Patricia MacLachlan, beloved author of the Newbery Medal-winning Sarah, Plain and Tall, has crafted another lyrical and touching novel for young readers about finding hope after the loss of a loved one.Declan O’Brien always had a gentle word to share, odd phrases he liked to repeat, and songs to sing while he played basketball. His favorite song was "Dona Nobis Pacem," “Grant Us Peace.” His family loved him deeply and always knew they were loved in return.But a terrible accident one day changes their lives forever, and Fiona and Finn O’Brien are left without a father. Their mother is at a loss. What words are there to guide them through such overwhelming grief?At the suggestion of their friend Luke, Fiona and Finn volunteer at an animal rescue shelter, where they meet two sweet dogs who are in need of comfort, too. Perhaps with time, patience, and their father’s gentle words in their hearts, hope will spark once more.* Junior Library Guild Selection * Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year 2019 (9-12) *

Twelve-year-old Josie must find forever homes for seven rambunctious foster puppies in this heartwarming sequel to The Unlikely Story of a Pig in the City, which the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books called “a compelling story that will appeal to the animal fans who loved The One and Only Ivan.”Anytime Josie Shilling’s large family gets too chaotic, volunteering at the local animal clinic is the one place she can escape—and she loves working with the animals. But when a box mysteriously appears on the clinic’s front steps, Josie suddenly becomes responsible for seven adorable puppies!Taking care of her pig, Hamlet, last fall was a bit harder than she thought. So how is she ever going to handle a whole litter of mischievous pups and find the right homes for them all? This summer will bring big changes for Josie as she learns about growing up, letting go, and loving your pack no matter what.Dog Days in the City is a heartwarming blend of coming-of-age and animal friendship story that is perfect for fans of Ann M. Martin’s Rain Reign, Joan Bauer’s Almost Home, and Barbara O'Connor’s Wish.

A fully illustrated and authorized episode guide celebrating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the hit-television show Friends, including a look behind-the-scenes of cult-favorite episodes, exclusive photos from Warner Bros., brand new interviews with show creators Marta Kauffman, David Crane, and set designer John Shaffner, and more.The beloved show Friends introduced the world to six young New Yorkers living together, falling in love, breaking up (cue Ross's "We were on a break!"), and getting into hilarious shenanigans, which became an instant classic formula that inspired dozens of "hangout sitcoms" long after the show's reign. But no sitcom has ever come close to the series that started it all, spawning iconic looks like "the Rachel" and timeless catchphrases like "How you doin'?" while creating a cultural sensation that catapulted the cast members to instant mega-stardom.Throughout the show's ten- season run, viewers watched Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Ross, Chandler, and Joey navigate their twenties and thirties with unwavering friendship, determination, and, of course, plenty of sarcasm. Friends Forever takes fans back to the set where it all began with exclusive photos of the sitcom that won four Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Comedy Series, eleven People's Choice Awards, and a Golden Globe for Jennifer Aniston for Best Lead Actress in a Television Series. This fully illustrated episode guide will treat readers to nostalgic flashbacks of the top one hundred episodes and sneak peeks of how popularly referenced lines from the show came to be. Friends Forever also boasts new interviews with show creators David Crane and Marta Kauffman on how the show got its start and set designer John Shaffner who reveals his inspirations behind the iconic looks behind Monica’s and Rachel’s apartment and Central Perk. It's no wonder why the Friends cast was chosen by TV Guide readers as the Best Comedy cast of all time, while countless other publications such as Vanity Fair named the show one of the best sitcoms of all time.Fun, hilarious interactives include:Joey’s fake resume vs real one Countdown to the funniest Thanksgiving foods Trivia game Q&A from "The One with the Embryos" (Seriously, what is Chandler Bing’s job?) Follow Ross’s infidelity trail from "The One with the Morning After" Who’s that celebrity? A comprehensive guide to some of the most famous celebrity guest stars from all ten seasons

