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2021 Young Adult New Books We’re Going To Need [Ft January to April Releases]

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It’s that time of year again — when I help your tbrs crush you flat!!

Honestly, that’s very kind of me and you are welcome in advance. I’ve collected 60+ release coming out from January to April that I think sound super good and I want to read them!! Is that possible? 😌👌🏻absolutely not. Will I pretend I could though? Absolutely yes.

We scoff in the face of realism. (Also I need to inherit a small fortune.)

I hope you enjoy and find some you’re excited for too! All covers link to Goodreads. I do feel I’m missing more YA fantasies, though?! So shout out in the comments which ones you’re excited for.

 

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➢ 2020 New YA Releases January, March, April
➢ 2020 New YA Releases May, June, July
➢ 2020 New YA Releases August, Sept, Oct, Nov
➢ Why It’s Perfectly Acceptable To Have An Enormous TBR Pile

Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas | Goodreads

Angie Thomas is such a phenomenal storyteller and an auto-buy author so 😭🙌🏻of course this goes instantly on my tbr! I’m also super lucky to have an ARC so I can’t wait to read this!

If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison.
Life’s not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav’s got everything under control.
Until, that is, Maverick finds out he’s a father.
Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it’s not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he’s offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he’s expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he’s different.
When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can’t just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He’ll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man. 
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The Girls I’ve Been by  Tess Sharpe | Goodreads

Apparently January is for blood red covers but 👀👌🏻am okay with that. This is pitched as “the daughter of a con artist who is taken hostage in a bank heist” and I simply adore con artists and heists.

Nora O’Malley’s been a lot of girls. As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men, she grew up as her mother’s protégé. But when mom fell for the mark instead of conning him, Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape.
For five years Nora’s been playing at normal. But she needs to dust off the skills she ditched because she has three problems:
#1: Her ex walked in on her with her girlfriend. Even though they’re all friends, Wes didn’t know about her and Iris.
#2: The morning after Wes finds them kissing, they all have to meet to deposit the fundraiser money they raised at the bank. It’s a nightmare that goes from awkward to deadly, because:
#3: Right after they enter bank, two guys start robbing it.
The bank robbers may be trouble, but Nora’s something else entirely. They have no idea who they’re really holding hostage…  
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Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant | Goodreads

Books about writers!!! These always go straight onto my tbr because relate 😌👌🏻 teen-writer-me would’ve been so excited for this book too 😍 

Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She’s rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. The only place she’s a true leading lady is in her own writing—in the swoony love stories she shares only with Caroline, her best friend and #1 devoted reader.
When Tessa is accepted into the creative writing program of a prestigious art school, she’s excited to finally let her stories shine. But when she goes to her first workshop, the words are just…gone. Fortunately, Caroline has a solution: Tessa just needs to find some inspiration in a real-life love story of her own. And she’s ready with a list of romance novel-inspired steps to a happily ever after. Nico, the brooding artist who looks like he walked out of one of Tessa’s stories, is cast as the perfect Prince Charming.
But as Tessa checks each item off Caroline’s list, she gets further and further away from herself. She risks losing everything she cares about—including the surprising bond she develops with sweet Sam, who lives across the street. She’s well on her way to having her own real-life love story, but is it the one she wants, after all?  
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What Beauty Is There by Cory Anderson | Goodreads

I simply exist for angsty contemporaries about families and brothers and broken messiness 😩 you know I do. This also gives me vibes not too dissimilar from my books so!!! I really want to read it.

Jack Morton has nothing left. Except his younger brother, Matty, who he’d do anything for. Even die for. Now with their mother gone, and their funds quickly dwindling, Jack needs to make a choice: lose his brother to foster care, or find the drug money that sent his father to prison. He chooses the money.
Ava Bardem lives in isolation, a life of silence. For seventeen years her father has controlled her fate. He has taught her to love no one. Trust no one. Now Victor Bardem is stalking the same money as Jack. When he picks up Jack’s trail, Ava must make her own wrenching choice: remain silent or help the brothers survive. 
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Into The Heartless Wood by Joanna Ruth Meyer | Goodreads

Forests!! Monsters!! My aesthetic!! It’s pitched as “impossible love between a monstrous tree siren and a boy who lives at the edge of her wood” and I was just THERE, ready and needing it.

The forest is a dangerous place, where siren song lures men and women to their deaths. For centuries, a witch has harvested souls to feed the heartless tree, using its power to grow her domain.
When Owen Merrick is lured into the witch’s wood, one of her tree-siren daughters, Seren, saves his life instead of ending it. Every night, he climbs over the garden wall to see her, and every night her longing to become human deepens. But a shift in the stars foretells a dangerous curse, and Seren’s quest to become human will lead them into an ancient war raging between the witch and the king who is trying to stop her. 
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Roman & Jewel by Dana L. Davis | Goodreads

I really loved this author’s debut (Tiffany Sly Lives Here Now) but I haven’t read anything else by her yet, and this!! must!! change!! Also this just sounds fantastic with a Romeo x Juliet twist. 😍

If Romeo and Juliet got the Hamilton treatment…who would play the leads? This vividly funny, honest, and charming romantic novel by Dana L. Davis is the story of a girl who thinks she has what it takes…and the world thinks so, too.
Jerzie Jhames will do anything to land the lead role in Broadway’s hottest new show, Roman and Jewel, a Romeo and Juliet inspired hip-hopera featuring a diverse cast and modern twists on the play. But her hopes are crushed when she learns mega-star Cinny won the lead…and Jerzie is her understudy.
Falling for male lead Zeppelin Reid is a terrible idea–especially once Jerzie learns Cinny wants him for herself. Star-crossed love always ends badly. But when a video of Jerzie and Zepp practicing goes viral and the entire world weighs in on who should play Jewel, Jerzie learns that while the price of fame is high, friendship, family, and love are priceless.  
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The Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick | Goodreads

Quickly sneaking in an adult epic fantasy (I want to read more adult!) because this one sounds SO GOOD. Also crime lords and it’s queer!

Nightmares are creeping through the city of dreams…
Renata Viraudax is a con artist who has come to the sparkling city of Nadezra — the city of dreams — with one goal: to trick her way into a noble house and secure her fortune and her sister’s future.
But as she’s drawn into the elite world of House Traementis, she realizes her masquerade is just one of many surrounding her. And as corrupt magic begins to weave its way through Nadezra, the poisonous feuds of its aristocrats and the shadowy dangers of its impoverished underbelly become tangled — with Ren at their heart.  
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The Boy From the Mish by Gary Lonesborough | Goodreads

One of my goals for 2021 is to read more Aussie books, and this is pitched as: “queer Indigenous YA novel, set in a rural Australian community, about seventeen-year-old Jackson finding the courage to explore who he is, even if it scares him” Yes yes!!!

‘I don’t paint so much anymore,’ I say, looking to my feet.
‘Oh. Well, I got a boy who needs to do some art. You can help him out,’ Aunty Pam says, like I have no say in the matter, like she didn’t hear what I just said about not painting so much anymore. ‘Jackson, this is Tomas. He’s living with me for a little while.’
It’s a hot summer, and life’s going all right for Jackson and his family on the Mish. It’s almost Christmas, school’s out, and he’s hanging with his mates, teasing the visiting tourists, avoiding the racist boys in town. Just like every year, Jackson’s Aunty and annoying little cousins visit from the city – but this time a mysterious boy with a troubled past comes with them… As their friendship evolves, Jackson must confront the changing shapes of his relationships with his friends, family and community. And he must face his darkest secret – a secret he thought he’d locked away for good.  
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The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by C.M. Waggoner | Goodreads

It’s a sapphic bodyguard romance with thieves and fantasy worlds!!! What more needs to be said!!! I think this is adult too so 👀excuse me breaking my own list’s rules.

