SELF-e recently launched its newest YA Select module, a culling of the best self-published novels for teens—and adults who still love a good YA read! Below is a taste of the amazing titles on offer at subscribed libraries. Crawford, C.N. The Witching Elm. CreateSpace. (Memento Mori, Bk. 1). Nov. 2014. ebk. ISBN NA. Fantasy Gr 10+ Sorcerer Tobias Coven is thrown out of the alternate realm of Maremount to keep him safe during a chaotic attack. He stumbles into his new world—Boston—where he must pose as a transfer student at the boarding school and convince his roommate Alan that he belongs. Meanwhile, classmates Fiona, Celia, and Mariana are certain that with a bit more practice they can master the art of magic—never mind that it technically doesn’t exist. That hardly deters them as they invite Alan and the mysterious Tobias to a séance, which ends up blurring the lines between Maremount and Boston and bringing danger too close for comfort. VERDICT Crawford—a duo writing under one name—takes advantage of New England’s rich history and folklore to craft an engaging backdrop to an engrossing tale. The first of a series, this fantasy will capture readers with its compelling characters and exciting twists.—Kate DiGirolomo, Library Journal Jefferson, Elle. Wishful Thinking. LC Jefferson. Sept. 2014. ebk. ISBN NA. F Gr 11+ While his friends party through their senior year and anxiously await Ivy League acceptance letters, James can’t decide if he’ll even bother with college. Getting excited over just about anything has gotten difficult since a recurring nightmare has become ritual, and now he's hallucinating a strangely familiar figure. James isn’t about to confide in the psychiatrist he’s been seeing since finding his mother dead, nor is he mentioning his shortcomings when it comes to the girl of his dreams. The only person James feels he can talk to is Claudia, the neighborhood newcomer whose father is rumored to have ties to the Mafia. The similarities between James’s and Claudia’s pasts are uncanny, but by the time they figure out the connection, they’ve already become bait for a madman’s revenge. VERDICT A frightening, intense thriller with accessible characters and a realistic high school setting.—Cary Frostick, formerly at Mary Riley Styles P.L., Falls Church, VA Lipomi, Deena. Sisters Don’t Tell. Deena Lipomi. Dec. 2014. ebk ISBN N/A. F Gr 11+ Melanie and her adopted 15-year-old sister Annie have always shared everything—until, that is, Annie begins to isolate herself and act bizarrely. Melanie is desperate to get back their old bond, but when the family learns that Annie is pregnant, their worlds are turned upside down. Melanie is trying to navigate their new normal as well as her school crush, and Annie must piece together her future—with or without her older boyfriend. While Melanie makes plans for her eventual life at college, Annie grapples with a serious and life-altering decision. VERDICT With grace and realness, this gripping story of sisterhood handles themes of teen pregnancy, underage sex, and broken trust, pushing this book toward audiences with higher levels of maturity.—Amanda Buschmann, Atascocita Middle School, Humble, TX Walls, Shawna. Harper. CreateSpace. Sept. 2013. ebk. ISBN NA. Fantasy Gr 10+ Teens who grew up loving Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Eoin Colfer’s "Artemis Fowl" series will feel right at home with Walls’s slightly more sophisticated romp among mythological creatures and spirits. Harper, 18 years old and struggling to plot his future, reaches to scratch an annoying itch and discovers a beautiful reddish gold feather embedded in his back. Simultaneously, a teenage girl appears next to him, introducing herself as the poltergeist assigned to guide him through his transition. Turns out that Harper is becoming the first harpy to appear since the species annihilation thousands of years ago, and his transformation is part of a legendary curse. The pair is joined by a faun, a Valkyrie, and two humans hoping to discover the meaning behind conflicting prophecies. Is Harper destined to save the world—or destroy it? VERDICT Heart-pounding action, laugh-out-loud humor, and a m/m romance contribute to this fun novel.—Cary Frostick, formerly at Mary Riley Styles P.L., Falls Church, VA