Tag Archives: YA

New Release Spotlight

New Release Spotlight: 10th Anniversary Edition of This is Where it Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome back Marieke Nijkamp, Dutch author of so many books but most notably, today, of This is Where it Ends, an uber-bestselling YA thriller whose 10th anniversary edition just released yesterday. As it happens, Marieke is one of my best friends dating back to before either of us were published, so it’s been a particular joy to be on board for this journey! Before we get to our chat, here’s the gist of This is Where it Ends: 10th Anniversary Edition:

The tenth anniversary edition of the #1 New York Times bestseller about a high school held hostage, and four teens―each with their own reason to fear the boy with the gun. Featuring printed edges, updated author’s note, and exclusive material.

10:00am: The principal of Opportunity, Alabama’s High School finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.

10:02am: The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.

10:03am: The auditorium doors won’t open.

10:05am: Someone starts shooting.

Told over the span of 54 harrowing minutes, terror reigns as one student’s calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon

Now read on for my chat with the author, Marieke Nijkamp!

Continue reading New Release Spotlight: 10th Anniversary Edition of This is Where it Ends by Marieke Nijkamp →

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: We Were Never Here by Sophia Hannan

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Sophia Hannan to reveal the cover of her debut, We Were Never Here, a lesbian YA Horror releasing July 28, 2026 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers! Here’s the story:

In July, Georgia Perry and Jules Park—secret girlfriends, covert art thieves, and cohosts of a popular YouTube ghost hunting show—step into a haunted house to steal a priceless painting. A few short hours later, there’s a knife in Jules’s chest and Georgia is waking up in a pool of blood with no memory of how she got there.

Now it’s October, and Georgia is underwater. She hasn’t been to class in weeks, she’s avoiding her old crew and only friends like the plague. But when the three remaining thieves get a call from the man who paid a hefty sum to keep them out of jail, demanding that they return to finish the job, Georgia has no choice but to return to her old life.

As the estranged friends scramble to steal the painting with no cover story and no leader, they quickly realize that something is very, very wrong, and it’s not just the suffocating memory of Jules or the prying eyes of their viewers. Between the strange shadows that begin to trail them and the nightmares plaguing Georgia’s sleep, only one thing is certain: Something followed them home from De Lys manor, and it will do anything to keep them from going back.

And here’s the gorgeously chilling cover, designed by Laura Eckes with art by Elizabeth Wakou!

A painting with a golden frame of a girl sitting in front of old teal wallpaper. Half of her face is blank and dead, with black hair and a black dress, and the other half is alive with dyed green hair, a white sweater, and a scared expression. She holds a bouquet of half-dead flowers.

Buy it: Bookshop | B&N | Amazon | Indigo | S&S

Jackie Hall Photography

Sophia Hannan is a Canadian author of YA fiction. When she’s not writing about ghosts and the girls they haunt, she can be found studying English literature and forcing her friends to watch horror movies with her. We Were Never Here is her debut novel.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Buried Feelings by Kit Rosewater

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome back Kit Rosewater to reveal the cover of her second YA novel, Buried Feelings, releasing July 7, 2026 from Delacorte Romance! Here’s the story:

Cam was the one who discovered the hunt…

He brought it to Ivy like an offering, took her hand as they combed through San Francisco, searching for treasure and conspiring against the heteronormative agenda. But that was back then. Now juniors, they’re both out and proud—Cam as a trans man and Ivy as gay—but their friendship isn’t as assured. Problem is, Ivy can’t reveal Cam’s past betrayal without airing closely guarded secrets of her own.

…But Ivy will be the one to finish it.

As Ivy comes across the missing link in the treasure hunt from their childhood, she’s certain she can put the clues together and finally come out on top in the cat-and-mouse game Cam’s been playing with her ever since their friendship ended.  Once Cam gets wind of Ivy’s renewed interest in the hunt, the ex-best friends go head-to-head in their search for gold. But as they get digging, they uncover more things buried between them than they bargained for.

And here’s the delightful cover designed by Carol Ly and illustrated by Sarah Maxwell!