The scientist who has been dubbed the “Father of Intelligent Design” and author of the groundbreaking book Darwin’s Black Box contends that recent scientific discoveries further disprove Darwinism and strengthen the case for an intelligent creator. In his controversial bestseller Darwin’s Black Box, biochemist Michael Behe challenged Darwin’s theory of evolution, arguing that science itself has proven that intelligent design is a better explanation for the origin of life. In Darwin Devolves, Behe advances his argument, presenting new research that offers a startling reconsideration of how Darwin’s mechanism works, weakening the theory’s validity even more. A system of natural selection acting on random mutation, evolution can help make something look and act differently. But evolution never creates something organically. Behe contends that Darwinism actually works by a process of devolution—damaging cells in DNA in order to create something new at the lowest biological levels. This is important, he makes clear, because it shows the Darwinian process cannot explain the creation of life itself. “A process that so easily tears down sophisticated machinery is not one which will build complex, functional systems,” he writes.In addition to disputing the methodology of Darwinism and how it conflicts with the concept of creation, Behe reveals that what makes Intelligent Design unique—and right—is that it acknowledges causation. Evolution proposes that organisms living today are descended with modification from organisms that lived in the distant past. But Intelligent Design goes a step further asking, what caused such astounding changes to take place? What is the reason or mechanism for evolution? For Behe, this is what makes Intelligent Design so important.

A tongue-in-cheek collection of the tips, tricks, and recipes that will fix your life without busting your budget.$9 Therapy proves that it’s possible to take self-care seriously without taking yourself too seriously. Self-professed lifestyle gurus Nick Greene and Megan Reid know that sometimes it takes as little as spending nine dollars on an act of self-care to turn your day around. While working their first, low-paying jobs out of school, Nick and Meg learned to spend wisely—and fabulously—and firmly came to believe in the radical potential of simple pleasures. In $9 Therapy, they use their hard-won wisdom to show how small, inexpensive treats can elevate your adulting game: whether it’s mindfully repotting a plant to finally drinking from a decent wine glass (even if you can afford only one), to recipes you’ll actually want to cook, to design tips to make even the tiniest spaces look like Instagram-bait.With enthusiasm and sass, (and featuring 30 colorful illustrations), $9 Therapy brings together the lifehacks and mini-upgrades that encourage you to make your life a little bit easier, a little bit less stressful, a little bit better, a little more loving toward yourself and the humans around you.

“We Set the Dark on Fire burns bright. It will light the way for a new generation of rebels and lovers.” —NPR“Mejia pens a compelling, gripping story that mirrors real world issues of immigration and equality.” —BuzzfeedFive starred reviews!!In this daring and romantic fantasy debut perfect for fans of The Handmaid’s Tale and Latinx authors Zoraida Córdova and Anna-Marie McLemore, society wife-in-training Dani has a great awakening after being recruited by rebel spies and falling for her biggest rival. At the Medio School for Girls, distinguished young women are trained for one of two roles in their polarized society. Depending on her specialization, a graduate will one day run a husband’s household or raise his children. Both paths promise a life of comfort and luxury, far from the frequent political uprisings of the lower class.Daniela Vargas is the school’s top student, but her pedigree is a lie. She must keep the truth hidden or be sent back to the fringes of society.And school couldn’t prepare her for the difficult choices she must make after graduation, especially when she is asked to spy for a resistance group desperately fighting to bring equality to Medio.Will Dani cling to the privilege her parents fought to win for her, or will she give up everything she’s strived for in pursuit of a free Medio—and a chance at a forbidden love?

