The Most Anticipated Young Adult Books For 2023 (January – June)

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer
Out January 10, 2023

At A Glance: monsters, morally grey characters, villainy, for fans of VE Schwab & Laini Taylor, Gotham-esque city

Why It Makes The List: I heard Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer and I came running.

In a world where falling asleep and dreaming will make you turn into a literal nightmare, Ness is desperate to keep herself safe after her sister turned into a man-eating spider and went on a killing spree. She’s afraid of becoming like her sister and also afraid of being murdered by Nightmares.

To keep herself safe, she ends up joining a dodgy organization (that might be a cult) and, in an attempt to prove herself to them, ends up only putting herself in more danger as she ends up in the center of a criminal syndicate conspiracy and uncovering sinister truths about the corrupt city she lives in.

Spice Road by Maiya Ibrahim
Out January 24, 2023

At A Glance: Arabian-inspired fantasy, trilogy, journey/quest, monster-slaying assassin, colonialism, family

Why It Makes The List: I’m here for the desert monsters and tea magic as much as I am here for our main character who is a notorious monster slaying assassin and what looks to be a vibrant world to escape into.

A notorious monster-slayer on her way to becoming one of the greatest to protect her nation from the monsters that lurk in the sand must journey to find her brother, whose betrayal is now the greatest threat to her country as well as to her reputation, and bring him back home to neutralize his threat and to pay for his betrayal.

Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong
Out February 28, 2023

At A Glance: magic sisterhood, forbidden magic, witches, Roaring Twenties inspired world, political intrigue, feminist

Why It Makes The List: All the buzz about this one raves about the worldbuilding and I can say that the Roaring Twenties-esque world is what intrigued me off the bat. Also young women wielding coveted powers that men want to control? Here for it. Love a good patriarchy-smashing YA book!

In a world where magic has been outlawed, a rare group of four teen witches (Nightbirds), descended from more powerful witches, have been protected and kept secret by an elite group in exchange for their ability to temporarily gift doses of their magic to paying clients. Once their season is over they must marry one of the men from the Great Houses and continue on the line of Nightbirds in addition to only bestowing their magic to their husband. When an attack and attempt to unmask them is launched, the girls find out there are others like them and that their magic is far more than what they’ve been told.

Flowerheart by Catherine Bakewell
Out March 14, 2023

At A Glance: cozy fantasy romance, cottagecore, standalone, mental health, witchy

Why It Makes The List: While I love dark fantasy SO much I have been really drawn to more cozier fantasy lately and this looks incredible — a whole cottagecore vibe!

Clara’s magic has always been a bit uncontrollable and unruly but never dangerous until she accidentally curses her father and causes poisonous flowers to bloom from his chest. To save her father, she turns to her former friend to train her to perform a complex spell called a blessing who agrees to help her but for a price. As the pair works together, Clara tries to reconcile the boy who used to be her friend to the secretive and distant person he is today and realizes that his reason for becoming distant is not the only mystery to unravel.

A Door in the Dark by Scott Reintgen
Out March 28, 2023

At A Glance: fantasy thriller, teen wizards, locked room mystery

Why It Makes The List: Wizard-filled fantasy book with a locked room mystery element (but on an island) — that seems fun!!

A group of teenage wizards must find their way home after a spell goes wrong leaving them stranded, and one dead, in the wilderness where dragons and monsters once roamed.

Spin by Rebecca Caprara
Out March 28, 2023

At A Glance: greek mythology, retelling, novel in verse, sapphic, feminist

Why It Makes The List: Like everyone else, I have been head-over-heels for all the Greek mythology in fiction recently — especially as evidenced by my must read adult fiction books for 2023. But this one is written in verse? I love a good novel in verse and it’s so rare to find something that isn’t a realistic fiction story in that realm.

A young weaver, a skill and way to use her voice born out of being ostracized in her village, flees to a new city with her best friend when tragedy strikes. Her talent for weaving becomes well known and draws the ire of Athena who wants her to repent. Instead, refusing to be silenced, Arachne challenges Athena and an ill-fated weaving contest ensues.

