Jen Blair
Here is the list of the best books I’ve read (so far) this year. You can add them to your summer TBR right now. [Hint: you can click on the title to see more about each title on GoodReads.]
Summer Break and READING begin now! Welcome summer!
One of Us Is Back - Karen McManus
The Bayview Kids are back. And so are the murders. And secrets. Why haven’t the parents of these lovely kids packed up and left town? No one is safe. No one.
From the publisher:
Ever since Simon died in detention, life hasn't been easy for the Bayview Crew. First the Bayview Four had to prove they weren't killers. Then a new generation had to outwit a vengeful copycat. Now, it's beginning again.
At first the mysterious billboard seems like a bad joke: Time for a new game, Bayview. But when a member of the crew disappears, it's clear this 'game' just got serious - and no one understands the rules.
Everyone's a target. And now that someone unexpected has returned to Bayview, things are starting to get deadly.
Simon was right about secrets - they all come out in the end.
The thing is, Simon was right about secrets-they all come out, eventually. And Bayview has a lot it's still hiding.
_One of Us Is Lying _trailer:
Reign - Katharine McGee
Timing is everything. If you haven’t started reading the American Royals series yet? Make sure you finish Book Three right before Reign’s release date of August 29th. The cliffhanger is a doozy. Our favorite American Royal Family is back with more betrayals, scheming, and ball gowns. A satisfying ending for one of my favorite series.
From the publisher:
A queen's life hangs in the balance, and her siblings’ decisions—about what to do, and most of all, who to love—could change the course of history. Romance. Duty. Power...only one can triumph in this stunning conclusion to the New York Times bestselling American Royals series.
America's royal family is in shambles. Queen Beatrice is in a coma and Princess Samantha has gone missing—from the look of things, she ran away with her boyfriend, Lord Marshall Davis. Which means that Prince Jefferson is currently on the throne. For some in America, it's exactly what they a King ruling the country. And for Daphne Deighton, who has tricked Jefferson into dating her again, it's the ultimate dream come true.
Surely this is all just temporary. Won’t Beatrice wake up and reclaim her rightful place? Samantha can't really be gone…can she? And Prince Jefferson will never truly be over his childhood crush, Nina Gonzalez. Right?
For the Washington family, the stakes are higher than ever. Love might save the throne….if secrets don’t destroy everything first.
America Redux: Visual Stories from Our Dynamic History - Ariel Aberg-Riger
Look. I’m a history major. I wrote my senior thesis on the Civil Rights Movement. And I still learned sooooo much from this book. Looks like a scrapbook/graphic novel. Best history book you will ever like to read.
From the publisher:
_America Redux _explores the themes that create our shared sense of American identity and interrogates the myths we've been telling ourselves for centuries. With iconic American catchphrases as chapter titles, these twenty-one visual stories illuminate the astonishing, unexpected, sometimes darker sides of history that reverberate in our society to this very day--from the role of celebrity in immigration policy to the influence of one small group of white women on education to the effects of "progress" on housing and the environment, to the inspiring force of collective action and mutual aid across decades and among diverse groups.
Fully illustrated with collaged archival photographs, maps, documents, graphic elements, and handwritten text, this book is a dazzling, immersive experience that jumps around in time and will make you view history in a whole different light.
The Black Queen - Jumata Emill
Part Mean Girls. Part The Hate U Give. Part The Weight of Blood. All of it fantastic.
From the publisher:
Nova Albright, the first Black homecoming queen at Lovett High, is dead. Murdered the night of her coronation, her body found the next morning in the old slave cemetery she spent her weekends rehabilitating.
Tinsley McArthur was supposed to be queen. Not only is she beautiful, wealthy, and white, it’s her legacy—her grandmother, her mother, and even her sister wore the crown before her. Everyone in Lovett knows Tinsley would do anything to carry on the McArthur tradition.
No one is more certain of that than Duchess Simmons, Nova’s best friend. Duchess’s father is the first Black police captain in Lovett. For Duchess, Nova’s crown was more than just a win for Nova. It was a win for all the Black kids. Now her best friend is dead, and her father won’t face the fact that the main suspect is right in front of him. Duchess is convinced that Tinsley killed Nova—and that Tinsley is privileged enough to think she can get away with it. But Duchess’s father seems to be doing what he always does: fall behind the blue line. Which means that the white girl is going to walk.
Duchess is determined to prove Tinsley’s guilt. And to do that, she’ll have to get close to her.
But Tinsley has an agenda, too.
