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THE BECKONING SHADOW
Vesper Montgomery can summon your worst fear and turn it into a reality—but she's learned the hard way that it's an addicting and dangerous power. One wrong move and you could hurt someone you love.
But when she earns a spot in the Tournament of the Unraveling, where competitors battle it out for a chance to rewrite the past, Vesper finally has a shot to reverse the mistakes that have changed her forever. She turns to Sam Hardy, a former MMA fighter who's also carrying a tragedy he desperately wants to undo. However, helping heal Sam's heart will mean breaking her own, and the competition forces her to master her powers—powers she has been terrified of since they destroyed her life.
by Kathayrn Blair
THE BEST LIES
Remy Tsai used to know how her story would turn out. But now, she doesn't even know what tomorrow will look like.
She was happy once. Remy had her boyfriend Jack, and Elise, her best friend—her soulmate—who understood her better than anyone else in the world.
But now Jack is dead, shot through the chest—
And it was Elise who pulled the trigger.
Was it self-defense? Or something deeper, darker than anything Remy could have imagined? As the police investigate, Remy does the same, sifting through her own memories, looking for a scrap of truth that could save the friendship that means everything to her.
Told in alternating timelines, Thelma and Louise meets Gone Girl in this twisted psychological thriller about the dark side of obsessive friendship.
by Sarah Lyu
ME, MYSELF, AND HIM
When Chris Schweitzer takes a hit of whippets and passes out face first on the cement, his nose isn't the only thing that changes forever. Instead of staying home with his friends for the last summer after high school, he's shipped off to live with his famous physicist but royal jerk of a father to prove he can "play by the rules" before Dad will pay for college.
Or . . . not.
In an alternate time line, Chris's parents remain blissfully ignorant about the accident, and life at home goes back to normal--until it doesn't. A new spark between his two best (straight) friends quickly turns Chris into a (gay) third wheel, and even worse, the truth about the whippets incident starts to unravel. As his summer explodes into a million messy pieces, Chris wonders how else things might have gone. Is it possible to be jealous of another version of yourself in an alternate reality that doesn't even exist?
by Christopher Tebbetts
SPIN THE DAWN
When her ailing father is summoned to compete to become the Emperor's tailor, 17-year-old Maia Tamarin dresses as a boy and goes in his stead. At the palace, Maia competes with twelve other tailors to win the job. While deceit and sabotage among the tailors complicate the task and a budding romance with the court magician, Edan, threatens to expose her secret, Maia emerges victorious.
Or so she thinks. The recent treaty between her nation and a rebel warlord is precarious, and the Emperor's marriage to the warlord's daughter, Lady Sarnai, is the only thing keeping the peace. However, Lady Sarnai demands three magical dresses — one made from the laughter of the sun, one from the tears of the moon, and one from the blood of stars — before she can marry the Emperor. With the fate of their country at stake, Maia and Edan embark on a quest along a reimagined silk road in search of the sun, the moon, and the stars.
by Elizabeth Lim
1861. Miss Lucinda Leavitt is shocked when she learns the author of her favorite serialized novel has died before completing the story. Determined to learn how it ends, Lucinda reluctantly enlists the help of her father's young business partner, Mr. David Randall, to track down the reclusive author's former whereabouts.
David is a successful young businessman, but is overwhelmed by his workload. He wants to prove himself to his late father, as well as to himself. He doesn't have the time, nor the interest, for this endeavor, but Lucinda is not the type to take no for an answer.
Their search for the elusive Mrs. Smith and the rightful ending to her novel leads Lucinda and David around the country, but the truths they discover about themselves—and each other—are anything but fictional
by Samantha Hastings
THE STORM CROW
In the tropical kingdom of Rhodaire, magical, elemental Crows tend to every aspect of life: from the Firecrows that help forge armor to the Battlecrows that keep the kingdom safe. Seventeen-year-old Princess Anthia Cerralté dreamed of leading Rhodaire as a Crow Rider—then the Illucian Empire attacked, destroying the Rider's massive Crows and killing Anthia's mother.