Over 30 recipes to develop custom drivers for your embedded Linux applications. Key Features * Use Kernel facilities to develop powerful drivers * Via a practical approach, learn core concepts of developing device drivers * Program a custom character device to get access to kernel internals Book Description Linux is a unified kernel that is widely used to develop embedded systems. As Linux has turned out to be one of the most popular operating systems used, the interest in developing proprietary device drivers has also increased. Device drivers play a critical role in how the system performs and ensures that the device works in the manner intended. By offering several examples on the development of character devices and how to use other kernel internals, such as interrupts, kernel timers, and wait queue, as well as how to manage a device tree, you will be able to add proper management for custom peripherals to your embedded system. You will begin by installing the Linux kernel and then configuring it. Once you have installed the system, you will learn to use the different kernel features and the character drivers. You will also cover interrupts in-depth and how you can manage them. Later, you will get into the kernel internals required for developing applications. Next, you will implement advanced character drivers and also become an expert in writing important Linux device drivers. By the end of the book, you will be able to easily write a custom character driver and kernel code as per your requirements. What you will learn * Become familiar with the latest kernel releases (4.19+/5.x) running on the ESPRESSObin devkit, an ARM 64-bit machine * Download, configure, modify, and build kernel sources * Add and remove a device driver or a module from the kernel * Master kernel programming * Understand how to implement character drivers to manage different kinds of computer peripherals * Become well versed with kernel helper functions and objects that can be used to build kernel applications * Acquire a knowledge of in-depth concepts to manage custom hardware with Linux from both the kernel and user space Who this book is for This book will help anyone who wants to develop their own Linux device drivers for embedded systems. Having basic hand-on with Linux operating system and embedded concepts is necessary.

Evade antiviruses and bypass firewalls with the most widely used penetration testing frameworks Key Features * Gain insights into the latest antivirus evasion techniques * Set up a complete pentesting environment using Metasploit and virtual machines * Discover a variety of tools and techniques that can be used with Kali Linux Book Description Penetration testing or ethical hacking is a legal and foolproof way to identify vulnerabilities in your system. With thorough penetration testing, you can secure your system against the majority of threats. This Learning Path starts with an in-depth explanation of what hacking and penetration testing is. You’ll gain a deep understanding of classical SQL and command injection flaws, and discover ways to exploit these flaws to secure your system. You'll also learn how to create and customize payloads to evade antivirus software and bypass an organization's defenses. Whether it’s exploiting server vulnerabilities and attacking client systems, or compromising mobile phones and installing backdoors, this Learning Path will guide you through all this and more to improve your defense against online attacks. By the end of this Learning Path, you'll have the knowledge and skills you need to invade a system and identify all its vulnerabilities. This Learning Path includes content from the following Packt products: * Web Penetration Testing with Kali Linux - Third Edition by Juned Ahmed Ansari and Gilberto Najera-Gutierrez * Metasploit Penetration Testing Cookbook - Third Edition by Abhinav Singh , Monika Agarwal, et al What you will learn * Build and analyze Metasploit modules in Ruby * Integrate Metasploit with other penetration testing tools * Use server-side attacks to detect vulnerabilities in web servers and their applications * Explore automated attacks such as fuzzing web applications * Identify the difference between hacking a web application and network hacking * Deploy Metasploit with the Penetration Testing Execution Standard (PTES) * Use MSFvenom to generate payloads and backdoor files, and create shellcode Who this book is for This Learning Path is designed for security professionals, web programmers, and pentesters who want to learn vulnerability exploitation and make the most of the Metasploit framework. Some understanding of penetration testing and Metasploit is required, but basic system administration skills and the ability to read code are a must.