Divine Royals by Rebecca Ross
Out April 4, 2023

At A Glance: historical fantasy romance (alternate WW2-esque setting), warring gods, magic, rivals to lovers, epistolary elements

Why It Makes The List: I’m intrigued by this — warring gods during a WW2 type setting and magical letter writing that brings two rivals closer together? It feels a bit reminiscent of Lovely War and I’m excited! Of note — I saw the author call this a romantasy so definitely expect the focus to be on the romance instead of a fully built out world.

The gods are warring again and Iris is just trying to, in the midst of war, keep it together with her brother missing on the front lines and her mother’s drug addiction while also vying for a promotion at the newspaper she works at. Worrying for her brother, she attempts to send him letters through her magical wardrobe but they instead get rerouted to her rival co-worker and one day he decides to write back anonymously forging a connection that will lead them through the war.

Something Close To Magic by Emma Mills
Out June 13, 2023

At A Glance: light-hearted fantasy, adventure, missing prince, royalty, enchanted woods, for fans of Gail Carson Levine

Why It Makes The List: Emma Mills is a wonderful writer of contemporary YA and I can’t wait to see what she does in the fantasy space — especially a more cozy, light-hearted YA fantasy!

A baker’s apprentice, with an old-fashioned and rare magic skill, is reluctantly roped into using her skill to find a hapless prince from the dangerous Underwood in what turns out to be the adventure and quest of a lifetime.

Threads That Bind by Kika Hatzopoulou
Out June 13, 2023

At A Glance: modern Greek mythology (descendants of Greek gods), mystery/thriller vibes, sisters, fated romance with a twist

Why It Makes The List: Magic, Greek mythology vibes and mystery? This just sounds original and unputdownable!

In a world where the children of the gods inherit their powers, a descendant of the Greek Fates must solve a series of impossible murders targeting women to save her sisters, her soulmate, and her city.

Starlings by Amanda Linsmeier
Out June 27, 2023

At A Glance: dark YA fantasy, folk horror, Stars Hollow-esque setting, fans of Midsommar and House of Hollows, family, generational trauma

Why It Makes The List: I love dark & atmospheric fantasy, folk horror and creepy small towns.

In a world where the children of the gods inherit their powers, a descendant of the Greek Fates must solve a series of impossible murders to save her sisters, her soulmate, and her city.

Sing Me To Sleep by Gabi Burton
Out June 27, 2023

At A Glance: mythology, mermaids/sirens, forbidden romance, political intrigue, morally grey goodness

Why It Makes The List: I have been looking for another good YA mermaid book after loving To Kill A Kingdom.

Saorise, a siren who is a soldier by day and an assassin by night, has a lot of lies to keep her identity safe — including lying to her family about the true nature of her powers. When she’s forced to guard the crown prince (son of a prejudiced ruler) in order to investigate a threat to her sister, she finds him to be different than she thought and the two end up working together to stop a deadly killer — an investigation that is a little too close to home for Saorise.

The Love Match by Priyanka Taslim
Out January 3, 2023

At A Glance: rom-com, match-making/meddling mom, Bangladeshi, love triangle, debut novel, coming of age

Why It Makes The List: I love a good rom-com with a meddling mother and a dash of fake dating to appease the parents — a bit To All The Boys meets Jane Austen.

A Bangladeshi American teen is starting to have a connection with a boy unlike any other she’s had before at the same time her meddling mother is arranging a match to secure their family’s financial security. When she finds out the boy is just as disinterested in the match, they devise a plan to sabotage the match while they fake date to keep their parents happy.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert
Out January 3, 2023

At A Glance: romcom, friends to enemies to lovers trope, wilderness program setting, mental health

Why It Makes The List: I LOVE Talia Hibbert’s adult rom-coms/romances and I love a good childhood friends to enemies to lovers story!

Ex-childhood friends and opposites, Celine and Bradley, are forced to work together during a wilderness survival program where the stakes are high for them both of them in the form of a university scholarship. As they work on their relationship to survive their adventure, their long-standing history reminds them of the good times they shared and just might provide a spark for something more romantic.

