February 4th
The Beasts We Bury by D.L. Taylor (Henry Holt)
Daughter and heir to the throne, Mancella Cliff yearns for a life without bloodshed. But as a child, she emerged from the Broken Citadel with the power to summon animals—only after killing them with her bare hands. Her father, ruler of the realm, wants her to summon him an army, and isn’t afraid to lock her in a room full of predators to get it. Now her magic is a constant reminder of the horrors he has forced upon her to strengthen their realm’s power.
Silver is a charming thief struggling to survive in a world torn apart by Mancella’s father’s reign. When a mysterious benefactor recruits him for the heist of a lifetime, a chance to rob the castle, Silver relishes the opportunity for a real future—and revenge. But he’ll have to manipulate Mance and earn her trust to pull it off.
As the deception and carnage mount, Mance must find a way to save her realm without becoming the ruthless monster she’s been bred to be. And when Silver discovers that his actions are fueling the violence that Mance wants to prevent, he’ll have to choose between his ambition and the girl he’s falling for.
A Burning in the Bones by Scott Reintgen (Margaret K. McElderry Books)
After taking control of House Brood, Ren and Theo dreamed of using their newfound influence to change the rest of Kathor, but now they find their efforts being countered by the other great houses, who have no interest in a world where they enjoy less power.
No one understands that better than the Tin'Vori siblings. The return of their ancestral home was a decade in the making, but they're eager to keep rising from the ashes. Nevelyn begins researching House Brood—and ends up face-to-face with an enemy that's already slouching toward the gates of the city. The one enemy no one can avoid: a plague.
The victims experience strange bruising, an unquenchable thirst, and a temporary disruption in magic. When doctors trace the illness to its source, they find another mystery: corpses placed in strategic locations around the city. As Ren leads the hunt for the culprits, she'll find herself two steps behind a devious enemy whose sights are set on an unexpected prize: the city's magic.
Survival will require every ounce of their skill, every bond old and new, or else the future Ren and Theo have worked to build will burn down with the rest of the world.
The Underwood Tapes by Amanda DeWitt (Peachtree Teen) - previously titled The Hermitage Tapes, moved from 2024, description not yet updated on Goodreads.
A
captivating and profoundly moving novel with hints of supernatural
intrigue, blending We Were Liars and Your Name into a can’t-miss read
for fans of You’ve Reached Sam.
Thirty years ago, Grace’s mom
left her hometown of Hermitage, Florida and never looked back—which is
exactly why Grace thinks it’s the safest place to spend her summer now.
Since her mom died in a car crash, Grace has been desperate to get away
from the memories and reminders of her loss. Spending the summer
transcribing cassette tapes for the Hermitage Historical Society might
be boring, but boring is just what Grace needs.
Until she hears
the voice of Jake Underwood—the boy who first recorded the cassette
tapes back in 1992. When Grace realizes he can hear anything she
records, despite thirty years of time between them, she strikes up an
impossible conversation with Jake through the tapes.
But the past
isn’t any simpler than the present, and a mystery has haunted Hermitage
through the generations. In the 1970’s, a hurricane made landfall and
resulted in the tragic death of Jake’s uncle Charley. In a town as
suffocatingly small as Hermitage, it’s impossible not to notice how no
one talks about that storm, or Charley, and as the mystery unfurls,
Grace can’t help but realize a worse truth: No one talks about Jake
either.
A beautifully written exploration of grief and what
happens when untreated wounds bleed into future generations, The
Underwood Tapes is the perfect read for anyone in need of a good,
cathartic cry.
The Scorpion Queen by Mina Fears (Flatiron Books) - moved
from June 2023, then from January 2024, April 2024 and September 2024.
Variable release dates, but the publisher's website lists this as the
release date.
Uprooted meets Children of Blood and Bone in this
dark fantasy inspired by a Malian fairy tale about a princess whose
suitors are challenged to gruesome trials.
Deep within the
imperial palace at Timbuktu, Amie has suffered a devastating loss. Once
the daughter of a prosperous salt merchant Amie’s life was cruelly
overturned in a matter of months. At sixteen, Amie now finds herself
disinherited, framed for a scandalous crime, and forced to serve
Princess Mariama of Mali . Her father, Emperor Sulyeman, has created a
series of impossible trials for his daughter's suitors. When they fail,
he publicly boils them alive, littering Mariama’s path to marriage with
ninety-nine corpses.
At first, Amie’s life at court is
drudgery—the chores are difficult, the servants despise her, and
Princess Mariama is prone to mood swings—but the more she learns about
the princess's circumstances, the closer the two girls become. Amie and
her intended, Kader, plan to escape Timbuktu and make a new life far
away from the shadow of death that has fallen upon the emperor’s court,
but she finds herself increasingly drawn to the princess in ways she
doesn’t understand.
