Most Popular Books by Jennifer A. Nielsen

If you love the danger and sword-fighting of MERLIN, you''ll like this! In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king''s long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince.

Jennifer A. Nielsen, award-winning author of A Night Divided and Rescue, artfully weaves together the stories of five kids living through World War I, each of whom holds the key to the others'' futures... if they are lucky -- and brave -- enough to find each other. "A powerful, absorbing story that shines a light on an often overlooked chapter in human history." -- Alan Gratz, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Refugee World War I stretches its cruel fingers across Europe, where five young people, each from different backgrounds and nations, face the terror of battle, the deprivations of hunger, and all the awful challenges of war. Felix, from Austria-Hungary, longs for the bravery to resist Jewish deportations before his own family can be taken. Kara, from Britain, dreams of someday earning her Red Cross pin and working as a nurse -- or even a doctor. Juliette, of France, hopes her family can remain knitted together, despite her father''s imprisonment, as the war''s longest battle stretches on and on. Elsa, from Germany, hopes her homing pigeon might one day bring her a friend from out of the chaos. And Dimitri, of Russia, wants only to survive the front, where he''s been sent with no weapon. None of them will find exactly what they want. But the winds of fate may cross their paths to give each of them just what they need. And in this remarkable exploration of World War I by critically acclaimed author Jennifer A. Nielsen, they will discover that friendship and courage can light the way through the most frightening of nights.

#1 New York Times bestselling author of Iceberg, Jennifer A. Nielsen inspires readers with a brand-new thriller based on the remarkable true story of a young Polish girl who bravely fought, participating in the Warsaw city uprising, and took a stand in the name of freedom. Twelve-year-old Lidia is outside her grandfather''s house when planes fly overhead, bearing the Nazi cross on each wing. Before the bombs hit the ground, Lidia realizes her life is about to change forever. Poland has fallen under German occupation, and her father makes the brave decision to join the Polish army to fight against the Nazis. Lidia wants to follow him into war, but she''s far too young, and she''s needed by her mother and brother. After her family returns to Warsaw, where life has changed irrevocably, Lidia continues to play the piano, finding comfort in Chopin, Bach, and Beethoven. But she also wants to aid the Jewish people held captive in the Warsaw Ghetto. With the help of a friend, Lidia begins to smuggle wheat and food into the ghetto. Still, she feels like she could be doing so much more. She wants to fight. After her brother joins the resistance, Lidia wants only to follow in his footsteps. Soon, she begins to work as a courier, smuggling weapons and messages for the resistance throughout the city. When the Warsaw city uprising begins-one year after the more well-known Warsaw Ghetto uprising by Polish Jews-with gunfire and bombs echoing throughout the streets, Lidia joins the Polish nationalists'' fight, too, and she and her peers fight with everything they''ve got. Life will continue to surprise Lidia, as she and the resistance fighters do their best to defeat the German soldiers. No matter the consequences, they''re willing to defend their freedom and their homes from the Nazi invaders-even with their lives. Drawing on the extraordinary real-life story of Polish teenager Lidia Zakrzewski, bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen presents an inspiring and dramatic account of the Polish resistance fighters who struggled to force out their Nazi occupiers and reclaim their nation''s freedom from tyranny.

Acclaimed author Jennifer A. Nielsen brings her signature twists and high-stakes action to the fifth installment of the New York Times bestselling Ascendance Series! King Jaron has outwitted the Prozarians and returned to his own kingdom with one secret in his pocket that not even his friends know about. He''s hoping that secret will help him finally bring stability to Carthya. But a surprise attack on his own land -- on the castle itself -- reminds Jaron that nothing is easy. The Prozarian Monarch threatens to crumble Jaron''s entire kingdom. And that''s not the only thing in danger: With old enemies and new rumors circling around him, even Jaron''s relationship with Imogen is uncertain. This former False Prince will need his best tricks and many allies at his side to hold Carthya together.

From NYT bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen comes a stunning thriller about a girl who must escape to freedom after the Berlin Wall divides her family between east and west. A Night Divided joins the Scholastic Gold line, which features award-winning and beloved novels. Includes exclusive bonus content!With the rise of the Berlin Wall, Gerta finds her family suddenly divided. She, her mother, and her brother Fritz live on the eastern side, controlled by the Soviets. Her father and middle brother, who had gone west in search of work, cannot return home. Gerta knows it is dangerous to watch the wall, yet she can''t help herself. She sees the East German soldiers with their guns trained on their own citizens; she, her family, her neighbors and friends are prisoners in their own city.But one day on her way to school, Gerta spots her father on a viewing platform on the western side, pantomiming a peculiar dance. Gerta concludes that her father wants her and Fritz to tunnel beneath the wall, out of East Berlin. However, if they are caught, the consequences will be deadly. No one can be trusted. Will Gerta and her family find their way to freedom?