Understand how blockchain works and explore a variety of strategies to implement it in your organization effectively Key Features * Become familiar with business challenges faced by companies when using blockchain * Discover how companies implement blockchain to monetize and secure their data * Study real-world examples to understand blockchain and its use in organizations Book Description In addition to cryptocurrencies, blockchain-based apps are being developed in different industries such as banking, supply chain, and healthcare to achieve digital transformation and enhance user experience. Blockchain is not only about Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies, but also about different technologies such as peer-to-peer networks, consensus mechanisms, and cryptography. These technologies together help sustain trustless environments in which digital value can be transferred between individuals without intermediaries. This book will help you understand the basics of blockchain such as consensus protocols, decentralized applications, and tokenization. You'll focus on how blockchain is used today in different industries and the technological challenges faced while implementing a blockchain strategy. The book also enables you, as a decision maker, to understand blockchain from a technical perspective and evaluate its applicability in your business. Finally, you'll get to grips with blockchain frameworks such as Hyperledger and Quorum and their usability. By the end of this book, you'll have learned about the current use cases of blockchain and be able to implement a blockchain strategy on your own. What you will learn * Become well-versed with how blockchain works * Understand the difference between blockchain and Bitcoin * Learn how blockchain is being used in different industry verticals such as finance and retail * Delve into the technological and organizational challenges of implementing blockchain * Explore the possibilities that blockchain can unlock for decision makers * Choose a blockchain framework best suited for your projects from options such as Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric Who this book is for This book is for CXOs, business professionals, organization leaders, decision makers, technology enthusiasts, and managers who wish to understand how blockchain is implemented in different organizations, its impact, and how it can be customized according to business needs. Prior experience with blockchain is not required.

Learn quick and effective techniques for developing blockchain-based distributed ledgers with ease Key Features * Discover why blockchain is a game changer in the technology landscape * Set up blockchain networks using Hyperledger Fabric * Write smart contracts at speed with Hyperledger Composer Book Description Blockchain and Hyperledger are open source technologies that power the development of decentralized applications. This Learning Path is your helpful reference for exploring and building blockchain networks using Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, and Hyperledger Composer. Blockchain Development with Hyperledger will start off by giving you an overview of blockchain and demonstrating how you can set up an Ethereum development environment for developing, packaging, building, and testing campaign-decentralized applications. You'll then explore the de facto language Solidity, which you can use to develop decentralized applications in Ethereum. Following this, you'll be able to configure Hyperledger Fabric and use it to build private blockchain networks and applications that connect to them. Toward the later chapters, you'll learn how to design and launch a network, and even implement smart contracts in chain code. By the end of this Learning Path, you'll be able to build and deploy your own decentralized applications by addressing the key pain points encountered in the blockchain life cycle. This Learning Path includes content from the following Packt products: * Blockchain Quick Start Guide by Xun (Brian) Wu and Weimin Sun * Hands-On Blockchain with Hyperledger by Nitin Gaur et al. What you will learn * Understand why decentralized applications are necessary * Develop and test a decentralized application with Hyperledger Fabric and Hyperledger Composer * Write and test a smart contract using Solidity * Design transaction models and chain code with Golang * Deploy the Composer REpresentational State Transfer (REST) Gateway to access Composer transactions * Maintain, monitor, and manage your blockchain solutions Who this book is for This Learning Path is designed for blockchain developers who want to build decentralized applications and smart contracts from scratch using Hyperledger. Basic familiarity with or exposure to any programming language will be useful to get started with this course.

A comprehensive guide to get started with Java and gain insights into major concepts such as object-oriented, functional, and reactive programming Key Features * Strengthen your knowledge of important programming concepts and the latest features in Java * Explore core programming topics including GUI programming, concurrency, and error handling * Learn the idioms and best practices for writing high-quality Java code Book Description Java is one of the preferred languages among developers, used in everything right from smartphones, and game consoles to even supercomputers, and its new features simply add to the richness of the language. This book on Java programming begins by helping you learn how to install the Java Development Kit. You will then focus on understanding object-oriented programming (OOP), with exclusive insights into concepts like abstraction, encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism, which will help you when programming for real-world apps. Next, you’ll cover fundamental programming structures of Java such as data structures and algorithms that will serve as the building blocks for your apps. You will also delve into core programming topics that will assist you with error handling, debugging, and testing your apps. As you progress, you’ll move on to advanced topics such as Java libraries, database management, and network programming, which will hone your skills in building professional-grade apps. Further on, you’ll understand how to create a graphic user interface using JavaFX and learn to build scalable apps by taking advantage of reactive and functional programming. By the end of this book, you’ll not only be well versed with Java 10, 11, and 12, but also gain a perspective into the future of this language and software development in general. What you will learn * Learn and apply object-oriented principles * Gain insights into data structures and understand how they are used in Java * Explore multithreaded, asynchronous, functional, and reactive programming * Add a user-friendly graphic interface to your application * Find out what streams are and how they can help in data processing * Discover the importance of microservices and use them to make your apps robust and scalable * Explore Java design patterns and best practices to solve everyday problems * Learn techniques and idioms for writing high-quality Java code Who this book is for Students, software developers, or anyone looking to learn new skills or even a language will find this book useful. Although this book is for beginners, professional programmers can benefit from it too. Previous knowledge of Java or any programming language is not required.

Supervised and unsupervised machine learning made easy in Scala with this quick-start guide. Key Features * Construct and deploy machine learning systems that learn from your data and give accurate predictions * Unleash the power of Spark ML along with popular machine learning algorithms to solve complex tasks in Scala. * Solve hands-on problems by combining popular neural network architectures such as LSTM and CNN using Scala with DeepLearning4j library Book Description Scala is a highly scalable integration of object-oriented nature and functional programming concepts that make it easy to build scalable and complex big data applications. This book is a handy guide for machine learning developers and data scientists who want to develop and train effective machine learning models in Scala. The book starts with an introduction to machine learning, while covering deep learning and machine learning basics. It then explains how to use Scala-based ML libraries to solve classification and regression problems using linear regression, generalized linear regression, logistic regression, support vector machine, and Na?ve Bayes algorithms. It also covers tree-based ensemble techniques for solving both classification and regression problems. Moving ahead, it covers unsupervised learning techniques, such as dimensionality reduction, clustering, and recommender systems. Finally, it provides a brief overview of deep learning using a real-life example in Scala. What you will learn * Get acquainted with JVM-based machine learning libraries for Scala such as Spark ML and Deeplearning4j * Learn RDDs, DataFrame, and Spark SQL for analyzing structured and unstructured data * Understand supervised and unsupervised learning techniques with best practices and pitfalls * Learn classification and regression analysis with linear regression, logistic regression, Na?ve Bayes, support vector machine, and tree-based ensemble techniques * Learn effective ways of clustering analysis with dimensionality reduction techniques * Learn recommender systems with collaborative filtering approach * Delve into deep learning and neural network architectures Who this book is for This book is for machine learning developers looking to train machine learning models in Scala without spending too much time and effort. Some fundamental knowledge of Scala programming and some basics of statistics and linear algebra is all you need to get started with this book.

Identify tools and techniques to secure and perform a penetration test on an AWS infrastructure using Kali Linux Key Features * Efficiently perform penetration testing techniques on your public cloud instances * Learn not only to cover loopholes but also to automate security monitoring and alerting within your cloud-based deployment pipelines * A step-by-step guide that will help you leverage the most widely used security platform to secure your AWS Cloud environment Book Description The cloud is taking over the IT industry. Any organization housing a large amount of data or a large infrastructure has started moving cloud-ward — and AWS rules the roost when it comes to cloud service providers, with its closest competitor having less than half of its market share. This highlights the importance of security on the cloud, especially on AWS. While a lot has been said (and written) about how cloud environments can be secured, performing external security assessments in the form of pentests on AWS is still seen as a dark art. This book aims to help pentesters as well as seasoned system administrators with a hands-on approach to pentesting the various cloud services provided by Amazon through AWS using Kali Linux. To make things easier for novice pentesters, the book focuses on building a practice lab and refining penetration testing with Kali Linux on the cloud. This is helpful not only for beginners but also for pentesters who want to set up a pentesting environment in their private cloud, using Kali Linux to perform a white-box assessment of their own cloud resources. Besides this, there is a lot of in-depth coverage of the large variety of AWS services that are often overlooked during a pentest — from serverless infrastructure to automated deployment pipelines. By the end of this book, you will be able to identify possible vulnerable areas efficiently and secure your AWS cloud environment. What you will learn * Familiarize yourself with and pentest the most common external-facing AWS services * Audit your own infrastructure and identify flaws, weaknesses, and loopholes * Demonstrate the process of lateral and vertical movement through a partially compromised AWS account * Maintain stealth and persistence within a compromised AWS account * Master a hands-on approach to pentesting * Discover a number of automated tools to ease the process of continuously assessing and improving the security stance of an AWS infrastructure Who this book is for If you are a security analyst or a penetration tester and are interested in exploiting Cloud environments to reveal vulnerable areas and secure them, then this book is for you. A basic understanding of penetration testing, cloud computing, and its security concepts is mandatory.

