Like others in the Lockwood Lions series, these two issue-driven episodes, bound together, present stories with different narrators e a high-school football player, the other a cheerleader d several shared incidents. Newly transferred to predominantly African American Lockwood High, white kicker ER bears up under a steady stream of racial trash-talking but struggles to cope with a former girlfriend who won't take get lost for an answer, a teammate he spots shooting up, and finding his divorced mother in bed with another woman. But he meets and clicks with Randal, the other narrator, who for her part is struggling with her biracial identity, a former friend, and personal conflicts with fellow cheerleaders who have been variously shot, raped, or otherwise traumatized. Both accounts are cast largely in dialogue, with contemporary cadences but minimal use of obscenities. The near-total lack of actual football or cheerleading action in either title may disappoint, but the urban edge in even the friendly repartee will grab readers, and Randal and ER both ultimately emerge with their relationship, spirits, and consciences intact.

CONRAD, Lauren . Starstruck . 294p. (A Fame Game Novel). HarperCollins / Harper. 2012 . Tr $18.99. ISBN 978-0-06-207980-0 . Gr 5 Up CREMER, Andrea . Rise . 388p. Philomel . Jan. 2013. Tr $18.99. ISBN 978-0-399-15960-2 . LC 2012012263. Gr 10 Up The continuation of the series that began with Nightshade and Wolfsbane . DESTEFANO, Lauren . Sever . Bk. 3. 384p. (The Chemical Garden Trilogy). S &; S. Feb. 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-0909-5 ; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-0913-2 . LC 2012015702. Gr 9 Up EDWARDS, Eve . The Rogue's Princess . Bk. 3. 272p. (The Lacey Chornicles) Delacorte . Jan. 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-385-74093-7 ; PLB $20.99. ISBN 978-0-375-98976-6 ; ebook $10.99. ISBN 978-0-375-98339-9 . Gr 9 Up ESTEP, Jennifer . Crimson Frost . 384p. (A Mythos Academy Novel). Kensington / KTeen . Jan. 2013. pap. $9.95. ISBN 978-0-7582-8146-3 . Gr 9 Up FITZPATRICK, Becca . Finale . 464p. (The Hush, Hush Saga). S &; S. 2012. Tr $19.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-2667-2 ; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-2669-6 . Gr 9 Up GODBERSEN, Anna . The Lucky Ones . 374p. (A Bright Young Things Novel). HarperCollins / Harper. 2012 . Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-06-196270-7 . Gr 9 Up KINCY, Karen . Foxfire . Bk. 3. 297p. (An Other Novel). Flux . 2012. pap. $9.99. ISBN 978-0-7387-3057-8 . LC 2012019102. Gr 9 Up LACKEY, Mercedes &; Rosemary Edghill . Sacrifices . Bk. 3. 304p. (Shadow Grail Series). Tor. Apr. 2013. Tr $21.99. ISBN 978-0-7653-2852-0 ; pap. $21.99. ISBN 978-0-7653-1763-6 ; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-4299-9719-5 . Gr 710 LORE, Pittacus . I Am Number Four: The Lost Files: The Legacies . 416p. 2012. pap. $9.99. ISBN 978-0-06-221110-1 . LORE, Pittacus . The Rise of Nine . 416. Feb. 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-06-197458-8 . ea vol: (I Am Number Four Series). HarperCollins / Harper . Gr 7 Up MOORE, Stephanie Perry &; Derrick Moore . Settle Down/Be Real . Bk. 4. 310p. ISBN 978-1-61651-887-5 . MOORE, Stephanie Perry &; Derrick Moore . Shake It/Got Pride . Bk. 5. 309p. ISBN 978-1-61651-888-2 . MOORE, Stephanie Perry &; Derrick Moore . Yell Out/Do You . Bk. 3. 336p. ISBN 978-1-61651-886-8 . ea vol: (Lockwood Lions Series). Saddleback . 2012. pap. $14.95. Gr 7 Up SCHREIBER, Ellen . Full Moon Kisses . 224p. (A Full Moon Novel). HarperCollins / Katherine Tegen Bks. Jan. 2013. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-06-198653-6 . LC 2012949623. Gr 7 Up SHEPARD, Sara . Ali's Pretty Little Lies . 292p. Jan. 2013. ISBN 978-0-06-223336-3 . LC 2012950661. SHEPARD, Sara . Burned . 324p. 2012. ISBN 978-0-06-208192-6 . LC 2012949622. ea vol: (Pretty Little Liars Series). HarperCollins / HarperTeen . Tr $17.99. Gr 9 Up SHIELDS, Gillian . Destiny . 374p. HarperCollins / Katherine Tegen Bks. 2012. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-06-200041-5 . Gr 710 The conclusion to the series that began with Immortal, Betrayal , and Eternal . SMITH, Alexander Gordon . Execution . Bk. 5. 352p. (Escape from Furnace Series). Farrar . 2012. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-374-36224-9 ; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-0-374-32239-7 . LC 2012004870. Gr 710 SMITH, L. J. Destiny Rising . Vol. 3. 394p. (The Vampire Diaries: The Hunters Series). HarperCollins / HarperTeen . 2012. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-06-201773-4 . Gr 9 Up TANIGAWA, Nagaru . The Indignation of Haruhi Suzumiya . tr. from Japanese by Paul Starr. 224p. Little, Brown . 2012. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-316-03900-0 ; pap. $8.99. ISBN 978-0-316-03899-7 . LC 2012013848. Gr 7 Up