That night, known as Regnoch, has thrown Princess Anthia into a deep depression that she struggles to escape. Her sister, Caliza, is busy running the kingdom as its new queen, doing her best to restore prosperity and peace, but all Anthia can think of is her dead mother and trainer, who was supposed to teach her how to be a Rider.
When Illucia prepares for a final assault on Anthia's now vulnerable kingdom, Caliza is forced to agree to a marriage between Anthia and the crown prince of Illucia, finally spurring Anthia into action. After stumbling across a hidden Crow egg in the rubble of a rookery, she and her sister devise a dangerous plan to reach out to the other conquered kingdoms and ignite a rebellion.
Anthia takes the Crow egg with her deep into Illucian territory and tries to hatch it in secret, but navigating the cold, vicious Illucian court will take all of her strength and wit. To stop her engagement and protect the people she loves, Anthia must let go of her past and work through her depression to hatch the egg before her kingdom falls and she loses everything to Illucia again.
by Kalyn Josephson
WILDER GIRLS
It's been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. Since the Tox hit and pulled Hetty's life out from under her.
It started slow. First the teachers died one by one. Then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don't dare wander outside the school's fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything.
But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence. And when she does, Hetty learns that there's more to their story, to their life at Raxter, than she could have ever thought true.
by Rory Power
ALL THE THINGS WE NEVER SAID
16-year-old Mehreen Miah's anxiety and depression, or 'Chaos', as she calls it, has taken over her life, to the point where she can't bear it any more. So she joins MementoMori, a website that matches people with partners and allocates them a date and method of death, 'the pact'. Mehreen is paired with Cara Saunders and Olivia Castleton, two strangers dealing with their own serious issues.
As they secretly meet over the coming days, Mehreen develops a strong bond with Cara and Olivia, the only people who seem to understand what she's going through. But ironically, the thing that brought them together to commit suicide has also created a mutually supportive friendship that makes them realise that, with the right help, life is worth living. It's not long before all three want out of the pact. But in a terrifying twist of fate, the website won't let them stop, and an increasingly sinister game begins, with MementoMori playing the girls off against each other.
A pact is a pact, after all.
by Yasmin Rahman
THE PHANTOM FOREST
Seicha's father told her this story as a child -- a story of the most holy place in the Underworld, The Forest of Laida, where all souls go to rest before embarking on a new life. But Seicha's father is dead now, and his killer has put a target on her back.
After being chosen for her village's human sacrifice ritual, Seicha is transported to the Underworld and must join forces with Haben, the demon to whom she was sacrificed, to protect the family she left behind from beyond the grave. In this story of love, survival, and what it means to be human, Seicha and Haben discover that the Underworld is riddled with secrets that can only be unlocked through complete trust and devotion, not only to their mission, but also to one another.
by Liz Kerin
BEFORE I DISAPPEAR
Rose Montgomery parks her family's trailer in Fort Glory, Oregon with one goal: to carve out a new life for herself and her little brother, Charlie. They need a fresh start for their family, and she thinks she's finally found it in a town where nobody knows them.
But Rose's plans come crashing down when, in an instant, Fort Glory disappears and every person in town vanishes into thin air—including Charlie.
Rose and four other teens become trapped in the Fold, a patch of woods caught halfway between the real world and the lost town. In the Fold, a mysterious force suspends the laws of physics, and everyone's inner darkness has the power to kill.
To survive the Fold, Rose must unravel the clues Charlie sends her from the missing town. And Rose has to find Charlie soon—or he'll be gone forever.
by Danielle Stinson
THE SIN SOLDIERS
Red compound makes them angry. Yellow exhausts them. Blue drives them into a state of ravenous addiction. The thief Kai knows about the chemically controlled soldiers of the Eastern forces and their savage, deadly nature. When a robbery attempt at Club Seven goes wrong, Kai is captured by a handler and his bestial soldier-boy. She wakes up inside the military base with no idea what happened to her twin brother, Dex.