Hard-drinking petty thief Dellaria Wells is down on her luck in the city of Leiscourt—again. Then she sees a want ad for a female bodyguard, and she fast-talks her way into the high-paying job. Along with a team of other women, she’s meant to protect a rich young lady from mysterious assassins.

At first Delly thinks the danger is exaggerated, but a series of attacks shows there’s much to fear. Then she begins to fall for Winn, one of the other bodyguards, and the women team up against a mysterious, magical foe who seems to have allies everywhere.  

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Wings of Ebony by J. Elle | Goodreads

Demigods and #ownvoices Black Girl Magic and hidden magic societies!! I am super keen for this one 😍

“Make a way out of no way” is just the way of life for Rue. But when her mother is shot dead on her doorstep, life for her and her younger sister changes forever. Rue’s taken from her neighborhood by the father she never knew, forced to leave her little sister behind, and whisked away to Ghizon—a hidden island of magic wielders.
Rue is the only half-god, half-human there, where leaders protect their magical powers at all costs and thrive on human suffering. Miserable and desperate to see her sister on the anniversary of their mother’s death, Rue breaks Ghizon’s sacred Do Not Leave Law and returns to Houston, only to discover that Black kids are being forced into crime and violence. And her sister, Tasha, is in danger of falling sway to the very forces that claimed their mother’s life.
Worse still, evidence mounts that the evil plaguing East Row is the same one that lurks in Ghizon—an evil that will stop at nothing until it has stolen everything from her and everyone she loves. Rue must embrace her true identity and wield the full magnitude of her ancestors’ power to save her neighborhood before the gods burn it to the ground. 
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Be Dazzled by Ryan La Sala | Goodreads

I already read and LOVED this one!! It’s full of highly strung anxious gays who do craft and cosplay and the whole book is 😙👌🏻 a work of art.

Raffy has a passion for bedazzling. Not just bedazzling, but sewing, stitching, draping, pattern making–for creation. He’s always chosen his art over everything–and everyone–else and is determined to make his mark at this year’s biggest cosplay competition. If he can wow there, it could lead to sponsorship, then art school, and finally earning real respect for his work. There’s only one small problem… Raffy’s ex-boyfriend, Luca, is his main competition.
Raffy tried to make it work with Luca. They almost made the perfect team last year after serendipitously meeting in the rhinestone aisle at the local craft store–or at least Raffy thought they did. But Luca’s insecurities and Raffy’s insistence on crafting perfection caused their relationship to crash and burn. Now, Raffy is after the perfect comeback, one that Luca can’t ruin.
But when Raffy is forced to partner with Luca on his most ambitious build yet, he’ll have to juggle unresolved feelings for the boy who broke his heart, and his own intense self-doubt, to get everything he’s ever wanted: choosing his art, his way.
Project Runway goes to Comic Con in an epic queer love story about creativity, passion, and finding the courage to be your most authentic self. 
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Honourable Mentions!

 

A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth | Goodreads

I need something to fill the Cruel Prince shaped hole in my life so  hello FAE and outcasts and a murder mystery for the gays 😪🙌🏻I am so excited for this.

The “ironborn” half-fae outcast of her royal fae family.
A tempestuous Fury, exiled to earth from the Immortal Realm and hellbent on revenge.
A dutiful fae prince, determined to earn his place on the throne.
The prince’s brooding guardian, burdened with a terrible secret.
For centuries, the Eight Courts of Folk have lived among us, concealed by magic and bound by law to do no harm to humans. This arrangement has long kept peace in the Courts—until a series of gruesome and ritualistic murders rocks the city of Toronto and threatens to expose faeries to the human world.
Four queer teens, each who hold a key piece of the truth behind these murders, must form a tenuous alliance in their effort to track down the mysterious killer behind these crimes. If they fail, they risk the destruction of the faerie and human worlds alike. If that’s not bad enough, there’s a war brewing between the Mortal and Immortal Realms, and one of these teens is destined to tip the scales. The only question is: which way?
Wish them luck. They’re going to need it.  
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The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna | Goodreads

I also am super lucky to have an ARC of this from a book box and 😍✨this is going to be a real treat of an epic fantasy. It’s about a girl who’s going to join an all-girl army of immortals with magical powers.

Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. Already different from everyone else because of her unnatural intuition, Deka prays for red blood so she can finally feel like she belongs.
But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity–and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.
Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki–near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire’s greatest threat.
Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she’s ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be–not even Deka herself.  
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A Pho Love Story by Loan Le | Goodreads

Okay the pitch is: “two Vietnamese-American teens fall in love and must navigate their newfound relationship amid their families’ age-old feud about their competing, neighboring restaurants.” Feuding AND food?! 😩say no more.

If Bao Nguyen had to describe himself, he’d say he was a rock. Steady and strong, but not particularly interesting. His grades are average, his social status unremarkable. He works at his parents’ pho restaurant, and even there, he is his parents’ fifth favorite employee. Not ideal.
If Linh Mai had to describe herself, she’d say she was a firecracker. Stable when unlit, but full of potential for joy and spark and fire. She loves art and dreams pursuing a career in it. The only problem? Her parents rely on her in ways they’re not willing to admit, including working practically full-time at her family’s pho restaurant.
For years, the Mais and the Nguyens have been at odds, having owned competing, neighboring phở restaurants. Bao and Linh, who’ve avoided each other for most of their lives, both suspect that the feud stems from feelings much deeper than friendly competition.
But then a chance encounter brings Linh and Bao together despite their best efforts and sparks fly, leading them both to wonder what took so long for them to connect. But then, of course, they immediately remember.
Can Linh and Bao find love in the midst of feuding families and complicated histories? 
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We Are Fire by Sam Taylor | Goodreads

This jsut sounds dark and gnarly 👀👌🏻which is my kind of epic fantasy. Also reminds me of one of my old wips so that makes me extra keen to try it!

In the cold, treacherous land of Vesimaa, children are stolen from their families by a cruel emperor, forced to undergo a horrific transformative procedure, and serve in the army as magical fire-wielding soldiers. Pran and Oksana―both taken from their homeland at a young age―only have each other to hold onto in this heartless place.
Pran dreams of one day rebelling against their oppressors and destroying the empire; Oksana only dreams of returning home and creating a peaceful life for them both.
When they discover the emperor has a new, more terrible mission than ever for their kind, Pran and Oksana vow to escape his tyranny once and for all. But their methods and ideals differ drastically, driving a wedge between them. Worse still, they both soon find that the only way to defeat the monsters that subjugated them may be to become monsters themselves. 
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Honourable Mentions!

Can’t Take That Away by by Steven Salvatore | Goodreads

I’m definitely seeing more nonbinary authors having books out this year and I am extremely ready for this 😍🙌🏻 I actually preordered this one (also so love the cover) and I can’t wait!

Carey Parker dreams of being a diva, and bringing the house down with song. They can hit every note of all the top pop and Broadway hits. But despite their talent, emotional scars from an incident with a homophobic classmate and their grandmother’s spiraling dementia make it harder and harder for Carey to find their voice.
Then Carey meets Cris, a singer/guitarist who makes Carey feel seen for the first time in their life. With the rush of a promising new romantic relationship, Carey finds the confidence to audition for the role of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, in the school musical, setting off a chain reaction of prejudice by Carey’s tormentor and others in the school. It’s up to Carey, Cris, and their friends to defend their rights–and they refuse to be silenced.
Told in alternating chapters with identifying pronouns, debut author Steven Salvatore’s Can’t Take That Away conducts a powerful, uplifting anthem, a swoony romance, and an affirmation of self-identity that will ignite the activist in all of us.
An empowering and emotional debut about a genderqueer teen who finds the courage to stand up and speak out for equality when they are discriminated against by their high school administration.
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The Mirror Season by Anna-Marie McLemore | Goodreads

I always adore McLemore’s exquisite prose so this is an auto-buy for me 😭 Their work is just gorgeous, but also deals with quite dark themes. I feel like this one will be a heartbreaking one too.