We Are All So Good At Smiling by Amber McBride
Out January 10, 2023

At A Glance: novel in verse, contemporary fairytale/magical realism, mental illness, trauma, heavy yet whimsical, friendship

Why It Makes The List: It looks so unique — a story about clinical depression and trauma told in verse while also weaving in a fairytale-esque world that comes into play? YES. I honestly didn’t know where to place this book within the sectioning I have in this post — it’s not quite realistic fiction and the fantastical/magic elements seem more, to me not having read it yet, like it serves more as an allegory to explore clinical depression and trauma and I think readers of typical contemporary/realistic fiction dealing heavily with these subjects may gravitate towards it more

Whimsy, back in the hospital for clinical depression, meets a boy named Faerry who is magical and who has moved to her same street. At the end of their street, is a forest that terrifies them both and yet beckons them at the same time.

The Forest holds many monsters and folklore entities, when Faerry gets lost within it, Whimsy takes the journey to go through the forest to save him and bring them both out of the Forest safely — a huge feat thwarted by the evil entity Sorrow that tries to keep them from finding their way out among other challenges they face within the Forest.

As You Walk On By by Julian Winters
Out January 17, 2023

At A Glance: contemporary, queer romance, coming of age, The Breakfast Club-esque plot, Black Boy Joy, high school party setting

Why It Makes The List: Julian Winters is an incredible YA author but anything remotely resembling A Breakfast Club-esque vibe is a must for me (John Hughes movies live rent free in my mind) and then they had to also go comp it to one of my favorite 90’s teen movies (Can’t Hardly Wait)!

On a dare from his best friend, Theo throws caution to the win and asks his long-time crush to prom at a party. When the promposal is an epic fail, Theo retreats to an empty bedroom upstairs to get away from the party and the fight he just had with his best friend.

As he seeks refuge, an ensemble of fellow party-goers (both familiar and unfamiliar to him) join him to seek refuge from the things they are avoiding or hiding from in the midst of the party — a night that has Theo reconsidering the current and future status of his life and relationships.

6 Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did) by Tess Sharpe
Out January 24, 2023

At A Glance: sapphic romance, more angsty/emotional romance than lighthearted romcom, enemies to lovers-esque, slow burn, mother/daughter relationships

Why It Makes The List: I love Tess Sharpe’s writing and Far From You is still one of my favorite YA contemporary books.

Penny and Tate’s moms have been lifelong friends but the girls’ friendship just has never quite panned out despite growing up together. A truce is formed between the girls when Penny’s mom donates part of her liver to Tate’s mom and they have to co-exist when the moms decide to combine households to help support the recovery that is physical, financial and emotional.

As they learn to live together drama-free for their moms’ sake, they will also need to figure out a way to ignore the fact that over the years they’ve almost kissed several times and prevent it from happening now that they are in close quarters.

Begin Again by Emma Lord
Out January 24, 2023

At A Glance: contemporary YA/romcom, coming of age, sunshine/grump pairing, college-setting, for fans of Sarah Dessen & Morgan Matson

Why It Makes The List: I have really enjoyed all of Emma Lord’s contemporary YA — definitely my new go-to in the space– as the way she gives equal attention to the romance plot and the family/friendship/finding yourself aspects is really what I look for in contemporary YA. I also really love books set during college (especially freshman year a la Fresh by Margot Wood).

The carefully laid plans college student Andie Rose has crafted for her life are all coming together now that she is transferring to her dream college from community college. Until quickly things go off the rails when she realizes that her boyfriend, who she was trying to surprise, has just transferred OUT of the college and to the community college to be near her. Determined to make the best of the situation, she dives right in to her new life with a new roommate, plenty of mishaps & challenges and a grumpy RA only to find herself in ways that weren’t part of her plan.

Reggie and Delilah’s Year of Falling by Elise Bryant
Out January 31, 2023

At A Glance: heartwarming romance, Black romance, meet cutes, dual POVs, music & nerd culture, invisible illness/disability

Why It Makes The List: Elise Bryant’s books are seriously just heartwarming and wonderful! Swoon-worthy romances and tackles real issues — can’t wait for this book that chronicles the year in the life of two teens as they fall in love with each other (and themselves).

Over the course of a year, two teens — both trying to find themselves but feeling most themselves while engaged in their respective hobbies in music and gaming — keeping accidentally bumping into each other and slowly start to fall for one another one random interaction at a time.

