Sammy Keyes by Wendelin Van Draanen

Sammy Keyes is a girl detective, but don't confuse her with Nancy Drew... Sammy has way more fun! Sammy Keyes lives illegally with her Grams in a senior living facility since her mom ditched her there to pursue her hollywood dream. As she sneaks in through the fire escape one day in August of 1998, Sammy sees a robbery take place... and since then, more than 12 years later, Sammy's still going strong.
Visit Wendelin Van Draanen at her website.

The Lion Boy trilogy by Zizou Corder

In the Lion Boy trilogy, there is a boy- Charlie Ashanti- who can speak Cat. His life is fairly normal until his parents are abducted by the government and cats are the only ones he can trust. Throughout this trilogy, Charlie will discover who he is, why his parents were taken, and what destroyed his world.
Visit Zizou Corder at her website.