New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen transports readers to a corner of history with this inspiring story of a girl who discovers the strength of her people united in resisting oppression. Danger is never far from Audra''s family farm in Lithuania. She always avoids the occupying Russian Cossack soldiers, who insist that everyone must become Russian -- they have banned Lithuanian books, religion, culture, and even the language. But Audra knows her parents are involved in something secret and perilous.In June 1893, when Cossacks arrive abruptly at their door, Audra''s parents insist that she flee, taking with her an important package and instructions for where to deliver it. But escape means abandoning her parents to a terrible fate.As Audra embarks on a journey to deliver the mysterious package, she faces unimaginable risks, and soon she becomes caught up in a growing resistance movement. Can joining the underground network of book smugglers give Audra a chance to rescue her parents?

As disaster looms on the horizon, a young stowaway onboard the Titanic will need all her courage and wits to stay alive. A thrilling tale from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen! Hazel Rothbury is traveling all alone from her home in England aboard the celebrated ship Titanic. Following the untimely death of her father, Hazel’s mother is sending her to the US to work in a factory, so that she might send money back home to help her family make ends meet. But Hazel harbors a secret dream: She wants to be a journalist, and she just knows that if she can write and sell a story about the Titanic''s maiden voyage, she could earn enough money to support her family and not have to go to a sweatshop. When Hazel discovers that mother didn’t send her with enough money for a ticket, she decides she must stow away onboard the storied ship. With the help of a porter named Charlie and a sweet first-class passenger named Sylvia, Hazel explores the opulent ship in secret, but a haunting mystery quickly finds her. The danger only intensifies when calamity strikes, and readers will be caught up in the terror and suspense alongside Hazel as she fights to save her friends and herself. Bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen weaves an extraordinary tapestry of survival and disaster in this magnificent thriller.

War is coming! In this thrilling conclusion to the action-packed Ascendance Trilogy, heroes must fight for the future even though staking a claim to rule could mean serious danger—even death.

WARNING! As of today, there are only 7 children who have ever read this book and lived to tell about it. 95 children successfully read the first chapter, but upon beginning chapter 2, they started blabbering in some language known only as "flibberish." 38 children made it halfway through this wretched book before they began sucking their thumbs through their noses. If you''re very brave, perhaps you are willing to take your chances. Be sure that you have told your family who gets your favorite toys if you do not survive this book. Read it now, if you dare. But don''t say you haven''t been warned, for this is the story that unfolds the mysteries of the underworld.

Between trying to steal a hair for the Pixie Princess and a sock for the Fairies from a demon, Elliot discovers being King of the Brownies is no easy job, in this follow-up to "Elliot and the Goblin Wars."

A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive? Find out in the thrilling sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen''s blockbuster The False Prince! Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Series takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!And don''t miss the highly anticipated fourth book in the series, The Captive Kingdom, coming October 2020!

The conclusion to the hilarious fantasy adventures of Elliot, King of the Brownies WARNING: If you care at all for planet Earth,you will pay very close attention to the lessons inside these pages. We usually ask you to run away from dreadful things. But now, you are warned to turn the pages as fast as you can read them. You must know what happens inside this book to learn whether Earth gets destroyed. Because let''s face it—that would be a bad thing. As King of the Brownies, Elliot has battled Goblins, tricked Pixies, and trapped a Demon. But now, that Demon has escaped and he''s ready for revenge. Elliot will face a challenge unlike any he''s seen before. The Last Underworld War is about to begin...

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen comes a brand-new, spine-tingling adventure about two kids and their fight for survival on the unforgiving trails of Mount Everest. Jennifer Nielsen''s storytelling climbs to new heights in this epic about loss, letting go, and the most important lesson a climber can learn: where the eye goes, a person follows. For a climber, letting go means certain death. For Atlas, it means something even worse. But he''ll have to learn how to let go and look up if he ever wants to see the top... Twelve-year-old Atlas Wade has been trying to forget the memory of his mother by climbing mountains ever since she died when he was nine years old. When his father signs them up for an expedition group hoping to be the first to ever summit the unconquerable Mount Everest, Atlas can''t wait for the chance to prove himself to his father, and maybe finally he can leave his mother behind him on the mountain. But this time, Atlas is the one left behind, as well as a young American girl named Maddie and their sturdy yet injured Sherpa, Chodak. When news breaks out that war has returned to Europe, and that Nazis are attempting their own summit dangerously nearby, Atlas and Maddie plead with the expedition to come back down. Their warnings come too late. Atlas looks up that same morning to see an avalanche and when they receive no word from the group, Maddie and Chodak join Atlas as he begins a dangerous journey up the mountain in the hopes of finding survivors. Atlas, Maddie, and Chodak will have to rely not just on their own wits for survival, but on each other as well, especially as sickness, bad weather, and their fears of a Nazi spy watching them puts their mission -- and lives -- at risk in the brutal terrain. And Atlas will have to learn how to let go if he wants any chance of finding his father and fixing the rift between them caused by his mother''s death, before it''s too late. Using one of the world''s greatest -- and most infamous -- mountains as a backdrop, #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen''s storytelling climbs to new heights in this touching, thrilling epic about grief, letting go, and the bonds that keep us alive.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Iceberg and The Free State of Jax comes the harrowing story of the fight for survival during the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906 and the desperate race to find survivors. San Francisco, 1906. When Cora leaves her house in the early morning hours of April 18th, she expects trouble to find her, like it somehow always does. But as she makes her way to the San Francisco docks to look for her father, the earth begins to shake and suddenly, Cora realizes that she''s not just in trouble--she''s in danger. Soon after, the last thing Cora remembers seeing is a tall building swaying overhead, before everything goes dark. When Cora wakes up, she''s trapped underground with Chi, whom she met by accident on the way to the docks. They''re running short on air and time, when miraculously, Cora''s friend Oliver pulls them from the rubble. Once she''s above ground again, Cora is shocked to find herself in a city that has been decimated by a massive earthquake. Together, Cora, Chi, and Oliver begin a desperate search for their families, all the while trying to evade terrifying fires that are tearing through the wreckage and a gang of thieves who are pursuing Cora and a valuable secret she holds. From beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen comes a thrilling, suspenseful story about courage, friendship, and the strength it takes to survive one of the most terrible natural disasters this country has ever seen.

