Books like 'The Runaway's Diary'
Readers who enjoyed The Runaway's Diary by James Patterson & Emily Raymond also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary mystery action / adventure realistic family friendship coming-of-age
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The Light Through the Leaves by Glendy Vanderah
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsOne unbearable mistake at the edge of the forest.In a moment of crisis, Ellis Abbey leaves her daughter, Viola, unattended—for just a few minutes. But when she returns, Viola is gone. A breaking point in an already fractured marriage, Viola’s abduction causes Ellis to disappear as well—into grief, guilt, and addiction... -
![Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton]()
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsAn utterly wonderful debut novel of love, crime, magic, fate and a boy’s coming of age, set in 1980s Australia and infused with the originality, charm, pathos, and heart of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.The mind can take you anywhere you want to goEli Bell’s life is complicated...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic 21st-century action-adventure audiobook bildungsroman -
![Mission Manhattan by James Ponti]()
Mission Manhattan by James Ponti
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn this fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling series from Edgar Award winner James Ponti, the young group of spies take on New York City in another international adventure perfect for fans of Spy School and Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls... -
![Home for the Holidays by Heather Vogel Frederick]()
Home for the Holidays by Heather Vogel Frederick
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThis Christmas season, join the girls of the mother-daughter book club for a variety of holiday-themed adventures! Becca, Megan, Emma, Cassidy and Jess have plenty of reading material to bring on their trips, too, because the book club is tackling the Betsy-Tacy series before their next meeting on New Year’s Eve. But unfortunately, nothing goes quite as planned for any of the girls...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic 21st-century action-adventure audiobook book -
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![The Law of Finders Keepers by Sheila Turnage]()
The Law of Finders Keepers by Sheila Turnage
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsPirates, family, and the truth about Mo's Upstream Mother collide in the conclusion to the Newbery Honor and New York Times bestselling Three Times Lucky When the Colonel and Miss Lana share the clues about Mo's watery origins that they've been saving, it seems the time is finally right for the Desperado Detectives (aka Mo, Dale, and Harm) to tackle the mystery of Mo's Upstream Mother... -
![The Heart of a Hero by Susan May Warren]()
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... -
![Wish by Barbara O'Connor]()
Wish by Barbara O'Connor
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsEleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since fourth grade. She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure animals anthropomorphism audiobook -
![The Last Present by Wendy Mass]()
The Last Present by Wendy Mass
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsDon't miss the latest entry in the incredible Willow Falls series by Wendy Mass!Amanda and Leo have a history with birthdays. Now their friend's little sister, Grace, has fallen into a strange frozen state on her birthday, and Amanda and Leo must travel in time in order to fix whatever's wrong. As they journey back to each of Grace's birthdays, they start seeing all sorts of patterns . . -
![City Spies by James Ponti, Loredana Serratore]()
City Spies by James Ponti, Loredana Serratore
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsSara Martinez is a hacker. She recently broke into the New York City foster care system to expose her foster parents as cheats and lawbreakers. However, instead of being hailed as a hero, Sara finds herself facing years in a juvenile detention facility and banned from using computers for the same stretch of time... -
![Seabreeze Inn by Jan Moran]()
Seabreeze Inn by Jan Moran
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA widowed artist. An old crush. One summer to get her life back.Ivy Bay’s life implodes after discovering that her late husband had spent their life savings on a beach house. Strapped for cash as an art teacher and with nowhere to go, Ivy and her recently jilted sister head to Summer Beach to recreate their lives... -
![A Mother's Secret by Caroline Finnerty]()
A Mother's Secret by Caroline Finnerty
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA gripping, emotional book that asks the question: What does it take to be a parent?In one split second, Aidan Whelan’s perfect world is changed forever when his wife Rowan and three-year old daughter Milly are involved in tragic accident... -
![Restart by Gordon Korman]()
Restart by Gordon Korman
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe amazing New York Times bestseller about what you can do when life gives you a second chance.Chase's memory just went out the window.Chase doesn't remember falling off the roof. He doesn't remember hitting his head. He doesn't, in fact, remember anything. He wakes up in a hospital room and suddenly has to learn his whole life all over again . . . starting with his own name.He knows he's Chase... -
![13 Gifts by Wendy Mass]()
13 Gifts by Wendy Mass
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWendy Mass turns to another magical birthday: 13!When Tara, a self-proclaimed shrinking violet, steals the school mascot, a goat, in order to make some friends with the popular crowd and gets caught, she gets herself in a heap of trouble... -
![Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein]()
Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWelcome, boys and girls, readers of all ages, to the first-ever Library Olympiad! Kyle and his teammates are back, and the world-famous game maker, Luigi Lemoncello, is at it again! This time Mr. Lemoncello has invited teams from all across America to compete in the first ever LIBRARY OLYMPICS. Will it be fun? Like the commercials say. . -
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![Leaving Blythe River by Catherine Ryan Hyde]()
Leaving Blythe River by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde returns with an unforgettable story of courage. Seventeen-year-old Ethan Underwood is totally unprepared to search for his father in the Blythe River National Wilderness. Not only is he small, scrawny, and skittish but he’s barely speaking to the man after a traumatic betrayal...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship action-adventure anthologies audiobook contemporary drama -
![Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman]()
Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsA hidden book. A found cipher. A game begins . . . .Twelve-year-old Emily is on the move again. Her family is relocating to San Francisco, home of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles... -
![The Odds of Getting Even by Sheila Turnage]()
The Odds of Getting Even by Sheila Turnage
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsHumor and action abound in this second follow-up to the Newbery honor winner and New York Times bestseller, Three Times LuckyThe trial of the century has come to Tupelo Landing, NC. Mo and Dale, aka Desperado Detectives, head to court as star witnesses against Dale's daddy--confessed kidnapper Macon Johnson. Dale's nerves are jangled, but Mo, who doesn't mind getting even with Mr... -
![So Over My Head by Jenny B. Jones]()
So Over My Head by Jenny B. Jones
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsNewly single, stalked by a killer, and in desperate need of some chic clown shoes--Bella is one skinny mocha frapp away from total meltdown. When the Fritz Family Carnival makes its annual appearance in Truman, Bella's keen reporter instincts tell her the bright lights hide more than they reveal. Her suspicions are confirmed when one of the stars is murdered... -
![Eleven Birthdays by Wendy Mass]()
Eleven Birthdays by Wendy Mass
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsGROUNDHOG DAY meets FLIPPED in this tale of a girl stuck in her birthday.It's Amanda's 11th birthday and she is super excited -- after all, 11 is so different from 10. But from the start, everything goes wrong. The worst part of it all is that she and her best friend, Leo, with whom she's shared every birthday, are on the outs and this will be the first birthday they haven't shared together... -
![Mr. Lemoncello's Great Library Race by Chris Grabenstein]()
Mr. Lemoncello's Great Library Race by Chris Grabenstein
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratings#1 New York Times bestselling author Chris Grabenstein is back with the third fantastically fun, puzzle-packed MR. LEMONCELLO adventure!On your marks. Get set. Lemon, cello, GO!Everyone's favorite game maker, Mr... -
![A Gallagher Wedding by Ally Carter]()
A Gallagher Wedding by Ally Carter
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratings...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure boarding-school book contemporary -
![Runaway Twin by Peg Kehret]()
Runaway Twin by Peg Kehret
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThirteen-year-old Sunny runs away from her current foster parent in search of her twin sister, from whom she was separated ten years earlier. On the way, shell face a tornado, bullies, and a stray dog and the fact that her sister may not be who Sunny hoped she would be... -
![A French Affair by Jennifer Bohnet]()
A French Affair by Jennifer Bohnet
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratings*Brand new from the bestselling author of Villa of Sun and Secrets*What will be will be...Belinda Marshall’s idyllic teenage life in Brittany, France, fell apart when her parents dramatically separated and her mother took her backto England.Fast forward thirty-five years when Belinda’s world is once again turned upside down... -
![The Seventh Wish by Kate Messner]()
The Seventh Wish by Kate Messner
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsCharlie feels like she's always coming in last. From her Mom's new job to her sister's life at college, everything seems more important than Charlie. Then one day while ice fishing, Charlie makes a discovery that will change everything . . . in the form of a floppy fish offering to grant a wish in exchange for freedom... -
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![The Midnight Children by Dan Gemeinhart]()
The Midnight Children by Dan Gemeinhart
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAn extraordinary story about a family of runaways who take up residence in a small town, and the outcast boy who finds his voice and his people.In the dead of night, a truck arrives in Slaughterville, a small town curiously named after its windowless slaughterhouse...Categorized as:
family realistic friendship coming-of-age middle-grade mystery fiction children-books -
![Let Me Hear a Rhyme by Tiffany D. Jackson]()
Let Me Hear a Rhyme by Tiffany D. Jackson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn this striking new novel by the critically acclaimed author of Allegedly and Monday’s Not Coming, Tiffany D. Jackson tells the story of three Brooklyn teens who plot to turn their murdered friend into a major rap star by pretending he's still alive. Brooklyn, 1998. Biggie Smalls was right: Things done changed... -
![Among the Enemy by Margaret Peterson Haddix]()