Things go from bad to worse when Kai is started on a drug and training regimen, and forced to take injections of blue compound. The scientists in charge plan to make her into a working soldier who will mine the mysterious power crystals beneath the desert. Kai becomes a victim of the bully Finn, a handsome but nasty soldier whose years on red compound seem to have erased his humanity. Still, she begins to pity the Seven Soldiers, including the monstrous boy who tried to rip her to shreds at the club. They appear to be nothing more than genetically enhanced, drug-controlled teenagers.
On the outside, Dex and his tech-savvy boyfriend try to crack the soldiers' chemical code to find a weakness that will break the system. But Kai has already been drawn deep into her new world. Strong feelings for the soldiers she's come to know have started to cloud her judgment. Can she escape and find Dex without becoming a monster herself?
by Tracy Auerbach
Raised among the ruins of a conquered mountain nation, Maren dreams only of sharing a quiet life with her girlfriend Kaia—until the day Kaia is abducted by the Aurati, prophetic agents of the emperor, and forced to join their ranks. Desperate to save her, Maren hatches a plan to steal one of the emperor's coveted dragons and storm the Aurati stronghold.
If Maren is to have any hope of succeeding, she must become an apprentice to the Aromatory—the emperor's mysterious dragon trainer. But Maren is unprepared for the dangerous secrets she uncovers: rumors of a lost prince, a brewing rebellion, and a prophecy that threatens to shatter the empire itself. Not to mention the strange dreams she's been having about a beast deep underground…
With time running out, can Maren survive long enough to rescue Kaia from impending death? Or could it be that Maren is destined for something greater than she could have ever imagined?
by Rebecca Kim Wells
THE MERCIFUL CROW
A future chieftain
Fie abides by one rule: look after your own. Her Crow caste of undertakers and mercy-killers takes more abuse than coin, but when they're called to collect royal dead, she's hoping they'll find the payout of a lifetime.
A fugitive prince
When Crown Prince Jasimir turns out to have faked his death, Fie's ready to cut her losses—and perhaps his throat. But he offers a wager that she can't refuse: protect him from a ruthless queen, and he'll protect the Crows when he reigns.
A too-cunning bodyguard
Hawk warrior Tavin has always put Jas's life before his, magically assuming the prince's appearance and shadowing his every step. But what happens when Tavin begins to want something to call his own?
by Margaret Owen
THEY COULD HAVE NAMED HER ANYTHING
Racks class, and betrayal collide in this emotional debut novel about restoring the broken bonds of family and friendship.
Every morning, seventeen-year-old Maria Anis Rosario taken the subway an hour from her boisterous and close-knit family in Queens to her private high school on the Upper East Side, where she struggles to fit in as one of the only Latina students--until Rocky welcomes her into this new life. White, rebellious, and ignored by her wealthy parents, Rocky uses her money toward one goal: to get away with anything. To Maria, it's a dazzling privilege.
As a bond develops between these unlikely friends, neither can see what they share most--jealousy and the desire for each other's lives. But crackling under the surface of their seemingly supportive alliance, the girls begin to commit little betrayals as they strive to get closer to their ideals regardless of the consequences.
by Stephanie Jimenez
August 1st
A DRESS FOR THE WICKED
Nothing much happens in the sleepy town of Shy in Avon-upon-Kynt. And for eighteen years, Emmaline Watkins has feared that her future held just that: nothing.
But when the head of the most admired fashion house in the country opens her prestigious design competition to girls from outside the stylish capital city, Emmy's dreams seem closer than they ever have before.
As the first "country girl" to compete, Emmy knows she'll encounter extra hurdles on her way to the top. But as she navigates the twisted world of high fashion she starts to wonder: will she be able to tailor herself to fit into this dark, corrupted race? And at what cost?