Build Vue apps the right way using Vue CLI 3. Understand how the building blocks of Vue CLI 3 work including npm, webpack, babel, eslint, plugins, GUI, testing, and SCSS. Import third-party libraries and maintain your project. Key Features * Learn to work with Vue CLI 3 both on the command line and with a GUI * Manage VueJS apps, settings, Vue plugins, and third-party libraries * Learn how to build Vue apps from scratch using webpack, babel, ES6, vue-router, Jest, Cypress, SCSS, and Git Book Description The sprawling landscape of various tools in JavaScript web development is becoming overwhelming. This book will show you how Vue CLI 3 can help you take back control of the tool chain. To that end, we'll begin by configuring webpack, utilizing HMR, and using single-file .vue components. We'll also use SCSS, ECMAScript, and TypeScript. We'll unit test with Jest and perform E2E testing with Cypress. This book will show you how to configure Vue CLI as your default way of building Vue projects. You'll discover the reasons behind using webpack, babel, eslint, and other modern JavaScript toolchain technologies. You'll learn about the inner workings of each through the lens of Vue CLI 3. We'll explore the extendibility of Vue CLI with the built-in settings, and various core and third-party plugins. Vue CLI helps you work with Vue components, routers, directives, and services in the Vue ecosystem. While learning these concepts, you'll examine the evolution of JavaScript. You'll learn about use of npm, IIFEs, modules in JavaScript, Common.js modules, task runners, npm scripts, module bundlers, and webpack. You'll get familiar with the reasons why Vue CLI 3 is set up the way it is. You'll also learn to perform linting with ESLint and Prettier. Towards the end, we'll introduce you to working with styles and SCSS. Finally, we'll show you how to deploy your very own Vue project on Github Pages. What you will learn * Work with nvm, install Node.js and npm, use Vue CLI 3 with no configuration, via the command line and the graphical user interface * Build a Vue project from scratch using npm and webpack, and learn about hot module replacement * Work with Babel settings, configurations, and presets * Work with Vue plugins, including testing plugins such as Jest and Cypress * Write, run, and watch unit and E2E tests using TDD assertions in the red-green-refactor cycle * Work with Vue router and use, nested, lazy-loading, and dynamic routes * Add SCSS to your projects and work with third-party Vue plugins * Deploy your Vue apps to Github Pages Who this book is for This book is for existing web developers and developers who are new to web development. You must be familiar with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript programming. Basic knowledge of the command line will be helpful but is not necessary.

Fan favorite author Kasie West delivers an effervescent story about chasing your dreams and following your heart, perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Huntley Fitzpatrick. Lacey Barnes has dreamed of being an actress for as long as she can remember. So when she gets the opportunity to star in a movie alongside one of Hollywood’s hottest actors, she doesn’t hesitate to accept the part.But Lacey quickly learns that life in the spotlight isn’t as picture perfect as she imagined. She’s having trouble bonding with her costars, her father has hired the definition of a choir boy, Donavan Lake, to tutor her, and somewhere along the way she’s lost her acting mojo. And just when it seems like things couldn’t get any worse, it looks like someone on set is deliberately trying to sabotage her. As Lacey’s world spins out of control, it feels like the only person she can count on—whether it’s helping her try to unravel the mystery of who is out to get her or snap her out of her acting funk—is Donavan. But what she doesn’t count on is this straight-laced boy becoming another distraction.With her entire future riding on this movie, Lacey knows she can’t afford to get sidetracked by a crush. But for the first time in her life Lacey wonders if it’s true that the best stories really do happen when you go off script.