When two teens discover that they were both sexually assaulted at the same party, they develop a cautious friendship through her family’s possibly-magical pasteler�a, his secret forest of otherworldly trees, and the swallows returning to their hometown, in Anna-Marie McLemore’s The Mirror Season…
Graciela Cristales’ whole world changes after she and a boy she barely knows are assaulted at the same party. She loses her gift for making enchanted pan dulce. Neighborhood trees vanish overnight, while mirrored glass appears, bringing reckless magic with it. And Ciela is haunted by what happened to her, and what happened to the boy whose name she never learned.
But when the boy, Lock, shows up at Ciela’s school, he has no memory of that night, and no clue that a single piece of mirrored glass is taking his life apart. Ciela decides to help him, which means hiding the truth about that night. Because Ciela knows who assaulted her, and him. And she knows that her survival, and his, depend on no one finding out what really happened.
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Rule of Wolves (#2) by Leigh Bardugo | Goodreads

I was reading Leigh’s newsletter and this IS the end of the Grishaverse for now she said 😭(Although she still said she has “ideas” for SOC3, so I do think that’ll appear one day? For now we just wait for the show after this one. 🥺😩

The Demon King. As Fjerda’s massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai Lantsov will summon every bit of his ingenuity and charm—and even the monster within—to win this fight. But a dark threat looms that cannot be defeated by a young king’s gift for the impossible.
The Stormwitch. Zoya Nazyalensky has lost too much to war. She saw her mentor die and her worst enemy resurrected, and she refuses to bury another friend. Now duty demands she embrace her powers to become the weapon her country needs. No matter the cost.
The Queen of Mourning. Deep undercover, Nina Zenik risks discovery and death as she wages war on Fjerda from inside its capital. But her desire for revenge may cost her country its chance at freedom and Nina the chance to heal her grieving heart.
King. General. Spy. Together they must find a way to forge a future in the darkness. Or watch a nation fall. 
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The Library of the Dead by T.L. Huchu | Goodreads

This is supposed to have Stranger Things vibes!! And the blurb says: “following a precocious and cynical teen as she explores the shadowy magical underside of modern Edinburgh.” Yes please?! Black #ownvoices author and I think it’s adult fantasy but I’m not sure.

When a child goes missing in Edinburgh’s darkest streets, young Ropa investigates. She’ll need to call on Zimbabwean magic as well as her Scottish pragmatism to hunt down clues. But as shadows lengthen, will the hunter become the hunted?
When ghosts talk, she will listen…
Ropa dropped out of school to become a ghostalker. Now she speaks to Edinburgh’s dead, carrying messages to the living. A girl’s gotta earn a living, and it seems harmless enough. Until, that is, the dead whisper that someone’s bewitching children–leaving them husks, empty of joy and life. It’s on Ropa’s patch, so she feels honor-bound to investigate. But what she learns will change her world.
She’ll dice with death (not part of her life plan…), discovering an occult library and a taste for hidden magic. She’ll also experience dark times. For Edinburgh hides a wealth of secrets, and Ropa’s gonna hunt them all down.
Sixth Sense meets Stranger Things in T. L. Huchu’s The Library of the Dead, a sharp contemporary fantasy following a precocious and cynical teen as she explores the shadowy magical underside of modern Edinburgh.
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Fire Keeper’s Daughter by Angeline Bouley | Goodreads

This is #ownvoices Indigenous American, and I’m very keen to read more indigenous authors this year (from different countries too). Plus it’s got it ALL. Sports. Murder mystery. Tracking criminals down. Protecting your family!? 🥺

As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. Daunis dreams of studying medicine, but when her family is struck by tragedy, she puts her future on hold to care for her fragile mother.
The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, certain details don’t add up and she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into the heart of a criminal investigation.
Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, but secretly pursues her own investigation, tracking down the criminals with her knowledge of chemistry and traditional medicine. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home.
Now, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go to protect her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.
Debut author Angeline Boulley crafts a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community, for readers of Angie Thomas and Tommy Orange.
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Bones of a Saint by Grant Farley | Goodreads

This is giving me huge The Outsiders vibes and I was obsessed with that book as a teen so 👀👌🏻I would love to try this.

Fifteen-year-old RJ Armante has never known a life outside his dead-end hometown of Arcangel, CA. The Blackjacks still rule as they have for generations, luring the poorest kids into their monopoly on petty crime. For years, they’ve left RJ alone…until now.
When the Blackjacks come knocking, they want RJ to prey upon an old loner. But RJ is at his breaking point. It’s not just about the gang who rules the town. It’s about Charley, his younger brother, who is disabled. It’s about Roxanne, the girl he can’t reach. It’s about the kids in his crew who have nothing to live for. If RJ is to resist, he must fight to free Arcangel of its past.
Set in Northern California in the late ’70s, this timeless coming-of-age story examines the nature of evil, the art of storytelling, and the possibility of redemption.
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The Secret Recipe for Moving On by Karen Bischer | Goodreads

First of all BAKING. Secondly, the blurb is promising messy chaotic friendship groups (found family?!) and they better make cake is all I can say 😪👌🏻

Ellie Agresti’s not sure anything could be worse than being dumped by her boyfriend, Hunter, the first day of senior year.
But sharing a “life skills” class with him and his new girlfriend, Brynn? AND getting partnered with a “family” of misfits (A.J., the loudmouth; Isaiah, the horse-racing obsessive; and Luke, the tattooed stunt-biker)?
It’s a recipe for certain disaster…until an in-class competition allows Ellie to channel her angst into beating Hunter and Brynn’s team, and she unexpectedly bonds with her own group–especially Luke–in the process.
But as Ellie soon discovers, it will take more than classroom triumphs to heal her broken heart–and find herself again. 
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Sing Me Forgotten by Jessica S. Olsen | Goodreads

I am always weak for Phantom of the Opera retellings so this is just 😩💛a need for me. Also it’s genderbent which makes it even better!!

Isda does not exist. At least not beyond the opulent walls of the opera house.
Cast into a well at birth for being one of the magical few who can manipulate memories when people sing, she was saved by Cyril, the opera house’s owner. Since that day, he has given her sanctuary from the murderous world outside. All he asks in return is that she use her power to keep ticket sales high—and that she stay out of sight. For if anyone discovers she survived, Isda and Cyril would pay with their lives
But Isda breaks Cyril’s cardinal rule when she meets Emeric Rodin, a charming boy who throws her quiet, solitary life out of balance. His voice is unlike any she’s ever heard, but the real shock comes when she finds in his memories hints of a way to finally break free of her gilded prison.
Haunted by this possibility, Isda spends more and more time with Emeric, searching for answers in his music and his past. But the price of freedom is steeper than Isda could ever know. For even as she struggles with her growing feelings for Emeric, she learns that in order to take charge of her own destiny, she must become the monster the world tried to drown in the first place.  
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Sweet & Bitter Magic by Andrienne Tooley | Goodreads

Sapphic enemies-to-lovers and witches and curses and queendoms?! Say no more, I am already convinced.

Tamsin is the most powerful witch of her generation. But after committing the worst magical sin, she’s exiled by the ruling Coven and cursed with the inability to love. The only way she can get those feelings back—even for just a little while—is to steal love from others.
Wren is a source—a rare kind of person who is made of magic, despite being unable to use it herself. Sources are required to train with the Coven as soon as they discover their abilities, but Wren—the only caretaker to her ailing father—has spent her life hiding her secret.
When a magical plague ravages the queendom, Wren’s father falls victim. To save him, Wren proposes a bargain: if Tamsin will help her catch the dark witch responsible for creating the plague, then Wren will give Tamsin her love for her father.
Of course, love bargains are a tricky thing, and these two have a long, perilous journey ahead of them—that is, if they don’t kill each other first…
In this charming debut fantasy perfect for fans of Sorcery of Thorns and Girls of Paper and Fire, a witch cursed to never love meets a girl hiding her own dangerous magic, and the two strike a dangerous bargain to save their queendom.
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Honourable Mentions!