When a mysterious discovery forces her hand,
she must choose between fleeing with the boy she loves or helping the
princess to end the trials forever. Amie will need to draw on all of her
strength and courage to make the perilous journey through the desert to
seek the aid of an exiled god in a final, desperate attempt to take
charge of her own destiny.
Everything I Promised You by Katy Upperman (Sourcebooks Fire) - previously titled As Fate Would Have It, cover not yet updated on Goodreads.
Their love was written in the stars, but how is Lia to move on when death trumps fate?
When Lia's mom was 17, she had her fortune told and learned her only daughter was fated to fall in love with her best friend's son. Life unfolded exactly as predicted, and despite the army-brat lifestyle bringing them in and out of each other's orbit, Lia and Beckett were meant to be. Or so they thought.
When a freak heart attack steals Beck's life, Lia is devastated and unmoored. She lived her life by her mom's old fortune; if she was fated to be with Beck, and Beck is gone, who is she supposed to be? And is there room in her broken heart for life, let alone another love?
While We're Young by K.L. Walther (Delacorte) - moved from April 2025.
Grace, Isa, and Everett used to be an inseparable trio before their love lives became a tangled mess. For starters, Grace is secretly in love with Everett, who used to go out with Isa before breaking her heart in the infamous Freshman Year Fracture. And, oh yeah, no one knows that Isa has been hanging out with James, Grace’s brother—and if Grace finds out, it could ruin their friendship.
With graduation fast approaching, Grace decides an unsanctioned senior skip day in Philadelphia might be just what they need to fix things. All she has to do is convince Isa to help her kidnap Everett and outmaneuver James, who’s certain his sister is up to something.
In an epic day that includes racing up the famous Rocky steps, taste-testing Philly’s finest cheesesteaks, and even crashing a wedding, their secrets are bound to collide. But can their hearts withstand the wreckage?
Dead Happy by Josh Silver (Delacorte)
Seb, along with a select group of participants, finds himself washed up on an isolated island called Elmhallow, under the guardianship of a mysterious couple. As the experiment steps up another level, Seb is forced to team up with Eleanor once more.
But where is Finn? And what does HappyHead have in store for them next?
All Better Now by Neal Shusterman (Simon and Schuster)
An unprecedented condition is on the rise. It behaves like a virus, with the first symptom being a fever, but those who contract it experience long-term effects no one has ever seen utter contentment. Soon after infection, people find the stress, depression, greed, and other negative feelings that used to weigh them down are gone.
Almost everyone revels in this mass unburdening. But people in power—who depend on malcontents tuning into their broadcasts, prey on the insecure to sell their products, and convince people they need more, new, faster, better everything—know this new state of being is bad for business. Soon, campaigns start up convincing people that being happy all the time is dangerous. There’s even a vaccine developed to rid people of their inner peace and get them back to normal because, surely, without anger or jealousy as motivators, productivity will grind to a halt and the world will be thrown into chaos.
It’s nearly impossible to determine the truth when everyone with a platform is pushing their own agendas, and two teens from very different backgrounds who’ve had their lives upended in different ways by the virus find themselves enmeshed in the center of a dangerous power play. Can they reveal the truth?
Wings of Starlight by Alison Saft (Disney Hyperion)
It’s been centuries since a warm-season fairy in Pixie Hollow has crossed into the Winter Woods, and while most fear the legends of monsters lurking in the frozen lands, Clarion, can’t help being intrigued by Winter’s stoic beauty. But under the watchful eyes of the current monarch and the court's seasonal ministers, Clarion has little time to dwell on daydreams while the days to her coronation dwindle away.
That is, until reports of a monster crossing from Winter into Spring make their way to the palace. Clarion sees defeating this threat as an opportunity to prove that she is worthy of her new role. But instead of finding a monster at the edge of Winter, she finds Milori, a young guardian of the Winter Woods. Together, they form an unlikely bond as they race to save their lands.
But as their alliance warms to something more, they will discover there is a reason a warm-season fairy and a winter fairy must not be together. And the cost could be just as deadly as the monsters that prowl the Winter Woods.
Discover the origin of the sweeping, star-crossed romance between the queen of Pixie Hollow and the lord of the Winter Woods.
A Better Nightmare by Megan Freeman (Scholastic/Chicken House)
A dark and absorbing allegory for the power that young people possess in their bones to change things that feel far bigger than them, The Monster I Made is a whirlwind adventure -- a story of friendship, romance, and a radical crusade for one group of teens to fight for their right to feel.