Buy it (and take advantage of the preorder campaign!): Bookshop | Amazon | PRH

Kit Rosewater lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico with her partner and two small children who are bent on destroying the universe. She is the author of the YA sapphic romance All’s Fair in Love and Field Hockey, as well as Books 1-3 of The Derby Daredevils, a middle grade series illustrated by Sophie Escabasse. Kit has been a theater and English teacher, a bookseller, a children’s literature academic, and a certified ‘boots-on-the-ground’ treasure hunter. Her sophomore romance, Buried Feelings, is forthcoming from Delacorte Romance in July 2026.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Queerleaders by Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk to reveal the cover of their second Sapphic YA rom-com, Queerleaders, releasing May 26, 2026 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers! Here’s the story:

Two cheerleaders find themselves inconveniently tumbling head over heels for each other in this satirical, sapphic teen rom-com that’s Bring It On meets She Drives Me Crazy.

Oak Haven High doesn’t have cheerleaders—it has queerleaders.

It’s a fun coincidence that every new varsity cheerleader since Davie Cathee took the squad by storm three years ago is—or soon comes out as—queer.

But when a rumor sparks that this season, newly minted captain Davie has been specifically recruiting queer members only, Davie is accused of “discrimination” against straight students. She’s given an ultimatum: recruit a straight athlete for the team or the funding for their competitive cheer season will take a major tumble.

Enter Kendall Hayes, the edgy, mysterious new girl. When Davie sees that Kendall has a boyfriend, she quickly convinces her to join the squad. Problem solved.

Until she finds out that Kendall’s actually bisexual…and newly single.

Now Kendall and Davie are faced with having to keep those details under wraps until nationals, which only gets more complicated when they start falling hard and fast for each other. Can Kendall go back in the closet long enough to save the squad? Or will Davie find the courage to love her new crush out loud, even if it might mean the end of the queerleaders?

And here’s the cheer-worthy cover, designed by Krista Vossen with art by Betsy Cola, along with a note from the authors!

We Said Brr It’s Cold in Here, There Must Be a RomCom in the Atmosphere

The best part about writing for teens is meeting the teens you write for – even better when they inspire a book all their own. This is how Queerleaders was born.

While giving a book talk at a high school in Louisville, one of the points of discussion was how lucky I feel to be queer, and as I heard from some of the students in the class about their sources of joy, some of them gleefully discussed their cheerleading squad, which was 95% queer and had become a safe haven. “One day we’ll be totally, fully gay,” one of the kids told me. “And we’ll write a cheer about it.”

At this point Ashley and I had already written a queer YA rom-com together – Call Your Boyfriend – and hadn’t decided what our next book together would be about. But something about the idea of an all-queer cheerleading squad had my antennae up, and when I mentioned it to Ashley we laughed about the inevitable fury of The Straights. Ashley said, “You just know there would be someone claiming the squad is discriminatory for being a straight-free environment.”

That was all it took. Queerleaders was plotted within the week. What if there was an all-queer cheerleading squad? What if the president of the Conservative Club tried out and didn’t make it? What if she was so butt-hurt that she filed a formal complaint? What if the cute captain of the squad had to hurriedly recruit an even cuter straight girl to be their Token Straight in order to prevent the squad being disbanded? And <drum roll> what if that Token Straight’s straightness was a big misunderstanding and she’s actually gay as hell? Cue dating in secret. Cue heterosexuality pageantry to keep the word from getting out. Cue accidentally falling in love.

We had a great time writing this book. It’s even more hilarious than Call Your Boyfriend and has all the things we love most about romance and young love. Fans of Bring It On, Imogen Obviously, and But I’m a Cheerleader will love Queerleaders – this book is everything that its amazing cover promises, a cover made possible by artist Betsy Cola and designer Krista Vossen. We’re so excited to be sharing it here on LGBTQ Reads.

Buy it: Bookshop | B&N | Amazon

Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk have written over ten critically acclaimed novels each. In 2023 they joined forces, determined to write something “fun,” and CALL YOUR BOYFRIEND, a queer romcom about two unpopular girls who want revenge but find love instead, was the result. QUEERLEADERS is their second co-written novel and it promises more laughs and hi-jinks than the first. They live and write in different cities but they’re always sharing ideas, jokes, and tea, thanks mostly to voice notes.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane

Leave a comment

Today on the site, I’m delighted to reveal the cover for Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane, a queer, trans YA Romance with Sci-Fi elements and aroace rep releasing March 10, 2026 from Page Street YA! Here’s the story:

In this slow-burn queer trans romance, two college students team up to stop the time traveling episodes forcing them to relive their pasts

College freshman Silas Turner is a scientific anomaly. Thrown back in time uncontrollably, he’s forced into his pre-transition body for hours to days at a time, reliving random events in his past. Why? Every cell in his astrophysics major brain is straining to figure it out. But the “time trips” just keep on coming, disrupting Silas’s life, and he’s certain he’s a one-of-a-kind phenomenon—until brash, guitar-playing Jude Forrester barges into his life, exhibiting the same symptoms.

He claims a future version of Silas visited him, and that, according to future-Silas, they’re meant to help each other stop the time trips. If working together can really lead to finding a cure, Silas can handle Jude’s tortured-artist attitude; Jude can humor Silas’s nerdy obsession with the stars.

As they get closer to a solution, they grow closer to each other. But Jude is still grieving an old connection that broke his heart, and he can’t help but wonder if changing the past might save himself and Silas a lot of heartache. Amidst cataclysmic consequences, Silas and Jude must face the cosmic circumstances that brought them together if they hope to protect their timeline—and the future they seem destined to share.

And here’s the trippy cover by Emma Hardy!

A book cover for Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane depicting the title on a white gridded background, surrounded by pen illustrations of outstretched hands, a time warp hole, formulas, hearts, stars, two characters lips about to touch, and a trans flag.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N

Brennon Lane is a Black, queer, trans author who can’t seem to stop creating characters whose stories beg to be told. Writing exclusively in the LGBTQ+ genre, he hopes to offer the younger queer community the diverse representation in media that he always sought. Time-Tripping Over You is his debut novel.

Inside an Anthology

Inside an Anthology: This is How We Roll ed. by Rosiee Thor

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to give a peek inside This is How We Roll ed. by Rosiee Thor, a YA anthology out today that features queer stories about tabletop games! Here’s the gist:

The magic of tabletop RPGs lives in the creativity of the players. Given the chance to explore gender, relationships, and queer existence across vast worlds with completely different sets of rules, queer players throughout the years have found acceptance, camaraderie, and joy by rolling the dice and kicking ass. This anthology celebrates that TTRPG rite of passage with a diverse lineup of queer authors who are just as mighty with their pens as with swords… and shields… and spells!

This collection of fourteen stories includes critically acclaimed authors such as New York Times Bestseller Marieke Nijkamp, New York Times Bestseller Andrew Joseph White, Pura Belpré Honor winner Jonny Garza Villa, LAMBDA Literary Award winner Rebecca Podos, LAMBDA Award finalist Linsey Miller, Indie Bestseller Margaret Owen, and Morris Award finalist Akemi Dawn Bowman.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon

And now, let’s hear from the contributors!

 

Continue reading Inside an Anthology: This is How We Roll ed. by Rosiee Thor →

Fave Five

Fave Five: New Queer YA Dark Academia

Leave a comment

These are 2024-25 releases. For older titles, click here.

With Love & Mischief by Derek Milman

We Are Villains by Kacen Callender 

Lovely Dark and Deep by Elisa A. Bonnin 

The Girl You Know by Elle Gonzalez Rose

The Tournament by Rebecca Barrow

Bonus: These are all prose novels, but for a graphic novel, check out This Place Kills Me by Mariko Tamaki and Nicole Goux

Inside an Anthology

Inside an Anthology: For the Rest of Us ed. by Dahlia Adler

Leave a comment

Yesterday I had the privilege of releasing an anthology that’s been near and dear to my heart for years, and like all my anthologies, there are a whole bunch of queer stories! Read on for a peek into three of them, but first, here’s a little more about the collection, which released yesterday from Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins!

Fourteen acclaimed authors showcase the beautiful and diverse ways holidays are observed in this festive anthology. Keep the celebrations going all year long with this captivating and joyful read!

From Lunar New Year to Solstice, Día de Los Muertos to Juneteenth, and all the incredible days in between, it’s clear that Americans don’t just have one holiday. Edited by the esteemed Dahlia Adler and authored by creators who have lived these festive experiences firsthand, this joyful collection of stories shows that there isn’t one way to experience a holiday.