Everyone loved Nova. And sometimes, love is exactly what gets you killed.
Chaos Theory - Nic Stone
Two kids struggling: with grief, family relationships, and some bad choices they have made in the past. Kids that are authentic and brilliant and worthy and flawed and human. All the feels.
From the publisher:
DETACHED
Since Shelbi enrolled at Windward Academy as a senior and won't be there very long, she hasn't bothered making friends. What her classmates don't know about her can't be used to hurt her--you know, like it did at her last school.
WASTED
Andy Criddle is not okay. At all.
He's had far too much to drink.
Again. Which is bad.
And things are about to get worse.
When Shelbi sees Andy at his lowest, she can relate. So she doesn't resist reaching out. And there's no doubt their connection has them both seeing stars . . . but the closer they get, the more the past threatens to pull their universes apart.
Everyone Wants to Know - Kelly Loy Gilbert
The Lo family is famous for being a lovely family featured on reality TV. But what happens when the cameras stop rolling and the “real” in reality starts?
From the publisher:
The Lo family sticks together. That’s what Honor has been told her whole life while growing up in the glare of the public eye on Lo and Behold , the reality show about her, her four siblings, and their parents.
Their show may be off the air, but the Lo family members still live in the spotlight as influencers churning out podcasts, bestselling books, and brand partnerships. So when Honor’s father announces that he’s moving out of their northern California home to rent an apartment in Brooklyn, Honor’s personal upset becomes the internet’s trending B-list celebrity trainwreck—threatening the aspirational image the Los’ brand (and livelihood) depends on.
After one of her best friends leaks their private conversation to a gossip site, bruised and betrayed Honor pours all her energy into reuniting her family. With her parents 3,000 miles apart, her siblings torn into factions, and all of them under claustrophobic public scrutiny, this is easier said than done. Just when Honor feels at her lowest, a guarded yet vulnerable boy named Caden comes into her life and makes her want something beyond the tight Lo inner circle for the first time. But is it fair to open her heart to someone new when the people she loves are teetering on the edge of ruin?
The Future King - Robyn Schneider
Why have you not yet read The Other Merlin??? Get it. Read it. And then enjoy this Arthurian retelling’s sequel where Arthur is uncertain and unproven, Guinevere is a savvy political leader, and Emry is a powerful wizard who continues to fight for her rightful position at court. I can’t get enough of this series.
From the publisher:
Fresh from an epic victory over sorceress Morgana Le Fay to keep the doorway between worlds safely closed, Emry Merlin should be flying high. She no longer has to hide that she's a girl wizard in Camelot, and the battle has brought her closer than ever to Prince Arthur, with whom she has slowly fallen in love. Even her hapless but beloved twin brother Emmett has joined her at court.
But Emry is hiding a secret, and she's not the only one. Her magic has become unpredictable and dangerous, casting spells that she doesn't intend. Despite destiny acting like he's worthy, Prince Arthur knows he doesn't have what it takes to rule Camelot--until a terrible tragedy forces his hand. And though Guinevere is hooking up with the hottest guy in the palace, it's not who she's actually betrothed to . . .
Garden of the Cursed - Katy Rose Pool
A new series that is part fantasy, part detective story, part romance. Marlow must break the dangerous curse of her childhood best friend… that she might have strong feelings for…
From the publisher:
Since fleeing the gilded halls of Evergarden for the muck-filled canals of the Marshes, Marlow Briggs has made a name for herself as the best godsdamn cursebreaker in Caraza City. But no matter how many cases she solves, she is still haunted by the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.
When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.
As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius’s curse and her mother’s disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself.
Imogen, Obviously - Becky Albertalli
The story of Imogen’s struggle to own her own identity. Bless you, Imogen. You do you. You deserve love. You deserve to love who you love.
From the publisher:
Imogen Scott may be hopelessly heterosexual, but she’s got the World’s Greatest Ally title locked down.
She's never missed a Pride Alliance meeting. She knows more about queer media discourse than her very queer little sister. She even has two queer best friends. There's Gretchen, a fellow high school senior, who helps keep Imogen's biases in check. And then there's Lili—newly out and newly thriving with a cool new squad of queer college friends.
Imogen's thrilled for Lili. Any ally would be. And now that she's finally visiting Lili on campus, she's bringing her ally A game. Any support Lili needs, Imogen's all in.
Even if that means bending the truth, just a little.
Like when Lili drops a tiny queer bombshell: she's told all her college friends that Imogen and Lili used to date. And none of them know that Imogen is a raging hetero—not even Lili’s best friend, Tessa.
Of course, the more time Imogen spends with chaotic, freckle-faced Tessa, the more she starts to wonder if her truth was ever all that straight to begin with. . .
The Isles of the Gods - Amie Kaufman
Sea-faring voyages. Quests. Maps. Swoony romance. This is pitch-perfect fantasy for fantasy lovers and a darn good read for those that think they don’t like fantasy.
From the publisher:
When Selly's father leaves her high and dry in the port of Kirkpool, she has no intention of riding out the winter on land while he sails to adventure in the north seas. But any plans to follow him are dashed when a handsome stranger with tell-tale magician's marks on his arm boards her ship, presenting her and the crew with a dangerous mission: to cross the Crescent Sea without detection so he can complete a ritual on the sacred Isles of the Gods. What starts as a leisure cruise will lead to acts of treason and sheer terror on the high seas, bringing two countries to the brink of war, two strangers closer than they ever thought possible and stirring two dangerous gods from centuries of slumber...
A Long Stretch of Bad Days - Mindy McGinnis
Small town secrets. Podcasts. Class lines to be crossed. An unlikely friendship. A thirty-year-old murder mystery. Hilarious dialogue. Don’t miss this one. Truly, the perfect summer read.
From the publisher:
Lydia Chass doesn’t mind living in a small town; she just doesn’t want to die in one. A lifetime of hard work has put her on track to attend a prestigious journalism program and leave Henley behind—until a school error leaves her a credit short of graduating. Undeterred, Lydia has a plan to earn that credit: transform her listener-friendly local history podcast into a truth-telling exposé. She’ll investigate the Long Stretch of Bad Days: a week when Henley was hit by a tornado and a flash flood as well as its first—and only—murder, which remains unsolved.
But Lydia needs help to bring grit to the show. Bristal Jamison has a bad reputation and a foul mouth, but she also needs a credit to graduate. The unexpected partnership brings together the Chass family—a pillar of the community—and the rough-and-tumble Jamisons, with Bristal hoping to be the first in her family to graduate. Together, they dig into the town’s worst week, determined to solve the murder.
Their investigation unearths buried secrets: a hidden town brothel, lost family treasure, and a teen girl who disappeared. But the past is never far, and some don’t want it to see the light. As threats escalate, the girls have to uncover the truth before the dark history of Henley catches up with them.
The Minus-One Club - Kekla Magoon
This is not a club you want to be a member of. Members are restricted to those that have lost someone close to them. And there are strict rules. But sometimes you have to break the rules to save the one that needs your help.
From the publisher:
Kermit Sanders knows grief and its all-encompassing shadows. After losing his beloved older sister in a tragic car accident, nothing quite punctures through the feelings of loss. Everywhere Kermit goes, he is reminded of her.
But then Kermit finds a mysterious invitation in his locker, signed anonymously with "-1." He has no idea what he's in for, but he shows up to find out. Dubbed the "Minus-One Club," a group of his schoolmates has banded together as a form of moral support. The members have just one thing in common―they have all suffered the tragic loss of someone they loved.
The usual dividing lines between high school classes and cliques don’t apply inside the Minus-One Club, and Kermit’s secret crush, the handsome and happy-go-lucky Matt (and only out gay student at school), is also a part of the group. Slowly, Matt's positive headstrong approach to life helps relieve Kermit of his constant despair.
But as Kermit grows closer to Matt, the light of his new life begins to show the cracks beneath the surface. When Matt puts himself in danger by avoiding his feelings, Kermit must find the strength to not only lift himself back up but to help the rest of the group from falling apart.
The Night in Question (The Agathas, Book 2) - Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson
Just like The Agathas, this mystery went right to the top of my “best of” list. Bumbling policemen, family secrets, road trips, bickering, plus romance and roller skating. What more could you want?
From the publisher:
Alice Ogilvie and Iris Adams became the talk of Castle Cove when they cracked the biggest case of the fall: the death of Brooke Donovan. Together, the Agathas put Brooke's killer away for good, and since then things around town have been almost back to normal. Quiet, even.
But if Alice and Iris know anything, it's that sometimes quiet is just the calm before the storm. The truth is, Brooke's disappearance wasn't the first mystery to rock Castle Cove, and it won't be the last. So when their school dance at the infamous Levy Castle—the site of film starlet Mona Moody's unsolved death back in the 1940s—is interrupted by a violent assault, Iris and Alice pull out their murder boards and get back to work.
