Royal Scandal by Aimee Carter

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Just as good as Royal Blood; the first book of the series!

18yo Evan is in the United Kingdom with her family, royal and not royal. She’s recovering from the assault by Jasper and has great support from her boyfriend Kit and her family. Evan is starting to feel more at ease with her royal surroundings until a shooter misses her and hits Kit as he protects her. Evan receives secret anonymous threats and she starts to hear voices that are threatening her also. Her mother has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and she’s worried she’s hallucinating since no one else sees or hears the threats. Each day the threats and danger build until Evan is terrified she will lose her life and the people she loves.

Likes/dislikes: I love Evan and Kit and their relationship. The royal premise adds heightened intrigue to the mystery. This second book of the series is just as good as the first.
Mature Content: G for holding hands and hugging.
Language: R for 41 swears and 0 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody death.
Ethnicity: The ethnicity is predominantly white.

The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso

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I highly recommend this mystery for young adults!

16yo Paige and 16yo Audrey are summertime best friends. Paige is looking forward to seeing Audrey and 18yo Dylan, Paige’s long time crush, this summer when they all arrive at Clearwater Ridge. Audrey starts off the summer by talking about jobs and her goal to save enough money to buy her own horse, since she’s always wanted one and spends so much time at the equestrian club. Since Audrey is busy and growing distant, Paige and Dylan get to spend more time together. One summer night, Audrey never returns home and she becomes a missing person case and a year later there’s still no evidence or help in finding her. Dylan and Paige take it upon themselves to find Audrey and the deeper they dig, the more dangerous the situation becomes.

Likes/dislikes:
Mature Content: PG-13 for underage drinking.
Language: R for 61 swears and no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody death and abuse.
Ethnicity: predominantly white.

Diary of a Confused Feminist by Kate Weston

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Teenagehood dealt with humor and love.

15yo Kat wants to become a feminist but constantly struggles with the frustrations of teenage life. She deals with these struggles with the help of her three best friends and her loving and understanding parents. Kat wants to embrace maturity and she does her best despite bullies and boy problems. Humor helps her with her frustrations. Her parents help her with the anxiety she tries to hide.

Likes/dislikes: This book is humorous. Encompasses dramatic nature of teenage hood and the stress of life that feels overwhelming at that age. Contains good messages and awareness of mental health.
Language: R for 110 swears and 14 f-words.
Mature content: PG for implied sex on page, self-pleasuring.
Violence: PG for bullying.
Ethnicity: Black and white

A Voice Upstairs by Laura E. Weymouth

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A spooky mystery!

Wil and Ed have been best friends for as long as they can remember. They enjoy spending time together more than with anyone else and their feelings are growing stronger towards each other. Wil is known for her close connection with death and being able to see when someone will be dying soon. When mysterious and suspicious deaths happen at Ed’s manor, he asks Wil to help. The two soon discover that they are in way over their heads.

Likes/dislikes: The prose is beautiful. Wil and Ed are wonderful characters and I grew to love them both. The mystery surrounding them pulled me into the story and created intense suspense. The hauntings added a creepy vibe that gave another dimension to the story.
Language: PG-13 for 19 swears, no f-words.
Mature Content: PG for passionate kissing.
Violence: PG-13 for deaths and bullying.
Ethnicity: falls to white. Ebony skinned maid and a terra cotta skinned laborer.

Invisible Son by Kim Johnson

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Accused of a crime he didn’t commit!

17yo Andre returns to his home in Portland, Oregon feeling angry, confused and disgruntled after serving two months in a juvenile detention center for something he didn’t do. He also has to adjust to pandemic life because everything seems to have changed. Andre was framed for robberies when someone placed a backpack of stolen items in his locker and that’s the evidence that sent him away. He has an idea of who did it and he wants to know the truth. When his friend Eric goes missing, the danger builds and secrets are revealed as Andre tries to find his friend and get justice.

Likes/dislikes: The chapter titles are fun since they’re named after songs. The history of our country’s turmoil during the pandemic is represented well. I enjoyed the book and read it straight through. The story reminds me a bit of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, because of the harsh reality brought to life, but with less swearing.
Language: R for 45 swears and 4 f-words.
Mature Content: PG-13 for underage smoking and the mention of underage drinking.
Violence: PG-13 for mention of attempted murder suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.
Ethnicity: Ethnicity is predominantly white with the Black main characters of Andre, Sierra and Eric. Luis is Mexican American.

Borrow My Heart by Kasie West

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Pets, D&D, and real life!
17yo Wren is waiting for her friend Kamala to finish her shift at the coffee shop when Asher and Dale arrive to meet a girl that Dale assumes is catfishing Asher. Dale wants to document Asher’s disappointment when the girl doesn’t show up but Wren steps in and pretends she’s the girl that Asher is waiting for, in hopes of sparing him the humiliation. Wren and Asher hit it off and she actually starts to like him. He shows up later at the animal shelter where she works and the dog that hates everyone except Wren ends up liking Asher too. The charade keeps going until Wren is afraid to tell Asher the truth because she likes him and it’s mutual.
Likes/dislikes: An absolute delightfully fun read. I like how Wren had to deal with real life issues because of her mom abandoning them when she was ten and having to work with trust issues by learning to set up healthy, realistic boundaries. Bean is the funniest dog.
Language: G for no swears.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Violence: none
Ethnicity: Asher is white, Kamala is Indian, Wren is white.

