Winning what you want may cost you everything you love…

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions.

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin.

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart. 

Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Amy Curry is not looking forward to her summer. Her mother decided to move across the country and now it’s Amy’s responsibility to get their car from California to Connecticut. The only problem is, since her father died in a car accident, she isn’t ready to get behind the wheel. Enter Roger. An old family friend, he also has to make the cross-country trip – and has plenty of baggage of his own. The road home may be unfamiliar – especially with their friendship venturing into uncharted territory – but together, Amy and Roger will figure out how to map their way.

Panic by Lauren Oliver

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.

Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn’t know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.

For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

Four Classic Novels: Jane Austen

Sense and Sensibility. The Dashwood sisters—Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret— follow their hearts and heads in varying degrees as they seek suitors appropriate for their affections.
Pride and Prejudice. When obstinate Elizabeth Bennet clashes with the seemingly arrogant Fitzwilliam Darcy, sparks fly and eventually ignite what each must come to accept is the love of a perfectly matched couple.
Emma. Confident and self-assured, willful Emma Woodhouse commits a series of social blunders that teach her how badly she misunderstands her society and her own romantic yearnings.
Persuasion. Seven years earlier Anne Elliot broke off her engagement to the man she loved. When the opportunity arises for her to renew their romance, will she overcome the social strictures that made her earlier match seem ill-conceived?

*All synopsis’ from GoodReads*