For Part I, click here.
A Vile Season by David Ferraro
This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings
The Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends by Jamie D’Amato
Honeybloods by I.S. Belle
Keep it in the Dark by Justin Arnold
Bonus: A new mention for Where Shadows Meet by Patrice Caldwell, as both the title and pub date changed since the last one (but it is now officially and newly out!)
On the soccer field, Magic Mel is in her element. She’s ready to lead her team to victory at the city championship in her new role as captain. Off the field, however, is a totally different story. Mel can’t get a handle on her class presentation, her friend group has completely dissolved, and her ex-friend-current-teammate, Tory, is being the worst. The only place she feels like herself is in her text conversations where she shares her secret poetry with BTtoYouPlease.
Tory McNally, on the other hand, is keeping everything together, thank you very much. So what if her mom is more preoccupied with her craft projects and new husband than her, or that she’s down to one IRL friend because of annoying, overly peppy “Magic” Mel? She’s perfectly fine, and even when she maybe isn’t, she’s got NotEmilyD to text with.
As the championships loom closer, everything around Mel and Tory starts to get more and more complicated: the dynamics on the field, the rift between their friend group, and, as they connect anonymously online, maybe even their feelings for each other . . .
The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye by Briony Cameron (17th c.)
Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak (18th c.)
The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr. (19th c.)
Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia (early 20th c.)
My Government Means to Kill Me by Rasheed Newson (late 20th c.)
Bonus: These are all Adult Realistic fiction, but for historical YA fantasy, check out This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings, out in August (early 20th c.)
When Cal Ware wins a scholarship to an elite New England boarding school, he’s thrilled to leave his past behind. Back home in Mississippi, he was the poor, queer kid who never fit in. But at Essex Academy, he’ll be able to reinvent himself. Or so he hopes…
But at Essex, Cal’s classmates only see his cheap clothes and old iPhone. They mock his accent, and can’t believe he’s never left the country, or heard of The Hamptons. Cal, at his breaking point, is about to give up and return to Mississippi when he learns about a secret society on campus — the key to becoming Essex royalty.
Cal knows he’s not exactly secret society material, but to his surprise, he finds an unlikely champion in the handsome, charismatic, and slightly dangerous Luke Kim. As they get swept up in the mystery and glamour of the Rush process, Cal finds himself falling in love for the first time.
But as the initiation rituals grow riskier — and increasingly nefarious — Cal must decide how far he’s willing to go, and how much of himself he’s willing to sacrifice, to save everything and everyone he cherishes most. Because nothing at Essex — not even Cal’s first love — is quite what it seems.
Continue reading Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Young Adult Fiction: July-December 2024
A Clash of Steel by C.B. Lee
Emry Merlin by Robyn Schneider
The Shadow War by Lindsay Smith
The Spy With the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke
This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings
