I haven’t posted in a long, long time, and that’s partially because I spent the first part of June travelling, then catching up, and then the first part of July travelling, and then catching up! As we’d say in Minnesota, where I grew up and where I just returned from visiting, OOFDA!
I do want to make a blog post compiling a few pictures and notes from my absolutely fantastic 7-night Baltic Sea cruise through the fabulous Disney Cruise line, but before I do that, I thought I’d put together yet another Goodreads YA list, courtesy of my e-mail newsletter featuring the “can’t miss” YA reads for July!
The first book on the list is Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Foody.
The Gomorrah Festival, a traveling carnival of debauchery, is probably not the most appropriate place for Sorina, but it’s her home. When an impossible crime shatters her world, she descends down a dangerous rabbit hole to save her family.
Carnival? Debauchery? I’m in! I’m especially intrigued because this one has to do with a girl saving her family. Not, you know, saving a boy.
Next up on the list we have What to Say Next, written by Julie Buxbaum:
Lunchtime at Mapleview High is all about sitting with the right crowd. Unless you’re David, who sits alone every day. That all changes when Kit, struggling with a recent tragedy, abandons her popular friends to see what the quiet boy has to say.
Guys, I am seeing this book everywhere. I would say this is probably the absolute “must read” on this list.
Third on the list is Little Monsters by Kara Thomas:
New girl Kacey’s charmed life in Broken Falls takes a drastic turn the night fellow student Bailey disappears. As the town turns to Kacey for answers, she realizes she can’t trust anyone, not even her stepfamily or friends.
I love the Pretty Little Liars vibes going on in this synopsis! Reserving this one at the library ASAP. (Disclaimer: I have like 5 of the Pretty Little Liars books but I’ve only read the first one. Loved it, but forgot what happened and had already sold the first one to Half Priced Books so couldn’t re-read it… ughhh. But I loved the show!)
Alright, moving onto number four – Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton:
The people Adam sees aren’t always there. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, he uses a miracle drug to help him stay focused and hide his symptoms from his crush, Maya. Then the drug starts to fail, leaving Adam to grapple with his secret alone.
I would LOVE to see a book dealing with mental illness done well. I have super high hopes for this one!
What’s next? Ah yes, The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell:
Magic is all but extinct. To save her fellow Mageus, the few men and women who have an affinity for magic, trained thief Esta travels back in time to 1902 to steal an ancient book from an enigmatic figure known only as the Magician.
This months’ Goodreads list is full of contemporary YA (which is fascinating and also wonderful for me—I’m a contemporary kind of girl), but here’s our fantasy pick. Normally I scroll past the fantasy picks, but this one has a historical element to it and time traveling… so my interest is piqued! I probably won’t pick it up right away, but I do think it sounds interesting.
And finally, we have Solo by two authors, Kwame Alexander with Mary Rand Hess:
Juggling his father’s ruin with his mother’s absence, his forbidden love for a girl with his family’s darkest secret, 17-year-old Blake travels the globe to find meaning and truth in this bewitching novel told in poetic verse.
This sounds seriously beautiful. A little nervous about the poetic verse because poetry is not my strong point, but I love the family elements and I’m always a big fan of the forbidden love theme!
And there we have it! The top-5 can’t-miss YA releases per Goodreads’ July Young Adult Newsletter. The newsletter doesn’t include release dates, but if you’re interested, just click the links I’ve provided and you’ll find the information you need. Happy reading!
So quick confession – I started Crazy Rich Asians the summer it came out and I loved the HECK out of it… but I never quite finished it. Something came up (I think I had to return to law school if memory serves, which was the death of pleasure reading) and I just never picked it back up. But the story and the characters have stayed with me and guys, it’s freaking hilarious. So I need to finish that one, read the second in the series, and then I’ll be heading straight for this book.
I’m a huuuuuge fan of Jenny Han. I loved her Summer I Turned Pretty series. I relate a lot to her characters in a way I don’t relate in most YA novels. She’s pretty much the author I want to be. I better stop before I start fan-girling. But anyway, I’m super excited for this third part of a series I completely adore!
I should start with a disclaimer: I did not love Girl on the Train. I found it muddled, confusing, and I have very serious problems with the ending. That said, I couldn’t put it down, and it’s hard for me to find a book that I can’t put down. So, I’m curious how this one will end up and how it’ll compare to Girl on the Train. I already added my name to reserve list at the library for this one, and am happy to report that I am number 408 in line. It might be September before I get my hands on this.
britney brouwer 