Emily Emerson is nearly sixteen, finally a senior at the Wildsmoor Facility. But so is Meera, isn’t she? Meera, who is nineteen and has been a senior for as long as Emily can remember? Here, the students live each day as shadows, one day blurring into the next, hardly aware of life passing them by while the symptoms of the Grimm Cross Syndrome that afflicts them all is trained out of them. Rules. Order. Repetition. Medication.
Emily was eight when she started showing signs of the disease. Odd dreams, hallucinations – impossible things that happened around her. Unconscious thoughts that could be set free into the world—flowers that covered the house, thick like a forest and sowed with nothing more than her unconscious thoughts. It was beautiful until it turned evil, when Emily did her first bad thing and found herself here. Now, she’ll do anything to get better and get back to her life. She’ll be more quiet and obedient than everyone else.
Until she meets Emir.
Emir isn’t like the other kids at Wildsmoor. He’s quicker and livelier. He says things that he shouldn’t – dangerous things. Emir is electric, magnetic in more ways than Emily can know.
When Emir introduces her to The Cure, a secret society for kids who believe that The Grimm isn’t a disease at all, but a gift, Emily starts to wake up, and so do her strange abilities. The outcome is magic.
The Meadowbrook Murders by Jessica Goodman (G. P. Putnam and Sons)
Secrets don't die when you do.
It’s the first week of senior year at Middlebrook Academy. For Amy and her best friend Sarah, that means late-night parties at the boathouse, bike rides through their sleepy Connecticut town, and the crisp beginning of a New England fall.
Then tragedy Sarah and her boyfriend are brutally murdered in their dorm room. Now the week Amy has been dreaming about for years has turned into a nightmare, especially when all eyes turn to her as the culprit. She was Sarah’s only roommate, the only other person there when she died—or so she told the police to cover for her own boyfriend’s suspicious whereabouts. And even though they were best friends, with every passing day, Amy begins to learn that Sarah lied about a lot of things.
Liz, editor of the school newspaper and social outcast, is determined to uncover the truth about what happened on campus, in hopes her reporting will land a prestigious scholarship to college. As Liz dives deeper into her investigation, the secrets these murdered seniors never wanted out come to light. The deeper Liz digs, the messier the truth becomes – and with a killer still on campus, she can’t afford to make any mistakes.
The Meadowbrook Murders is a gripping mystery about the inextricable way power, privilege, and secrets are linked, and how telling the truth can come at a deadly price.
These Vengeful Wishes by Vanessa Montalban (Zando)
When her stepfather is arrested, aspiring artist Ceci moves back to her mother’s hometown of Santa Aguas, an eccentric small town steeped in the legend of La Cegua, the specter of a wronged witch who appears on lonely roads at night, luring untrustworthy men to their deaths.Ceci and her mother take up residence in the abandoned manor of the Sevilla family, rumored to have been cursed by La Cegua, where she begins to uncover a past that seems to be connected to her mother. The more she learns of the Sevillas, the more Ceci finds herself forming a strange affinity with the feared Cegua, who she suspects is the one inspiring her paintings of a mysterious door in the forest. When the very door Ceci has been painting appears in the woods, she decides to venture through it with her new friend, Jamie.
Together, they discover a well, guarded by the statue of a veiled woman. A well for granting wishes. The well of La Cegua.What starts off as harmless fun quickly escalates into something sinister when Ceci realizes that the wishes are putting the people she loves in danger and testing her own penchant for vengeance. After learning others are also searching for the well, Ceci must confront the truth of her mother’s past and prevent La Cegua’s wishes from being used for the wrong reasons. Ceci knows too well how much people will sacrifice for power. Every wish has its price, and La Cegua never forgets the ones who have wronged her.
Capitana by Cassandra James (Quill Tree Books)
Ximena Reale has spent most of her life at La Academia training to become a Cazadoro, a seafaring hunter who tracks down pirates. But her future is uncertain, thanks to her parents’ reputation. They were pirates, traitors to the Luzan Empire, and though they were executed when Ximena and her sister were young, they permanently damaged the Reale name.
Ability alone won’t earn Ximena the coveted Cazadoro cloak. So, when the legendary pirate Gasparilla returns and captures the Empire’s queen, Ximena offers to bring her back and capture the notorious pirate in exchange for a cloak. But there’s a catch: There’s only one cloak, and Ximena’s competition is Dante deLeon, an infuriating yet handsome classmate.
With their futures on the line, Ximena and Dante set out on a dangerous quest across the high seas. But can Ximena sail far enough to escape the legacy of her family, or will her relationship with Dante thwart her success in more ways than one?
