Ever by Gail Carson Levine
In a twist on the Biblical story of Jephthah’s daughter, fifteen-year-old Kezi has doomed herself to be sacrificed by being the first to congratulate her father on her mother’s recovery from a serious illness. Desperate and afraid, she begs to have thirty days before her sacrifice. Kezi’s land is monotheistic, but a young god, Olus, from a neighboring, polytheistic land has fallen in love with her. After searching in vain for Admat, Kezi’s god, he decides to find a way to save her. The setting feels like the ancient Middle East, and the story is told in chapters alternating between Kezi and Olus’s perspectives. The tension of the impending sacrifice is balanced with the sweetness of young love, with a nice reflection on the nature of religion. This is good for fans of strong girls and fantasy, while the human-immortal romance might even tempt some Twilight readers and give them a little more to mull over.