Books like 'Illegal'
Readers who enjoyed Illegal by Eoin Colfer & Andrew Donkin also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary action / adventure military, war & conflict africa western-africa ghana libya italy realistic family
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Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 106 ratingsSparks are igniting.Flames are spreading.And the Capitol wants revenge. Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be... -
The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q. Raúf, اونجلی رئوف
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsTold with humor and heart, 'THE BOY AT THE BACK OF THE CLASS' offers a child's perspective on the refugee crisis, highlighting the importance of friendship and kindness in a world that doesn't always make sense.There used to be an empty chair at the back of my class, but now a new boy called Ahmet is sitting in it.He's eight years old (just like me), but he's very strange... -
Making Faces by Amy Harmon
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsAmbrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore... -
UnDivided by Neal Shusterman
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsTeens control the fate of America in the fourth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Unwind dystology by Neal Shusterman.Proactive Citizenry, the company that created Cam from the parts of unwound teens, has a plan: to mass produce rewound teens like Cam for military purposes... -
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Whiskey Tribute by Samantha A. Cole
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCurt Bannerman never thought he’d have to follow through with a promise to ensure his best friend’s wife and children were taken care of, in the event of Eric’s death, after the two men retired from the Navy SEALs. But an assassin made the promise a reality... -
Pax, Journey Home by Sara Pennypacker
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom award-winning author Sara Pennypacker comes the long-awaited sequel to Pax ; this is a gorgeously crafted, utterly compelling novel about chosen families and the healing power of love. A New York Times bestseller! It’s been a year since Peter and his pet fox, Pax, have seen each other. Once inseparable, they now lead very different lives... -
The Orphanage by Serhiy Zhadan
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsRecalling the brutal landscape of The Road and the wartime storytelling of A Farewell to Arms, The Orphanage is a searing novel that excavates the human collateral damage wrought by the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine...Categorized as:
war historical-fiction journey fiction contemporary audiobook literary-fiction 21st-century -
Fall of Hades by Richard Paul Evans
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsMichael and his friends try to recruit Hatch’s Electric Youth to their side as the thrilling action continues in this electrifying sixth installment of the New York Times bestselling series!Michael and the Electroclan are about to embark on their deadliest mission yet. Some of them may not make it back... -
The Heart of a Hero by Susan May Warren
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsJake Silver may not be able to put the memories of his time as a sniper and Navy SEAL behind him, but at least he can put his skills to use as a part of the Jones Inc. rescue team. Saving the life of pediatric heart surgeon Dr. Aria Sinclair on Denali helped too... -
Max: Best Friend. Hero. Marine. by Jennifer Li Shotz
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThis movie novelization of the soon-to-be major motion picture tells the story of a canine hero.When Justin's older brother, Kyle, is killed in Afghanistan, Justin can't believe that his brother is really gone. Except there's one thing that Kyle left behind…Max is a highly trained military canine who has always protected his fellow soldiers... -
Daughter of War by Brad Taylor
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFormer Special Forces Officer and New York Times bestselling author Brad Taylor delivers a heart-pounding thriller featuring Taskforce operators Pike Logan and Jennifer Cahill as they come face to face with a conspiracy where nothing is as it seems... -
Indian Country by Kurt Schlichter
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIt’s all-out war for ruthless red state special operator Kelly Turnbull when he returns in this blockbuster prequel to “People’s Republic,” Kurt Schlichter’s top selling novel of America after the polarized politics of blue versus red have split our country apart. “Indian Country” finds Turnbull sent back into the blue states to help those trapped inside resist a politically correct police state...Categorized as:
historical-fiction politics war action-adventure adult alternate-history book contemporary -
Grandpa's Great Escape by David Walliams
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsDavid Walliams, hailed as “the heir to Roald Dahl” by The Spectator, burst onto the American scene with the New York Times bestseller Demon Dentist. Now the UK’s #1 bestselling children’s author is back with this high-flying adventure about a boy and his grandfather, perfect for fans of Jeff Kinney and Rachel Renee Russell.Grandpa is Jack’s favorite person in the world...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction war action-adventure audiobook book children-books -