This Time It’s Real by Ann Liang
Out February 7, 2023

At A Glance: romcom, fake dating, celebrity love interest, Beijing setting, elite international school setting, for Cdrama fans

Why It Makes The List: I love a cute fake dating rom-com and it’s so rare to find them with international settings. Plus, always something about that “normal girl dating a famous person” trope that gets me — maybe because I spent a ton of times daydreaming about scenarios involving my celeb crushes as a teen.

When a teen girl writes an essay for school based on a lie (all about love and her boyfriend that she doesn’t have) that goes viral, her social standing at her new international school skyrockets and she’s offered an amazing internship giving romantic advice. Desperate to not be exposed as a liar, she proposes a mutually beneficial and advantageous fake dating situation to her fellow classmate and famous actor.

Remind Me To Hate You Later by Lizzy Mason
Out February 28, 2023

At A Glance: realistic fiction, social media, mental health, grief, tearjerker, for fans of Jandy Nelson and Gayle Forman

Why It Makes The List: I love a beautiful story about grief (in the vein of Jandy Nelson and Gayle Forman who are two of my favorites) and I’ve known Lizzy Mason for nearly a decade through the book world so this is definitely one of my absolute most anticipated new YA books coming out in 2023.

A teen girl mourns the loss of her best friend — a teen girl who is the daughter of a popular mommy influencer whose life has been exploited for content and greatly affected her life. In the midst of her grief she finds out that the mother plans to release a tell-all memoir about her friend’s life and death and, in her anger at knowing the truth about her life and her death, decides to expose her mother and share the truth behind the Instagram feed along with the help of Jules’ boyfriend who shares in her grief.

Last Chance Dance by Lakita Wilson
Out February 21, 2023

At A Glance: romcom, breakup, high school dance, Black main characters, perfect for fans of Elise Bryant and Leah Johnson’s You Should See Me In A Crown

Why It Makes The List: It’s such a fun premise for a romcom that I can’t resist — a high school tradition (Last Chance Dance) that matches you with potential dates to the last dance of high school by students submitting the names of other students that they have past or current crushes on.

Leila is blindsided when her long-term boyfriend, through all 4 years of high school, dumps her three weeks before they graduate — just in time for the last dance of her high school career. With the urging of her friend, she decides to distract herself by signing up to take part in the Last Chance Dance — a dance where students are, in the weeks leading up to the dance, matched based on who they’ve listed as an unrequited crush. When Leila’s first three matches don’t pan out during the trial period, she is left with the unlikely wild-card match who happens to be her nemesis ever since an incident sophomore year.

There Goes The Neighborhood by Jade Adia
Out March 7, 2023

At A Glance: contemporary YA with a dash of murder mystery, the power of community, gentrification, South LA setting, found family, humor

Why It Makes The List: This sounds so good with darkly funny hi-jinx vibe while also shedding light an important light on and examining what gentrification does to communities of color

A group of teens invent a wave of faux gang violence using social media in the hopes of protecting their little slice of South L.A. and pushing back against the gentrification of their neighborhood that keeps pushing out shops and threatens to tear them apart. The illusion of gang violence seems to work at first in scaring the developers until a murder is pegged on this fake gang.

While You Were Dreaming by Alisha Rai
Out March 21, 2023

At A Glance: rom-com, South Asian MC, immigration, love triangle, fake dating, viral moment

Why It Makes The List: I am such a fan of Alisha Rai in the adult romance space and I’m excited to see what she brings to YA books — plus it’s inspired by one of my favorite 90’s movies While You Were Sleeping.

When Sonia goes viral, while dressed in cosplay, for saving her crush’s life she is desperate to stay out of the spotlight and anonymous to not bring any attention to her family situation. Trying to juggle her family life and the threat of her identity being exposed was stressful enough but soon, while trying to connect with her crush, she finds herself unable to ignore the chemistry growing with someone else.

Forget Me Not by Alyson Derrick
Out April 4, 2023

At A Glance: romance, sapphic, amnesia via an accident, small town setting, found family, for fans of Nina LaCour

Why It Makes The List: The amnesia trope can be hit or miss for me but all the early buzz I’ve read about this one has me thinking it’s going to REALLY work.

Stevie and Nora are in love and have plans to leave their small, close-minded town (and families) for California and finally not have to keep their relationship a secret anymore. Right before they are set to leave there is an accident that leaves Stevie without the last 2 years of her life — completely erasing all traces of Nora and the future they planned and leaving Stevie to have to rediscover a life she doesn’t remember.

Her Good Side by Rebekah Weatherspoon
Out May 30, 2023

At A Glance: Romcom, fake dating scheme, late bloomer, Black female lead, high school

Why It Makes The List: This author’s adult romance is not to be missed so I’m so excited for her YA romcom debut which sounds like so much fun!

A late bloomer is all out of ideas for dates when Homecoming comes around and reluctantly agrees to go with a platonic date in her best friend’s boyfriend, which is a little awkward, but becomes much more awkward when her friend breaks up with him before the dance.

The two, feeling like they are bad at dating and relationships, agree to make the best of it and use it as a chance to practice dating and get more experience for future prospects — a great plan until their dating research and practice starts to feel more like something real.

Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko
Out May 30, 2023

At A Glance: sapphic romance, coming of age, based on a hit song/video

Why It Makes The List: I’m honestly intrigued. I’ve heard the song and watched the video and I think it’s really cool to flesh out the story from the video. I normally avoid celeb-written fiction but, in this case, in Hayley I trust.

The summary is vague but just watch the video to get the drift of what it’s based on.

When The Vibe Is Right by Sarah Dass
Out May 30, 2023

At A Glance: romance, Trinidad-set, Carnival, enemies to lovers, family

Why It Makes The List: I LOVED Sarah Dass’s Where The Rhythm Takes you and I am excited for another Caribbean-set realistic fiction book from her.

A young Trinidadian teen, an aspiring Carnival costume designer, must work together with her enemy, a boy who is a social media influencer and friends with her horrible ex, to save her family’s business — the masquerade band she one day will take over leadership up if it’s not torn apart by family rivalry.

Actually Super by Adi Alsaid
Out May 30, 2023

At A Glance: high concept contemporary, gap year, travel, set throughout East and Southeast Asia as well as South and Central America

Why It Makes The List: I fell in love with Adi’s books when he debuted the book Let’s Get Lost and I have continued to appreciate his wholly unique and high concept premises that always surprise me. This one especially appeals to me with the travel element especially if you follow Adi and know what a world traveler he is.

A teen girl, feeling a loss of faith in humanity at large, decides to embark on a global quest to restore her faith in humanity when she stumbles upon a corner of the internet that talks about people. who might have a power or two, engaging in impossible acts of heroism.

Rhythm & Muse by India Hill Brown
Out May 30, 2023

At A Glance: romcom, music, pining, high school, light read, Black MCs

Why It Makes The List: I saw this pitched as Cinderella meets Cyrano and I pray to the book gods that it delivers.

A Black teen boy has resigned himself to pining for the new girl, his dream girl as far as he is concerned, from afar. But when his friends anonymously submit the song he wrote about her, it becomes the front-runner in a theme song contest for her popular podcast and she begins the search for whoever wrote the song.

Going Bicoastal by Dahlia Adler
Out June 13, 2023

At A Glance: queer romcom (MC is bi), sliding doors plot, summertime in LA & NYC, divorced parents, YA summer romance

Why It Makes The List: Dahlia Adler is one of my favorite people in the book community and she also happens to write books that I just ADORE. Also, y’all know that Sliding Doors-esque plots are my jam and I can’t wait to see how each decision will play out for our main character over the course of the summer.

A teen girl must make an impossible decision between summer in NYC with her dad (and the girl she’s always wanted) or in LA with her estranged mom (and a guy she never saw coming out) — both of which plays out for readers in alternating timelines.

What She Missed by Liara Tamani
Out June 13, 2023

At A Glance: literary coming of age story, summertime, lake setting, family (huge part of this book), friendship, change, summer romance (childhood friends to lovers), self-discovery, belonging

Why It Makes The List: It feels very Dessen-esque and I’ve been looking for more books to read like Sarah Dessen — family, romance, great setting and friendship!

After both of her parents lose their jobs, a teen girl is forced to move to her late grandmother’s house in a small lakeside town — the same place her grandmother drowned in the lake. The only upside is reconnecting to her childhood best friend, Jalen, but soon after settling in she finds her and Jalen drifting and a friendship with his older (rebellious) sister becoming a more prominent friendship in her life as she tries to fit into this new life and find reprieve from the anger she feels from all this change. Over the course of the summer, she’ll find a rocky path to acceptance and working through her feelings of loss.

Live your Best Lie by Jessie Weaver
Out January 24, 2023

At A Glance: thriller/murder mystery, influencer/social media culture, for fans of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and Karen McManus thrillers, mixed media format (social media posts/texts/police interviews), discussion-worthy (great for teen book clubs)

Why It Makes The List: I love a good soapy-feeling thriller that examines a social issue on a deeper level. A bit One of Us Is Lying/A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder with a dash of Gossip Girl vibes so this one is definitely high on my must-read new YA books list.

Mega popular social media influencer, Summer Cartwright, has it all and is living her best life ever — according to the carefully curated feed she maintains. Until one night Summer disappears at a Halloween party and is found dead after a scary post is published on her feed claiming she will be dead in 5 minutes leaving those closest to her believing she was murdered.

Promise Boys by Nick Brooks
Out January 31, 2023

At A Glance: YA murder mystery/thriller, systemic racism/inequality

Why It Makes The List: I love a good mystery/thriller that also explores social issues deeply (a la Ace of Spades) as well as just being ridiculously addictive and thrilling.

Three students — all boys of color — become prime suspects when the founder and principal of their all-boys charter school is mysteriously found shot dead and they decide to work together to clear their names and their futures by finding out who murdered the principal.

Delicious Monsters Liselle Sambury
Out February 28, 2023

At A Glance: psychological thriller, haunted mansion, ghosts, revenge, creepy

Why It Makes The List: I loved this author’s debut, Blood Like Magic, and this book sounds deliciously creepy and atmospheric as well as thrilling. The comps have been The Haunting of Hill House meets Sadie which definitely piques my interest. Looks like a perfect Halloween read!

Two teen girls with difficult mothers and their own trauma — a decade apart — become connected by a mysterious mansion that has a treacherous past. Daisy can see the dead and escapes an abusive relationship by moving in with her controlling mother to this inherited mansion.

10 years later Brittany, a film student with an abusive mother with her own connection to the house, investigates the house and the case of a missing Black girl (Daisy) who used to live there as the next subject of her haunted house web series. When she gets further into the investigation she realizes the story she intended to expose might not be the one that comes to light.

My Flawless Life by Yvonne Woon
Out February 14, 2023

At A Glance: slow-burn mystery/thriller, scandal, Washington DC high society setting, a teenage fixer a la Olivia Pope (or in the vein of The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes), high school drama

Why It Makes The List: A teenage Olivia Pope-esque character? I loved that in The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes so I can’t wait for all the D.C. scandal and secrets to be uncovered in this one!

While she hasn’t been able to escape her own problems after a scandal hit her family and plummeted her social standing, everyone at her prestigious school knows that if they have a problem that Hana is the one to hire to clean up the mess and keep secrets buried.

When she gets hired by an anonymous person for a case involving her former best friend she takes it and unearths some dark secrets about the people who were once part of her life which forces her to face a secret of her own.

I Will Find You Again by Sarah Lyu
Out March 14, 2023

At A Glance: mystery, grief, f/f love, first love, mental illness, substance abuse, emotional, dark, Asian American MCs, Long Island setting

Why It Makes The List: I love a good emotional read with an unraveling mystery with a (seemingly) purposeful vague summary. I’ve heard this one is gut-wrenching — my favorite kind of read!

When Chase’s best friend turned first love disappears and is later found dead, the pressure to keep up with life and sort through her grief becomes too much and she spirals out of control especially when she begins to investigate what really happened to Lia.

Into the Light by Mark Oshiro
Out March 28, 2023

At A Glance: mystery/thriller, coming of age, LGBTQ, Latinx, non-linear, religious trauma, adoption/foster care, family, White Saviorism, homelessness

Why It Makes The List: This looks like such a compelling and important coming of age story with a mystery/thriller bend.

