions led to the death of two agents, and Atsushi feels even more cursed than before. He remembers the words of the adults at the orphanage that he should not continue to live. As the realization that the mafia will continue to come for him hits him, he decides he can no longer place the other members of the Agency in danger. He departs, and contacts the mafia to let them know he’s no longer with the Agency, but the mafia still orders a hit on their office.

Fortunately, the Black Lizard group, the mafia’s enforcement arm, is swiftly defeated by the detectives of the Agency. Atsushi accompanies Ranpo to solve the murder of a police detective. Returning to the Agency, Atsushi is reunited with those two agents whom he thought were dead. Thanks to the Agency’s doctor, they have been saved. Atsushi becomes tasked with accompanying her to the shops. Along the way they board a train, but the mafia has set up a trap for them. With bombs on board and many innocent civilians will Atsushi and Yosano be able to save their own lives?

The story continues in Bungo Stray Dogs, vol. 3.

Felix Yz

Bunker, Lisa. Felix Yz. 2017. 282p. ISBN 978-0-425-28850-4. Available at FIC BUN on the library shelves.

Felix Yz (pronounced Is) was spending quality time with his father in his cutting edge laboratory when something went horribly wrong. During an experiment, a rift to the fourth dimension was opened, and an entity fused itself with Felix, provoking intense physical pain and modifying his genetic make up. His father was killed, and Felix was never the same again.

Now thirteen-year-old, Felix does not remember a time before the presence of Zyx, as the family has called the creature. Extremely intelligent and friendly, Zyx can easily communicate with Felix in his mind, but he can only express himself to the outside world through seizures or by using a keyboard to type messages. Zyx’s existence is known to only a few people, and must remain a secret to prevent government agencies from hearing about this new being.

The laboratory where the experiment took place has been rebuilt, and scientists have been working hard on finding a way to separate both entities. Knowing full well that there is a risk he could die during the separation, Felix is nevertheless willing to go through it. He will miss Zyx, but he’s ready to live the rest of his life without another presence in his mind.

So the countdown begins to the Procedure. With only thirty days left, Felix has to prepare for the worst as he hopes for the best. Family truths will be revealed, his interest in another boy explored, he will play chess against a Grandmaster, and he will experience a hint of the fourth dimension where Zyx lives. When it comes right down to it, what are the most important things in Felix’s life?

Written as a blog where Felix document the last thirty days of his life before the Procedure, his feelings and emotions are raw and uncensored. Fans of introspection will appreciate Felix’ outlook on life and his desire to live to the fullest despite his accident.

Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 4

Adachitoka. Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 4. 2014. 200. ISBN 978-1-61262-908-7 . Available in the Graphic Section of the library.

Having successfully dealt with Yato’s blight in Noragami Stray God, Vol. 3, Hiyori and Yukiné return to a normal existence. Yukiné takes a job working at a corner store so he can help pay the fees required by the deity that requested for saving Yato’s life. Hiyori has taken it upon herself to continue Yukiné’s education. Yato, meanwhile, still struggles with discovering a way to untether Hiyori so she can fully return to her world and not spend anymore time in the spirit world before it is too late for her to come back to her old life.

But all of these concerns pale in comparison to the plot Stray has unleashed on Bishamon. Her goal is to remove the current holder of the title of Bishamon, and to do so she is exploiting Bishamon’s weakness of having too many shinkis, thus weakening her energy. Kazuma, Bishamon’s trusted assistant, realizes that something is amiss, but will he have enough time to discover what is plaguing Bishamon before it’s too late?

The story continues in Noragami Stray God, vol. 5.

Lair of Dreams

Bray, Libba. Lair of Dreams. Book 2 of the Diviners series. 2015. 613p. ISBN 978-0-316-12604-5. Available at FIC BRA on the library shelves.

When Evie O’Neill and her friends solved the ritualistic murders that were taking place in New York City in 1926, she proclaimed to all who would listen that she was a Diviner, one of the folks who possess rare talents such as being able to divine the future, or, in her case, tell the past through holding an object. Her public announcement caused a rift between herself and her uncle Will, but led to her hiring for a radio show. As America’s Sweetheart Seer, Evie parties hard and manages to spend a few days in each hotel before being evicted for being loud, inconsiderate, or simply not the type of customer the place wants.

Meanwhile, things are still gloomy at the Museum of American Folklore, Superstition and the Occult. Sam Lloyd is still searching for answers on Project Buffalo, and he’s convinced that Will knows more than he lets on. Jericho struggles with Evie’s rejection and Mabel’s obvious interest and is unsure of his next step as the only man-machine combination. Memphis continues to be tormented by his ability to heal while he watches his younger brother Isaiah develop his ability to predict the future.