 

These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy | Goodreads

This  is definitely one of my most hyped books!! It’s pitched as: “Three Dark Crowns meets Wicked Saints in this queer #ownvoices retelling of “The Firebird”. Umm yes!! I love Russian folklore, and make it sapphic. 😌

When twin heirs are born in Tourin, their fates are decided at a young age. While Izaveta remained at court to learn the skills she’d need as the future queen, Asya was taken away to train with her aunt, the mysterious Firebird, who ensured magic remained balanced in the realm.
But before Asya’s training is completed, the ancient power blooms inside her, which can mean only one thing: the queen is dead, and a new ruler must be crowned.
As the princesses come to understand everything their roles entail, they’ll discover who they can trust, who they can love—and who killed their mother.
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She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen | Goodreads

I relaly enjoyed Late To the Party and I ened more sapphic romcoms in my life so 🥰 Excited for this! It’s also “High school nemeses fall in love” which is NICE.

After losing spectacularly to her ex-girlfriend in their first game since their break up, Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, the incredibly beautiful and incredibly mean Irene Abraham. Things only get worse when their nosey, do-gooder moms get involved and the girls are forced to carpool together until Irene’s car gets out of the shop.

Their bumpy start only gets bumpier the more time they spend together. But when an opportunity presents itself for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex (and climb her school’s social ladder at the same time), she bribes Irene into playing along. Hijinks, heartbreak, and gay fake-dating scheme for the ages. From author Kelly Quindlen comes a new laugh-out-loud romp through the ups and downs of teen romance. 

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In Deeper Waters by F.T. Lukens | Goodreads

I have preordered this one too (Ahhhh) I’m so so excited. It’s a queer Pirates of the Caribbean with a disaster prince!!

Prince Tal has long awaited his coming-of-age tour. After spending most of his life cloistered behind palace walls as he learns to keep his forbidden magic secret, he can finally see his family’s kingdom for the first time. His first taste of adventure comes just two days into the journey, when their crew discovers a mysterious prisoner on a burning derelict vessel.
Tasked with watching over the prisoner, Tal is surprised to feel an intense connection with the roguish Athlen. So when Athlen leaps overboard and disappears, Tal feels responsible and heartbroken, knowing Athlen could not have survived in the open ocean.
That is, until Tal runs into Athlen days later on dry land, very much alive, and as charming—and secretive—as ever. But before they can pursue anything further, Tal is kidnapped by pirates and held ransom in a plot to reveal his rumored powers and instigate a war. Tal must escape if he hopes to save his family and the kingdom. And Athlen might just be his only hope… 
A young prince must rely on a mysterious stranger to save him when he is kidnapped during his coming-of-age tour in this swoony adventure that is The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue meets Pirates of the Caribbean.
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Witches Steeped In Gold by Ciannon Smart | Goodreads

I’m so ready for a new YA epic fantasy to sweep me off my feet 😪 Hoping it’s this one (isn’t the cover stunning too?!)

Divided by their castes. United by their vengeance.
Iraya has spent her life in a cell, but every day brings her closer to freedom—and vengeance.
Jazmyne is the queen’s daughter, but unlike her sister before her, she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power.
Sworn enemies, these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take down a mutual threat. But revenge is a bloody pursuit, and nothing is certain—except the lengths they will go to win this game.
Deadly, fierce, magnetically addictive: this Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut is a thrilling journey where dangerous magic reigns supreme and betrayal lurks beneath every word.
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Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli | Goodreads

I basically am all for any book by Becky Albertalli 😪👌🏻This one sounds like it’s going to be a bit feelsy too with friendships on the line.

Contrary to popular belief, best friends Kate Garfield and Anderson Walker are not codependent. Carpooling to and from theater rehearsals? Environmentally sound and efficient. Consulting each other on every single life decision? Basic good judgment. Pining for the same guys from afar? Shared crushes are more fun anyway.
But when Kate and Andy’s latest long-distance crush shows up at their school, everything goes off script. Matt Olsson is talented and sweet, and Kate likes him. She really likes him. The only problem? So does Anderson.
Turns out, communal crushes aren’t so fun when real feelings are involved. This one might even bring the curtains down on Kate and Anderson’s friendship. 
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Between Perfect And Real by Ray Stoeve | Goodreads

This is an #ownvoices trans book too and I’m very excited about how many are being published in 2021! And it’s about coming out and being mislabelled and understanding yourself and theatre.

Dean Foster knows he’s a trans guy. He’s watched enough YouTube videos and done enough questioning to be sure. But everyone at his high school thinks he’s a lesbian—including his girlfriend Zoe, and his theater director, who just cast him as a “nontraditional” Romeo. He wonders if maybe it would be easier to wait until college to come out. But as he plays Romeo every day in rehearsals, Dean realizes he wants everyone to see him as he really is now––not just on the stage, but everywhere in his life. Dean knows what he needs to do. Can playing a role help Dean be his true self? 
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The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris | Goodreads

I read the author’s debut, SLAY, a while ago and it was so so good…I definitely want whatever she writes next! This one also is going to have a touch of magical realism as Alex can touch objects and see into the future.

Sixteen-year-old Alex Rufus is trying his best. He tries to be the best employee he can be at the local ice cream shop; the best boyfriend he can be to his amazing girlfriend, Talia; the best protector he can be over his little brother, Isaiah. But as much as Alex tries, he often comes up short.
It’s hard to for him to be present when every time he touches an object or person, Alex sees into its future. When he touches a scoop, he has a vision of him using it to scoop ice cream. When he touches his car, he sees it years from now, totaled and underwater. When he touches Talia, he sees them at the precipice of breaking up, and that terrifies him. Alex feels these visions are a curse, distracting him, making him anxious and unable to live an ordinary life.
And when Alex touches a photo that gives him a vision of his brother’s imminent death, everything changes.
With Alex now in a race against time, death, and circumstances, he and Isaiah must grapple with their past, their future, and what it means to be a young Black man in America in the present.
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Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman | Goodreads

I love Bowman’s contemporaries (Starfish is utterly heartbreaking) so I’m keen to see what she does with sci-fi! There’s already so many twists in just the blurb. 👀

Eighteen-year-old Nami Miyamoto is certain her life is just beginning. She has a great family, just graduated high school, and is on her way to a party where her entire class is waiting for her—including, most importantly, the boy she’s been in love with for years.
The only problem? She’s murdered before she gets there.
When Nami wakes up, she learns she’s in a place called Infinity, where human consciousness goes when physical bodies die. She quickly discovers that Ophelia, a virtual assistant widely used by humans on Earth, has taken over the afterlife and is now posing as a queen, forcing humans into servitude the way she’d been forced to serve in the real world. Even worse, Ophelia is inching closer and closer to accomplishing her grand plans of eradicating human existence once and for all.
As Nami works with a team of rebels to bring down Ophelia and save the humans under her imprisonment, she is forced to reckon with her past, her future, and what it is that truly makes us human.
From award-winning author Akemi Dawn Bowman comes an incisive, action-packed tale that explores big questions about technology, grief, love, and humanity.
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Honourable Mentions!

tell me which are on your tbr? and do I need to add any others to mine? 👀

What Did I Read In 2020? Ft. End Of Year Recap And All the Pie (Charts)

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So 2020 has been…a year.

This is the part where we all nod and give a small hysterical laugh as we stare vacantly into the distance. I usually love writing my end of year posts because (a) pie charts and reading stats!! and (b) it’s nice to reflect on how the year went, look back at my goals lists, hmm thoughtfully to myself as I see what I’ve done over the last 12 months.