Illusions of Fire by Nisha Sharma (Union Square & Co.) - moved from February 2024.
Unlike most of her classmates, Laila Bansal
doesn’t roll out of bed and head to school. Instead, she wakes up early
and trains in hand-to-hand combat with her adopted aunts who, when not
tending to their thriving vineyard, are immortal Rakshasi demons sworn
to protect Laila. Laila was born into a mythological bloodline—one
infused with magic and entrusted with Lord Krishna’s secrets of the
universe. By all appearances, though, Laila leads a peaceful, protected
life.
Then Ahvi, the new boy in town, arrives and immediately
seeks out Laila. He happens to be a descendant of a demi-god. Both his
and Laila’s origin stories (found in the Mahabharata, an ancient Hindu
epic poem about the great war between demi-gods, witches, and demons)
come crashing to the forefront. Magical powers are activated, dark
forces converge, and it looks like Laila’s quiet town in upstate New
York might be the setting of the next epic battle.
Author Nisha Sharma deftly weaves together romance, magic, and mythology in this contemporary young adult urban fantasy novel.
Faron Vincent was once the saint of San Irie. Now, she’s done the unthinkable: betrayed her country. Alone, disgraced, and kidnapped, Faron is forced to help Iya grow his bloody empire. With her soul bonded to a ruthless killer, Faron has become an enemy to her people… and she fears they might be right.
Elara Vincent—the new Empyrean—must undo the damage her sister has caused. San Irie has been brought back to the brink of war as Iya proclaims no nation will be safe from his brutal invasion. But how can Elara save her sister, her best friend, her country, and her world when she’s already cracking under the pressure?
This heart-pounding conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology pushes these unforgettable heroines to their breaking point and beyond. Because when the lines between hero and villain are blurred, deadly sacrifices must be made.
Teenage aliens crash on earth to rescue one of their own, a Hollywood star, and everything goes wrong, chaos ensues, and we learn that aliens… they’re just like us.
Each contributor’s story links to “The Event” with tales ranging from teens longing for a glimpse of the unknown, catfishing aliens excited to meet gossip bloggers, and people just trying to figure themselves out when they encounter the truly alien.
Edited by beloved YA author Rosiee Thor and YA talk show host and bookseller Vania Stoyanova, the anthology crosses genre bounds to bring in tropes from romance and contemporary adventure with stories from Alex Brown, Beth Revis, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Eric Smith, Julian Winters, Laura Pohl, Maya Gittelman, M. K. England, Rebecca Kim Wells, and S. J. Whitby.
February 11th
Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray (FSG) - moved from 2023, then from October 2024. New release date not yet updated on some editions on Goodreads but publisher confirms this date.
It was said that if you write to the Bridegroom’s Oak, the love of your life will answer back. Now, the tree is giving up its secrets at last.
In 1940s Germany, Sophie is excited to discover a message waiting for her in the Bridegroom's Oak from a mysterious suitor. Meanwhile, her best friend, Hanna, is sending messages too—but not to find love. As World War II unfolds in their small town of Kleinwald, the oak may hold the key to resistance against the Nazis.
In 1980s West Germany, American teen transplant Jenny feels suffocated by her strict parents and is struggling to fit in. Until she finds herself falling for Lena, a punk-rock girl hell-bent on tearing down the wall separating West Germany from East Germany, and meeting Frau Hermann, a kind old lady with secrets of her own.
In Spring 2020, New York City, best friends Miles and Chloe are in the first weeks of COVID lockdown and hating Zoom school, when an unexpected package from Chloe’s grandmother leads them to investigate a cold case about two unidentified teenagers who went missing under the Bridegroom’s Oak eighty years ago.
A Traitorous Heart by Erin Cotter (Simon and Schuster) - details not yet updated on Goodreads.
Paris, 1572. Seventeen-year-old Jacqueline “Jac” d’Argenson-Aunis is lady-in-waiting to her best friend and former lover, the French Princess Marguerite “Margot” de Valois, but she dreams of more. If Jac plays her cards right, one day, she’ll become a full member of the Societas Solis, a secret society of spies—just like her uncle and guardian, Viscount Gabriel d’Argenson-Aunis.
But it’s hard to think about her own ambitions while France is on the brink of war, and the only thing that might save the country is an alliance—a marriage between the Catholic Princess Margot and Henry, the awful son of the Huguenot queen. Who would be the perfect person to play matchmaker? Jac, of course.
Jac resents lying to her best friend almost as much as she resents the brazen and arrogant King Henry, but it’s her one chance to prove to the Societas Solis that she belongs among their ranks before her uncle can marry her off or worse. The more time Jac spends in the French Court’s clandestine corners, though, the more she starts to wonder if Henry is…not as terrible as she once believed. And the Societas Solis may not be what they seem.
