People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins

People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins is a powerful, thought provoking, and intense story that will hang around in your thoughts long after you have read the last page.  It is an important story that deals with gun violence and white supremacy in gripping fashion.  In true Ellen Hopkins style, she tells her story in a unique way, with not only the voices of our six main characters, but also the voice of the gun itself, always there provoking it's potential user.  It is an intense read, but one that is well worth your time.

From Amazon:

“Fall’s most provocative YA read.” —Entertainment Weekly

Someone will shoot. And someone will die.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Ellen Hopkins tackles gun violence and white supremacy in this compelling and complex novel.

People kill people. Guns just make it easier.

A gun is sold in the classifieds after killing a spouse, bought by a teenager for needed protection. But which was it? Each has the incentive to pick up a gun, to fire it. Was it Rand or Cami, married teenagers with a young son? Was it Silas or Ashlyn, members of a white supremacist youth organization? Daniel, who fears retaliation because of his race, who possessively clings to Grace, the love of his life? Or Noelle, who lost everything after a devastating accident, and has sunk quietly into depression?

One tense week brings all six people into close contact in a town wrought with political and personal tensions. Someone will fire. And someone will die. But who?

The Sacrifice Box by Martin Stewart

When a book starts out with one of my favorite quotes from Stephen King's novela, The Body (aka Stand by Me), I expect great things.  The Sacrifice Box by Martin Stewart didn't disappoint.  This was a fun ride.  A horror story that was more about friendship, love, and sacrifice than about the blood and gore.  Don't get me wrong, there was blood and gore, but that isn't what this book was all about.  It was a story about discovering oneself and figuring out what is most important in your life.  As we get closer to Halloween, if you are looking for a horror story, but one with a lot of heart, you could do much worse than The Sacrifice Box.  

From Amazon:

A horror story about friendship, growing up, and finding a place in the world: Gremlins meets The Breakfast Club by way of Stephen King and Stranger Things.

In the summer of 1982, five friends discover an ancient stone box hidden deep in the woods. They seal inside of it treasured objects from their childhoods, and they make a vow:

Never come to the box alone. 
Never open it after dark. 
Never take back your sacrifice. 

Four years later, a series of strange and terrifying events begin to unfold: mirrors inexplicably shattering, inanimate beings coming to life, otherworldly crows thirsting for blood. Someone broke the rules of the box, and now everyone has to pay.

But how much are they willing to sacrifice?