Hey YA Readers!
I write this to you post-Halloween, cold and frozen in what went from an 80-degree temperature just days ago to now hardly cracking 30. Whiplash, I tell you.
But we’re here for books and not for crankiness about the weather in the upper Midwest. So this week, let’s dive into a host of fabulous new releases and look ahead at some 2024 titles that might get stuck in your head.
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Bookish Goods
Big Book Cart Sticker by Artimation1104
This is such a fun sticker featuring a lovely book cart. If you’ve got a book cart, this would fit on it perfectly. If not, it’d still look darn good on a notebook or water bottle. $3.50.
New Releases
It is a stellar day for new book releases, both in hardcover and, as you’ll see on Thursday, in paperback too. Let’s look at two hitting shelves in hardcover today that are very different, but both sound excellent.
As usual, you can grab the full list of new hardcover YA releases over here.
Gorgeous Gruesome Faces by Linda Cheng
Sunny is part of a K-pop trio that is rocketing up the charts. Her two fellow bandmates, Candie and Mina, are struggling to resist feelings flaring between them, and in the midst of a scandal, Mina dies right in front of them. Sunny always suspected it had to do with secrets between Mina and Candie.
Fast forward two years, and with questions still remaining about Mina’s death, Sunny hears that Candie might be trying out to be part of a new K-pop band. So Sunny does what anyone would do: she follows Candie to the K-pop workshop. While there, Sunny keeps getting otherworldly visions and experiences and realizes the only way to get to the bottom of Mina’s death is to tell some ugly secrets.
This is a horror-meets-thriller book set in the glossy world of K-pop, and sounds so fun.
With Or Without You by Eric Smith
Cue the U2, everyone, and prepare to enjoy a warm hug in the shape of a book (for long-time readers and/or Hey YA listeners, you’ll know that as one of Eric Smith’s favorite book descriptions!).
Looking for an enemies-to-lovers rom-com about rival food trucks? Then look no further.
Jordan Plazas and Cindy Ortiz hate each other. Everyone knows this. Their families own rival cheesesteak food trucks in Philadelphia, and the teens’ bickering and animosity is well documented.
But…the truth is the two of them like each other. When their fake fighting lands them an offer on a reality TV show, can they keep up the act, or will they be forced to confront the truth of their “rivalry?” Sign me up, please!
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
You ready to get very dorky for a moment with me? Well, you have no choice. One of my favorite things to do every year is look at the books publishing in the coming year and see which ones have titles that share their names with songs. With Or Without You is being released this week, which inspired me to begin the look for 2024. So, without further ado, a few YA books hitting shelves next year that are earworms.
This list is not comprehensive or complete. It’s just a slice–I will do a longer dive into these YA earworms soon!
Skater Boy by Anthony Nerada (February 6)
This book looks like such a fun read. It follows Wesley “Big Mac” Mackenzie, the resident bad boy of his school. He’s failing senior year for all of the reasons you might imagine. So when his mom drags him to see The Nutcracker, he is not interested. Not in the least.
Until he sets his eyes on Mr. Nutcracker himself, Tristan Monroe.
This is a romance about the closeted bad boy and the lengths he’ll go to in order to win over the good-boy crush.
(Would it be unhinged to share a weird dream I had here? I’m going to. I am a huge Matchbox 20 fan, and I recently had a dream that lead singer Rob Thomas told me he had an idea for a YA book he wanted to tell me about. When I asked him what the idea was, he said he knew exactly what the first line would be: “He was a sk8r boy, she said see you later boy.” Perhaps one of my favorite dreams, um, ever?).
This Is Me Trying by Racquel Marie (April 16)
Bryce, Beatriz, and Santiago were always best friends. At least, they were until Santiago moved away before high school, and everything fell apart.
It’s now three years later, and Santiago is back. But Bryce and Beatriz’s lives are so different–can the three of them reconnect and reestablish a friendship? Or are there hard feelings and other difficult situations that are too big to overcome?
We Got The Beat by Jenna Miller (February 20)
Jordan has worked hard and is prepared to be the first junior editor-in-chief of the high school newspaper. She’s set her sights on this goal since being humiliated by Mackenzie, her best friend turned enemy, freshman year.
But Jordan doesn’t get the role. Instead, she’s assigned the role of covering volleyball for the paper. And who but Mackenzie is the volleyball team captain?
You can probably guess where this one is going…
As always, thanks for hanging out. We’ll see you on Thursday with your paperback YA releases and book news for the week.
Until then, happy reading!
–Kelly Jensen, who you can follow on her personal substack.