When zombies take the East Coast, it’s time to strike out for the West. Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland, which came out early last year, is the sequel to Dread Nation, a captivating alternate history that imagines a world where the Civil War was derailed by the rise of the restless dead and young Black girls are trained in combat to fend off the oncoming hordes. If you enjoyed the first book, you don’t want to miss this thrilling conclusion to the duology. Continue reading Review of Deathless Divide–Mad Scientists and Monstrosity
Tag: young adult
Review of Wicked Saints—Holiness and Heresy in a Fantasy World
A battle-hardened blood mage, a girl touched by the gods, and a monster forged by magic each have one goal: to overthrow the king. Delicate alliances, heartbreaking betrayals, and devious machinations fill the pages of Wicked Saints, the first book in Emily A. Duncan’s young adult fantasy series Something Dark and Holy. I picked up a copy of this book back when it first came out in 2019, but only just now got around to reading it—right in time for the trilogy’s conclusion! Book 2, Ruthless Gods came out last year and now the final book, Blessed Monsters, comes out tomorrow, April 6. If you haven’t hopped on this bandwagon yet, you’ll want to dive right in with Wicked Saints and then keep on reading the next two books. Just brace yourself to fall in love with some monsters! Continue reading Review of Wicked Saints—Holiness and Heresy in a Fantasy World
Review of Lost in the Never Woods–A Dark Peter Pan
What if Wendy’s brothers never came back from Neverland? Aiden Thomas, celebrated author of Cemetery Boys, is back with a dark and spooky twist on Peter Pan! Lost in the Never Woods is a YA fantasy novel that takes on one of the most iconic characters in children’s literature to explore the themes of trauma and grief. It comes out tomorrow, March 23. Continue reading Review of Lost in the Never Woods–A Dark Peter Pan
Review of Vampires Never Get Old—Giving the Genre New Life
“Vampires are dead.” People have been saying this ever since the overwhelming popularity of the Twilight series led to an explosion of young adult paranormal fantasy in the mid-2000s that saturated the market. But as a life-long vampire fan, I’ve always felt that these denizens of the undead still have more to teach us. There is something universally appealing about the vampire that isn’t going away anytime soon, and there are still infinite new angles from which the topic can be approached. Instead of telling everyone that the genre has been done to death already, why not open it up to a diversity of fresh new voices that haven’t yet had the chance to tell their story? That’s exactly what Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker do in their new anthology Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite, which came out back in September. Continue reading Review of Vampires Never Get Old—Giving the Genre New Life
Review of The Scapegracers—Queer Witches and Reckless Magic
It’s The Craft meets Mean Girls—except more heartwarming and queer. That’s the best way I can describe The Scapegracers, the start of a new YA fantasy trilogy by debut novelist Hannah Abigail Clarke. If you love a good found family trope, but also want to see some teen witches funnel their angst into reckless magic, then The Scapegracers is the book for you! It comes out tomorrow, September 15. Continue reading Review of The Scapegracers—Queer Witches and Reckless Magic
September Releases Roundup
I usually only do list posts of new books coming out around New Years, so we can get an idea of what’s in store for the year ahead. But since 2020 has been approximately a million years long, and many things have changed since January, I think we’re due for a check-in. Why now? Well, there’s an unusually high number of books coming out this September—particularly in YA—which is at least partially due to the fact that many releases scheduled for the early days of the pandemic were pushed back to the fall. With so many books coming out this month, I want to highlight a few that shouldn’t get missed:
- Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas (released September 1)
This book was on my original list at the beginning of the year, but its release date got pushed from June to September, so I want to make sure it doesn’t get buried! Cemetery Boys is a debut YA fantasy novel that follows a trans teen named Yadriel as he navigates his community’s gendered magic system and ends up falling in love with a ghost. If you want to hear more, check out my review!
- Wayward Witch by Zoraida Córdova (released September 1)
This is the third and final book in Zoraida Córdova’s Brooklyn Brujas series. If you’re unfamiliar, check out my reviews of the first two books: Labyrinth Lost and Bruja Born. Each book in this series follows a different Mortiz sister as she comes into her powers as a bruja while also negotiating the various trials of adolescence. Now it is the youngest sister’s turn: Rose Mortiz has always been a fixer, trying to smooth over the messes made by the rest of her chaotic family. One such mess is the sudden reappearance of her allegedly amnesiac father. As Rose tries to investigate her father’s past, the two of them get swept into the fairy realm of Adas. In order to make her family whole again, Rose will need to use the full extent of her powers to help heal the realm.