With stories by:

  • Dahlia Adler, Sydney Taylor Honor winner of Going Bicoastal
  • Candace Buford, author of Good as Gold
  • A. R. Capetta and Cory McCarthy, authors of the Once & Future series
  • Preeti Chhibber, author of Payal Mehta’s Romance Revenge Plot
  • Natasha Díaz, award-winning author of Color Me In
  • Kelly Loy Gilbert, Stonewall Book Award winning author of Picture Us in the Light
  • Kosoko Jackson, USA Today bestselling author of The Forest Demands Its Due
  • Aditi Khorana, award-winning author of Mirror in the Sky
  • Katherine Locke, award-winning author of This Rebel Heart
  • Abdi Nazemian, Stonewall Book Award–winning author of Only This Beautiful Moment
  • Laura Pohl, New York Times bestselling author of The Grimrose Girls
  • Sonora Reyes, Pura Belpré Honor winner of The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School
  • Karuna Riazi, contributor to The Grimoire of Grim Fates

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N

 

Continue reading Inside an Anthology: For the Rest of Us ed. by Dahlia Adler →

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal We Could Be Anyone by Anna-Marie McLemore

Leave a comment

Today on the site, I am so delighted to welcome back Anna-Marie McLemore to reveal the cover of their brand-new YA historical thriller, We Could Be Anyone, releasing May 26, 2026 from Feiwel & Friends! Here’s the story:

Lola and Lisandro are actors during Hollywood’s Golden Age, but you won’t see them on any silver screen. Instead, these siblings use their talents to scam the rich and famous out of their ill-begotten cash. They have their act down to a science: Lola plays the tragic ghost who haunts the mansions of the wealthy, and Lisandro plays the brave spiritualist who will help her soul find peace. For a small fee, of course.

The siblings have their sights set on their next target: The Coterie, the opulent estate of newspaper tycoon Bixby Fairfax and his famous mistress Blythe Bell. A score this big will allow them to move… well, anywhere but here. But this job requires them to do something they’ve never done before: switch roles. And as strange things keep happening at The Coterie… things that even Lola and Lisandro can’t explain.

As they are drawn deeper into The Coterie’s gleaming façade and tensions rise between brother and sister, one question looms over them. Will they be able to pull off their act? Or will this be their last performance?

And here’s the gorgeous cover, designed by L. Whitt with art by Andreea Dumuta!

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N

(c) Elliott McLemore

Anna-Marie McLemore (they/them) grew up hearing la llorona in the Santa Ana winds and now writes books as queer, Latine, and nonbinary as they are. They are the author of William C. Morris YA Debut Award finalist The Weight of Feathers; Wild Beauty; Blanca & Roja, one of Time magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time; Dark and Deepest Red; Lambda Literary Award Finalist Lakelore; Flawless Girls; and National Book Award longlist selections When the Moon Was Ours, The Mirror Season, and Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix. Find them online at annamariemclemore.com.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Load Game by Emilie Nantel

Leave a comment

Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Emilie Nantel to reveal the cover of her upcoming speculative bi f/f YA, Load Game, releasing September 18, 2025! Here’s the story:

Vera Young can time travel through her selfies.

For a disaster bi with a huge crush on her bestie Soph and an affinity for trouble, that new power is a cheat code for life. Consequences are a thing of the past.

Punched the sleazy quarterback and got suspended? Save game. Load game. Get out scot-free.

Want the satisfaction of getting revenge on the mean girls bullying you, but still want to be a good person? Humiliate them in front of everyone, rewind, and enjoy! It doesn’t count if it didn’t happen!

Whatever life throws at her, Vera’s got this.

But some things you can’t control, not even with all the time travel in the world: Riverview High’s rumor mill; a death that’s a fixed point in time; and the crumbling integrity of the space-time continuum, to name a few.

Turns out, there’s a lot of consequences to a no-consequences life.

For teen readers at an age of firsts of all kinds, where mistakes, what-ifs, grief and guilt are so challenging to cope with. Load Game deals with the hardships of youth in an honest, yet optimistic and lighthearted way.

And here’s the cool cover, designed by Rorrim Designs!

Buy it!

Emilie Nantel is the author of OPEN: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes, a queer polyamorous romcom for adults.

She honed her casual, witty voice through years writing fanfiction, and now brings her friends-to-lovers expertise to original stories of queer joy.

When she’s not writing, you can usually find her at home in Montreal, trying every art medium she can get her hands on, playing The Sims 4, or bringing various hot mess characters to life in tabletop roleplaying games.

Load Game is her first foray into Young Adult fiction.