Historical fiction and contemporary fans alike will flock to this twisted, lush story of fashion, betrayal, and romance.
HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS
Four of Annaleigh Thaumas's eleven sisters have returned to the Salt, the brackish water that surrounds their lonely island home, their lives cut short, each more tragically than the last. Whispers throughout the Highmoor estate say the girls have been cursed by the gods.
When Annaleigh finds out that her sisters have been sneaking out to attend glittering midnight balls and dance until dawn, she's not sure whether to stop them--or join them. And when she begins to see a series of horrific, ghostly visions and more sisters die, she realizes she must solve the mystery--with the help of Cassius, a sea captain who knows much more about her than he should--and unravel the Thaumas curse before she descends into madness or . . . it claims her next.
by Erin A. Craig
ZIGGY, STARDUST, AND ME
In this tender-hearted debut, set against the tumultuous backdrop of life in 1973, when homosexuality is still considered a mental illness, two boys defy all the odds and fall in love.
When he's not being bullied or in therapy for anxiety, sixteen-year-old Jonathan lives with his alcoholic dad in the suburbs of St. Louis. Still coping with the death of his mother, his elaborate imagination keeps him afloat and is a balm against vicious school bullies. But everything changes when a Native American boy named Web joins his English class three weeks before the school year ends.
After being partnered for an English project, Jonathan realizes Web is different from his classmates: he's confident, stands up to Jonathan's bullies, and calms Jonathan's severe anxiety. Then one day Web kisses him, and throws Jonathan into a tailspin. It's 1973 and being gay is considered a mental illness. Eventually he tells Web they can't be together.
But when things get bad at home Jonathan must decide if he wants to stand up to his dad, and his therapist, and be true to himself.
by James Brandon
AS MANY NOWS AS I CAN GET
In one impulsive moment the summer before they leave for college, overachievers Scarlett and David plunge into an irresistible swirl of romance, particle physics, and questionable decisions. Told in non-linear, vivid first-person chapters, As Many Nows As I Can Get is the story of a grounded girl who's pulled into a lightning-strike romance with an electric-charged boy, and the enormity of the aftermath. Cerebral, accessible, bold, and unconventionally romantic, this is a powerful debut about grief, guilt, and reconciling who you think you need to be with the person you've been all along.
by Shana Youngdahl
Who is Nevaeh Levitz?
Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom's family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time.
Nevaeh wants to get to know her extended family, but one of her cousins can't stand that Nevaeh, who inadvertently passes as white, is too privileged, pampered, and selfish to relate to the injustices they face on a daily basis as African Americans. In the midst of attempting to blend their families, Nevaeh's dad decides that she should have a belated bat mitzvah instead of a sweet sixteen, which guarantees social humiliation at her posh private school. Even with the push and pull of her two cultures, Nevaeh does what she's always done when life gets complicated: she stays silent.
It's only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom's past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces that she begins to realize she has a voice. And she has choices. Will she continue to let circumstances dictate her path? Or will she find power in herself and decide once and for all who and where she is meant to be?
by Natasha Diaz
CROWN OF CORAL AND PEARL
Impetuous and outspoken, seventeen-year-old Nor is used to living in her identical twin sister's shadow. As the most beautiful girl in Lakana, Zadie is destined to marry the prince of Ilara, heir to all the ocean realms. Though free from her mother's strict constraints, Nor still feels trapped. Just once, she longs to see Ilara's glittering towers and encounter its dashing prince…
But when Zadie is injured, Nor is chosen to replace her. And she soon finds Prince Ceren is as forbidding and cold as llara, a realm carved into a mountain and devoid of light. Ceren's plans would strip Lakana of its most precious resources—a decree Nor will risk anything to stop. And through Ceren's half brother, Talin, she pursues an even darker mystery rooted in the failing royal bloodline, a murdered queen—and Ilara's sinister secret history.
Now Nor must negotiate the treacherous protocols and insidious deceptions of a dazzling court where lies reign and obsession rules. And discovering her own formidable strength may be the one move that costs her everything: the crown, Lakana and Zadie.
by Mara Rutherford
Arden sells memories. Whether it's the becoming homecoming queen or studying for that all important test, Arden can hack into a classmate's memories and upload the experience for you just as if you'd lived it yourself. Business is great, right up until the day Arden whites out, losing 15 minutes of her life and all her memories of the hot boy across the school yard. The hot boy her friends assure her she's had a crush on for years.
Arden realizes that her own memories have been hacked, but they haven't just been stolen and shared… they've been deleted. And she's not the only one, the hot stranger, Sebastian, has lost ALL of his memories. But how can they find someone with the power to make them forget everything they've learned?
by Shana Silver
DEAR HAITI, LOVE ALAINE
Quick-witted high school journalist Alaine Beauparlant gets booted from her elite private school after an intricate prank goes cruelly awry. She warily accepts an invitation from her aunt to spend her suspension at the family's estate in Haiti--where her estranged mom is recuperating from a political fiasco. In her homeland for the first time, Alaine is immediately put to work at her aunt's start-up helping native children in need. Alaine meets locals, interacts with kids connected to donors, and is shown the ropes by Jason, a fellow intern whose charming ways are making work a bit more challenging. What she doesn't expect to find are letters, articles, emails, and diary entries that she compiles into a final project that will not only save her academic standing in school, but also help her finally know the mother she's never really understood.
by Maika and Maritza Moulite
September 3rd
When CeCe's born-again ex-boyfriend dumps her after they have sex, she follows him to Jesus camp in order to win him back. Problem: She knows nothing about Jesus. But her best friend Paul does. He accompanies CeCe to camp, and the plan―God's or CeCe's―goes immediately awry when her ex shows up with a new girlfriend, a True Believer at that.
Scrambling to save face, CeCe ropes Paul into faking a relationship. But as deceptions stack up, she questions whether her ex is really the nice guy he seemed. Or maybe their relationship was as phony as her beliefs? And what about her strange new feelings for Paul―is this love, lust, or an illusion born of heartbreak? To figure it out, she'll have to confront the reasons she chased her ex to camp in the first place, including the truth about the night she lost her virginity.
by Sonia Hartl
KINGDOM OF SOULS
Born into a family of powerful witchdoctors, Arrah yearns for magic of her own. But each year she fails to call forth her ancestral powers, while her ambitious mother watches with growing disapproval.
There's only one thing Arrah hasn't tried, a deadly last resort: trading years of her own life for scraps of magic. Until the Kingdom's children begin to disappear, and Arrah is desperate to find the culprit.
She uncovers something worse. The long-imprisoned Demon King is stirring. And if he rises, his hunger for souls will bring the world to its knees… unless Arrah pays the price for the magic to stop him.
by Rena Barron
For her sixteenth birthday, Louise le Blanc's mother gave her three things: a sacrificial altar, a ritual knife, and a wicked scar.
Lou's death would have ended the ancient war between the Church and witches, but Lou refuses to become a martyr. Forsaking her coven, she escapes to the gloomy city of Cesarine and hides her magic as a thief in the criminal underworld. But life in Cesarine has its own dangers. Huntsmen roam the city revered as holy men. Witches burn without trial. And the Archbishop, the Church's austere patriarch, revels in violence.
As a huntsman, Reid Diggory lives by one verse: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
He's devoted his entire life to eradicating the occult and making his surrogate father, the Archbishop, proud. Finally given the chance to capture a witch of his own, Reid is devastated when a foul-mouthed thief thwarts him—and doubly devastated when she too disappears. Hell-bent on bringing her to justice, Reid vows she won't escape again. But when Lou tricks him into public scandal trying to avoid capture, the two are forced into an impossible situation—marriage.