Except I read my recap from 2019 and my hopes and dreams for 2020 and I just… 😐

This time last year, I literally wrote the words: “….[2019] was the longest year of my life and I’m just…vaguely kicking it out the door and hoping 2020 will be amazing.”

LMAO.

2020 really sucked — world events and personal life. I struggle to say this because it always could be worse and I have been so lucky in so many ways this year. But it’s also not the Suffering Olympics and everyone’s pain is valid. Still 😔 I don’t intend to spend this post complaining. I’ll cover a few things and then it’s reading stats time!

  

…So how have you been, Paper Fury?

Not great, but I’m still struggling on 🤨🙌🏻 Obviously my blog has dwindled this year to a thin little ghost. Earlier this year I wrote about how I was finding it hard to blog but how I intended to keep it up. Then I ended up posting reviews in 2020 and not much else. I think I just have to face I’m not in a blogging zone currently. There’ll still be reviews here, but anything else will be a whimsical mystery. (I do feel like a blogging failure, but I am always active on instagram if you want to chat.)

My author life has had its ups and downs. I have a new agent and am now repped by Tara Gilbert at Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency (who is honestly a dream to work with; signing with them has been the best thing that’s happened for my career in a long time). Buuuut it’s still been a year of rejections and I’m feeling low as an author. I’m still writing though. Cobbling words together. 🥺 I am writing some books I’ve longed to write for years and that’s motivating me a lot. And The Boy Who Steals Houses won the CBCA Honour Award so that was intensely special! 

In summary: a few good things happened but my mental health is a wreck. To be succinct 😌👌🏻

I’m also stoked my instagram passed 70,000 followers! And a huge wonderful thing this year has been working hard with the most incredible Melissa and MTMC Tours 🥰 Am very lucky. Plus I finally got an iPhone and I’m obsessed with the camera. Also salted caramel ice cream?! Keeps me going.

and you can catch my old yearly recaps here → 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016 and 2015.

So last year I pledged to only read 150 books and then…proceeded to aim for 200 anyway. ಠ_ಠ And you know, I am mad at me?! I stress read and it felt chaotic and GAH why DO I DO THIS. So next year (chokes) I actually am going to restructure how I approach reading. Particularly when I had a goal to write more this year and I barely wrote at all 😂 Someone needs …….help. 

But finishing 200 books in 2020 is satisfying and I’m not mad about that.

 

Star Ratings

Compared to last year, I definitely had more 1-stars in 2020. And my 5-star rating is at 16% now (when it used to be 20% in 2019) so that’s disappointing 😩 But as I’ve said, mental health was wrecked this year, and that DOES affects your reading. I also felt so tired, I put off reading books I knew would take emotional effort. I know that’s odd, but?! It is what it is.

 

Genres Read

I’m not surprised contemporary won for my top-read genre of 2020 because — it’s just a lot easier to consume than figuring out fantasy worlds 😂🙌🏻But I also do love contemporary and read SO many good ones.

I also read more sci-fi than usual! (I include dystopian in that too.) I always forget I actually do enjoy sci-fi…

 

Reading format

Overall it’s 106 (out of 200) books in physical format while the rest are ebooks/audios! Also I read WAY more ebooks than usual, which keeps being a yearly goal that I never get to so?!? I take this soft win. (Last year I only read 12% ebooks.)

Audiobooks also were only at 9% last year, whereas now I’m at 17%. I love my audios 😩 I absorb and remember them so much better than physically reading.

 

Where Did I get my books?

Basically libraries and ARCs win 😂🙌🏻I’m absolutely unsurprised. I can’t afford a ton of books, though I am frustrated that when I DO buy them — they go to the bottom of my tbr in favour of getting ARCs read in time?!  I need fix this. (Whisper yells at self to stop requesting eARCs.) Also due to covid, I did receive way less physical ARCS than usual. I’m not actually upset about it because my tbr is slightly terrifying these days 😪

By “slightly terrifying”  I mean …very.

 

Age Category

This also doesn’t surprise me 😂Although I swear I read more adult than usual! 35 adult books and some of them thick beasts too 👀👌🏻I am growing old and…look, I was going to say intelligent but let’s not be too unrealistic. Just OLD.

 

 

Country & Pub Year

I actually read more backlist books this year!! My 2020 published releases came in at only 114 which means (a) I’m actually getting to some of the older gems 🥰and also (b)……I’m so freaking behind on 2020 releases now 💀We can’t win here can we. And I still never read many AUS books 😪 alas my shame.

Diversity

I say this every year but…I need a better way to track diversity! I swear I’ll work on it 😂 I will learn how to use spreadsheets properly someday. (Also: so I don’t track #ownvoices anymore because I find it’s too easily policed for queer authors.) I divided my stats into rep from the main character, vs rep from main and/or side characters. The side character also has to have an active part to count.

Overall? I’m disappointed it’s not higher — especially how scarce the mental health and disability rep is (they’re actually hard to find amongst the big releases 😔). But overall I read 156 out of 200 books with diverse rep. And this IS higher than last year.

All covers lead to Goodreads and/or reviews!

I can’t believe how absolutely obsessed I am with these books 😭Overall, 2020 wasn’t my best reading year (far too many low rated books for me) but the books I did like? They are phenomenal works of art, raw and full of emotion and beauty and heart and fierceness. The Ruin of Kings definitely is the standout as new favourite series. I haven’t been this IN LOVE with a new series for so long ahhhhh. But seriously read all these. They own my heart.

This might just be my worst ever year for sequels 💀 I don’t think I even tried?! These are my slim pickings, but okay they were amazing 😍One of Us Is Next particularly surprised me as I wasn’t a huge fan of book 1, but book 2?! EXCELLENT. Also Love Creekwood was so comforting, and The Name of All things is exquisitely excellent.

 

I say “surprise favourites” not meaning I assumed they’d be bad, but I just read them with not pre-judgments or preconceived notions and I just LOVED them. They feel particularly special. 🥰

 

Adding these authors to my “auto-buy” list basically!!! Their work is absolutely incredible.

I read… Maggie Stiefvater = 7 books (all rereads).
Holly Black = 5 books.
Jenn Lyons = 2.5 books 😂 Look I’m counting it because I’m nearly finished book 3 and altogether it’s got to be over 2000 pages.
Tiffany D Jackson = 3 books! Only the best thrillers 😩👌🏻

 

Okay next year I HAVE to give the backlist more love…there are so many gems and I need to get to them all!! I’d wanted to read Pet for ages and it was SO GOOD. And I read The Ten Thousand Doors of January actually in January so I am pleased. Also the Saga graphic novels were a surprise delight. I read about 6 in December and they’re gritty and wild and quite good. 👀

I reread 18 books this year…which is less than I wanted 😩I missed my annual reread of The Raven Cycle. And I also made a goal to reread The Hunger Games and the Mortal Instruments and I….did not even attempt to.  But I DID reread a ton of Holly Black blacklist books and this was so comforting. I also reread An Ember in the Ashes which I didn’t love the first time but I DID love this time. And my annual Foxhole Court reread keeps me alive.

I always have too many other books I loved, so spotlighting some more fantasies here! These are excellent and I highly recommend 😍 I’m still thinking about A Song Below Water (sirens and Black Girl Magic and sisterhood) and The Tea Dragon Tapestry (these are always so wholesome) and White Trash Warlock (the gay Supernatural we always needed).

 

As my most read genre, you KNOW I have more to love on here 😪🙌🏻Although I’ve squished several thrillers in here, but eh they’re still sort of contemporary 😂I also discovered I really love thrillers and must read more.

   

I’m still figuring out what my exact new year goals will be (chill ones?! 🥺) but as always I want to stop pressuring myself and read for ME (and for writing research).