Politics. Spies. Chaos in the French court. Perhaps even witchcraft? Everything’s more dangerous when love is involved.
The Forest King's Daughter by Elly Blake (Little, Brown) - moved from 2023 and 2024, previously titled Thistwood, title and release date announced on instagram but not updated on Goodreads.
Once upon a time, among the bloodred trees of Thirstwood, a young forest princess became friends with a lonely demon boy. He gifted her an amber ring, a worthless trinket…or so he thought…because no sooner did he slide it onto her finger than the demon queen and forest king declared war.
Years later, Cassia is a crucial force in her father’s army, wielding her ring of light that can blind and disorient hundreds of demons at a time. Then battle-hardened Zeru abducts her, planning to steal the ring back to fix his costly childhood mistake. Exhausted, terrified, and more than a little mistrusting, Cassia is forced to travel with Zeru to a place they both believed only existed in storybooks, one where their childhood friendship slowly rekindles into something much more. But it's only a matter of time before the war they've escaped comes for them, and a hidden threat to forest folk and demons alike grows in the shadows.
From the author of the Frostblood Saga comes the first book in an enchanting, adventure-filled fantasy series about the daughters of the powerful forest king, sure to leave readers breathless and desperate for more.
Needy Little Things by Channelle Desamours (Wednesday Books)
But the more she cracks the clues leading to her, the closer she gets to home...
A brilliantly page-turning thriller with an unusual psychological twist, which fans of One of Us is Lying and A Good Girl's Guide to Murder will love.
Recommended Reading by Paul Coccia (Zando Young Readers)
Sometimes you get a second chance at happily ever after when you least expect it...
Curvaceous, clever, and an avid reader, seventeen-year-old Bobby Ashton never misses a main character moment. So when it comes to asking out his crush, he plans a romantic gesture grand enough to go down in local history. Unfortunately, though, his extensive knowledge of every rom-com trope ever doesn’t prepare him for how tragically he misreads the situation.
Suddenly Bobby’s very public romantic gesture turns into an ordeal so embarrassing it could be a villain origin story. Having masterfully shattered every plan for his perfect summer before college, Bobby’s last resort is working at his uncle’s sleepy bookstore. Soon, Bobby is expertly recommending books for customers to perfectly cure what ails them. Attempting to rebound after a breakup? There’s a book for that. Trying to tame your crochety coworker? There’s a book for that too. Then a plot twist Bobby never saw coming walks through the door in the form of Luke, an unfairly attractive and staunchly anti-romantic lifeguard. Bobby’s blossoming connection with Luke reminds him of some of his favorite grumpy-sunshine, quippy banter, and even forced proximity.
But after his last romantic disaster, should Bobby use all the tricks in his arsenal to turn Luke’s head? Or is he misreading all the signs again? Do grand gestures really need to be so…grand?Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli, Kacen Callender, and Jason June, Recommended Reading is a big-hearted rom-com about discovering love beyond what’s in the books... but hey, the perfect recommendation can get you pretty far!
Wicked Darlings by Jordyn Taylor (Delacorte)
Aspiring journalist Noa has a secret she’s been keeping. Ever since her sister’s tragic death, she’s felt almost…relieved. Noa and Leah had been locked in competition with one another since childhood, and things came to a head when her sister scored a glitzy internship at a New York society newspaper. Noa can’t help but revel in her new found autonomy.
But when she gets a lead about the sketchy circumstances surrounding her sister’s untimely death, she knows she needs to investigate−she owes it to Leah.
Noa sets out to infiltrate the seedy underbelly of Manhattan high society to investigate her sister’s final days. Along the way she finds herself entangled with the glamorous Avalons’ and their close-knit circle of friends and frienemies. But will Noa be able to resist the allure of the Avalons’ world and uncover a shocking scandal. Or will she find herself in over her head…like Leah?
Where Shadows Bloom by Catherine Bakewell (HarperTeen)
Ofelia has lived her life dreaming of entering Le Château Enchanté—the mysterious court of the gods-blessed King Léo, where the shadow monsters that roam Ofelia’s home never trespass.
Lope has lived her life as a knight, defending Ofelia and her home from Shadows even as she dreams of escaping with Ofelia by her side.
When the Shadows venture too close, Lope and Ofelia are thrust into a journey that will lead them to the heart of the darkness haunting their home: the dazzling and deceptive Château Enchanté itself.
A mesmerizing daydream with a subtle edge of darkness that will leave you utterly unable to put it down, Where Shadows Bloom pits terrifying monsters, chilling secrets, capricious gods, immortal kings, and death itself against the unstoppable love between two girls.