A thrilling new fantasy series full of magic and betrayal—from Evelyn Skye, New York Times bestselling author of the Crown’s Game series.Sora can move as silently as a ghost and hurl throwing stars with lethal accuracy. Her gemina, Daemon, can win any physical fight blindfolded and with an arm tied around his back. They are apprentice warriors of the Society of Taigas—marked by the gods to be trained in magic and the fighting arts to protect the kingdom of Kichona.As their graduation approaches, Sora and Daemon look forward to proving themselves worthy of belonging in the elite group—but in a kingdom free of violence since the Blood Rift Rebellion many years ago, it’s been difficult to make their mark. So when Sora and Daemon encounter a strange camp of mysterious soldiers while on a standard scouting mission, they decide the only thing to do to help their kingdom is to infiltrate the group. Taking this risk will change Sora’s life forever—and lead her on a mission of deception that may fool everyone she’s ever loved.Love, spies, and adventure abound as Sora and Daemon unravel a complex web of magic and secrets that might tear them—and the entire kingdom—apart forever.

The Breakfast Club meets Guardians of the Galaxy in this YA sci-fi adventure by debut author M. K. England.Hotshot pilot Nax Hall has a history of making poor life choices. So it’s not exactly a surprise when he’s kicked out of the elite Ellis Station Academy in less than twenty-four hours. But Nax’s one-way trip back to Earth is cut short when a terrorist group attacks the Academy.Nax and three other washouts escape—barely—but they’re also the sole witnesses to the biggest crime in the history of space colonization. And the perfect scapegoats.On the run, Nax and his fellow failures plan to pull off a dangerous heist to spread the truth. Because they may not be “Academy material,” and they may not even get along, but they’re the only ones left to step up and fight.Full of high-stakes action, subversive humor, and underdogs becoming heroes, this YA sci-fi adventure is perfect for fans of Illuminae, Heart of Iron, or the cult classic TV show Firefly and is also a page-turning thrill ride that anyone—not just space nerds—can enjoy.

"美国畅销科幻系列小说《Gone/消逝》后一本《Hero》出版，简单的形容这个故事就是《蝇王》式的架构和斯蒂芬?金式的恐怖，斯蒂芬?金也评价说“我很喜欢这个系列”。 故事讲述忽然有一天，所有的大人都消失了，世界上只剩下了青少年。社会停摆，熟悉的生活全部消失，孩子们面临着饥饿，死亡的威胁。在这个新世界中，有正在变异的可怕动物，潜伏在黑暗中准备肆虐的瘟疫，以及变化莫测的人心，恶霸恃强凌弱，强者弱肉强食，除非做出改变，否则无法存活。 《Hero》是从第7本《Monster》开始的三部曲的结尾，同时也是整个系列的收官。新人类被外星陨石中携带的病毒感染，并变异出了超能力，而孩子们也发现，在于邪恶势力作斗争的过程中，他们常常处于道德的灰色地带，要想拯救他人，就必须做出艰难的决定。而到底什么才能称作“英雄”？美国图书馆协会评价子系列《Monster》——增加了更多动作场面和复杂的人物性格，是一部令人回味无穷、情节错综复杂的姐妹系列。" The mind-blowing conclusion to the Monster trilogy and the final installment in the Gone series from science fiction and fantasy master Michael Grant is perfect for superhero and Stephen King fans alike.After the fall of Perdido Beach dome, a new set of humans developed mutant powers from the rock infected with alien virus. They are the Rockborn Gang: Dekka, Shade, Cruz, Malik, Armo, and Francis. With their superpowers, they have defended the earth from other rockborn who used their powers for evil, like Dillon Poe.When another rock carrying the virus strikes New York, a new foe, Bob Markovic, rises with a horrifying and nearly unstoppable ability. Markovic’s unending ambition and lack of a moral compass made him unbearable before the virus. And that was before he was a swarm of plague-ridden insects, with the power and means to take over the city—and maybe the world.As the Rockborn Gang try to defeat their latest villain, they will find themselves on morally gray grounds and have to make tough decisions if they want to save the world.In this pulse-pounding finale to the saga more than ten years in the making, Michael Grant delivers an unforgettable conclusion while asking: What does it take to be a hero?Praise for Monster:“Ratchets up the gore and action, and features a diverse cast of characters. An evocative, intricately plotted companion series.” –ALA BooklistRead the entire series:GoneHungerLiesPlague Fear LightMonster Villain Hero