The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsBeckett,If you’re reading this, well, you know the last-letter drill. You made it. I didn’t. Get off the guilt train, because I know if there was any chance you could have saved me, you would have.I need one thing from you: get out of the army and get to Telluride.My little sister Ella’s raising the twins alone... -
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Running Barefoot by Amy Harmon
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsWhen Josie Jensen, an awkward 13-year-old musical prodigy crashes headlong into new-comer Samuel Yazzie, an 18-year-old Navajo boy full of anger and confusion, an unlikely friendship blooms. Josie teaches Samuel about words, music and friendship, and along the way finds a kindred spirit... -
Storm of Lightning by Richard Paul Evans
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsMichael, Taylor, Ostin, and the rest of the Electroclan go on their most dangerous mission yet as the thrilling action continues in this electrifying fifth installment of the New York Times bestselling series!The Electroclan is on the run. The resistance movement has been compromised. The safe house has been destroyed... -
Checkmate by Malorie Blackman
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe dramatic conclusion to the award-winning Noughts and Crosses trilogy.Can the future ever erase the past? Rose has a Cross mother and a Nought father in a society where the pale-skinned noughts are treated as inferiors and those with dual heritage face a life-long battle against deep-rooted prejudices... -
Send Down the Rain by Charles Martin
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAllie's second husband is killed tragically when his 18-wheeler crashes into the rocks near their home in Cape San Blas--the tanker was full of fuel and the explosion could be seen on overhead satellites. She'd already lost the beloved waterfront restaurant her parents started and now losing her husband, no matter how unfulfilling their marriage was, might just push her over the edge... -
Songbird Freed by Lisa Edward
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMy name is Tara O’Connell, and I’ve always believed we control our own fate. That life is a journey with many roads, and the choices we make can shape our future. Life has presented me with two paths and I’ve chosen one. Was it right? Did I make the best decision? After the uncertainty of the last twelve months, my destiny is now crystal-clear to me... -
Among the Free by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsENOUGH GAMES.Luke Garner is a third-born in a restrictive society that allows only two children per family. Risking his life, he came out of hiding to fight against the Population Police laws. Now, in the final volume of Margaret Peterson Haddix's suspenseful Shadow Children series, Luke inadvertently sets off a rebellion that results in the overthrow of the government...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction politics realistic survival action-adventure apocalyptic -
The Ferry Girls by Rosie Archer
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA young German girl finds friendship, camaraderie and even love while working on Gosport's ferries in the height of World War 2 - but will her new friends desert her if her nationality comes to light? For fans of Daisy Styles and Nadine Dorries... -
Heading Home by Katie Flynn
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn Katie Flynn’s wonderful new Liverpool saga, Louisa and Cormack Muldoon both have good jobs and live a settled life with their two young daughters. But then Grandpa Muldoon has a seizure and begs his son to return to Kilnevin and the family croft... -
Boy, Everywhere by A.M. Dassu
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBOY, EVERYWHERE is the debut middle grade novel from writer A. M. Dassu. It chronicles the harrowing journey taken from Syria to the UK by Sami and his family. From privilege to poverty, across countries and continents, from a smuggler's den in Turkey to a prison in Manchester, it is a story of survival, of family, of bravery... -
The Civil War of Amos Abernathy by Michael Leali
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAn ALA Rainbow Book List Top 10 Selection * Golden Kite Award Winner * New York Public Library Best Books for Kids * ALA Booklist Top 10 First Novels for Youth * Jane Addams Award finalist * Lambda Literary Award Finalist A heartfelt debut novel about a boy’s attempt to find himself in the history he loves—perfect for fans of Dear Sweet Pea and From the Desk of Zoe Washington...Categorized as:
realistic historical-fiction social-commentary family children poc-mc north-america usa -
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The Someday Birds by Sally J. Pla
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsCharlie wishes his life could be as predictable and simple as chicken nuggets.And it usually is. He has his clean room, his carefully organized bird books and art supplies, his favorite foods, and comfortable routines.But life has been unraveling since his war journalist father was injured in Afghanistan... -