Among the Enemy by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsHIDE OR FIGHT?Matthias, an illegal third child, is caught in the cross fire between rebels and the Population Police. When he unwittingly saves a Population Police officer, Matthias is brought to Population Police headquarters to train as an officer himself. There he meets Nina, another third-born who enlists his help in a plot to undermine the Population Police...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure apocalyptic book children -
![Among the Brave by Margaret Peterson Haddix]()
Among the Brave by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsA Reluctant HeroTrey may have saved Luke's life, but he still thinks of himself as a coward who can barely stand to be outdoors. Now Trey finds out Luke has been taken prisoner at Population Police headquarters. Trey is terrified, but he knows that if he doesn't rescue his friend, no one will.At police headquarters, Trey impersonates an officer to try getting to Luke...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure book children children-books -
![Dare You by Jennifer Brown]()
Dare You by Jennifer Brown
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIn the second book of the suspenseful Shade Me trilogy, Nikki Kill becomes embroiled in another mystery where only her synesthesia can help her unravel the dark truth.Nikki Kill didn’t realize that trying to find out who killed Peyton Hollis would tangle her in a web of dangerous family secrets that would rock her identity to the core... -
![Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery by Ally Carter]()
Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery by Ally Carter
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFive orphans. Two sword-wielding vigilantes. One mansion. No rules. April thought she had her happy ending. After all, she has her new house and new friends and new guardian. But she also has a very big new secret. The kids of Winterborne House are the only ones who know that Gabriel Winterborne—famous billionaire and terrible cook—is really a sword-wielding vigilante... -
![Deep Water by Watt Key]()
Deep Water by Watt Key
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA middle grade survival story about a scuba dive gone wrong and two enemies who must unite to survive.It's the most important rule of scuba diving: If you don't feel right, don't go down.So after her father falls ill, twelve-year-old Julie Sims must take over and lead two of his clients on a dive miles off the coast of Alabama while her father stays behind in the boat...Categorized as:
family friendship realistic action-adventure book children children-books contemporary -
![The Light Jar by Lisa Thompson]()
The Light Jar by Lisa Thompson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA story of fear and hope, loneliness and friendship -- full of the heart, engaging characters, and propulsive, page-turning mystery that made The Goldfish Boy so beloved.Nate and his mother are running away. Fleeing from an emotionally abusive situation, they hide out in an abandoned cottage in the middle of a forest. Though it's old and run-down, at least it's a place of their own... -
![24 Hours in Nowhere by Dusti Bowling]()
24 Hours in Nowhere by Dusti Bowling
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen you come from Nowhere, can you ever really make it anywhere? Author Dusti Bowling (Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus) returns to the desert to create a gripping story about friendship, hope, and finding the power we all have within ourselves. Welcome to Nowhere, Arizona, the least livable town in the United States... -
![Kalahari by Jessica Khoury]()
Kalahari by Jessica Khoury
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsDeep in the Kalahari Desert, a Corpus lab protects a dangerous secret…But what happens when that secret takes on a life of its own? When an educational safari goes wrong, five teens find themselves stranded in the Kalahari Desert without a guide... -
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![The Fort by Gordon Korman]()
The Fort by Gordon Korman
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom the bestselling author of RESTART, the story of a middle-school "band of brothers" -- five friends who need to stick together after they set up a hideout in an abandoned bomb shelter and discover that the only way to be true friends is to reveal their secrets and help each other out...Categorized as:
realistic friendship family coming-of-age middle-grade audiobook young-adult fiction -
![Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur]()
Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsElise and Franklin have always been best friends. Elise has always lived in the big house with her loving Uncle and Aunt, because Elise's parents died when she was too young to remember them. There's always been a barn behind the house with eight locked doors on the second floor.When Elise and Franklin start middle school, things feel all wrong. Bullying. Not fitting in... -
![Accidental Heroes by Danielle Steel]()
Accidental Heroes by Danielle Steel
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA decorated former Air Force pilot. A pregnant flight attendant. A dedicated TSA agent. The fates of these three, and many others, converge in Danielle Steel's gripping new novel--a heart-stopping thriller that engages ordinary men and women in the fight of their lives during a flight from New York to San Francisco. On a beautiful May morning at New York's John F... -
![Among the Barons by Margaret Peterson Haddix]()
Among the Barons by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsLuke Garner, an illegal third child, spent his first twelve years in hiding. For the past four months Luke has lived among others, using the identity of Lee Grant, at the Hendricks School for Boys. But just as things are finally starting to go right, Lee's little brother Smits arrives at the school and Luke finds himself caught in a tangle of lies that gets more complex with every passing day...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure book children children-books -