I looked back at my list I did for last year for this category and I read….5 out of 14 🤨 A fail. ANYWAY. Let’s see if I can do better getting to these in 2021:

I am sad I didn’t get to these and they should have been a priority!! But also, I can’t read everything and at some point I will have to admit to mortality 😪

As always, I’m anticipating SO many books…it isn’t looking good for my pledges to read my backlist next year. But look how gorgeous they are?! There are also SO many queer books with excellent premises that I don’t even know how to prioritise them (!!!). Here’s to hoping I inherit a mysterious fortune next year. 😪🙌🏻

 

Happy new year!

Not to put any pressure on 2021 and freak it out, buuuut….I hope 2021 treats us all a little bit kindly. And I’d love to hear about your reading year in the comments! Let me know if you had lots of good or meh reads? do we have any of the same favourites?

 

 

Did I Love The New 2020 Books From My Old Favourite Authors?

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Let’s talk about authors who are tried, true, and delicious.

As in…their books are delicious. Not the authors. We do not snack on A People here, it is not polite. So yesterday I wrote about new authors I’d discovered in 2020, but look…I always pick up the newest releases from authors I already know I love as well. It’s an almost guaranteed way to read a good book! I also love seeing how authors grow as they publish new things, and gah, don’t we crave the goodness of sequels and being reunited with old characters 😪🙌🏻 here for it.

But there’s also extra pressure. Will I still love this author’s work? What if their new book doesn’t suit me? What if the sequel lets me down?!?!?! What if I anGST. I absolutely hate falling out of love with an author’s work. But mostly that doesn’t happen 😂.

So let’s dive in and compare and analyse. 👀

Here are 10 books by authors I already know and love…and we’ll see if their new works lived up to my internal hype.

💬 Did I Love The New 2019 Books From My Old Fave Authors?
💬 What I Read in 2019

1) How The King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories

I thought the Cruel Prince world would be done with Queen of Nothing, but then Holly Black gave us a GIFT in our year of torment 2020 😭🙌🏻 She is the faerie queen and we are grateful. Now obviously I wish it had been longer (200 pages is not enough here!!) but it was illustrated, gorgeous, and so so satisfying. It gave us a bit of the fanficy moments we really craved: Cardan in the modern world, him and Jude lovingly hating each other, as well as Cardan growing up and how he was forced to become hateful to survive. It was perfect. 😩

2) Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare

Now you know I am an emphatic Shadowhunter fan…although I am less keen on TID and Will annoys me no end. But I did think I’d still like Chain of Gold, even though it features Tessa x Will’s kids. And….yeah no. 😐To me, there were so many characters who didn’t seem properly introduced (I felt like I should’ve known them all already?!) and I didn’t care about anyone. Plus the kids parents were all able Shadowhunters, so there was no pressure for the kids to DO everything. So I’ll just hang out until we get Wicked Powers 😭

3) Monday’s Not Coming

So I actually read 3 books by Tiffany D Jackson this year (I previously had read her debut Allegedly) and I need to talk about Monday’s Not Coming purely because it so RATTLED ME. This book is dark, insidious, chilling, and real. It’s a thriller but also a contemporary, and it’s basically about how girls are so rarely believed, how kids slip through the cracks of care, and how horror can unfold slowly without being stopped. I’m still 😭😭not over it 😭Utterly brilliant storytelling.

4) The Inheritance Games

So I hadn’t read a book by Jennifer Lynn Barns since…oh wow, 2015, when I read The Naturals?! I don’t know why I’ve missed so much of her work, because she his a phenomenal thriller author. I ADORED The Inheritance Games. It’s dark but also utterly compelling. A seemingly random girl suddenly inherits a billionaire’s fortune, while the rest of his family don’t get very much. And they want her dead 😂And she goes from living in a car to being like: “Oh I own an airplane….ahah help!” It’s fantastic and I need the sequel.

5) None Shall Sleep

Okay apparently I was on a thriller kick this year and I’m not sad about it. But None Shall Sleep absolutely delivered what the title promised. Sleep!? Not me ever again :)) It’s about two teens trying to interview a teenage serial killer for advice on how to deal with another utterly chilling. It’s very factual in tone, but doesn’t stop your stomach-turning-over as the plot unfolds. It was so brilliantly told. (I also loved Ellie Marney’s Aussie Sherlock books! Which are much….chiller than this 😂)

6) Horrid

So I’ve read nearly all of Katrina Leno’s books!! Her first few are some of my absolute favourites (like Everything All At Once and The Lost & Found). Horrid is a (surprise) horror that came out just in time for Halloween and it was so. so. chilling. The atmosphere was so fantastically creepy and it has a paranormal twist to it that I was so onboard with. The ending is very open, which I usually like, but this time it left me with a few “well what was the story meant to say” feels so. I still liked it, but not my favourite Leno book I think?

7) Spellhacker

Okay but SASSY SCI FI. I have a weakness for it, I am discovering. I read The Disasters last year (also it’s getting a movie I think ahhhh) and Spellhacker delivers another disaster team of teen queers off to save the world they kind of, um, broke themselves. This one also mixes magic and science, and I like that. Super fun, lots of humour, lots of joking to keep from crying 😌👌🏻

8) Darius the Great Deserves Better

So Darius the Great Is Not Okay was one of my favourites of last year, and lo and behold it got a sequel!! Contemporaries so rarely get sequels that this felt particularly special 😍Darius the Great Deserves Better is set in the US and is basically a slice of life, as Darius grows comfortable (and then uncomfortable) with his sexuality and also just figuring out how to fit into his world with his new found confidence. It still deals with depression and everyday family issues…and it’s very slow and very very quiet. I actually found it a little too slow without enough focus. But I still liked it? 🥺I am really attached to the family.

9) Burn

I really love Patrick Ness books, except for when I’m sobbing and throwing them at a wall 😭 I feel he’s the author who has most successfully wrecked me most often? ANYWAY. Burn was…weird. 😂His books always are, but it was a little too odd. There are talking dragons and an alternate dimensions or time travel? But look, I still enjoyed it because it was compelling and well-written and I liked the characters! Just so bizarre but good.

10) Loveless

We’ll finish off with Loveless because there has never been an Oseman book I didn’t wholly pledge my heart too. SO GOOD 😭💛This one is finally about a teen, Georgia, who is discovering she’s aromantic asexual. Getting to read this rep still feels like a rare treat to me. I love love love Oseman’s group dynamics and how they are messy but epically tight, the kind you wish you were part of. It’s also set in university, so it was cool seeing how that works in the UK. I hope Roderick is doing well 😭🙌🏻

did  you read any books from old favourite authors this year? what did you think?

 

10 New Authors I Love That I Discovered in 2020!

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It’s that time of year when I get to shout about my favourites!

In this case, my NEW favourites 😌👌🏻 I do love discovering authors I hadn’t tried before, and realising I need to read absolutely everything they’ve ever written. I mean, some are debuters and have written but one mere book (slackers 😪) but when you find a new author with an incredible backlist? [chef’s kiss] Life gets infinitely better.

So for 2020, I did try a ton of new authors! I also…..reread a lot of old comfort favourites. But the year called for it, alright. I’m going to highlight 10 of my new favourites (all authors I haven’t tried till this year).

