Showing results by author "Khristina Chess" in All Categories

For readers drawn to the emotional and physical scars of Girl in Pieces, this empowering story about the complicated nature of friendship is for you. Sadie and Elana are keeping dangerous secrets. Best friends since elementary school, they know everything about each other, but on the night of the fireworks, something terrible happened to Sadie—something she can’t even name. Instead, she’s started cutting to deal with the pain. But Elana has a secret of her own. She’s texting Hunter, making plans for a clandestine meeting, and never questioning why he insists on hiding their ...

For fans drawn to the unsettling seduction of a dark romance like Dreamland comes a chilling thriller about a runaway teen drawn into a relationship with an older man who takes her in—and won’t let her go! Love isn’t supposed to take prisoners. Sixteen-year-old Grace Keegan, darling of the child pageant world, is missing. At first, police assume she ran away. But when they find her abandoned phone along the highway, the truth becomes far more terrifying. No one knows about Quentin Brock—the musician she met online. He’s charming, funny, and perfect. Until he isn’t. Until she’s...

"With accessible prose and authentic voice, Khristina Chess weaves together twin catastrophes with empathy and realism." —Kim Cross, author of What Stands in a Storm Inspired by the Super Outbreak of tornados on April 27, 2011, this “opposite attracts” story of love, loss, and recovery will appeal to fans of Heroine. The worst part about the tornado isn’t the car on Savannah Young’s roof. It’s not her missing mom or her missing cat. It’s not the news that the power might not be restored for ten days or the fact that she’s stranded with the neighbors. She’s out of pain ...

Named a Finalist in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. A romantic love triangle that will appeal to fans of Girl in Pieces and Thinspo--this compelling story explores insecurity and the power of words to hurt and to heal. When tall, gorgeous Brody asks Olivia to prom, she’s ecstatic—until he suggests she use the next two months to lose some weight. But how thin is thin enough? What starts as a few skipped meals spirals into a dangerous obsession—hours spent scrolling pro-ana and thinspo forums, tracking calories like a lifeline, and watching the number on the scale plummet. The ...

From the award-winning author of Hollow Beauty and Junior Missing comes a haunting historical mystery set during the surge of the nation’s most notorious serial killers, when a teenage girl disappears and one friend refuses to stop searching. March, 1980: Fifteen-year-old Rosie Fields vanishes. Bobby was one of the last to see her. Although the police say she probably ran away, Bobby knows better. Something dreadful happened to his friend. And now he won’t stop trying to save her. He owes her his life. Months pass. The case goes cold. But Bobby keeps digging. Why did Rosie lie about ...

Don’t miss this funny and addictive dystopian survival story about a teenager forced to change her unhealthy relationship with food after a catastrophic global event leads to famine and societal collapse—perfect for fans of Ali Hazelwood. She overeats. That’s what Zoey’s mother says about her, but one day while her parents are traveling, a strange blackout occurs. Seeking cell service and air conditioning, Zoey teams up with Kent and heads for the mountains of Coywood Creek, home of her grandmother and uncle, as well as the gorgeous Ethan Franklin. At first, this place seems like an...

Perfect for fans of We Are Not From Here—this searing novel introduces an unaccompanied minor from Honduras who flees murdering coyotes, only to become ensnared by human traffickers. Freedom is not free. After his father is executed by smugglers, Teódulo escapes and continues the harrowing journey toward the United States alone. He’s hunted. A debt is owed. At the border, violent cartel members capture him and force him into brutal labor because everybody pays to cross, one way or another. He doesn’t speak English. He doesn’t know where he is, and his jailers beat, threaten, and ...

“Unquiet riot is a psychological sledgehammer of a thriller with a tension so relentless you’ll find yourself ready to snap.” - Kayla Ancrum, author of The Wicker King A psychological thriller that will appeal to fans of My Sister Rosa—this story explores the consequences of silence about bullying and mental illness. Riley is not a psychopath. It’s just that he was born unable to understand emotions. Is that person embarrassed or insecure? Suspicious or curious? It’s confusing when someone says, “Please don’t hate me,” but their face says, “You should definitely hate me ...

For readers drawn to tear-jerkers like The Fault of Our Stars, this heart-wrenching mystery depicts a grieving teen’s search for answers about her anorexic sister’s sudden accident. What really happened in that house? Everyone is saying Kat fell and hit her head, causing a catastrophic brain bleed. She’s severely malnourished and on life support, and in a few days, the doctors will remove the ventilator. But when 18-year-old Molly visits her sister’s rental house, it looks more like a crime scene that someone cleaned up to hide something. Stories about what happened are inconsistent...

"With some teen romance on the side, this is an absolute must read for any book lover." - InD'tale - Runner-Up in the 2017 RONE Awards For fans of Far from the Tree--a poignant, witty, and deeply compelling story about life-altering choices that change everything. Kansas Jones has her future mapped out. Class president, top varsity swimmer, and a straight-A student with ambitions to attend MIT. But one mistake threatens to unravel everything: an unplanned pregnancy she never saw coming. Twelve weeks. That’s how long she has to make the hardest decision of her life. With finals, college ...

A high-stakes YA novel that's great for fans of It's Kind of a Funny Story and The Perks of Being a Wallflower--this romantic story about academic pressure and depression will amuse and inspire. Kim absolutely, positively cannot get a B in calculus. She's on track for being valedictorian of her class and getting into the perfect college--or she was until Calculus class this year. But with report cards coming out soon, academic pressures are mounting, and anxiety threatens to overwhelm her. She's feeling desperate. Helpless. And utterly overwhelmed with anxiety. Now Kim's making secret ...

Perfect for fans of Hatchet, this survival thriller follows a teenage girl who must claw her way toward rescue after a brutal dog attack leaves her and her wounded mother trapped in the wild. While walking on a rural road, Melender and her mom are ambushed and forced down a near-vertical hillside into a ravine. Now they’re trapped. Wounded. Stranded on a narrow ledge with no food, no water, no shelter. No phone. No way out. No one knows where they are. No one even knows they’re missing. The only thing Melender has is her will to survive. She doesn’t want to leave her critically ...

Winner of the 2015/2016 Reader Views Reviewers Choice Award (Young Adult) For fans of Looking for Alaska—a poignant story of loss, addiction, and the unexpected love that could change everything. Adriana is downing in grief. Sixteen months after losing her mother to a drunk driver, Adriana is barely holding herself together. With her father traveling so much and her sister away at college, no one notices her secret descent. She drinks to numb the pain and the terrible secret she can’t forget. Quitting feels impossible. Healing seems out of reach. Then she meets Ian—a boy who sees her ...