Arcana Academy, Book 1, by Elise Kova

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Unique take on magical cards!

Enemies to lovers!

Clara has been in prison for creating tarot cards, which is illegal for anyone not at the Arcana Academy. When Prince Kaelis discovers that Clara’s sister Arina gave her the tools to ink the cards, Clara worries for Ariana’s safety. She escapes from prison to warn Arina at the academy, only to have to be rescued from the water when she passes out. Clara wakes up and discovers she’s now inside the academy and is shocked when Kaelis tells of his plans for her to become his bride.

Clara now has to take the challenge of the Chalice, choose one of three pieces of her future, and fight it. If she wins, she’ll become an academy student. If she loses, she’ll be branded and sent to the mill to work until a hard death takes her.

When We Were Monsters by Jennifer Niven

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Pure manipulation!

Seven teens are chosen for the opportunity to be taught writing by the famous author Meredith Graffam. They arrive at Moss, not having a clue of what to expect. Meredith Graffam seems to be excited to bestow her knowledge on these young minds. She also seems a bit eccentric. As the term goes on, Meredith expects crazier and more dangerous acts of daredevil behavior from her students and she kicks out the ones she doesn’t want, one at a time, until four are left. Only one student will be chosen at the end of the competition. The four can help each other survive or sacrifice each other to win.

Likes/dislikes: The story contains some profound statements from Arlo, the teenage boy main character. Wonderful writing advice given to the students by the teacher is dropped throughout the story. I was pulled into the mystery and suspense and I was rooting for the students the whole time.

Mature content: PG-13 on-page, vaguely detailed sex and teen drinking
Language: R for 92 swears and 54 f-words
Violence: PG-13 death and bloody violence
Ethnicity: mixed

The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle, Book 1 of The City of Fantome series

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Is lightfire legend or truth?

In Fantome, Shade magic rules all. Daggers use Shade to destroy and rule. Cloaks use Shade to protect and steal. When a man kills Sera’s mother and burns down their home, she runs to the only place she’s been told to go if she’s in danger, the Cloaks guild in the city of Fantome. Sera’s mother told her to flee to the Cloaks if anything ever happened to her and she was no longer able to protect Sera. Sera’s sure a Dagger killed her mother and set their house on fire, destroying everything, and she swears to seek revenge. Monsters with unknown origins are taking over Fantome and no one knows where they came from or how to get rid of them. Sera’s mother left her a teardrop charm on a necklace and Sera thinks it’s only a token until it explodes into light and saves her life when a monster corners her. Could her mother’s gift be the answer to all?

Likes/dislikes: The twists are so good! My library patrons will love the enemies to lovers theme, with the charming and cute flirting that goes along with it. I love the mystery behind the whole story. Sera has spunk and perseverance. The interesting legend and backstory are fun to dive into.
Mature Content: PG-13 for petting.
Language: R for 153 swears, 35 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody violence and deaths.
Ethnicity: Sera is white. Sera’s friends: Val has brown skin, Theo has golden brown skin, and Bibi has pale skin. The opponent Dagger, Ransom, has olive skin.

Soulmatch by Rebecca Danzenbaker

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Uniquely fun and twisty!

Sivon loves her twin sister best friends, Vivi and Corah, who have helped her prepare to attend the institute to learn about her soul through the kirling process. Now it’s Sivon’s turn to attend the kirling and she arrives at the institute full of anxiety. When her soul identity is revealed after her kirling, Sivon has a new world of possibilities opened up to her. Vivi and Corah are there to support her every step of the way. Her mom has always told Sivon she’s hard to read and Sivon discovers why, as she learns more about herself and her shocking experiences from her past lives.

Likes/dislikes: The more I read this book, the more I wanted to read. Unique story! More complex than I thought it would be when I picked up the book.
Mature content: PG-13 for passionate kissing.
Language: R for 123 swears, 40 f-words.
Violence: PG for gunshot wound and fighting.
Ethnicity: Sivon has bronze skin two shades lighter than her mother’s terracotta skin.
Janus, the prime minister’s nephew, has bronze skin. Twins and Sivon’s best friends, Vivi and Corah, have russet-toned skin. Windrose, the counselor, has warm brown skin. Peach skin and ebony skin are also mentioned.

The Executioners Three by Susan Dennard

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Excellent spooky read!

Theo swerves to miss raccoons crossing the road. He stops to make sure the raccoons are fine but he is shaken by what he discovers. Freddie is logical and strives to find facts in all situations and when a dead man is found, she knows there’s an easy explanation and that the curse hanging over her community for centuries isn’t real. Theo and Freddie cross paths when Freddie calls the police after she hears screams and unknowingly alerts the police to a rival school teen party in the woods. She instantly becomes her school’s hero and hated by the rivals. Weird events keep happening that can’t be explained away and Theo and Freddie get completely wrapped up in the danger and the curse!