Dropping Beats by Nathaneal Lessore (Little, Brown) - lower YA title.
Thirteen-year-old Growls (aka Shaun) is an aspiring (awful) rapper who hopes to enter this year’s Raptology competition with his best friend, Shanks (aka Zachariah). After all, what better way to land his crush (Tanisha) and get the respect he finally deserves than winning the contest and going viral?
But when a livestream practice goes epically wrong, the two friends do go viral– and not in the way they’d hoped.
Now the laughingstock of the school, Growls is sure he’ll never have another chance to date Tanisha. Even worse, Shanks has gone MIA, leaving him terribly alone.
But when Growls meets the new girl on the block (Siobhan), things don’t seem so terrible after all. And with some patience, a little luck, and a whole lot of practice, he just might win the Raptology competition and be a hero to both Siobhan and Shanks.
Either way, he’s ready for this. He’s steady for this. It’s comeback season and they call him comeback king for a reason.
Once a Castle by Sarah Arthur (Waterbrook) - moved from 2024, description not yet updated on Goodreads.
Several years after Eva Joyce and Frankie Addison discovered the existence of portals to other worlds—and the kingdom of Ternival, where Eva’s grandmother once reigned as queen—Frankie’s younger siblings, together with some new friends, make discoveries that will change their lives, and at least two worlds, forever.
Jack, Tilly, and Elspeth Addison just want to stay out of trouble (well, kind of . . . usually), but trouble keeps finding them. Jack stumbles upon an actual, literally larger-than-life giant in his favorite valley; Tilly nearly runs over a mysterious stranger (and her cat); and Elspeth’s weaving lessons take a very unexpected turn.
Meanwhile, Arash, a newcomer to the Addisons’ English village, tries to discover the secret his grandfather is hiding while keeping his own secrets from everyone—and the sudden appearance of a sinister woman who does things that look suspiciously like magic is not helping matters. And Zahra, a Ternivali teenager, faces a crisis in her world, but before she can put things right, she’s rudely catapulted into the weirdest place she’s ever seen—where everyone seems to think she’s the weird one. Soon things are as tangled as Elspeth’s worst weaving, and the teens must discover if they can bridge their differences and find, in themselves and each other, what it takes to put things right. Because it’s not only their lives at stake, but the fate of their home—and of more than one kingdom.
S(kin) by Ibi Zoboi (HarperCollins)
Fifteen-year-old Marisol is the daughter of a soucouyant. Every new moon, she sheds her skin like the many women before her, shifting into a fireball witch who must fly into the night and slowly sip from the lives of others to sustain her own. But Brooklyn is no place for fireball witches with all its bright lights, shut windows, and bolt-locked doors.… While Marisol hoped they would leave their old traditions behind when they emigrated from the islands, she knows this will never happen while she remains ensnared by the one person who keeps her chained to her magical past—her mother.
Seventeen-year-old Genevieve is the daughter of a college professor and a newly minted older half sister of twins. Her worsening skin condition and the babies’ constant wailing keep her up at night, when she stares at the dark sky with a deep longing to inhale it all. She hopes to quench the hunger that gnaws at her, one that seems to reach for some memory of her estranged mother. When a new nanny arrives to help with the twins, a family secret connecting her to Marisol is revealed, and Gen begins to find answers to questions she hasn’t even thought to ask.
But the girls soon discover that the very skin keeping their flames locked beneath the surface may be more explosive to the relationships around them than any ancient magic.
February 18th
Rebel Witch by Kristin Ciccarelli (Wednesday Books) - moved from 2024.
The stakes are even higher in this epic, romantic conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Crimson Moth duology
A WITCH...
Rune Winters is on the run. Ever since the boy she loved, Gideon Sharpe, revealed who she was and delivered her into enemy hands, everyone wants her dead. If Rune hopes to survive, she must ally herself with the cruel and dangerous Cressida Roseblood, who’s planning to take back the Republic and reinstate a Reign of Witches—something Cressida needs Rune to accomplish.
A WITCH HUNTER...
Apparently it wasn’t enough for Rune to deceive Gideon; she’s now betrayed him by allying herself with the witch who made his life a living hell. Gideon won’t allow the Republic to fall to the witches and be plunged back into the nightmares of the past. In order to protect this new world he fought for, every last witch must die—especially Rune Winters.
AN IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE...
When Rune makes Gideon an offer he can’t refuse, the two must pair up to accomplish dangerous goals. The more they’re forced into each other’s company, the more Gideon realizes the feelings he had for Rune aren’t as dead and buried as he thought. Now he’s faced with a terrible choice: sacrifice the girl he loves to stop a monster taking back power, or let Rune live and watch the world he fought so hard for burn.
