Books in Playaway Young Adult series

Set on the English moor, the story's hero is Arthur Kipps, an up-and-coming young solicitor who has come from London to attend the funeral and settle the affairs of Mrs. Alice Drablow of Eel Marsh House. The routine formalities he anticipates give way toa tumble of events and secrets more sinister and terrifying than any nightmare: the rocking chair in the deserted nursery, the eerie sound of a pony and trap, a child's scream in the fog, and most dreadfully -- and for Kipps most tragically -- the woman in black.

In the latest installment in Wendell Berry's long story about the citizens of Port William, Kentucky, readers learn of the Coulters' children, of the Feltners and Branches, and how survivors "live right on." "Ignorant boys, killing each other," is just about all Nathan Coulter would tell his wife about the Battle of Okinawa in the spring of 1945. Life carried on for the community of Port William, Kentucky, as some boys returned from the war while the lives of others were mourned. In her seventies, Nathan's wife, Hannah, now has time to tell of the years since the war.

Since the day her mother died, Jem has known about the numbers. Numbers that pop into her head when she looks into someone's eyes. They're dates, the numbers. Dates predicting with brute accuracy each person's death. Burdened by such grim knowledge, Jem avoids relationships. Until she meets Spider, another outsider, and takes a chance. Maybe they can find happiness together, if only in the brief time that remains before his expiration date. But on a trip to London, Jem foresees a chilling chain of events: The city's a target. The clock's running out. The countdown is on to a blowup!

Scarlett Martin has grown up in a most unusual way. Her family owns the Hopewell, a small Art Deco hotel in the heart of New York City. When each of the Martins turns fifteen, they are expected to take over the care of a suite. For Scarlett's fifteenth birthday, she gets both a room called the Empire Suite and a permanent guest named Mrs. Amberson. Scarlett doesn't quite know what to make of this C-list starlet and world traveler. And when she meets Eric, an astonishingly gorgeous actor who has just moved to the city, her summer takes a second unexpected turn. Before the summer is over, Scarlett will have to survive a whirlwind of thievery and romantic missteps. But in the city where anything can happen, she just might be able to pull it off.

Cabin Creek is a small town with a lot of big secrets. It's the middle of the night when Jeff spots someone dumping a large bundle into the lake. It's too dark to identify anyone - or anything. But the cousins immediately suspect foul play, and plunge right into the mystery. Before they know it, the kids of Cabin Creek are in too deep. Everyone is a suspect - and the cousins are all in danger!

Three angels are sent down to bring good to the world: Gabriel, the warrior; Ivy, the healer; and Bethany, a teenage girl who is the least experienced of the trio. But she is the most human, and when she is romantically drawn to a mortal boy, the angels fear she will not be strong enough to save anyone – especially herself – from the Dark Forces. Is love a great-enough power against evil? Here is the start of a stunning trilogy; the story continues in Hades (Fall 2011) and Heaven (Fall 2012).

For Annabelle, starting middle school hasn't been so bad. She's made an awesome group of friends, and it turns out that taming those wild boys is a lot like training a puppy! But now Annabelle is about to encounter a whole new kind of headache: Taylor and the Three Terrors. There is no training manual for this clique of girls; they are too cool for school, and they definitely don't like Annabelle and her friends. But sometimes Taylor acts super nice, and Annabelle feels torn. Is Taylor just being fake? Or has Annabelle accidentally fallen in with the wrong group of friends? Told with her signature sensitivity and humor, Leslie Margolis draws another purr-fect picture of middle school's most delicious dramas-and offers great insights on how to survive them!

1893 is a tough year in Montana, and any job is a good job. When Big Red and Old Red Amlingmeyer sign on as ranch hands at the secretive Bar-VR cattle spread, they're not expecting much more than hard work, bad pay, and a comfortable campfire around which they can enjoy their favorite pastime: scouring Harper's Weekly for stories about the famous Sherlock Holmes. When another ranch hand turns up in an outhouse with a bullet in his brain, Old Red sees the perfect opportunity to put his Holmes-inspired detective talents to work and solve the case. Big Red, like it or not (and mostly he does not), is along for the wild ride in this clever, compelling, and completely one-of-a-kind mystery.

After a single sexual encounter, Chris Marshall falls madly in love with Jenny, a young woman he does not know. Wandering the streets, never coming face to face, each becomes involved with Barry Miller, a small time crook with Edward Carson, a convicted murderer, on his trail. These four spiral around each other until the savage climax when Jenny is gunned down in a case of mistaken identity. This was Philip Pullman's first book for younger audiences, which won him critical acclaim from many sources. Like much of his writing, it focuses on the truth and false appearances. The novel is known as The Butterfly Tattoo in the UK.