Likes/dislikes: An ominous poem at the beginning of the book lends to the creepy setting. Humor, charm, cleverness, strong friendship and the spooky vibe made this book fun to read and it’s a perfect YA book for getting into the Halloween spirit. I love the chemistry between Freddie and Theo. They’re from rival schools and have a rollercoaster relationship.
Mature content: PG-13 for fervent kissing, mention of teens smoking and drinking.
Language: R for 78 swears, (mostly hell and god) and 7 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: predominantly white with side characters having different shades of brown skin and a Black girl.

The Blood Phoenix (Fall of the Dragon book 2) by Amber Chen

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Unique use of technology in a fantasy world!

Ying and her fellow engineering competitors are called back together to help the kingdom fight off the pirates and stop the deadly attacks that are occurring. Ying and Ye-Yang haven’t spoken and they both continue to have feelings for each other. Ying isn’t sure if she can get over his past deception. Ying enjoys working with her engineer friends and wants to stop the pirates from killing anyone else. She discovers there’s more to the attacks and the Blood Phoenix than the rulers think and it puts her friends and loved ones in terrible danger.

Likes/dislikes: I like how the friends from the engineering competition are brought together to help the kingdom fight off the pirates. The comrades work well together. The relationship between Ye-Yang and Ying is topsy turvy and adds to storyline. I love how much Ying and her sister Nian care about each other.
Mature content: PG for urgent kissing, drinking.
Language: PG-13 for 18 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: Oriental with pearl skin and bronze skin mentioned.

Of Jade and Dragons (Fall of the Dragon Book 1) by Amber Chen

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Can trust stay unbroken?

Ying witnessed her father’s murder and she’ll do anything and everything to avenge his death. She also wants to be an engineer like her father. She disguises herself as a boy and enters the engineering competition in the capital. Her sponsor ends up being a prince and she’s completely surprised by this. When Ying becomes part of the competition, she’s also thrown into politics and danger. Will she stay her course and avenge her father?

Likes/dislikes: The names of the royals were confusing at first. I like the dynamics between Ying and Ye-yang. The science fiction and engineering aspects were fun and added an extra element to the story.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: PG-13 for 17 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: based on historical Oriental culture.

The Last Bloodcarver by Vanessa Le

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Enemies to lovers clean romance!

Nikha is a heartsooth, a person with abilities to heal themselves and others. When she finishes healing a person as requested, the man turns her in and calls the Butchers. They cage her and take bids from buyers that visit her cage. She’s sold to a young woman who offers a huge amount of money for Nikha, Mimi Congmi. They travel to the Congmi manor where Nikha is asked to heal Hendon, the only witness to Mimi’s father’s death. Mimi and her brother believe he was murdered. When Nikha heals Hendon, the information he offers throws them all into a whirlwind of danger and deception.

Likes/dislikes: The mystery grabbed my full attention. The world building and character development brought the story to life. I enjoyed learning about Nikha’s background.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: PG-13 for 17 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody violence- stabbing, gunshot wounds.
Ethnicity: Nikha has golden brown skin. Nikha’s grandmother has skin a shade darker than hers. The Congmi family has pale, rosy skin.

The Deathly Grimm

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Conclusion to the Forest Grimm twisted fairytale duology!

Clara and Axel follow a group of sisters in a trance as they’re being called into the cursed forest. Clara and Axel want to save the sisters from the curse which will cause them to go mad or die. As they follow them, Clara meets Harlan, an enchanted frog, and she frees him with a kiss that turns him back into his human form. Harlan helps Clara have visions which give her clues to the person who murdered a Grimm Hollow villager, causing the curse. Clara and Axel sift through the clues to discover the murderer, which will ultimately break the curse on their village and they need all the help they can get. Harlan seems to be helpful but can he be trusted?

Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed how the author incorporated fairytales into the story and how she twisted them a bit. I liked unraveling the mystery behind the curse and how the author used Clara’s incomplete visions to
create uncertainty about the suspects. Axel is still so kind and caring but he also shows insecurities and frustration.
Mature content: PG-13 for kissing.
Language: PG for 2 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody violence.
Ethnicity: Clara and Henni have pale skin and Axel has tawny skin. Lila has bronze skin.

The Forest King’s Daughter by Elly Blake

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Friends to enemies to love interests!

Zeru is from the underground. Cassia is a princess from the forest. Their kingdoms are enemies. When Zeru and Cassia were seven, they accidentally found each other in the forest and became friends. Zeru took a ring from a family jewelry box and gave it to his new friend Cassia, inadvertently creating a bond between the two of them. He also unknowingly started a war between their kingdoms. Ten years later, the battles continue and Cassia is captured by Zeru, so he can recover the ring for the queen of the Cryptlands.

Likes/dislikes: I like how the author placed mythological statements at the beginning of each chapter, giving insight into what would happen during that chapter. I love Cassia with her gentle personality and loving kindness. The realm of Welkincaster was fun to “see” change and grow into a beautiful sanctuary.
Mature content: PG for gentle kissing.
Language: PG for 3 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody hitting.
Ethnicity: fantasy creatures.