The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

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A thoroughly enjoyable read!

Violet is forced to attend the Dragon Rider ritual by her mother, the Commander, even though she’s small, has some health issues, and wants to be a scribe instead of a rider. Several other students hate her because of the fact that her mother killed their parents for rebelling. Little do they know that Violet is nothing like her mother.
Violet keeps getting through the different challenges and shows her integrity by standing up for others, even the small featherlight dragon that three bullies try to kill on Threshing Day. Tairn, one of the deadliest dragons in Navarre, steps in to help protect the small golden dragon and chooses Violet as his rider.
Many students die daily through the grueling challenges and several bullies enjoy picking on Violet. She trains hard to strengthen her body and temperament so she can survive and she loves her dragons. A third year wingleader, Xaden, takes notice. He observes Violet and approves of her hunger to do well and her integrity and gives her the nickname, Violent.
An action-packed and exciting fantasy adventure that lives up to the hype!

Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli

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True integrity and a kind soul!

Imogen is a people pleaser through and through. She goes with the flow and agrees with whatever others want. Her best friend Lily is attending college and Imogen visits her over a weekend and falls right into place with the group. She also begins to question herself and her intentions when she starts having feelings for Tessa who is part of Lily’s college friend group. A sweet, humorous story about accepting yourself.

Likes/dislikes: I like Imogen, the main character. She has true integrity and a kind soul. I appreciate the author and how she represents all people and how no one should feel like they have to label themselves or others.
Language: R for 101 swears and 58 f-words.
Mature Content: PG for kissing with no details, implied sex, and sexual innuendo.
Violence: G for none.
Ethnicity: Imogen is white, Kayla has deep brown skin, and Lily has Brazilian relatives.

Echoes and Empires by Morgan Rhodes

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Twist after twist!

17yo Josslyn lost her father, the Prime Minister, to an assassin a year ago during the Queen’s Gala. She’s attending the current Gala to support Celina, her best friend and the first daughter of the present Prime Minister, and to help Celina gain confidence. While at the Gala, Josslyn wanders to the art treasures display and accidentally absorbs magic when an artifact opens during the robbery she walked into. The robber, Jericho, knows the magic will cause swift action and punishment for Josslyn if the Queen finds out because she has completely banned all magic, so the two of them run and end up in the Queens prison after they search for help in removing the unwanted magic and discover they have something in common: the same assassin that killed Josslyn’s father, Lord Banyon, also killed Jericho’s parents. The magic Josslyn absorbed shows her Lord Banyon’s memories from sixteen years ago when he was being tortured and she continues to have these memories in full force, showing her a side of Lord Banyon that isn’t cruel at all. Lazos is the prison overlord and also a warlock who used to be the queen’s magic advisor, so Josslyn and Jericho ask him to get rid of the unwanted magic, but he strikes a deal first; Jericho must kill the beast in the prison before Lazos will help them. When the beast is discovered, many more secrets are revealed and the danger has just begun.

Likes/dislikes: This book is such a fun read! I enjoyed the humor and sarcasm. There’s plenty of action. The story is entertaining almost immediately and I loved the twists.
Mature Content: PG-13 for brief, passionate kissing and underage drinking.
Language: R for 115 swears and no f-bombs.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody kicking, bloody shooting and bloody death.
Ethnicity: Josslyn is white, the queen is white, Overlord is olive skinned, and all shapes, sizes and skintones are at the Fight Club.

We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds

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Mystery wrapped in prejudice!
Avery goes to her mother’s hometown in Bardell County, Georgia, to take care of Mama Letty, who’s dying from cancer, after being away for twelve years due to the contentious relationship between her mom and Grandmother, Mama Letty. Racism and the Ku Klux Klan destroyed Mama Letty when they killed her husband when Zora, Avery’s mother, was just a baby. Afterwards, Letty drank and checked out and was cruel to Zora and now they continue to be angry with each other. Avery and her father are caught in the crossfire. Scandals and secrets are revealed while Avery tries to break down the hurt between her mother and grandmother before time runs out. Mystery wrapped up in prejudice.

Likes/dislikes: I like the mysteries surrounding the different families in the story and they pulled me into the book. Avery and her father made me chuckle. I like how the author represents all types of people and also the prejudice that still lingers in our society.
Mature content: PG-13 for making out vague descriptions, underage drinking, brief kissing, weed smoking , nondescript kiss.
Language: R for 157 swears and 25 f-bombs.
Violence: PG for murder with no details.
Ethnicity: The characters are predominantly Black and White. Korean American is represented.