Marriage to a huntsman could provide real protection from the witches—if Lou can convince Reid she isn't one herself. The secret proves difficult to keep as Lou begins practicing magic in secret within the heart of the Church, determined to prepare for her mother's inevitable return. As time passes, however, Lou discovers yet another danger lurking: her own growing feelings for her husband. But Reid is still dangerous. He's just as likely to tie her to the stake as defend her if he learns her true identity. With enemies closing in—and more than her own life at stake—Lou must decide who she can trust before it's too late…and she's not the only one with a secret.
For over two thousand years, the Seven Prophets guided humanity. Using their visions of the future, they ended wars, united nations, and brought powerful despots to heel — until the day, 100 years ago, when the Prophets disappeared. Before they vanished, they left behind one final, secret prophecy: the promise of a looming Age of Darkness and the birth of a Prophet who could be the world's salvation — or the cause of its destruction. As chaos begins to reign, five characters, each hiding a deadly secret, are set on a collision course that will determine the fate of their world: a prince exiled from his kingdom; a ruthless killer known as "the Pale Hand"; a once-faithful leader doubtful of his duty; a reckless gambler with the power to find anything or anyone; and a dying girl on the verge of giving up.
by Katy Rose Pool
A rumor is spreading in Baton Rouge. Helen Graves, the freshman that leads her Catholic school's Pro-Life Alliance… had an abortion.
When it comes to being social, Athena Graves, Helen's older, punk-rock sister, is far more comfortable writing down a mixtape playlist than she is talking to cute boys, or anyone for that matter.
So when someone starts this malicious rumor about her popular, pretty, pro-life sister… she has to summon all her strength to push through her social fears, and become the champion Helen needs, even if she doesn't want one.
Athena and her radical feminist riot grrrl friends come together despite their wildly contrasting views, to save Helen's reputation and rescue her from being expelled… even though their punk-rock protests, with buttons and patches emblazoned with powerful messages, might result in the expulsion of their entire rebel girl gang.
by Elizabeth Keenan
If Rain weren't a girl, she would be respected as a Neshu combat master. Instead, her gender dooms her to a colorless future. When an army of nomads invades her kingdom, and a draft forces every household to send one man to fight, Rain takes her chance to seize the life she wants.
Knowing she'll be killed if she's discovered, Rain purchases powder made from dragon magic that enables her to disguise herself as a boy. Then she hurries to the war camps, where she excels in her training—and wrestles with the voice that has taken shape inside her head. The voice of a dragon she never truly believed existed.
As war looms and Rain is enlisted into an elite, secret unit tasked with rescuing the High King, she begins to realize this dragon tincture may hold the key to her kingdom's victory. For the dragons that once guarded her land have slumbered for centuries . . . and someone must awaken them to fight once more.
by Jillian Boehme
THE LIAR'S DAUGHTER
Seventeen-year-old Piper knows that Father is a Prophet. Infallible. The chosen one.
She would do anything for Father. That's why she takes care of all her little sisters. That's why she runs end-of-the-world drills. That's why she never asks questions. Because Father knows best.
Until the day he doesn't. Until the day the government raids the compound and separates Piper from her siblings, from Mother, from the Aunts, from all of Father's followers--even from Caspian, the boy she loves.
Now Piper is living Outside. Among Them.
With a woman They claim is her real mother--a woman They say Father stole her from.
But Piper knows better. And Piper is going to escape.
by Megan Cooley Peterson
UNPREGNANT
Seventeen-year-old Veronica Clarke never thought she would wish she'd failed a test until she finds herself holding a thick piece of plastic in her hands and staring at two solid pink lines. Even the most consistent use of condoms won't prevent pregnancy when your boyfriend secretly pokes holes in them to keep you from going out-of-state for college.
