Recommendations based on Salt to the Seaby Ruta Sepetys

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Between Shades of Gray

    by Ruta Sepetys
    A young girl's story of survival and resilience in the face of oppression during World War II.

    Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family ... (Goodreads)

  2. Echo

    by Pam Muñoz Ryan
    A magical story of courage, hope and friendship, connecting three different generations.

    The framing story is set in Germany circa 1889; , while playing hide-and-seek with his friends, Otto becomes absorbed in a book he had purchased from a Gypsy entitled The Thirteenth Harmonica of Otto ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Illuminae

    by Amie Kaufman
    Two teens fight for survival amidst a galactic war, set against a backdrop of espionage and deception.

    This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded. The year is 2575, and two rival mega-corporations are at war over a ... (Goodreads)

  4. The Invention of Wings

    by Sue Monk Kidd
    A powerful story about a girl's journey to freedom, despite the limitations of slavery.

    Writing at the height of her narrative and imaginative gifts, Sue Monk Kidd presents a masterpiece of hope, daring, the quest for freedom, and the desire to have a voice in the world—and it is now ... (Goodreads)

  5. An Ember in the Ashes

    by Sabaa Tahir
    A young woman's fight for freedom in a world of tyranny and oppression.

    A Scholar girl by the name of Laia lives in the Martial Empire with her grandparents and brother Darin in the city of Serra. Their existence is a grueling one as they are seen as second-class ... (Wikipedia)

  6. Before We Were Yours

    by Lisa Wingate
    Family torn apart is reunited across generations, revealing a powerful tale of resilience and hope.

    Memphis, 1939. Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the ... (Goodreads)

  7. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

    by Becky Albertalli
    A teenager's struggle to come to terms with his sexual identity while keeping a secret from his family and friends.

    Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the ... (Goodreads)

  8. Out of the Easy

    by Ruta Sepetys
    A teenage girl's journey of self-discovery in the underworld of 1950s New Orleans.

    It's 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel ... (Goodreads)

  9. The Wrath and the Dawn

    by Renée Ahdieh
    A thrilling adventure of love and revenge in a mystical, ancient land.

    One Life to One Dawn. In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new ... (Goodreads)

  10. Lilac Girls

    by Martha Hall Kelly
    A story of three women's lives, intertwined by World War II, and their remarkable courage.

    Inspired by the life of a real World War II heroine, this powerful debut novel reveals an incredible story of love, redemption, and terrible secrets that were hidden for decades. On the eve of a ... (Goodreads)

  11. Beartown

    by Fredrik Backman
    A small-town hockey team and its community grapple with the consequences of a traumatic event.

    Peter Andersson, in his forties, is the general manager of the ice hockey club in Beartown, a small town located somewhere in Sweden. Peter grew up in Beartown and was a junior hockey star. He went ... (Wikipedia)

  12. Turtles All the Way Down

    by John Green
    A teenage girl's battle with mental illness, as she navigates her relationships & struggles to find her place in the world.

    Aza Holmes is a 16-year-old high school student living in Indianapolis who struggles with OCD , which often manifests as a fear of the human microbiome . Constantly worried about infection, ... (Wikipedia)

  13. Scythe

    by Neal Shusterman
    An exploration of morality in a world where death is obsolete, forcing people to choose mortality.

    Late on a cold day in November, Scythe Faraday visits Citra Terranova's house. At first, Citra assumes that the scythe is there to glean (kill permanently) one of her family members. As it turns out, ... (Wikipedia)

  14. A Monster Calls

    by Patrick Ness
    A young boy's journey of self-discovery, coming to terms with his mother's terminal illness.

    Thirteen-year-old Conor O'Malley awakens from the same nightmare he has been experiencing for the past few months, "the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming". At seven minutes after ... (Wikipedia)

  15. Small Great Things

    by Jodi Picoult
    A gripping story of racism and justice, exploring the intersections of power and privilege.

    #1, NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER • With richly layered characters and a gripping moral dilemma that will lead readers to question everything they know about privilege, power, and race,, Small Great ... (Barnes & Noble)

  16. Queen of Shadows

    by Sarah J. Maas
    A young woman's quest for power and identity in a magical kingdom.

    Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past… She ... (Goodreads)

  17. All the Bright Places

    by Jennifer Niven
    Two teens struggling to find hope in the face of depression and grief, discovering the power of love.

    Theodore Finch and Violet Markey are two teenagers who badly want to escape from their small Indiana town. Violet is a popular girl who is secretly dealing with survivor's remorse, and Finch is a boy ... (Wikipedia)

  18. These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901

    by Nancy E. Turner
    A young woman's struggle for independence, chronicles her journey through the American Southwest.

    “Belongs on your must-read list. This novel is a gem.” — Omaha World-Herald Nancy E. Turner's unforgettable, These Is My Words, melds the sweeping adventures and dramatic landscapes of, Lonesome ... (Barnes & Noble)

  19. Orphan Train

    by Christina Baker Kline
    A story of two women's intertwined lives, spanning generations and crossing continents.

    The #1 New York Times Bestseller “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of America’s history. Beautiful.”—Ann Packer Moving ... (Barnes & Noble)

  20. Code Name Verity

    by Elizabeth Wein
    Two female spies' harrowing mission during WWII and the secrets they discover.

    In 1943 Nazi-occupied France, a British Lysander spy plane crashes in the fictional town of Ormaie. On board are two best friends, a pilot (Maddie, code name: Kittyhawk) and a spy (Julie, code name: ... (Wikipedia)

  21. My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry

    by Fredrik Backman
    An imaginative quest to uncover the truth behind a beloved grandmother's mysterious stories.

    The story takes place in Sweden and follows Elsa, a 7-year-old who knows she is different from other children her age. Elsa has a habit of correcting others' grammar, she is smart for her age, and is ... (Wikipedia)

  22. Britt-Marie Was Here

    by Fredrik Backman
    A woman's quest for independence and self-discovery, learning to embrace life and take risks.

    The plot of the novel focuses on a "nag-hag" woman who has recently left her cheating husband and has taken on a job in the city of Borg, working at the recreation center. The city itself is barely a ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Ruin and Rising

    by Leigh Bardugo
    A young woman's epic quest to save her world from dark forces.

    ▶, Alternative Cover Edition #1, The capital has fallen. The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne. Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the ... (Goodreads)

  24. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

    by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
    Two teenage boys explore friendship, identity, and family, with unexpected results.

    The book is divided into six sections. In each part we see the two main characters, Aristotle and Dante, discovering more about themselves, more Aristotle than Dante. 15-year-old Aristotle "Ari" ... (Wikipedia)

  25. Heir of Fire

    by Sarah J. Maas
    A young woman discovers her magical powers and embarks on an epic quest to fight evil.

    Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak-but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could ... (Goodreads)

  26. Winter

    by Marissa Meyer
    A young girl's battle to save her kingdom from the icy grip of a powerful queen.

    Due to Princess Winter's refusal to use the Lunar gift, the ability to manipulate what others see and do, she has Lunar sickness, a state of mental illness that causes occasional hallucinations. ... (Wikipedia)

  27. All American Boys

    by Jason Reynolds
    Two high school boys, one black, one white, navigate race, justice and friendship.

    Rashad is absent again today. That’s the sidewalk graffiti that started it all… Well, no, actually, a lady tripping over Rashad at the store, making him drop a bag of chips, was what started it all. ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Serpent King

    by Jeff Zentner
    Three misfit teenagers explore their identities, faith and the power of friendship.

    This is an Alternate Cover edition for ASIN B00ZNE17D2 Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life—at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous ... (Goodreads)

  29. Dear Martin

    by Nic Stone
    An African American student's reflections on racial injustice, sparked by the shooting of an unarmed black teen.

    Raw, captivating, and undeniably real, Nic Stone joins industry giants Jason Reynolds and Walter Dean Myers as she boldly tackles American race relations in this stunning debut. Justyce McAllister is ... (Goodreads)

  30. Unwind

    by Neal Shusterman
    A dystopian future world where teenagers are subjected to a “harvesting” process that splits them apart.

    Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives. The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age ... (Goodreads)