![The Rise by Shari King, Shari Low]()
The Rise by Shari King, Shari Low
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen we bury our secrets, they always come back to haunt us...Their rise was meteoric.Only a few years before, they had been three friends from Glasgow, just trying to survive tough lives of danger and dysfunction.But on one Hollywood evening in 1993, they were on the world’s biggest stage, accepting their Oscar in front of the watching world.That night was the beginning of their careers... -
![Break Us by Jennifer Brown]()
Break Us by Jennifer Brown
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNikki Kill doesn’t see the world in black and white. Her synesthesia shades everything in view, transforming numbers, words, and emotions into colorful clues. Which means she’s a dangerous commodity to anyone with something to hide.Nikki has already taken on the Hollises—one of L.A.’s most powerful families—for murdering her half sister, Peyton... -
![Instant Menace by Jerry B. Jenkins, Chris Fabry]()
Instant Menace by Jerry B. Jenkins, Chris Fabry
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen eighth grade begins, twins Ashley and Bryce get caught up in investigating why their principal left under mysterious circumstances, even as they struggle to get along with his replacement, who seems to be out to get them...Categorized as:
realistic coming-of-age family mystery christian contemporary young-adult action-adventure -
![Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe by Jo Watson Hackl]()
Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe by Jo Watson Hackl
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA Mississippi ghost town and an art mystery combine!How far would you go to find something that might not even exist?All her life, Cricket's mama has told her stories about a secret room painted by a mysterious artist. Now Mama's run off, and Cricket thinks the room might be the answer to getting her to come back. If it exists. And if she can find it... -
![Legend of the Ghost Dog by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel]()
Legend of the Ghost Dog by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA thrilling mystery set against a stark landscape and the inspiration of Nome's real-life dog hero, Balto.Twelve-year-old Tee didn't think she believed in ghosts . . . until a walk in the woods around her new rural Alaskan home changes her mind. She and her beagle, Henry, are stalked by a wolfish, decidedly spooky shadow. There's something out there - and it's not of this world... -
![Operation Redwood by S. Terrell French]()
Operation Redwood by S. Terrell French
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratings"Sibley Carter is a moron and a worldclass jerk." When Julian Carter-Li intercepts an angry e-mail message meant for his greedy, high-powered uncle, it sets him on the course to stop an environmental crime!His uncle’s company plans to cut down some of the oldest remaining California redwood trees, and it’s up to Julian and a ragtag group of friends to figure out a way to stop them... -
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![It's a Wonderful Wife by Janet Chapman]()
It's a Wonderful Wife by Janet Chapman
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFrom the New York Times bestselling author of the Spellbound Falls novels comes a delightful new romance set on the coast of Maine… Jesse Sinclair and his two brothers spent years dodging the women his grandfather threw in their path. But then the matchmaking old wolf died, and his brothers did the unthinkable: they ran off to Maine to get married. Now Jesse wants to join them... -
![If You're Reading This by Trent Reedy]()
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:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure audiobook book contemporary -
![Dime by E.R. Frank]()
Dime by E.R. Frank
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe startling realities of teen prostitution are revealed in this eye-opening, heartbreaking story from the author of "America," which "Booklist "called a piercing, unforgettable novel and "Kirkus Reviews "deemed a work of sublime humanity. As a teen girl in Newark, New Jersey, lost in the foster care system, Dime just wants someone to care about her, to love her. A family... -
![Faker by Gordon Korman]()
Faker by Gordon Korman
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe story of a family of liars... and the son who wants to break the family tradition.Trey knows the routine. His dad gets him into a school full of kids with rich parents. Trey makes friends, and his dad makes connections. Soon, there's the con, where Trey's dad suckers the other parents into investing in one of his schemes... -
![If I Grow Up by Todd Strasser]()
If I Grow Up by Todd Strasser
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratings"WHEN YOU GREW UP IN THE PROJECTS, THERE WERE NO CHOICES. NO GOOD ONES, AT LEAST." In the Frederick Douglass Project where DeShawn lives, daily life is ruled by drugs and gang violence. Many teenagers drop out of school and join gangs, and every kid knows someone who died. Gunshots ring out on a regular basis...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship realistic action-adventure book bullying children-books -
![The Truth About Twinkie Pie by Kat Yeh]()
The Truth About Twinkie Pie by Kat Yeh
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThere's something about asking for Impossible Things. For one little second, they feel Possible. Take two sisters making it on their own: brainy twelve-year-old GiGi and junior-high-dropout-turned-hairstylist DiDi. Add a million dollars in prize money from a national cooking contest and a move from the trailer parks of South Carolina to the North Shore of Long Island...
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