To understand the present, sometimes you need to look into the past. And if the Agathas want a chance at solving their new case, that's exactly where they'll need to start digging. Only, what they uncover might very well kill them.
Painted Devils (Little Thieves #2) - Margaret Owen
I don’t know what to tell you. You should read both Little Thieves and Painted Devils. Right now. Best flipping books. Both of them. First line of Painted Devils: “Let's get one thing straight - Vanja Schmidt wasn't trying to start a cult”. How can you NOT read this book? I’m telling you, so funny and brilliant.
From the publisher:
After taking down a corrupt margrave, breaking a deadly curse, and finding romance with the vexingly scrupulous Junior Prefect Emeric Conrad, Vanja had one great mystery left: her long-lost birth family… and if they would welcome a thief. But in her search for an honest trade, she hit trouble and invented a god, the Scarlet Maiden, to scam her way out. Now, that lie is growing out of control—especially when Emeric arrives to investigate, and the Scarlet Maiden manifests to claim him as a virgin sacrifice.
For his final test to become a prefect, Emeric must determine if Vanja is guilty of serious fraud, or if the Scarlet Maiden—and her claim to him—are genuine. Meanwhile, Vanja is chasing an alternative sacrifice that may be their way out. The hunt leads her not only into the lairs of monsters and the paths of gods, but the ties of her past. And with what should be the simplest way to save Emeric hanging over their heads, he and Vanja must face a more dangerous question: Is there a future for a thief and a prefect, and at what price?
Promise Boys - Nick Brooks
Three young men have been forced into boxes, literally toeing the line to conform. And now they are accused of murder. They certainly have their reasons. But did they do it? Just like in One of Us Is Lying, the more you know about these kids, the more you hope that NONE of them are the murderer.
From the publisher:
The prestigious Urban Promise Prep school might look pristine on the outside, but deadly secrets lurk within. When the principal ends up murdered on school premises and the cops come sniffing around, a trio of students―J.B., Ramón, and Trey―emerge as the prime suspects. They had the means, they had the motive . . . and they may have had the murder weapon. But with all three maintaining their innocence, they must band together to track down the real killer before they are arrested. Or is the true culprit hiding among them?
Royal Blood - Aimee Carter
Evan is the illegitimate love child of the King of England who comes to London and inadvertently exposes this and many other secrets of the royal family. They don’t deserve her.
From the publisher:
As the King of England’s illegitimate daughter, 17-year-old Evan Bright knows a thing or two about keeping secrets.
But when she’s forced to spend the summer in London with her father and the royal family, who aren’t exactly thrilled she exists, her identity is mysteriously revealed, and suddenly the world is dying to know every juicy lie the press prints about her.
After a fun night turns deadly and Evan becomes the primary suspect in a murder investigation, the escalating rumors and fallout threaten to tear her life apart. As she fights to uncover the truth about what happened, she discovers royal secrets that are even more scandalous than she imagined – secrets that could change the monarchy forever.
And her own may be next.
Saints of the Household - Ari Tison
Devastatingly good. Two brothers brought up in an abusive home respond to an act of violence with… more violence. Are they fated to become violent abusers like their father?
From the publisher:
Max and Jay have always depended on one another for their survival. Growing up with a physically abusive father, the two Bribri American brothers have learned that the only way to protect themselves and their mother is to stick to a schedule and keep their heads down.
But when they hear a classmate in trouble in the woods, instinct takes over and they intervene, breaking up a fight and beating their high school's star soccer player to a pulp. This act of violence threatens the brothers' dreams for the future and their beliefs about who they are. As the true details of that fateful afternoon unfold over the course of the novel, Max and Jay grapple with the weight of their actions, their shifting relationship as brothers, and the realization that they may be more like their father than they thought. They'll have to reach back to their Bribri roots to find their way forward.
She Is a Haunting - Trang Thanh Tran
This book is only to be read during daylight hours. Not just a haunted house, but a sentient and malevolent house. Which freaks me out way more than ghosts. Maybe because a house can’t be reasoned with???
From the publisher:
When Jade Nguyen arrives in Vietnam for a visit with her estranged father, she has one goal: survive five weeks pretending to be a happy family in the French colonial house Ba is restoring. She’s always lied to fit in, so if she’s straight enough, Vietnamese enough, American enough, she can get out with the college money he promised.
But the house has other plans. Night after night, Jade wakes up paralyzed. The walls exude a thrumming sound, while bugs leave their legs and feelers in places they don’t belong. She finds curious traces of her ancestors in the gardens they once tended. And at night Jade can’t ignore the ghost of the beautiful bride who leaves her cryptic warnings: Don’t eat.
