'Apache: Girl Warrior' by Tanya Landman

I will die proud.

I will die free.

But first I will live,

and I will fight.

I am Apache.

'My Swordhand is Singing' by Marcus Sedgwick

You know those bodies that rise from graves and come in the night to get 'ya? Well, this is what this book is about.

'The Road of Bones' by Anne Fine

'Road of Bones' tells the story of Yuri, from his home-life, with its ever increasing restrictions imposed from outside, to his initial evasion of capture from the authorities before an eventual internment in a labour camp, and his subsequent efforts to survive. Although the characters have Russian names, neither Russia nor the Soviet Union are actually mentioned by name as the location of the book. The setting, instead, is an imagined totalitarian state, but it's one whose circumstances have clearly been based on history - and powerful history it is too. This is extremely evocative and compelling stuff, nowhere more so than the frightening conclusion which demonstrates the potential power of context over objective thought - good, no matter how pure, can be twisted and warped to mirror its opposite if given no encouragement beyond itself.

'Dragon Rider' by Cornelia Funke

Firedrake, a brave young dragon, his loyal friend Sorrel and a lonely boy called Ben are united as if by destiny. Together, they embark on a magical journey to find the legendary place where silver dragons can live in peace forever. With only a curious map and the whispered memories of an old dragon to guide them, they fly across moonlit lands and seas to reach the highest mountains in the world. Along the way they discover extraordinary new friends in unlikely places and a courage they never knew they had. Just as well, for the greatest enemy of them all is never far behind - a heartless monster from the past who's been waiting a very long time to destroy the last dragons on earth.

'Sure Fire' by Jack Higgins with Justin Richards

The mother of fourteen-year-old twins Rich and Jade dies in a car crash and they are told they must go and live with their estranged father, who they have never met before. Neither the children nor their father get on, but when Rich and Jade witness him being kidnapped they are drawn into a dangerous crisis that could engulf not just their family but the whole world!

'Avenger' by Andy McNab and Robert Rigby

Danny and Elena are now working for the Firm, desperately attempting to track down the vengeance-seeking Black Star before more 'Angels of Death' suicide bombers are despatched. Elena is the key to discovering the bomb-master's whereabouts as she has already made Deep Web contact. The plan is simple - locate Black Star and kill him - at whatever cost. While Fergus is forced to remain in England, confined to a wheelchair as he recovers from his injuries, the hunt takes Danny and Elena to New York on a covert mission led by Marcie Deveraux. Despite Black Star's trickery and deception, the net gradually closes. Fergus travels to the US to help, but Elena is drawn into terrible danger, and only Danny can save her. Using the skills his grandfather has taught him and his own initiative, he must stop the avenging bomb-master from wreaking further destruction...

"Tom's Midnight Garden" by Philippa Pearce

Tom is sent away to his aunt and uncle's flat to escape catching measles. Angry and alone Tom is bored with no garden and no friends. Then, one night he hears the grandfather clock striking thirteen.The hour thirteen brings an escape to a magical garden with trees, a river,bushes, a sundial and a large lawn. Tom's meets people there and makes a friend called Hatty. But there is a disagreement between which of them is a ghost?

This is a classic children's novel first published in 1958. It won the Carnegie Medal.

'Just in Case' by Meg Rosoff

David Case is a boy plodding through life until his baby brother almost falls out of a window. Then he starts looking at the way in which fate seems to have singled him out. He decides that in order to avoid fate he would change himself, become Justin Case. Try new things, break out of the cocoon he's been living in and become someone else. During this he finds things out about himself and those around him and what fate has in store for him.

This novel didn't get the best of reviews. Meg Rosoff's first book 'How I Live Now' was a hard act to follow, but read this and see what you think.

'Bunker 10' by J A Henderson

At eight o'clock in the evening, on Friday 24th December 2007, Pinewood Military Installation exploded. The blast ripped apart acres of forest and devastated the remote highland valley where the base was located. No official cause was given for the incident. Inside Pinewood were 185 male and female military personnel - a mixture of scientists and soldiers. There were also seven teenagers there. This is the story of their last day...

If you enjoy the mental games involved in time travel this novel will intrigue. Almost immediately the reader becomes sympathetic with the teenagers who may as well have been hostages to the British military. A very satisfying twist at the end - Derek Neal.