Veronica needs an abortion, but the closest place she can legally get one is over nine hundred miles away—and Veronica doesn't have a car. Too ashamed to ask her friends or family for help, Veronica turns to the one person she believes won't judge her: Bailey Butler, Jefferson High's own little black cloud of anger and snark—and Veronica's ex-best friend. Once on the road, Veronica quickly remembers nothing with Bailey is ever simple and that means two days of stolen cars, shotguns, crazed ex-boyfriends, truck stop strippers with pro-life agendas, and a limo driver named Bob. But the pain and betrayal of their broken friendship can't be outrun. When their fighting leads to a brutal moment of truth, Bailey abandons Veronica. Now Veronica must risk everything in order to repair the hurt she's caused.
by Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan
CHILLING EFFECT
Captain Eva Innocente and the crew of La Sirena Negra cruise the galaxy delivering small cargo for even smaller profits. When her sister Mari is kidnapped by The Fridge, a shadowy syndicate that holds people hostage in cryostasis, Eva must undergo a series of unpleasant, dangerous missions to pay the ransom.
But Eva may lose her mind before she can raise the money. The ship's hold is full of psychic cats, an amorous fish-faced emperor wants her dead after she rejects his advances, and her sweet engineer is giving her a pesky case of feelings. The worse things get, the more she lies, raising suspicions and testing her loyalty to her found family.
To free her sister, Eva will risk everything: her crew, her ship, and the life she's built on the ashes of her past misdeeds. But when the dominoes start to fall and she finds the real threat is greater than she imagined, she must decide whether to play it cool or burn it all down.
by Valerie Valdes
THE BABYSITTERS COVEN
Seventeen-year-old Esme Pearl has a babysitters club. She knows it's kinda lame, but what else is she supposed to do? Get a job? Gross. Besides, Esme likes babysitting, and she's good at it.
And lately Esme needs all the cash she can get, because it seems like destruction follows her wherever she goes. Let's just say she owes some people a new tree.
Enter Cassandra Heaven. She's Instagram-model hot, dresses like she found her clothes in a dumpster, and has a rebellious streak as gnarly as the cafeteria food. So why is Cassandra willing to do anything, even take on a potty-training two-year-old, to join Esme's babysitters club?
The answer lies in a mysterious note Cassandra's mother left her: "Find the babysitters. Love, Mom."
Turns out, Esme and Cassandra have more in common than they think, and they're about to discover what being a babysitter really means: a heroic lineage of superpowers, magic rituals, and saving the innocent from seriously terrifying evil. And all before the parents get home.
by Kate Williams
By day, seventeen-year-old Kiera Johnson is an honors student, a math tutor, and one of the only black kids at Jefferson Academy. But at home, she joins hundreds of thousands of black gamers who duel worldwide as Nubian personas in the secret multiplayer online role-playing card game, SLAY. No one knows Kiera is the game developer, not her friends, her family, not even her boyfriend, Malcolm, who believes video games are partially responsible for the "downfall of the black man."
But when a teen in Kansas City is murdered over a dispute in the SLAY world, news of the game reaches mainstream media, and SLAY is labeled a racist, exclusionist, violent hub for thugs and criminals. Even worse, an anonymous troll infiltrates the game, threatening to sue Kiera for "anti-white discrimination."
Driven to save the only world in which she can be herself, Kiera must preserve her secret identity and harness what it means to be unapologetically black in a world intimidated by blackness. But can she protect her game without losing herself in the process?
by Brittney Morris
At the very southern tip of South America looms an isolated finishing school. Legend has it that the land will curse those who settle there. But for Mavi—a bold Buenos Aires native fleeing the military regime that took her mother—it offers an escape to a new life as a young teacher to Argentina's elite girls.
Mavi tries to embrace the strangeness of the imposing house—despite warnings not to roam at night, threats from an enigmatic young man, and rumors of mysterious Others. But one of Mavi's ten students is missing, and when students and teachers alike begin to behave as if possessed, the forces haunting this unholy cliff will no longer be ignored.
One of these spirits holds a secret that could unravel Mavi's existence. In order to survive she must solve a cosmic mystery—and then fight for her life.