Seventeen year old Manny is currently homeless and searching for his missing sister. The pair had were adopted a year ago by a super religious family and Manny, a month later, got cast away to (and kicked out of) a religious wilderness camp. When he hears about a body being found outside of the Reconciliation, he worries it could be his sister and sets off to the camp with a family (and their teen son) who have recently taken him and give him hope for a different future — one he hopes includes his sister alive and back with him.

Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban
Out May 2, 2023

At A Glance: murder mystery thriller, Semester At Sea-esque ship, locked room vibes, Death on the Nile retelling, betrayal

Why It Makes The List: Diana Urban has been one of the best newer authors of YA thrillers so I’m definitely looking forward to this one plus the Semester At Sea setting sounds perfect for locked room vibes! If you’ve been loving Karen McManus, definitely add this to your list of new YA books to read in 2023!

Jade is ready to put an entire ocean between her and the ex-boyfriend and best friend who betrayed her with a 4 month semester abroad cruise only to show up on the ship and see both of them also there. Things get even worse when a murder happens on board that leaves Jade having to clear her name and figure out which of fellow cruisemates could be the murderer.

We’ll Never Tell by Wendy Heard
Out May 16, 2023

At A Glance: thriller, murder mystery, Hollywood, notorious murder house, great for fans of Pretty Little Liars

Why It Makes The List: Wendy Heard is definitely an underrated mystery/thriller in the YA space and this one sounds like it could be one of her best yet!

A group of teens, part of an anonymous Youtube channel that trespasses famous LA locales, decide to make a notorious Hollywood murder house their final episode. As they head into the house, the scene of a bloody homicide from the 1970’s that’s been left untouched, it’s everything they hope the footage will be — until an alarm is tripped and they have to flee. When one of them doesn’t make it out and is found slain in the house, the group is left to to figure out what happened to their friend and try not to get murdered themselves.

Good As Gold by Candace Buford
Out June 6, 2023

At A Glance: Soapy drama with a dash of mystery/suspense, Outer Banks meets Gossip Girl, haves versus have-nots, lakeside setting

Why It Makes The List: I have been CRAVING something with vibes of Outer Banks ever since watching and this looks perfect.

After a fall from grace that puts her future in jeopardy, a teen girl and her new group of friends set out in search of their town’s legendary sunken treasure in order to clear her family’s name and save her future – a summer adventure that will unearth a lot more than a rumored treasure.

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
Out January 31, 2023

At A Glance: historical fiction, romance, Chicago in 1910, Black high society, classism

Why It Makes The List: I love historical fiction (and historical romance) and I often feel that’s an area lacking in YA (while I do have some incredible favorites) so I am beyond excited for this historical romance that explores a wealthy Black family following the Reconstruction but mostly importantly on that of the young women of the family and the expectations/constraints saddled on them.

The story of 4 young women, amidst the backdrop of Chicago high society in 1910, trying to find their own way in the world amidst societal/family expectations, romance, racism and class lines.

Stateless by Elizabeth Wein
Out March 14, 2023

At A Glance: historical thriller, pre-WWII Europe (1937), murder mystery, female pilot/aviation

Why It Makes The List: Elizabeth Wein is one of my favorite YA writers of historical fiction (and honestly just in general) and I’m delighted to see this one is a historical thriller/murder mystery!

The pressure is on for Stella North as the only female pilot, picked to represent Britain, in Europe’s first air race for young people to promote peace in a Europe where civil wars are raging and Nazis are gaining power. When Stella witnesses a cutthroat sabotage right off the bat, she realizes the stakes are life or death.

Made of Stars by Jenna Voris
Out March 28, 2023

At A Glance: space, Bonnie & Clyde retelling, adventure, romance (a queer hate-to-love and a friends-to-lovers)

Why It Makes The List: Bonnie & Clyde but in space! I have been eager for some YA books set in space and a chaotic duo of outlaws in space is certainly high on my list of must-read new YA books!

Two space bandits, notorious for their daring heists, discover a plot that would threaten their home planet and set out to thwart it with the help of an unlikely ally who is a pilot for the enemy.

The Half Life of Love by Brianna Bourne
Out March 7, 2023

At A Glance: love story with a speculative bend, doomed love, death, introspective, emotional

Why It Makes The List: I love this concept in books (knowing when you are going to die a la They Both Die At The End) and I know it’s going to make me bawl like a baby. I just really like very introspective books like this that explore death and what it means to live.