- Scapegracers by Hannah Abigail Clarke (releases September 15)
I’ll be reviewing this one next week, so keep an eye out for more of my thoughts then, but to sum it up: Scapegracers is basically The Craft meets Mean Girls, but heartwarming and queer. Sideways Pike is a lesbian, witch, and lifelong outsider, but when three of the most popular girls in school become interested in magic, they join with her to form a powerful coven. Together, they cast curses on boys, fight off fundamentalist witch hunters, and explore the impressive reaches of their power—yet the most magical thing of all to heart-hardened Sideways might be this messy, complicated, beautiful thing called friendship.
- Horrid by Katrina Lino (releases September 15)
It’s the cover on this one that really draws me in. Horrid is a YA contemporary horror novel about a teenager named Jane North-Robinson who moves with her mother back into her mother’s childhood home in New England. But like any good Gothic setting, North Manor is full of secrets—particularly, a locked door that leads to a little girl’s bedroom that has been left untouched for decades. As Jane learns more about her mother’s past, she must grapple with grief, mental illness, and perhaps something far more sinister.
- Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker (releases September 22)
I cannot even begin to express how hyped I am for this anthology! As soon as I saw the deal announcement many months ago, I knew it heralded something I’ve been waiting years for: vampires are back in fashion! Well, truthfully, vampires are never out of fashion. But we seem to be on the brink of a fresh wave of vampire fiction, this time centering new viewpoints from diverse voices. Vampires Never Get Old contains stories written by some of today’s most celebrated YA authors including Dhonielle Clayton, Rebecca Roanhorse, Mark Oshiro, and many more! I can’t wait to sink my teeth into this collection and see in what new ways these ancient creatures have grown.
What are you reading this September? Are you planning to get any of these new releases? Let me know in the comments!
Review of Cemetery Boys—Ghosts and Gendered Magic
It’s one thing to bring a boy home in Yadriel’s traditional Latinx family—but it’s quite another thing to bring home a ghost boy… It’s finally here! The book I’ve been most excited for this year. Cemetery Boys is a YA fantasy novel by debut author Aiden Thomas that combines queer romance, gender transition, coming-of-age, latinx culture-inspired magic, and a murder mystery. It was originally scheduled to come out in June, but thanks to coronavirus reschedulings, we’ve had to wait three more agonizing months. Thankfully, the book will finally be out tomorrow, September 1. Continue reading Review of Cemetery Boys—Ghosts and Gendered Magic
Slytherin Season: Celebrating Snaky Book Covers!
Recently, there has been a growing trend of book covers adorned with slithering snakes. Just within the last few months, we’ve seen them on the gorgeous covers of Shelby Mahurin’s debut, Serpent & Dove, and Pierce Brown’s latest addition to the Red Rising Saga, Dark Age. The trend is especially prominent among young adult fantasy titles, but it seems to be spreading to other markets and genres, as well. And I have to say, as a Slytherin, I am 100 percent on board with this! Continue reading Slytherin Season: Celebrating Snaky Book Covers!
His Hideous Heart Review—Poe Retellings with a YA Twist!
Edgar Allan Poe stories with a diverse, YA twist? Yes, please! So many of us first discover Poe during our teenage years that it seems perfectly fitting to reinterpret his stories in a young adult context. Editor Dahlia Adler does exactly this in her upcoming anthology His Hideous Heart, which gathers together thirteen celebrated YA authors to write modern tales inspired by some of Poe’s. I’ve been invited to participate in the official blog tour for His Hideous Heart, which comes out on September 10. See my thoughts on the book below, and be sure to check out the preorder link at the end of the post! Continue reading His Hideous Heart Review—Poe Retellings with a YA Twist!
The Sisters of the Winter Wood Review
“Come buy! Come buy!” While I don’t recommend that you hearken to the call of goblin men, I do highly encourage you to come and buy a copy of the debut YA fantasy novel The Sisters of the Winter Wood by Rena Rossner. Set in an Eastern European shtetl, Rossner’s story is a particularly clever retelling of one of my favorite poems, Christina Rossetti’s “Goblin Market,” that blends in Slavic folklore, Jewish traditions, and historical elements. I always love a good fairy tale retelling, but this is one of the most creative examples I’ve ever encountered that both truly honors the source material and also uses it to say something new. Continue reading The Sisters of the Winter Wood Review