In this dystopian fantasy from a New York Times–bestselling author, a teen put in quarantine due to a mysterious illness uncovers a government conspiracy. As a lethal plague sweeps through the land, Ani Mells is shocked when she is unexpectedly captured by the governor''s wardens and forced to submit to a test for the deadly Scourge. She is even more surprised when the test results come back positive, and she is sent to Attic Island, a former prison turned refuge—and quarantine colony—for the ill. The Scourge''s victims, Ani now among them, can only expect to live out short, painful lives there. However, Ani quickly discovers that she doesn''t know the whole truth about the Scourge or the Colony. She''s been caught in a devious plot, and, with the help of her best friend, Weevil, Ani means to uncover just what is actually going on. But will she and Weevil survive long enough to do so? The Scourge is an explosively thrilling tale of adventure and intrigue, courage and heart from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen. "Nielsen''s polished fantasy smoothly combines medieval elements with hints of mystery and romance . . . it delivers a significant message about how misinformation breeds intolerance." — Publishers Weekly "The characters are well defined and memorable. Feisty Ani, a likable character who is thoughtful and strong, drives the story forward and keeps readers wanting to know more . . . " — School Library Journal

New York Times bestseller Jennifer A. Nielsen tells the extraordinary story of a Jewish girl''s courageous efforts to resist the Nazis. Chaya Lindner is a teenager living in Nazi-occupied Poland. Simply being Jewish places her in danger of being killed or sent to the camps. After her little sister is taken away, her younger brother disappears, and her parents all but give up hope, Chaya is determined to make a difference. Using forged papers and her fair features, Chaya becomes a courier and travels between the Jewish ghettos of Poland, smuggling food, papers, and even people. Soon Chaya joins a resistance cell that runs raids on the Nazis'' supplies. But after a mission goes terribly wrong, Chaya''s network shatters. She is alone and unsure of where to go, until Esther, a member of her cell, finds her and delivers a message that chills Chaya to her core, and sends her on a journey toward an even larger uprising in the works -- in the Warsaw Ghetto. Though the Jewish resistance never had much of a chance against the Nazis, they were determined to save as many lives as possible, and to live -- or die -- with honor.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen, this charmingly quirky coming-of-age story about a boy fighting for his freedom and a place to call home is brimming with mystery and adventure. Jaxon Averett has had some terrifically bad luck. Because only the worst luck in the world can account for the fact that he has to live with his Uncle Clive Grimmitz, Aunt Helga, and their six kids in dead-end Walkonby, Kansas. Life with Jax''s cousins isn''t easy -- they''re all bullies, and his aunt and uncle can''t even remember his name. Which is why, on the night before his twelfth birthday, Jax sneaks over to the neighboring property, floats a raft out into the middle of the hot springs lake, and drops anchor. Jax is now the president and sole citizen of his own micronation, the Free State of Jax. With the help of new friends, a local lawyer, and the property owner Owen O''Keefe, Jax''s micronation begins to flourish. But the Grimmitzes will do anything to get him back and they are not above sabotage. On top of that, Jax is quickly embroiled in the mystery of Owen''s missing brother -- and a lost windfall of the town''s money. Investigating puts everything Jax has built at risk, and when long-buried family secrets are unearthed, he must find the courage to do what''s right, even if it means losing his only chance at freedom. New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen weaves an extraordinary mystery and a moving and hilariously zany story about family, forgiveness, and the courage it takes to do what''s right, no matter the cost.