16 year old Flint knows he’s about to die soon — he’s known when ever since he was 8 and experienced the half-life that lets him know that he’s reached the halfway point of his life. He’s prepared for the last little bit of his life but one thing he didn’t count on was his world colliding with a girl named September — a girl so vibrantly alive and dedicated to finding a curing the half-life through her internship.

The more they spend time together, the harder it becomes for Flint to tell her about his impending death and September is hiding her own secrets with a past she refuses to deal with all the while the clock keeps ticking threatening the end of their time together..

If I See You Again Tomorrow by Robbie Couch
Out April 18, 2023

At A Glance: speculative love story, time loop, m/m romance, mental health, set in one day (for the most part)

Why It Makes The List: I am a sucker for a time loop book! Definitely one of those key phrases that will get me adding a book immediately!

For the past 309 days Clark has woken up and lived the same monotonous Monday over and over again. But on Day 310 a boy walks into his math class, whom he’s never seen before on any of the other Mondays, and he throws caution to the wind in a full-filled day across the city with him even though he knows this day won’t exist for Beau once the day resets.

Star Splitter by Matthew J. Kirby
Out April 25, 2023

At A Glance: space exploration, abandoned planet, 2198 setting, romance-free story, sci-fi meets a dash of horror & mystery

Why It Makes The List: When it comes to science fiction, I tend to gravitate more towards more commercial/accessible sci-f books or books with speculative elements. This one seems like a perfectly accessible, space-set book in the genre for me. Plus the science of the world is super intriguing — space travel teleportation via a 3D printer.

Sixteen year old Jess has been beckoned to join her parents on a research mission in outer space after many years of being apart. When she climbs out of the printer, light years away from earth, she expects to be greeted by her parents but instead finds an empty lander that is destroyed on the desolate planet her parents were supposed to be orbiting to research. Her clue that something really bad happens is further solidified when she finds bloody hand prints and unmarked graves of strangers leaving her to unravel the mystery of what happened.

She Is A Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran
Out February 28, 2023

At A Glance: gothic, horror, haunted house, ghost story, Vietnam setting, family history, colonialism, house restoration

Why It Makes The List: It sounds so creepy and I am interested in YA horror that is as multi-layered as this one sounds as, in addition to being creepy, also being a story about family & generational trauma (among other things). Looks like a great Halloween read for teens and YA readers.

Two sisters head to Vietnam to spend the summer with their estranged dad who is restoring an old French Colonial house with ties to their family. As she tries to survive the summer playing happy family — in order to get college money — she realizes something is VERY wrong with the house when strange and terrifying things begin happening to her and begins to learn more about the house’s history and protect her family.

The Memory Eaters by Rebecca Mahoney
Out March 14, 2023

At A Glance: monsters, grief, trauma, sapphic romance, eerie & atmospheric, coastal Maine-setting

Why It Makes The List: A monster who devours memories! That is all.

An orphaned teen is trying to keep her family’s business afloat — a business being caretakers to an imprisoned, memory-devouring monster who needs to stay locked up and be fed. Part of her job is feeding the monster by taking people, with unhappy memories they wish to be rid of, to the cave for them to offer up to the monster.

After an incident in the cave, she starts having strange gaps in her memory — gaps that include her knowledge of how to keep the monster contained leading to its escape. She sets out to figure out how to save her town (and her memories) but stumbles on to shocking secrets related to her family business showing her the price of memory tampering.

I’m Not Supposed To Be In The Dark by Riss M. Neilson
Out May 9, 2023

At A Glance: paranormal, ghosts, romance (friends to enemies to lovers), family secrets, mystery

Why It Makes The List: I loved Liss’s debut, Deep In Providence, and this looks like another amazing paranormal YA from her!

A teen, who keeps her connection to the spirit world severed by an elixir, decides to (at potential great cost to her family) reconnects to the afterlife after she suspects her best friend-turned-enemy is possessed by a ghost when he starts acting extremely out of character. While trying to sort out the ghost to his after life, she always must face her feelings for him and the reason that drove them apart.