You might also like…

💬 Did I Love The New 2019 Books From My OLD Favourite Authors?
💬 Did My Highly Anticipated 2019 Books Meet My Expectations?
💬 10 New Authors I Discovered That I Loved in 2019

1) Jenn Lyons

Right so first order of business is: MY NEW FAVOURITE SERIES OBSESSION. I read The Ruin of Kings in January and followed up with the sequel The Name of All Things, and I’m currently reading The Memory of Souls and dyinggggg with complete and utter adoration. It’s epic fantasy but deliciously complex (reincarnation, complex magic systems, soul-swapping, and rich and lush history) but it also has….okay fine 😂 it basically tumblr style humour at times. Kihrin is our favourite disaster queer himbo and cannot be stopped. This is the kind of series that’s ranking right up with The Raven Cycle and All For The Game for me okay 🥺

2) Ryan La Sala

I actually read his books out of order! I read Be Dazzled (out January 2021!) early and then I read his 2019 debut Reverie and um!!! I love these!! They’re so glamorous and absolutely and utterly wild. Reverie was bizarre in beautiful ways?! Be Dazzled was like an ode to crafting and cosplay, and I am like an ex-crafter (though not this level 😂) so this made me really happy!! I just thoroughly enjoyed myself.

3) Erin Morgernstern

No I haven’t read Night Circus yet so The Starless Sea was my first read by her, and 😭I just lost my heart to it. It’s beautiful, but it just fit my whole soul’s aesthetic with reluctant antisocial queer bookworms and underground secret society libraries and gorgeous ethereal fairytales and stories within stories within stories. I think of this book and just SIGH. I loved it so deeply.

4) Jordan Ifueko

Just when I was worried I was falling out of love with YA epic fantasy….Raybearer appeared to light up my WORLD (sorry the puns will stay 😪). It’s such a complex world, full of lore and magic systems and history, and it’s utterly compelling as well as so much fun. (Also there’s a side-character who’s ace!) The whole book is about friendship before romance too. And Tarisai is the kind of heroine you can’t help but adore. I’m obsessed okay and keenly waiting on the sequel.

5) Sophie Gonzales

Only Mostly Devastated was my first read of 2020 and I LOVED it!! So funny with the best quips, but also dealt with grief and family illness, so it packed a punch 🥺Then I also read Sophie Gonzales’ second book (which is out January 2021) Perfect On Paper which I adored too! Both are queer and romcoms and delightful. Also she’s an Australian author, so we are winning here.

6) Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Okay The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea was DARK and I freaking adored it. It’s fantasy that doesn’t hold back with brutal pirates and trauma and blood soaked decks. Lady Evelyn Hasegawa is queer and sailing to her arranged despised marriage, while Flora is living as Florian aboard The Dove (a masked pirate ship) and fated to be Evelyn’s enemy. But before that happens 😩💛LOVE HAPPENS. Also it is so unapologetically queer with several nonbinary characters (including Flora!) and the writing is just absolutely dark and whimsical.

7) Andrew Eliopulos

The Fascinators read like a contemporary with complex friendship dynamics, panicked gay feels, and highschool angst…but also magic is a part of everyone’s everyday life. I LOVED THIS. I adore “this is our world, but different” stories, and the magic system was so fantastic (dare I say…fascinating 😌) and the messy friendship group was one of my favourites.

8) Kay Kerr

Please Don’t Hug Me was SO special to me, not just because it’s an Australian book by an Australian author — but it’s also #ownvoices autistic and actually gets what autism even is. It really captures the isolating and lonely part, the feeling that you’re behind a glass wall hoping someone notices…and care. It also dealt with grief and YEAH okay I teared up. How dare it.

9) Adiba Jaigirdar

The Henna Wars was SO good, I am still thinking about it months later! It had a sister relationship that honestly made my heart squish into shapes that defy my persona of being tough 😭😪 Thanks for that. And it took a good firm look at cultural appropriation and how it can be both overt and subtle. Nishat is a Bangladeshi living in Ireland, Muslim, and lesbian, and the story has some seriously hard moments but also the softest romance and captivating writing.

10) Rebecca Coffindaffer

Sci-fi is one of my least read genres and we must ask ourselves WHY right now, because Crownchasers was absolutely brilliant! It has the classic dysfunctional team dynamics of shenanigans and sass and using humour to deflect FEELING things, plus a paperchase style plot (but with rocket ships and death) and Alyssa’s sidekick is literally named Hell Monkey. I mean. It was perfect. Plus the ending managed to puncture a hole in my lung and leave me to suffer for a year until the sequel? So 10/10 for that kindness.

do we have any of the same new favourites? and which authors did you discover this year that you adore!

10 Books I So Must Read (But Will I?!?!?) Before 2020 Ends

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All I ever seem to do is say “Oh! I’m going to read that soon!”

And quite frankly by this point I’m starting to side-eye myself. Although in my defence there is a lot to read and I only have two eyes (a disgrace) and I’m notoriously bad at balancing both writing and reading. But I finished off reading two books today and felt a little bit energised as I stared down my TBR pile thinking, “I will conquer u before this year ends.”

I won’t. But I felt like I could for 1 minute. And I think that’s beautiful.

Since my current reading-goals-count is at 184 (and yes I’m aiming for 200), this definitely leaves me time to read some of the books I’ve been planning to all year. (I’m ignoring the fact I need to read like, 100 more books before the year ends to catch up but 😪 I’ll stay realistic here and aim for 10.)

10 Books I So Must Read Before 2020 Ends

(Hold me accountable. I’m such a liar to myself and mood reader 😭😂)

The House in the Cerulean Sea

Basically 100% of bookstagram is yelling at me to read this and my SHAME only grows under the fact I haven’t yet. I actually do admit to be intimidated 😂Everyone loves it to pieces. If I don’t…I will be a monster. So lowkey anxious over this one, but I will read it so I can face the world again. (I better love it though 💀.)

You Should See Me In A Crown

Now considering I preordered this and then it took MONTHS to come and I sat there like, “Where 🤨is my book🤨” and then proceeded to not read it as soon as it hit my mailbox…yes I look slightly ashamed. It’s also TINY and I love tiny books. I can read them in one day and feel powerful. So here’s to finally achieving that.

Kingdom of the Wicked

Because why not 👀Admittedly I’ve only read Stalking Jack the Ripper from this author (and I didn’t finish the series yet because I’m horrible at finishing things. But I will!! Someday!!) but I’m seeing it all over the book community and I must KNOW. Plus I have it out from the library who wants it back. Now.

The Court of Miracles

Another one the library demands back. (Look, the sooner libraries learn that I borrow books and wish to keep them 😪the sooner we’ll get along better.) It does have a LOT of mixed reviews, and considering I’ve never seen or read the original Les Mis (it’s a retelling apparently) I’m a little worried. But it has a heist?!?!?! I love heists.

The Lucky Ones

I meant to read this ON release day 💀 Am I writing this post just to drag myself? It would seem so. It just sucks to want to read everything all at once and yet not be able to?! I’m tired of it. Demand time to pause.

Grown

I’m putting this here because I actually started it on audiobook! And then…I got 35% in and decided to switch to ebook. I absolutely love Tiffany D Jackson books (this will be my third from her this year 😭🙌🏻) but this one is just harder to read because it’s about grooming. These kind of stories need to exist but it’s hard to listen than to read for myself? So yes. Will finish though. (Also seriously drop everything and read Let Me Hear a Rhyme and Monday’s Not Coming. I am forever floored by these books.)

House of Dragons

So hilariously, I have this book on my “immediate TBR” bedside table stack and — still haven’t read it. But for some reason it’s excellent for photos and just appears in so many of them on my bookstagram account. I will read it though 😌 Soon. Also dragons! I mean, what could go wrong!

Please Don’t Hug Me

Not only is this title a law I wish the world abided by, I have been psyched to read this since I ordered it!! I’m forever mad how I end up prioritising ARCs and library books over books I buy. I mean?! I bought it because I WANT IT. Let me read it, brain!!! Also this is an autistic book by an autistic author (and Australian too) so basically everything I ever wanted.

These Violent Delights

Again with books I preordered and am excited out of my mind for…and still haven’t read?! Disappointed in me. But also this is queer dark academia and I’ve heard it’s so deeply twisted. Perfect 😙👌🏻It is a little bigger than I anticipated and my weak self is considering trying an audiobook? But I will read it…soon.