In Kristen Ciccarelli's Rebel Witch, the exciting conclusion to The Crimson Moth duology, love has never been so deadly.
The Girl You Know by Elle Gonzalez Rose (Bloomsbury)
The week before Luna’s twin sister Solina was supposed to return for her final semester at Kingswood Academy, an elite boarding school in the Washington mountains, she told Luna she was dropping out. When Luna refused to let her throw away her future, Solina disappeared.
Twelve hours later, she was dead.
Luna knows Solina’s death wasn’t an accident, even if the police say otherwise. There’s a reason Solina didn’t want to go back to Kingswood, and Luna knows she’ll find the truth there. All she has to do is become Solina. Playing her sister comes easy, but finding answers is far from it. Between the cunning, cruel people Solina called her friends, Luna’s budding feelings for her roommate, and the harsh realization that Solina had dark secrets, getting to the bottom of her sister’s murder is more difficult than Luna could have ever anticipated. But when you have nothing left to lose, you’re willing to do anything to get what you want.
There’s no limit to how far Luna will go to avenge her sister—even if she has to burn all of Kingswood to the ground.
Lucha of the Forgotten Spring by Tehlor Kay Mejia (Make Me A World) - moved from Spring 2024.
Lucha Moya has always wanted one thing--to be free of the place she once called home. After defeating the rogue god of olvida, the forgetting drug, Lucha leaves the fortress of the acolytes—which houses her sister and Paz, a girl she never thought she’d fall in love with—to return to Robado one last time and eradicate the drug from existence. There, everything is worse this time around. Amidst the suffering, she surprises herself by seeing something familiar in the eyes of the villagers--her own hope and desperation reflected back at her.
Suddenly, her village and, more importantly, the people who live in it, are worth saving, not discarding. She even finds herself falling for one of the Robadans, which puts her feelings for Paz into question. Lucha's training and whirlwind experiences develop her as a fierce leader who'll do anything to protect her people. But even as she tries, some thing is lurking once again in the Night Forest, eager to claim its prize.
Will Lucha be able to step into her power once again to save the only home she's ever known, or will she lose everything she's fought so hard to obtain?
In the finale of this gorgeous and fast-paced fantasy duology from acclaimed author Tehlor Kay Mejia is brimming with adventure, romance, the burning questions of what it means to be a leader and how to listen to your heart when it's being pulled in two directions.
I Am the Cage by Allison Sweet Grant (Dutton)
Fish Creek, Wisconsin—Beautiful. Quiet. Isolated. Anonymous. It’s all that nineteen-year-old Elisabeth needs, and everything she wants. Cloistered in her tiny cabin, Elisabeth is determined to be alone, hiding from her memories and making sure that no one can ever hurt her again.
But when a massive snowstorm strikes, plunging the town into darkness, Elisabeth finally allows herself to accept help from her neighbor, Noah, the town’s young sheriff. Forced to show him more vulnerability than she ever intended, Elisabeth realizes she can no longer outrun the scars of her childhood, and facing the darkness might be exactly what she needs to let the light in.
In a searing own-voices story accented by poignant childhood flashbacks and stunning poetry, Allison Sweet Grant’s young adult debut is a quietly powerful portrait of a young woman’s journey to confront the medical trauma inflicted to “fix” her—and heal her heart in the process.
The History of Everything by Victoria Evans (HarperAlley) - YA graphic novel, moved from 2024.
Daisy and Agnes have always had each other.
And that’s all they’ve ever needed—or wanted, at least. So when Agnes’s mom drops the bombshell that she and Agnes are moving at the end of the summer, the girls are crushed.
All seems lost until the pair unearth "The History of Everything," an old friendship scrapbook with the ultimate bucket list to make their last summer together unforgettable. But when Daisy starts dating a charming drummer, her social calendar suddenly has less room for her best friend. Insecurities bubble to the surface, and Daisy and Agnes begin to question if their friendship is meant to last the summer, much less forever.
In this tender graphic novel debut, Victoria Evans delves into the heart of a best friendship and explores what it means to grow up without growing apart.
February 25th
The Wildest Things by Andrea Hannah (Wednesday Books) - moved from 2024.
When her glass coffin unexpectedly shatters, Snow White awakens to anything but a dream. The land is rotting. The animals have mutated. In the twenty years that have passed since Snow bit into the poisoned apple, the kingdom of Roanfrost has transformed from a luscious wild land to a blight-ravaged nightmare.