Star-crossed lovers, meddling immortals, feigned identities, battles of wits, and dire warnings: these are the stuff of fairy tale, myth, and folklore that have drawn us in for centuries. Fifteen bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate. Compiled by We Need Diverse Books’s Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman, the authors included in this exquisite collection are: Renée Ahdieh, Sona Charaipotra, Preeti Chhibber, Roshani Chokshi, Aliette de Bodard, Melissa de la Cruz, Julie Kagawa, Rahul Kanakia, Lori M. Lee, E. C. Myers, Cindy Pon, Aisha Saeed, Shveta Thakrar, and Alyssa . A mountain loses her heart. Two sisters transform into birds to escape captivity. A young man learns the true meaning of sacrifice. A young woman takes up her mother’s mantle and leads the dead to their final resting place.From fantasy to science fiction to contemporary, from romance to tales of revenge, these stories will beguile readers from start to finish. For fans of Neil Gaiman’s Unnatural Creatures and Ameriie’s New York Times–bestselling Because You Love to Hate Me.

An Indie Next List Pick!In his first contemporary teen novel, critically acclaimed author and two-time Edgar Award finalist Lamar Giles spotlights the consequences of societal pressure, confronts toxic masculinity, and explores the complexity of what it means to be a “real man.”Del has had a crush on Kiera Westing since kindergarten. And now, during their junior year, she’s finally available. So when Kiera volunteers for an opportunity at their church, Del’s right behind her. Though he quickly realizes he’s inadvertently signed up for a Purity Pledge.His dad thinks his wires are crossed, and his best friend, Qwan, doesn’t believe any girl is worth the long game. But Del’s not about to lose his dream girl, and that’s where fellow pledger Jameer comes in. He can put in the good word. In exchange, Del just has to get answers to the Pledgers’ questions…about sex ed.With other boys circling Kiera like sharks, Del needs to make his move fast. But as he plots and plans, he neglects to ask the most important question: What does Kiera want? He can’t think about that too much, though, because once he gets the girl, it’ll all sort itself out. Right?

This thrilling YA retelling of Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai features a girl tasked with saving the world from eternal darkness. Perfect for fans of Six of Crows and Marie Lu.Seventeen-year-old Kira Fujikawa has never had it easy. She’s bullied by the popular girls in school. Her parents ignore her. And she’s also plagued with a secret: She can see yokai, the ghosts and demons that haunt the streets of Kyoto.But things accelerate from bad to worse when she learns that Shuten-doji, the demon king, will rise at the next blood moon to hunt down an ancient relic and bring the world to a catastrophic end. Not exactly skilled at fighting anything, much less the dead, Kira enlists the aid of seven powerful death gods to help her slay Shuten-doji. They include Shiro, a kitsune with boy-band looks who is more flirtatious than helpful, and O-bei, a regal demon courtier with reasons of her own for getting involved.As the confrontation with Shuten-doji draws nearer, the fate of Japan hangs in the balance. Can Kira save humankind? Or will the demon king succeed in bringing eternal darkness upon the world?