New Releases by Cindy Callaghan

Award-winning middle-grade novel from the author of Just Add Magic and Saltwater Secrets . . . . In this hourly time-stamped, action-packed tween comedy of errors, Abby Gray, feeling weighed down by her secrets and lies, lets five balloons float into the sky with her deepest secrets attached to them in a desperate attempt to clear her conscience. Her relief is short-lived, though: the next day, those balloons start dropping one by one at her school, revealing Abby’s innermost thoughts to both friends and frenemies and creating hilarious misinterpretations of crushes amongst her peers. This is the worst day of her life . . . or is it? Before the last bell rings, Abby manages to integrate the oddball who is blackmailing her into her friend group and to fix the mix-ups the notes have caused—not only getting couples back together but also making a few new love matches—and finally comes clean as the author of the notes that have created such chaos.

Collects three stories of young American girls having fun in Europe, including "Lost in Rome," in which Luci travels to Rome to help out at her aunt's failing pizzeria and starts a match-making business based on her customers' pizza preferences.

Award-winning middle-grade Christmas novel from the author of Just Add Magic and Saltwater Secrets . . . . Imagine you’re a tween visiting a small town that loves nothing more than its prize fir—a perfect Christmas tree destined for the White House. Now picture yourself accidentally destroying that tree, making you public enemy number one. Lastly, imagine that to repay your debt, you have to remain in said town for the Christmas season. That’s what happens to Brady Bancroft. When Brady ruins Harper Hollow Fall’s prize tree, she’s sentenced to stay in the holiday-festooned town for the month of December. At first, she couldn’t be more depressed about the whole situation; but during her month there, she is surprised to discover that there’s much more than pine needles to the little town holding her captive. In the end, Harper Hollow Falls reminds Brady of the true meaning of Christmas—and she, in turn, saves the town.

From the acclaimed author of Just Add Magic—now a hit streaming original series—comes a sweet novel about two sisters on summer vacation that explores the intricate bonds of a blended family. Stella and Josie live for their summers at the boardwalk—each one a carbon copy of the last. Josie lives in Australia most of the year; her half-sister, Stella, lives in New Jersey. But every year, they come together for a beach vacation with their dad, and to make more memories. The real excitement for them is their secret special place under the boardwalk, where they hide their sister scrapbook, adding memories from each summer. But this summer feels different. Josie isn’t the same—she’s turned into one of the popular girls that Stella can’t stand. Despite the rocky start to their vacation, they still go to their secret, special place under the boardwalk, adding memories to their sister scrapbook once again. That is, until that place is discovered by the owners of the newest store—the Smoothie Factory, which replaced Josie’s favorite sweet spot. Not only have the owners of the Smoothie Factory discovered the cove, they are exploiting the natural habitat, and endangering marine life and everyone at the beach! It’s up to Josie and Stella to figure out how to stop their beloved boardwalk from disappearing for good.

Kelly Quinn and her friends must figure out a way to save a beloved local store and find their infamous Secret Recipe Book, which has gone missing in this sequel to Just Add Magic (the inspiration for the family-friendly TV series)! Kelly Quinn and her best friends, Darbie and Hannah, are having the worst day ever! Their Secret Recipe Book accidentally gets included in frenemy, Charlotte’s used book drive. Not good. As if that’s not enough, the girls find out that their cooking program is on the chopping block at school, thanks to big budget cuts. Kelly & Company decide to take matters into their own hands and apply for famous TV chef Felice Foudini’s Recipe Challenge. The prize? $10,000 and webisodes on Felice’s site. With the Book and the special ingredients from their beloved mentor, Senora Perez’s, store LaCucina, the girls are sure to win. But when they turn to Senora Perez, for help, they discover La Cucina is in danger of closing! Then Kelly gets a mysterious delivery—a package with the missing Secret Recipe Book with a note: “From KE.” KE is one of the Book’s authors, but who is KE exactly? It’s up to Kelly, Darbie, and Hannah to get to the bottom of the mystery, save the cooking program, and help Senora P. keep her store!

West Coast girl Sydney Mackenzie moves to Delaware after her parents inherit a cemetery—and becomes involved in a mystery surrounding the Underground Railroad—in this novel from the author of Just Add Magic and the Lost in series. Sydney Mackenzie is an aspiring filmmaker and average less-than-popular California Girl. So when her parents drop the biggest bombshell ever—they have inherited a cemetery called Lay to Rest, which means a move to boring Delaware—Sydney is NOT happy. And to make matters worse? Their “new” house is actually right on the cemetery grounds—and it isn’t exactly California chic. But after settling in, Sydney discovers that the creepy old house might have more history than she once thought. And someone—or something—is encouraging her to delve deeper into a decades-old mystery that dates back to the Underground Railroad. Will Sydney’s filmmaking skills and the help of some new friends be enough for her get to the bottom of the mystery involving her new home?

When Ginger Carlson's aunt finds herself in financial trouble, Ginger's entire family and her best friend head to Hollywood to help find the missing money.

After breaking a chain letter, can superstitious Megan find a way to turn her luck around? Meghan McGlinchey is the most superstitious girl in her family—and probably in the entire state of Delaware. When she receives a chain letter from a stranger in Ireland, Meghan immediately passes it on, taking only a tiny shortcut in the directions. But after a disastrous day, made complete by losing the election for class president and embarrassing herself in front of the entire school, Meghan realizes that tiny shortcut was a big mistake. Thankfully, her family was already headed to Ireland on spring break, and Meghan makes it her mission to find the original sender and break her extremely unlucky streak. With the help of an eccentric cast of characters—and one very cute Irish boy—can Meghan figure out a way to stop her bad luck? Or is she cursed forever?

When Lucy heads to Rome for the summer, she’s is in for pizza, pasta, and a little amore in this M!X novel from the author of Lost in London. Lucia “Lucy” Rossi thought she was going to be a camp counselor for the summer, but, thanks to a very fortunate twist, she ends up in Rome, Italy, helping out at her aunt’s restaurant, Amore Pizzeria. Lucy can’t wait to see some ruins, eat all the gelato she can, and maybe say a few buongiornos to some cute Italian boys. But Lucy arrives to Italian trouble. Her aunt is in danger of losing her business, thanks to a flashy new pizzeria down the road that is all style, but no substance. In order to try and save the shop, Lucy decides to employ a very unique version of matchmaking—making matches based on customer’s pizza preferences. Soon, word of the American matchmaker gets out, and it looks like the business might be saved! Or so she thought—until someone decides to try and sabotage the newfound success of Amore pizza. Can Lucy figure out who might be behind everything? Or will her family being saying ciao to Amore Pizzeria for good?

"A tween's foreign exchange experience lands her in London luxury--and some hot water as well!"--Information from amazon.com, viewed Oct. 21, 2013.

While visiting Paris, Gwen Russell meets a boy she likes and enters a scavenger hunt to win a ticket for her favorite boy band.

When superstitious Meghan receives a chain letter from Ireland, she takes a shortcut in its directions, and soon finds herself in a streak of bad luck that she must travel to Ireland to break.

Take three friends. Add an old cookbook. Combine with cute boys and a pinch of magic…and see what kind of chaos ensues! When Kelly Quinn and her two BFFs discover a dusty old cookbook while cleaning out the attic, the girls decide to try a few of the mysterious and supposedly magical recipes that are inside. To their surprise, the Keep ’Em Quiet Cobbler actually silences Kelly’s pesky little brother and the Hexberry Tart puts a curse on mean girl Charlotte. Is it possible that the recipes really are magic? Who wrote them and where did they come from? And most importantly of all, when boys get involved, what kind of trouble are the girls stirring up for themselves?