Neither Ba nor her sweet sister Lily believe that there is anything strange happening. With help from a delinquent girl, Jade will prove this house—the home her family has always wanted—will not rest until it destroys them. Maybe, this time, she can keep her family together. As she roots out the house’s rot, she must also face the truth of who she is and who she must become to save them all.
Throwback - Maurene Goo
With a nod to Back to the Future, this is the story of Priscilla and her mom trying to find common ground in their difficult relationship. They just might have to travel through time to do it.
From the publisher:
Being a first-generation Asian American immigrant is hard. You know what’s harder? Being the daughter of one. Samantha Kang has never gotten along with her mother, Priscilla—and has never understood her bougie-nightmare, John Hughes high school expectations. After a huge fight between them, Sam is desperate to move forward—but instead, finds herself thrown back. Way back.
To her shock, Sam finds herself back in high school . . . in the ’90s . . . with a 17-year-old Priscilla. Now this Gen Z girl must try to fit into an analog world. She’s got the fashion down, but everything else is baffling. What is “microfiche”? What’s with the casual racism and misogyny? And why does it feel like Priscilla is someone she could actually be . . . friends with?
Sam's blast to the past has her finding the right romance in the wrong time while questioning everything she thought she knew about her mom . . . and herself. Will Sam figure out what she needs to do to fix things for her mom so that she can go back to a time she understands? Brimming with heart and humor, Maurene Goo’s time-travel romance asks big questions about what exactly one inherits and loses in the immigrant experience.
Warrior Girl Unearthed - Angeline Boulley
There’s a heist. There’s murder. There is romance. Families to celebrate. Shifting loyalties and machinations and double crosses. And a stinky, glorious dog that will save us all. You will recognize some familiar faces from Firekeeper’s Daughter, but there is a whole new cast of teenagers to fall in love with here.
From the publisher:
Perry Firekeeper-Birch was ready for her Summer of Slack but instead, after a fender bender that was entirely not her fault, she’s stuck working to pay back her Auntie Daunis for repairs to the Jeep.
Thankfully she has the other outcasts of the summer program, Team Misfit Toys, and even her twin sister Pauline. Together they ace obstacle courses, plan vigils for missing women in the community, and make sure summer doesn’t feel so lost after all.
But when she attends a meeting at a local university, Perry learns about the “Warrior Girl”, an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in the museum archives, and everything changes. Perry has to return Warrior Girl to her tribe. Determined to help, she learns all she can about NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. The university has been using legal loopholes to hold onto Warrior Girl and twelve other Anishinaabe ancestors’ remains, and Perry and the Misfits won’t let it go on any longer.
Using all of their skills and resources, the Misfits realize a heist is the only way to bring back the stolen artifacts and remains for good. But there is more to this repatriation than meets the eye as more women disappear and Pauline’s perfectionism takes a turn for the worse. As secrets and mysteries unfurl, Perry and the Misfits must fight to find a way to make things right – for the ancestors and for their community.
Your Plantation Prom Is Not Okay - Kelly McWilliams
Harriet carries the weight of generations of Black enslaved people. She and her father live and work in a plantation museum, but when the plantation next door is purchased as a wedding venue, it’s more than Harriet and her anger can handle.
From the publisher:
Harriet Douglass lives with her historian father on an old plantation in Louisiana, which they’ve transformed into one of the South's few enslaved people’s museums. Together, while grieving the recent loss of Harriet’s mother, they run tours that help keep the memory of the past alive.
Harriet's world is turned upside down by the arrival of mother and daughter Claudia and Layla Hartwell—who plan to turn the property next door into a wedding venue, and host the offensively antebellum-themed wedding of two Hollywood stars.
Harriet’s fully prepared to hate Layla Hartwell, but it seems that Layla might not be so bad after all—unlike many people, this California influencer is actually interested in Harriet's point of view. Harriet's sure she can change the hearts of Layla and her mother, but she underestimates the scale of the challenge…and when her school announces that prom will be held on the plantation, Harriet’s just about had it with this whole racist timeline! Overwhelmed by grief and anger, it’s fair to say she snaps.
Can Harriet use the power of social media to cancel the celebrity wedding and the plantation prom? Will she accept that she’s falling in love with her childhood best friend, who’s unexpectedly returned after years away? Can she deal with the frustrating reality that Americans seem to live in two completely different countries? And through it all, can she and Layla build a bridge between them?