Theta Knight and Henry DuBois IV pursue their musical careers, but Theta’s fear of losing control of a secret power she wields forces her to distance herself from her relationship with Memphis. Henry, for his part, continues to search for his lover. In a dream, he meets Chinatown resident Ling Chan, who, like him can travel in other people’s dreams. The daughter of a Chinese man and an Irish woman, Ling lost the partial use of her legs due to sickness and now must walk about on crutches. In her dreams, though, she does not have to.

A mysterious disease begins to spread through New York City, first in Chinatown, then elsewhere. People fall asleep, and cannot be woken up. Eventually, boils appear on their bodies and they die, seemingly burned from the inside out. In their dreams, both Henry and Ling encounter a Chinese girl coming to the United States to marry a rich husband in New York. As more and more people succumb to the sleeping sickness, the Diviners realize that this girl is somehow involved. In the shadows, a mysterious government agency is attempting to find all the Diviners. And in the background, the man with the black stovepipe pulls the strings. Can the Diviners stop the sleep sickness before it strikes one of them?

One For Sorrow: A Ghost Story

Hahn, Mary Downing. One For Sorrow: A Ghost Story. 2017. 293p. ISBN 978-0-544-81809-5. Available as an eBook on Overdrive.

In 1918, Annie is about to start 6th grade at a new school, and she is nervous. What will people think of her there? She will have to make new friends and learn how to survive in a brand new social structure. With the Great War in full swing, times are tenses and prejudices against German immigrants rampant. Annie is fortunate that both of her parents are employed. She has nice toys and wears new clothes. Others are not so lucky.

On her first day of school, Anne meets some of the other six graders, but before she’s able to introduce herself to a group of girls led by a redhead named Rosie, she is intercepted by Elsie, who immediately tries to make Anne her friend. Elsie is pushy and she makes sure that Annie does not play with the other kids during recess. She even invites herself over to Annie’s house, and wiggles an invitation for dinner out of Annie’s mother. Annie is frightened by Elsie, and she wishes she had never met her.

Unfortunately for Elsie, on top of being pushy, her father is German. Elsie is thus ridiculed at school for being slow and for being a Kaiser-lover. When Elsie becomes sick, Annie seizes the opportunity and begins hanging out with Rosie and her friends. Upon Elsie’s return, she attempts to get Annie to play with her, but Annie refuses, and she soons becomes another one of Elsie’s tormentors.

At about the same time, the Spanish Influenza begins to strike down residents indiscriminately. Soon families are quarantined and people die. Even the funeral parlors can’t keep up. When Annie and her friends come upon Elsie sitting alone on a swing in a park, they harass her and sing a mean song before ripping away her breathing mask. Elsie contracts the flu and dies. Annie is stricken with remorse. Following an sledding accident in the cemetery, Annie becomes haunted by Elsie, who swears to destroy Annie’s life. With a ghost only she can see affecting the real world, Annie soon finds herself in a psychiatric institute. Can Annie figure a way to make it up to Elsie before her own life is ruined?

Hahn serves another dose of spooky in this well-written tale partly inspired by stories her own mother told her of this time period. Fans of Closed for the Season and Deep, Dark and Dangerous will appreciate this new creepy tale.

Black Butler, Vol 9

Toboso, Yana. Black Butler, Vol 9. 2012. 176p. ISBN 978-0-316-18967-5. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

With the destruction of Noah’s Ark Circus behind them in Black Butler Vol. 8, Sebastian and his master, Ciel the Earl of Phantomhive, are hoping that Prince Soma’s vacation at the Phantomhive Estate is coming to a close so that peace and quiet can finally be restored. However, Queen Victoria has other ideas. Unsatisfied with Phantomhive’s report of the happenings at the Circus, her butlers deliver a request to Ciel to host and throw a banquet to a German industrialist.

Sebastian quickly organizes the event, and Phantomhive invites members of the artistic and industrial communities, including a young mystery writer. The guests are lavishly entertained, until the German industrialist is found murdered in his room. With a storm raging outside, the murderer is still in the Manor. The guests suspect Ciel, but Sebastian believes otherwise. However, when even this most capable of butlers is found dead, is Phantomhive the next victim?

The story continues in Black Butler, Vol. 10.

Beautiful Creatures

Garcia, Kami & Margaret Stohl. Beautiful Creatures. Book 1 of the Caster Chronicles series. 2009. 563p. ISBN 978-0-316-15195-5. Available as an eBook from Overdrive

The small town of Gatlin is what most people think of when they imagine the old South: southern hospitality, its own historic Civil War battlefield, large plantation houses and debutante balls. For Ethan Wate, Gatlin is none of those things. It’s a place he’s anxious to leave behind, but as a sophomore he’s still got three years left before he can depart and never come back. According to him, there are two kinds of people in Gatlin: Those who can’t wait to escape, and those who are not able to. With nothing ever happening, Gatlin might as well be the end of the world. That all changes, however, when, at the beginning of the school year, a new girl joins the sophomore class.