Daughters of Smoke and Fire by Ava Homa
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe unforgettable, haunting story of a young woman’s perilous fight for freedom and justice for her brother, the first novel published in English by a female Kurdish writer Set in Iran, this extraordinary debut novel takes readers into the everyday lives of the Kurds. Leila dreams of making films to bring the suppressed stories of her people onto the global stage, but obstacles keep piling up... -
Inevitable Love by JC Santo
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSometimes the things we fight hardest against are inevitable in the end. Hunter Stevenson wasn't interested in wasting nights with bed warmers, he had a daughter to take care of and a life to build. Leaving behind the mother of his four year old child and her incessant partying, Hunter moves closer to his family to help provide Sawyer some stability... -
Soldier's Heart by Megan Green
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIsaiah Wright is broken. So broken he's positive he'll never be fixed again. Surviving every soldier's worst nightmare is enough for him to want nothing more than to give into the blackness that plagues him. Emma Nicholls knows pain... -
Remember When by R.C. Boldt
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsRemember When is the third book in the Teach Me series, but can be enjoyed as a full-length, standalone romance. The third installment of RC Boldt’s Teach Me series returns with two people who once had it all… Over a decade ago, fourth grade teacher Tate Donnelly was attending college with the love of her life by her side... -
Deck the Halls (Darling, VT) by Donna Alward
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWith shades of It’s a Wonderful Life , one man must face his past to find his future this Christmas. In the last year, George's life has drastically changed. The formerly homeless veteran now has a job he likes, a family in the residents of Darling, VT, and for the first time in years, a home... -
Yara's Spring by Jamal Saeed, Sharon McKay
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsComing of age against all odds in the midst of the Arab Spring.Growing up in Aleppo, Yara’s childhood has long been shadowed by the coming revolution. But when the Arab Spring finally arrives at Yara’s doorstep, it is worse than even her Nana imagined: sudden, violent, and deadly. When rescuers dig Yara out from under the rubble that was once her family’s home, she emerges to a changed world... -
The Last Full Measure by Trent Reedy, Andrew Eiden
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFORMAT: Digital Download, unabridged Narrator: Andrew Eiden In a YA trilogy like no other, Trent Reedy has raised the most primal questions of our national existence: Do we owe our greatest loyalty to our friends? Our state? Our country? Our party? How do we reconcile our individual rights and common needs? What keeps us all united -- and what happens if we fall apart? Now, in this third book,...Categorized as:
historical-fiction politics realistic survival teens war action-adventure alternate-history -
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 42 ratingsOn Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born — a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam — and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation... -
Let's Go Swimming on Doomsday by Natalie C. Anderson
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen Abdi's family is kidnapped, he's forced to do the unthinkable: become a child soldier with the ruthless jihadi group Al Shabaab. In order to save the lives of those he loves, and earn their freedom, Abdi agrees to be embedded as a spy within the militia's ranks and to send dispatches on their plans to the Americans...Categorized as:
africa high-school historical-fiction poc-mc realistic survival war action-adventure -
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Burning Nation by Trent Reedy
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn this wrenching sequel to DIVIDED WE FALL, Danny and friends fight to defend Idaho against a Federal takeover and the ravages of a BURNING NATION.At the end of DIVIDED WE FALL, Danny Wright's beloved Idaho had been invaded by the federal government, their electricity shut off, their rights suspended. Danny goes into hiding with his friends in order to remain free...Categorized as:
high-school historical-fiction politics realistic survival war action-adventure alternate-history -
Memories by Deanna Lynn Sletten
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMichael DeCara came home from the Vietnam War a wounded man, both physically and emotionally. He tried putting his life back together, but found civilian life difficult after all he’d experienced in Nam. Raising his young daughter, Vanessa, by himself after his wife left, he found it difficult to commit to one job or one woman for any length of time... -