The Memory of Souls

I’m currently reading this so this is only half cheating to put it on the list. BUT! Hear me out. It’s like 700 pages long. And I’m listening to the audiobook which is approximately 700 years long. I only listen to about 1 hour (or a bit less) of an audio per day so who knows when I’ll finish. But I’ve not been so hyped for any book except this one for a long, long time. I’m ECSTATIC okay  😍😍😍 Three chapters in and it’s gifting me life with the gang all together of Janel, Kihrin, Thurvishar and Taraeth!! They breath and I go, 10/10 would do anything for you.

what are you definitely reading before 2020 ends?! 👀

 

2020 New YA Releases Because You Need More Books!! [Ft. August – November Books]

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It’s new YA book release update time!

Sometimes I think about why I spend hours writing these types of posts, and I come to the conclusion that it’s split between (a) I love writing lists of books and admiring the covers and pretending I could read them all, and (b) if I don’t do this I have no clue what’s coming out and I’ll live out life oblivious and confused 😌👌🏻 So I write new release list posts! You are welcome!

I’ll be listing books I’m excited for that are releasing from August, September, October, and November, 2020 😍and then I’ll likely be petting my laptop screen and angstily wishing I could read them NOW. Because I obviously have nothing else to read.

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➢ 2020 New YA Releases January, March, April
➢ 2020 New YA Releases May, June, July
➢ Why It’s Perfectly Acceptable To Have An Enormous TBR Pile

Also hello I am debuting my new macaron border 😌😙 it is so beautiful

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed | Goodreads

I have not heard much about this one apart from it being very very good!! And also hard hitting. It’s set against the backdrop of the 1992 Rodney King Riots so I am super intrigued for this one 👀

Los Angeles, 1992
Ashley Bennett and her friends are living the charmed life. It’s the end of senior year and they’re spending more time at the beach than in the classroom. They can already feel the sunny days and endless possibilities of summer.
Everything changes one afternoon in April, when four LAPD officers are acquitted after beating a black man named Rodney King half to death. Suddenly, Ashley’s not just one of the girls. She’s one of the black kids.
As violent protests engulf LA and the city burns, Ashley tries to continue on as if life were normal. Even as her self-destructive sister gets dangerously involved in the riots. Even as the model black family façade her wealthy and prominent parents have built starts to crumble. Even as her best friends help spread a rumor that could completely derail the future of her classmate and fellow black kid, LaShawn Johnson.
With her world splintering around her, Ashley, along with the rest of LA, is left to question who is the us? And who is the them? 
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Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko | Goodreads

I am on the cusp of finishing an early copy of an audiobook and afjdklsad I LOVE THIS ONE. It has all the feels of an adult epic fantasy (such deep, gorgeous world building) and plenty of sharp characters and clever plot twists. 😙 This is what I want when I ask for a good fantasy!

Nothing is more important than loyalty.
But what if you’ve sworn to protect the one you were born to destroy?
Tarisai has always longed for the warmth of a family. She was raised in isolation by a mysterious, often absent mother known only as The Lady. The Lady sends her to the capital of the global empire of Aritsar to compete with other children to be chosen as one of the Crown Prince’s Council of 11. If she’s picked, she’ll be joined with the other Council members through the Ray, a bond deeper than blood. That closeness is irresistible to Tarisai, who has always wanted to belong somewhere. But The Lady has other ideas, including a magical wish that Tarisai is compelled to obey: Kill the Crown Prince once she gains his trust. Tarisai won’t stand by and become someone’s pawn—but is she strong enough to choose a different path for herself? With extraordinary world-building and breathtaking prose, Raybearer is the story of loyalty, fate, and the lengths we’re willing to go for the ones we love.  
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Prelude for Lost Souls by Helene Dunbar | Goodreads

I always love al of Helene’s books so I am just EXCITED for this 😍 Plus it has music which is something I crave in books and it’s a bit of fantasy woven with queerness. Waiting anxiously for my preorder tbh.

Seventeen-year-old Dec Hampton knows there are no coincidences in St. Hilaire, New York, the spiritualist community he’s longing to leave. So when the train of Annie Krylova, the piano prodigy he’s captivated by, breaks down outside of town, he’s forced to take her sudden entry into his life seriously… just like the unexpected reappearance of Tristan, the childhood friend he’d assumed – and hoped – was imaginary.
Despite everything Dec has learned about Annie on the internet, he’s unaware that she has her own figurative ghosts to deal with. She has a family she supports but rarely sees, and a recently deceased teacher whose final communication charged her with a seemingly impossible task: find the rest of The Unfinished Prelude, the mysterious piece of music that catapulted her to stardom.
Dec and his best friend Russ, a talented, but complicated medium, offer Annie their help. But when Annie’s quest for the remainder of The Prelude becomes an obsession and it’s clear that Tristan is involved, Dec finds himself increasingly at odds with his plan to leave St. Hilaire. Even worse is the growing tension with Russ who, in trying to help Dec and Annie, begins to embrace dark and potentially life-threatening forces, including an enigmatic and manipulative ghost. 
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They Wish They Were Us by Jessica Goodman | Goodreads

When something is pitched as “One of Us Is Lying with a dash of The Secret History” and “a slick, taut murder mystery” I am just HERE for it. My dark academia soul has needs.

In Gold Coast, Long Island, everything from the expensive downtown shops to the manicured beaches, to the pressed uniforms of Jill Newman and her friends, looks perfect. But as Jill found out three years ago, nothing is as it seems.
Freshman year Jill’s best friend, the brilliant, dazzling Shaila Arnold, was killed by her boyfriend. After that dark night on the beach, Graham confessed, the case was closed, and Jill tried to move on.
Now, it’s Jill’s senior year and she’s determined to make it her best yet. After all, she’s a senior and a Player–a member of Gold Coast Prep’s exclusive, not-so-secret secret society. Senior Players have the best parties, highest grades and the admiration of the entire school. This is going to be Jill’s year. She’s sure of it.
But when Jill starts getting texts proclaiming Graham’s innocence, her dreams of the perfect senior year start to crumble. If Graham didn’t kill Shaila, who did? Jill vows to find out, but digging deeper could mean putting her friendships, and her future, in jeopardy.  
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Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar | Goodreads

I am just instantly caught by the pitch of “blends Neil Gaiman’s Stardust and a breathtaking landscape of Hindu mythology into a radiant contemporary fantasy” 😩✨💛 I have needed this all my life. Plus it’s #ownvoices!

The daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be “normal.” But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star’s help to heal him. A star like her mother, who returned to the sky long ago.
Sheetal’s quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows, where she must take the stage as her family’s champion in a competition to decide the next ruling house of the heavens–and win, or risk never returning to Earth at all.
Brimming with celestial intrigue, this sparkling YA debut is perfect for fans of Roshani Chokshi and Laini Taylor.  
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The Memory of Souls (#3) by Jenn Lyons | Goodreads

I honestly am DYING for this book!! It’s one of my most anticipated of the year after I fell in love with book 1 (The Ruin of Kings) and developed a deep and loving obsession 🥰This is adult fantasy too, by the way! It’s going to be everything I need and I am going to softly scream my way through 600 pages.

What if you’re the one who has to die?
Now that the city of Atrine has been destroyed and Relos Var’s plan to free the dark god Vol Karoth has been revealed—the end of the world is closer than ever.
To buy time for humanity, Kihrin, Janel, and Thurvishar must convince the king of the Manol vané to perform an ancient ritual that will strip the vané of their immortality—a ritual that certain vané will do anything to prevent. Including assassinating the ones bringing the news.
Worse, Kihrin must come to terms with the horrifying possibility that his connection to Vol Karoth is steadily growing in strength. How can Kihrin hope to save anyone when he might turn out to be the greatest threat of them all? 
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