The niece of Gatlin’s recluse and owner of the oldest residence in the county, Macon Ravenwood, Lena Duchannes has moved from place to place throughout her life, never staying very long in any location. Ethan is immediately smitten with Lena. He’s met her before, in his dreams. Over the last few months, Ethan’s dreams have been plagued with a vision of a beautiful girl and him in a graveyard. And now that girl is here, in the flesh, at school. It can’t be a coincidence.

Ethan soon discovers that Lena is cursed. She is a Caster, and her ancestor made a bargain that has cost her descendants their free will. Now instead of having the possibility of choosing good or evil during their claiming ceremony when they turn 16, each caster is now assigned a side. Lena is deeply terrified she will be chosen as a Dark Caster, unlike her uncle and the rest of her family. Helped by a locket discovered next door to Ravenwood, Ethan and LEna realize that two people much like them have lived this life before, during the Civil War, and that it ended badly for both.

Now in a race against time, Ethan and Lena must fight the town bullies and discover a way for Lena to make her own choice. Can they change their fate?

Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 1

Asagiri, Kafka. Bungo Stray Dogs, Vol. 1. 2016. 192 p. ISBN 978-0-316-55470-1. Available in the graphic novels section of the library.

Teenager Atsushi Nakajima has just been evicted by the orphanage, and finds himself starving and at Death’s door, when he comes upon a body in a river. Without hesitation, Atsushi jumps in and pulls the body, only to notice that the man is not yet dead. Osamu Dazai had just tried to commit suicide, and he’s rather disappointed that Atsushi has just saved him. However, he decides to reward him anyway. Osamu’s partner, Kunikida, finds him and yells at him for once again trying to commit suicide. Osamu is happy to see him, and he tells Atsushi that he will takes him out to lunch, and Kunikida will pay.

During the lunch Osamu reveals that Kunikida and him work for the Armed Detective Agency, a group staffed by individuals who possess supernatural powers and who hunt down threats that the police or the military cannot handle. Atsushi mentions that he was kicked out of the orphanage because he was blamed for the tiger attacks that destroyed the fields and some of the outbuildings, then chased him down to the city after he left. Osamu suspects that not everything is right with Atsushi, but he agrees to help him catch the tiger. That very night, Atsushi transforms into the tiger, and Osamu is able to change him back. Atsushi is offered a job at the Armed Detective Agency due to his supernatural ability.

His first assignment is to remove some squatters from the port. But the port is under control of the mafia, and the mafia enforces its will through Akutagawa, a killer who can control the black beast, tendrils of death that can strike at a distance. When Atsushi runs into Akutagawa, whose mission it is to capture the Tiger man, Atsushi’s future looks bleak...

The story continues in Bungo Stray Dog, Vol. 2.

Night Wings

Bruchac, Joseph. Night Wings. 2009. 194p. ISBN 978-0-06-112318-4. Available at FIC BRU on the library shelves.

When thirteen-year-old Paul’s mother, a U.S. army soldier, ships out to Iraq to join her military husband, Paul has to go live with his Abenaki grandfather, Peter. Once a Marine himself, Peter is steeped in the ways of the Abenaki and knows the White Mountains of New Hampshire like the back of his hands. A man of few words, grandpa Peter has taught Paul how to respect and survive the forest, and how to live the ways his ancestors did.

Shortly after his arrival in the White Mountains, Paul is surprised to receive the visit of two goons. One of them introduces himself as Darby Field the fourth, creator and spokesperson for the Forbidden Mysteries series on television. He asks Peter if he has changed his mind about leading him on an expedition in the mountains to discover Pmola’s treasure. An Abenaki legend, Pmola appears as a large black bird with eyes that resemble very bright red lights that protects the mountains. Peter replies that he in fact did not. Field departs the property, but returns in the night and kidnaps Peter.

Paul, who was under the house at the time, looking for a piece of plywood, escaped but is captured by Field and his crew of three. The party then heads deep inside the White Mountains and hide the van before beginning the long trek to Pmola’s lair. With their lives very much at risk, Paul must follow grandpa Peter’s advice learned over many years to survive a powerful enemy and prevent Field from acquiring Pmola’s treasure. Will the way of the ancients be enough to help him?

Set in New Hampshire, this book combines local legends and history with a character very much in touch with nature, himself, and his cultural heritage. A short read, fans of action will enjoy the fast-pace of Night Wings.