Overexposed by Megan Erickson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLove runs wild on the Appalachian Trail in the latest from the author of Out of Frame and Focus on Me... Levi Grainger needs a break. As a reality show star, he’s had enough of the spotlight and being edited into a walking stereotype... -
Middle Ground by Katie Kacvinsky, Katie Ray
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFor four weeks Maddie has been living in Los Angeles, trying to be good. But no matter how hard she tries, something inside her won't be sated. She can't live a life of half-truths and false pretenses. So one night, she says how she really feels.That's all it takes. One night... -
Guapa by Saleem Haddad
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA debut novel that tells the story of Rasa, a young gay man coming of age in the Middle East Set over the course of twenty-four hours, Guapa follows Rasa, a gay man living in an unnamed Arab country, as he tries to carve out a life for himself in the midst of political and social upheaval... -
Grey Bees by Andrey Kurkov
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratings49-year-old safety inspector-turned-beekeeper Sergey Sergeich, wants little more than to help his bees collect their pollen in peace.But Sergey lives in Ukraine, where a lukewarm war of sporadic violence and constant propaganda has been dragging on for years... -
The Disoriented by Amin Maalouf
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAfter 25 years in exile, Adam travels from France to his homeland in the Middle East to bid farewell to his dying childhood friend.One night, a phone rings in Paris. Adam learns that Mourad, once his closest friend, is dying. He quickly throws some clothes in a suitcase and takes the first flight out, to the homeland he fled twenty-five years ago... -
Ildhjerter by Kamila Shamsie
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsThe suspenseful and heartbreaking story of an immigrant family driven to pit love against loyalty, with devastating consequences Isma is free. After years of watching out for her younger siblings in the wake of their mother’s death, she’s accepted an invitation from a mentor in America that allows her to resume a dream long deferred... -
False Flag by Bobby Akart, Joseph Morton
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsfalse flag (\'fols\ 'flag\): An operation designed to deceive in such a way that events appear as though they are being carried out by perpetrators other than those who actually planned and executed them. A false flag is used as an ideolgical weapon to control the citizenry with the fear of a manufactured enemy. The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself. ~ Franklin D... -
All Your Children, Scattered by Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWINNER OF THE PRIX ETHIOPHILE, THE PRIX DES RACINES ET DES MOTS, AND THE PRIX DES CINQ CONTINENTS DE LA FRANCOPHONIEBeata Umubyeyi Mairesse's debut novel follows three generations torn apart by the Rwandan genocide, as they try to reconnect with one another, rebuild broken links, and find their place in today's world... -
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If You're Reading This by Trent Reedy
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsMike was seven when his father was killed in mysterious circumstances in Afghanistan. Eight years later, the family still hasn't recovered: Mike's mom is overworked and overprotective; his younger sister Mary feels no connection to the father she barely remembers; and in his quest to be "the man of the family," Mike knows he's missing out on everyday high school life...Categorized as:
family grief high-school historical-fiction realistic war action-adventure audiobook -
The Bone Fire by György Dragomán
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsFrom an award-winning European writer, a Gothic page-turner with all the menace and promise of a fairy tale In the aftermath of a revolution that has plunged her country into chaos, thirteen-year-old Emma’s small corner of the world is shattered after her dissident parents' death in a car crash... -
I Will Die in a Foreign Land by Kalani Pickhart
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn 1913, a Russian ballet incited a riot in Paris at the new Théâtre de Champs-Elysées. “Only a Russian could do that," says Aleksandr Ivanovich. “Only a Russian could make the whole world go mad... -
Runner by Carl Deuker
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom the award-winning author of "Night Hoops" and "Painting the Black" comes this suspenseful, psychologically astute novel with themes of terrorism and patriotism, fear and courage... -
Endangered by Eliot Schrefer
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen Sophie has to visit her mother at her sanctuary for bonobos, she's not thrilled to be there. Then Otto, an infant bonobo, comes into her life, and for the first time she feels responsible for another creature. But peace does not last long for Sophie and Otto... -
We Are All Made of Stars by Rowan Coleman
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhat if you had just one chance, one letter you could leave behind for the person you love? What would you write? Stella Carey has good reason to only work nights at the hospice where she is a nurse...
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