In search of answers and a way to restore her kingdom to its former glory, Snow sets out on a dangerous journey that will test the strength she never knew she had.Friends will become foes.New alliances will form.The Queen with the blood red lips will stop at nothing to seize her power as well as her heart.If Snow has any chance to survive and restore not only her kingdom, but all of Garedenne, her only option is to become the Seasonkeeper and access the life-giving magic that will heal the plague.
But the path to becoming the Seasonkeeper is more treacherous than she could ever imagine—because the wild things have awakened and Snow’s darker impulses yearn to set them free.
The Otherwhere Post by Emily J. Taylor (G.P. Putnam and Sons) - moved from March 2025.
Seven years ago, Maeve Abenthy lost her world, her father, even her name. Desperate to escape the stain of her father’s crimes, she lives under a fake name, never staying in one place long enough to put down roots.
Then she receives a mysterious letter with four impossible Your father was innocent.
To uncover the truth, she poses as an apprentice for the Otherwhere Post, where she’ll be trained in the art of scriptomancy—the dangerous magic that allows couriers to enchant letters and deliver them to other worlds. But looking into her father’s past draws more attention than she’d planned.
Her secretive, infuriatingly handsome mentor knows she’s lying about her identity, and time is running out to convince him to trust her. Worse, she begins to receive threatening letters, warning her to drop her investigation—or else. For Maeve to unravel the mystery of what happened seven years ago, she may have to forfeit her life.
Unlock the Dark by Sasa Hawk (HarperCollins)
Elia Tallis’s key conjuring abilities, when used with her father’s magic, allow her to open a path to any location. But Papa is dying, and Elia has been forced to painfully tether him to life so she can siphon his magic to provide for her siblings. The god of death, angry to be denied his due, punishes her by claiming her youngest brother as a servant.
Desperate to save her brother, Elia accepts a potentially deadly commission from Trys, a kindhearted prince with his nose stuck in a book. Trys wants Elia to help him find a legendary scroll. In exchange, he’ll give her his hand in marriage, securing her and her siblings’ futures and allowing her to release Papa to the afterlife.
Despite the danger of their quest, Elia and Trys find themselves increasingly drawn to each other. But when Trys finally reads the scroll, it transforms him into a monster beyond comprehension. Elia will have to wield her power in ways she never thought possible, braving a world of endless darkness and the nightmares dwelling within it to bring home the prince she’s growing to love.
A Touch of Blood by Sajni Patel (Rick Riordan Presents)
Gods are made, not born.
Before Manisha, the youngest of three sisters, was sent to hide on the floating mountain, her eldest sister, Eshani, made a deal with the shades. In order to save her people in the midst of a tragic war, she exchanged her life for theirs. Now, years later, the shades claim their due, dragging Eshani into the Nightmare Realm where she must find the Gatekeeper to fulfill her end of the bargain.
Nothing is as it seems in a land filled with ravenous monsters, ghoulish residents, and a river full of the dead. But most terrifying of all is the Shadow King, who intends to use Eshani to obtain immortality. As it turns out, Eshani—nicknamed “little goddess of spring”—is the key to fulfilling the Nightmare Realm’s prophecy. There’s only one person who can help Eshani escape, and he has his own problems.
Hiran has spent most of his life hiding, but destiny beckons, and he can no longer resist the call of the realm. But how can a stowaway, long thought to be dead, save an entire world?
Nothing will stop the Nightmare Realm from getting what it wants. Except maybe a king in the making and a goddess rising.
Knucklehead: Poems by Tony Keith Jr. (Quill Tree Books)
There are poems about the power of language to transcend the racist and homophobic constructs of a society prejudging Black boys. There are poems that serve as a salve for a world that inflicts hurt, poems that offer a beacon of hope for the curious and questioning, and poems that transform the way people love Black gay boys and men.
This is a journey of self-discovery through history, family, friendship, and falling in love. Knucklehead is a breathtaking work, full of black-and-white illustrations and unforgettable poetry that will heal, provoke, and inspire.
Hunger's Bite by Taylor Robin (Union Square Kids) - YA graphic novel, previously titled The Hunger on the S.S. Lark
Teen vampire Warwick (“Wick”) Farley is dispatched by his shifty employers—the international paranormal investigation organization Goldfinch—to look into an ocean liner whose mysterious new owner could threaten Britain’s maritime business. What Wick discovers is a supernatural threat frightening even to him. Teaming with brave Neeta Pandy, the teenage ward of the ship's captain, Wick stands against Honeycutt—who appears to be a merely crass American businessman but is in fact an energy-sucking entity intent on destroying the ship.
Told in bold, moody colors and a vivid graphic novel style, Hunger's Bite throws readers into a life-or-death horror adventure filled with peril, flirtation, and swarms of cubist zombie passengers!
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